Published on

23/06/2026 - 14:11 GMT+2

After 31 years as a conservator for the French National Library, musicologist François-Pierre Goy was slowly preparing to retire. On 2 February, he was going through manuscripts in one of the institution's storehouses when he stumbled upon an unknown notebook.

Inside, he found 44 pages of sheet music from 1778. Goy, who is in charge of pre-1800 collections at the library's Music Department, thought he recognised the handwriting and style of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791).

Unsure of his discovery, he sought the opinion of his colleague Laurence Decobert, who had previously curated an exhibition on Mozart’s relationship with France.