Travel tips for opera lovers – London and Mozart

When the Mozarts arrived in London, Wolfgang was 8 years old. In Calais they saw the sea for the first time and despite seasickness the crossing was calm. The father begins to organize the first concerts, but becomes seriously ill. As a result, concertizing comes to a standstill, Mozart finds time to compose and writes his first symphony. The father gets the public performances going with many advertisements, but their income does not meet expectations.

Early the Mozarts got an audience with the German-born and music-crazy royal couple Georg (from the Hanover line) and Sophie Charlotte (from Mecklenburg), where Mozart was extensively tested by the monarch with musical tasks to his satisfaction. The two were delighted and Mozart visited them several times in the so-called Buckingham House, the forerunner of the Palace of the same name.

In London, the Mozarts met the local musical elite, including Bach’s son Johann Christan, the queen’s personal music teacher. Wolfgang studied the latter’s works in depth, and the two played music together before the Queen, as Frederick Grimm recorded: “Bach took him on his knees, and the two thus played alternately on the same piano for two hours in the presence of the King and Queen.”

In total, the Mozart family’s stay in London lasted over 18 months. Of the Mozart places, 180 Ebury St, Belgravia and Cécil Court are still standing.