2. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is possibly the ultimate child genius, writing his own operas and symphonies before he even hit his teens
The Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is often held up as the ultimate child genius. And for good reason. He was a piano and violin virtuoso from an early age and famously penned his first composition at the age of just five. What’s more, he was a genuine celebrity before he hit his teens, giving royal performances at the age of 12. Indeed, though he died at the age of 35, he fitted more into his short life than most people might manage in a century.
Born Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart in the Austrian city of Salzburg in January 1756, his father was a violinist for the city. He was also a composer, albeit not a very successful one. The young Mozart first showed an interest in music while watching his elder sister take piano lessons at the family home. Before long, he was learning to play himself and his prodigious talent was evident straight away. According to some historians, he was composing pieces by the age of four or five. Along with his sister Nanneri, he was soon traveling Europe and giving performances as a child genius. While on the road, he met J.S. Bach, gained a reputation as a musician of merit and even wrote his first symphony at the age of just eight. Financial success eluded him, however.
At 17, Mozart settled down. He was employed as a court musician in his home city of Salzburg but soon grew tired of it. Instead, he devoted himself to composing. In all, he wrote more than 600 pieces of work, including operas and several symphonies. While celebrating the opening of one of his operas in Prague, he fell ill. Though he made it home, Mozart died in December 1791 at the age of just 35. Due to his financial circumstances, he was buried in a common, unmarked grave. He remains, however, probably the most famous and celebrated classical music composer of all time, with many of the works he wrote before the age of 16 performed regularly by the world’s finest orchestras to this day.