The Shady Truth About Mozart's Father

Per The New Yorker, another Mozart biographer, Ruth Halliwell, argued that Leopold's behavior was necessary for his son to become a success, and that the long tours and instruction in the practical aspects of making a living as an artist were a necessary part of Mozart's life and career. Nevertheless, it's disturbing to read passages from Maynard Solomon's book "Mozart: A Life" in which Leopold is discussed as allegedly forcing his son upon the world as a miracle prodigy and seeing Wolfgang's love of fun and joy as something to be controlled and even discouraged in favor of discipline and constant work. There might be too many modern examples of child stars who were pushed to extremes by overbearing parents to not find the story of Leopold and his treatment of Wolfgang more than a little disturbing.

According to Mozart.com, Wolfgang broke away from his father's influence as he got older. When he was 21, he declined a position his father had obtained for him at the court of Salzburg's prince-archbishop. "Salzburg is not a place for my talent ... The archbishop could not pay me enough for the slavery in Salzburg," he wrote. Despite this ongoing professional and personal tension, the men reportedly stayed close until Leopold's death in 1787.

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