Guest
Mozart in love: 'I know of no better solution than to marry Constanze tomorrow morning'. Christie's Specialist Thomas Venning and Broadcaster Katie Derham showcase an incredibly rare autograph letter written by the composer, in which he appeals to a patroness for advice on pre-empting a romantic scandal. On a late summer's day in 1782, Mozart received news that he was about to be landed in serious trouble. A maidservant arrived at his rooms and told him his prospective mother-in-law, Frau Cäcilia Weber, was threatening to send the police around to Mozart's address, because she suspected that Constanze was spending the nights there. Living in sin was an arrestable offence in 18th-century Vienna. Mozart urgently needed advice — so he sat down and wrote a letter to his benefactress, Baroness Martha Elisabeth von Waldstätten. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), Autograph letter to Baroness Von Waldstätten (1782). Estimate: £300,000 – £500,000. 🗓 The Exceptional Sale: 6 July, 2023. Live Auction: London.
