Mozart writes down Allegri's Miserere

Name: Mozart writes down Allegri's Miserere
Start: 1770
Location: Sistine Chapel, Vatican

1770 · Sistine Chapel, Vatican · Europe · Culture

A teenage Mozart transcribes the Vatican's secret music by ear

Mozart writes down Allegri's Miserere — Hautbois · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Gregorio Allegri's Miserere was sung in the Sistine Chapel in Holy Week, and copying the score was forbidden. In 1770, as his father told it, 14-year-old Mozart heard it once and wrote it all down from memory. Soon after, the pope made him a knight of the Golden Spur.

State: Papal States

Wikipedia (Russian) · Wikipedia (English) · 18th century

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The Vatican forbade copying Allegri's Miserere, but 14-year-old Mozart wrote it down from memory. His father said one hearing in the Sistine Chapel in 1770 was enough. Share →

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