The first thing that strikes the reader of Professor Landon's many books is how very likeable they are. His enthusiasm and energy have remained undimmed over the years, and his disarmingly unpretentious style of writing brings the world of late 18th-century Austria vividly to life. The preface to 1791 begins with a description of how the author first fell under the spell of Mozart's music at the age of 13, and ends with a sentiment with which few would want to take issue: 'The Mozartian legacy ... is as good an excuse for mankind's existence as we shall ever encounter and is perhaps, after all, a still small hope for our ultimate survival.'

LRB 11 January 1990 | PDF Download