Mozart

piano virtuoso composer virtuoso pianist endorser/witness cited on piano quality

Biography

Mozart appears in the text as a witness to the quality of Johann Andreas Stein's pianos: in a letter to his mother, he pronounced Stein's instruments superior to any others he had played. This endorsement is cited as evidence of Stein's reputation and his influence on the Vienna school of piano making, since Vienna builders widely copied Stein's designs after this praise circulated. The text also connects Mozart indirectly to the Streicher family, noting that Nannette Streicher (Stein's daughter) had played for both Mozart and Beethoven during her career as a concert pianist. No further biographical information about Mozart himself—dates, nationality, or career details beyond this musical judgment—is given in this section, which treats him solely as a contemporary authority on piano quality cited to establish Stein's standing. Mozart is cited as one of the masters — with Bach and Beethoven — who preferred the clavichord's delicate, expressive touch to the more powerful harpsichord and early pianoforte. The text notes that while traveling about Europe as a piano virtuoso, Mozart carried a clavichord with him for daily practice, and that he composed 'The Magic Flute' and other masterpieces on that instrument, underscoring the clavichord's importance to composers seeking expressive nuance despite its weak tone. Mozart is cited as one of the masters who preferred the Schröter-Stein piano action, developed by Johann Andreas Stein's addition of the "hopper" to the earlier Schröter/Silbermann action, over the English action in use at the same period, despite that action eventually giving way to the Cristofori-Backers lineage.

Highlights

Preferred the clavichord to the harpsichord and early pianoforte.
Carried a clavichord with him while touring Europe as a piano virtuoso, for daily practice.
Composed 'The Magic Flute' and other masterpieces on the clavichord.
Preferred the Schröter-Stein piano action over the English action of his time
In a letter to his mother, pronounced Johann Andreas Stein's pianos superior to any others he had played
Was played for by pianist Nannette Streicher

Source

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), p. 87.

Public domain.

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