Five of the Angriest Classical Music Feuds
By Emily F. Hogstad, Interlude Artistic types are famous for their big personalities and the beef and rivalries that result. Over the centuries, classical composers have had more than their fair share of tiffs. Today we’re looking at the stories and personalities behind five of the most famous feuds in classical music history. Salieri v. Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri © slavicwritings.com Everyone who saw the 1984 movie “Amadeus” knows the story. Antonio Salieri was a mediocre composer who was blindingly jealous of his young and impish colleague, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . In fury, he sabotages his career – and ultimately, his life. That said… It’s not true. In real life, Salieri was a generally well-liked and well-regarded man, and a prolific and talented composer. He even taught Mozart’s son after Mozart died. And he didn’t poison Mozart. The core of the legend came from letters that Mozart and his father wrote to each other in the 1780s, po...