See the Original Manuscript for Mozart Requiem
and Ave Verum Corpus

This is a journey back to the last days of Mozart and the deceit, lies and forgery
which followed his death in December 1791.

In his dying days, the great composer was still hard at work writing, of all things, a Requiem; a mass for the dead. On this curated trip by the Original Manuscript Society, the stuff of legend comes to life as we visit Stuppach Castle, home of the Count who commissioned the work; we visit Mozart’s home in Vienna; we learn about Franz Süssmayr, who wrote a completion of the masterpiece Mozart could not finish, and – most compellingly – we see the original manuscript in a Private Viewing few have ever experienced.

Join us for an unforgettable journey to see and experience one of the greatest treasures created by mankind.

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A maximum of 30 people can come with us for our own Private Viewing of the
original manuscripts of the Mozart Requiem and Ave Verum Corpus, which he composed in 1791.

To reserve your place, please email mark@originalmanuscriptsociety.com

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Accompanying us for the whole of the Event will be:

Marina Mahler, granddaughter of the composer Gustav Mahler, and Founder of Mahler Foundation.
Morten Solvik, musicologist and co-Founder of the Gustav Mahler Festival in Steinbach am Attersee
and Vice President of Mahler Foundation.
Professor Simon Keefe, author of the book “Mozart’s Requiem”.
Mark Strachan, Founder of Original Manuscript Society.

Please see more about the Team on the ABOUT US page of this website.

To reserve your place for this Event, please email mark@originalmanuscriptsociety.com

As soon as we have 30 interested people to join us, we shall firm up exact dates.

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 The original manuscript of the Mozart Requiem at
the Austrian National Library in Vienna is in two volumes:

 1. The first volume is the “completed score” that Constanze Mozart delivered to Count Walsegg in 1792. This is the score completed by Mozart’s pupil, Süssmayr, and found quite by chance in 1838 in a drawer in a gardener’s cottage at Walsegg’s Castle, Schloss Stuppach. We shall see Mozart’s own personal composition for the Introit and Kyrie. The rest of the manuscript is entirely in Süssmayr’s own hand and he copied out Mozart’s work to deceive Count Walsegg into believing it was all by Mozart.
In addition to completing Mozart’s work, Süssmayr himself composed in their entirety:
Lacrymosa (after bar 8), Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei. 

2. The second volume is the incomplete draft score written in Mozart’s own hand and those who attempted the completion in advance of Süssmayr assuming the task. This includes fragments of Dies Irae, Tuba Mirum, Rex Tremendae, Recordare, Confutatis and Lacrymosa, Domine Jesu and Hostias. 

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Here is the current schedule of our trip:

Day One

14:00 - Start of Event and Welcome from the Team.
14:30 - Lecture “History of the composition of the Requiem” by Professor Simon Keefe
16:00 - Visit to the Mozarthaus Museum.
19:00 - Dinner with Morten Solvik and Marina Mahler as Guests of Honour.

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Day Two

09:00 - Leave Vienna for Schloss Stuppach.
10:00 - Arrive at Schloss Stuppach.
10:15 - Welcome from Reinhard and Rita Zellinger, owners of the Castle
10:30 - Lecture “Count Walsegg and the Requiem” by Reinhard Zellinger
11:30 - Tour of Schloss Stuppach.
12:30 - Stuppach Lecture “Mozart Requiem - Facts, Fictions and Legends” by Professor Simon Keefe.
13:30 - Lunch at Schloss Stuppach.
14:30 - Transport to St. Stephan Church, Baden, where AVE VERUM CORPUS was first performed.
See where Mozart composed it whilst in Baden in 1791.
17:30 - Back in Vienna and free evening.

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Thursday 23 October 2025

09:30 - Arrive at National Library in Vienna.
10:00 - PRIVATE VIEWING OF “THE REQUIEM” AND “AVE VERUM CORPUS” MANUSCRIPTS.
12:30 - Visit the original location of Süssmayr’s house at Seilerstätte 17, Vienna.
13:00 - Lunch at location of Süssmayr’s home, which is now demolished.
13:30 - Lecture “Süssmayr -The Forgotten Partner in the Requiem” by Morten Solvik.
15:00 - Visit to graveyard of Mozart and Süssmayr (both at St. Marx Cemetery).
18:00 - Dinner in Vienna
22:00 - Group picture and close of Event

Please note that this schedule is subject to change.

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There are 30 places available for this three-night event.
The cost for the Event is £4,975 per person
(you will need to arrange your own accommodation).
No need to pay now - just register your interest in joining us by sending an email to
mark@originalmanuscriptsociety.com

A donation will be made to assist with the preservation of these documents for future generations.

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