cc2oo4

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart great musician is alive

fujiwark

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, posing as Will Armstrong, is alive and composing. "The Amadeus Net" is a comedic opera set in 2028 with a diverse cast and rich stories

SarahRae

Set in the year 2028, shortly after the destruction of half of the world’s population due to an asteroid-Earth collision (known as The Shudder), The Amadeus Net, by Mark Rayner, tells the story of love and survival in Ipolis, the man-made utopia dedicated to the preservation of art and to scientific exploration. While Ipolis itself may appear to be paradise, the world around it is certainly not. Divided still by wealth, the world is put in danger of destruction by the religious fanatics of the poverty-stricken South, who give the North an ultimatum: Distribute wealth and resources fairly, or suffer global annihilation. Living among this global turmoil, in Ipolis, are: Bella, the sadistic artist struggling with her past as a warrior-like survivor of The Shudder; Les, the Canadian consulate desperately and obsessively in love with Helen Printo, a world famous reporter; Alex Burton, the power-driven egoist determined to rule Mars; and the beautiful Katerina, who is set on chasing after unattainable women, and yet is loved by a man. Run by One, the mind of the Ipolis machine, the inhabitants of this futuristic civilization are under constant surveillance and surrounded by technology: their multifunctional data-pads, 3Vs (the future’s TV equivalent), robotic bartenders, etc. However, one citizen of Ipolis is monitored by One more closely than the rest: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, believed to have died in 1791. The 272-year-old composer, in love with Katerina, now goes by the name of Will Armstrong, yet continues to compose the music of Mozart. This does not become a problem until dedicated news reporter Helen Printo is set on discovering the truth, and One becomes intent on keeping the man safe. The Amadeus Net is a compelling read from start to finish, containing engaging characters, an intricate plot, and powerful insight into what it means to be human in post, and possibly pre, apocalyptic Ipolis. Most poignant to me was its examination of the nature of art, love, and sex: What drives an individual to love and to create? How important is the existence of art? It delves also into the mind of the computer as it controls its “children,” the people of Ipolis, and reworks their fates. I wonder too: How do the members of a technologically advanced society still maintain freedom, privacy, and a unique identity?

bibleeohfile

I loved the premise of this novel--I have a thing for post-apocalyptic stories--and loved that the novel wasn't just from Mozart's point-of-view, but from all of the main characters, including One's. Truthfully, I found One's point-of-view to be the most interesting. It reminded me very much of the robots in I, Robot who take over to "protect" humanity from itself; One was very much like that, controlling what and who came into Ipolis, stopping information from being sent out (information that would have harmed Mozart), and trying to stop the war between the North (the haves) and the South (the have-nots). The other characters had compelling stories and I loved how many of their stories were wrapped around Mozart's. We have Bella, the psychopathic artist, born after the Shudder who grew up with her survivalist father. She's beautiful, twisted, insane, and completely devoted to her art. There's Les, the boring Canadian diplomat with an obsession for Helen Printo, a self-serving investigative reporter who will stop at nothing to get a story. She's "friendly" with Alex Burton, a cruel, former black-ops solider who is desperate to get the funds together for an upcoming trip into outer space. He's got plans to sell Mozart to the highest bidder. Oh, and we can't forget Katerina, the beautiful Czech woman Mozart has found himself in love with. Did I mention she's a lesbian? Or that she's half in love with Helen Printo, and half in lust with Bella? And it wasn't just the characters and their stories that I found so compelling, but the ideas that this novel incorporated into the story. Like how do you define your worth in a society where money doesn't exist? Or what is art, how is it defined, and how far should someone be allowed to go to produce? And what about the idea of the truth at all costs? I don't really think we want a transparent society, no matter how much we want the truth. I haven't even touched on the idea of immortality (through living forever and through works of art) or artificial intelligence. Honestly, the idea of AIs scares me. I don't want one thing, one intelligent computer running my life, not ever. The Amadeus Net was a very thought-provoking novel and I'm looking forward to my rereading of it this summer. There was so much to take in, I'm sure I missed something. And I still haven't made up my mind about the ending; it's kind of left up in the air. Or is it?