tz instead, where
both the children caught that disorder. At Vienna, Mozart wrote his
first opera, by desire of the emperor. Though the singers extolled their
parts to the skies, in presence of Leopold Mozart, they formed in secret
a cabal against the work, and it was never performed. The Italian
singers and composers who were established in this capital did not like
to find themselves surpassed in knowledge and skill by a boy of twelve
years old, and they therefore not only charged the composition with a
want of dramatic effect, but they even went so far as to say, that he
had not scored it himself. To counteract such calumnies, Leopold Mozart
often obliged his son to put the orchestral parts to his compositions in
the presence of spectators, which he did with wonderful celerity before
Metastasio, Hasse, the Duke of Braganza, and others. The injurious
opinion of the nobility, which these people hoped to excite against
the young musician, had no success; for he composed a Mass--an
Offertorium--and a Trumpet Concerto for a Boy--which were performed
before the whole court, and at which he himself presided and beat the
time. The year 1769 was employed by Wolfgang in studying the Italian
language, and in the practice of composition; and at this time he was
appointed concert master to the court of Salzburg.

Father and son now made the tour of Italy, and met in every city with an
enthusiastic reception.

In Rome, Mozart gave a miraculous attestation of his quickness of ear,
and extensive memory, by bringing away from the Sistine Chapel the
"Miserere of Allegri," a work full of imitation and repercussion, mostly
for a double choir, and continually changing in the combination and
relation of the parts. This accomplished piece of thievery was thus
performed:--the sketch was drawn out upon the first hearing, and filled
up from recollection at home--Mozart then repaired to the second and
last performance, with his manuscript in his hat, and corrected it.

The slow voluptuous movement of the style of dancing prevalent in Italy
gave Mozart great pleasure; in the postscripts to his father's letters,
which he generally addressed to his sister and playfellow, he speaks of
this subject with as much zest as of his own art. Later in manhood he
became a pupil of Vestris, and the gracefulness of his dancing was much
admired, especially in the minuet.

About this time Mozart's voice began to break, and he ceased to sing in
public, unles