The music discussion as of late has been dominated by massive rising stars who are taking the pop charts by storm. However, recent news has shown that we will soon get a new piece of music from a composer who’s been dead for over 200 years.
Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart needs no introduction. With his compositions being a key part of Western culture, it now appears a new piece is being added to the catalog.
Researchers at the Leipzig Municipal Libraries in Germany recently uncovered a handwritten manuscript while attempting to update the Köchel, a massive catalog of Mozart’s work. The manuscript is said to be dated to 1780 and was allegedly transcribed by his sister. Researchers believe Motzart composed this piece as a teenager, before his first visit to Italy.
Written for a trio, two violins, and a bass, it stands out in Mozart’s earlier catalog according to according to Ulrich Leisinger, of the International Mozarteum Foundation. Leisinger explains that Mozart’s early work primarily focused on piano pieces, so a string trio is a new layer of young Mozart we’ve never heard up close.
Dubbed “Ganz kleine Nachtmusik,” this work is just one of many lost Mozart pieces — it just so happens this one was lucky enough to come to light. Mozart is said to have composed over 600 pieces in his short 35-year life, not all of which survive today. The Guardian recently reported that the piece was played for the first time at the Leipzig Opera on Saturday, September 20.
Mozart’s new piece and the research around it show the never-ending passion that goes into preserving some of the music from the past. While it may not always lead to groundbreaking discoveries like this, the preservation of musical history will always be an important but overlooked facet of this industry.
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