Task 3: Mozart
Mozart was a fascinating musician and composer whose fame continues to grow more than two centuries after his death. He was born in Salzburg, Austria, in 1756. Before the age of four, he had shown great musical talent. His father then decided to let him start taking harpsichord lessons. The boy’s reputation as a musical talent grew fast. At five, he was composing music. Form that time on, Mozart was performing n concerts and writing music. By his early teens, he had mastered the piano, violin and harpsichord, and was writing symphonies and operas. His first major opera was performed in Milan in 1770, when he was only fourteen. At fifteen, Mozart became the conductor for an orchestra in Salzburg. In 1781, he left for Vienna, where he was in great demand as both a performer and a composition teacher. His first opera was a success. But life was not easy because he was a poor businessman, and his finances were always in a bad state. His music from the next decade was not very popular, and he eventually fell back on his teaching jobs for a living. In 1788 he stopped performing in public, preferring only to compose. He died in 1791 at the age of thirty-five. Although he lived only a short life, he composed over 600 works.
1. Which of the following is true of Mozart? D
2. How long has Mozart’s fame lasted? A
3. Which of the following is true of the four-year-old Mozart? B
4. What could Mozart do at the age of six? C
5. Which of the following is not mentioned as one of Mozart’s accomplishments while he was in his early teens? C
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