Mozart's women : the man, the music, and the loves of his life / Jane Glover

Includes bibliographical references (p. [387]-388) and index.

"Throughout his life Mozart was inspired, fascinated, amused, aroused, hurt, disappointed and betrayed by women; and he appeared equally fascinating to them. But, first and last, Mozart loved and respected women. His mother, his sister, his wife, her sisters, his patrons, his friends, his lovers and his artists all figure prominently in his life. And his experience, observation and understanding of women all reappear, spectacularly, in the characters he created." "As one of our finest interpreters of Mozart's work, Jane Glover is perfectly placed to bring these remarkable women - both real and dramatized - vividly to life. We meet Mozart's mother, Maria Anna, and his beloved and devoted sister, Nannerl, almost as talented as her brilliant brother, but, thanks to her sex, destined to languish at home whilst Wolfgang and their father entertained the drawing rooms of Europe. We meet, too, Mozart's other family, the Webers: Constanze, his wife, much maligned by history, and her sisters, Aloysia, Sophie and Josepha. Aloysia and Josepha were highly talented singers for whom Mozart wrote some of his most remarkable music. Aloysia was the first woman whom Mozart truly and passionately loved, and her eventual rejection of him nearly broke his heart. Constanze, though a less gifted singer, proved a steadfast and loving wife and - after Mozart's death - his extremely efficient widow, consolidating his reputation and ensuring that his most enduring legacy, his music, was never forgotten." "Mozart's Women is their story. But it is also the story of the women in his operas, all of whom were - like his sister, his mother, his wife and his entire female acquaintance - restrained by the conventions and strictures of eighteenth-century society. Yet through his writing, he identified and released the emotions of his characters."--BOOK JACKET.