Antonio Salieri  
18 August 1750 – 7 May 1825

Early Life:
Antonio Salieri was born in Legnago Italy on 18 August 1750.  His father was a wealthy agricultural merchant enabling Antonio and his brother Francesco to study both the violin and harpsichord at the conservatory.  The bothers were tutored at the conservatory by the celebrated Italian composer/violinist Giuseppe Tartini (8 April 1692 – 26 February 1770).  Tartini composed violin concerti and sonatas, unusually he didn’t write any operas or church music.  In addition to his compositional work he was a renowned music theorist.  He is credited with the discovery of sum and difference tones ie intonation of double-stops can be judged by listening to the difference tone.  In 1754 Tartini published his discovery in Trattato di musica secondo la vera scienza dell'armonia.

Salieri’s parents died when he was still a child, his mother dying when he was twelve years old and his father dying shortly after.  After their death he moved to Padua and then, aged 15 (1776), to Venice under the patronage of the Mocenigo family.  The Mocenigo family was one of the wealthiest and prestigious aristocratic families in Venice.

In Venice the Mocenigo family arranged for Salieri to study composition with the organist and composer, Giovanni Battista Pescetti, the assistant Kapellmeister of the cathedral of San Marco and a successful opera composer (1704 – 1766) and voice with Giovanni Pacini the tenor at San Marco (1796 – 1867).  The Mocenigo family intended Salieri to continue his studies in Naples; however, during this period he met Florian Leopold Gassmann, also under the patronage of the Mocenigo family. In 1766 Gassmann took Salieri to Vienna where he lived for the rest of his life.  In Veienna Gassman ensured Salieri had a proper education engaging German and French, Italian and Latin teachers, while teaching Salieri composition himself.

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Life at Court:
Gassman not only took care of Salieri’s education but ensured he was introduced to people who could advance his career.  Amongst others he introduced Salieri to:  Emperor Joseph II – Gassman introduced Salieri to the Emperor at a chamber music session.  These sessions had no set format the Emperor used the sessions to become familiar with new operas.  Musicians including Joseph II alternated between playing and singing depending on who was at the session.  Salieri would have been expected to take part immediately and he was subsequently asked to sithe read a few solo sections.  Emperor Joseph II asked Gassman to bring Salieri to these camber music sessions on a regular basis. Although Salieri still had no formal appointment he received 50 ducats for his participation in the chamber music sessions as a New Year gift and 80 ducts the following year.

Pietro Metastasio, a renowned librettist and an authority on opera seria.  Salieri received private instruction on declamation (recitation delivered as an exercise in rhetoric or elocution) from Metastasio. He also became a regular at Metastasio’s evening and Sunday morning gatherings which were attended by the most prestigious Viennese residents and foreign visitors.

Christoph Willibald von Gluck (1714 – 1797) an eminent opera composer and reformer of the classical musical era, especially remembered for Orfeo ed Euridice.

Salieri began his career writing short adaptations and insertions Gassman’s opera.
In 1774, after Gassmann's death, Salieri was appointed court composer by Emperor Joseph II. He met his wife, Therese von Helferstorfer in 1774, her father was opposed to the marriage as he felt Salieri didn’t earn enough, he only made 100 ducats a year as court composer.  Emperor Joseph II on hearing about Salieri’s situation increased his annual stipend to 300 ducats, Salieri had to take over some of the aging Kapellmeister Bonno’s duties. In 1774 Salieri and Therese married and went on to have eight children.

Between 1788 and 1824 Salieri held the post of Royal and Imperial Kapellmeister.   He was president of the "Tonkünstler-Societät" (society of musical artists) from 1788 to 1795, vice-president after 1795, and in charge of its concerts until 1818.
Salieri mixed with other famous composers of the period eg Hayden and mixed in the upper echelons of society.  He taught many famous composters eg Beethoven and Schubert, and Mozart’s youngest son Franz Xaver.

By 1820 Mozart’s popularity had begun to out shine Salieri’s.  His work was beginning to be thought of as out dated while Mozart’s seemed to survive subsequent musical developments.  With his musical popularity fading Salieri still had to answer repeated questions about Mozart’s music and their relationship.  He must also have heard the rumours that Mozart had been poisoned and that he had been linked to the alleged poisoning.

He spent his later years teaching and going over his earlier compositions.

In 1820 he started suffering from old age and especially from gout.   In 1823 he visited Baden to recuperate from a particularly bad bout, weak he fell down some stairs injuring his head. He never fully recovered and often became confused.  His condition continued to deteriorate and he became paralyzed.  He was admitted to hospital in October 1823, whist there he is reported to have attempted suicide by cutting his throat.  While this cannot be substantiated he did manage to cut his throat.  His conditioned continued to deteriorate, he is reported to have suffered from increasing bouts of depression believing he was in some way to blame for Mozart’s death, while on other occasions denying this to those visiting him. 

Salieri died on 7 May 1825.  He was buried in the Matzleinsdorfer Friedhof (his remains were later transferred to the Zentralfriedhof) in Vienna. His own Requiem in C minor - composed in 1804 was performed for the first time at his funeral.  Salieri’s monument is adorned with a poem written by Joseph Weigl
Rest in peace! Uncovered by dust
Eternity shall bloom for you.
Rest in peace! In eternal harmonies
Your spirit now is dissolved.
He expressed himself in enchanting notes,
Now he is floating to everlasting beauty.
Salieri and Mozart

Rumours of rivalry between Mozart and Salieri increased after Mozart’s death.  There is no evidence to support this.  Salieri and Mozart respected each other and often collaborated or supported each others work, although there were some moments of friction that might have fuelled these rumours.

In 1781 Mozart applied to be the Princess of Württemberg’s music teacher, instead, Salieri was given the post based on his reputation as a singing teacher.  In 1782 Mozart applied to be the Princess’s piano teacher and was again refused.

Salieri and Mozart collaborated on a number of projects.  In September 1785 Salieri, Mozart and Alessandro Cornetti to compose the music for Per la ricuperata salute di Ofelia Da Ponte’s cantata.

Mozart was also invited to perform at the Tonkünstler Societies Advent concerts.  The Hofkapellmeister was responsible for overseeing the direction of these concerts.  At the time Giuseppe held the position but he was old and sick so Salieri to would have had a substantial influence over who was invited to perform at the concerts.  During this period Mozart was often invited to contribute.  Mozart’s Symphony in G Minor, K, 550 opened the Tonkünstler Societies Lend concert in 1791.

As Kapellmeister Salieri considered the national German Singspiel style of opera to be his domain and this is where he may have potentially come into conflict with Mozart who had actively been seeking opera commissions since his arrival in Vienna.  This left the Italian Ensemble, Mozart choosing to work with Da Ponte someone Salieri had no interest in working with since the failure of an earlier opera he had collaborated with Da Ponte on.  There was little reason for conflict between the two composers in opera; Mozart had concentrated on instrumental pieces only composing a few operas while Salieri was considered to be Gluck’s (a renowned opera reformer) rightful heir.

Mozart and Salieri did come into conflict over Salieri’s decision to side with Count Rosenberg, director of the court theatre, in his criticism of Mozart’s insertions for Pasquale Anfossi’s opera Il curioso indiscreto in 1783.  Mozart’s compositions for Aloysia Lange and Valentin Adamberger, former members of the German Singspiel but newly aligned to the Italian Ensemble annoyed existing members of the Ensemble.

There is, far more evidence of a cooperative relationship between the Salieri and Mozart than one of any real enmity. For example, when Salieri was appointed Kapellmeister in 1788, he revived Figaro instead of bringing out a new opera of his own, and when he went to the coronation festivities for Leopold II in 1790 he had no fewer than three Mozart masses in his luggage. Salieri and Mozart even composed a cantata for voice and piano together

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