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Servus, dear reader:

Your servant, Wolf Mozart.

​You may know me as the world's greatest, naughtiest, and least modest musical prodigy. There's a lot out there about how I lived and composed and died; but I thought some stories about how I straddled fences between these opposites might amuse you—even if things didn't really sort out that way. But couldn't they have? So far there is one of six of these tales published— and I'm sure there'll be more in years to come. Pray enjoy them, as I have enjoyed their fabrication.

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This is the first installment in a six-book historical fantasy series on Mozart's life, with future releases planned.

Mozart Review

Nina Marina

"What happens when you combine a Mozart scholar and an author with a vivid imagination? If you buy "Mozart and the Lost Tomb" by Thomas Holliday, you will get both in one exciting package. Suspend disbelief and buckle up for an amazing tale."

 THOMAS HOLLIDAY BOOKS

Embark on an extraordinary journey filled with adventure at every turn alongside "Wolf," the 13-year-old Mozart. Join him and his father on a grueling European tour, where they strive to dazzle the elite and powerful with Wolf's prodigious musical talents. But behind the curtain, sinister forces conspire in service of Mozart's nemesis, the enigmatic Cagliostro.

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This captivating historical fantasy enchants classical music lovers of all ages, intertwining Mozart's life with a mesmerizing world of mystery and magic.

The authorized biography of America's most successful and prolific composer of opera.


Actors know about "falling up": a split-second ignition from the wings, propelling entrance as a new character, an unwilled ascent to a different mode of being, an in-body experience that overlays preparation, opportunity, choice, or chance. This authorized biography is the first and only full-length study of its subject, and a metaphor for humanity's uncanny ability to rise from seeming disaster into rebirth. Floyd's consistent succession of soars, stumbles, slides, or wrenches sings of triumph over odds. A modern Renaissance man, Floyd is our greatest living American opera composer and librettist, a trained concert pianist, a master stage director, and a teacher. In "Falling Up," Thomas Holliday offers an intimate account of the life that shaped the words and music. Combining insights from hundreds of interviews with Floyd, his family, and many of the last century's greatest singers, conductors, and opera administrators, "Falling Up" traces Floyd's Southern roots and the struggles and sacrifices that accompanied his rise to operatic stardom. With more than forty photographs, the detailed evolution of Floyd's fourteen operas, and in-depth analysis of his nonoperatic works, "Falling Up" is essential reading for opera fans and professionals alike, a book that moves, informs, and entertains.

Falling Up: The Days and Nights of Carlisle Floyd

Falling Up:
The Days and Nights of Carlisle Floyd, The Authorized Biography 

IN THE PRESS

This is a treasure of endlessly fascinating information about a composer and music that still is widely performed today.

A fastidiously researched and ringingly written biography of the composer.

Tom Holliday's biography of Carlisle Floyd documents the distinguished career of one of our most beloved artists and teachers, with vivid descriptions of creative ideas transformed into the operas we know and love.

Laurence Vittes,
Huffpost Arts & Culture

Jeff Kaliss,
San Francisco Classical Voice

Marc Scorca,
President and CEO, Opera America

Reviews

IN THE STUDIO

Thomas Holliday was a guest on the podcast Aria Code, where they discussed Carlisle Floyd's best-known opera, Susannah. He had the honor of participating alongside (on air, that is) opera star Renee Fleming and jazz diva Rhiannon Giddens.

Floyd's Susannah: Hopeless in New Hope, featuring Renée Fleming
00:00 / 31:08

BIO

Thomas Holliday 2 - photo credit- Shannon Altner (1).jpg

Thomas Holliday is an accomplished author, opera director, and music scholar whose career bridges the worlds of literature, performance, and historical research. Known for his masterful storytelling, Holliday authored the first full-length authorized biography of composer Carlisle Floyd, Falling Up: The Days and Nights of Carlisle Floyd (2013), and its forthcoming companion volume, The Carlisle Century (2026). His creative endeavors extend to fiction with The Counterfactual Mozart series, a unique blend of historical and speculative storytelling.

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Holliday has written extensively for professional opera programs and journals, contributing insights into works by Wagner, Verdi, and many others. With a robust background in directing and teaching opera, he has held prestigious roles in institutions like the University of Denver and Opera Colorado. Fluent in multiple languages and steeped in musical tradition, Holliday brings unparalleled depth and passion to his work, solidifying his reputation as a distinctive voice in the arts.

Bio

STAY ON THE MUSICAL JOURNEY

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