Unveiling the True Composer Behind the Notes

The Illusion of Originality

The path of confusion over authorship winds through Mozart’s symphonies, culminating even with the acclaimed Jupiter Symphony, K.551. Its anonymous manuscript, still housed in the Biblioteca Estense in Modena, continues to be overlooked in modern critical studies. Yet, the most perplexing case remains Symphony No. 37 in G Major, K.444. Once celebrated as an authentic Mozart composition, it later emerged as a mere embellishment upon Michael Haydn’s Symphony No. 25, dated 23 May 1783. Mozart’s only contribution? A brief Adagio maestoso before Haydn’s Allegro movement.

A Legacy of Borrowing

Mozart’s alterations to Haydn’s original symphony went beyond the mere addition of an introduction. He modified the central Andante sostenuto, stripping away the bassoon part, arguably diminishing its richness. Historians have postulated that Mozart might have copied Haydn’s work to better understand his style, or as a tribute to the elder composer. Yet, the removal and adaptation suggest a more complex intent—an effort to make Haydn’s symphony less recognisable. Even today, musicologists struggle to accept that this was more than a homage. No evidence from letters, concert programs, or noble diaries ever credits Michael Haydn.

The Unacknowledged Influence

Mozart’s dependence on Michael Haydn’s compositions surfaces repeatedly. While Mozart’s supporters frame these borrowings as reverent, the letters between Wolfgang and his family tell a different story. For instance, a young Mozart wrote from Naples in 1770, anxiously requesting minuets by Haydn. He not only copied them but openly wondered if they had been “stolen.” Despite his supposed reverence, he pleaded for more minuets, openly mocking Haydn’s work in correspondence.

The Mozart family’s disdain for Michael Haydn intensified over time, painting him as an unreliable drunkard. Leopold Mozart even referred to Haydn as one of the “asinine” musicians of Salzburg. Despite this, Wolfgang relied on Haydn’s compositions, even for performances in Vienna. One has to wonder—if Mozart was such a master of counterpoint, why did he need to borrow fugues from Haydn?

Reassessing Mozart’s Musical Inheritance

The catalogue of music misattributed to Mozart is extensive. Works like the Adagio and Fugue in D Major (K.291) and various sacred compositions were lifted from Haydn, either wholly or in part. The letters reveal a pattern of plagiarism, mockery, and opportunism. The famous request for Haydn’s Tres sunt and the Lauda Sion—which ended up in the Köchel catalogue under Mozart’s name—only reinforce this narrative. The myth of Mozart as an unassailable genius collapses when faced with the evidence of his extensive borrowing from a composer his family ridiculed.

A Final Irony

In the end, Michael Haydn remains an unsung hero, a composer whose works formed the bedrock of Mozart’s supposed achievements.