Enfilade

From the conference website:

Mozart and His Time

Palácio Nacional da Ajuda, Lisbon, 22–24 January 2026

Organized by Aline Gallasch-Hall de Beuvink and Helena Gonçalves Pinto

Proposals due by 15 November 2025

The conference Mozart and His Time is organised by the Department of History, Art, and Humanities of the Universidade Autonoma of Lisbon, in partnership with the Ajuda National Palace (Portuguese Republic – Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, Museums and Monuments of Portugal) and Parques de Sintra – Monte da Lua. It is supported by CIDEHUS – University of Évora (CIDEHUS.UAL Centre).

The year 2026 commences with the commemoration of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s 270th anniversary (1756–1791) on January 27th. Universally esteemed as a prodigious genius and one of history’s most exceptional composers, Mozart lived during an era of significant upheaval. He was arguably the first composer to endeavor to be self-employed (Norbert Elias), a concept that was ahead of its time. This conference seeks to illuminate Mozart’s genius, while also fostering a greater comprehension of the era in which he lived: a period of profound political and social transformation that bridged the modern and contemporary eras.

Our national keynote speakers will be Rui Vieira Nery and Rosana Marreco Brescia. The international keynote speaker will be Mozart expert Simon Keefe, from the University of Sheffield.

We invite submissions that explore, but are not limited to, the following themes:
• The oeuvre and biography of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• The influence of Mozart on his contemporaries
• Political, social, and cultural shifts in the latter half of the 18th century
• The reverberations of colonial revolutions in continental Europe
• Artistic movements in Central Europe during Mozart’s era (literature, painting, sculpture, architecture)
• The evolving role of women in opera and performance
• Libretti and musical performances reflecting the social transitions of the period
• The striving of artists to establish social standing
• Pivotal junctures that catalyzed social, political, philosophical, cultural, and artistic transformations (e.g., the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake, the French Revolution)

The conference languages will be Portuguese and English. Proposals should be sent as a Word or PDF document containing a title, a short abstract (maximum 250 words), and the author’s name and affiliation to the organisers at abeuvink@autonoma.pt by the 15th of November 2025.

Scientific Committee
Miguel Figueira de Faria
Rui Vieira Nery
Frédéric Vidal
Aline Gallasch-Hall de Beuvink
Roberta Stumpf
Helena Gonçalves Pinto
Rosana Marreco Brescia
Miguel Jalôto