Mozart: A Life by Maynard Solomon Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Mozart: A Life
Book Review: A compelling look at a life of creativity and of pain
Summary: 4 Stars
It's hard to fathom the sheer genius that was Mozart, a musician and composer capable of playing and writing music that will never be forgotten. This book goes a long way to helping to understand a complex and talented man whod ied at a young age but left such an astounding legacy. The difficult relationship with his father, his loving relationship with his mother and sister, his breakaway to Vienna, his marriage, all receive attention in this masterful volume. The Freudian jargon does detract at times from the story (and occasionally mystifies the reader with odd sentences and abstractions that seem meant for psychotherapists to argue about: was his use of an occasional nickname for himself of "Adam" in place of "Amadeus" really another way for him to see himself reborn with his mother as Eve??...well, I don't know or care, really). Solomon's extensive attention to Mozart's relationship with his father does have a nice way of bringing the story all together. Leopold comes across as nearly insane, a man who never comes to accept his son's obvious genius, pushing his son to consider lowly postings in Strasbourg in deference to his family, rather than go to Vienna to assume his place among the musical elite of Europe. Mozart's split with his father and sister comes through brilliantly. The reader can share his pain and ambivalence in moving to Vienna, knowing that his art and talent demanded it but suffering as a result. I have not read other Mozart biographies, but I am hard-pressed to imagine what I may be missing. This is a masterly and fascinating look at one of the millenium's most prodigious talents.Book Review: Hard-Core Mozart
Summary: 5 Stars
Here is a book that takes a hard, scrutinizing look at the life of Mozart as viewed from the perspective of his complex and often frightening relationship with his domineering father. It strips away the traditional mask of Leopold Mozart as the self-sacrificing, all-caring patriarch and shows him for the controlling, smothering neurotic that he probably was. Even by 18th century standards, this man tried to hold back the clock and keep his son a perpetual child, even to the point of almost ruining his life.That much being said, of course, such a book is part fact, part speculation--but it was well documented; and even when it occasionally wanders into the realm of psycho-babble, it is a gripping book that made this reader, for one, shed tears of outrage. Excellent.
Book Review: Enjoyment marred by unexpected pop psychology
Summary: 3 Stars
Solomon's book was my first foray into a major biography about a classical composer. I chose it because it came highly recommended, and Mozart was the first composer that I felt I needed to study in depth. I entered into it hoping to find factual information as well as some interpretation.While I think that Solomon's writing overall is very enjoyable (we aren't bothered with descriptions of furniture layouts, as in A. Scott Berg's "Lindbergh") what troubles me about this book is his use of Freudian psychoanalysis. Now, I have studied Freud, and I find many of his ideas very interesting, but I have been consistently disappointed with efforts to impose some of these concepts where they do not belong. Solomon does this to Mozart, and I just didn't buy it at all. What particularly troubled me was the fact that Solomon never explains what he's doing. It would make sense for him to define the critical tools he's going to use on Mozart, and explain WHY he thinks it is valid or important to examine Mozart this way. Instead, he just launches into it, expecting that the reader takes these concepts for granted. I'm sorry but I do not believe that a primary instinct of any given male from any place and period in time is an overwhelming desire to return to his mother's womb. If you do- then you will enjoy Solomon's book. Rather labored, I think, is his definition of the "adagio/andante archetype," in which a large number of Mozart's slow movements can be read as a need to resolve tension. Solomon defines this tension as a feeling of loss, of being ousted from paradise, in short, of seperation from one's mother. Ugh.
I respect Solomon's efforts, certainly, and don't blame him for expressing his feelings about Mozart's music this way, but when I studied his examples and his arguments it didn't follow through. They can be made, but I don't think there's any more truth to his theory than there is to my abstract, subjective experience of music that I find beautiful or moving.
The rest of the book, though, is very good. I don't mind where Solomon speculates about things, because he's usually forthcoming about the lack of proof. For instance, it is suggested that Franz Anton Mesmer (inventor of the glass harmonica!) had offered Mozart a good position in Vienna several years before Mozart actually went (when he was trying so hard to attain a good position), but that Leopold had buried the letter so his son wouldn't leave Salzburg. That's really interesting to think about, and there's more where that came from, not to mention a complete list of Mozart's works by K. number.
I'd recommend getting yourself a nice collection of good recordings, and Neal Zaslaw's "Compleat Mozart" to start off with. Give this book a try, but be warned. While not as preposterous as "Amadeus," it shares some of that film's creative license. Both have their good points. And if you do buy into Solomon's theories, then you will enjoy this book.
Book Review: A Wonderful, Readable Biography
Summary: 5 Stars
I've now read Solomon's Mozart biography twice -- it's that good. The book is insightful & beautifully written, and while at times I think the author strays too far into psychological matters, his insights into the music -- particularly (for me) the piano sonatas -- are excellent. He also avoids the heavy-handedness so evident in the recent "Mozart:A Cultural Biography". This book is superior even to Solomon's Beethoven bio; I recommend it to every classical music lover.Book Review: Outstanding
Summary: 5 Stars
There are several other reviews in this space that detail the virtues of this book. I simply want to add my voice to that chorus. Individual chapters, like Trouble in Paradise, are worth the cost of the book. This chapter completely reoriented my thinking about the andante movements of the piano sonatas. I will never hear them in the same way again. This is a must-have book for Mozart lovers.