Requiem (Mozart)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote the Requiem mass in D minor (K. 626) in 1791. It was Mozart's last composition and is also, perhaps, one of his most powerful and recognised works.

Myths surrounding the Requiem

Despite its acclaim and recognition, the "Requiem" is perhaps one of the most mysterious pieces Mozart composed - around which many legends have grown (thanks largely to Peter Shaffer's play Amadeus and the movie made from it). They are, as follows:

Related Topics:
Legend - Peter Shaffer - Amadeus

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• Myth: A strange messenger requested a Requiem that appears to be for Mozart's own funeral.
• Reality: Commissioned by Count Walsegg-Stuppach. He did use a messenger, and it appears that he wanted to take credit for the work himself (although scholars differ on whether or not Mozart was aware of this -- it's possible that the Count paid Mozart extra money to allow his music to be used for this purpose.)
• Myth: Antonio Salieri helped to complete the Requiem on the deathbed of Mozart.
• Reality: Completed by Süssmayr, at Constanze's urging (there is nothing to suggest that Salieri had anything to do with any part of the Requiem).
• Myth: Mozart actively worked on the Requiem up to the moment he died.
• Reality: In the last days of his life he had become too sick (his hands were swollen) to work on it any more. He did have the Requiem (as far as it went) sung to him on one of his last days (reportedly the Lacrymosa moved him to tears), and there is a report of him trying to voice drum parts at the very end of his life, but the portrayal in Amadeus of Mozart working through the night just before he died is not accurate.
• Myth: It was played at Mozart's funeral.
• Reality: Mozart had a small funeral on 6 December 1791, and was buried in a communal grave. A memorial service on 10 December 1791 was organised by Mozart's friend and librettist, Emanuel Schikaneder, at which one of the completed movements (the Introït) might have been performed; we do not know what music was in fact played.
• Myth: Everything after the Lacrymosa was composed by Süssmayr.
• Reality: Although the Lacrymosa breaks off incomplete after 8 bars, as noted above, the vocal and continuo of the Domine Jesu and the vocal parts of the Hostias are in Mozart's hand. The complexity of the Domine Jesu, with its frequent use of counterpoint and three fugues, would be very unlikely as the work of Süssmayr, given the nature of the Hosanna fugue which he did compose.
• Myth: Mozart gave Süssmayr detailed instructions on how to complete the Requiem.
• Reality: Exactly what Mozart might have told Süssmayr about the Requiem is not clear. Some scholars believe that when Mozart stopped work on the Requiem, he was still well and had no idea that his death was impending (and thus wouldn't have bothered telling Süssmayr anything). By the time he knew he was dying, it was too late. Others believe that Mozart and Süssmayr had conversations about the Requiem before his death. We will likely never know the answer to this question for sure, and there tends to be a lot of myth and romance wrapped up in the subject. One point sometimes brought up is that Süssmayr was a second (or third) choice of Mozart's wife to finish the Requiem -- if Mozart had detailed discussions with Süssmayr, it wouldn't seem that he would be so far down the list.