Unpublished Mozart from his youth discovered in Germany

(Keystone-ATS) A previously unknown short piece attributed to Mozart has been discovered in Leipzig, eastern Germany, researchers said Thursday. The Austrian musician probably composed it in his youth.

It is a seven-movement set for string trio with a total duration of around twelve minutes, which is believed to have been written in the mid- to late 1760s, the Leipzig City Libraries said in a statement.

A child prodigy, Mozart was born in 1756 and began composing at an early age under the direction of his father, Leopold Mozart.

The researchers discovered the work in the city’s Music library while compiling the latest edition of the Köchel catalogue, the comprehensive collection of Mozart’s musical works.

First performed in Salzburg

“The manuscript is a copy or transcription made around 1780. It is therefore not in Mozart’s handwriting. Dark brown ink and white vat paper were used (…) the manuscript is not signed,” the statement said.

In the new catalogue, the unpublished piece is called “Ganz kleine Nachtmusik” (“Little Night Music”), in reference to one of Mozart’s most famous works.

It was first performed in public on Thursday by a string trio in Salzburg, Austria, where Mozart was born. A German premiere will take place at the Leipzig Opera on Saturday.

Chamber music

For Ulrich Leisinger, scientific director of the Mozarteum Foundation in Salzburg, quoted in a press release, this piece sheds new light: “Until now, we knew the young Mozart mainly as a composer of piano music, arias and symphonies.

A list by Leopold Mozart, however, has informed us of the existence of many other chamber music compositions from his youth, all of which have unfortunately been lost.