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When Mozart visited Prague in 1787 for the premiere of Don Giovanni, he heard the young Josef Gelinek (Jelínek) improvising on a theme from one of Mozart’s own operas in the palace of Count Philipp Kinsky, and was sufficiently impressed to recommend him to the family. As a result, Gelinek, already ordained as a priest, went to Vienna and served for some fifteen years as domestic chaplain, piano teacher and tutor for the Kinsky family. The remainder of his life he spent as a domestic chaplain to Prince Nikolaus II Esterházy, all the while composing prolifically and striking up friendships with most of the leading composers, including Haydn and (for a while) Beethoven.
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