Campus groups collaborate to celebrate Mozart's birthday

He was vulgar. He was a womanizer. He struggled to make his financial ends meet. He was eccentric. He was extravagant. He was a genius.\nThis weekend several IU programs will celebrate Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's 250th birthday, who was born Jan. 27, 1756. Various conferences and concerts will be held around campus, and the Lilly Library has prepared a special display in his honor.\nDaniel R. Melamed, the local chair of the American Mozart Society and associate professor of musicology, explained that his organization is playing host to the events in conjunction with the IU Choral Department. His organization aims to be a collection point for a Mozart scholarship. \nThey have planned four sessions of discussions of Mozart's personality and music, in particular, his choral works. \nOne such piece is Requiem in D minor, which is used in a Catholic mass for the dead.\nMelamed said that it was Mozart's most famous and problematic composition. \nHe explained that the piece was written on Mozart's deathbed and was left unfinished. Many have attempted to complete the Requiem. \n"You have to pick the version you are performing very carefully," he said. He explained that sometimes the other composers stray from what might have been Mozart's intent. \nSeveral ensembles on campus, including the University Singers, the University Orchestra, the Classical Orchestra, the Pro Arte Singers and the University Chorale will be performing Mass in C minor and Requiem this weekend both on and off campus. \nSenior Colleen Hughes, a first soprano in the University Singers, described a typical practice. She said the biggest challenges of singing Requiem are the faster segments and the tight harmonies. She said she feels an incredible sense of accomplishment because she is able to perform this complex piece.\n"To be able to work so closely with the school of music and people who are so dedicated to it is a really rewarding experience," Hughes said.\nAnother partner in the festivities is the Lilly Library. It currently has a display in its Lincoln room that features several original editions of Mozart's pieces, first editions of some of his librettos and a few miniature books that tell about his life and work. \nBecky Cape, the head of reference and public services at the Lilly Library, said the library has many rare materials and is happy to provide a chance for students to see them. \nMelamed described why Mozart is such an important historical figure. \n"He was a colorful character and he was one of the first musicians in Western Europe to have a go at being an independent creative artist in the big city," he said. "There is not a genre of music from the later 18th century that you can look at without discovering that some of the most influential pieces are by Mozart."\nInformation about the events can be found by visiting www.mypage.iu.edu/~dmelamed/MSA/program.htm.