A POSTHUMOUS CELEBRITY DR. S. BRENT MORRIS, 33ø BOOK REVIEWS EDITOR FOR THE SCOTTISH RITE JOURNAL THE STATURE OF SOME MEN IS SUCH that respect and admiration for them continues to grow long after their deaths. Broþ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is just such a man. His status as a celebrity is even greater today than it was during his lifetime. His music continues to delight listeners two centuries after its composition. It is a rare artist who can both please an audience of contemporaries and grow in stature with succeeding generations. Mozart's accomplishments are even more amazing because they were completed before he was 36 years old. There is a special thrill in watching The Magic Flute and recognizing the Masonic symbolism subtly woven throughout. The Masonic fraternity can well be proud of the accomplishments of our great Brother, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Our new year, 1991, marks the 200th anniversary of Mozart's death. Thus this issue of The Scottish Rite Journal is pleased to commemmorate the occasion by featuring book reviews of works relevant to Mozart and three articles about Mozart: "Mozart's Other Masonic Opera," "Mozart, Masonry, and The Magic Flute," and "MozartÄWhat More Might He Have Done?" See, respectively, pages 44, 49, and 56. 1791: Mozart's Last Year, by H. C. Robbins Landon. Paper- bound, 240 pages. Schirmer Books, 866 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10022. Toll free: 800-257-5755, $13.95 + S/H. MASONS, PARTICULARLY those who have an interest in Masonic history, music or both will find 1791: Mozart's Last Year a fascinating book. Readers should not be put off by the implication on the jacket that Masons may have had something to do with Mozart's death. Later in the book the details of his passing are adequately explained and the Order vindicated. On page 9 the author states, "I thought it might be useful to Mo- zart's many new friends and admirers to write about his last year, basing the account upon the authentic and contemporary documents at our disposal." In a chapter entitled "Midnight for the Masons," the author goes into considerable detail about Mozart's lodge, listing some of its better known members. He also says: But by 1791 it was nearly midnight for the Freemasons in Austria. If they had been left in relative peace by Joseph II, no one knew for certain what the attitude of Leopold II was going to be. For the moment, he did nothing, and it was into this vacuum that Mozart and Schik- aneder risked a long shotÄto save the Craft by an allegorical opera The Magic Flute. Another entire chapter is devoted to The Magic Flute explaining in considerable detail the relationship between the actions and music of the opera and various Masonic degrees and allegories. The Masonic information was so boldly depicted that some suspected the lodge may have had some responsibility for Mozart's death. As the author explains, however, Schikaneder, who collaborated with Mozart on The Magic Flute would certainly have been a simi- lar target, but he lived another 21 years, dying in 1812. Further, the story indicates: "Mozart's own Lodge, Zur neuge- kroentin Hoffnung, held a Lodge of Sorrows for their composer, printed the main speech and also printed the Masonic cantata (K623) Mozart had composed just before he died." (p. 132) 1791: Mozart's Last Year is a scholarly work that will educate the most discerning Masonic student, and anyone who was en- chanted with the movie Amadeus will find it interesting. It should be noted that H. C. Robbins Landon has also written another book entitled Mozart and the Masons. Don Lavender 32ø, KþCþCþHþ MOZART AND MASONRY, by Paul Nettl. 144 pp. Da Capo Press, 150 Bay St., 7th Floor, Jersey City, NJ 07302. Toll free: 800-321-0050. $22.50+2.50 S/H. SINCE THE RELEASE of the motion picture Amadeus, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has become somewhat of a posthumous celebrity. His music has always been considered of the highest artistic caliber, but details of his personal life have not been very well known. After Amadeus, the public wanted to know more about this most gifted composer who died tragically and penniless at the age of 36. The motion picture failed to emphasize, as does literature, the importance of Freemasonry to Mozart and his work. Mozart was a true genius of his time. He gave his first public performance at age five and never ceased to produce truly wonderful pieces of music (over 600) until his death. This book shows the early association of Mozart with men of real education, ideas, and wisdomÄall of whom were Freemasons. Even before Mozart's initiation into the Craft, his work shows a rare comprehension of the value of Masonic ideals translated into one of the seven liberal arts and sciences, music. The book relates the biographies of some of the Masons who influenced Mozart in his life. In particular, those men who became his friends and brothers, and who were inspirations for his later musical works. The only flaw to the book is its tendency to burden the reader with a great abundance of German names and phrases. This leads to the real heart of the Masonic matterÄthe concep- tion, augmentation and presentation of Mozart's greatest work, The Magic Flute. The book proves, absolutely, that The Magic Flute was not only Masonically inspired but also a tribute to the Masonic ritual representing the ideals of life Mozart came to believe. The book also documents the many Masonic pieces of music which Mozart wrote for specific purposes: music for the Fellowcraft Degree; specific songs for lodge functions; and the last work he wrote in this "Earthly Lodge"ÄThe Masonic Requiem. Mozart was proud to be a Mason, and he used the teachings and functions of Masonry to enhance his art. He was indeed a true Brother. Mozart and Masonry not only illustrates this point in relating the formation of The Magic Flute, but also in the formation of Mozart as a Freemason. Isn't it fortunate that the men who influenced this great artist, and the ideas that touched his soul and mind, were those of our gentle Craft? So mote it be! Dr. John McKenna Colwell, 32ø [Editor's Note: This book is tempo- rarily out of stock, but orders are being taken for reprints.]