489. WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART: THE EVOLVING ART OF GENIUS

During his European tours, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart became the talk of aristocratic and popular circles. The prodigious talents of this child prodigy—a boy who started composing at the age of five, a boy who could play a piece at the keyboard after one hearing, and a boy who could play the violin the first time he picked up the instrument—were not to be believed. A mythology grew about him that would have been impossible for anyone else to live up to. Mozart not only lived up to that reputation, but he also surpassed it. His father’s mentorship and his son’s inherent gifts provided the foundation for his remarkable ability to absorb contemporary and past musical models. At the same time, he brought innovations to everything he wrote, and he soon surpassed the type of guidance his father could offer. We will explore Mozart as man and myth, and with a particular focus on Mozart’s ability to integrate—and innovate—older musical forms, we will examine several of his works.   

1:00 – 3:00 p.m.                                                                                                 2 Sessions

Thursdays, September 4 – September 11                                                         Fee:  $60

Note: A Zoom Link will be sent to you at least one day prior to the first day of class and again on a weekly basis prior to each successive. 

 ABOUT THE LECTURER

Thomas Fahy is a nonfiction writer, novelist, and professor of literature and creative writing. His most recent book, The Life of the Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald, is being released in the fall of 2025. He has also published essays on everything from Paris Hilton and 1980s vampire films to contemporary television and theater. His works have been translated into several languages, and he has been interviewed by the Associated Press, Salon, and other publications, as well as radio hosts in the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, Ireland, and Malaysia. He was recently featured in a documentary about Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood for Arte Television and on the BBC radio program “Literary Pursuits.” When he is not writing, Dr. Fahy performs regularly as a classical pianist with the New York Paino Society and has appeared in recent concerts at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Merkin Concert Hall, and other venues in New York City. He has a degree in music from the University of California, Davis, and he served as an adjunct professor of piano at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for several years before moving to New York. He is a fascinating and dynamic teacher who is able to bring his wide interdisciplinary knowledge to whatever the subject.