Mozart and scatology

• 1. Mozart's Scatological Letters

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  On the 5th of November 1777, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote a letter to his cousin Maria Anna Thekla Mozart from Mannheim. The text rhymed and included phrases like "scheissen sie ins bett dass es kracht" which translates roughly to "shit in bed so it makes a noise." This was not an isolated incident but part of a pattern found in dozens of letters he sent to family members. Endocrinologist Benjamin Simkin estimates that thirty-nine of Mozart's surviving letters contain such passages. Most were directed at his father Leopold, mother Anna Maria, sister Nannerl, or cousin Maria Anna Thekla. Even his father Leopold used similar expressions in his own correspondence. One letter written from Italy in 1770 contained the phrase "to shit oranges" meaning to get upset. These letters formed what scholars call the Bäsle letters after the German word for little cousin.

• 2. Recreational Musical Canons

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  Mozart composed several musical canons with explicit lyrics intended for private consumption among friends. The piece known as K. 231 includes the words "Leck mich im Arsch" which means lick me in the arse quickly. Another work titled K. 561 called Bona nox contains similar themes disguised in later editions. Musicologist David J. Buch notes these pieces took the form of rounds where each voice enters with identical music and text after a delay. Some versions published after his death replaced vulgar lines with innocent phrases like Nothing refreshes me more than wine. A canon originally attributed to Mozart was shown in 1988 by Wolfgang Plath to be composed by Wenzel Trnka instead. The Neue Mozart-Ausgabe editors suggest the work should still count as part of Mozart's output though he may have only provided the lyrics rather than the melody. These compositions were likely shared among inebriated circles during the 1780s.

• 3. Cultural Context Of The Eighteenth Century

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  German popular theatre of Mozart's era featured stock characters like Hanswurst who entertained audiences by pretending to eat large objects then defecating them. This style drew influence from Italian commedia dell'arte traditions. Musicologist David Schroeder argues that such vulgarity served as political counterpoint against hereditary aristocracy ruling society. In an 1777 concert in Augsburg, Mozart described nobles using names like Duchess Smackarse or Countess Pleasurepisser. Folklorist Alan Dundes suggests tolerance for bodily functions remained a trait within German national culture. Martin Luther and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe also produced scatological texts shaping central European literary history. Michael Haydn wrote a canon titled Scheiß nieder armer Sünder meaning shit fast poor sinner. Many phrases used by Mozart originated from existing folk rhymes still current in south German regions today. A children's rhyme about shitting in bed appears in multiple letters and musical works dating back to 1770.

• 4. The Tourette Syndrome Hypothesis

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  Austrian writer Stefan Zweig collected unpublished Bäsle letters alongside autographs of canons Difficile lectu and O du eselhafter Peierl. He sent copies to psychiatrist Sigmund Freud with suggestions linking the material to psychological pathologies. Freud declined the proposal but later psychobiographers seized on the letters as evidence of disorder. Some authors in the 1990s claimed Mozart suffered from Tourette syndrome based on frequency comparisons with family members. Simkin catalogued these letters and combined them with biographical accounts suggesting tics characteristic of the condition. Newspapers worldwide reported the claim causing international sensation while internet websites fueled speculation further. German psychiatrist Thomas Kammer stated in 2007 that this diagnosis was promptly and harshly criticized for medical misdiagnosis errors. Neurologist Oliver Sacks published an editorial disputing Simkin's assertion. No expert organization has voiced concurrence that credible evidence exists proving Mozart had Tourette syndrome. One specialist noted it remains unclear whether descriptions actually reflect either condition despite website listings.

• 5. Modern Reception And Censorship

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  Constanze Mozart sent her late husband's Bäsle letters to publishers Breitkopf & Härtel in 1798 hoping they would prepare a biography. She wrote accompanying text stating although dubious in taste the letters deserved mention yet could not be published entirely. Historian Lucy Coatman argues this ambivalence resulted from changing tastes spreading through the rising middle class during the early nineteenth century. Margaret Thatcher reacted negatively when apprised of Mozart's scatology while viewing Peter Shaffer's play Amadeus. Director Peter Hall recalled she gave him a severe wigging for depicting Mozart as foul-mouthed. He offered copies of actual letters to Number Ten but found the Prime Minister wrong about his assessment regardless. Musicologist David Schroeder writes that time created an almost unbridgeable gulf between modern readers and eighteenth-century norms. Scholars have tried suppressing trivializing or explaining away these letters using pathological excuses instead of historical context. Retrospective diagnoses reveal problems with perusing letters as a genre according to ethicist Osamu Muramoto.