Leopold Mozart's colorful language

December 26, 2025, 9:31 AM · I am rereading Leopold Mozart's treatise on violin playing, it was historically the first complete manual of violin playing. Actually, it really is a manual for teachers. Originally written in 18th century German, a new edition was produced a bit less than twenty years ago by M.M. Beckmann who converted the text in modern German, while keeping the unique character of Mozart's writing style. This modern German edition was then faithfully translated into English by Elisabeth Kaplan. Mozart really employed a colorful language to drive his points home. I didn't want to keep from you the following gem, there are many more of this quality in the book! He surely was not afraid of using stereotypes! I quote: "Sometimes a pupil understands the division of the measure, but cannot render it with a steady beat. Here one should closely consider his temperament, otherwise he may be ruined for the rest of his life. A merry, frolicsome, lively person will tend more towards haste; whereas a mournful, lazy and dull-spirited person will always drag. If one lets a fiery and lively person play quick pieces from the start, before he can play slow ones with metrical precision, then he will rush all his life. On the other hand, if one presents a lifeless and lugubrious stick-in-the-mud with nothing but slow pieces, he will always remain a player without spirit; drowsy and mournful. Thus one can counter such shortcomings as arise from the temperament with sensible instruction. One can restrain the hot-head with slow pieces and tame his spirit bit by bit; the sluggish and drowsy player can be enlivened with cheerful pieces, and with time be transformed from a half-dead into a living person." :-)

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jean dubuisson

December 26, 2025, 9:35 AM · Another gem, about the use of stickers on the fingerboard. Quote: "I cannot omit to touch on one silly method which a number of teachers use to instruct their pupils: they stick small labels with written letters on the fingerboard of the pupil's vision, or even mark the position of each note on the side of the fingerboard with a deep cut or at least a notch. If the pupil has a musical ear, such grotesqueries are needless; if he lacks one, then he is unfit for music and should rather reach for an ax than for the violin." :-)

Steve Jones

Edited: December 26, 2025, 10:25 AM · That's a good one - I guess truthfully held sentiments even if they're not to be taken as universal truths.

I've recently been getting some amusement from the reminiscences of Michael Kelly, the Irish singer who claimed to have been closely acquainted with Mozart (father and son), Haydn (Joseph and Michael) and many lesser composers as well as singers on his travels through Italy and Austria. Unfortunately some of his self-aggrandising stories are so far-fetched one has to question them all including the ones that might have made useful evidence for musical historians.

Nickie McNichols

December 26, 2025, 10:23 AM · Axe=guitar.

Andrew Fryer

December 26, 2025, 11:56 AM · Having read Goethe's Dichtung und Wahrheit, Faust, Werther and Wahlverwandtschaften, my mind is pulped by the thought of needing to translate them into modern German.

Leopold Mozart's colorful language

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