Bigger Than the Music: The Impact and Legacies of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and John Lennon

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27th, 1756 in Salzburg, Austria into a family of musical prodigies. This included his father Leopold and his sister Maria Anna, often referred to as Nannerl. Leopold recognized the musical genius in the kids at a very young age and began to teach them everything he knew about music. Wolfgang would soon go on to learn the harpsichord, violin, viola, piano, and organ. When Wolfgang turned six and Nannerl was eleven, Leopold took the children on a tour of Europe, as “the siblings traveled to the courts of Paris, London, The Hague, and Zurich performing as child prodigies”(Biography.com). For three years they would travel Europe, performing for royalties and meeting great composers. Johann Christian Bach, Johann Sebatian Bach’s youngest son, had a tremendous influence on young Wolfgang. His “most important achievement was the symphony (K 297) composed for the Concert Spirituel, a brilliant D Major work in which he met the taste of the Parisian public (and musicians) for orchestral display without sacrifice of integrity”, which was written in 1778 when Wolfgang was only twenty two(Sadie). His compositions would go on to become extremely popular during his lifetime, as he was looked at as one of the greatest composers alive. He would impact his own musical society in a large way by popularizing the piano, preferring it over the harpsichord. He would also write some of the most influential music for the clarinet family. He was also one of the first composers to use the four movement symphony “where minuets and trios are typically the third movement”(Tarantino). His impact would also be felt in his operas, as his characters were strong and realistic with simple and graceful melodies to accompany. Mozart managed to “master the orchestra’s colors, using cleverly chosen groups of instruments to create special effects and sounds”, an ability which would be studies endlessly by the likes of Beethoven(Dummies.com). Wolfgang was able to take an already established genre of music and reshape it into his own, inspiring many of the great composers that are still listened to today. His impact is felt in today’s society as well, with over four million monthly listeners on Spotify. People around the globe listen to his beautiful compositions to help with studying or writing papers, creating masterful works of art, or simply to unwind after a long day. He has also influenced modern musicians, like jazz pianist Chick Corea, “who has performed piano concertos of Mozart and was inspired by them to write a concerto of his own”(Newworldencyclopidia.com).

Many modern musicians have rose to great fame and success in recent times, as the ability for anyone to stream and post music on platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, and Soundcloud has created an avenue for anyone and everyone to be a musician. Despite this recent development in musical culture, it is almost virtually impossible to possess the skill and gain the fame and praise that Mozart has garnered over the past three centuries. However, there are examples of ‘Mozartian’ musicians whose music will be listened to and studied for centuries to come. One of these artists is John Lennon, famously of The Beatles. Lennon is not only famous for his music, but also for his influence on society in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Born on October 9th, 1940 in Liverpool, England, Lennon was raised by his mother’s sister Mimi, after his father went AWOL while serving in the British navy. He received his first guitar while in his early teens, and in the 1950’s he formed a band called The Quarry Men Skiffle Band. It was at the St Peter’s Church in Woolton, Liverpool where John would meet his eventual musical partner in Paul McCartney. The two complimented each other very well, and McCartney would eventually add lead guitarist, George Harrison, into the group. The trio performed their first concert at the Cavern Club in Liverpool on March 21st, 1961. Soon after, drummer Ringo Starr would join, becoming the seventh and only drummer to stick with the band. In 1963, such hits as “Please Please Me” and “She Loves You” would lead to the term “Beatlemania” being used to describe the excitement and popularity that would surround The Beatles. After the release of their 1964 hit, “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, Beatlemania had reached a global scale as the song entered the US charts and sold immensely. Lennon would marry his first wife, Cynthia Powell, in 1962 and had one son with her, named Julian. His marriage was frowned upon. However, as her presence would affect the popularity of the band, She was forced to keep a low profile in order to present Lennon and The Beatles as attractive and desirable to the media and their fans. During the late 1960’s Lennon became a frequent user of the drug LSD, which influence the music of The Beatles drastically. The group traveled to India to study the Eastern religions and their music. This can be shown in songs off their albums “Revolver” and “Magical Mystery Tour”, with titles such as “I Am The Walrus”, “Strawberry Fields Forever”, and “Yellow Submarine”. John would divorce Cynthia in 1968, and would go on to marry his second wife, Yoko Ono, in 1969. The band would start to break apart in 1969, a great deal of the blame is placed on Yoko as she would frequently sit in the studio and giver her unwanted criticism to the band. Lennon would begin his successful solo career, and in 1970 he would become a leading and influential activist against the Vietnam War. Lennon’s song “Give Peace a Chance” “became an anthem for the anti-war movement. Due to his anti-war stance, the Nixon administration tried to have him deported[from The United States], but after a long struggle, he was able to gain a green card in 1976”(Biographyonline.net). Lennon would settle down for a while, spending time with Yoko and their new son, Sean. John Lennon would be shot and killed outside of his apartment building in Dakota, New York, by a man named David Chapman. Chapman, a crazed fan of The Beatles, would justify his actions due to the fame that Lennon possessed. Full of envy for this attention, he would shoot Lennon five times and got the attention he sought in prison, where he has been since 1981. Although his time had passed, Lennon would continue to influence musicians around the globe. His solo and group work have over twenty eight million monthly listeners on Spotify combined. Some of his most famous songs, such as his other anti-war anthem “Imagine”, continue to be relevant in the present day.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and John Lennon share similar characteristics in life and influence. Both started writing and performing at a relatively young age, although Mozart was recognized immediately for his genius while Lennon rose to fame a bit later in his life. Both artists would go on to tour their respective worlds, writing and performing for countless amounts of people. Both would spontaneously create their works, with Lennon writing down the dream he had and Mozart's music would magically enter his mind out of thin air. Although his musical talents were no comparison to Mozart, Lennon’s influence on society can be seen as even greater. Lennon’s music is still as relevant as ever, and his activism for peace was and continues to be unmatched. Both artists would reshape and redefine their respective era’s of music, with Mozart mastering the colors of an orchestra while Lennon’s Beatles popularized the concept of albums. The Beatles would work endlessly on each song, perfecting every aspect before selecting a few songs to release as ‘Singles’ to promote, advertise, and give listeners a taste of the complete album. This is a trend that is still followed today, as the music industry thrives off the promotion and sales of singles and the accompanying successes of the following albums.

Mozart’s work is still remembered and listened to three centuries after his rise to fame, and John Lennon’s legacy will follow that trend. His legacy in the music industry is still remembered and celebrated today, almost forty years after his death. Lennon will be remembered for his stance against the Vietnam war, as he went on various hunger strikes that the media covered endlessly. He would take a stand for his beliefs and become bigger than his music, sparking a movement that spanned the entire United States. He was simultaneously able to write beautiful songs, spanning from comical to serious, about love or about war, the versatility in his lyrics remains unmatched. Forbes author Steve Baltin describes Lennon’s influence as he will routinely “Talk to other musicians and they'll certainly speak of his transcendent influence. In my thousands of interviews, Lennon's enormous role in shaping rock comes up again and again”(Baltin). Lennon shaped the culture of today’s rock and roll, inspiring artists such as the great David Bowie. A recent movie titled “Yesterday” details and reflects the reaction and influence of The Beatles and how their music would be perceived today if the songs were never written. As the main character struggles to lift his musical career off the ground, he begins to cover songs by The Beatles. One problem occurred while he began to grow as a musician; no one recognized the songs. The entire world forgot about The Beatles overnight. The movie, although a poor and stale

display of film, detailed the spread of this music and its immediate popularity. Although being entirely fictional, this film explains how The Beatles’ music is timeless and will survive for centuries. With the same songs being essentially copied and pasted under the main characters name and The Beatles being erased entirely, the film displays how the music itself is influential and will stand the test of time. Nostalgia is another big reason why Lennon and The Beatles will be remembered for centuries to come. Many adults today grew up on the music of The Beatles, which is an activity some pass on to their offspring. As those children grow and mature, they too will listen to The Beatles as an adult, as it reminds them of their childhood and their parents. Deepti Hajela and Nekesa Mumbi Moody, authors for the Seattle Times, interviewed fans as they celebrated the life of John Lennon by visiting Strawberry Fields, a Central Park garden dedicated to the great musician. One fan described Lennon’s impact and continued relevancy by stating, “Nothing is timeless like the stuff John and Paul (McCartney) wrote.”(Hajela and Moody). Even if his musical genius and talent are unmatched compared to the great Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, John Lennon’s social impact is far greater than Mozart’s. Although it is difficult to predict if an artist will be relevant in a year, let alone multiple centuries, Lennon’s musical and social legacy will span lifetimes and will continue to live on for centuries to come, as Lennon became bigger than his music.

Works Cited

Baltin, Steve. “Why John Lennon Remains The Ultimate Rock Star.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 28 Dec. 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/stevebaltin/2018/12/28/why-john-lennon-remains-the-ultimate-rock-star/#7303ec36334a.

Editors, Biography.com. “Wolfgang Mozart.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 11 July 2019, www.biography.com/musician/wolfgang-mozart.

Editors, Biographyonline.net. “Biography John Lennon:  .” Biography Online, www.biographyonline.net/music/john-lennon.html.

Editors, Dummies.com. “Examining Mozart's Operas.” Dummies, www.dummies.com/art-center/music/examining-mozarts-operas/.

Editors, newworldencyclopedia.com. “Eval(ez_write_tag([[468,60],'newworldencyclopedia_org-Box-2','ezslot_0',106,'0','0']));Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.” Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - New World Encyclopedia, 4 Dec. 2014, www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart.

Hajela, Deepti, and Nekesa Mumbi Moody. “Fans Remember John Lennon 30 Years after His Death.” The Seattle Times, The Seattle Times Company, 8 Dec. 2010, www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/fans-remember-john-lennon-30-years-after-his-death/.

Sadie, Stanley. “The Central Viennese Period.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 18 July 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Wolfgang-Amadeus-Mozart/The-central-Viennese-period.

Tarantino, Todd. “Wolfgang Mozart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Mvt. 3.” Wolfgang Mozart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Mvt. 3, 2012, www.toddtarantino.com/hum/einekleine.html.