By Gudrun Sailer
Sep 2 was an incredibly special day for a group of young musicians from the Salzburg Youth Orchestra “Bella Musica”.
The Vatican leg of their Italian tour, following in the footsteps of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, had come about rather spontaneously. Then they received an unexpected gift. At the end of the General Audience on Sep 2, Pope Leo XIV took one of the two original Mozart violins in his hands – the Dalla Costa violin, Mozart’s concert violin from his time in Vienna. The Mozarteum Foundation, which owns it, had brought it to Rome along with Mozart’s childhood violin.
Linus Klumpner, Managing Director of the Mozarteum Foundation, described the moment as “a spontaneous reaction. Many people don’t feel comfortable handling such an instrument, which is very fragile. But the Pope was very open to it and immediately took the violin. It is, of course, a great honor for us to have this historical connection because it is, in a way, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s homecoming to Rome after more than 250 years.” In 1770, a 14-year-old Mozart played for Pope Clement XIV on his first trip to Italy with his father, Leopold.
A very moving experience
Due to a highway closure, the young musicians from the “Bella Musica” ensemble—all under 23 years old—arrived in Rome at 2:30 am from their previous tour stop in Arezzo, Italy. A few hours later, they played Mozart’s “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” (“A Little Night Music”) in St Peter’s Square as the Pope entered the square. Klumpner said, “For us, this was special and outstanding because Pope Leo XIV is a figure who places great value on involving young people. It was very moving for us.”
In the afternoon, specially organized shuttle buses transported the ensemble and a handful of accompanying sponsors, including members of Rotary, up the green Vatican hill to the location of their concert. There, in the former home to the papal observatory, lies the hall used by Vatican Radio, founded in 1931, for its concert recordings. Also present—by a stroke of luck and in a private capacity—was the Archbishop of Vienna Josef Grünwidl, a trained organist.
Under the direction of Stefan David Hummel, the artistic director of the “Bella Musica” ensemble, the orchestra performed a program, primarily by Mozart, ranging from the “Così fan tutte” overture and the Jupiter Symphony to the “Ave Verum.”
The soloist, Shuxuan Jin, is only ten years old. She gave a brilliant performance of the first movement of Mozart’s Violin Concerto KV 216 in G major on Mozart’s childhood violin in the Vatican.
When asked what it was like to play this historic instrument, she said, “It feels like I am Mozart. I enjoy it immensely and have a great deal of joy every time. Every note simply feels wonderful.” Unsurprisingly, Jin, who was born in Shanghai and practices up to four hours a day at home, prefers to play Mozart. Her mother, herself a trained pianist, is accompanying her on the tour.
Like a true professional, the young soloist seemed unfazed by the opportunity to perform in the Vatican—an experience not every musician gets to enjoy. “It just feels normal,” she explained, “It’s like practicing at home in the living room.”
Ida Gillesberger, 19 years old, played the third movement of Mozart’s Violin Concerto KV 219 on the Austrian composer and musician’s Dalla Costa violin.
“Of course, I was very nervous,” she shared – though you couldn’t tell. “But I still really enjoyed it, because it’s so wonderful to play with this ensemble. I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to play what is essentially a huge concert here, which will be broadcast all over Europe.” Vatican Radio, a founding member of the European Broadcasting Union, is offering the concert recording to all its partner stations for rebroadcast starting in mid September. In this way, the “Bella Musica” ensemble will reach millions of listeners.
Particularly for the Vatican, the ensemble had rehearsed a piece that is by no means part of every classical ensemble’s repertoire: an excerpt from “The Sound of Music”—as a tribute to Pope Leo, who has shared this is one of his favorite movies. “He grew up with this film,” said Klumpner. “It truly embodies an iconic quality in the United States. But it also makes him relatable.”
