A small 44-page notebook discovered in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France has been identified as a major Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart manuscript from 1778. Unearthed by musicologist François-Pierre Goy and authenticated by Armin Brinzing, the document details daily composition lessons Mozart gave to aristocratic harpist Marie-Louise-Philippine de Bonnières de Guînes in Paris.
The Bottom Line
- The Discovery: A forgotten 44-page manuscript sat uncatalogued in France’s National Library for over 230 years before curators identified Mozart’s handwriting in February 2026.
- The Real-Time Process: The document preserves composition lessons given to Marie-Louise-Philippine de Bonnières de Guînes, showcasing how teacher and pupil worked side-by-side on flute and harp pieces.
- Public Revival: The newly authenticated pieces returned to life in a public premiere on June 21, 2026, at the BnF’s Richelieu site during Paris’ Fête de la Musique.
Unearthing a Lost Paris Manuscript in the National Library
Deep inside the storerooms of France’s National Library in Paris, a small, unassuming booklet spent more than 230 years gathering dust. Misfiled among centuries of archival paper, the 44-page manuscript finally caught the attention of François-Pierre Goy, a curator in the library’s music department, in February 2026. Goy was reviewing anonymous scores shortly after studying verified Mozart teaching materials, allowing him to immediately spot the composer’s distinct notation in the treble and bass clefs.
Goy brought the artifact to his colleague Laurence Decobert, a specialist in Mozart’s manuscripts, who corroborated the find. By April 2026, Armin Brinzing, director of the Bibliotheca Mozartiana in Salzburg, officially authenticated the document. The manuscript traces back to a turbulent era in European history. Following the French Revolution, authorities confiscated the music collection of the student’s father, Adrien-Louis de Bonnières—the Duke of Guînes—in 1794, routing the papers straight into France’s national archives where they quietly faded into obscurity.
Inside the Daily Lessons Shared by Teacher and Pupil
Here is the kicker: instead of grand symphonic scores written in isolation, this notebook captures a 22-year-old Mozart grinding away as a day-to-day music teacher. Between May and July 1778, while living in Paris, Mozart taught composition nearly every day to Marie-Louise, a highly accomplished young aristocratic harpist. Her father, a talented amateur flautist, had previously commissioned Mozart’s famous Concerto for Flute and Harp, K299, so father and daughter could perform together.
The newly surfaced pages provide an intimate look at a creative mentorship unfolding in real time. The manuscript contains daily exercises alongside seven short pieces for flute and harp. The musical hands of teacher and student are physically interwoven across the margins. Mozart proposes, corrects, and develops ideas, while his pupil copies, completes, and experiments. Six of the flute-and-harp pieces are complete, built from foundational ideas supplied by the composer, while the seventh remains unfinished, abruptly followed by six blank pages.
| Detail | Fact |
|---|---|
| Location Found | Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BnF), Paris |
| Discovery Date | February 2026 (Authenticated April 2026) |
| Key Figures | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Marie-Louise-Philippine de Bonnières de Guînes, François-Pierre Goy |
| Contents | 44 pages of composition lessons, daily exercises, and seven flute-and-harp pieces |
| Public Debut | June 21, 2026, at the BnF’s Richelieu site (Fête de la Musique) |
Looking Beyond Historical Verdicts on Women in Classical Music
History hasn’t always been kind to Marie-Louise. In a letter to his father, Leopold, dated May 14, 1778, Mozart complained that his aristocratic student had “no ideas,” a dismissive sentiment he repeated in later correspondence. These harsh evaluations cemented her reputation in composer-centric biographies as a minor, uninspired figure.
But the math tells a different story when examining the physical pages of the notebook. Several exercises are written entirely in Marie-Louise’s own hand, proving that her musical education extended far beyond merely playing the harp for parlor guests. She was actively engaged in the mechanics of composition. Her lessons likely concluded abruptly on July 26, 1778, when she married, leaving behind a silent testament to female creative output in Enlightenment salons.
More than two centuries after sitting forgotten in a Paris vault, the music finally returned to the stage. On June 21, 2026, performers brought the rediscovered pieces back to life at the BnF’s Richelieu site during the annual Fête de la Musique. It is a striking reminder that archival paper can still rewrite cultural narratives long after the ink has dried.
Related reading
