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New poems about Mozarts talented sister Maria Anna to be read by Sharon Chmielarz Wednesday

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April 16, 2001

NORTHFIELD, Minn. ? Poet and children?s author Sharon Chmielarz will read from her latest collection of poems, The Other Mozart, Wednesday, April 18, at St. Olaf College.

The reading, free and open to the public, will be at 7:30 p.m. in the Heritage Room of Buntrock Commons.

The Other Mozart, published earlier this month, is a collection of poems based on the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?s talented sister, Maria Anna (Nannerl) Mozart. Maria Anna, a musical virtuoso, traveled to many of the courts of Europe as a "wunderkind" from 1762 to 1767. But her career came to a halt when she was overshadowed by her younger brother?s success and her father, Leopold Mozart, focused his energy on young Wolfgang.

In The Other Mozart Chmielarz portrays Maria Anna as a "vital, engaging and ultimately tragic heroine," through a series of poems ranging from her childhood years to her life as a widow in Salzburg. The collection?s publisher, Ontario Review Press, describes The Other Mozart as "a vital, delightful, engaging sketch of the life of Maria Anna Mozart, a child prodigy herself before she was eclipsed by the genius of her younger brother."

The Other Mozart has earned enthusiastic reviews and was described by fellow poet Albert Goldbarth as "an aviary: inside its sections, a wonderful natural music is born."

Originally from South Dakota, Chmielarz graduated from the University of Minnesota. She taught in public schools for 30 years before she decided to write poetry. She lives in Brooklyn Park, Minn., with her husband, Tad.

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Chmielarz reading ? 1

Chmielarz?s other works include two books of poetry published by New Rivers Press, a chapbook by Poetry Harbor and travel memoirs found in The House on Via Gombito, Talking of Hands and An Inn Near Kyoto. Her poems have appeared in The Iowa Review, Prairie Schooner and the Ontario Review, among other periodicals. She has also written children?s books including Down at Angels, End of Winter and a retelling of the Pied Piper of Hamelin.

St. Olaf College prepares students to become responsible citizens of the world, fostering development of mind, body and spirit. A four-year, coeducational liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), St. Olaf has a student enrollment of 2,950 and a full-time faculty complement of approximately 300. It is one of Money Guide?s top 100 "elite values in college education today," and it leads the nation?s colleges in percentage of students who study abroad.

Contact Michael Cooper at 507-786-3315 or cooperm@stolaf.edu.