Mozarthaus Vienna EN - Mozart's artistic work at Domgasse 5

His most producitve place.

The period in the Domgasse is among the most productive in Mozart’s life. Deadlines and multiple obligations shaped his daily routine, the pace of work and stress level were high: discussing projects, sketching ideas, writing out parts, copying music, practicing the piano part.

During the intense half‑year in which Mozart worked “head over heels” (Leopold Mozart) on the opera Le Nozze di Figaro, countless other works were created in parallel: the musical comedy Der Schauspieldirektor, three piano concertos, the Masonic Funeral Music, a piano rondo, two Masonic songs, a sonata for piano and violin, various operatic insertions, and several smaller wind pieces. It has been calculated that Mozart’s average daily writing output at that time amounted to an incredible six pages, each with 12 lines.

How was this astonishing workload manageable? Noise and chaos do not seem to have bothered the composer much. From letters of the 1780s we know that Mozart often continued composing long past midnight even after social evenings. From 1784 onward, Mozart tried to give piano lessons only in the afternoons “to have every morning free for writing.”

Mozart’s composed works in Domgasse 5 (according to the Köchel catalogue 2024)

In 1784, Mozart began listing almost all the compositions he wrote from that point until his death in the “Catalogue of all my works.” For each work, he added an incipit. Mozart’s catalogue of works is the unique account of his creative life, written by the composer himself.

The Köchel catalogue

K. 492. K. 525. K. 550.
Anyone who studies Mozart encounters these numbers everywhere—they are the universal system for the precise identification of his works. The Köchel catalogue was compiled in 1862 by the Austrian musicologist Ludwig von Köchel and arranges Mozart’s entire output in chronological order. Every composition receives a K. number—from the earliest childhood pieces to the unfinished Requiem. To this day, it remains the worldwide standard reference for Mozart’s music.

The International Mozarteum Foundation Salzburg has fully digitized the catalogue. Scholars, music lovers, and curious explorers from around the world can now search and rediscover Mozart’s works conveniently online.

1784

K. 456

Piano Concerto in B-flat major

Dated: Vienna, 30 September 1784

Mozart played the Piano Concerto in B-flat major, K. 456, at the concert of the singer Laschi on 13 February 1785. His father wrote to Maria Anna: “and your brother played a magnificent concerto, which he had written for the Paradis for Paris.”

K. 457

K. 458

String Quartet in B-flat major

Dated: Vienna, 9 November 1784

On 12 February 1785 (on Leopold Mozart’s second day in Vienna), the three string quartets were premiered in Mozart’s apartment in the Domgasse, in the presence of Joseph Haydn. Leopold Mozart wrote to his daughter: “the new quartets were performed, but only the three new ones that he composed to add to the other three we have — they are indeed a little easier, but excellently composed.”

K. 459

1785

K. 264

Nine Variations in C on “Lison dormoit dans un bocage” for piano

Dated: presumably Vienna, not later than April 1785

The entire work Julie by Nicolas Dezède, as well as the air “Lison dormoit,” circulated in print, so Mozart had access to the composition even outside Paris. The work is first documented as a copy through an advertisement by Laurenz Lausch in the Wiener Zeitung of 2 April 1785.

K. 387c

K. 442

Three trio movements for piano, violin and violoncello Nos. 1 and 2

Dated: Vienna, around 1785 (paper type)

According to the paper and handwriting analysis, the three movements were written at different times. The fragments were completed by Anton Stadler and assembled into a piano trio. No. 1 and No. 3 were presumably composed in 1785. No. 2 was presumably composed in 1786.

K. 464

K. 464a

K. 465

K. 466

Piano Concerto in D minor

Dated: Vienna, 10 February 1785

First performance on 11 February 1785, at a subscription concert in Vienna in the so‑called Mehlgrube. Mozart himself played the piano. On 14 February 1785, Leopold Mozart wrote a letter to his daughter: “then there was a new excellent piano concerto by Wolfgang, which the copyist was still copying when we arrived, and your brother had not even had time to play through the rondo once, because he had to supervise the copying.”

Mozart had a pedal keyboard built for him by Anton Walter, which was placed under the fortepiano and played like an organ pedalboard. Contemporary reports mention this, though insufficiently, so we assume that he used it mainly for improvisation. However, the autograph of K. 466 contains individual bass notes that could not have been played without the pedal keyboard. No pedal keyboard from the 18th century has survived.

K. 467

K. 468

K. 469

Davidde pentimente

Dated: 6/11 March 1785

Mozart assembled this cantata for the Society in Vienna from the 1782/83 C‑minor Mass, K. 427. A complete autograph is not known. This cantata was performed under Mozart’s direction at the concert for the Musicians’ Widows’ Pension Fund in Vienna on 13 and 15 March 1785 in the Burgtheater.

K. 470

K. 471

Die Maurerfreude (The Masons' Joy).

Dated: Vienna, 20 April 1785

“Sehen, wie dem starren Forscherauge,” text by Franz Petran.
This cantata was composed on 24 April 1785 in honor of the head of the lodge Zur Wahren Eintracht, Ignaz von Born, and was performed in the presence of Leopold Mozart by the brethren of the lodge Zur Gekrönten Hoffnung im Orient. The tenor solo was sung by V. Adamberger.

K. 472

K. 474

K. 473

K. 475

K. 476

Das Veilchen (The Violet) „Ein Veilchen auf der Wiese stand“

Dated: Vienna, 8 June 1785

Text by J. W. von Goethe. The text comes from the Singspiel Erwin und Elmire (1774). The song was published in 1789 together with the song Abendempfindung, K. 523, under the title Two German Arias to Be Sung at the Keyboard.

K. 477

Maurerische Trauermusik (Masonic Funeral Music)

Dated: Vienna, presumably November 1785

The work was probably composed around 10 November 1785. The Masonic Funeral Music was premiered on 17 November in the lodge Zur gekrönten Hoffnung. It was dedicated to Georg, Duke of Mecklenburg‑Strelitz (died 6 November 1785), and Count Franz Esterházy (died 7 November 1785).

K. 478

Piano Quartet in G minor

Dated: Vienna, 16 October 1785

At the time Mozart composed the Piano Quartet, he was already working on Le nozze di Figaro. The publisher Franz Anton Hoffmeister intended to publish three piano quartets by Mozart; the quartet in G minor is the first one Mozart delivered. However, it did not sell well, as it was far too demanding for domestic music‑making. Hoffmeister dissolved the contract, and the second piano quartet, K. 493, which Mozart submitted to him, was no longer issued by Hoffmeister but by Artaria. The third was never composed.

K. 479

„Dite almeno in che mancai” / „Dite almeno in che maniera”

Dated: Vienna, 5 November 1785

Quartet for soprano, tenor, two basses, and orchestra. Composed for the opera buffa La villanella rapita by Francesco Bianchi. The opera was performed in Vienna on 25 November 1785. The piece was written for the singers Coltellini (Mandina), Calvesi (Conte), Mandini (Pippo), and Bussani (Biaggio). The quartet was inserted into the opera.

K. 480

„Mandina amabile“

Dated: Vienna, 21 November 1785

Terzet for soprano, tenor, bass, and orchestra. Composed for the opera buffa La villanella rapita by Francesco Bianchi. The opera was performed in Vienna on 25 November 1785. The piece was written for the singers Coltellini (Mandina), Calvesi (Conte), and Mandini (Pippo). The terzet was inserted into the opera.

K. 481

K. 482

Piano Concerto in E‑flat major

Dated: Vienna, 16 December 1785

At the premiere, Mozart had to repeat the Andante. Leopold Mozart writes to his daughter on 13 January 1786:
“Received a reply from your brother dated 28 December. He wrote to me that, in haste, he gave three subscription academies with 120 subscribers; – that he composed a new piano concerto in E‑flat for them, in which |: which is rather strange :| he had to repeat the Andante;”

K. 693

KV 699

1786

K. 352

Five or Eight Variations in F major on “Dieu d’amour” for piano

Dated: Vienna, around 1786

First version: Vienna, around 1781/84 with five variations; second version: Vienna, added later and not later than summer 1786, now expanded by three variations.
The first version was announced in the Wiener Zeitung on 2 April 1785, the second version then on 5 August 1786.

K. 375d

K. 426a

Fragment: Allegro in C minor for two pianos

Dated: Vienna, around 1785/1786

Based on the type of paper, the composition can be assigned to the years 1785 or 1786. The composition was originally added to K. 426; however, since K. 426 is a self‑contained work and K. 426a was written significantly later, there is likely no connection between the two despite the identical key and instrumentation.

K. 483

For the opening of the lodge “Zerfließt heut, geliebte Brüder”

Dated: Vienna, shortly before 14 January 1786

On 11 December 1785, Joseph II issued the so‑called Freemason Patent. At the beginning of the 1780s, there were eight Masonic lodges in Vienna. Joseph II feared that more and more mystics and enemies of the state were infiltrating the Freemasons. The lodges were merged and placed under supervision. Mozart had belonged to the lodge Zur Wohltätigkeit since 14 December 1784. This lodge was merged with two others to form the lodge Zur neugekrönten Hoffnung. The songs Zerfließet heut, geliebte Brüder, K. 483, and Ihr unsre neuen Leiter, K. 484, were performed at the opening of the new lodge Zur neugekrönten Hoffnung on 14 January 1786.

K. 484

K. 485

K. 486

The Impresario

Dated: Vienna, 18 January 1786 and 3 February 1786

The Singspiel was performed on 7 February 1786 in the Schönbrunn Orangery. The text was written by Gottlieb Stephanie the Younger. The comedy was written for a “festive entertainment” (Lustfest) that Emperor Joseph II gave for the governors‑general of the Imperial‑Royal Netherlands, namely Duke Albert of Saxony‑Teschen and his wife, Archduchess Christine.

K. 487

K. 488

Piano Concerto in A major

Dated: Vienna, 2 March 1786

The concerto was completed for Lent of 1786. At that time, Mozart used clarinets in orchestral works for the first time, which is why he rewrote the accompaniment parts in the first movement that had originally been notated for oboes. Because of the type of paper used, it is assumed that he had already begun composing the work in 1784/1785.

K. 488a

K. 488b

K. 488c

K. 488d

K. 489

K. 490

K. 491

Piano Concerto in C minor

Dated: Vienna, 24 March 1786

Mozart performed in several concerts during the spring of 1786, but the date of the first performance of the Piano Concerto in C minor, K. 491, is unknown. The concerto is one of only two piano concertos in a minor key and one of only three piano concertos that include clarinets.

K. 492

Le Nozze di Figaro – Opera buffa in four acts

Dated: 29 April 1786

In a letter to his daughter dated 3–5 November 1785, Leopold Mozart writes that he had not heard from Wolfgang for six weeks; Wolfgang had mentioned something about a new “opera,” and Leopold added that one would see. In his next letter to Maria Anna, dated 11–12 November 1785, he writes:
“At last I have received a letter from your brother dated 2 November, consisting of 12 lines. He asks for forgiveness because he must finish the opera, Le Nozze di Figaro, in great haste… that he has moved all his pupils to the afternoon so that he may have the morning free for writing, etc. I know the piece; it is a very laborious work, and the translation from the French must certainly have been altered to suit an opera if it is to have effect. God grant that it turns out well in performance; I have no doubt about the music.”

The literary source of Le Nozze di Figaro is Pierre‑Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais’ La folle journée ou Le mariage de Figaro (1776).
Mozart chose this highly successful play as the basis for his new opera. The librettist Lorenzo da Ponte adapted the plot in such a way that political connotations were avoided. Beaumarchais’ play was banned in Vienna, though the printed German translation was not.

The opera premiered on 1 May 1786 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, with a total of ten performances.
After a break of two and a half years, the work was performed again in a second version. Mozart altered the opera because the principal singers had changed, and he composed two new arias, K. 577 and K. 579. Outside Vienna, this second version is not known and plays no role in modern performance practice.

K. 493

K. 493a

Fragment: Movement of a quartet in E‑flat major for piano, violin, viola, and violoncello

Dated: Vienna, presumably spring 1786

K. 494

K. 494a

K. 495

K. 495a

K. 496

K. 497

K. 498

Trio in E‑flat major for piano, clarinet (or violin), and viola (Kegelstatt Trio)

Dated: Vienna, 5 August 1786

The trio was probably composed for Franziska von Jacquin. She was a skilled pianist and a pupil of Mozart. She and her brother Gottfried von Jacquin were also friends of Mozart. The work is also called the “Kegelstatt Trio,” because Mozart is said to have written it while playing skittles; however, the autograph provides no evidence for this.