Mozart and the Origin of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
What do the following nursery rhymes have in common: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, and The Alphabet Song? They all share the same tune! This famous tune is also used with several other German and Hungarian Christmas carols. So who composed this famous tune? Many people think it was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but that's not true. The tune is actually an old French melody titled "Ah!
Vous Dirai-Je, Maman" ("Shall I tell you, Mother?") that first appeared without words in Les Amusements d'une Heure et Demy by M. Bouin in Paris in 1761. Twenty years later, when Mozart was 25 or 26, he composed a set of 12 improvisations on "Ah! Vous Dirai-Je, Maman." View a YouTube video of Mozart's 12 Variations of "Ah! Vous Dirai-Je, Maman" K.265.
Vous Dirai-Je, Maman" ("Shall I tell you, Mother?") that first appeared without words in Les Amusements d'une Heure et Demy by M. Bouin in Paris in 1761. Twenty years later, when Mozart was 25 or 26, he composed a set of 12 improvisations on "Ah! Vous Dirai-Je, Maman." View a YouTube video of Mozart's 12 Variations of "Ah! Vous Dirai-Je, Maman" K.265.