Leopold Mozart was not only Wolfgang's father but also his first and most influential teacher, introducing him to the keyboard and violin and supervising his earliest compositions. He recognized his son's prodigious talent when Wolfgang was still a toddler and devoted himself to his musical and general education, teaching him languages and academic subjects in addition to music. Leopold's violin treatise, published in the year of Wolfgang's birth, established his reputation as a prominent pedagogue, and he guided both Wolfgang and his sister Nannerl through demanding early training.
As Wolfgang's teacher, Leopold organized extensive European concert tours to present his children as prodigies, journeys that exposed the young composer to many of the leading musicians and musical styles of the time. Throughout these travels and during later trips to Italy undertaken with Wolfgang alone, Leopold continued to shape his son's development as both performer and composer. Although their relationship grew strained in adulthood—particularly over Wolfgang's decision to remain in Vienna and marry Constanze—Leopold continued to advise him and remained an important, if sometimes contentious, figure in Wolfgang's life.
