Composer Biography Reading Lesson · Grades 4–7

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

A biography reading lesson on Mozart. Students learn about his early years as a child prodigy in Salzburg, his travels around Europe, his frustrations with the archbishop, his move to Vienna, and his enormous output of nearly 600 compositions before his death at 35.

Reading Passage

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

It can be said that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a child genius. He was born in Salzburg, Austria, in 1756 and soon earned the nickname wunderkind — wonder child. Mozart learned to play keyboards when he was just three years old, and he was composing music for the piano by the age of five. He wrote his first full symphony when he was nine, and he completed his first full opera at twelve.

Mozart was born into a musical family. His father, Leopold, was a composer and violin teacher who tutored Wolfgang at home. Wolfgang’s favorite subjects were math and music. His father proudly took him on tour all over Europe to perform as a child prodigy. He spent much of his childhood on the road.

When he was about twelve, Mozart went to work for Count Colloredo, the Archbishop of Salzburg, and remained in his service until he was twenty-five. In those days, a musician was considered a servant — closer in status to a cook or butler than to an artist. Mozart became frustrated with the work and the low pay, and at twenty-five he left for Vienna.

Outside of music, Mozart was small and thin with a large head of hair. He always powdered his hair, which was the fashion of his day. He had a playful sense of humor and loved games like billiards, bowling, and charades. He kept cats, dogs, and birds as pets — and is said to have once owned a pet bird that could sing a tune from one of his piano concertos.

Mozart wrote during the Classical Period of music. He composed nearly 600 pieces — enough to take about 200 hours to play in full — including operas like The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, and The Magic Flute, plus symphonies, concertos, sonatas, and choral works. He died in 1791 at just 35 years old, but his music remains some of the most performed and beloved in the world.

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