Tuesday, August 24, 2010

How did Mozart die? Let me count the ways

We know you probably have seen Amadeus and know the rumor about Salieri, but every since Mozart's death, people have contemplated how Mozart died...read on:

After Mozart’s Death, an Endless Coda
By DANIEL J. WAKIN
Direct medical evidence? None. Autopsy? Not performed. Medical records? Nowhere to be found. Corpse? Disappeared.
Yet according to a recent article in an academic journal, researchers have posited at least 118 causes of death for Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
A modest industry of medical speculation has grown up around the subject, evidence of our fascination with what cut down great creative artists in history. In Mozart’s case published speculation began within a month of his death in 1791, and musicologists, physicians and medical scholars have regularly joined the fray ever since.
Dr. William J. Dawson, a retired orthopedic surgeon who is the bibliographer for the Performing Arts Medical Association, decided to organize the theories. He examined most of the 136 entries in the association’s database dedicated to Mozart’s death, a list by no means comprehensive."

1 comment:

Your Classical Oasis said...

Well, we can rule out a motorcycle accident!