At the age of four, he could reproduce melodies by ear on the piano and had composed an andante and an allegro. By five, he was conjuring up full-blown compositions and playing before Austrian royalty by the age of six. When he was 11, he had composed two operas.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a genius and child prodigy by any standards, a peerless composer whose brilliant work was cut short by death at a tragically young age. His canon of work, however, is performed even today by multitudes of musicians around the world.

In celebration of his 245th birthday, the Pennsylvania Centre Chamber Orchestra has organized their third annual tribute to Mozart. The concert, "Father, Son and Mozart's Ghost," will also include works by his father, Leopold, who was instrumental in drawing the talent out of young Wolfgang by setting up concert tours and performances.

Conductor Douglas Meyer will direct the PCCO's performance of Mozart's own "Posthorn Serenade." Leopold's featured compositions will be the "Bauernhochzeit Sinfonia" and "Rustic Wedding Symphony," which include performances by dulcimer, bagpipe and folk harp.

The latter was composed in an effort by Leopold to raise money for the town musicians during the Carnival Season in Augsburg.

The Web site of the PCCO refers to the "ghost" in the title as "the spirit of Amadeus that lives on in the music of composers of more recent times." Musically, the ghost is represented by three tributes to Mozart by other composers.

These include Frank Martin's "Overture en Hommage à Mozart," Jacques Ibert's "Hommage à Mozart," and the first movement of Petyr Illych Tchaikovsky's "Serenade for Strings," which is dedicated to Mozart's memory.

Admission tickets cost $16 for adults, $14 for seniors and $6 for students and children. They may be bought either at the door or by credit card through phone at (814) 234-8313. The concert will take place at 3 p.m., Sunday, at the Recital Hall of the Penn State School of Music.