Early Romantic on Music Theory Print

Adelaide Orsola Appignani

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Adelaide Orsola Appignani (also known as Orsola Aspri; 1807 – 30 September 1884) was an Italian singer, conductor, music educator and composer. She was a singer and conductor in Florence and Rome in 1839. She was a member of the Roman Academie Filarmonica at Pallazio Lancelotti and was granted an honorary membership in 1842 of the Academie de St. Cecelia. Appignani also taught singing, and one her students was notable tenor Settimio Malvezzi. Life Adelaide Orsola Appignani (also known as Orsola Aspri) was born in Rome around 1807. After her widowed mother married the well-known violinist Andrea Aspri, Appignani changed her name to Orsola Aspri. After completing her studies, she was active as a singer and a conductor in Florence and Rome in 1839. She was a member of the Roman Academie Filarmonica at Pallazio Lancelotti, and performed Smeton in Donizetti’s Anna Bolena there in 1833. Some of her romances and duets were printed in Rome by Ambrosini. Works Her selected works include: *Le advventure de una giornata (melodrama) 1827 *I riti indiani (opera) 1834 *I pirati (melodrama) 1843 *Clara de Clevers (melodrama) 1876 *Sinfonia for instruments (symphony), 1834 *Le redenzioni de Roma (

Adolf Bernhard Marx

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Friedrich Heinrich Adolf Bernhard Marx, also known as A. B. Marx (15 May 1795 – 17 May 1866), was a German music theorist, critic, and musicologist. Life Marx was the son of a Jewish doctor in Halle who, though a member of the congregation, was according to his son a convinced atheist. Marx was given the names Samuel Moses at birth, but changed these at his baptism in 1819. He began his career studying law at Halle, but also learned musical composition there—a fellow student was the composer Carl Loewe. After rejecting an offer for legal appointment at Naumburg, in 1821 he went to Berlin, where in 1825 Adolf Martin Schlesinger appointed him editor of the music journal he had founded, the Berliner allgemeine musikalische Zeitung. Marx’s intellectual critiques were appreciated by, amongst others, Beethoven, although they often offended the Berlin establishment, including Carl Friedrich Zelter. Marx became an intimate of the family of Felix Mendelssohn, who was greatly influenced by Marx’s ideas about the representational qualities of music—Marx’s influence in the revision of Mendelssohn’s overture to ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (1826) was noted by their mutual friend Eduard Devrient

Adolf Fredrik Lindblad

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Adolf Fredrik Lindblad (1 February 1801 – 23 August 1878) was a Swedish composer from the Romantic era. He is mostly known for his compositions of Swedish song or lieder, of which he produced over 200. His other well-known compositions include his Symphony No. 1 in C major, Symphony No. 2 in D major, and an opera titled Frondörerna (The Rebels). He was a well-respected friend of Felix Mendelssohn, and had a collaborative relationship with the famous Swedish soprano, Jenny Lind. Biography Born of an “unknown father” in the town of Skänninge on February 1, 1801, he spent most of his early life with his mother and foster-father in the Östergötland province. He started his studies in music at a fairly young age, and primarily studied piano and flute. At the age of fifteen, he gained recognition for composing a flute concerto that was performed in the nearby city of Norrköping in 1816. After achieving his first compositional success, Lindblad was sent by his foster-father to work in a shipping office in Hamburg to learn a trade, at the age of seventeen, but he stayed only a year. Returning to Sweden, he became more determined exclusively on music. Apart from opening a piano school, whic

Adolf Friedrich Hesse

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Adolf Friedrich Hesse (30 August 1809 – 5 August 1863) was a German organist and composer. Life Hesse was born and died in Breslau. He studied in his home town with the organists Friedrich Wilhelm Berner and Ernst Köhler (1799–1847). He was taught within the Bach tradition of Silesia. On his first concert tour in Germany he met the organist Christian Heinrich Rinck, with whom he returned to study for six months in 1828-1829: Rinck was a student of Johann Christian Kittel, who in turn was a student of Johann Sebastian Bach. In 1831, he became the principal organist at the Bernhardinerkirche in Breslau. Considered one of the most important organists in Germany, his virtuosic playing and agile pedalwork dazzled audiences in Paris, where he played an all-Bach programme—a novelty in France—for the inauguration of the organ at Saint-Eustache in 1844; and in London, where he played at Crystal Palace during the Great Exhibition of 1851. Back in Breslau, he conducted the symphonic concerts of the city’s Opera Orchestra. One of Hesse’s pupils was the Belgian organist Jacques-Nicolas Lemmens, who would later teach Alexandre Guilmant and Charles-Marie Widor. Works for organ Dates of publicatio

Adolphe Adam

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Adolphe Charles Adam (; 24 July 1803 – 3 May 1856) was a French composer, teacher and music critic. A prolific composer for the theatre, he is best known today for his ballets Giselle (1841) and Le corsaire (1856), his operas Le postillon de Lonjumeau (1836) and Si j’étais roi (1852) and his Christmas carol “Minuit, chrétiens!” (“Midnight, Christians”, 1847, known in English as “O Holy Night”). Adam was the son of a well-known composer and pianist, but his father did not wish him to pursue a musical career. Adam defied his father, and his many operas and ballets earned him a good living until he lost all his money in 1848 in a disastrous bid to open a new opera house in Paris in competition with the Opéra and Opéra-Comique. He recovered, and extended his activities to journalism and teaching. He was appointed as a professor at the Paris Conservatoire, France’s principal music academy. Together with his older contemporary Daniel Auber and his teacher Adrien Boieldieu, Adam is credited with creating the later Romantic French form of opera. Life and career Early years Adam’s father, Louis, 1834 thumb upright alt=middle aged, clean-shaven white man with full head of neatly cut white ha

Adrien-François Servais

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Adrien-François Servais (6 June 180726 November 1866) was one of the most influential cellists of the nineteenth century. He was born and died in what is now Halle, Belgium. He is one of the founders of the Modern Cellistic Schools of Paris and Madrid, which began through collaboration with his friend Auguste Franchomme and his disciple Víctor Mirecki Larramat. His compositions are still studied, performed and recorded all over the world. Two of his sons also had musical careers and performed his music. Biography Servais was originally trained as a violinist before switching to cello. Known by his contemporaries for his virtuosity and excessive vibrato, he was given the gift of a Stradivarius cello from 1701, which today bears his name. He is also known as the first cellist to adopt the bassists’ use of an endpin because of the large size of his Stradivarius. (The use of the endpin was, however, not generally adopted by most cellists until the early 20th century. For instance, Carlo Alfredo Piatti never used an endpin, though Lisa Cristiani’s use of it in the 1840s and 1850s popularized the practice for female cellists.) had several children, including two sons who also pursued mus

Aimé Leborne

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Aimé Ambroise Simon Leborne (or Aimé Le Borne) (29 December 1797 – 2 April 1866) was a French composer and music educator, who made his career in Paris. Life Born in Brussels, Leborne was the son of an actor and spent his youth in Versailles where he learned the violin. Leborne then studied at the Conservatoire de Paris where he was a pupil of Victor Dourlen for harmony and Luigi Cherubini for composition. In 1818, he obtained the second Prix de Rome for the cantata Jeanne d’Arc and in 1820, the First Grand Prix de Rome for the scene Sophonisbe. That same year, he was appointed professor of solfège. In 1836, he succeeded Antoine Reicha as teacher of the counterpoint and fugue class. In 1840, he became professor of composition. Leborne wrote a Traité d’harmonie which was not published. He reissued Charles-Simon Catel’s Traité complet d’harmonie. Among his pupils were Louis-Aimé Maillart, César Franck, Adolphe Deslandres and Victorin de Joncières. In 1829, he was appointed librarian at the Paris Opera, then in 1834 King’s Music Librarian, and in 1853 Imperial Chapel Librarian. Selected works * Les Deux Figaros (1827) * Le Camp du Drap d’or (1828) * Cinq ans d’entracte, opéra comique

Albert Lortzing

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Gustav Albert Lortzing (23 October 1801 – 21 January 1851) was a German composer, librettist, actor and singer. He is considered to be the main representative of the German Spieloper, a form similar to the French opéra comique, which grew out of the Singspiel. Life and career Lortzing was born in Berlin to Johann Gottlieb and Charlotte Sophie Lortzing. They had abandoned their leather shop and travelled through Germany as itinerant actors, founding the Berlin theatre company Urania, and turning their amateur passion into a profession. The young Lortzing’s first stage appearance was at the age of 12, entertaining the audience with comic poems during the interval in the Kornhaus at the Freiburg Münster. From 1817, the Lortzing family were part of Josef Derossi ensemble in the Rhineland, treading the boards at Bonn, Düsseldorf, Barmen and Aachen. Albert Lortzing became an audience favourite, playing the roles of a youthful lover, a country boy and bon vivant, sometimes also singing small tenor or baritone roles. On 30 January 1824 he married the actress Rosina Regine Ahles, with whom he subsequently had 11 children. The couple belonged to the Hoftheater (court theatre) in Detmold from

Albert Methfessel

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Albert Methfessel (6 October 1785 – 23 March 1869) was a German composer, singer, musicologist, and conductor. Originally destined by his parents for service in the church, like his older brother, he left theological studies because of his great interest in music. Given a scholarship by local nobility, he was able to formally study music, and then return to his hometown of Rudolstadt to perform and sing for twelve years. He spent three years in Hamburg before becoming an itinerant musician for seven years. His period of greatest income was as Kapellmeister in Braunschweig from 1832 to 1842. His career was then hampered by health difficulties, but he continued to compose, write musical treatises, and correspond with his fellow musicians until his death in 1869. He is most well known for his vocal compositions, in particular, his works for students and for male voices. Early life and family Born Albert Gottlieb Methfessel in Stadtilm, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, on 6 October 1785, he was the son of Johann Christian Methfessel (1733–1816) and Sophia Marie (née Gölitz) Methfessel (1745–1818). Johann Christian was the local school teacher and Cantor in Stadtilm, while Sophia was the daughte

Aleksander Gurilyov

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Aleksander L’vovich Gurilyov (Russian: Александр Львович Гурилёв; 3 September 1803 – 11 September 1858) was a composer, pianist, violinist, and music teacher who largely enriched the traditional romantic Russian repertoire through his solid technical accomplishments. He composed well over 200 pieces imbued with romantic, sentimental moods and subtle lyricism which enjoyed great success in Russia. He wrote numerous morceaux (short pieces) in a proto-dramatic, lyric declamatory style, all pre-dating the aesthetics of Dargomyzhsky, Mussorgsky and Tchaikovsky. Family Aleksander was born in Semyonovskoye, Serpukhov Oblast into the family of serf musicians in the court of Count V.G. Orlov. His father, Lev Gurilyov, was the first to teach him music, beginning with rudimentary introductions. Training Aleksander was raised as a member of the court of Count Vladimir Orlov’s country estate Otrada, near Moscow. He was taught violin by his father, Lev Gurilyov, a serf musician and kapellmeister in the orchestra of the Orlovs. Together with his children, he took lessons in piano playing from Russian-based pianist of Irish origin John Field and later studied music theory under the guidance of Ios

Aleksandr Varlamov (composer, born 1801)

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Alexander Egorovich Varlamov (or Aleksandr Yegorovich Varlamov; ; 27 November 1801 – 27 October 1848) was a 19th-century composer, singer, teacher, conductor, and one of the founding fathers of the genre of the Russian art song. He is recorded as being one of the first Russian creators to devise a technical process of singing in his monograph, Polnaya Shkola Penia - The Complete School of Singing (Moscow, 1840) He was also the notable father of Russian, 20th-century Actor Konstantin Varlamov and the great-grandfather of 20th-century composer Alexander Vladimirovich Varlamov. His art songs were famed for their Russian motives and authentic capture of everyday experiences. So much so that many of his songs were immortalized in literature by notable Russian and American authors and playwrights such as N. Gogol, I. Turgenev, and J. Galsworthy. Family Alexander Egorovich Varlamov was born into a poor family on the 15th (27th) of November, 1801. Education Alexander’s vocal talent and musical acumen pronounced itself early. Around the age of nine, he was able to learn music solely by hearing and was said to have a beautiful singing voice. He showed a particular interest in church music an

Alexander Alyabyev

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Alexander Aleksandrovich Alyabyev (; 15 August 17876 March 1851), also rendered as Alabiev or Alabieff, was a Russian composer known as one of the fathers of the Russian art song. He wrote seven operas, twenty musical comedies, a symphony, three string quartets, more than 200 songs, and many other pieces. Biography Born to a wealthy family of Governor Alexander Vasilievich Alyabyev in Tobolsk in Siberia, Alyabyev learned music in his early years. He joined the Russian Army in 1812, during the Napoleonic War, and fought as an officer until 1823. He participated in the entry of the Russian forces into Dresden and Paris, and he won two awards. In February 1825 Alyabyev and three others took part in an all-night card game which ended with retired colonel T.M. Vremev being accused of cheating and struck first by Alyabyev and then also by the two other players. The colonel died a few days later, possibly from a ruptured spleen, and Alyabyev was arrested on a charge of murder. While the evidence was not conclusive, Tsar Nicholas I expressly ordered him into exile to his native town of Tobolsk. Freed in 1831, he spent some years in the Caucasus before returning to Moscow, where he died in

Alexandre Boëly

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Alexandre Pierre-François Boëly (19 April 1785 – 27 December 1858) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and violist. Career Born in Versailles into a family of musicians, Boëly received his first music lessons from his father, Jean-François, who was a countertenor at the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris and a composer and harp teacher at the court of Versailles. He also studied under the Tyrolian pianist Ignaz Ladurner, who introduced him to the work of Bach and Haydn, which Boëly would champion in his adult career. Besides mastering the piano and organ, Boëly was also a talented violist. As the Romantic movement swept through Europe during the 19th century, Boëly was shunned by the official mainstream of musical life in Paris because of his classical sensibilities and his “elitist” fidelity to writing serious music. Boëly regarded with distaste the music that was written and feted by many of his contemporaries. The most popular standards during the Napoleonic period were compositions that swelled with patriotism or operatic intensity. Entrenching his reactionary reputation, he used his appointment as organist at Saint Germain l’Auxerrois in 1840 to promote the works of deceased compo

Alexandre Pierre Joseph Doche

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Alexandre Pierre Joseph Doche (Paris, 1799 – Saint Petersburg, 31 July 1849) was a French violinist and composer, conductor at the Théâtre du Vaudeville from 1828 to 1848. The son of Joseph-Denis Doche, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris and succeeded his father as composer and conductor at the Théâtre du Vaudeville. In January 1839, he married the Belgian actress Marie-Charlotte-Eugénie de Plunkett, known as Eugénie Doche after him. In 1848 he appeared at the theatre of Saint-Petersburg but suddenly died of cholera in 1849. Works Theatre *1838: A trente ans, ou une femme raisonnable, comedy in three acts mingled with couplets, with Joseph-Bernard Rosier *1840: Bonaventure, comédie-vaudeville in three acts and four tableaux, with Frédéric de Courcy and Charles Dupeuty *1841: La Journée d’une jolie femme, vaudeville, lyrics by Adolphe d’Ennery and Eugène Cormon *1843: L’Extase, comedy in three acts, mingled with song, with Auguste Arnould and Lockroy *1844: La Polka, vaudeville, with Alexis Decomberousse and Éléonore Tenaille de Vaulabelle Songs and compositions *1842: L’Enlèvement des Sabines, quadrille for piano *1842: La Journée d’une jolie femme, grande valse brillante, ar

Alexandre Villoing

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Alexandre Villoing (; 12 March 1804 – 2 September 1878) was a Russian pianist and music teacher best known for teaching Anton and Nikolai Rubinstein. Biography Alexandre Villoing was born in Moscow to a French émigré. At twelve years old, he was sent to the Golitsyn Hospital to study pharmacy, where he stayed until 1821. He later abandoned pharmacy and studied music with Franz Xaver Gebel and John Field. Villoing lived and taught music across the country from 1823 to 1830. He moved to Moscow in the 1830s. Around 1837, he took on Anton Rubinstein as a pupil. Villoing accompanied Rubinstein on his trip to Paris, sent by his mother, where his pupil unsuccessfully sought to enroll in the Paris Conservatory and performed in the Salle Érard. Villoing took Rubinstein on a tour of Europe, where Rubinstein gave concerts to great success. His teaching was highly praised. He also taught Nikolai Rubinstein. Returning to Russia, he enjoyed a reputation as a piano teacher. He took his stepdaughters to Paris, where they first appeared in a concert on 17 February 1862. Villoing returned to Moscow in the same year and moved to Saint Petersburg in September. Aside from the piano, he also played the

Alexei Lvov

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Alexei Fyodorovich Lvov (; 5 June 1798 – 28 December 1870) was a Russian composer, best known for the composition of the imperial-era Russian national anthem, God Save the Tsar. Biography Lvov was born into a family which was very interested in music. He was the son of Feodor Petrovich Lvov, who was Maestro of the Imperial Chapel in St Petersburg from 1826 to 1836 (having succeeded Bortniansky). Lvov codified the traditional Russian liturgical musical style called “Obikhod,” which is the standard repertory of most Russian Orthodox churches in the world. It is a simple style. These melodies were later edited and improved by Bakhmetev. Alexei Fyodorovich began violin lessons at a very young age and performed regularly in concerts given at his home: for instance, at 9 he was the soloist in a performance of a violin concerto by Viotti. Although he had a number of teachers in his youth, from the age of 19 onwards he began to study independently, seeking to develop his own personal style through careful attention to the works of such celebrated violinists as Corelli, Tartini, Viotti, Kreutzer and Rode. He nevertheless continued to study composition formally under the supervision of I. G.

Alexey Verstovsky

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Alexey Nikolayevich Verstovsky () (March 1 1799 – November 17 1862) was a Russian composer, musical bureaucrat and rival of Mikhail Glinka. Biography Alexey Verstovsky was born at Seliverstovo Estate, Kozlovsky Uyezd, Tambov Governorate. The grandson of General A. Seliverstov and a captured Turkish woman, he was also a descendant of the Polish szlachta (gentry or aristocracy). A civil engineer by training, he became interested in music while he was studying at the Corps of Engineers in St Petersburg. He also studied piano, violin, musical theory and composition. John Field was among his teachers. At the age of 20 he became famous for his ‘opera-vaudeville’ Grandmother’s Parrots (1819). Excited by the success he continued to compose light music for this currently fashionable genre and composed more than 30 of them. He also created a series of ballads for voice and piano, which he called cantatas. The performance of them had often involved a theatrical action. One of them The Black Shawl or Moldavian Song (1823) a setting of Alexander Pushkin’s poem, became immensely popular in the aristocrats’ salons. In 1825 he was appointed as an ‘inspector of music’ in Moscow, in charge of the imper

Amédée Méreaux

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Jean-Amédée Lefroid de Méreaux (18 September 1802 – 25 April 1874) was a French composer, pianist, piano teacher, musicologist and music critic. He is best known for his 60 Grandes Études, Op. 63. Family background Amédée Méreaux came from a family of musicians. His father, Joseph-Nicolas Lefroid de Méreaux, composed for the piano and organ, whilst his grandfather, Nicolas-Jean Lefroid de Méreaux, mainly composed operas. Going up the family tree, one more generation is known; it consists of Pierre Lefroid de Méreaux (Méreaux’s great-grandfather) and an unknown person (Méreaux’s great-grandmother). According to Antoine François Marmontel, Méreaux’s father was “a professor of good merit, in ongoing relationships with all the musical celebrities at the time”. The Lefroid de Méreaux seemed to have above-average status in French society, which comes from the fact that both Méreaux’s father and grandfather had been professors with their own respective musical reputations. If this wasn’t the case, they also wouldn’t have connections to aristocracy, since a handful of Méreaux’s early works are dedicated to noblemen and baronesses, which creates room for the possibility that Méreaux himself

Andreas Hallager

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Andreas Hallager (28 August 1796 – 9 December 1853) was a Danish musician, orchestra leader, and composer. Most of Hallager’s career as a musician was spent in the service of the Danish Military. He was awarded the Swedish Medal of Merit, the Order of the Dannebrog, and the Dannebrogordenens Hæderstegn. Career Hallager began receiving music lessons at the age of 7. In 1810, he became an oboist in the military as part of the borgerlige infanteri. In 1815, he traveled to Stockholm where he served for 8 months in the Kongelige Gardes Musikkorps, before returning to Copenhagen. He served as an oboist in the Danish military again as part of the Livjægerkorps. On 9 February 1816, he married Karen Hohanne Nicoline Liebert. They divorced on 4 December 1827. In 1828, he moved in with Anne Margrethe Degen with whom he had previously had a daughter, Thora Hallager, in 1821. Hallager then became the stepfather to Anne’s son Søffren Degen, who later became a well-known Danish guitarist. As Hallager was very interested in guitar music, it is likely that he taught Søffren to play. His biological son, Jens Giulliani Hallager, was named after the guitar virtuoso and composer Mauro Giuliani. On 18 O

Andreas Peter Berggreen

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Andreas Peter Berggreen (March 2, 1801 – November 8, 1880) was a Danish composer, organist, and pedagogue. Berggreen was born and died in Copenhagen. As a child Peter began composing songs and melodies for the flute. He initially studied law before pursuing a career in music, studying under Christopher Ernst Friedrich Weyse. In addition to Weyse, Berggreen was also heavily influenced by the German musician Johann Abraham Peter Schulz. Berggreen was the organist at Trinitatis Church in Copenhagen from 1838 and taught singing at Metropolitanskolen from 1843. In 1859 he was appointed a song inspector by the Danish government. Apart from several pieces of incidental music, a cantata, solo piano works, and songs, he published the folk song collections Melodier til Salmebog (1853) and Folk Sange og Melodier (1842–71). The latter comprises eleven large volumes, and includes folk songs in Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, German, English, French and Italian. Volume 8 (1868) features Slavic folk music in four sections: Russian; Polish; Bohemian and Moravian; and Sorbian. Musical compositions *Songs with Accompaniment of Guitar (1823) *Cantata for Rege’s Tohundredaarsfest (1823) *Cantata for Princ

Andreas Randel

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Andreas Randel (6 October 1806 – 27 October 1864) was a Swedish composer and violinist. The overture to his The People from Vårmland was recorded by Kungliga Hovkapellet Stig Westerburg. Biography Randel got his last name from Ramdala parish; he was originally called Pettersson. He worked as a concertmaster at the Royal Swedish Opera, regiment musician and was a professor at the Royal Swedish Academy of Music when he died. Randel learned to play pole shoes and hymns on a violin he got from a wandering player. In 1818 he came to Karlskrona where he was noted for his talent, among others by free lord Gerhard De Geer, who raised him together with his own sons. In 1821, with the support of Crown Prince Oscar, he traveled to Paris to study violin playing for Pierre Baillot and composition for Luigi Cherubini. He returned to Stockholm with a high rating in 1828, and immediately got a position as violinist. In 1838 he became second concertmaster in the court chapel and in 1861 first chaplain. Since 1844 he had been a violin teacher and from 1859 a professor at the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, where he had become a member in 1837. For several years he worked as music director of the 2nd

Angelo Maria Benincori

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Angelo Maria Benincori (28 March 1779 – 30 December 1821) was an Italian composer. He wrote string quartets and, in Paris, endeavoured to be a successful composer of operas; his greatest success, the performance of his completion of Nicolas Isouard’s opera Aladin, came a few weeks after his death. Life Benincori was born in Brescia in 1779. Hs father was secretary to the Duke of Parma; at Parma he studied, at an early age, music theory with Gasparo Ghiretti and violin with Alessandro Rolla; his concert debut, aged eight, was at the ducal court, playing a violin concerto. He later studied with Domenico Cimarosa. Aged 14, he wrote a mass which was performed. His opera Nitteti (1797) was produced in Italy, and well received also in Vienna about 1800. In Vienna he met Joseph Haydn, with whose string quartets he was so impressed as to abandon dramatic composition for a time and write only quartets. In 1803 he went to Paris, where his quartets had been published, and wrote two operas, Galatée ou le Nouveau Pygmalion and Hésione, which were accepted by the Académie Impériale de Musique but never performed. Meanwhile, he struggled to gain a living by teaching. Théâtre Feydeau staged three

Anna Caroline Oury

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Anna Caroline Oury (née de Belleville), also known as Ninette de Belleville, Ninette von Belleville or Ninette de Belleville-Oury (24 January 1806 – 22 July 1880), was a German pianist and composer of French ancestry. Life and career Anna Caroline de Belleville, often referred to as “Ninette”, was born in Landshut, Bavaria, Germany. She was the daughter of a French aristocrat who was the director of the national Court Opera in Mannheim. She studied with Carl Czerny in Vienna between 1816 and 1820, where she met Beethoven and heard him improvise. In 1829 she traveled to Warsaw where Chopin heard her play impressively enough for him to write about it in a letter, praising her “excellent” playing for its lightness and elegance. Twelve years later, in 1841, Chopin dedicated his Waltz in F minor, Op. Posth. 70, No. 2, to Oury, though it went unpublished until 1855. In July 1831 she made her London debut in Her Majesty’s Theatre with Niccolò Paganini and in October she married Antonio James Oury (1800–1883), a violinist at the King’s Theatre in London and the two toured as a duo. The remainder of Anna Caroline Oury’s career was spent focusing on composition until her retirement in 1866,

Anna Maria Erdődy

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Countess Anna Maria (Marie) von Erdődy (21 August 1778 – 17 March 1837) was a Hungarian noblewoman and among the closest confidantes and friends of Ludwig van Beethoven. Dedicatee of four of the composer’s late chamber works, she was instrumental in securing Beethoven an annuity from members of the Austrian high nobility. Life She was born Countess von Niczky in Arad, then part of the Kingdom of Hungary, today Romania. On 6 June 1796 she married Count Péter Erdődy of Monyorokerék and Monte Claudio, scion of the noted Erdődy line of the Hungarian/Croatian aristocracy. They had two daughters and a son: Marie, Friederike, and August, affectionately known as Mimi, Fritzi, and Gusti. Marie was instrumental in helping to sway members of the Imperial nobility to granting Beethoven a lifelong annuity in an effort to induce him to remain in Austrian lands in the face of an offer of employment as Kapellmeister in Cassel, from Jérôme, King of Westphalia. Jan Swafford characterizes Beethoven’s real intentions thus: Thayer states, “It seems likely that the suggestion that formal stipulations for a contract be drawn up under which Beethoven would decline the offer from Cassel and remain in Vienn

Anna Sick

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Anna (or Anne) Laura Mahir Sick (10 July 1803 – 19 February 1895) was a German composer and pianist who served as the court pianist and Mistress of Piano to the court in Stuttgart. Sick was born in Munich. She studied in Salzburg with Maria Anna Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s older sister. Her first performance was in Vienna in 1825, which was successful. She then studied under Carl Czerny, Josef Foerster, and Johann Aloys Miksch. In 1827, she toured across Germany, particularly in Augsburg, Munich, and Frankfurt. After 1827, she became a court pianist in Stuttgart, where she met and married the court assessor, M. Sick, in 1834. She also became a teacher. From then on, she stopped giving public performances, however she still performed privately. She was considered an excellent performer of Mozart, and on 1 October 1871, the Monthly Musical Record said that she was the “only distinguished player in Munich.” She died in Berlin. Piano *Pastoral Vocal *songs/lieder References ;Notes

Anselm Hüttenbrenner

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Anselm Hüttenbrenner (13 October 1794 – 5 June 1868) was an Austrian composer. He was on friendly terms with both Ludwig van Beethovenhe was one of only two people known to be present at his bedside at the time of his deathand Franz Schubert, of whom his recollections constitute a probably unreliable document in Schubertian biographical studies. Life Anselm Hüttenbrenner was born in Graz on 13 October 1794, the son of a wealthy landowner. He attended the Graz Lyzeum and studied law at the University of Graz, but was also composing music at this time. Count Moritz von Fries (1777–1826) was impressed with his ability as a pianist, and following the Count’s advice, Hüttenbrenner left in April 1815 for Vienna to study under Antonio Salieri. His first published works (for piano and Lieder) began to appear shortly afterwards, and the String Quartet (Op. 3) came out in 1816. He briefly returned to Graz in 1818, but was back in Vienna the following year, earning a living in a government office. In 1821 Hüttenbrenner inherited the family estate and married. Years later, he visited Beethoven on his deathbed, who greeted him with the words “I am not worthy of your visiting me”. He was also pr

Anthony Heinrich

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Anthony Philip Heinrich (March 11, 1781 – May 3, 1861) was the first “full-time” American composer, and the most prominent before the American Civil War. He did not start composing until he was 36, after losing his business fortune in the Napoleonic Wars. For most of his career he was known as “Father Heinrich,” an emeritus figure of America’s small classical music community. He chaired the founding meeting of the New York Philharmonic Society in 1842. Life Born in modest circumstances in Schönbüchel (now Krásný Buk, part of Krásná Lípa), Bohemia, Heinrich was given into the care of a rich uncle, whose thriving business empire he inherited in 1800. In 1810 he became stranded in Boston by the loss of his entire fortune in the Napoleonic Wars and the ensuing economic crash. Penniless, he resolved to take up his long-time avocation and become a professional violinist and conductor. A formative experience for him was a 700-mile journey, on foot and by boat, into the wilderness of Pennsylvania and then along the Ohio River into Kentucky. The sights and sounds of the new American frontier inspired some of the most original, if not strange, program music of the nineteenth century. Settlin

Antoine Elwart

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Antoine Aimable Elie Elwart (19 September 1808 – 14 October 1877) was a French composer and musicologist. Biography Childhood Elwart was born in Paris in the family home. At the age of ten, he became a chorister at the mastery of the Saint-Eustache church: Antoine Ponchard (a master of the chapel since 1815) ensured his first musical training. This teaching marked him for all his life, and spiritual music remained one of his great influences. Curious to discover the activity of professional musicians, he escaped from the work of manufacturer of crates where his parents had sent him and managed to become second violin in a street orchestra. In 1823, at the age of fifteen, a mass with four voices and a large orchestra of his composition was given at St-Roch Church. Training In 1825, the singer Cambon interpreted a scene by Elwart on the motif of the “Exiled”. This year marked especially his entrance to the École royale de musique (the future Conservatoire de Paris) in counterpoint, harmony and fugue and music composition classes. His professors were François-Joseph Fétis, Jean-François Lesueur and later, Anton Reicha. Elwart was awarded the First Fugue Prize in 1830. In 1835, he perf

Anton Bernhard Fürstenau

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Anton Bernhard Fürstenau (born 20 October 1792 in Münster; died 18 November 1852 in Dresden, Germany) was a German flutist and composer. He was the most famous virtuoso in Germany on his instrument and the most important Romantic flutist of the first half of the nineteenth century. His son Moritz Fürstenau (1824–1889), whom he later sent to study with Theobald Boehm in Munich, Life Anton Bernhard Fürstenau received his first flute lessons from his father, the flautist Kaspar Fürstenau (1772–1819). As early as the age of seven he performed publicly for the first time and five years later he became a member of the Oldenburg State Court Orchestra. with whom he was friendly until his death. In 1817 Fürstenau became a member of the municipal orchestra in Frankfurt where he received further instructions on harmony and composition lessons with a musician named Volweiler. In 1820 he joined the court orchestra in Dresden as first flutist, led by von Weber at the time. In 1823 he went to Denmark, following to Bavaria in 1824 again on tour. In 1826 he continued with his concert tours in Paris and then to London with von Weber, who was already seriously ill at that time. From 1825 to 1844 Fürs

Anton Diabelli

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Anton (or Antonio) Diabelli (5 September 17818 April 1858) was an Austrian music publisher, editor, and composer. Best known in his time as a publisher, he is most familiar today as the composer of the waltz on which Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his set of thirty-three Diabelli Variations. Early life Diabelli was born in Mattsee in Austria, then in the Archbishopric of Salzburg. A musical child, he sang in the boys’ choir at Salzburg Cathedral where he is believed to have taken music lessons with Michael Haydn. By the age of 19 Diabelli had already composed several important compositions including six masses. Diabelli was trained to enter the priesthood and in 1800 joined the monastery at Raitenhaslach, Bavaria. and published much music by Johann Strauss II and Josef Strauss. In 1872 the firm was taken over by Friedrich Schreiber and in 1876 it merged with the firm of August Cranz who bought the company in 1879 and ran it under his name. Diabelli died in Vienna at the age of 76. Compositions Diabelli composed a number of well-known Classical works, including an operetta called Adam in der Klemme, several masses, songs and numerous piano and classical guitar pieces. Numerically his gu

Anton Reicha

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Anton (Antonín, Antoine) Joseph Reicha (Rejcha) (26 February 1770 – 28 May 1836) was a Bohemia-born, Bavarian-educated, later naturalized French composer and music theorist. A contemporary and friend of Beethoven, he is now best remembered for his substantial early contributions to the wind quintet literature and his role as teacher of pupils including Franz Liszt, Hector Berlioz and César Franck. He was also an accomplished theorist, and wrote several treatises on various aspects of composition. Some of his theoretical work dealt with experimental methods of composition, which he applied in a variety of works such as fugues and études for piano and string quartet. None of the advanced ideas he advocated in the most radical of his music and writings, such as polyrhythm, polytonality and microtonal music, were accepted or employed by other nineteenth-century composers. Due to Reicha’s unwillingness to have his music published (like Michael Haydn before him), he fell into obscurity soon after his death and his life and work have yet to be intensively studied. Life 1770–1805: early years, first visit to Paris and the Viennese period Reicha was born in Prague. His father Šimon, the tow

Antoni Radziwiłł

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Prince Antoni Henryk Radziwiłł (; 13 June 1775 – 7 April 1833) was a Polish–Lithuanian and Prussian noble, aristocrat, musician, and politician. Initially a hereditary Duke of Nieśwież and Ołyka, as a scion of the Radziwiłł family he also held the honorific title of a Reichsfürst of the Holy Roman Empire. Between 1815 and 1831 he acted as Duke-Governor (, ) of the Grand Duchy of Posen, an autonomous province of the Kingdom of Prussia created out of Greater Polish lands annexed in the Partitions of Poland. Early life Antoni Radziwiłł was born on 13 June 1775 in Vilnius to Michał Hieronim Radziwiłł and Helena née Przeździecka. He studied at the University of Göttingen, like his other brothers: the elder Ludwik Mikołaj and the younger Michał Gedeon and Andrzej Walenty. One of his sisters was Aniela Radziwiłł (who married Prince Konstanty Adam Czartoryski). His father was the second son of Prince Marcin Mikołaj Radziwiłł and, his second wife, Marta Trembicka. His maternal grandparents were Antoni Przeździecki and Katarzyna Ogińska. After his maternal grandmother’s death, his mother was raised by her aunt, Aleksandra Czartoryska, the wife of Michał Kazimierz Ogiński. The high standing o

Antonie Brentano

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Antonie Brentano (28 May 1780 – 12 May 1869 in Frankfurt), born Johanna Antonie Josefa Edle von Birkenstock and known as Toni, was an Austrian philanthropist, art collector, arts patron, and a close friend of famous German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, being the dedicatee of his “Diabelli” variations. Early life Antonie was born 28 May 1780 in Vienna. She was the daughter of Austrian diplomat, educational reformer, and art collector and his wife Carolina Josefa von Hay (born 1755 in Fulnek/Böhmen; died 18 May 1788 in Vienna). She had three siblings, two of whom died in infancy: * Hugo Konrad Gottfried von Birkenstock (15 December 1778 in Vienna – 10 April 1825 in Ybbs an der Donau). Lieutenant in the k.u.k. Weydenfeld-Infantry * Konstantin Viktor von Birkenstock (born and died 1782 in Frankfurt) * Johann Eduard Valentin von Birkenstock (born and died 1784 in Frankfurt) Her father was an Imperial advisor to Empress Maria Theresa and the reformist Emperor Joseph II. Through his wife, he was the brother-in-law of Joseph von Sonnenfels, the dedicatee of Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 15 in D major, Op. 28 (1801). Antonie von Birkenstock Brentano’s mother was the sister of the Reformbisc

Antonio Casimir Cartellieri

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Antonio Casimir Cartellieri (27 September 1772 – 2 September 1807) was a Polish-Austrian composer, violinist, conductor, and voice teacher. His reputation dissipated after his death, not to be resurrected until the late 20th century. One son was the spa physician Paul Cartellieri. Another, Josef Cartellieri, compiled some largely second-hand biographical notes about the father he scarcely knew. Life and career Cartellieri was born in Gdańsk, Poland. His father, Antonio Maria Gaetano Cartellieri, was Italian, and his mother, Elisabeth Böhm, was Latvian of Baltic German origin. Both of his parents were opera singers and he received his earliest musical education from them. When he was 13, his parents divorced, at which time Cartellieri moved with his mother to Berlin. In that city he began studying music composition. In 1791, at the age of 18, Cartellieri became court composer and music director for Michał Kazimierz Ogiński in Poland. In 1793, he returned to Berlin with his employer where his first opera premiered successfully. He then went with the Count to Vienna, where he continued with further musical studies in music theory and composition under Johann Georg Albrechtsberger and

Antonio Rolla

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Giuseppe Antonio Rolla (18 April 1798 – 19 March 1837) was an Italian violin and viola virtuoso and composer. Life and career Antonio Rolla was born in Parma, Italy, where he studied violin with his father, composer Alessandro Rolla. In 1803 the family moved to Milan where Rolla began to work at a young age. He became a violinist with the Teatro di Pavia in the spring of 1807, but lost the post with the fall of the Napoleonic Empire in 1814. Having maintained contacts with the town of his birth, Rolla presented a concert at the Teatro Ducale in Parma on 11 June 1818. In a letter written in 1820, Niccolò Paganini praised Rolla’s ability after they had played violin duets at the request of his father. In 1821, Rolla became the concertmaster of the Teatro Comunale in Bologna and performed along with his father at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan in 1823. The same year, he accepted the position of concertmaster at the Staatskapelle in Dresden on the recommendation of Paganini. Rolla contracted an illness in 1836 and died the following year in Dresden at the age of 38. Rolla was highly regarded as an instrumentalist and composed a few works, notably for violin and viola, of which the most

Antonio Sapienza

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Antonio Sapienza (18 June 1794 – 1855) was an Italian composer and conductor. He was born in St. Petersburg, Russian Empire where he began his musical studies with his father who was also called Antonio. (Antonio Sapienza Sr. (1755–1829) had emigrated from Naples to Russia in 1783 and served as a musician and voice teacher at the Russian imperial court.) Sapienza returned to St. Petersburg in 1828 where he served as choirmaster and conductor at the Imperial Theatre until his death in 1855. Operas *Rodrigo (opera seria); Librettist: Giovanni Federico Schmidt; Premiere: Teatro San Carlo. Naples, 28 August 1823 (also performed at La Scala, Milan under the title Gonzalvo during the 1825/26 Carnival season) *L’audacia fortunata (opera buffa); Librettist: Jacopo Ferretti; Premiere: Teatro del Fondo, Naples, summer 1824 *Tamerlano (dramma per musica); Librettist: Andrea Leone Tottola; Premiere: Teatro San Carlo, Naples, 27 November 1824 *Ivan Tsarevich; Librettist: unknown; Premiere: St. Petersburg, 1830 References External links *Works by Antonio Sapienza held in Italian libraries *Manuscript score of Sapienza’s opera Roderigo digitized by the library of the Conservatorio San Pietro a Ma

Antun Sorkočević

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Antun Sorkočević (, ; 12 December 1775 – February 1841) was a diplomat, writer, composer and member of Ragusan nobility (chevalier des odres de Saint Maurice et de Saint Lazare demeurant a Paris). He was Medo Pucić’s cousin, and a good friend of Marko Bruerović. He also held the position of Mayor of Dubrovnik during the French Empire. Sorkočević was born in Dubrovnik. His father was Luka Sorkočević and mother, Paula Bonda (1743-1811). Like his father, he was a composer. Antun studied in Rome, and after 1806 led the Republic of Ragusa’s diplomatic representation in Paris where he was the last ambassador of the Republic in France, where he spent 35 years of his life. In Paris he wrote Postanak i propast Republike Dubrovačke (The Rise and Fall of the Republic of Dubrovnik) in which he proposed that Dubrovnik should join Boka Kotorska, Montenegro and Serbia to make it one nation. The pamphlet was banned in Austria. He also put forth the idea of creating a separate region comprising the Republic and Boka Kotorska under the Austrian Empire after French occupation of these lands (Illyrian provinces). Antun first married Catterina Schneider in 1820 in Venice. His second wife was Paola Labb

August Alexander Klengel

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August Stephan Alexander Klengel (29 June 1783, Dresden22 November 1852, Dresden) was a German pianist, organist and composer. Biography Klengel was the son of landscape painter . He showed an early talent for music, and studied piano under (among others) Johann Peter Milchmeyer (1750–1813). In 1803, Muzio Clementi, a renowned teacher, visited Dresden. He accepted Klengel as pupil, and took him with him on his travels. In 1805, they went together with Ludwig Berger to Saint Petersburg. Clementi next travelled to London, but Klengel remained in St Petersburg until 1811, giving piano lessons. He next moved to Paris in 1812; in 1814, he returned to Dresden; in 1815, he visited London, where the Philharmonic Society commissioned him to write a piece, and he wrote for them his Piano Quintet (for piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass). In 1816, he was appointed court composer to the King of Saxony (at the time, Frederick Augustus I), in Dresden. Except for brief visits to Paris and Brussels, he remained in that city for the rest of his life. His Canons and Fugues for Piano, in All the Major and Minor Keys were first published in 1854, after his death. In them, Klengel attempted to

August Freyer

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Karol August Freyer (15 December 1801 – 28 May 1883) was a Polish musician and composer, specializing in both performance and composition on the organ. Biography Freyer was born in Saxony in 1801. He moved to Warsaw and began his musical career there as a double bass player. He became organist at the Warsaw Evangelical Church, had the organ rebuilt, and turned his church into a prominent musical location At an early age Stanisław Moniuszko became his pupil, his parents relocated to Warsaw to have Stanisław study with Freyer. He died in 1883. Style Freyer was largely responsible for the revival of organ music in Poland. He was a master at music balance, both homophonic and polyphonic. His playing was appreciated by Felix Mendelssohn and Louis Spohr. In addition to the aforementioned German concerts, he toured Paris to an enthusiastic reception. His most famous composition was a set of Concert Variations of which the final-movement fugue is the most recognized. References External links * Scores by August Freyer in digital library Polona

Auguste Andrade

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Jean (or Jacob) Auguste Andrade (12 August 1793 – 11 January 1843 ) was a French singer and composer. Biography Born in Saint-Esprit (Pyrénées-Atlantiques), son of Rabbi Abraham Andrade, a student of Pierre-Jean Garat and Antoine Ponchard at the Conservatoire de Paris, in 1820 he won First Prize in singing. Professor of vocal music, singer (tenor) of the Orchestre de la Société des concerts du Conservatoire, we owe him romances and nocturnes published at Petibon et Schlesinger. Andrade died in Paris on 11 January 1843. Works Among his numerous compositions: ;Singer * Messes en mi bémol majeur, 4-part choir and orchestra, 1816. * Adjutor in oportunitatibus in F major, 4-part choir and orchestra, 1818. ;Composer * Le Départ du matelot, ballade, lyrics by Casimir Delavigne, 1827. * Le Berger d’Appenzel, singing, piano, c. 1830. * L’Exilé, singing, piano, c. 1830. * La promenade sur l’eau, two-voice barcarolla, lyrics by Ulric Guttinguer, 1830. * La Magicienne, singing, piano, 1835. * Pleure petite fille, singing, piano, 1835. * Un ciel étranger, singing, piano, 1835. * C’est bien la peine d’être sage, ditty, undated. ;Publications * Une leçon de vocalise, with Antoine Romagnesi, 1825.

Auguste Barbereau

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Mathurin Auguste Balthasar Barbereau (14 November 1799 – 14 July 1879) was a French composer and music theorist. Barberau was born in Paris. He entered the Conservatoire de Paris in 1810 and received numerous prizes. He was awarded with the Prix de Rome in 1824 for his cantata Agnes Sorel with text by Pierre-Ange Vieillard. He conducted many orchestras in several theatres, especially the Théâtre Italien between 1836 and 1838. Many times he replaced Anton Reicha, and took part in a variety of symphonies and concert works. But the real contribution of Barbereau is his theoretical work, among them his Traité d’harmonie théoretique et pratique (1843–45), considered the most important scientific work published hitherto on this subject. After this work he published a curious Étude sur l’origine du système musical (Paris, 1852), which gave rise to great controversy. Auguste Barbereau died suddenly in an omnibus in Paris, after he had been teaching at the Conservatory. References ;Attribution *This article is based on the translation of the corresponding article of the French Wikipedia. A list of contributors can be found there at the History section.

Auguste de Peellaert

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Auguste Philippe de Peellaert (Bruges, March 12, 1793 – Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, April 16, 1876) was a Belgian officer who, after his military career, became a painter, composer, and writer. Biography Auguste de Peellaert hailed from an important aristocratic family, members of which had held important offices in Bruges. His father, Anselme de Peellaert, was appointed chamberlain to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1810, and moved with his wife and three children to Paris. Living well above their means, they moved back to Bruges in 1814, where the father died in 1817. From 1809 to 1812 Auguste was boarded in Paris with a man named Lemoine, in the rue Neuve de Berry near the Champs Elysées. In 1815 he began his military career in the Netherlands army. A family member, Pius de Crombrugghe (secretary in the cabinet of Willem I), got him a commission as sous-lieutenant. He also received support from his maternal uncle, , governor of North Brabant (1826–1829) and Antwerp (1830). His brother in law Philippe Veranneman de Watervliet, member of Parliament, was available for support as well. Peellaert was stationed mainly at Kortrijk, Menen and Doornik, where he became friendly with Albert Prisse, who l

Auguste Franchomme

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Auguste-Joseph Franchomme (10 April 180821 January 1884) was a French cellist and composer. In addition to his work in Paris, he collaborated with Spanish cellist Víctor Mirecki Larramat and Belgian cellist Adrien-François Servais in founding what is considered the Spanish school of cellists, influencing future generations there. For his many contributions to music, he was decorated with the French Légion d’honneur in 1884. Life and career Born in Lille, Franchomme studied at the local conservatoire with M. Mas and Pierre Baumann. He moved to continue his education with Jean-Henri Levasseur and Louis-Pierre Norblin at the Conservatoire de Paris, where he won his first prize only after one year. Franchomme began his career playing with various orchestras and was appointed solo cello at Sainte-Chapelle in 1828. Along with violinist Jean-Delphin Alard, teacher of Pablo de Sarasate, and pianist Charles Hallé, creator of the Hallé Orchestra, he was a founding member of the Alard Quartet. The Quartet was rare for a chamber ensemble of its time because it consisted of professional musicians. Franchomme also belonged to the founding ranks of the Société des Concerts du Conservatoire. Franc

Bartolomeo Bortolazzi

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Bartolomeo Bortolazzi (born Toscolano-Maderno 1772; died 1846 ) was a performing musician, composer, author, and virtuoso of both the guitar and the mandolin. He was credited by music historian Philip J. Bone as helping to pull the mandolin out of decline. Early life Bortolazzi was born to musical parents, and when quite a child studied the mandolin. At a very early age, he made concert tours through northern Italy, meeting with considerable success. In the year 1800, he visited England where he was well received, remaining there two years and surprising the English audiences with his instrument. Among his published works we find a method for the guitar entitled: New theoretical and practical guitar school, Op. 21, and a method for the mandolin entitled School for the mandolin, violin system. The guitar method was published in French and German by Haslinger, Vienna; it was a standard work in Austria during the first part of the nineteenth century, and met with such success that it passed through eight editions up to the year 1833. The first eleven chapters, of his method are devoted to the theoretical part, and the twelfth concerns the instrument. After these twelve introductory ch

Benjamin Franklin White

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Benjamin Franklin White (September 20, 1800 – December 5, 1879) was a shape note “singing master”, and compiler of the shape note tunebook known as The Sacred Harp. He was born near Cross Keys in Union County, South Carolina, the twelfth child of Robert and Mildred White. Musical career White and Elisha J. King published The Sacred Harp in 1844, using the four-shape shape note notation. King died in 1844. In 1845, White led in the establishment of the Southern Musical Convention. In 1850, he issued a second edition of The Sacred Harp, adding 97 songs and 103 pages. With the 1850 and future editions, White was assisted by a musical committee appointed by the Southern Musical Convention. In 1859, a third edition of The Sacred Harp was released, adding 74 more songs on 63 pages. A fourth edition came out in 1869. For the first time, in this revision White replaced old songs with new ones, rather than simply adding the new songs to the back of the book. A year later, he released a copyright of the same book signed only by himself and his son, D. P. White, perhaps clarifying ownership. In 1911, White’s youngest son, James Landrum White, reissued this fourth edition with a supplement of

Bernhard Crusell

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Bernhard Henrik Crusell (15 October 1775 – 28 July 1838) was a Finland-Swedish clarinetist, composer and translator, “the most significant and internationally best-known Finnish-born classical composer and indeed, – the outstanding Finnish composer before Sibelius”. Early life and training Crusell was born in Uusikaupunki (Nystad), Finland, into a poor family of bookbinders. His grandfather, Bernhard Kruselius had learned the trade of bookbinding in Turku and Stockholm, then settled in Pori where he fathered nine children, including Crusell’s father Jakob, who also became a bookbinder. In 1765, after Jakob completed his apprenticeship, he moved to Uusikaupunki and married Helena Ylander, but she died about one year later. In 1769 he married Margaretha Messman. The couple had four children, but Bernhard was the only one who lived to become an adult. Later in life Crusell described this period of his life, writing in the third person: In his little town of birth there was only one person who had an active interest in music: a shop assistant who could be heard in the evenings playing the flute for his own amusement. One night, the four-year-old Berndt was sitting in the street, leanin

Bernhard Molique

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Bernhard Molique (Wilhelm Bernhard Molique; 7 October 180210 May 1869) was a German violinist and composer. Biography He was born in Nuremberg. His father was a musician and the boy studied various instruments, but finally devoted himself to the violin. In 1815, he received some lessons from Louis Spohr, and then studied the violin for two years at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München under Pietro Rovelli. Career In 1820, Molique succeeded Rovelli as court violinist in Munich and, after several successful tours, in 1826 he became music director at Stuttgart. His pupils there included the violinist Henry Blagrove; the violinist, conductor and composer Alfred Mellon; and the composer Jane Roeckel. Molique was well received on a visit to London when he played his own Piano Concerto No 5 on 14 May 1840. He visited England several other times before settling in London from 1849 until 1866. He died in Cannstatt in 1869. Compositions As a composer, Molique was unapologetically self-taught. His music displays the influence of Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn and, especially, Louis Spohr. The then radical developments represented by Berlioz (who publicly praised his violin playing) and

Carl Almenräder

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Carl Almenräder (3 October 1786 – 14 September 1843) was a German bassoonist, inventor and composer. The design of the modern bassoon owes a great deal to Almenräder, who, assisted by the German acoustics researcher Gottfried Weber developed the 17-key bassoon whose range spanned three octaves and a half. Early years The son of a teacher, Carl Almenräder was born in Ronsdorf near (Wuppertal. He taught himself to play the bassoon after he was given one when aged just 13. He started out in 1810 playing in a theatre orchestra in Cologne, but he switched to an orchestral position in Frankfurt in 1812 where by 1814 he was also obtaining solo work. He studied composition with Aloys Schmitt, and in 1814 he gave a public performance in Frankfurt of a rondo which he had himself written. Career progress In 1817 Almenräder joined the Mainz theatre orchestra as a bassoonist. He was now working seriously on a year-long project to develop a technically improved bassoon featuring moving keys and an improved level of balance across the tonal range. By 1819 he had temporarily moved down river to Cologne where he joined his brothers in their workshop which focused on producing flutes and clarinets.

Carl Arnold (composer)

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Carl Arnold (full name Friedrich Carl Gottfried Arnold; 6 May 1794 – 11 November 1873) was a German pianist, composer, conductor, teacher and organist. From 1848 he lived in Christiania (now Oslo) in Norway, and was important in the musical life of the city. Life Arnold was born in Neunkirchen near Bad Mergentheim in 1794, son of the cellist and composer Johann Gottfried Arnold and his wife Luisa Katharina. His father gave him early music lessons; after his death in 1806, Carl became an adoptive son of Johann Anton André. He was a pupil of André and of Georg Jacob Vollweiler and Aloys Schmitt. He first gave a concert as a pianist in Frankfurt in 1815, and in the following years he gave concerts in European cities including Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Leipzig and Warsaw. From 1819 he lived in Saint Petersburg, teaching and giving concerts. He moved to Berlin in 1824, and taught at the Prussian court. In 1835 he became music director in Münster; during his time there he conducted oratorios of Handel, Haydn and Mendelssohn. Arnold was engaged in 1848 as conductor of the Philharmoniske Selskab (“Philharmonic Society”) in Christiania (now Oslo), and in the following years was important in t

Carl Blum

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Carl Wilhelm August Blum (1786 – 2 July 1844) was a German singer, librettist, stage actor, director, guitarist and opera and song composer. Philip J. Bone wrote that Blum was “a universal genius, uniting in one person the poet, the dramatist, composer, singer and performer.” He was composer to the Court of the King of Prussia. History and career Blum studied guitar from age 15. Books * Jucunde: Dramatisches Taschenbuch für 1836 (Berlin: Verlag von Theod. Chr. Fr. Enslin, 1835) * Die Musik: Anleitung, sich die nöthigen Kenntnisse zu verschaffen, um über alle Gegenstände der Musik richtige Urtheile fällen zu können; Handbuch für Freunde und Liebhaber dieser Kunst; nach dem französischen Werke des Herrn Fetis “La musique mise à la portée de tout le monde” (Berlin: Schlesinger, 1830) Stage works Original works (mostly to his own libretto) * Karl der Zweite – Die Flucht nach Frankreich (f.p. Königsberg, 19 January 1812) * arias and songs to Zoraide, oder Die Mauren in Granada. Lyric drama in 3 acts op. 65 (f.p. Berlin, 7 May 1817) * Der Schiffskapitän, oder Die Unbefangenen (f.p. Berlin, 8 June 1817) * Fortunata (f.p. Berlin, 5 June 1818) * arias and songs to the comic magic opera Das

Carl Czerny

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Carl Czerny (; ; 21 February 1791 – 15 July 1857) was an Austrian composer, music educator, and pianist of Czech origin. His music spanned the late Classical and early Romantic eras. His vast musical production amounted to over a thousand works and his books of studies for the piano are still widely used in piano teaching. He was one of Ludwig van Beethoven’s best-known pupils and would later on be one of the main teachers of Franz Liszt. Early life Infancy Carl Czerny was born in Vienna (Leopoldstadt) and was baptized in St. Leopold parish. His father was of Czech origin; his mother was Moravian. Czerny came from a musical family: his grandfather was a violinist at Nimburg, near Prague, and his father, Wenzel, was an oboist, organist and pianist. When Czerny was six months old, his father took a job as a piano teacher at a Polish manor and the family moved to Poland, where they lived until the third partition of Poland prompted the family to return to Vienna in 1795. As a child prodigy, Czerny began playing piano at age three and composing at age seven. His first piano teacher was his father, who taught him mainly Bach, Haydn and Mozart. He began performing piano recitals in his p

Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen

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Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen (first name also sometimes given as Karl; 27 September 1778 – 21 December 1851) was a German composer and academic teacher at the Prussian Academy of Arts. Life Rungenhagen abandoned early study of art under Daniel Chodowiecki and joined his father’s trading company. He worked there from 1796 to his father’s death, after which he devoted himself entirely to music. proved insufficient for him to win the post, despite the fact that Felix and the members of the Mendelssohn family had for many years sung in, and supported, the Akademie. Some have supposed that Rungenhagen’s success was due to anti-Jewish sentiment. The loss of the election may have motivated Mendelssohn to turn his back on Berlin. As Director of the Akademie, Rungenhagen continued the revival of the music of Bach; in 1833 he conducted the first performance of Bach’s St John Passion after Bach’s death. Rungenhagen also worked at the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin as a music pedagogue, appointed professor in 1843. Amongst his students were Albert Lortzing, Louis Lewandowski, Stanisław Moniuszko, August Conradi and Alexander Fesca. Rungenhagen was also a member of a Masonic Lodge in Berlin.

Carl Gottlieb Reissiger

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Carl Gottlieb Reißiger (also Karl Reissiger, Carl Reissiger, Karl Reißiger) (31 January 1798 – 7 November 1859) was a German Kapellmeister and composer. Biography Born in Belzig, Reissiger attended the Thomasschule zu Leipzig and was the pupil of Johann Gottfried Schicht and Peter von Winter. In 1821, he followed the example of the young Beethoven and went to Vienna to study with Antonio Salieri and also studied theology at the University of Leipzig. Reissiger continued his musical studies in France and Italy in 1824, under the sponsorship of the Prussian Ministry of Cultural Affairs. After working for two years as the musical director of the Dresden Opera, he succeeded Carl Maria von Weber as the Kapellmeister of the Dresden Court in 1828, and would hold this office until his death in 1859. A famous piece known as Weber’s Last Waltz was actually written by Reissiger (one of his Danses brillantes, op. 26) and is mentioned in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher (1839) as one of Roderick Usher’s favorite pieces of music; it is also the title of a 1912 film. Reissiger left behind an extensive oeuvre that was distinguished above all by his vocal music, which included nine

Carl Guhr

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Carl Wilhelm Ferdinand Guhr, also Karl Guhr (27 October 1787 – 23 July 1848) was a German violinist, composer and from 1821 until his early death, theatre Kapellmeister and music entrepreneur in the Free City of Frankfurt. Family Born in Milicz, Silesia, Guhr came from a family of musicians. His father was Carl Christoph Guhr, a cantor at the Protestant Gnadenkirche, Militsch (now Polish Milicz), approx. 55 kilometres north of Breslau with a population of approx. 3,300, mainly Protestant at the time. This church was one of the six Silesian churches of grace which the Austrian emperor had to grant to the Silesian Lutherans in 1709. In 1797/98, Count , who was for many years an envoy of Frederick the Great at the courts of Vienna, London and St. Petersburg, had a new castle built in the classicist style by Carl Gottfried Geissler in Militsch. Until 1810, the count maintained a small castle chapel with well-paid musicians, including his father Carl Christoph Guhr. In 1811, this chapel developed into the first concert society in Silesia, which was led by his younger brother Friedrich Heinrich Florian Guhr (17 April 1791 – 1841). Training Guhr received his basic musical training from hi

Carl Jonas Love Almqvist

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Carl Jonas Love Ludvig Almqvist (28 November 1793 – 26 September 1866) was a Swedish author, romantic poet, romantic critic of political economy, realist, composer and social critic. Biography Carl Jonas Love Almqvist was born in Stockholm, Sweden. He was the son of War Commissioner Karl Gustav Almqvist (1768–1846) and Birgitta Lovisa Gjörwell (1768–1806), daughter of journalist and editor Carl Christoffer Gjörwell Sr. (1731–1811). Almqvist’s younger half-brother was Director-General Gustavus Fridolf Almquist (1814–1886), who was the father of Agnes Hammarskjöld. He studied at Uppsala University and then worked as a clerk in Stockholm. In 1823 he gave up his post, and in the autumn of the following year moved to Adolfsfors-Köla in northern Värmland where he and some friends, inspired by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, intended to live out a rural idyll. It was there in 1824, that he married Anna Maria Andersdotter Lundström (1799–1868) and had two children. In 1828, he became a teacher at the experimental school Nya Elementar in Stockholm, where he was rector there from 1829 to 1841. Almqvist was ordained as a pastor in 1837, but could not find work, and after publishing Det går an in 1839

Carl Leibl

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Carl (Karl) Leibl (3 September 1784 – 4 October 1870) was a German musician, conductor, cathedral organist and cathedral conductor in Cologne. Life Born in Fußgönheim (Palatinate), Leibl comes from a family of Bavarian officials and innkeepers and first learned the cooper’s trade before he could dedicate himself to music. Leibl first worked as a music teacher at the Bayrischer Hof. In 1826 he became Cathedral Kapellmeister in Cologne and directed the “Verein der Dommusiken und Liebhaberkonzerte” (Association of Cathedral Music and Lover’s Concerts) there. In the same year he also took over the direction of the Städtischer Singverein, which in 1827 merged with the Musikalische Gesellschaft to form the new Cölner Concert-Gesellschaft, whose choir still exists today as the Gürzenich-Choir. This society, under the patronage of wealthy citizens, organized its concerts in the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne from 1857 onwards - from which the Gürzenich Orchestra of the City of Cologne, which still exists today, ultimately emerged. Leibl was active at a difficult time of political and social upheaval. As a result of laws passed after the Napoleonic occupation in 1794, the guilds were dissolved

Carl Loewe

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Johann Carl Gottfried Loewe (; 30 November 1796 – 20 April 1869), usually called Carl Loewe (sometimes seen as Karl Loewe), was a German composer, tenor singer and conductor from the late Classical and early Romantic periods. In his lifetime, his songs (“Balladen”) were well enough known for some to call him the “Schubert of North Germany”, and Hugo Wolf came to admire his work. He is less known today, but his ballads and songs, which number over 400, are occasionally performed. Life and career Loewe was born in Löbejün in the Prussian Duchy of Magdeburg and received his first music lessons from his father. He was a choir-boy, first at Köthen, and later at Halle, where he went to grammar school. The beauty of Loewe’s voice brought him under the notice of Madame de Staël, who procured him a pension from Jérôme Bonaparte, then king of Westphalia, which enabled him to further his education in music, and to study theology at Halle University. In 1810, he began lessons in Halle with Daniel Gottlob Türk. This ended in 1813, on the flight of the king. In 1820, he moved to Stettin in Prussia (now Szczecin in Poland), where he worked as organist and music director of the school. It was whil

Carl Ludvig Lithander

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Carl Ludvig Lithander (26 January 1773 – 17 December 1843) Carl Ludvig Lithander appears to have stayed briefly in Königsberg, as he is listed as enrolled at the university there; in 1790 he however enrolled in Uppsala University in mainland Sweden. The following year he resided with an uncle in the Swedish capital Stockholm, left the university and joined the military instead. He graduated as an officer specialised in fortification in 1795. He thus never reached Turku and Finland, but kept in close contact with his siblings who had settled there, and who shared his musical interests. For example, he facilitated the procurement of a new piano, made in Stockholm, for the on their behalf. From 1804 he was employed as a teacher of mathematics at the Military Academy Karlberg, where he also was granted living quarters, and from 1809 as a lecturer in geometry and trigonometry. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in 1812, but two years later left active military service. During his time in the military, he also took music lessons from Georg Joseph Vogler and Johann Christian Friedrich Hæffner, and began producing musical compositions himself. Between 1801 and 1814 he was organist a

Carl Maria von Bocklet

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Carl Maria von Bocklet (30 November 1801 – 15 July 1881) was a composer, pianist and teacher of music. Bocklet was born in Prague. He studied with Bedřich Diviš Weber and in 1821 he moved to Vienna, where he “created a great stir…through his interesting free fantasias on the piano forte.” In Vienna, Eduard Marxsen was one of his notable students. () Ludwig van Beethoven wrote letters of introduction for him, more than likely, he was influential to Frédéric Chopin. He was also admired by Franz Liszt as the two collaborated on concerts together. In 1828 he was, with Ignaz Schuppanzigh and Joseph Linke, the first performer of Schubert’s two piano trios (1827). Among his own compositions is a variation for Part II of Diabelli’s Waltz of the Vaterländischer Künstlerverein. Carl Maria von Bocklet died in Vienna, aged 79. References External links *

Carl Maria von Weber

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Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (18/19 November 17865 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and critic in the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Best known for his operas, he was a crucial figure in the development of German Romantische Oper (German Romantic opera). Throughout his youth, his father, Franz Anton, relentlessly moved the family between Hamburg, Salzburg, Freiberg, Augsburg and Vienna. Consequently, he studied with many teachers—his father, Johann Peter Heuschkel, Michael Haydn, Giovanni Valesi, Johann Nepomuk Kalcher, and Georg Joseph Vogler—under whose supervision he composed four operas, none of which survive complete. He had a modest output of non-operatic music, which includes two symphonies, two concertos and a concertino for clarinet and orchestra, a bassoon concerto, a horn concertino, two concertos and a Konzertstück for piano and orchestra, piano pieces such as Invitation to the Dance; and many pieces that featured the clarinet, usually written for the virtuoso clarinetist Heinrich Baermann. His mature operas—Silvana (1810), Abu Hassan (1811), Der Freischütz (1821), Die drei Pintos ( 1820–21), Euryanthe (1823), Ob

Carl Ritschl

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Georg Carl Benjamin Ritschl (1 November 1783 – 18 June 1858) was a German evangelist theologian, bishop and composer in Pomerania. Biography Carl Ritschl was born to Georg Ritschl von Hartenbach and Regina Christina Emminghaus in Erfurt. His father was a priest and professor at the Erfurt Ratsgymnasium. He acquired instruction in voice, keyboard and organ with the organist Johann Christian Kittel, the last student of Johann Sebastian Bach. He graduated from the gymnasium at the age of fifteen Ritschl continued studies in theology in Jena and, at the age of nineteen, earned his degree in autumn 1802. In 1804, still too young for a spiritual appointment, he began tutoring at their home the children of Johann Joachim Bellermann, the director of the Gymnasium of the Grey Friary. Ritschl was also a member of the music community in Berlin. At Berlin’s Cöllnisches Gymnasium, associated with the Grey Friary, Ritschl instructed students in voice and religion. In 1804 he became a member of Carl Friedrich Zelter’s choral society, for which he wrote several lieder. After he earned his Ph.D. from the University of Erfurt in 1805, he was appointed a collaborator (1807) and a subrector (1809) at

Carlo Coccia

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Carlo Coccia (14 April 1782 – 13 April 1873) was an Italian opera composer. He was known for the genre of opera semiseria. Life and career Coccia was born in Naples, and studied in his native city with Pietro Casella, Fedele Fenaroli, and Giovanni Paisiello, who introduced him to King Joseph Bonaparte for whom he became the private musician. He wrote his first opera, Il matrimonio per lettera di cambio, in 1807, but it was a failure; however, the following year, with the help of Paisiello, his second opera, Il poeta fortunato, was well received. He then moved to Venice, where he concentrated on opera semiseria, of which Clotilde from 1815, is perhaps the best example. Accused of imitating other composers, and of producing too many uneven operas in great haste, he was eventually eclipsed by the emerging Rossini, and left for Lisbon, where he remained from 1820 to 1823. He then settled in London in 1824, where he was conductor at His Majesty’s Theatre. In 1827, he wrote Maria Stuarda for Giuditta Pasta, which, despite her and the celebrated bass Luigi Lablache being in the cast, was not successful, achieving only four performances. Back in Italy, he concentrated on opera seria, and o

Carlo Curti (Bolognese composer)

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Carlo Curti (4 November 1807 - 29 December 1872) was a Bolognese Italian cellist, educator and composer. He studied violin under Rolla (possibly Antonio Rolla), and then the cello under Parisini. *Souvenir sur La Sonnambula variato Vioncello *Divertimento dell’opera ‘Il Trovatore’ *Ricordanze dell’ Opera L’Africana di Meyerbeer *Variate ricordanze dell’opera ‘Un Ballo in Maschera’ *La Viola del Pensiero *Il Pianto d’amore *Il Ferito morente per la patria *Rimembranze : melodie variate sull’opera La sonnambula del celebre m. Bellini *Divertimento sopra l’opera Aroldo del cav. G. Verdi *Ricordanze belliniane dell’opera Beatrice di Tenda *Souvenir dell’opera Rigoletto del cav. sig. G. Verdi *Variate ricordanze dell’opera Un Ballo in maschera del cav. G. Verdi *Gran pezzo di bravura *La pazza per amore : melodramma in due atti da rappresentarsi nel Teatro comunale di Bologna il carnevale del 1835 al 1836 / parole di Giacomo Ferretti ; musica del maestro p. Antonio Coppolaw *Clotilde : melodramma giocoso da rappresentarsi nel gran Teatro della Comune il carnevale del 1836-37 / La musica è del rinomato sig. maestro Coccia *Danao Re d’Argo : melodramma in due atti da rappresentarsi in Bol

Carlo Evasio Soliva

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Carlo Evasio Soliva (27 November 1791 – 20 December 1853) was a Swiss-Italian composer of opera, chamber music, and sacred choral works. Soliva was born in Casale Monferrato, Piedmont to a family of Swiss chocolatiers who had emigrated from the canton of Ticino. He studied pianoforte and composition at the Milan Conservatory. A contemporary of Gioacchino Rossini, he is best known for his 1816 opera La testa di bronzo (“The head of bronze”), which prompted Stendhal’s immediate enthusiasm: “Ce petit Soliva a la figure chétive d’un homme de génie.” (“That little Soliva has the scanty figure of a man of genius.”) After a life spent composing, teaching, and conducting in Italy, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, and France, he died in Paris at the age of 62. The “Carlo Evasio Soliva Competition for Piano and Chamber Music,” organized by the Istituto Musicale Soliva, is held annually in the town of his birth. Professional life At the Milan Conservatory, he was at the top of his class. He soon became a conductor at La Scala and “drew inspiration for his music from Mozart, whose music was then fashionable in Milan,” his operas being performed frequently from 1807 onwards. When La Scala organized

Carlo Yvon

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Carlo Yvon (29 April 1798 in Milan – 23 December 1854 in Milan) was an Italian composer, virtuoso oboist and English horn player, and music educator. He studied at the Milan Conservatory in his native city and later was a teacher at that school. For many years he served as principal oboist at La Scala. Several of his symphonic and chamber works feature the oboe, many of which are still performed today. Selected works * Allegro e variazioni for oboe and orchestra * Canto notturno for soprano and piano * Capriccio per tre oboi (Capriccio for 3 Oboes) (composed between 1835 and 1850) * 2 Duetti for 2 oboes :# G major :# E major * Sonata in F minor for English horn (or viola, or clarinet) and piano (published 1831) * 6 Studi (6 Etudes) for oboe and piano * 12 Studi (12 Etudes) for oboe Discography * Carlo Yvon: Opera integrale per Oboe (Carlo Yvon: Complete Works for Oboe); ; Alessandro Cappella (piano); Tactus Records TC.792401 (2004) * Music for Oboe, Oboe d’amore, Cor anglais & Piano – Sonata for English horn and piano; Albrecht Mayer (English horn), Markus Becker (piano); Angel Records (1999) * Thomas Stacy: Principal English Horn – Sonata for English horn and piano; Thomas Stacy (

Caroline Wiseneder

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Caroline Schneider Wiseneder (20 August 1807 – 25 August 1868) was a German composer and music educator who developed a musical notation system for the blind, as well as a kindergarten music curriculum. She was born in Braunschweig, and married an opera singer named Wiseneder. She founded several singing societies, in addition to the Wiseneder Music School for the Blind in 1860, which became the model for several schools throughout Germany. Her method for teaching instrumental music to young children was adopted by the national kindergarten movement established in Germany about 1873. Among other teaching tools, Caroline used toy orchestra instruments which were carefully tuned to harmonize together. She believed that children should always be accompanied by an instrument when they sang. After her death, a marble bust of Caroline was placed in the Braunschweig town library in honor of her achievements. Caroline composed many melodramas, songs, and educational works, including: Books *Selection of Songs and Games from the Kindergarten of the Music Education School in Braunschweig, with an Appendix for the Elementary Class (editor) *Song and Movement Games Opera *Das Jubelfest, oder D

Casimir Gide

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Casimir Gide (4 July 1804 – 18 February 1868) was a 19th-century French composer, bookseller as well as prints and maps editor. Biography The son of the Parisian bookseller Theophile Etienne Gide (1768–1837), to whom he would succeed, and of a singer in the chapel of the king, he studied harmony and musical composition at the Conservatoire de Paris. On 4 February 1833, he received the bookseller patent from the Maison Gide fils. He was a major printer of lithographs and financed the publication of six volumes, among them nineteen of the Voyages pittoresques et romantiques dans l’ancienne France by Charles Nodier and Justin Taylor. In 1854, he was one of the first to launch the trend of salon operettas and artistic evenings. Works He wrote incidental music, ballets and operas. Shows *1828: Les Trois Marie, vaudeville by Louis Duport, chant and accompagnement *1829: La Cachucha *1830: La Chatte blanche *1830: Les Trois Catherine, with Adolphe Adam *1830: Le Roi de Sicile, opéra comique in 1 act, with Frédéric Soulié *1831: Les Jumeaux de la Réole *1832: La tentation *1835: L’île des pirates, ballet-pantomime in 4 acts *1836: Le Diable boiteux, ballet pantomime in 3 acts, with Edmond

Casimir von Blumenthal

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Casimir von Blumenthal (August 1787 – 22 July 1849) was an Austrian violinist, composer and conductor who worked in Switzerland. Biography Casimir von Blumenthal was born in August 1787 in Brussels, the son of Baron Joseph von Blumenthal and Baroness Maria Therese, née Malabreck. His father, who had a job with the Austrian government, took the family to Prague during the Brabant Revolution (1789–1790). His family had experienced a significant loss of wealth in the wake of the French Revolution. The young Blumenthal learned to play the violin and studied composition and received musical education in Vienna under Abbé Vogler along with his two brothers, Joseph and Léopold. When Vogler went to Vienna in 1803 to produce his opera Samori, he recommended his students to the director of the Theater an der Wien, and on his testimony, they were accepted into the theatre orchestra, Casimir and Léopold on violin, Joseph on viola. He worked as a music teacher and conductor in Vienna, Prague, Brno and Bratislava until 1821, when he was appointed conductor of the Allgemeine Musik-Gesellschaft (General Music Society) and settled in Zurich. Blumenthal conducted the Swiss Music Festivals there in 1

Castil-Blaze

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François-Henri-Joseph Blaze, known as Castil-Blaze (1 December 1784 – 11 December 1857), was a French musicologist, music critic, composer, and music editor. Biography Blaze was born and grew up in Cavaillon, Vaucluse. He went to Paris to study law, but also to learn music, at the Conservatoire de Paris. After having passed several more years in Vaucluse (southeastern France), Castil-Blaze moved back to Paris. A large part of his activities consisted of adapting French and foreign opera for different stages in French provinces. In these cases, Castil-Blaze adapted the libretto as well as the music. This arranging work was highly criticized, but Castil-Blaze claimed that this permitted part of the public to become familiar with opera. Castil-Blaze is mostly known as a music critic. Beginning on 7 December 1820, he published Musical Chronicles in the Journal des débats, signing his articles, which were often very controversial, ‘XXX’. In these irregularly-published chronicles (about 30 per year), Castil-Blaze seemed to take certain liberties. Most of the chronicles criticized the lyric works, but others were dedicated to thoughts about music, to composers’ necrologies (Weber in 1826,

Catterino Cavos

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Catterino Albertovich Cavos (; ; October 21, 1777 – May 10 1840) was an Italian composer, organist and conductor who settled in Russia. He played an important role in the history of Russian opera and was the father of Alberto Cavos. Cavos is celebrated in Russian musical history as the man who composed the opera Ivan Susanin in 1815, 20 years before Mikhail Glinka’s opera of the same name. The plot, based on an episode from Russian history, tells the story of the Russian peasant and patriotic hero Ivan Susanin who sacrifices his life for the Tsar by leading astray a group of marauding Poles who were hunting him. Early years and family Cavos was born in Venice, Italy, on October 21, 1777. His father, Alberto Filippo Cavos (also known as Cavosi), was the Primo Ballerino Assoluto (lead male ballet dancer) and director of the La Fenice theatre in Venice. At the age of twelve, Cavos composed a cantata to celebrate Leopold II’s arrival in Venice. At fourteen he was offered the post of organist to St Mark’s Basilica, but refused the position, allowing the post to be given to an older, impoverished musician. Russian years In his early twenties, Cavos accepted a position as conductor of the

Cesare Bossi

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Cesare Bossi (1773—September 1802) was an Italian-born composer. He is most known as a composer of ballets which he wrote for the King’s Theatre in Haymarket in London. Career Bossi was born in Ferrara in 1773. None of the sources provide information about his training or early career. One source states that while in Italy he wrote operas as well as piano music including sonatas. There he became associated with the King’s Theatre in Haymarket where he was a composer of ballets, a conductor, and responsible for the musical preparation of operas. “In this task there have been few who could excel him.” - Alonzo the Brave and the Fair Imogene 26 March 1801 Charles Didelot co-composed with Vincenzo Federici - L’amant statue 21 April 1796 Giacomo Onorati - L’amour vangé 2 June 1796 Charles Didelot - Apollon berger 27 December 1796 Sébastian Gallet - Bacchus and Ariadne 28 November 1797 Sébastian Gallet - Barader 29 May 1800 James Harvey D’Egville - La chasse d’amour 2 January 1798 Sébastian Gallet - Cinderella or The glass slipper 1803? - Constante et Alcidonis 1798 Sébastian Gallet - Les délassements militaires 16 January 1797 Sébastian Gallet co-composed with Joseph Mazzinghi - The des

Cesare Pugni

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Cesare Pugni (; ; 31 May 1802, in Genoa – 26 January 1870) was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a violinist. He studied composition with Bonifazio Asioli and violin with Alessandro Rolla. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orchestral music. Pugni is most noted for the ballets he composed for Her Majesty’s Theatre in London (1843–1850), and for the Imperial Theatres in St. Petersburg, Russia (1850–1870). The majority of his ballet music was composed for the works of the ballet master Jules Perrot, who mounted nearly every one of his ballets to scores by Pugni. In 1850 Perrot departed London for Russia, having accepted the position of Premier maître de ballet of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres at the behest of Carlotta Grisi, who was engaged as Prima ballerina. Cesare Pugni followed Perrot and Grisi to Russia, and remained in the imperial capital even after Grisi’s departure in 1853 and Perrot’s departure in 1858. Pugni went on to compose for Perrot’s successors Arthur Saint-Léon and Marius Petipa, serving as the Imperial Theatre’s official composer of ballet music until his death in 1870. Cesare Pugni was renowned fo

Charles Ambrose

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Charles Ambrose (1791 – 17 February 1856) was an English organist, composer, choir director, and music educator who was active in his native country during his early career and later in Canada. Ambrose was the organist-choirmaster at Chelmsford Cathedral during the 1820s and 1830s. Early life Ambrose was born in England, where he trained as an organist. Career In 1837 he emigrated to Canada where he settled with his wife Sophia and his children on a farm just outside Guelph, Ontario. He was appointed organist-choirmaster at Christ Church Cathedral in Hamilton in 1845, a position he held up until his death 11 years later. He also actively taught the piano and organ privately throughout his career. Ambrose’ compositional output was small, consisting of a few sacred works and pieces for solo organ and piano. His most notable work is Three Grand Sonatas for piano which was published in 1825; a copy of which is held in the collection at the Library and Archives Canada. Ambrose died in Hamilton, Ontario in 1856 at the age of 65. He was the father and teacher of composer and organist Robert Ambrose and the grandfather of composer and organist Paul Ambrose. References

Charles Auguste de Bériot

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Charles Auguste de Bériot (; 20 February 18028 April 1870) was a Belgian violinist, artist and composer. Biography Charles de Bériot was born in 1802 in Leuven, France (now part of Belgium) into a noble family but was orphaned at the age of nine. He was given to the custody of his music teacher and friend of his father, Jean-François Tiby (1772–1844). De Bériot began studying violin with Tiby, who trained him in the French style as exemplified by Giovanni Battista Viotti. In 1811 he performed for the first time in public, playing a concerto by Viotti. François-Joseph Fétis says that Tiby sent de Bériot to Paris at the age of 12 (1814), however de Bériot’s own correspondence confirms that he only arrived in Paris in 1821. (This mistake is attributed to the advanced age at which Fétis wrote his final biographical note on de Bériot. ) While in Paris, de Bériot studied briefly at the Paris Conservatory under Pierre Baillot and played for Rodolphe Kreutzer and Viotti. The latter encouraged de Bériot to “..listen a lot…and take what seems good to you, be like the bees and you will create a genre…” After being refused a subsidy by William I of the Netherlands, he returned briefly to B

Charles Baudiot

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Charles-Nicolas Baudiot (29 March 1773 – 26 September 1849) was a French classical cellist and composer. Biography Baudiot received lessons from Jean-Baptiste Janson the older, and succeeded his master as professor at the Conservatoire de Paris in 1802. Shortly after his entrance into this school, he was commissioned to do with Jean-Henri Levasseur a cello method which was written by Pierre Baillot. Baudiot, who held a post at the Ministry of Finance, was one of the professors who retained their seats at the Conservatoire, when it was reorganized in 1816 as the Royal School of Music, and he gained the title of first cello of the King’s Chapel. In 1822 he applied for and obtained his retirement as professor of the Conservatoire with a pension for his former services. From then on, he made several trips to France to give concerts before dying at the age of seventy-four. Baudiot is buried in the 17th division of the Père-Lachaise Cemetery. Compositions * Two cello concertos; Paris, Frey * Two concertinos for the same instrument, works of the 19th and 20th; Paris, Pleyel * Trio for violin, viola and cello, Op. 3 * Two works of duets for two cellos, Op. 5 and 7 * Pot-pourri for cello, w

Charles Godfrey (bandmaster)

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Charles Godfrey (November 22, 1790, Kingston-upon-Thames – December 12, 1863, London) was an English bandmaster, drummer and bassoonist, and the founder member of an extensive musical family. He began his career as a drummer in the band of the 1st Royal Surrey Militia. From 1813 he played in the band of the Coldstream Guards as a bassoonist. He was appointed director of this band in 1825. He served in that position until 1834 when he was discharged from military duty, but continued to direct the group as a civilian musician. In 1831 Godfrey was appointed musician-in-ordinary to King William IV. He was editor of the first English publication devoted to military music, Jullien’s Military Journal. His other son was the bandmaster Dan Godfrey who was the father of the bandmaster and Bournemouth conductor Daniel Eyers Godfrey. Musical family * Charles Godfrey (1790–1863) **Daniel Godfrey (1831–1903), bandmaster, Grenadier Guards ***Daniel Eyers Godfrey (1868–1939), conductor, founder of the Bournemouth Municipal Orchestra ****Dan Godfrey III (1893–1935), BBC Manchester (1920s), first full-time conductor of the BBC Wireless Orchestra **Fred Godfrey (1837–1882), bandmaster, Coldstream Gua

Charles Hommann

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Charles Hommann (July 25, 1803-?1872) was an American composer. A native of Philadelphia, he was among the first American-born composers to produce chamber and orchestral music successfully. Life Charles Hommann was the son of John C. Hommann and his wife Constantia. His father, who had immigrated to the United States from Germany in the 1790s, worked as a music promoter and publisher in Philadelphia. Charles Hommann was one of the first American composers to be trained exclusively in the United States, though his musical training likely came mostly from his German father. Early in his career, Charles held positions at St James’s Church and the Third Dutch Reformed Church in Philadelphia. As a violinist and violist for the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia, Hommann was exposed to the works of the major European composers of his time. His own music was performed by the Bethlehem Philharmonic Society as well as the Philadelphia Philharmonic Society, and he won a gold medal prize from the latter for his overture in D in 1835. Although his music was relatively unknown by the time of his death, he left behind a significant body of orchestral, chamber, and church music that is importa

Charles Mayer (composer)

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Charles Mayer (21 March 1799 – 2 July 1862), also known as Carl Mayer or Charles Meyer, was a Prussian pianist and composer active in the early 19th century. Life Mayer was born in Königsberg. His father was a clarinetist who, soon after Charles’s birth, moved to Saint Petersburg and four years later to Moscow. He received his early musical education from his mother, followed by extended studies with John Field (1782–1837), with whom he continued to study after the family returned to Saint Petersburg after the Moscow fire of 1812. His first successful tour as a concert pianist in 1814 led him to Poland, Germany, Holland, and France, before he settled in Saint Petersburg in 1819. During another celebrated concert tour of 1845 he travelled through Scandinavia (where he became an honorary member of the Royal College of Music in Stockholm), Germany (Hamburg, Leipzig) and Austria (Vienna). Following the rise of Adolf von Henselt in Saint Petersburg, Mayer withdrew to Dresden in 1846, and died there. Mayer was a busy and successful teacher who is supposed to have taught some 800 pupils in Saint Petersburg. He was reputed to have taken over the calm and musical (rather than virtuoso) tech

Charles Michael Alexis Sola

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Charles Michael Alexis Sola morales de alaquas (born as Carlo Michele Alessio Sola, mostly known as “C.M. Sola”) (6 June 1786 – 21 January 1857) was an Italian guitarist, flutist, and composer active in England after 1817. Biography Sola was born in Turin, where he studied the violin (with Gaetano Pugnani), the guitar (with Pipino), and the flute (with Vondano) and played flute in the orchestra of the local Teatro Regio. His date of birth has recently been put into doubt; he may have been born in 1781 or in 1789. According to Bone, “he served four years on the band of the 73rd Regiment of French Infantry and tiring of a military life settled in 1809 in Geneva”, where he also received tuition in composition from Dominique Bideau, a local cellist. 1816 saw the production of his opera Le Tribunal in Geneva. After having published some of his music in Geneva and Paris, Sola moved to London in 1817, where he “numbered among his pupils members of the royal family”. Sola was the author of a method for the guitar, Sola’s Instructions for the Spanish Guitar, and published numerous works for solo guitar, duos for guitar and piano, songs with guitar accompaniment and also works for the flute.

Charles Nicholson (flautist)

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Charles Nicholson (1795–1837), was a Liverpool-born flautist and composer, who performed regularly in London. He was soloist at many of the Philharmonic Society Concerts from 1816-1836, and first flautist with the principal theater orchestras. He toured extensively in Britain, but never on the Continent. Besides giving classes to many students, he wrote tutors for flute-playing which were published throughout the 19th century. Nicholson used a flute made by George Astor & Co., a London-based firm operating from c1778 to c1831. His father, also a celebrated flautist, modified the instrument, lining the headpiece with metal, enlarging the embouchure and toneholes with a view to making the flute’s tone more powerful, yet still delicate, permitting the usual fingerings in the third octave, facilitating glides and vibratos. Once his bravura style on the modified flute had become accepted in London, he licensed several London flute makers such as Clementi & Co., Astor, Rudall and Rose, and Potter to produce the ‘Nicholson’s Improved’. The structure of his new flute favoured flat keys such as E flat, A flat, and F and C minor. Nicholson’s variations on Roslin Castle, in F minor which he w

Charles Sauvageau

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Michel-Charles Sauvageau (October or November 1807 – 16 June 1849) was a Canadian conductor, composer, and music educator. He is believed to be the first native of what is now Quebec to devote his entire life to music. An August 1844 article in the periodical Le Ménestrel described him as the “first national musician of Canada “. Life Born in Quebec City, Sauvageau was a largely self-taught musician, although he most likely received some instruction from Jean-Chrysostome Brauneis I for whose band he played in 1831–1832. In 1833 he founded his own quadrille band, which he conducted until his death 16 years later. He also conducted several other enemies, including the Quebec Militia Artillery Band (1833–1836), the band of the Petit Séminaire (1841–1844), Musique Canadienne (beginning in 1842), the band for the St Jean-Baptiste Society (from 1842), and the Quebec Philharmonic Union (1848–49). Sauvageau was also active as an organizer of concerts and informal evenings of musical entertainment within his native city. Many of these events featured performances by his private students, such as Joseph Lyonnais and Napoléon Aubin; the latter of whom became his brother-in-law. His son Flavie

Charles-Frédéric Kreubé

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Charles-Frédéric Kreubé (Lunéville, 5 November 1777 – Saint-Denis, 3 May 1846) was a 19th-century French violinist, conductor and composer. Biography A student of Rodolphe Kreutzer, he was admitted in 1801 into the orchestra of the Opéra-Comique, originally as first violin, became deputy conductor in 1805 and succeeded Frédéric Blasius as first chief in 1816, a position that he would leave in 1828. He authored music for opéras comiques, arrangements for operas and compositions of numerous plays for Parisian boulevard theatres of the 19th century. Works *1803: Aline, reine de Golconde, opera in three acts, by Jean-Baptiste Vial and Edmond Favières, (arrangements) *1805: Le Vaisseau amiral opera in one act, by Saint-Cyr, (arrangements) *1809: Françoise de Foix, in three acts by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly and Emmanuel Dupaty, (operture) *1813: Le Forgeron de Bassora, opéra comique in two acts by Charles Augustin de Bassompierre *1814: Le Portrait de famille ou Les Héritiers punis, opéra comique by Eugène de Planard *1814: La Redingotte et la perruque, opéra comique by Eugène Scribe *1816: Une nuit d’intrigue ou Le Retour du bal masqué, opéra comique by Jean Michel Constant Leber *1816: La J

Charles-Louis-Joseph Hanssens

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Charles-Louis-Joseph Hanssens, known under the name Hanssens the elder (4 May 1777 – 6 May 1852), was a Belgian violinist, composer, conductor and theatre director. His brother Joseph-Jean Hanssens (c1770-1816) was also a conductor. His son was the cellist, conductor and composer Charles-Louis Hanssens (1802–1871). Life Hanssens was born in Ghent. After studying violin in his hometown, Hanssens went to Paris to study harmony with Henri Montan Berton. Back in Ghent, he directed the Theatre of Rhetoric, then followed Mademoiselle Fleury’s troupe to Holland. Called back to Ghent as conductor, he held this position until 1825, then succeeded Charles Borremans as conductor of the orchestra of La Monnaie in Brussels. In 1826, he was one of the founders of the Société d’Apollon with his friend, the composer Joseph-François Snel. In 1827, King William I of the Netherlands chose him to conduct the court music and appointed him inspector of the Royal Music School of Brussels the following year. After a few years of eclipse, he took over the direction of the Monnaie orchestra in 1835, was dismissed in 1838 and returned a third time in 1840. From 1840 to 1847, he shared the direction of La Mon

Charles-Simon Catel

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Charles-Simon Catel (; 10 June 1773 – 29 November 1830) was a French composer and educator born at L’Aigle, Orne. Biography Catel studied at the Royal School of Singing in Paris. He studied composition with François-Joseph Gossec and by the age of 16 became his chief assistant at the orchestra of the National Guard in 1790. A member of the Institute , he jointly composed pieces of military music for official state ceremonies, including L’Hymne à la Victoire (Victory Hymn), with words by Ponce-Denis Écouchard-Lebrun. He was appointed inaugural professor of harmony at the Conservatoire de Paris, but was relieved of his duties in 1814. Amongst his students were the Prix de Rome winning composers Joseph Daussoigne-Méhul and Victor Dourlen, the Belgian composer Martin-Joseph Mengal, and the famous, if eccentric, harpist Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. Catel died in Paris. His works include a Treatise on Harmony (1802), which was used by the young Berlioz, several concert band works, several dramatic compositions at the Opéra National de Paris: Sémiramis, Les bayadères; at the Opéra-Comique: Artistes par occasion, L’Auberge de Bagnères (1807); Wallace (1817); symphonies, quartets etc. Works Lyri

Charlotte le Pelletier

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Elizabeth Charlotte Taillevis de Perrigny le Pelletier (1778–) was a French-born musician, composer, and music teacher. She is thought to be the first female composer in Maryland. Life Charlotte le Pelletier was born on 1778 in Perrigny, France, the youngest of eight children of Charles Léon de Taillevis (1730–95), Marquis of Perrigny, and Anne Marie Madeleine de La Tuste (1739–93). Both of her parents died during the Reign of Terror. In 1797 she married Victor Le Pelletier. They had a son, also named Victor. In 1801 the couple sailed to Saint-Domingue, where the Perrigny family owned slave plantations. The Haitian Revolution had already begun, and her husband was killed at Torbeck in 1803 while serving in the French National Guard. Like thousands of other French people there, Charlotte le Pelleteir fled to the United States. She settled in the French Town neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland and opened a studio with her brother, the Abbé George Taillevis de Perrigny. (A Catholic priest, George de Perrigny also served as chaplain to Charles Carroll of Carrollton and was the second librarian of the Library Company of Baltimore. ) She taught music and performed concerts. Sometime in o

Chrétien Urhan

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Chrétien Urhan (Baptised as Christian Urhan; 16 February 1790 – 2 November 1845) was a French violinist, violist, organist and composer. Career outline Born in Montjoie, Urhan’s father first introduced him to the violin. He was first publicly mentioned in 1804 by Joséphine de Beauharnais, having replaced a violinist for a performance of Joseph Haydn’s The Creation, at the young age of 14. He was sent to work in Paris where he took instruction from Jean-François Le Sueur, master of the chapel of the Tuileries Palace. He also learned from prominent teachers such as François Habeneck, Rodolphe Kreutzer and Pierre Rode. He was invited to join the imperial chapel as a violinist in 1810. In this period the young Urhan shared lodgings with his friends, the harpist Franz Anton Stockhausen (father of Julius Stockhausen), and the painter Carl Joseph Begas the elder (who was studying with Antoine-Jean Gros from 1813 to 15). In 1815, through a quartermaster in the Prussian army of occupation, Urhan and Stockhausen (who corresponded with Ludwig van Beethoven) obtained a score of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony and set it before Habeneck, with the result that the work was introduced to Paris. The tw

Christian Frederick Hassé

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Christian Frederick Hassé (1771–1831) was a composer of church music and an organist. He was a member of the Moravian community. In an 1829 “directory of trades and professions” for Pudsey he is listed twice, and identified as a “processor of music” and as a “gent.”. Life He was born in Sarepta, a small town near the confluence of the Volga and Sarpa Rivers. In 1808, Christian Friedrich Hassé married Ann Cossart. The marriage produced six recorded children, including church bishop Alexander Hassé. At the age of 60 (or 61: Output In 1851 it was recorded that Hassé had written many hymns which had not been “collected”, In addition, he had published in Leeds a compilation entitled, Sacred Music, partly original, partly selected; this appeared in two volumes, the first of which appeared in 1829 and the second of which appeared posthumously in 1832. The original compositions, apparently written by himself, included a chorus, “Blessed are they”, a recitative and air, “The Mountains shall depart”, and a bass solo with chorus entitled, “Amen, praise the Lord”. References

Christian Gottlob Höpner

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Christian Gottlob Höpner, also Hoepner (7 November 1799 – 26 October 1859) was a German composer, organist and music educator. Life and career Born in Frankenberg, Höpner grew up in the family of a weaver in Frankenberg near Chemnitz, and he acquired his first musical knowledge by self-taught means. At the age of 14, he could already play the piano by listening to pianoforte lessons given by his older brother. At the age of 17, Höpner also wanted to learn to play the organ. He found the opportunity to do so after attending Sunday services by using the organ in the Frankenberg church. From the wages he received after his apprenticeship as a journeyman weaver, Höpner bought musical textbooks, practised independently on a small organ and attempted compositions. He presented these compositions in 1824 to the cantor August Ferdinand Anacker (1790–1854) in Freiberg for review. The verdict was so encouraging that in 1827 Höpner applied to the court conductor Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778–1837) in Weimar, who advised him to devote himself entirely to music. Höpner moved to Dresden, where from 1827 he was professionally taught by Johann Gottlob Schneider junior (1789–1864) for four years, whe

Christian Heinrich Rinck

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Johann Christian Heinrich Rinck (18 February 1770 – 7 August 1846) was a German composer and organist of the late classical and early romantic eras. Life and career Rinck was born in Elgersburg (in present-day Thuringia), and died in Darmstadt, aged 76. He studied with Johann Christian Kittel (1732–1809), (a pupil of Johann Sebastian Bach), and eventually became Kantor at the music school in Darmstadt, where he was also a court organist from 1813. He composed prolifically, and an organ primer of his enjoyed wide popularity. Among his works is a set of Variations on ‘Ah! vous dirai-je, Maman’, Opus 90, published by Simrock in 1828. It is based on a tune made familiar by Mozart (K. 265) (and generally associated with the words Twinkle Twinkle Little Star). Notable students include composer Georg Vierling and Benedict Jucker (1811–1876). Works Piano works * XXX zweistimmige Übungen durch alle Tonarten (30 Exercices à deux parties dans tous les tons) op. 67. Verlag Dohr * Neuausgabe der Klaviervariationen, krit. rev. Neuausgabe. Heft 1: Freut euch des Lebens op. 39; Das Vögelchen op. 61; Brüder lagert euch im Kreise op. 44; Heft 2: Zieht ihr Krieger, zieht von dannen op. 51; Zu Steffen

Christian Theodor Weinlig

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Christian Theodor Weinlig (July 25, 1780 – March 7, 1842) was a German music teacher, composer, and choir conductor, active in Dresden and Leipzig. Biography Born in Dresden, Weinlig initially studied and then practised law until 1803. He then began musical training with his uncle Christian Ehregott Weinlig, with whom he studied for two years before travelling to Bologna to study with Stanislao Mattei in 1806. From 1814 to 1817, he worked as Cantor of the Kreuzkirche in Dresden. In 1823, he became Cantor of the Thomanerchor in Leipzig, an office he kept until his death. Among his most well-known pupils were pianist Clara Schumann and composer Richard Wagner; he taught Wagner at Saint Thomas school in Leipzig. In 1877, Wagner recalled Weinlig’s teaching style to Edward Dannreuther: References Sources * *

Christoph Ernst Friedrich Weyse

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Christoph(er) Ernst Friedrich Weyse (5 March 1774 – 8 October 1842) was a Danish composer during the Danish Golden Age. Biography Weyse was born at Altona in Holstein, which was in a personal union with Denmark. He gained much interest in music in his hometown and Hamburg, where C. P. E. Bach was the municipal director of music. Works He was best known for his vocal works, which included numerous singspiele, Christmas carols, a setting of the Te Deum and of the Miserere, over 30 cantatas, Cantatas Unlike Johann Sebastian Bach’s cantatas, Weyse’s cantatas were designed to be played after the service, rather than used as liturgical music during the service. His Easter Cantata No. 1, , was written in 1836 and its words are based on works by poet Thomas Thaarup. The work premiered on 22 April in Trinitatis Church. Singspiel * (1809) * (1812) * (1816) * (1825) * (1827) * (1836) Songs * Julen har bragt velsignet bud (1841) References External links *“Opera Composers: W – Weyse, Christoph Ernst Friedrich”, OperaGlass, Stanford University *

Christopher Meineke

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Christopher Meineke (né Christoph Meineke; 1 May 1782, Oldenburg – 6 November 1850, Baltimore) was an American organist and composer. Life Born in Oldenburg, he later moved to England around 1810 and eventually settled in Baltimore in 1820. Meineke’s secular works were published by the Baltimore-based music printer, John Cole. As a composer, his alternative first names were Charles and Karl. Meineke was known for his interests in medieval and early Christian-themed composition, such as recreating Gloria Patri (Glory Be to the Father) or composing with the help of medieval era-evoking works by Felicia Hemans in a much more contemporary setting. Compositions *The Bird at Sea *A New Instruction for the Piano Forte *Works for the Fourth of July Further reading * * Notes References External links *

Conradin Kreutzer

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Conradin Kreutzer or Kreuzer (22 November 1780 – 14 December 1849) was a German composer and conductor. His works include the operas Das Nachtlager in Granada and incidental music to , both produced in 1834 in Vienna. Biography Born in Meßkirch, Baden, Kreutzer abandoned his studies in the law (University of Freiburg) and went to Vienna about 1804, where he met Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn and may have studied with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, while he tried his hand unsuccessfully at singspiele. He spent 1811–12 in Stuttgart, where at least three of his operas were staged and he was awarded the post of Hofkapellmeister, succeeding Franz Danzi. He was from 1812 to 1816 Kapellmeister to the king of Württemberg. Once he was successful, he became a prolific composer, and wrote a number of operas for the Theater am Kärntnertor, Theater in der Josefstadt and Theater an der Wien in Vienna, which have disappeared from the stage. In 1840, he became conductor of the opera at Cologne. His daughters, Cecilia and Marie Kreutzer, were sopranos of some renown. Kreutzer owes his fame almost exclusively to Das Nachtlager in Granada (1834), which kept the stage for half a century in spite of

Daniel Auber

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Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (; 29 January 178212 May 1871) was a French Romantic composer and director of the Paris Conservatoire. Born into an artistic family, Auber was at first an amateur composer before he took up writing operas professionally when the family’s fortunes failed in 1820. He soon established a professional partnership with the librettist Eugène Scribe that lasted for 41 years and produced 39 operas, most of them commercial and critical successes. He is mostly associated with opéra-comique and composed 35 works in that genre. With Scribe he wrote the first French grand opera, La Muette de Portici (The Dumb Woman of Portici) in 1828, which paved the way for the large-scale works of Giacomo Meyerbeer. Auber held two important official musical posts. From 1842 to 1871 he was director of France’s premier music academy, the Paris Conservatoire, which he expanded and modernised. From 1852 until the fall of the Second Empire in 1870 he was director of the imperial chapel in the Louvre, for which he wrote a substantial number of liturgical works and other religious music. A devotee of Paris, Auber refused to leave the city when the Franco Prussian War led to the siege of

Désiré Beaulieu

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Marie-Désiré Martin-Beaulieu (11 April 1791 – 21 December 1863) was a French composer and concert organizer. Life Born in Paris, Beaulieu was the son of an artillery officer and descendant of a rich cloth merchant family based in Niort. He adopted the name Beaulieu after the Beaulieu estate bought by his grandfather in 1761. Beaulieu had violin lessons with a musician named Alliaume, a student of Isidore Bertheaume (about 1751–1802) and from 1803 with Rodolphe Kreutzer. Since 1805 he had composition lessons with Angelo Maria Benincori (1779–1821), later with Abbé Nicolas Roze. From 1809 he attended the class of Étienne-Nicolas Méhul at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1811, he won the Premier Grand Prix de Rome with the cantata Héro et Léandre after a libretto by Jacques Bins de Saint-Victor. However, he renounced his stay in Rome and settled with his wife Francoise Caroline Rouget de Gourcez in Niort, where her father had been mayor until the French Revolution. Nevertheless, he fulfilled his obligations as a winner of the Prix de Rome and sent several church music pieces to the Académie des Beaux-Arts. After the death of his teacher Méhul, he composed a Requiem in 1819, which was al

Désirée Pacault

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Désirée Pacault (29 January 1798 – 25 January 1881) was a French poet, composer, journalist and writer. Biography Pacault was the daughter of a rhetoric professor, Désirée Pacault was born in Beaune on the 11th pluviôse of the Year 6. Based at the Hôtel d’Aligre, at 123 rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, in 1825 she sold the book Le Participe français mis à la portée de tous les âges, written by the schoolteacher A. Riby and reissued in 1829. She obtained a bookseller’s patent on 18 July 1828 and published in 1831 the prospectus Écho littéraire, album poétique. Member in 1831 of the Athénée des arts, sciences et belles lettres de Paris, in 1832 of the Société d’enseignement universel, she intervened on 29 October 1832 during a literary evening of the Athénée des arts to read one of her texts entitled “L’Inspiration”. In 1837, she wrote a poem in honour of the marriage of Duke of Orléans and Hélène of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In December, she replaced Théodore Poupin as editor-in-chief of La Capricieuse, journal des modes parisiennes, where she gave more space to reviews of shows. In 1838, she was a literary critic for the magazine La France littéraire. Member in 1839 of the academies of scien

Dionisio Aguado y García

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Dionisio Aguado y García (8 April 178429 December 1849) was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer of the late Classical and early Romantic periods. Biography Born in Madrid, he studied with Miguel García. In 1826, Aguado visited Paris, where he met and became friends with and for a while lived with Fernando Sor. Sor’s duo Les Deux Amis (“The Two Friends”) commemorated the friendship: one part is marked “Sor” and the other “Aguado.” Aguado’s major work Nuevo Metodo Para Guitarra was a guitar tutorial published in 1843. In the Nuevo Metodo Aguado describes his use of fingernails on the right hand as well as his invention of a “tripodison”: a device that held the guitar and thus minimized the damping effect of the player’s body on the guitar’s back and sides. Aguado’s other works include numerous waltzes, minuets, and other light pieces. The more extended works require a virtuoso technique and left-hand stretches that are almost impossible on the longer string lengths of modern guitars. (See Frederick Noad, “The Classical Guitar”) Aguado returned home to Madrid in 1837 and died there aged 65. List of works *Op. 1 : Douze Valses *Op. 2 : Trois Rondo Brillants *Op. 3 : Huit Petites

Domingo Crisanto Delgado Gómez

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Domingo Crisanto Delgado Gómez (1806, Güímar, Tenerife, Spain – 1858, San Juan, Puerto Rico) was one of the most famous composers of the nineteenth century Canary Islands; and first organist of the Cathedral of San Juan Bautista in Puerto Rico. Early life He born in 1806 in the town of Güímar on the island of Tenerife. In 1821 he became a cantor in the music chapel of La Laguna Cathedral of his native island. Then he stood out for his talent and wrote numerous scores for the cathedral and the Convento de Santa Catalina de Siena. When Crisanto was a teacher he had among his students the composer Felipe Gutiérrez y Espinosa. See also *List of Spanish composers References

Edmond de Coussemaker

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Charles Edmond Henri de Coussemaker (19 April 1805 – 10 January 1876) was a French musicologist and ethnologist focusing mainly on the cultural heritage of French Flanders. His early publication of medieval music within the Scriptorum de musica medii aevi (1864–1876) was among the most important early music events predating its 20th-century revival. Biography Jurist and musician He was born in Belle, De Coussemaker founded the Flemish Committee of France in 1853, which was tasked with preserving the West Flemish dialect of the Dutch language, as spoken in French Flanders. With the priest Jules Auguste Lemire, he tried the education in Catholic schools. Defending the idea of a constitutional monarchy, he rose to the position of General Counsellor of the Nord (now the French region Nord-Pas-de-Calais). Volume IV of his Scriptores de musica medii aevi was about to be issued, but, as his daughter Lilia wrote the day he died in Lille on 10 January 1876, it was exhausted by his affairs. De Coussemaker died in Bourbourg. Most of his archives and manuscripts disappeared after the town hall of Belle burned down in 1918. Musicology His musical style was oriented towards gothic romanticism in

Édouard Du Puy

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Jean Baptiste Édouard Louis Camille Du Puy (17703 April 1822) was a Principality of Neuchâtel-born singer, composer, director, and violinist. He lived and worked in Copenhagen and Stockholm from 1793 until his death in 1822. Early years Édouard Du Puy was born in Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Principality of Neuchâtel, around the year 1770, although sources differ on the exact year. From the age of four, he was raised by his uncle, a city musician in Geneva, Republic of Geneva. Edouard later took the last name of this uncle. Seeing that his nephew had talent, the uncle made sure that Edouard received a musicial education. In 1786, Du Puy was sent to Paris, where he was taught to play the piano by Jan Ladislav Dussek, and the violin by François Chabran. In 1789, he was appointed concertmaster at the court of Heinrich of Prussia in Rheinsberg, replacing J. A. P. Schulz, who was called to Denmark as a choir director at the Royal Danish Orchestra (Danish: Det Kongelige Kapel). Du Puy worked in Rheinsberg for four years while studying harmonies under Carl Friedrich Christian Fasch. Stockholm and Copenhagen Still in his early twenties, in 1793 Du Puy traveled throughout the Holy Roman Empire,

Eduard de Lannoy

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Baron Henri Eduard Joseph de Lannoy (3 December 1787 – 28 March 1853), was a Flemish composer, teacher, conductor, and writer on music who spent most of his life in Austria. His compositions bridge the classical and early romantic styles. His full name and title in German was ‘Heinrich Eduard Josef, Freiherr von Lannoy’. Biography Political background The turbulent political events from 1789 include the Belgian Revolution and the French Revolution; during the subsequent French Revolutionary Wars, French troops under Napoléon Bonaparte pushed the armies of the First Coalition as far as the Rhine, and in 1795 the Republic of France formally annexed the Southern Netherlands (now Belgium. See Map of Europe in 1812.) A number of government officials left the country, including Lannoy’s father and Jean Vesque de Puttelange; they both eventually obtained official government positions in Vienna, where their sons had fruitful musical careers. Early life Eduard de Lannoy was born in Brussels, then in the Duchy of Brabant, a region of the Austrian Netherlands, part of the Holy Roman Empire. His father was Pierre Joseph Albert, baron de Lannoy (1733–1825), of the Lannoy family, one of the olde

Elena Asachi

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Elena Asachi, née Teyber; also known as Hélène and Eleonora (30 October 1789 – 9 May 1877) was a Romanian pianist, singer, translator and composer of Austrian birth. She was the daughter of Austrian composer Anton Teyber and niece of concertmaster Franz Teyber. She studied music under her father as a child in Dresden. Later she studied in Vienna under opera singer Domenico Donzelli. She became a professor at Iași Conservatory where she was known as a pianist and composer from 1827 to 1863. She married Gheorghe Asachi, with whom she collaborated on songs and theatrical works. Together with her husband she promoted the creation of the first music institute in the Principality of Moldavia, the Philharmonic-Drama Conservatory. Life Elena Asachi was born Elena Teyber, on 30 October 1789 in Vienna. She was the daughter of Austrian composer Anton Teyber and the niece of concertmaster Franz Teyber. Asachi was a pianist, singer, translator and composer. She studied music under her father as a child in Dresden, including theory, solfege, harmony and counterpoint. After completing her studies, she became a professor at Iași Conservatory where she was known as a pianist and composer from 1827

Elias Parish Alvars

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Elias Parish Alvars (surname sometimes given as Parish-Alvars), (28 February 1808 – 25 January 1849) was an English harpist and composer. He was born as Eli Parish in Teignmouth, Devon; his father was a local organist. His baptismal record at St James’s Church, West Teignmouth, reads: “Eli, son of Joseph and Mary Ann Parish”. Parish gave his first concert in Totnes in 1818 and in 1820 was sent to London to study with Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. In 1822 he applied to the Royal Academy of Music, where Bochsa had been appointed harp professor, but was not accepted, because he could not afford the tuition fees without a scholarship. He was able to continue his lessons with Bochsa by undertaking teaching and playing at dances. He was also later able to study in Paris, and in 1828 studied music in Florence. His last performance was in Vienna, at a concert of his own compositions, in January 1848. On 13 March 1848 riots erupted in Vienna and in April amid the general confusion. Alvars found himself in serious financial straits. His health worsened suddenly and he died, probably of pneumonia, on 25 January 1849. He was buried in the St. Marx Cemetery. References Notes Sources * * * * * Further

Elise Schlick

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Maria Elisabeth, Countess of Schlick (, ; c. 1790 – 14 December 1855) was a Bohemia-born composer and poet. She composed music for lieder and also wrote poetry that other composers set to music. She published under the name Countess Elise Schlick or Gräfin Elise Schlick. Although Schlick is often described as German, some sources list her birthplace as Prague and her birth year as 1792. Little is known about Schlick’s early life or education. She was the sister-in-law of Count Franz zu Bassano und Weisskirchen, an Austrian general who helped suppress the Hungarian uprising in 1849. She was described as a patroness of Franz Liszt in Prague. Schlick produced compositions through at least opus 5. Her musical compositions were published by Franz Gloggl and C. A. Spina in Vienna; August Cranz in Hamburg; and Schott in Mainz. *“Gute Nacht” *“Lieb Liebchen, leg’s Händchen aufs Herze,” opus 5 (text by Heinrich Heine) *“Lieder der Nacht” Poetry *“Die Lüfte weh’n so lind” (music by Conradin Kreutzer *“Du frische Saat, heraus/Frühlingsfreude” (music by Amalie Scholl) *“Glaubet nicht es wären Tränen” (music by Jan Bedřich Kittl) References

Émile Bienaimé

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Paul Émile Bienaimé (6 July 1802 – 17 January 1869) was a 19th-century French composer. Biography A pupil at the , he studied at the Conservatoire with Victor Dourlen and François-Joseph Fétis. In 1822 he won the prize in harmony and in 1825, was laureate of a competition of musical composition organised by the Conservatoire with a four-act fugue and finished in second place of the prix de Rome with his cantata Herminie in 1826. In 1827, he succeeded Pierre Desvignes as kapellmeister at Notre-Dame de Paris where he would play most of his sacred works, such as the Requiem in 1830 with large orchestra in honour of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. With François-Antoine Habeneck he founded the “Société des concerts du Conservatoire” in 1828. His position at Notre-Dame was abolished after the July Revolution. He then devoted himself to teaching at the Conservatory in the classes of harmony and accompaniment, which he left in 1864 to retire. Works He wrote sacred music, works for salon, an orchestral overture and books on music education (Cinquante études d’harmonie pratique, Paris, 1844). *1842: Les Écoliers de Paris, nocturne, lyrics by Jules Turgan *1842: Vole, ma noire gondole, melody

Emilie Zumsteeg

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Emilie Zumsteeg (9 December 1796 – 1 August 1857) was a German choral conductor, singer, composer, and pianist. Biography Zumsteeg was born in Stuttgart (then in the Holy Roman Empire) where she lived for her whole life. She was one of seven children of the composer Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg and his wife Luise Andreä (1760–1837). Her father died when Emilie was just six years old. Her mother then ran a music store, which furthered her daughter’s musical interest. As a child, Zumsteeg took piano lessons with Gottlob Schick (1776–1812) and studied music theory with . She showed a facility at sight-reading. Gifted with a fine alto voice, she soon began singing and performing on the piano at the Stuttgart Museumskonzerte. As an adult she cultivated a circle of talented musicians and leading poets. The literary ties reflected her interest in the lied, which formed the basis of her composition. In 1830, Zumsteeg founded the first women’s choir in Württemberg. As a teacher of voice and piano, she made a living through music lessons and also as a leading member of the Verein für Klassische Kirchenmusik. She died in Stuttgart at age 60. One song in particular was later used by the Russian Bapt

Emma Hartmann

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Amalia Emma Sophie Hartmann née Zinn (22 August 1807 – 6 March 1851) was a Danish composer who composed under the pseudonym Frederik H. Palmer. She was married to the composer Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805–1900). They lived on the second floor of the Zinn House at Kvæsthusgade 3 in Copenhagen. Early life Emma Zinn was born into a wealthy merchant family in Copenhagen. She was the daughter of Johann Friederich Zinn (1779–1838) and Eva Sophie Juliane Oldeland (1779–1812). Her father had inherited the family’s trading house after the death of his father Johann Ludvig Zinn in 1802, initially in a partnership with his brother Carl Ludvig Zinn who died in 1808. Emma grew up in the Zinn House at Kvæsthusgade 3 and studied singing and piano with composer Andreas Peter Berggreen (1801–1880). Compositions Her first published composition was music for a Student Association dance in February 1841. Five pamphlets with a total of 22 Romances and Songs were later published with lyrics by prominent names including Christian Winther, Frederik Paludan-Müller and Swedish Johan Ludvig Runeberg. The first pamphlet was published in 1848 by Horneman & Erslev but the last two were published posthumou

Erik Gustaf Geijer

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Erik Gustaf Geijer (12 January 1783 – 23 April 1847) was a Swedish writer, historian, poet, romantic critic of political economy, philosopher, and composer. His writings served to promote Swedish National Romanticism. He was an influential advocate of conservatism, but switched to liberalism later in life. Biography Geijer was born at Geijersgården, his family’s estate in Ransäter, Värmland. He was educated at the gymnasium of Karlstad and then attended the University of Uppsala, where he earned his master’s degree in 1806. In 1803 he had competed successfully for an historical prize offered by the Academy of Sciences at Stockholm. In 1809, he traveled in England. The year following, he became a lecturer in history at Uppsala, and in 1815 assistant to Eric Michael Fant. Succeeding Fant, Geijer was a professor of history from 1817 at Uppsala University where a statue now commemorates him. He was rector of Uppsala University during the years 1822, 1830, 1836 and 1843–1844. As a representative of the university, he was a member of the Church of Sweden clergy in the Riksdag of the Estates in 1828–1830 and 1840–1841. He was a member of the Swedish Academy (on seat 14) from 1824. He was

Ernesto Cavallini

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Ernesto Cavallini (30 August 1807 – 1874) was an Italian clarinetist and composer. Born in Milan, Cavallini studied at the Milan Conservatory under Carulli. He performed at the Conservatoire Concerts in 1830 with his brother, violinist Eugenio Cavallini. He became the principal clarinetist of La Scala under Giacomo Panizza. Cavallini was described as the “Paganini of the clarinet”. His playing inspired Verdi to compose a clarinet solo and cadenza in his 1862 La forza del destino, and led Panizza to include a set of variations for clarinet in his The Challenge of Barletta. Cavallini also composed several works for E♭ clarinet, including the Carnival of Venice variations, I figli di Eduardo 4th in partnership with Panizza, and Fantasia on a Theme from Ultimo Giorno di Pompeii. He cited Rossini as an influence in his compositions, and composed Una Lagrima sulla Tomba dell’Immortale Rossini in his honour. A new CPO c.d.(CPO 777 938-2,63 minutes) of Cavallini’s 1st & 2nd clarinet concertos & a Fantasy & Variations is now available. References External links *Free scores at the Mutopia Project

Ernst Anschütz

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Ernst Gebhard Salomon Anschütz (28 October 1780 in Goldlauter near Suhl, Electorate of Saxony – 18 December 1861 (other sources: 11 December 1861 ) in Leipzig) was a German teacher, organist, poet, and composer. He is also known for his account of the death of Johann Christian Woyzeck in 1824 (see: Georg Büchner’s play Woyzeck). Anschütz worked as a teacher in Leipzig for 50 years. Works *""; 1837; Text: *"" (text, c. 1824); music: Carl Reinecke (1824–1910) as “”, Op. 91, in . Based on "" (c. 1770) *"" (text, 1824) *"" (text, 1824) References External links * * *

Ernst Richter

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Ernst Friedrich Eduard Richter (24 October 18089 April 1879), was a German musical theorist and composer, born at Großschönau, Saxony. He first studied music at Zittau, and afterwards at Leipzig, where he attained so high a reputation that in 1843 he was appointed professor of harmony and counterpoint at the conservatorium of music, then newly founded by Felix Mendelssohn. On the death of Moritz Hauptmann on 3 January 1868, he was elected cantor of Thomasschule zu Leipzig, conducting the Thomanerchor, an office he retained until his death. He is best known by three theoretical works: Lehrbuch der Harmonie, Lehrbuch des einfachen und doppelten Contrapunkts and Lehrbuch der Fuge, valuable textbooks known to English students through the translation by J.C.D Parker and Franklin Taylor. “Ernst Friedrich Eduard Richter (1808-1879) …His compositions include psalms for chorus and orchestra, motets, two masses, a Stabat Mater (voices only), part songs, string quartets and sonatas, and also pieces for organ and for piano. But it is his treatise on the theory of music that will keep Professor Richter’s name from oblivion. As already mentioned, two English editions have appeared: one in Lond

Eugène Prévost (musician)

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Eugène-Prosper Prévost (23 April 1809 – 19 August 1872) was a French composer and conductor. Life Born in Paris, Prévost was introduced to music by his older sister, the singer Geneviève-Aimé-Zoë Prévost. From 1827 he studied counterpoint at the Conservatoire de Paris with Daniel Jelensperger and Louis Seuriot and musical composition with Jean-François Lesueur. In 1831, he won the Premier Grand Prix de Rome with the two-part scene La Fuite de Bianca Capello on a text by Amédée de Pastoret. In the same year he married the singer Augustine Dejean-Leroy (born 1807), who became known as Éléonore Colon, and went with her to Le Havre. After his stay in Rome in 1833 he made his debut as a composer with the world premiere of the Opéra bouffe Cosimo ou le peintre badigeonneur 1835 at the Opéra-Comique, where several more of his operas were performed until 1839. In 1838, he was engaged as a conductor at the Théâtre Français in New Orleans, where he introduced himself with a performance of The Barber of Seville. In addition to works by contemporary Italian and French composers such as Gaetano Donizetti and Daniel-François-Esprit Auber, he performed several operas of his own. 1841 he conducted

Eugenio Cavallini

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Eugenio Cavallini (16 June 1806 — 11 April 1881) was an Italian conductor, composer, violinist, and violist. In 1833 he became first violinist of the orchestra at La Scala, a post he held through 1855. He also served as a conductor at La Scala, notably leading the world premieres of Gaetano Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia (1833), Donizetti’s Gemma di Vergy (1834), Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda (1835), Saverio Mercadante’s Il giuramento (1837), Mercadante’s Il bravo (1839), Giuseppe Verdi’s Oberto (1839), Verdi’s Un giorno di regno (1840), Donizetti’s Maria Padilla (1841), Verdi’s Nabucco (1842), Verdi’s I Lombardi alla prima crociata (1843), Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco (1845), Federico Ricci’s Estella di Murcia (1846), and Domenico Ronzani’s Salvator Rosa (1854). At La Scala Cavallini also conducted performances of Vincenzo Bellini’s La sonnambula (1834), Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore (1834), Bellini’s I puritani (1835), Daniel Auber’s La muette de Portici (1838), Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor (1839), Donizetti’s La fille du régiment (1840), Donizetti’s Don Pasquale (1843), Donizetti’s Linda di Chamounix (1844), Verdi’s Ernani (1844), Verdi’s Attila (1846), Verdi’s Jérusalem (1850), Verdi’s R

Fanny Hensel

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Fanny Cäcilie Hensel née Mendelssohn (14 November 1805 – 14 May 1847) was a German composer and pianist of the early Romantic era, also known as Fanny Mendelssohn Bartholdy. Her compositions number over 450, and include a string quartet, a piano trio, a piano quartet, an orchestral overture, four cantatas, more than 125 pieces for solo piano, and over 250 lieder. Most of these were unpublished in her lifetime. Although lauded for her piano technique, she rarely gave public performances outside her family circle. She grew up in Berlin and received a thorough musical education from teachers including her mother, as well as the composers Ludwig Berger and Carl Friedrich Zelter. Her younger brother Felix Mendelssohn, also a composer and pianist, shared the same education and the two developed a close relationship. Owing to her family’s reservations and to social conventions of the time about the roles of women, six of her songs were published under her brother’s name in his Opus 8 and 9 collections. In 1829, she married artist Wilhelm Hensel and, in 1830, they had their only child, Sebastian Hensel. In 1846, despite the continuing ambivalence of some of her family (but not her husband)

Federico Ricci

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Federico Ricci (22 October 1809 – 10 December 1877), was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. Born in Naples, he was the younger brother of Luigi Ricci, with whom he collaborated on several works. Federico studied at Naples as had his brother. His first big success was with La prigione di Edimburgo, one of his best serious works. He stayed with serious subjects for several years, and of these Corrado d’Altamura was a particular success. However, his last collaboration with his brother, a comedy called Crispino e la comare, was hailed as the masterpiece of both composers, so Federico devoted himself thereafter entirely to comedy. After another success closely followed by a major flop in Vienna, Federico took an official job teaching in St Petersburg and for 16 years he wrote no operas. In 1869 he moved to Paris, and there Une folie à Rome ran for 77 nights; other French comedies of his — mainly revisions of his own and his brother’s earlier works — found some success. He also contributed the Recordare Jesu in the Sequentia to the Messa per Rossini. In 1870 for Cremona he created a pastiche, La vergine di Kermo, containing music by Pedrotti, Cagnoni, Ponchielli, Pacini, Rossi

Feliciano Strepponi

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Feliciano Cristoforo Bartolomeo Strepponi (26 October 1793 – 13 January 1832) was an Italian composer and conductor. He was born in Lodi and died in Trieste at the age of 38. Amongst his compositions were seven operas which had a modest success in their day. The last one, L’Ullà di Bassora, premiered at La Scala in 1831. He was the father and first teacher of the opera singer Giuseppina Strepponi who later became the second wife of Giuseppe Verdi. Life Strepponi was born in the northern Italian city of Lodi to Maria (née Destefani) and Giuseppe Strepponi. Although some older sources give his birth year as 1797, research published in 2006 by Lodi historian Maria Moretti gives his birth date as 26 October 1793. He was baptised the following day with the name Feliciano Cristoforo Bartolomeo. The Strepponi family were intellectuals and liberal-minded supporters of Napoleon Bonaparte. They also had a strong interest in music with several members of the family having attended the Milan Conservatory. Strepponi’s older brother Francesco became the maestro di cappella at the Church of the Beata Vergine Incoronata in Lodi. His sister Giovanna was a schoolmistress in the city. was born on 9 S

Feofil Tolstoy

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Feofil Matveyevich Tolstoy (, 6 June 1809, Saint Petersburg, Imperial Russia, — 20 February 1881, Saint Petersburg, Imperial Russia), was a Russian composer, music critic and writer who used the pseudonym Rostislav. Tolstoy, the son of the senator Matvey Fyodorovich Tolstoy (1772—1815) and Praskovya Mikhaylovna Kutuzova (1777—1844), the daughter of the renowned Russian Field marshal Mikhail Kutuzov, worked for the most of his life as a mid-rank level state official, linked to the Moscow and Smolensk governors’ offices, as well as the Ministry of Defense. He authored more than 200 romances (including the earliest, 1829, adaptation of Pushkin’s “Ya vas lyubil…”, “I Loved You”), as well as two operas. The first, Birichino di Parigi (with an Italian libretto), was produced in Naples, Italy, in 1832 and in Saint Petersburg in 1835. The second, Doktor v khlopotakh (Доктор в хлопотах, Doctor in Business) was staged in 1851 in Russia. Tolstoy wrote two short novels, Kapitan Toldi (Капитан Тольди, Sovremennik, 1852) and Bolezni voli (Болезни воли, Ailments of the Will, Russky Vestnik, 1859). Alexandra Davydova (1815—1884), a well-known opera singer and a popular art salon hostess, was his

Ferdinand Hérold

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Louis Joseph Ferdinand Herold (28 January 1791 – 19 January 1833), better known as Ferdinand Hérold (), was a French composer. He was celebrated in his lifetime for his operas, of which he composed more than twenty, but he also wrote ballet music, works for piano and choral pieces. He is best known today for the ballet La Fille mal gardée and the overture to the opera Zampa. Born in Paris to a musical family, Hérold trained at the Paris Conservatoire and won France’s premier musical prize, the Prix de Rome in 1812. After a time in Italy he returned to Paris and worked first at the Théâtre Italien and then at the Opéra. He wrote several ballets for the latter, but was best known as a composer of opéra comique. Some of them, particularly in his early days, were hampered by poor librettos, but later he had more successes than failures, and his last two operas, Zampa (1831) and Le Pré aux clercs (The Clerk’s Meadow, 1832) were immensely popular, and remained in the repertory in France and elsewhere for decades after his early death from tuberculosis in 1833. As a ballet composer Hérold was a pioneer, raising the standard of ballet scores from being simple arrangements of popular tunes

Ferdinand Ries

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Ferdinand Ries (baptised 28 November 1784 – 13 January 1838) was a German composer. Ries was a friend, pupil and secretary of Ludwig van Beethoven. He composed eight symphonies, a violin concerto, nine piano concertos (the first concerto is not published), three operas, and numerous other works, including 26 string quartets. In 1838 he published a collection of reminiscences of his teacher Beethoven, co-written with Beethoven’s friend, Franz Wegeler. Ries’ symphonies, some chamber works—most of them with piano—his violin concerto and his piano concertos have been recorded, exhibiting a style which, given his connection to Beethoven, lies between the Classical and early Romantic styles. Early life Ries was born into a musical family of Bonn. His grandfather, Johann Ries (1723–1784), was appointed court trumpeter to the Elector of Cologne at Bonn. Ries was the eldest son of the violinist and Archbishopric Music Director Franz Anton Ries (1755–1846) and the brother of violinist and composer (Pieter) Hubert Ries (1802–1886) and violinist Joseph Ries. He received piano lessons from his father and was instructed by Bernhard Romberg, who also belonged to the Bonn Hofkapelle as a cellist.

Ferdinand Samuel Laur

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Ferdinand Samuel Laur (22 February 1791 – 2 July 1854) was a Swiss composer, conductor, choirmaster, and music teacher. He founded the Basel Choral Society in 1824. A hymnal he composed that was published in 1820 is now used in the national anthem of Lesotho, “Lesotho Fatse La Bontata Rona”. Career “Freiheit” (), a hymn he composed that was published in 1820 is now used in the national anthem of Lesotho, “Lesotho Fatse La Bontata Rona”. Between 1830 and 1840 he published the hymnbook Vierstimmige Chorgesänge und Chorlieder ohne Begleitung für Sopran, Alt, Tenor und Bass, für Kirchen, Schulen und Singanstalten. He founded the Basel Choral Society in 1824. Death Laur died in , near Kreuzlingen, Switzerland. Personal life Laur had a grandson, . References Further reading * Albert Burckhardt und Rudolf Wackernagel: Basler Jahrbuch 1890. C. Detloffs Buchhandlung, Basel 1890, S. 94. * Hermann Mendel: Musikalisches Conversations-Lexikon. Eine Encyklopädie der gesammten musikalischen Wissenschaften. Sechster Band. Robert Oppenheim, Berlin 1876, S. 263: https://archive.org/stream/musikalischesco09reisgoog#page/n270/mode/2up. * Albert Burckhardt und Rudolf Wackernagel: Basler Jahrbuch 1890.

Ferdinand Schubert

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Ferdinand Schubert (born 18 October 1794 in Vienna; died 26 February 1859) was an Austrian composer and brother of Franz Schubert. He also designed the grave stone for the grave of Ludwig van Beethoven, which is now at Vienna’s Central Cemetery. Early life Ferdinand Lukas Schubert was an Austrian teacher, organist and composer. He is notable for his compositions and for his role in publishing the complete works of his younger brother Franz Schubert. He received training in piano and violin from his father, Franz Theodor Schubert, and his older brother Ignaz, later from Michael Holzer, and finally from the public teacher of the choir of St. Anna, Joseph Drechsler. As a boy, Ferdinand played violin in the Schubert family string quartet, with his brothers Franz and Ignaz on viola and violin and his father on cello. Franz Schubert composed many of his early string quartets for this ensemble. Career In 1810, Schubert became organist at the Lichtentaler Parish and was also assistant teacher at an orphanage in Vienna. Four years later, in 1816, he was promoted to full-time teacher at the orphanage. In that year, Schubert married one of his students, Anna. In 1818, Franz Schubert composed

Ferdinando Carulli

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Ferdinando Maria Meinrado Francesco Pascale Rosario Carulli (9 February 1770 – 17 February 1841) was an Italian composer for classical guitar and the author of the influential Méthode complète pour guitare ou lyre, op. 27 (1810), which contains music still used by student guitarists today. He wrote a variety of works for classical guitar, including numerous solo and chamber works and several concertos. He was an extremely prolific writer, composing over 400 works for the instrument. Biography Carulli was born to an affluent, upper-class family in Naples. His father, Michele, was a distinguished literator, secretary to the delegate of the Neapolitan Jurisdiction. Like many of his contemporaries, Carulli was taught musical theory by a priest, who was also an amateur musician. Carulli’s first instrument was the cello, taught to him by the local priest. At the age of twenty, Carulli discovered the guitar and devoted his life to the study and advancement of this instrument. As there were no professional guitar teachers in Naples at the time, Carulli developed his own style of playing. Carulli was a gifted performer. His concerts in Naples were so popular that he soon began touring Europ

Ferdinando Giorgetti

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Ferdinando Giorgetti (23 June 1796 in Florence, Italy – 23 March 1867 in Florence, Italy ) was a composer, violinist, educator and Italian publicist. Life Child prodigy and royal teacher Giorgetti, a child prodigy, started studying violin with Giovanni Francesco Giuliani at five years old and continued on this path for 9 years. However, nothing is known regarding his education of composition, so it is most probable that he was self-taught. First soloist experiences and paralysis In 1811, Elisa Bonaparte hired him as her personal violinist («Chamber Violin of the Queen of Etruria»), Because of the loss of his job, and above all, his paralysis, he was forced to leave his career as a soloist and dedicate his efforts to composition, teaching, musical publicity, and the organization of events and performances. In 1827, on the frontispiece of Tre trj di una difficoltà progressiva (dedicated to Paganini) he indicates «first violin of the court of the Grand Duke of Tuscany», and thanks to the support of the court (members to which Giorgetti dedicated numerous compositions), he began promoting instrumental music and cultured European musical language, an activity to which he dedicated all o

Ferdinando Orlandi

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Ferdinando Orlandi (7 October 1774 – 5 January 1848), also referred to as Orland and Orlando. Little is known of his early life and his year of birth is also cited as 1777. He was an Italian musician and teacher of singing who composed cantatas and sacred music (including four masses), but was particularly known for his operas, not all of which have survived. He was born and died in Parma. Life Orlandi studied music with Gaspare Rugarli, organist at the ducal chapel of Colorno, then in Parma with Gaspare Ghiretti and probably with Ferdinando Paer. In 1793 he entered the Conservatorio della Pietà della Turchini in Naples, where he studied counterpoint with Nichola Sala and Giacomo Tritto. In 1799 he returned to Parma, where he was appointed choirmaster. In 1801, his theatrical career began with the comic opera The Scottish Pupil (La pupilla scozzese) based on a libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte that had earlier been set by Antonio Salieri in Vienna in 1789. When the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza was annexed to the French Republic in 1801, Orlandi moved to Milan, where his very successful comic opera The Mayor of Chioggia (Il podestà di Chioggia) was performed. Contemporary publicity noted

Ferdinando Paer

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Ferdinando Paer (1 June 1771 – 3 May 1839) was an Italian composer known for his operas. He was of Austrian descent and used the German spelling Pär in application for printing in Venice, and later in France the spelling Paër. Life He was born in Parma into a family of Austrian descent. He came from a musical family. His grandfather Michael Pär was a regimental band member from Peterwardein (today Petrovaradin, part of Novi Sad). His father Giulio Paer was a trumpeter with the Ducal Bodyguards and also performed at church and court events; his mother was Francesca Cutica. He was named Ferdinando after Duke Ferdinand of Parma by Archduchess Maria Amalia of Austria, Duke Ferdinand’s wife. He studied music theory under the violinist Gasparo Ghiretti, a pupil of the Conservatorio della Pietà de’ Turchini in Naples. Career His first stage work, Orphée et Euridice, premiered in 1791 and helped begin a fruitful career of composing for the young composer. His first Italian opera, Circe, was given during the Carnival of Venice in 1792; others rapidly followed, and his name was soon famous throughout Italy. At the age of 20, he became choirmaster in Venice. In 1802 he was appointed composer

Fernando Sor

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Fernando Sor (baptised 14 February 1778 – 10 July 1839) was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer of the late Classical era and early Romantic era. Best known for writing solo classical guitar music, he also composed an opera (at the age of 19), three symphonies, guitar duos, piano music, songs, a Mass, and at least two successful ballets: Cinderella, which received over one hundred performances, and Hercule et Omphale. Partly because Sor was himself such a classical guitar virtuoso—contemporaries considered him to be the best in the world On the other hand, Sor’s concert pieces, like the popular Introduction and Variations on Mozart’s “Das klinget so herrlich” Op. 9, belong to the advanced guitar performance repertoire. Unlike modern classical guitar players, Sor used the smaller, slimmer “Romantic” guitars predating today’s familiar guitar standards set by Torres. He used the ring finger of his plucking hand “rarely” and “only for harmony (never for melody).” He eschewed the use of nails on that hand. Variance of name As Sor’s works were published in various countries, his name was translated, leading to variances in its spelling. These included Joseph Fernando Macario Sors,

Fortunato Santini

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Fortunato Santini (Rome, 5 January 1777 was an Italian priest, composer and music collector. Life Santini was born in Rome and raised in an orphanage, where he studied counterpoint with Giuseppe Jannacconi. Later on he took organ lessons with G. Giudi. Between 1798 and 1801 he studied theology and philosophy and was ordained a priest in 1801. In those years he already started to copy and collect music manuscripts of the Roman School. He believed that he would only fully understand these old scores if he were able to copy them. Even in the 19th century it was not easy to understand the complicated handwritten scores of the 16th century. These first copies he made, set up the base for his collection which soon became more and more important. To copy musical compositions, Santini went to look for the originals in the different libraries and archives of Rome’s churches and monasteries. Thanks to cardinal Carlo Odescalchi, who quartered Santini’s collection in his private palace in Rome, Santini had access to private archives held by the Roman nobility, like the Ruspoli family. In 1820 Santini published a catalog of about a thousand musical scores in his growing collection. This catalog

Francesco Florimo

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Francesco Florimo (12 October 1800 – 18 December 1888) was an Italian librarian, musicologist, historian of music, and composer. Early life and friendship with Bellini Florimo was born in San Giorgio Morgeto in Calabria and enrolled at the age of 12 (or 15) at the Naples Conservatory (Conservatorio di San Pietro a Majella). Career as a musician At the conservatory Florimo became a singing instructor and director of vocal concerts. His conservative Metodo di canto (Naples, 1840?; Milan, 1841–1843; enlarged 1861) was influential and widely praised. It claimed to be based on the teaching methods of the castrato Girolamo Crescentini, who was still head of the Naples Conservatory singing school at the time, and was meant to restore the ‘antico bello’, or true Italian style of singing from the time of Alessandro Scarlatti, Nicola Porpora, and Francesco Durante, which had been largely supplanted by the then fashionable ’la moda barocca’. Florimo died in Naples. His will donated to the Naples Conservatory thirty-seven volumes of correspondence, a rich source of material that has not yet been fully exploited; among these documents are some which reveal Florimo’s own published fabrications.

Francesco Morlacchi

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Francesco Giuseppe Baldassare Morlacchi (14 June 1784 – 28 October 1841) was an Italian composer of more than twenty operas. During the many years he spent as the royal Royal Kapellmeister in Dresden, he was instrumental in popularizing the Italian style of opera. Biography Born in Perugia, Morlacchi was from a family of musicians. He composed from a very young age, first studying with his uncle Giovanni Mazzetti and later with Luigi Caruso in Perugia. He later studied at Loreto with Zingarelli (1803–4). Finally, he ended up in Bologna at the school of Stanislao Mattei (1805) where he met Gioacchino Rossini. Morlacchi was quickly successful as an opera composer. His first operatic works were written in 1807, and were a farce and a comic opera. His first truly effective theatre work was the opera seria Corradino (Parma, 1808), and led to commissions from opera houses in Rome and Milan. In 1810 he was brought to Dresden by contralto Marietta Marcolini, and in 1811 Morlacchi was made Kapellmeister of the Italian Opera in Dresden. While in Dresden, he had to work to establish himself in the eyes of critics. By this time, German opera was well established, and Morlacchi and his composit

Francis Johnson (composer)

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Francis Johnson (June 16, 1792 – April 6, 1844 ) was an American musician and prolific composer during the Antebellum period. African American composers were rare in the U.S. during this period, but Johnson was among the few who were successful. Performing as a virtuoso of the (now rare) keyed Kent bugle and the violin, he wrote more than two hundred compositions of various styles—operatic airs, Ethiopian minstrel songs, patriotic marches, ballads, cotillions, quadrilles, quicksteps and other dances. Only manuscripts and piano transcriptions survive today. Johnson was the first African American composer to have his works published as sheet music. He also was the first African American to give public concerts and the first to participate in racially integrated concerts in the United States. He led the first American musical ensemble to present concerts abroad, and he introduced the promenade concert style to America. Biography Francis “Frank” Johnson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 16, 1792, and baptized three months later at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on September 23. He directed military bands and society dance orchestras, taught music, and performed on the violin

Francisco José Olivares

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Francisco José Olivares (17 November 1778 – 2 September 1854) was a Spanish composer and organist who lived in the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century. Throughout his musical career, he worked in Cuenca, Orihuela and Salamanca. Biography Francisco José Olivares was born in Rubielos Bajos, Cuenca, on 17 November 1778. At the age of 9, in 1788, he started to attend the Colegio San José de Infantes de Choir of the Cathedral of Cuenca, where he began his musical training. Pedro Aranaz was one of his teachers, and Olivares was one of his favourite students. He was also the student of the organist Juan Manuel del Barrio. His first two works date from 1794, were a motet and a mass. Salamanca Olivares moved to Salamanca in 1803, when he obtained the appointment as the first organist and rector of the Colegio de Mozos de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción. In 1806, to improve the teaching of choir children in the cathedral, he asked Pedro Aranaz’s help to establish a nursery school in Salamanca, similar to the one in Cuenca. As a result of this collaboration, he made a composition treatise, of which a copy is kept in the library of the Madrid Royal Conservatory. In 1817 Olivares

Francisco Manuel da Silva

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Francisco Manuel da Silva (21 February 1795 – 18 December 1865) was a Brazilian songwriter and music professor, notable for composing the Brazilian National Anthem. Biography Silva was born on 21 February in Rio de Janeiro and died on 18 December 1865, at the age of 70, in the same city. He had great prominence in the musical life of Rio de Janeiro in the period between the death of José Maurício Nunes Garcia and Antônio Carlos Gomes. He was a singer of Capela Real since 1809, and later a cello player. He was one of the founders of (National Imperial Music and Opera Academy), of , which became (Nacional Music Institute) and is called (Rio de Janeiro University Music School). He was taught by José Maurício Nunes Garcia and, most probably, by Sigismund Neukomm. He was directly responsible for Capela Imperial’s reinstatement and being turned to its old beauty. He left a handful of works, spread around Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and São Paulo archives, covering gospel music, modinhas and lundus. He composed the Brazilian National Anthem, first as a patriotic march, since emperor Pedro I’s abdication, later being officialized as anthem by the Brazilian Republic Revolution (1889). He a

François Benoist

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François Benoist (; 10 September 1794 – 6 May 1878) was a French organist, pedagogue, and composer. Life and career Benoist was born in Nantes on 10 September 1794. He took his first music lessons under Georges Scheuermann. Benoist studied music at the Conservatoire de Paris and won the Prix de Rome in 1815 for his cantata Œnone. In 1819, he became organist (organiste du roi) and professor of organ at the Conservatoire; he held the latter post for half a century. His students included César Franck, Camille Saint-Saëns, Charles Lecocq, Georges Bizet, Louis Lefébure-Wely, Léo Delibes, and Adolphe Adam. As composer, he was comparatively unimportant, but he wrote two operas, four ballets, one Requiem Mass, and numerous works for organ. He died in Paris. Selected compositions * Léonore et Félix, opéra-comique, 1821 * Chœur d’adieu, 1836 * La Gipsy, ballet, 1839 * Le Diable amoureux, ballet, 1840 * Bibliothèque de l’organiste, 12 volumes, 1841–1861 * Messe de Requiem pour trois voix d’homme et une d’enfant, avec accompagnement d’orgue ad libitum, 1842. * Othello, opera, 1844 * L’Apparition, opera, 1848 * Nisida ou les Amazones des Açores, ballet (book by Eugène Deligny), 1848 * Pâquerett

François de Fossa

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François de Fossa (full name: François de Paule Jacques Raymond de Fossa) (31 August 1775 – 3 June 1849) was a French classical guitarist and composer. Biography His father, also named François de Fossa, was one of the most important historians of the province of Roussillon. De Fossa was born in Perpignan, then in the Province of Roussillon. At age 17, he joined an army regiment, the Légion de Pyrénées, which fought the revolutionary government in France. for most of his life, he remained an army officer, also travelling to Mexico in the 1790s in this function. A friend of Dionisio Aguado, he cooperated in his guitar method, also arranging its publication in Paris. He was also the copyist of Luigi Boccherini’s well-known guitar quintets. In 1826, the Paris firm of Richault published de Fossa’s three guitar quartets, opus 19. He died in Paris, aged 73. Works *Recuerdo (c.1840) *Three Grand Duos Based on the Works of Haydn *Overture of the opera Didon of Piccinni, arranged for 2 guitars *La Tyrolienne op. 1 *First Fantasie op. 5 *12 Divertissements op. 6 *Third Fantasie on a theme of Beethoven op. 10 *Forth Fantasie Les Adieux a l’Espagne op. 11 *Fifth Fantasie on the air Les Follies

François Habeneck

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François Antoine Habeneck (22 January 1781 – 8 February 1849) was a French classical violinist and conductor. Early life Habeneck was born at Mézières, the son of a musician in a French regimental band. During his early youth, Habeneck was taught by his father, and at the age of ten played concertos in public. In 1801, he entered the Conservatoire de Paris, where he studied under Pierre Baillot and obtained the violin first prize in 1804. In the same year, he joined the orchestra of the Opéra-Comique, but shortly afterwards moved to that of the Paris Opera. He conducted student concerts at the Conservatoire from 1806 onwards. Career at the Paris Opera On 1 June 1817, Habeneck became an assistant conductor (chef d’orchestre adjoint) of the Paris Opera, a post he held until 1 January 1819, when he was replaced by J.-J. Martin. On 1 April 1820, on a trial basis, Henri Valentino replaced J.-J. Martin as second conductor (deuxième chef d’orchestre, à titre d’essai), but in August, Valentino and Habeneck were jointly designated successors to Rodolphe Kreutzer, the first conductor (premier chef d’orchestre), only to take effect, however, when Kreutzer left that position. In the meantime,

François-Adrien Boieldieu

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François-Adrien Boieldieu (, also ) (16 December 1775 – 8 October 1834) was a French composer, mainly of operas, often called “the French Mozart”. Although his reputation is largely based upon his operas, Boieldieu composed other works and among them, his Harp Concerto in C (1800–1801) is a masterpiece of the harp repertory. Biography Early life François-Adrien Boieldieu was born in Rouen. His date of birth was given as December 15 by his biographer Lucien Augé de Lassus and as September 15 by some local press releases. He received his musical education first from the choirmaster and then from the organist of the local cathedral. During the Reign of Terror, Rouen was one of the few towns to maintain a significant musical life and in 1793, a series of concerts was organised that featured the celebrated violinist Pierre Rode and the tenor Pierre-Jean Garat. It was during this time that Boieldieu composed his earliest works to texts written by his father (La fille coupable in 1793, followed by Rosalie et Mirza in 1795). These works brought him immediate success. Career During the Revolutionary period, Boieldieu left for Paris and wisely started work as a piano tuner. At this time, the

François-Joseph Fétis

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François-Joseph Fétis (; 25 March 1784 – 26 March 1871) was a Belgian musicologist, critic, teacher and composer. He was among the most influential music intellectuals in continental Europe. His enormous compilation of biographical data in the Biographie universelle des musiciens remains an important source of information today. Family Fétis was born in Mons, Hainaut, eldest son of Antoine-Joseph Fétis and Élisabeth Desprets, daughter of a noted surgeon. He had nine brothers and sisters. His father was titular organist of the noble chapter of Saint-Waltrude. His grandfather was an organ manufacturer. He was trained as a musician by his father and played at young age on the choir organ of Saint Waltrude. In October 1806 he married Adélaïde Robert, daughter of the French politician Pierre-François-Joseph Robert and Louise-Félicité de Kéralio, friend of Robespierre. They had two sons: the elder son helped his father with the editions of Revue Musicale and became member of the Royal Academy, while the younger son was a composer and professor. In 1866 his wife died, and he withdrew from the Brussels society and court. When his father died, Eduard inherited his complete library and colle

François-Joseph Naderman

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François-Joseph Naderman (; 5 August 1781, in Paris – 2 April 1835, in Paris) was a classical harpist, teacher and composer, the eldest son of the well-known eighteenth century harp maker Jean Henri Naderman. The profession of his father, luthier, is certainly at the root of his vocation. There are 27 entries for François Joseph Naderman in the combined Music Catalogue, including caprices, etudes, fantasias, variations and duets for harp and harp, harp and flute, harp and cello, harp and horn, with estimated dates of publication. His Sonatinas Progressives are still regarded as some of the most important works in the harp repertoire today. Life A student of Jean-Baptiste Krumpholtz, François Joseph Naderman became a famous musician after the French Revolution, and his reputation continued under the Consulate, the First Empire and the Restoration of the monarchy. In 1815 he was appointed harpist for the Royal Chapel and court composer to the king, His students included artist and composer Therese Emilie Henriette Winkel. He soon began touring around Europe as a virtuoso of the harp. He was a music publisher and a manufacturer of harps in Paris at “The Golden Key”, on Rue de la Loi.

François-René Gebauer

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François-René Gebauer (15 March 1773 in Versailles, France – 28 July 1845 in Paris) was a French composer, professor, and bassoonist and the son of a German military musician. He had four brothers, Michel-Joseph Gebauer (1763–1812), Pierre-Paul Gebauer, Jean-Luc Gebauer, and Étienne-François Gebauer, all of whom were also musicians and composers. The brothers played together in a quintet that was modeled on woodwind quintet instrumentation but modified by removing the flute parts to include their brother Jean-Luc, who was a percussionist. The quintet received favorable reviews from critics, who found the music to be “unusually lively for a wind quintet” and “full of earthly elegance”. He took music lessons first with his brother Michel-Joseph Gebauer, which ended soon due to artistic differences between the two. He then took lessons with François Devienne, which proved to be more successful. In 1788 he joined the Swiss Guard in Versailles as a bassoonist. In 1790 he joined the orchestra of the Musique de la garde nationale de Paris. From 1801 to 1826 he was a bassoonist in the orchestra of the Paris Opera. In 1795 he was appointed professor of bassoon at the Conservatoire de Paris,

František Škroup

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František Jan Škroup (; 3 June 1801 – 7 February 1862) was a Czech composer and conductor. His brother Jan Nepomuk Škroup was also a successful composer and his father, Dominik Škroup, and other brother Ignác Škroup were lesser known composers. He is the author of the melody for the Czech national anthem “Kde domov můj?”. Biography Škroup was born on 3 June 1801 in Osice near Hradec Králové in Bohemia. At the age of eleven he moved to Prague where he supported himself as a choir boy and flautist. He continued his schooling at one of the most important Czech national revival movement centres, Hradec Králové, where he was a choirboy at the cathedral. While there he studied with the local choirmaster and composer Franz Volkert. He later moved back to Prague to study at the university. He became a fairly successful opera and singspiel composer producing more than a dozen stage works. Among Škroup’s part-time jobs was organist at the “Temple of the Israelite Society for Regulated Worship,” known since the late nineteen-forties as the “Spanish synagogue.” His last position was as the musical director of the German opera in Dutch Rotterdam. He died in Rotterdam on 7 February 18 and, as a

Franz Berwald

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Franz Adolf Berwald (23 July 1796 – 3 April 1868) was a Swedish Romantic composer and violinist. He made his living as an orthopedist and later as the manager of a saw mill and glass factory, and became more appreciated as a composer after his death than he had been in his lifetime. Prominent in his oeuvre are several operas, much chamber music and four symphonies. Life and works Berwald was born in Stockholm and came from a family with four generations of musicians; his father, a violinist in the Royal Opera Orchestra, taught Franz the violin from an early age; he soon appeared in concerts. In 1809, Karl XIII came to power and reinstated the Royal Chapel; the following year Berwald started working there, as well as playing the violin in the court orchestra and the opera, receiving lessons from Edouard du Puy, and also started composing. The summers were off-season for the orchestra, and Berwald travelled around Scandinavia, Finland and Russia. Of his works from that time, a septet and a serenade he still considered worthwhile music in his later years. In 1818 Berwald started publishing the Musikalisk journal, later renamed Journal de musique, a periodical with easy piano pieces an

Franz Clement

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Franz Joseph Clement (November 17, 1780 – November 3, 1842), was an Austrian violinist, pianist, composer, conductor of Vienna’s Theater an der Wien, and a friend of Ludwig van Beethoven. Life and career A talented violinist from a young age, he was known for his extraordinary ability to play complex pieces from memory after only briefly viewing them. He would alternate his virtuoso performances with lighthearted showmanship, with such intermission antics as playing a sonata on one string with the violin upside-down. A critic in 1805 described his unique style as follows: “His is not the marked, bold, strong playing, the moving, forceful Adagio, the powerful bow and tone which characterise the Rode-Viotti School; rather, his playing is indescribably delicate, neat and elegant; it has an extremely delightful tenderness and cleanness that undoubtedly secures him a place among the most perfect violinists. At the same time, he has a wholly individual lightness, which makes it seem as if he merely toys with the most incredible difficulties, and a sureness that never deserts him for a moment, even in the most daring passages.” Beethoven became acquainted with Clement in 1794 when he atte

Franz Hauser

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Franz Xaver Hauser (12 January 1794 – 14 August 1870) was a singer, voice teacher and music manuscript collector. Life Franz Hauser was born in Krasovice (today part of Kondrac in the Czech Republic). At his father’s insistence, he first studied medicine, but he then studied singing with Václav Tomášek and composition with oboist Josef Triebensee. He made his stage debut in 1817 in Prague as Sarastro in Mozart’s Magic Flute. He found great success at the opera theatres in Vienna, Leipzig, and Berlin. He retired from the stage in 1838 and taught singing in Vienna. In 1846 he was appointed as director of the newly established conservatory in Munich (now the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München), serving as its director until 1864. He retired in 1865 to Karlsruhe and two years later to Freiburg im Breisgau. He died on 14 August 1870 in Freiburg im Breisgau. Work Contemporary critics considered Hauser cold as an actor but approved of his pure voice. He was known for his interpretation of Weber and as Figaro (both Rossini’s and Mozart’s), Bertram, William Tell, and Spohr’s Faust. Hauser had many students including Jenny Lind and Henriette Sontag. He wrote a popular singing manual, G

Franz Hünten

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Franz Hünten, also known as François Hünten (26 December 1792 22 February 1878), was a German pianist and composer of salon music. He was born in Koblenz, the son of the organist Daniel Hünten, who taught Henri Herz. Like Herz, he moved to Paris and entered its Conservatorium in 1819. He wrote pleasant and technically undemanding piano music: rondos, fantasies, variations, dances, etc. Of Hünten’s 267 published works, the vast majority were written for piano solo or duet. His first success was Variations militaires à 4 mains, op. 12, a simple imitation of Ignaz Moscheles’s variations on the Alexandermarsch, and soon his popularity was such that for one work of ten pages he was paid 2000 francs. Two years after publishing the instruction book Nouvelle méthode pour le piano-forte, op. 60 (1833), he moved back to Koblenz, where he continued to compose; he moved back to Paris after a few years but retired for good in 1848. Hünten’s music was wildly popular throughout France, Germany, and England, but critical notices inevitably described it as trifling and later assessments have been much the same. His brothers, Wilhelm Hünten, a piano teacher in Koblenz, and Peter Ernst Hünten, a pian

Franz Joseph Glæser

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Franz Joseph Glæser (19 April 1798 - 29 August 1861), also spelt as Glaeser and Gläser, was an Austrian-Danish composer. Born in Obergeorgenthal, Bohemia, then part of the Austrian Empire, Glaeser’s work as a composer was mostly done before he migrated to Denmark, to spend much of his later life in Copenhagen. He gained his first position as a Kapellmeister at the Leopoldstadt Theater in 1817 and his last at Copenhagen in 1842, retaining the position until his death in 1861. Work * Die vier Haimonskinder (1809) * Bärnburgs Sturz (1817) * Das Mädchen ohne Zunge (1819) * Das Felsenmädchen (1820) * Der geraubte Schleier (1820) * Der Tambour (1820) * Sküs, Mond und Pagat (1820) * Wenn’s was ist, so ist’s nichts und ist’s nichts, so sind’s 36 Kreuzer (1820) * Arsenius der Weiberfeind (1823) * Dank und Undank (1823) * Der rasende Roland (1823) * Stumme Liebe (1823) * Der Brief an sich selbst (1824) * Der Erlenkönig (1824) * Die kurzen Mäntel (1824) * Die Rettung durch die Sparkassa (1824) * Liebe und Haß (1824) * Sauertöpfchen (1824) * Sieben Mädchen in Uniform (1825) * Der Bär und das Kind (1825) * Die sonderbare Laune (1825) * Die Weiber in Uniform (1825) * Die Zauberin Armida (1825) *

Franz Lachner

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Franz Paul Lachner (2 April 180320 January 1890) was a German composer and conductor. Biography Lachner was born in Rain am Lech to a musical family (his brothers Ignaz, and Vinzenz also became musicians). He studied music with Simon Sechter and Maximilian Stadler. He conducted at the Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna. In 1834, he became Kapellmeister at Mannheim. As a result of composers’ aesthetic comparisons of Beethoven’s symphonic output with efforts afterwards, in 1835, there was a competition in Vienna for the best new symphony sponsored by Tobias Haslinger of the music publishing firm with no fewer than 57 entries. Lachner received first prize with his 5th Symphony Sinfonia passionata, or Preis-Symphonie and became royal Kapellmeister at Munich, becoming a major figure in its musical life, conducting at the opera and various concerts and festivals. His career there came to a sudden end in 1864 after Richard Wagner’s disciple Hans von Bülow took over Lachner’s duties. Lachner remained officially in his post on extended leave for a few years until his contract expired. Work Lachner was a well-known and prolific composer in his day, though he is not now considered a major compo

Franz Pecháček

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Franz Xaver Pecháček (4 July 1793 – 15 September 1840) was an Austrian-German violin virtuoso and composer of Czech origin. Besides polonaises, variations, Rondos and potpourris for violin and orchestra, he composed two string quartets and the Adagio et Polonaise for clarinet and orchestra. Biography Franz Pecháček was born on 4 July 1793 in Vienna. He was a very gifted student and already at a very early age performed as a soloist. He was trained by his father František Martin Pecháček and by Ignaz Schuppanzigh and Emanuel Aloys Förster. When he was six he performed before the imperial court and in 1803 he went publicly with his father for the first time to Prague, where he was received with great success, thus gaining his reputation as a child prodigy. Other musical education he acquired in Vienna, where he studied composition with Förster. From 1809 to 1822, he was a violinist at the Theater an der Wien, first as a concertmaster and later as a second conductor. These virtuoso pieces, of which he wrote around 40, do not show an especially individual style. *Adagio et Polonaise for piano four-hands,‘Op. 14 *First concertino for violin with accompaniment of orchestra, Op. 16 (1826)

Franz Schubert

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Early life and education#

Franz Peter Schubert was born in Himmelpfortgrund (now a part of Alsergrund), Vienna, Archduchy of Austria, on 31 January 1797, and baptized in the Catholic Church the following day. He was the twelfth child of Franz Theodor Florian Schubert (1763–1830) and Maria Elisabeth Katharina Vietz (1756–1812). Schubert’s immediate ancestors came originally from the province of Zuckmantel in Austrian Silesia. His father, the son of a Moravian peasant, was a well-known parish schoolmaster, and his school in Lichtental (in Vienna’s ninth district) had numerous students in attendance. He came to Vienna from Zuckmantel in 1784 and was appointed schoolmaster two years later. only five survived to adulthood. At the age of five, Schubert began to receive regular lessons from his father, and a year later he was enrolled at his father’s school. Although it is not known exactly when he received his first musical instruction, he was given piano lessons by his brother Ignaz, but they lasted for a very short time as Schubert exceeded him within a few months. Ignaz later recalled: When Schubert was eight years old, his father gave him his first violin lessons, training him to the point where he could play easy duets proficiently. Soon after, Schubert was given his first lessons outside the family circle by Michael Holzer, organist and choirmaster of the local parish church in Lichtental. In addition to instruction in piano and violin, Holzer gave the young Schubert lessons in organ, voice, harmony, and figured bass. Holzer later asserted that he did not give him any real instruction as Schubert would already know anything that he tried to teach him, recalling that he looked upon Schubert with “astonishment and silence”. According to Ferdinand, Schubert also composed songs and piano pieces during this time, although none of these first compositions have survived. Young Schubert first came to the attention of Antonio Salieri, then Vienna’s leading musical authority, in 1804, possibly at Holzer’s recommendation. His exposure to these and other works, combined with occasional visits to the opera, laid the foundation for a broader musical education. Schubert’s friendship with Spaun began at the Stadtkonvikt and lasted throughout his short life. In those early days, the financially well-off Spaun furnished the impoverished Schubert with much of his manuscript paper. In the meantime, Schubert’s talent began to show in his compositions; Salieri decided to start training him privately in music theory and composition. According to Ferdinand, the boy’s first composition for piano was a Fantasy for four hands; his first song, Klagegesang der Hagar, was written a year later. Schubert was occasionally permitted to lead the Stadtkonvikt’s orchestra, the first orchestra he wrote for. He devoted much of the rest of his time at the Stadtkonvikt to composing chamber music, several songs, piano pieces and, more ambitiously, liturgical choral works in the form of a “Salve Regina” (D 27), a “Kyrie” (D 31), in addition to the unfinished “Octet for Winds” (D 72, said to commemorate the 1812 death of his mother), the cantata Wer ist groß? for male voices and orchestra (D 110, for his father’s birthday in 1813), and his first symphony (D 82).

Franz Schubert (violinist)

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(Xaver) Franz Schubert (22 July 1808, Dresden – 12 April 1878, Dresden) was a violinist and composer. After training with concertmaster Antonio Rolla in Dresden, Schubert studied violin with Charles Philippe Lafont in Paris and began working under the name François Schubert. He played in the Staatskapelle in Dresden from 1823 to 1873. The son of church composer Franz Anton Schubert (the Elder, 1768–1824), Schubert was married to the singer and actress Maschinka Schubert (1815–1882) who was the daughter of horn player and composer Georg Abraham Schneider. Their daughter was the opera singer and composer Georgina Schubert (1840–1878). Franz Schubert composed concert pieces, études, and chamber music, but is largely known for the bagatelle The Bee, a perpetuum mobile for violin and piano – a piece that is often misattributed to Franz Schubert due to the similarity of the two men’s names. Selected works * 9 Études for violin solo, Op. 3 * Divertissement sur des motifs de l’opéra Lestocq d’Auber in D major for violin and piano, Op. 4 (1836) * Souvenir de Norma, Variations in G major for violin and piano, Op. 5 (1837) * 2 Nocturnes for violin and piano, Op. 7 (1844) *# Amour secret in B

Franz Wilhelm Ferling

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Franz Wilhelm Ferling (20 September 1796 – 8 December 1874) was a German oboist, composer, and clarinettist. An accomplished musician, he is chiefly remembered today for his 48 études for oboe, op. 31, which are commonly studied by oboists and saxophonists. Life Ferling was born in Halberstadt on 20 September 1796. At the age of 18, Ferling began serving as a court musician for the Duke of Brunswick, a position which he would hold for most of his life. From 1814 to 1816, he was a military musician, playing the clarinet. The 48 studies consist of two études in each key—one slow and the other fast. The études are written in a variety of musical styles: there are five bel canto exercises, six romances, two offertories, four toccatas in the style of Niccolò Paganini, three slow movements, seven marches, twelve waltzes, four polkas, two polonaises, and three czardas. After the études were published, Cyrille Rose, a French clarinetist, adapted 32 of Ferling’s etudes for the clarinet, often transposing the music or changing the meter, articulation, or dynamics. In addition, Rose occasionally omitted some of Ferling’s phrases or composed new ones. After the first edition was published in 1

Franz Xaver Gruber

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Franz Xaver Gruber (25 November 1787 – 7 June 1863) was an Austrian primary school teacher, church organist and composer in the village of Arnsdorf, who is best known for composing the music to “Stille Nacht” (“Silent Night”). Life Gruber was born on 25 November 1787 in the village of Hochburg-Ach, Upper Austria, the son of linen weavers, Josef and Maria Gruber. His given name was recorded in the baptismal record as “Conrad Xavier,” but this was later changed to “Franz Xaver”. The Hochburger schoolteacher Andreas Peterlechner gave him music lessons. Gruber worked as a weaver until the age of 18, then trained to become a schoolteacher. He completed his music education studying with the church organist of Burghausen, Georg Hartdobler. In 1807, Gruber became a schoolteacher in Arnsdorf. He also became the church caretaker and organist. In 1808, he married a widow, Maria Elisabeth Fischinger Engelsberger. They had two children, both of whom died young. After the death of his first wife in 1825, Gruber married a former student, Maria Breitfuss. They had ten children, four of whom survived to adulthood. In 1829, Gruber moved to Berndorf, and in later years to Hallein, Salzburg, where he

Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart

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Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart (26 July 1791 – 29 July 1844), also known as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Jr., was the youngest child of six born to composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his wife Constanze and the younger of his parents’ two surviving children. He was a composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher of the late classical period whose musical style was of an early Romanticism, heavily influenced by his father’s mature style. He knew Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann, both of whom held him in high esteem. Biography Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart was born in Vienna, four months and ten days before his father’s death. Although he was baptized Franz Xaver Mozart, he was always called Wolfgang by his family. Under the supervision and support of close family friend Joseph Haydn, he received excellent musical instruction from Antonio Salieri and Johann Nepomuk Hummel, and studied composition with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger and Sigismund von Neukomm. He learned to play both the piano and violin. Like his father, he started to compose at an early age. “In April 1805, the thirteen-year-old Wolfgang Mozart made his debut in Vienna in a concert in the Theater an der Wien.” Mozart became a pro

Frédéric Bérat

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Frédéric Bérat (11 March 1801, Rouen – 2 December 1855, Paris) was a French composer, chansonnier and goguettier. His best known song is Ma Normandie, the official anthem of the Bailiwick of Jersey. Biography He was the sixth of seven children born to Jean Charles Bérat, a wealthy trader in leather and oils. His older brother, , began as a designer, but also became a chansonnier. It was intended that Frédéric would take over the family business. While studying at a local preparatory school, he also began taking clarinet lessons from a private teacher. When his studies were completed, he went to Paris, where he found employment with Chevreux-Aubertot, a large trader in textiles. During his years there, he taught himself how to play the piano. Soon he was seeking advice from Charles-Henri Plantade, concerning composition and harmony, and began writing songs that he performed for a close circle of friends. As he felt more confident, he started to attend meetings of the “”. He ended by quitting his job to become a singer. Pierre-Jean de Béranger, the songwriter, became his close friend and worked to promote his career. He wrote several successful songs during the 1840s, but his best kn

Frederick Nicholls Crouch

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Frederick William Nicholls Crouch (30 July 1808 – 18 August 1896) was an English composer and cellist. Early life and Civil War Crouch was born in Marylebone in the city of Westminster, in London. He emigrated to the United States in 1841 and eventually settled in Richmond, Virginia. During the Civil War, Crouch took up arms for the Richmond Grays and the 1st Richmond Howitzers, Confederacy. Music career Crouch was noted as a fine cellist, having played in the King’s Theatre as well as St Paul’s Cathedral in London, before relocating to the United States, but the majority of his compositions were not successful. His most famous song is “Kathleen Mavourneen”. It inspired several films. Clara Mulholland wrote the novel Kathleen Mavourneen published in 1890. Marie Doran wrote the four act play Kathleen Mavourneen published in 1918. He set the poem Donna Dear a by the British poet Katherine Ashton Simpson to music. During his years in the United States, Crouch composed two operas and unsuccessfully tried various musical undertakings (i.e., conducting, singing and teaching). Well traveled after the Civil War, Crouch eventually settled in Baltimore, Maryland. He was married four times, a

Frederik Thorkildsen Wexschall

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Frederick Thorkildsen Wexschall (born 9 April 1798 in Copenhagen, died 25 October 1845) was a Danish classical composer, violinist, and concertmaster of the Copenhagen Royal Orchestra. A pupil of Bohemian composer František Martin Pecháček and German conductor Louis Spohr, Wexschall was married to the Danish stage actress and mezzo-soprano opera singer Anna Nielsen. Life He was the son of John Thorkildsen Wexsal, a Norwegian farmer’s son who became chief huntsman to the Danish Crown Prince, and later manager of the Amalienborg Palace, and Jacobine Caroline, née Holm. In 1823 he was married to the Danish actress and opera singer Anna Nielsen; the marriage was dissolved in 1831, and later he married Caroline, née Dam (d. 1848). Taught on violin, first by his father and later by music professor Peter Mandrup Lem, he was already appearing at concert halls at a very young age. In June 1812 he became a pupil in the chapel of concert master , evolving to an excellent violin player. Between 1820 and 1822 he traveled with abroad, where he studied under masters such as Karl Moser in Berlin, Pecháček in Vienna and Spohr in Kassel, The music scene suffered a great loss as a corrosive disease l

Fredrik Pacius

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Fredrik Pacius (, ); in German and in Estonian Friedrich Pacius; 19 March 1809 – 8 January 1891) was a German composer, violinist and conductor who lived most of his life in Finland. He is regarded as the “Father of Finnish music”. Pacius was born in Hamburg. He was appointed music teacher at the University of Helsinki in 1834, where he founded a musical society, the student choir Akademiska Sångföreningen and an orchestra, building up orchestral and choral life in the city. In 1848, Pacius set to music the poem "" by Johan Ludvig Runeberg, which became Finland’s national anthem. The same melody was also used for the Estonian national anthem “Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm” and the Livonian ethnic anthem “Min izāmō, min sindimō”. In 1852, he composed Kung Carls jagt (English: King Charles’ Hunt; Finnish: Kaarle-kuninkaan metsästys), the first opera written in Finland, with a libretto by Zacharias Topelius. Biography Early life and training Pacius grew up in a musical family in Hamburg; his father, the wine merchant Johann Conrad Ludwig Pacius, played violin and hosted weekly string quartet evenings at home. On the recommendation of Hamburg’s music director Albert Gottlieb Methfessel, th

Friedrich August Kanne

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Friedrich August Kanne (1778–1833) was a composer and music critic in Vienna. Biography Kanne was born on 8 March 1778 in Delitzsch, Saxony. He studied theology and medicine in Leipzig and Wittenberg, then literature and composition in Dresden. At the end of 1804, he moved to Vienna and worked briefly as a music tutor to Joseph Franz von Lobkowitz of the House of Lobkowicz. He met Joseph Haydn and became a friend of Beethoven whom he assisted to understand the text of the Tridentine Mass when Beethoven worked on his Missa solemnis. He lived for a while in the inn (The Black Camel) in Vienna’s Innere Stadt. From 1820 until 1824 he edited the Vienna Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung (general musical newspaper) following Ignaz and Joseph von Seyfried. In 1829 he edited with Ignaz Franz Castelli the Vienna Allgemeine musikalische Anzeiger (general music bulletin). Kanne wrote more than a dozen operas and works of incidental music to plays, including La fedeltà (1803), Sappho (1805), Die Elfenköningin (1805), Orpheus und Eurydice (1807), Fernando und Miranda (1808), Mirandola oder Das Schwert der Rache (1811), Die Belagerten (1813), Deutscher Sinn (1813), Die gute Nachricht (1814), Das Sc

Friedrich August Kummer

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Friedrich August Kummer (5 August 1797 – 22 August 1879), born in Meiningen, the Holy Roman Empire, was a cellist, pedagogue, and composer. Childhood and education As a child, his family moved to Dresden on an invitation by the court chapel to his father, an oboist. Kummer, initially an oboist, took an interest in the violoncello and studied with notable performers Friedrich Dotzauer and Bernhard Romberg. Career In 1814 he was admitted into the Dresden chapel as an oboist, since there were no violoncello vacancies. In the same year Carl Maria von Weber appointed Kummer as a violoncellist at the Royal Opera House. Kummer became an acclaimed performer and in 1850 he was appointed as the principal violoncellist at the court chapel after Dotzauer retired. Kummer himself retired in 1864. His son Friedrich Kummer was born in 1865. Method In 1839 Kummer wrote a method, Violoncelloschule für den ersten Unterricht (Violoncello School for Preliminary Instruction), Op. 60, for the violoncello which to this day remains very popular. Selected works * 3 Duos concertans et brillans for violin and cello, Op.15 * 3 Duets for 2 cellos, Op.22 * Souvenir de la Suisse, Concertino for cello and orchestr

Friedrich Burgmüller

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Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmüller, generally known as Friedrich Burgmuller (4 December 1806 – 13 February 1874) was a German pianist and composer during the Romantic period. He is perhaps best known for his three collections of children’s etudes (or “teaching pieces”) for the piano, particularly his Op. 100 “25 Études faciles et progressives” (25 Easy and Progressive Studies) for early intermediate students. The other two collections, for more advanced students, were Op. 105 and 109. Life Friedrich Burgmüller was born in Ratisbon (at that time part of the Principality of Regensburg, Confederation of the Rhine). His father Friedrich August Burgmüller and his younger brother Norbert Burgmüller were also composers. His mother was pianist and singer Therese von Zandt. He moved to Kassel in 1829 to study with Ludwig Spohr and Moritz Hauptmann. There he appeared as a pianist for his first concert, January 14, 1830. Burgmüller moved to Paris in 1832 (at age 26), where he stayed until his death. Norbert Burgmüller, his brother, made plans to join him in Paris, in 1835. However, he drowned in a spa in Aachen during an epileptic seizure a year later. In Paris, Burgmüller adopted Parisian mus

Friedrich Curschmann

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Karl Friedrich Curschmann (June 21, 1805 – August 24, 1841) was a German song composer and singer. Life Curschmann was born in 1805, in Berlin. His talent for singing was discovered when he was at school. In 1824, having been a law student in Berlin and Göttingen, he started to devote his life to music. He went to Kassel where he studied under Spohr and Hauptmann, starting with church music. At Kassel in 1828 he wrote his first opera Abdul und Errinieh oder Toten. After four years in Kassel, Curschmann returned to Berlin. After 1837 he lived with Rose Behrend, daughter of a Danzig businessman and herself a singer, before they married and engaged heavily in the musical life of Berlin. He befriended Eduard Grell, director of the Berlin Song Academy. Curschmann wrote 83 songs, many to the poems of Goethe, Schiller, Heine and Rückert. Curschmann died in Langfuhr, near Danzig, in 1841. Compositions Books of songs * Wiegenlied * Die Stillen Wanderer * Der Abend Standchen * Der Fischer Altes Volkslied * Jagerlied * Au Rose der Schiffer * Der kleine Hans Opera * Abdul und Errinieh oder Toten References External links * Karl Friedrich Curschmann in Grande Musica

Friedrich Dotzauer

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Justus Johann Friedrich Dotzauer (20 January 1783 – 6 March 1860) was a German cellist and composer. Life Early life and career Dotzauer was born in 1783 in , near Hildburghausen. His father, a pastor, encouraged his interest in music. In early years he played piano, violin and cello, also horn and clarinet, and studied theory and composition with the organist , a pupil of Johann Christian Kittel. In Meiningen he studied the cello with , Konzertmeister of the Meiningen Court Orchestra; from 1801 Dotzauer was a member of the orchestra. He moved in 1805 to Leipzig, where he played in the Gewandhaus Orchestra. During this period he visited the cellist Bernhard Romberg in Berlin, who influenced his playing. With Heinrich August Matthaei, Bartolomeo Campagnoli and Johann Georg Hermann Voigt, Dotzauer was a founder of the Gewandhaus Quartet. Dresden In 1811 Dotzauer was appointed cellist of the Dresden Court Orchestra; from 1821 he was principal cellist. During this time in the orchestra he played under Carl Maria von Weber, and later under Richard Wagner, playing in the premieres of Wagner’s operas Rienzi and The Flying Dutchman. He made concert tours of Germany, Austria and the Netherl

Friedrich Ernst Fesca

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Friedrich Ernst Fesca (15 February 1789 – 24 May 1826) was a German violinist and composer of instrumental music of the late Classical and early Romantic periods. Life and career He was born at Magdeburg. His father, Johann Peter August Fesca, was the market judge of Magdeburg and active in the musical part in the city; he devoted much of his time to the practice of the violoncello and piano. His mother was a singer educated under Johann Adam Hiller and Marianne Podleska; she had been a professional vocalist in early life. Friedrich received his early musical education in Magdeburg and completed his studies at Leipzig under August Eberhard Müller. When he was but four years of age, he could perform pieces of moderate difficulty upon the piano, and began the study of the violin. At the early age of fifteen he appeared before the public with several concertos for the violin, which were received with general applause, and resulted in his being appointed leading violinist of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. This position he occupied till 1806, when he became concertmaster to the duke Peter I of Oldenburg. In 1808 he was appointed solo-violinist by King Jerome of Westphalia at state th

Friedrich Filitz

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Friedrich Filitz (16 March 1804 – 8 December 1876) was a German composer and musicologist who collected church music from the 16th and 17th centuries. Biography Filitz was born in Arnstadt, County of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, in 1804. He received a PhD and lived in Berlin from 1833, working as a music critic among other employment. In 1841, Filitz was shortlisted to be a censor of the Prussian state, although there were concerns he would be too strict. He moved to Munich in 1847, where his legacy of valuable church music is now in the Bavarian State Library. Through his collections of church music from the 16th and 17th, he made many forgotten works available once again. One of his tunes, Mannheim, is one to which the hymn Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us, with words by English architect and hymn writer James Edmeston, has been set. Works *Vierstimmiges Choralbuch herausgegeben von Dr F Filitz. Besser, Berlin 1847. . *Ueber einige Interessen der älteren Kirchenmusik. Kaiser, München 1853. . References Bibliography * * External links *

Friedrich Kalkbrenner

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Friedrich Wilhelm Michael Kalkbrenner (7 November 1785 – 10 June 1849), also known as Frédéric Kalkbrenner, was a pianist, composer, piano teacher and piano manufacturer. German by birth, Kalkbrenner studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, starting at a young age and eventually settled in Paris, where he lived until his death in 1849. Kalkbrenner composed more than 200 piano works, as well as many piano concertos and operas. When Frédéric Chopin came to Paris, Kalkbrenner suggested that Chopin could benefit by studying in one of Kalkbrenner’s schools. It was not until the late 1830s that Kalkbrenner’s reputation was surpassed by the likes of Chopin, Thalberg and Liszt. Author of a famous method of piano playing (1831) which was in print until the late 19th century, he ran in Paris what is sometimes called a “factory for aspiring virtuosos” and taught scores of pupils from as far away as Cuba. His pupils included Marie Pleyel, Marie Schauff, and Camille-Marie Stamaty. Through Stamaty, Kalkbrenner’s piano method was passed on to Louis Moreau Gottschalk and Camille Saint-Saëns. He was one of the few composers to achieve financial success. Chopin dedicated his first piano concerto to hi

Friedrich Kuhlau

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Friedrich Daniel Rudolf Kuhlau, sometimes written as Frederick Kulav, (11 September 1786 – 12 March 1832) was a Danish pianist and composer during the late Classical and early Romantic periods. He was a central figure of the Danish Golden Age and is immortalized in Danish cultural history through his music for Elves’ Hill, the first true work of Danish National Romanticism and a concealed tribute to the absolute monarchy. During his lifetime, Kuhlau was known primarily as a concert pianist and composer of Danish opera, but was responsible for introducing many of Beethoven’s works, which he greatly admired, to Copenhagen audiences. Kuhlau was a prolific composer, as evidenced by the fact that although his house burned down, destroying all of his unpublished manuscripts, he still left a legacy of more than 200 published works in most genres. Early life and education Kuhlau was born on 11 September 1786 just south of Lüneburg in the Uelzen district of Lower Saxony (Germany). At the age of seven, he lost his right eye when he slipped on ice and fell. His father, grandfather, and uncle were military oboists. Even though Kuhlau was born to a poor family, his parents managed to pay for pi

Friedrich Schneider

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Johann Christian Friedrich Schneider (3 January 1786 in Alt-Waltersdorf – 23 November 1853 in Dessau) was a German pianist, composer, organist, and conductor. Schneider studied piano first with his father Johann Gottlob Schneider (senior), and then at the Zittau Gymnasium with Schönfelder and Unger. His first published works were a set of three piano sonatas in 1804. In 1805, he commenced studies at the University of Leipzig. He became an organist at St. Thomas Church, Leipzig in 1812, and was named conductor in Dessau in 1821. It is thought that Schneider premiered Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in Leipzig on 28 November 1811. In 1824, he was festival director of the Lower Rhenish Music Festival and his oratorio Die Sündflut was premiered during this event. Schneider composed copiously. Among his works are seven operas, four masses, six oratorios, 25 cantatas, 23 symphonies, seven piano concertos, sonatas for violin, flute, and cello, and a great many shorter instrumental pieces, some of them for piano, some for organ. He also left numerous solo songs and part songs. A projected cycle of four oratorios, Christus das Kind (1829), Christus der Meister (1827), and Christ

Friedrich Silcher

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Philipp Friedrich Silcher (27 June 1789 in Schnait (today part of Weinstadt) – 26 August 1860 in Tübingen), was a German composer, mainly known for his lieder (songs), and an important Volkslied collector. Life Silcher was meant to be a school teacher, but dedicated himself entirely to music in the seminary in Ludwigsburg after he met Carl Maria von Weber. He was taught composition and piano by Conradin Kreutzer and Johann Nepomuk Hummel. In 1817 he was named musical director at the University of Tübingen. He is regarded as one of the most important protagonists of choir singing. He arranged many German Volkslieder and international folk songs that have remained standard repertoire of many choirs in Germany and became an integral part of German daily life. In 1829 Silcher founded the “Akademische Liedertafel” in Tübingen and directed it until his death. Silcher was married to Luise Rosine Ensslin (1804–1871). They had two daughters and one son. A wine varietal was named after him, the (not to be confused with Schilcher). The asteroid 10055 Silcher also bears the composer’s name. Works Amongst his best-known songs are: * “Ich hatt’ einen Kameraden” * “Alle Jahre wieder” * “Am Brunne

Friedrich Witt

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Friedrich Jeremias Witt (8 November 1770 – 3 January 1836) was a German composer and cellist. He is perhaps best known as the likely author of a Symphony in C major known as the Jena Symphony, once attributed to Ludwig van Beethoven. Biography Witt was born in 1770, the same year as Beethoven, and was a German composer of considerable stature in his time. He was born in the Württemberg village of Niederstetten, the son of a cantor and court clerk. Witt became a cellist (some accounts say a violinist) in the court orchestra of Oettingen-Wallerstein when he was nineteen, taking composition lessons there with Antonio Rosetti, that is, the Bohemian-born Anton Rösler. Witt was most famous in his lifetime for his oratorio Der leidende Heiland (The Suffering Saviour), securing an appointment as Kapellmeister for the Prince of Würzburg, and later for the theater, where he stayed until his death. He also wrote two operas: Palma (1804) and Das Fischerweib (1806). His other compositions include concertos, church music, chamber music and symphonies. His best-known work, a symphony in C major known as the Jena, is modeled after the Symphony No. 97 by Joseph Haydn. The Haydn connection contribut

Fromental Halévy

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Jacques-François-Fromental-Élie Halévy, usually known as Fromental Halévy (; 27 May 179917 March 1862), was a French opera composer, widely regarded in his lifetime as one of the central figures of 19th-century French music. A student of Luigi Cherubini, he achieved his first major triumph with La Juive (1835), a cornerstone of the grand opéra repertoire, and which Gustav Mahler considered one of the greatest operas ever written. The 368th performance of La Juive inaugurated the new Paris opera house, the Palais Garnier, in 1875. Halévy’s bust stands on the façade, with the inscription “Poésie lyrique” above it. During the following two decades, Halévy became a leading presence on the Parisian stage, contributing more than 30 operas including grand opéra, opéra-comique, and opéra-lyrique. In contemporary newspapers, critics celebrated Halévy for uniting melodic invention with learned craftsmanship. Reporters cited Halévy as the leader of the French school; the greatest French musician of the modern dramatic school; and (with Daniel Auber) the most important French composer of serious opera since Jean-Philippe Rameau. Many of his works were mainstays of the Opéra and Opéra-Comique f

Gabriel Gauthier

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Gabriel Gauthier (15 February 1808 – 27 June 1853) was an organist and composer, a teacher at the school for the blind in Paris, and a close friend of Louis Braille. Early life Gauthier was born in 1808 in Briant, Saône-et-Loire, to Claude Gauthier, farmer, and Claudine Pequet, the second of four children (his siblings were Claudine Louise, Antoinette, and François). Before his first birthday, Gabriel lost his sight as the result of smallpox. He also lost his sense of smell, most of his sense of taste, and became slightly deaf in one ear. Gauthier’s father died when he was eight years old. His late father’s brother, a priest, took care of young Gabriel, and secured his admission to the Institution Royale des Jeunes Aveugles (now the Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles) in Paris in 1818. After several months at the school, Gauthier had to return home to recuperate from an illness, but re-entered the school in 1820. At the school, Gauthier became close friends with Louis Braille, and another student, Jean-Pierre Binet. Gauthier and Binet supported Braille’s work on his raised-point writing system. According to the school’s director, Alexandre-René Pignier, Gauthier worked on his ow

Gaetano Donizetti

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Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer of the early Romantic era, best known for his over 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the bel canto opera style during the first half of the nineteenth century and a probable influence on other composers such as Giuseppe Verdi. Donizetti was born in Bergamo in Lombardy. At an early age he was taken up by Simon Mayr who enrolled him with a full scholarship in a school which he had set up. There he received detailed musical training. Mayr was instrumental in obtaining a place for Donizetti at the Bologna Academy, where, at the age of 19, he wrote his first one-act opera, the comedy Il Pigmalione, which may never have been performed during his lifetime. An offer in 1822 from Domenico Barbaja, the impresario of the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, which followed the composer’s ninth opera, led to his move to Naples and his residency there until production of Caterina Cornaro in January 1844. In all, 51 of Donizetti’s operas were presented in Naples. His first notable success came with an opera seria, Zoraida di Granata, which was presented in

Gaspare Spontini

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Gaspare Luigi Pacifico Spontini (14 November 177424 January 1851) was an Italian opera composer and conductor from the late Classical and early Romantic eras. During the first two decades of the 19th century, Spontini was an important figure in French opera, and he composed over twenty works. Biography Born in Maiolati, Papal State (now Maiolati Spontini, Province of Ancona), he spent most of his career in Paris and Berlin, but returned to his place of birth at the end of his life. During the first two decades of the 19th century, Spontini was an important figure in French opera. In his more than twenty operas, Spontini strove to adapt Gluck’s classical tragédie lyrique to the contemporary taste for melodrama, for grander spectacle (in Fernand Cortez for example), for enriched orchestral timbre, and for melodic invention allied to idiomatic expressiveness of words. As a youth, Spontini studied at the Conservatorio della Pietà de’ Turchini, one of four active music conservatories of Naples. Working his way from Italian city to city, he got his first break in Rome, with his successful comedy Li Puntigli delle Donne (Carnival 1793). In 1803, he went to Paris, where, on 11 February 180

Georg Abraham Schneider

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Georg Abraham Schneider (19 April 1770 – 19 January 1839) was a German musician and composer. Biography Schneider was born in Darmstadt, where he originally learnt music as a member of the city’s alta cappella. From 1787 he played horn in the court orchestra of the nobel house Hessen-Darmstadt, then from 1795 for the Prussian royal court. Schneider’s compositions and performances focussed on the horn, and owe a stylistic debt to Haydn and Mozart. The invention of the valved horn by Heinrich Stölzel and Friedrich Blühmel was of great interest to Schneider, allowing the instrument to be played chromatically for the first time. In a report for the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung in 1817, Schneider wrote; “Because of its full and strong, yet soft and attractive tone, the Waldhorn is an extremely beautiful instrument; but, as is well known, it has until now been far behind almost all other wind instruments in its development, being very restricted to its natural notes …. Herr Stölzel of Breslau has now completely removed these shortcomings …. He has simply provided his horn with two airtight valves, which are depressed with little effort by two fingers of the right hand, like the ke

George Alexander Osborne

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George Alexander Osborne (24 September 1806 – 16 November 1893) was an Irish composer and pianist. Biography Osborne was born in Limerick. His father, also George, was a music teacher and organist in St Mary’s cathedral. Young George joined him in that profession, becoming organist in St John’s Church, John St. He left Ireland at the age of eighteen for Brussels, where he was appointed music instructor for the eldest son of the Dutch king, and became friends with Charles de Bériot. With de Bériot he was later to compose more than 30 duos for violin and piano, which enjoyed great popularity. In 1830 he fought for the royalists in the Belgian revolution, and after his capture and release he moved to Paris. Here he studied under Johann Peter Pixis, François-Joseph Fétis and Friedrich Kalkbrenner and became friendly with some of the leading musicians of his time including Berlioz and Chopin. In 1843, Osborne settled permanently in London, although he maintained a home in Paris until c.1848, when he encouraged a nervous Chopin during the latter’s tour of England in 1848. and conducted the Amateur Musical Society (from 1852). Osborne died at his home in Regent’s Park, London, at the age

George Ebenezer Williams

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George Ebenezer Williams (30 August 1783 − 17 April 1819) was an English organist and composer. Life and works Born at Clerkenwell Green in London, Williams sang as a chorister at St Paul’s Cathedral in London, studying with Robert Hudson and Richard Bellamy, before serving as assistant organist at the Temple Church under Richard Stevens and at Westminster Abbey under Samuel Arnold. In 1805 he was appointed organist at the Philanthropic Society chapel. From 1814 until 1819 Williams served as Organist and Master of the Choristers of Westminster Abbey. His students included James Turle. Williams had been a collector of musical manuscripts. A copy of Spem in alium by Thomas Tallis was among the manuscripts from his library sold at auction after his death. References

George James Webb

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George James Webb (June 24, 1803 - October 7, 1887) was an English-born American composer, conductor, music educator, and organist. He was known for writing “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus”. Webb composed the hymn-tune known as “Webb” whilst sailing from England to the United States: the tune is also known as “Morning Light”. Life and career George James Webb was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England on June 24, 1803. He trained as a musician in his native city under Alexander Lucas, and began his career as an organist in Falmouth, Cornwall. In 1830 he resigned his post and immigrated to the United States where he initially settled in Boston, Massachusetts as the organist at Old South Church. In Boston, Webb taught on the faculty of the Boston Academy of Music where he was conductor of the school’s orchestra. He also worked as conductor of both the Handel and Haydn Society and The Musical Fund Society. He became a protege of Lowell Mason, and collaborated with him on a variety of music, education, and publication projects; including co-editing music periodicals together and building choral collections together. Webb’s daughter married Mason’s son, the composer William Mason. Referenc

George Onslow (composer)

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André George(s) Louis Onslow (27 July 1784 – 3 October 1853) was a French composer of English descent. His wealth, position and personal tastes allowed him to pursue a path unfamiliar to most of his French contemporaries, more similar to that of his contemporary German romantic composers; his music also had a strong following in Germany and in England. His principal output was chamber music, but he also wrote four symphonies and four operas. Onslow was esteemed by critics of his time, but his reputation declined swiftly after his death. It has only been revived in recent years. Life George Onslow was born in Clermont-Ferrand to an English father, Edward Onslow, and a French mother, Marie Rosalie de Bourdeilles de Brantôme; his paternal grandfather was George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow. In Onslow’s own brief autobiography (written in the third person) he comments that in his childhood, “music studies formed but a secondary part of his education” but names Jan Ladislav Dussek and Johann Baptist Cramer amongst his piano teachers. It has been suggested that he received this tuition in London under the aegis of his grandfather the Earl. This led him to compose his first string quintets

George Perry (composer)

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George Frederick Perry (1793 – 4 March 1862) was a British violinist, organist, and composer of operas and oratorios. He was musical director of the Haymarket Theatre, and later was leader of the orchestra of the Sacred Harmonic Society. Early years Perry was born in Norwich in 1793; his father was a turner and an amateur bass singer who took part in the annual performance of an oratorio at the cathedral, under John Christmas Beckwith. Through Beckwith, Perry became a member of the cathedral choir, and his musical ability was noticed. Perry locally learned violin and piano, also harmony and composition. About 1818 Perry became leader of the orchestra at the Theatre Royal, Norwich, then an institution enjoying a high reputation. Perry wrote an oratorio, The Death of Abel (text by George Bennett of the Norwich Theatre), which was first performed in Norwich, and afterwards repeated by the Sacred Harmonic Society in 1841 and 1845. Shortly after his appointment to the theatre he wrote another oratorio, Elijah and the Priests of Baal, to a text by James Plumptre, which was first performed in Norwich on 12 March 1819. A few years later he produced the oratorio The Fall of Jerusalem, the t

George Rodwell

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George Herbert Buonaparte Rodwell (1800–1852), generally known as G. Herbert Rodwell, was an English composer, musical director, and author. Life The brother of James Thomas Gooderham Rodwell (died 1825), playwright and lessee of London’s Adelphi Theatre, was born in London, 15 November 1800. Despite numerous claims to the contrary in older reference works, Rodwell insisted that his only music teacher had been Henry Rowley Bishop, his most obvious predecessor as a composer for the London theatres. In 1828 Rodwell became professor of harmony and composition at the Royal Academy of Music. On the death of his brother James in 1825, Rodwell succeeded to the proprietorship of the Adelphi Theatre; but Frederick Henry Yates with Daniel Terry bought him out very shortly afterwards, at a price of £30,000. Rodwell then mainly occupied himself with directing the music at the theatre, and in composition for the stage. His opera The Flying Dutchman was produced at the Adelphi in 1826, and The Cornish Miners at the English Opera House in 1827. had been performed in 1830. The Covent Garden management tried to anticipate the repertory of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane; and Rodwell, though friendly

George Stansbury

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George Frederick Stansbury (7 June 1800 – 3 June 1845) was a British composer, musical director and arranger and an operatic singer. Although contemporary reviewers described his voice as of “poor quality”, he was nevertheless an excellent musician and a ready composer. His oldest brother was the violinist and pianist John Adolphus Stansbury (1792–1837) who for many years was the orchestra leader at the Theatre Royal, Bristol and of the Bristol concerts. His other brother was Joseph Augustus Stansbury (1793–1831), who played the double bass. His surviving and younger sisters (a third died in infancy) were the singers and actresses Emma Stansbury (1803–1862) and Louisa Jane Stansbury (born 1808), the latter marrying Joseph Hall in 1834. By the age of 12 George Stansbury was proficient in the piano, the violin and flute and could play most of the rest of the instruments in an orchestra. He was 20 years old. In Bristol he was the chorus conductor for Messiah in 1823 under George Thomas Smart, also appearing as conductor and tenor soloist at other local venues. In May 1827 he appeared alongside his sisters at a benefit performance at the Assembly Rooms in Bristol during which he sang a

Gertrude van den Bergh

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Gertrude van den Bergh (c. 21 January 1793 – 10 September 1840) was a Dutch pianist and composer. Early years Gertrude van den Bergh was baptized in Cologne, the eldest daughter of Dutch father Henderik van den Bergh and German Maria Theresia Leydel. Van den Bergh showed talent for music at an early age, took piano lessons at six and published a harpsichord sonata at the age of nine. She studied composition with Friedrich August Burgmüller and piano with Ferdinand Ries. Career In 1809 van den Bergh’s father organized a concert tour of the Netherlands for Gertrude and her sister Sophia. The family moved to The Hague about 1813, and afterward Van den Bergh seldom played in public. She continued to perform in private circles and remained well known. In 1830 she was invited to join the Society for the Promotion of Music, which had not been previously open to women. In 1834 the society held a two-day festival in The Hague where Van den Bergh participated. She directed the first mixed voice choir from The Hague and from 1837 or 1838 the Vocal Society. As an unmarried woman, Van den Bergh lived with her mother and gave singing and piano lessons. She wrote a music instruction manual around

Giacomo Cordella

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Giacomo Cordella (Naples, 25 July 1786 – Naples, 8 May 1847) was an Italian composer. Biography Cordella studied in Naples with Fedele Fenaroli and Giovanni Paisiello. first performed in 1813, an opera buffa featuring “a vivacious plot and a melody that flows agreeably”. Cordella composed also sacred music. Works Operas Other *La vittoria dell’Arca contro Gerico, cantata, Naples, 1804 *Manfredi trovatore, cantata, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 6 July 1836 (in collaboration with other composers) *Il dono a Partenope, cantata, libretto by Giovanni Schmidt, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 30 May 1840 (in collaboration with other composers) Cordella composed many other works, including masses, motets and works for small ensembles. References Notes Sources * * * *

Giacomo Meyerbeer

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Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Meyer Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, “the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner”. With his 1831 opera Robert le diable and its successors, he gave the genre of grand opera “decisive character”. Meyerbeer’s grand opera style was achieved by his merging of German orchestra style with Italian vocal tradition. These were employed in the context of sensational and melodramatic libretti created by Eugène Scribe and were enhanced by the up-to-date theatre technology of the Paris Opéra. They set a standard that helped to maintain Paris as the opera capital of the nineteenth century. Born to a wealthy Jewish family, Meyerbeer began his musical career as a pianist but soon decided to devote himself to opera, spending several years in Italy studying and composing. His 1824 opera Il crociato in Egitto was the first to bring him a Europe-wide reputation, but it was Robert le diable (1831) which raised his status to great celebrity. His public career, lasting from then until his death, during which he remained a dominating figure in the world of opera, was summari

Gioachino Rossini

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Early life#

Rossini was born on 29 February 1792 in Pesaro, a town on the Adriatic coast of Italy that was then part of the Papal States. He was the only child of Giuseppe Rossini, a trumpeter and horn player, and his wife Anna, née Guidarini, a seamstress by trade, daughter of a baker. Giuseppe Rossini was charming but impetuous and feckless; the burden of supporting the family and raising the child fell mainly on Anna, with some help from her mother and mother-in-law. Stendhal, who published a colourful biography of Rossini in 1824, wrote: Giuseppe was imprisoned at least twice: first in 1790 for insubordination to local authorities in a dispute about his employment as town trumpeter; and in 1799 and 1800 for republican activism and support of the troops of Napoleon against the Pope’s Austrian backers. In 1798, when Rossini was aged six, his mother began a career as a professional singer in comic opera, and for a little over a decade was a considerable success in cities including Trieste and Bologna, before her untrained voice began to fail. In 1802 the family moved to Lugo, near Ravenna, where Rossini received a good basic education in Italian, Latin and arithmetic as well as music. He studied the horn with his father and other music with a priest, Giuseppe Malerbe, whose extensive library contained works by Haydn and Mozart, both little known in Italy at the time, but inspirational to the young Rossini. He was a quick learner, and by the age of twelve, he had composed a set of six sonatas for four stringed instruments, which were performed under the aegis of a rich patron in 1804. Two years later he was admitted to the recently opened Liceo Musicale, Bologna, initially studying singing, cello and piano, and joining the composition class soon afterwards. He wrote some substantial works while a student, including a mass and a cantata, and after two years he was invited to continue his studies. He declined the offer: the strict academic regime of the Liceo had given him a solid compositional technique, but as his biographer Richard Osborne puts it, “his instinct to continue his education in the real world finally asserted itself”. While still at the Liceo, Rossini had performed in public as a singer and worked in theatres as a répétiteur and keyboard soloist. In 1810 at the request of the popular tenor Domenico Mombelli he wrote his first operatic score, a two-act operatic dramma serio, Demetrio e Polibio, to a libretto by Mombelli’s wife. It was publicly staged in 1812, after the composer’s first successes. Rossini and his parents concluded that his future lay in composing operas. The main operatic centre in northeastern Italy was Venice; under the tutelage of the composer Giovanni Morandi, a family friend, Rossini moved there in late 1810, when he was eighteen.

Giovanni Galzerani

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Giovanni Galzerani (c. 1789 - after 1853) was an Italian choreographer, ballet dancer, and composer who was active in major theatres throughout Italy from 1808 to 1853. He was born in Porto Azzurro on the Isle of Elba and began his education in Gaeta where his father was the military commandant at the time. At his father’s wish he enrolled in the Collegio della Nunziatella in Naples to train for a military career, remaining there until the age of 17. While at the college, he also studied ballroom dancing with Ferdinando Gioia, the brother of the celebrated dancer and choreographer Gaetano Gioia, and became one of his best pupils. After his father’s death in 1806, Galzerani abandoned preparations for a military career and dedicated himself entirely to the ballet, first as a dancer and then as a choreographer. He also composed the music for some of his ballets, such as Il pericolo which premiered in 1818 at the Teatro Regio in Turin. *Il pericolo, Giovanni Galzerani (composer), premiered Teatro Regio, Turin, 26 December 1818 *Niobe ossia La vendetta di Latona, Giovanni Pacini (composer), premiered Teatro Regio, Turin, 26 December 1818 *Ero e Leandro, Luigi Maria Viviani (composer), p

Giovanni Morandi (composer)

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Giovanni Morandi (12 May 1777 – 23 November 1856) was an Italian organist and composer of the late Classical era and the early Romantic era. Life Morandi was born in Pergola (1777), and died in Senigallia (1856), Italy. He was the most-important Italian composer of organ music in the first half of the 19th century, and was an early mentor of Gioachino Rossini. Works Organ music *Sonate per gli organi moderni (I raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (II raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (III raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (IV raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (V raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (VI raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (VII raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (VIII raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (IX raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (X raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (XI raccolta) *Sonate per gli organi moderni (XII raccolta) *Gran Sinfonia con variazioni *Pastorale coll’imitazione del suono de’ zampognari *Il santo Natale *6 Sonate *Pastorale *Nuova Pastorale *Sinfonia in pastorale pel SS. Natale *Raccolta di Sinfonie *Suonate per l’accompagnamento d’una Messa solenne *Marcia militare da eseguirsi

Giovanni Moretti (composer)

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Giovanni Moretti (1807 – 1884) was an Italian composer and conductor active in Naples. He was primarily known for his operas, although he also composed numerous pieces of chamber music, sacred music, and art songs. Life and career Moretti was born in Naples. At the age of 10 he began studying piano with Pietro Casella as an external student at the Conservatory of San Pietro a Majella. In 1822 he won a scholarship to study full time at the conservatory where his teachers included Niccolò Zingarelli and Giacomo Tritto. While still a student his azione teatrale, La gioia dei sudditi, was performed at the Teatro Nuovo in 1830 to celebrate the return of Francis I from Spain. Six of his operas composed during his student days were premiered in Naples at the Teatro Fenice and the Teatro Nuovo between 1830 and 1833. Fifteen more premiered over the next 25 years, mostly at the Teatro Nuovo. Moretti had a parallel career as an opera conductor. He was the music director of the Teatro del Fondo from 1840 to 1842 and of the Teatro Nuovo from 1851 to 1861. During this time he also taught counterpoint and singing at San Pietro a Majella where he was in great demand for students intending a career

Giovanni Pacini

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Giovanni Pacini (11 February 17966 December 1867) was an Italian composer from the late Classical and early Romantic eras. He is best known for his operas. Pacini was born in Catania, Sicily, the son of the buffo Luigi Pacini, who was to appear in the premieres of many of Giovanni’s operas. The family was of Tuscan origin, living in Catania when the composer was born. He served as the Florence Conservatory’s first director from 1849 through 1862. His first 25 or so operas were written when Gioachino Rossini dominated the Italian operatic stage. But Pacini’s operas were “rather superficial”, a fact which, later, he candidly admitted in his Memoirs. For some years he held the post of “director of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples.” After Rossini moved to Paris in 1824, Pacini and his contemporaries (Giacomo Meyerbeer, Nicola Vaccai, Michele Carafa, Carlo Coccia, Vincenzo Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti, the brothers Federico and Luigi Ricci, and Saverio Mercadante) collectively began to change the nature of Italian opera and took bel canto singing in a new direction. Orchestration became heavier, coloratura was reduced, especially for men’s voices, and more importance was placed on lyrical p

Giovanni Ricordi

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Giovanni Ricordi (3 March 1785 – 15 March 1853) was an Italian violinist and the founder of the classical music publishing company Casa Ricordi. The musicologist Philip Gossett described him as “a genius and positive force in the history of Italian opera”. Ricordi was born in Milan in 1785 to Gianbatista Ricordi, who was a glassmaker, and Angiola de Medici. Ricordi studied the violin from an early age and, for a short time, became the concertmaster and conductor of the small puppet theatre Fiando. In 1803 he created a in Milan where he worked as a music copyist and dealer in printed music and instruments with the Teatro Carcano, which opened in that year, and with the Teatro Lentasio. In 1807 he studied in Leipzig at the Breitkopf & Härtel company to learn the techniques of engraving and printing. When he returned to Milan in early 1808, he founded his publishing company with a partner who dropped out by the middle of the year. As MacNutt notes, during its first decade the company produced some 30 publications each year. That number increased to 300 after 1814 because Giovanni had secured a succession of contracts, including one in that year which allowed him to publish all the mus

Giovanni Schmidt

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Giovanni Schmidt (c. 1775 in Livorno – c. after 1839 in Naples) was an Italian librettist. Life He moved to Naples while he was still young and stayed there for the rest of his life. Between 1800 and 1839 he wrote libretti for 45 operas, especially for the Teatro San Carlo for which he was the official poet. He and Andrea Leone Tottola were the two librettists who dominated theatrical life in Naples in the first quarter of the 19th century. His lyrics were mostly banal and verbose, but were set by the most important composers of the era, such as Giacomo Tritto, Gaetano Andreozzi, Luigi Mosca, Pietro Generali, Saverio Mercadante and Gioachino Rossini. For Rossini alone he wrote texts for Elisabetta, regina d’Inghilterra, Eduardo e Cristina, Armida and Adelaide di Borgogna, which are considered his best works. He also appeared as a character in a scene from the 1991 film Rossini! Rossini! directed by Mario Monicelli. Works Libretti *Meleagro (opera seria; music by Nicola Antonio Zingarelli, 1798) *Idante ovvero I sacrifici d’Eccate (dramma per musica; music by Marcos António Portugal, 1800) *Gli americani (opera seria; music by Giacomo Tritto; 1802) *Piramo e Tisbe (opera seria; musi

Giovanni Tadolini

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Giovanni Tadolini (18 October 1789 – 29 November 1872) was an Italian composer, conductor and singing instructor, who enjoyed a career that alternated between Bologna and Paris. Tadolini is probably best known for completing six sections of Rossini’s 1833 version of the Stabat mater after the latter fell sick. However, he also composed eight operas as well as sinfonias, sonatas, chamber music, and numerous pieces of religious music and art songs. Biography Born in Bologna, he studied privately with Matteo Rubini (singing) and Stanislao Mattei (composition) at the Liceo Musicale (now the Conservatorio Giovanni Battista Martini) of his native city, before going to work at the Théâtre-Italien in Paris as a répétiteur and chorus master from 1811 to 1814. Following the occupation of Paris by the Russian and Austrian armies in 1814, he returned to Italy where over the next 15 years he wrote a series of operas and served as a conductor and chorus master for the Teatro Comunale di Bologna. He also became a member of Bologna’s Accademia Filarmonica and maestro di cappella of St. Peter’s Cathedral in the city. In 1827, he married the soprano Eugenia Tadolini (née Savorani) who had been his s

Giuseppe Baini

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Abbate Giuseppe Baini (21 October 1775 – 21 May 1844) was an Italian priest, music critic, conductor, and composer of church music. He was born in Rome. He was instructed in composition by his uncle, Lorenzo Baini, and afterwards by G. Jannaconi. In 1814, he was appointed musical director to the choir of the pontifical chapel, to which he had as early as 1802 gained admission because of his fine bass voice, which was said to be powerful, extending from low E♭ to high G. His compositions, of which very few were published, were considered favourable specimens of the severe ecclesiastical style; a ten-part Miserere of his, composed for Holy Week in 1821 by order of Pope Pius VII, has taken a permanent place in the services of the Sistine Chapel during Passion Week. Baini held a higher place, however, as a musical critic and historian than as a composer, and his Life of Palestrina (Memorie storico-critiche della vita e delle opere di Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, 1828) was described by the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica as being “one of the best works of its class”. The phrase Il Principe della Musica, which has become firmly associated with the name of Palestrina, is found in the af

Giuseppe Balducci (composer)

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Giuseppe Balducci (2 May 1796 – 1845) was an Italian composer, primarily of operas. Born in Iesi, he spent most of his career in Naples and was one of the originators of the “salon opera” genre, the forerunner of chamber opera. Life and career Balducci was born in Iesi to a once-prosperous family in the city. He was a distant cousin of the composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (their grandfathers were brothers). Balducci’s father, a successful businessman, was kidnapped and killed on one of his travels shortly before Balducci was born. A business partner fraudulently took possession of most of his father’s wealth leaving Balducci’s mother and children in very straitened circumstances. Balducci studied music under the castrato singer Giovanni Ripa in Iesi and the composer in nearby Senigallia. By the age of 17 Balducci had formed his own opera troupe in which he also sang as the lead tenor. However, a year later he was forced to flee his native city after killing the nephew of the Papal Governor in a duel. On his arrival in Naples, he found employment as the music master to the three young daughters of Raimondo Capece Minutolo (1769–1827), a retired field marshal and member of an anc

Giuseppe Concone

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Giuseppe Concone (September 12, 1801 - June 1, 1861 Turin) was an Italian voice teacher and composer. Life and career Giuseppe Concone was born in Turin, Italy on September 12, 1801. He had a brief career as singer before devoting himself almost entirely to working as a voice teacher; beginning that work in Turin. He composed the opera Un episodio del San Michele which premiered in Turin on 8 June 1836. He composed a second opera, Graziella, which was never performed. While in Paris he wrote three ‘oratorios.’ One commentator (named Smither) wrote: “These are quite brief, and include no orchestra but only piano accompaniment. They are evidently intended for performance in a private soiree rather than a theatre. No performance of any of the three is known.” Concone returned to Italy in 1848, probably due to events resulting from the Revolutions of 1848. He was appointed both organist and maestro di cappella of the Sardinian court in Turn; a position he remained in until his death in Turin on September 12, 1861. Concone also composed some etudes for piano in 25 Melodic Studies, Op. 24., and concert arias and duets. List of works by Concone * Fifteen Vocalises for Soprano * Twenty-Fiv

Giuseppe Persiani

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Giuseppe Persiani (11 September 1799 – 13 August 1869) was an Italian opera composer. Persiani was born in Recanati. He wrote his first opera - one of 11 - in 1826 but, after his marriage to the soprano Fanny Tacchinardi Persiani, who was to become a significant singer in her time, he devoted much of his efforts to supporting her career. He worked in a variety of opera genres including opera buffa and wrote an oratorio named Abigaille and featuring the same character as in the popular Verdi opera, Nabucco. He was noted for his ability to effectively combine music and drama as well as florid decoration. His best-known opera, Inês de Castro, from a libretto by Salvadore Cammarano (who also wrote the libretto for Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor the same year), was created in 1835 for the celebrated soprano Maria Malibran, who sang the role of the 14th-century Portuguese queen of the same name. The opera was first presented at La Scala in January 1837 but by that time, Malibran had died. After some revisions to tailor the role for his wife, the opera was presented in Paris in 1839. While it was given about 60 productions over a period of 16 years, after 1851 it was rarely, if ever, pre

Gottfried Weber

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Jacob Gottfried Weber (1 March 1779 – 21 September 1839) was a German writer on music (especially on music theory), composer, and jurist. Biography Weber was born at Freinsheim. From 1824 to 1839, he was the editor of Cäcilia, a musical periodical published in Mainz, which influenced musical thought in Germany during the early Romantic era. His most important work is his Versuch einer geordneten Theorie der Tonsetzkunst (“Theory of Musical Composition”) (Mainz: B. Schott, 1817–21), which introduced several concepts that have since become important in the study of music theory. In this work, Weber develops the idea of “Mehrdeutigkeit” (that is, “multiple meaning”), a term initially introduced by Georg Joseph Vogler. Weber’s “multiple meaning” refers to individual tones and harmonies, based on their context in a piece of music. For example, a C major triad may serve as I in C major, IV in G major, V in F major, etc. “To analyze a chord, a theorist must ask not only ‘What notes are in it?’ but also ‘How is it behaving in the harmonic progression?’” (Thompson); see diatonic function. In the same work, Weber also further develops Vogler’s idea of Roman numeral designations applied to ch

Gottfried Wilhelm Fink

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Gottfried Wilhelm Fink (8 March 1783 – 27 August 1846) was a German composer, music theorist, poet, and a Protestant clergyman. Life From 1804 until 1808 Fink studied theology at the University of Leipzig where he joined the Corps Lusatia. There he made his first attempts at composition and poetry. Most of his song compositions are attributed to this period. From 1811 he held the office of vicar in Leipzig for some years, where he also founded an educational institution which he led until 1829. Since the beginning of the 19th century he worked for the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitschrift (“General musical magazine”). In 1827 he became the magazine’s editor-in-chief, a position he held for 15 years. From 1838 Fink worked as a lecturer at the University of Leipzig. In 1841 he became a Privatdozent of musicology at the university. In the same year he became a member of the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin and a year later he was appointed the music director of the university. Fink was highly appreciated throughout his life as a music theorist and composer. Numerous honors and awards were bestowed on him at home as well as abroad. In 1838, the Faculty of Philosophy at Leipzig Universi

Gottlob Benedict Bierey

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Gottlob Benedict Bierey (25 July 1772 – 5 May 1840) was a German composer, Kapellmeister and Theatre tenant. Life Born in Dresden, Bierey was a pupil of Christian Ehregott Weinlig. As soon as 1788, he became music director of the Döbbelinschen. From 1794 until 1806, he worked for Joseph Seconda in Dresden and Leipzig. In 1807 he made a guest appearance in Vienna, and from December 1807 until 1828 he worked as kapellmeister at the Wrocław Opera, where he succeeded Carl Maria von Weber and his successor Müller. From 1824 to 1828, Bierey also became a director of the municipal theatre there, but he came into constant conflict with Karl Schall, who opposed him in his Neue Breslauer Zeitung and vigorously opposed his allegedly unartistic and only money-making management. In Dresden, he was a member of the masonic lodge Zum goldenen Apfel. At the time of Biery’s, the baritone Johann Theodor Mosewius was also active in Wroclaw (1788-1858) and the comedians Heinrich Schmelka, Ludwig Wohlbrück and Fritz Beckmann. From 1829, Bierey privatized for health reasons in Wiesbaden, Mainz, Leipzig, Weimar. With few exceptions, his compositions belong to the field of music theatre and consist, beside

Gustav Reichardt

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Gustav Reichardt, also Heinrich Wilhelm Ludwig Gustav Reichardt (13 November 1797 – 18 October 1884), was a 19th-century German music teacher and composer. Life and work Gustav Reichardt was born in Schmarsow. He received his first music lessons at the age of five from his father, the versatile educated countryside preacher Rev. Georg Gustav Zacharias Reichardt (1766–1852). Already, at the age of nine, he appeared on violin and piano. From 1809 to 1811, he received music lessons in Neustrelitz and was a violinist in a local Chapel. In 1811, he attended grammar school and then he began studying theology at the University of Greifswald. In 1818, he moved to the Berlin Academy, but decided to study music in 1819. He became a pupil of Bernhard Klein in music theory and composition. As a member of the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin (1819–1832) he co-founded the Berliner Liedertafel and soon attracted attention due to his well-trained bass voice. He turned entirely to composition and developed a fruitful activity in this area. After a number of years he acted as a singing teacher with extraordinary success. Due to this he began to have access to aristocratic circles and the royal family of Fred

Gustave Dugazon

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Gustave Dugazon (real name Alexandre Louis Gustave Gourgaud, 1 February 1781 – 12 September 1829) was a French classical composer. A contemporary of Boieldieu, Méhul, Kreutzer, Dugazon was the son of singer Louise Rosalie Lefebvre and actor Jean-Henri Gourgaud, called Dugazon. He was also the first cousin of General Baron Gaspard Gourgaud (1783–1852). Life Born in Paris and gifted at music, Dugazon entered the Conservatoire de Paris in Berton’s harmony class and studied composition with Gossec. In 1806, he obtained the first second Grand Prix de Rome with his cantata Hero, written to the lyrics by Saint-Victor. He then made a career in Paris as a composer and music teacher, teaching piano. Dugazon is buried at Père-Lachaise Cemetery (11th division). Works His first work, Noemie, was a ballet premiered at the Théâtre de la Porte-Saint-Martin. It was followed by a three-act opera, Marguerite de Waldemar (Theatre Feydeau, 1812), then another one-act opera, La Noce écossaise, in 1814. He wrote Le Chevalier d’industrie in 1818 in collaboration with Louis-Barthélémy Pradher, who was a piano teacher at the Conservatoire de Paris. His ballets composed for opera, Les Fiancés de Caserte (181

Gustave Vogt

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Gustave Vogt (18 March 1781 – 20 May 1870) was a French oboist and composer. Biography Born in Strasbourg, Vogt followed his parents to Paris at a very young age, where he entered the Conservatoire de Paris on 7 July 1798 and became a pupil of François Sallantin for oboe. He made such rapid progress that he was awarded a First Prize in this instrument at the end of the following year. He later attended the harmony course of Jean-Baptiste Rey at the same institution. Vogt entered the orchestra of the Théâtre Montansier as second oboe in 1798, then joined that of the Théâtre de l’Ambigu-Comique, from where he passed, on 31 May 1801, to the Comédie Italienne of the Théâtre de la Victoire, as its first oboe. Vogt then followed Emperor Napoleon as oboist of the music of the Imperial Guard during the 1805 campaign. At the same time as the Battle of Austerlitz, he met Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven in Vienna. Back in Paris, he was the first oboe of the Théâtre Feydeau and kept this post until 1814. He then joined the Paris Opéra as successor of his teacher Sallantin. He remained there until 1854, the time of his retirement. After he became a member of the Orchestre de la Société de

Hammamizade İsmail Dede Efendi

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Hammamizade İsmail Dede Efendi (9 January 1778 – 29 November 1846) was a composer of Ottoman classical music. Biography He was born on 9 January 1778, at Şehzadebaşı-Fatih in Istanbul, and started studying music with Mehmed Emin Efendi, at the age of eight. He attended rituals and learned to play the ney at the Yenikapı Mevlevihanesi, a place of Mevlevi dervish gatherings. He studied with Ali Nutki Dede and became a “Dede” himself in 1799. Dede Efendi’s music was appreciated by Sultan Selim III and he performed his works at the palace. He composed hundreds of songs and mevlevi rituals. In 1846 he made the pilgrimage to Mecca but contracted cholera in Mina and died. His grave is now in Mecca. His music Dede Efendi gave lessons in Turkish music to Hamparsum Limonciyan who developed the Hamparsum notation, the dominant notation for Turkish music. One of the greatest Turkish composers, he created masterpieces in all forms and modes of Turkish music. He also developed the composite musical modes of “sultanî yegâh”, “nev-eser”, “saba-buselik”, “hicaz-buselik” and “araban kürdî”. His greatest works are the seven Mevlevi pieces for Samah. More than two hundred of his compositions are avail

Hanna Brooman

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Johanna Amalia “Hanna” Brooman (; 21 August 1809 – 7 February 1887), was a Swedish composer, translator and educator. She was active as a teacher of the Royal Dramatic Training Academy from 1847 until 1884 (except for the years 1851–1856). Life Hanna Brooman was born in Stockholm and was the foster child of the opera singer Johan Erik Brooman. She never married. As an adult, she was active as a music and language teacher in Stockholm for many years, and remained there until her death. From 1847, Brooman was engaged as a teacher in the school of the actors- and ballet students at the royal theater and opera in Stockholm, the Royal Dramatic Training Academy. Except for the period of 1851–1856, she kept this post until her retirement in 1884. The students of the Royal Dramatic Theatre, Royal Swedish Opera and Royal Swedish Ballet during this period started as children, and though they were instructed in their future profession by experts, they were also given instruction in elementary subjects. This part of their education had previously been provided by the head of the Royal Dramatic Training Academy, and the students had been housed as boarding school students in the home of Christi

Harriet Wainwright

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Harriet Wainwright Stewart (c. 1766–1843) was a British composer, singer, and writer. A musical entrepreneur, she developed a subscription list of several hundred people and sold at least two of her compositions (Comala and Seringapatam) to subscribers. Early years Wainwright’s father was Liverpool musician Robert Wainwright. Her teachers included Dr. Richard Woodward, organist of Christ Church, Dublin, and John Worgan, a London organist known for his performances at Vauxhall Gardens. She moved to London in the 1780s, where she socialized with music historian Charles Burney, who commented that he knew of no female contrapuntist in Europe who could surpass Wainwright. Wainwright’s opera Comala was performed at Hanover Square in London on 26 January 1792. Sophia Corri and James Bartleman sang the leads. Six boys from the choir at Westminster Abbey were the chorus, coached by the Abbey organist Dr. Benjamin Cooke. Composers Ignaz Pleyel and Joseph Haydn attended the performance and praised the opera. She continued to publish her compositions under the name “Wainwright.” Comala was performed in India with Wainwright singing the main role. Richard, Marquis of Wellesley, Governor of Indi

Håvard Gibøen

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Håvard Gibøen (2 March 1809 – 27 July 1873) was a Norwegian fiddler and composer, born on the municipality of Møsstrond, in Telemark. The area is a part of Tinn today. Among his folk tunes are “Haavard Gibøens draum ved Oterholtsbrue” and “Gibøens bruremarsj”. These tunes formed the basis for two compositions by Edvard Grieg, included in his opus 72, Slåtter. Life Håvard Gibøen came from a gifted family, and his father, Knut Gibøen, also played the fiddle. His mother, Åsne, was related to the Berge family at Rauland, to whom many other folk musicians were connected. Like his contemporary Myllarguten, he was taught by the known fiddler Knut Lurås from Tinn. Håvard was of small stature, and played in weddings and at feasts from early on. In his early years, he was so tiny he had to sit on a barrel, placed on a table, to be seen and heard. Unlike Myllarguten, he never left his home area, and hardly travelled farther than Kongsberg. He lived his whole life on his mountain farm, and eventually died there in 1873. His son, Kjetil, and his grandsons after him, were fiddlers in the same tradition - carried on to this very day. Musical style As Myllarguten was known for his improvisations a

Heinrich Baermann

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Heinrich Joseph Baermann (also spelled Bärmann; 14 February 1784 – 11 June 1847) was a German clarinet virtuoso of the Classical and Romantic eras who is generally considered as being not only an outstanding performer of his time, but highly influential in the creation of several important composers’ works for his instrument. He was the father of clarinetist and composer Carl Baermann, Sr. and the grandfather of pianist and composer Carl Baermann, Jr. Life Baermann was born in Potsdam. In his youth, Baermann took lessons from Joseph Beer (1744–1811) at the military school in Potsdam. After his prowess came to the attention of the Berlin court in 1804, Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia had the 20-year-old musician pursue his training in Berlin under the guidance of Franz Tausch (1762–1817). He played in the court orchestra of Munich from 1807 until his retirement in 1834, when his son Carl Baermann succeeded him. Parallel to Baermann’s rise, the clarinet was undergoing a series of developments in key construction and embouchure that allowed greater agility and flexibility in playing. The growing custom was to play with the reed on the bottom lip, as is done today, as opposed to the

Heinrich Dorn

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Heinrich Ludwig Egmont Dorn (14 November 1800 or 1804 – 10 January 1892) was a German conductor, composer, teacher, and journalist. He was born in Königsberg, where he studied piano, singing, and composition. Later, he studied in Berlin with Ludwig Berger, Bernhard Klein, and Carl Friedrich Zelter. His first opera, Rolands Knappen, was produced in 1826, and was a success. Around this time, he became co-editor of the Berliner allgemeine Musikzeitung. Dorn became well known as a conductor of opera, and held theatre posts at Königsberg (1828), Leipzig (1829–32), Hamburg (1832), Riga (1834–43), and Cologne (1844–8). In 1849, he became co-conductor, with Wilhelm Taubert, of the Berlin Hofoper - a post he held until 1869. Dorn taught counterpoint to Clara Schumann and Robert Schumann, and was a friend of Franz Liszt. He was a harsh critic of Richard Wagner but was persuaded to conduct the opera Tannhäuser, in 1855. He also wrote an opera Die Nibelungen, based on the Nibelungenlied, in 1853, many years before Wagner completed Der Ring des Nibelungen. Dorn died in Berlin in 1892. Writings *Spontini in Deutschland (Leipzig, 1830) *Aus meinem Leben (Berlin, 1870–77) *Das provisorische Statut

Heinrich Enckhausen

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Heinrich Friedrich Enckhausen (also spelled Enkhausen, Enghausen and Enghusen, August 28, 1799 – January 15, 1885) was a German pianist, organist, horn player, composer and singing teacher. Life and career Born in Celle, Heinrich Friedrich Enckhausen began studying music with his father, also named Heinrich Friedrich Enckhausen, that town’s last town council musician. In 1816 he was accepted into the music band of the cuirassiers in Celle, where he played violin, flute, clarinet, cello and pianoforte. In 1826 he moved to Berlin and studied piano and composition with Aloys Schmitt. Enckhausen went to the court of Hanover with Schmitt when he (Schmitt) was appointed court organist there. Enckhausen played there from 1827 to 1832 as a horn player in the court orchestra. After Schmitt’s departure from Hanover, Enckhausen directed the singing academy. In 1833 he became a singing teacher at the teachers’ college. In 1839 he finally received the position of organist at the Castle Church in Hanover, which he held until his retirement. From 1845 he worked as a singing teacher at the Lyceum in Hanover. Enckhausen’s daughter Malwine Enckhausen, who later became a writer, was born in Hanover o

Heinrich Marschner

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Heinrich August Marschner (16 August 1795 – 14 December 1861) was a German composer best known for his operas. He is considered to be the most important composer of German opera between Weber and Wagner. Biography Marschner was born in Zittau, in southeastern Saxony, and was originally intended for a legal career. After a meeting with Beethoven around 1815–16, he decided to devote himself to music and became a private music teacher in Bratislava. From 1821 he worked as a stage composer and conductor at the municipal theatres in Dresden (from 1821), Leipzig (from 1827), and the Court Theatre at Hanover (from 1830), where the opera Hans Heiling (1833) established his name among the leading German opera composers of the time. He died in Hanover. Legacy Marschner was widely regarded as one of the most important composers in Europe from about 1830 until the end of the 19th century. Marschner did not just toss off these works as an afterthought, but clearly devoted considerable time and effort to writing them. He gave the title “Grand Trio” to each of his works for piano, violin and cello, indicative of the importance he attached to them. In these pieces, one finds all of the emotions pr

Henri Bertini

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Henri Jérôme Bertini (28 October 1798 – 30 September 1876) was a French classical composer and pianist. He was born into a family of musicians and attracted the attention of François-Joseph Fétis when he toured Europe as a child prodigy. As an adult he was admired both as a soloist and as a chamber musician; it was said that he played with Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s simplicity and elegance without sacrificing the brilliance of the instrument. As a composer he had an original style that was rich in musical ideas, attractive melodies, and effortless harmonies. In 1856, he retired from the music scene and settled in the Dauphiné in south-east France. Life Henri Jérôme Bertini was born in London on 28 October 1798 but his family returned to Paris six months later. He received his early musical education from his father, a pianist and composer himself, and his elder brother, Auguste, who was a pupil of Muzio Clementi. Bertini concertized widely but was not as celebrated a virtuoso as either Friedrich Kalkbrenner or Henri Herz. One of his contemporaries described his playing as having Clementi’s evenness and clarity in rapid passages as well as the quality of sound, the manner of phrasing,

Henri Cohen (composer)

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Henri Cohen (21 April 1806 – 17 May 1880) was a French music theorist, composer, and numismatist of Dutch birth. Career Born in Amsterdam, Cohen moved with his family to Paris at a young age. He studied there with Anton Reicha (music theory and composition), François Lays (singing), and Felice Pellegrini (singing). In 1832–34 and 1838–39 he was active as an opera composer in Naples, with some of his works premiering under the name “Carlo Coen”. In 1841 his opera Antonio Foscarini premiered successfully at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, prompting a revival the following year at the Teatro Regio di Torino. He was thereafter active as music teacher in Paris, including teaching at the Conservatoire de Paris, and was for a time director of the conservatory in Lille. Cohen’s opera “l’Impératrice”, was performed around 1834 in Naples, Paris, and London. Moreover, he published four tracts about musical theory. Cohen died in Bry-sur-Marne. He is perhaps best known for his two fundamental works on ancient numismatics: the first, published in 1854, dealt with the Roman Republican coinage, while the second, issued in eight volumes from 1859 to 1868, focused on the coinage of the Roman Empire,

Henri Herz

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Henri Herz (6 January 1803 – 5 January 1888 ) was a virtuoso pianist, composer and piano manufacturer, Austrian by birth and French by nationality and domicile. He was a professor in the Paris Conservatoire for more than thirty years. Among his major works are eight piano concertos, a piano sonata, rondos, nocturnes, waltzes, marches, fantasias, and numerous sets of variations. Biography Herz was born Heinrich Herz in Vienna. He was Jewish by birth, but he asked the musical journalist François-Joseph Fétis not to mention this in the latter’s musical encyclopaedia, perhaps a reflection of endemic antisemitism in nineteenth-century French cultural circles. As a child he studied with his father, and in Koblenz with the organist Daniel Hünten, father of the composer Franz Hünten. In 1816 Herz entered the Conservatoire de Paris, where he studied piano with Louis-Barthélémy Pradher, harmony with Victor Dourlen and composition with Anton Reicha. He won first prize in piano in 1818. Herz’s style of playing was, by his own admission, strongly influenced by Ignaz Moscheles. His brother Jacques Simon Herz (born Jacob-Simon; 1794–1880) was a fellow-pupil at the Conservatoire who also became a

Henri-Louis Blanchard

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Henri-Louis Blanchard (7 February 1778 – 18 December 1858) was a French playwright, composer, violinist and music critic. Biography The son of a violinist, he studied with Franz Beck in Bordeaux, Rodolphe Kreutzer, Méhul and Reicha at the Conservatoire de Paris. As soon as 1836, he participated, among numerous publications, at the Revue et gazette musicale de Paris in which he published his essais biographiques until 1856 Conductor of the Théâtre des Variétés from 1824 to 1829, he took part as librettist to some plays presented at the Théâtre-Français and also composed for the Théâtre du Gymnase or the Théâtre du Vaudeville more than three hundred melodies. He also put into music most of the texts by the poet Béranger He also wrote romances, canons for four, six and eight voices, duets for violin, viola quartets, concertos, a fugue for three violins, a fantasy for harp and violin etc. In 1830 he became managing director of the Théâtre de Molière, a position he would keep until he died in 1858. Works *1812: Le Soleil, romance *1812: La Lune, romance *1816: Clarisse et Lovelace, ou Le suborneur, pantomime in three acts, mixed with dialogue, after Samuel Richardson *1828: Galopade hon

Henrik Rung

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Henrik Rung (March 30, 1807 – December 12, 1871) was a Danish composer. Early life and education Henrik Rung was born in Copenhagen. Rung received training with the Royal Danish Orchestra in Copenhagen. He received a travel grant to study in Germany, Italy and Paris (1837-1840). Career In 1842, Rung became a singing master and held a lifelong position as a director of the opera at the Royal Danish Theatre. Personal life In 1841 he married the opera singer Pauline Lichtenstein. His son Frederik Rung (1854-1914) was also a composer and his daughter Sophie Keller (1850–1929) was an opera singer at the Royal Danish Theatre. Compositions * I Danmark er jeg født (1850) * Kirkeklokke, ej til Hovedstæder (1853) * Alt står i Guds faderhånd (1856) Recordings * Songs on Roses and Love. Helene Wold (Soprano), Per Andreas Tonder (Baritone), Eugene Asti (Piano), Vegard Lund (Guitar) Lawo 2011 * Waltz Serenade. Mair-Davis Duo, Marilyn Mair, mandolin; Mark Davis, guitar: “Vienna Nocturne” North Star Records, 1991 References *This article was initially translated from the Danish Wikipedia. Link *Henrik Rung - A Danish Counterpart to Fernando Sor, by Jens Bang-Rasmussen

Henry Bishop (composer)

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Sir Henry Rowley Bishop (18 November 178730 April 1856) was an English composer from the late Classical and early Romantic eras. He is most famous for the songs “Home! Sweet Home!” and “Lo! Hear the Gentle Lark.” He was the composer or arranger of some 120 dramatic works, including 80 operas, light operas, cantatas, and ballets. Bishop was Knighted in 1842. Bishop worked for all the major theatres of London in his era – including the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, Vauxhall Gardens and the Haymarket Theatre, and was Professor of Music at the universities of Edinburgh and Oxford. His second wife was the noted soprano Anna Bishop, who scandalised British society by leaving him and conducting an open liaison with the harpist Nicolas-Charles Bochsa until the latter’s death in Sydney. Life Bishop was born in London, where his father was a watchmaker and haberdasher. At the age of 13, Bishop left full-time education and worked as a music-publisher with his cousin. After training as a jockey at Newmarket, he took some lessons in harmony from Francesco Bianchi in London. In 1804 he wrote the music to a piece called “Angelina”, which was performed at Marga

Henry Lemoine

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Henry Lemoine (21 October 1786 – 18 May 1854) was a French music publisher, composer, and piano teacher. Life Henry Lemoine was born in Paris, to Antoine Marcel Lemoine and his wife. His father was a music publisher. The boy became a pupil of Anton Reicha, a composer and piano teacher. In 1816 he took over his father’s business. Lemoine was the publisher for Frédéric Chopin, Jeannine Richer, Elise Rondonneau, Mme H. Servier, Charlotte Tardieu, Marcelle Villin, and many others. In 1844 he published Hector Berlioz’s Traité d’orchestration. He worked with Ferdinando Carulli to publish a solfège textbook by Adolphe Danhauser called Solfège des Solfèges, which is still in print. In 1850 Lemoine, then blind, turned over his company to his son Achilles Lemoine. Henry died in Paris in 1854, aged 67. Lemoine’s compositions are today generally regarded as unimportant. His piano method and harmony textbook, however, are still of much interest to students of the instrument. He composed numerous études of all levels. Compositions Lemoine wrote a number of works of music education (including Études infantines), an extensive collection of piano pieces called Bagatelles and Recreations Musicales.

Henry Twiselton Elliston

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Henry Twiselton Elliston (c. 1801 – 1864), was an English musical composer and inventor. Life Elliston was born in or about 1801, the second son of Robert William Elliston and the nephew of Mary Ann Rundall. He resided during most of his life at Leamington, where his father had formerly leased the theatre. Having decided on adopting music as his profession, he received a careful training, and became a sound theoretical musician, and an able performer on the organ and several other instruments. On his father presenting an organ to the parish church of Leamington, Elliston was elected organist, and held the post till his death. In the subsequent enlargement of the organ he exhibited considerable mechanical ingenuity, and invented a transposing piano on a new and simple plan. He was an early member of the choral society of Leamington, and whilst he was associated with it the society produced the Messiah and other great works during a three days’ musical festival. Elliston himself built the music hall in Bath Street, with his brother William, who emigrated to Australia, he established the County Library. During the time that he and his brother were in partnership they gave concerts on

Hieronymus Payer

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Hieronymus Prayer (13 February 1787 in Vienna-Meidling – 17 August 1845 in Vienna-Meidling) was an Austrian composer and st. Life and career Hieronymus (Jérome) Payer was the son of a teacher. As a 10-year-old he earned his living as a backup musician and was then hired as an assistant teacher of his father’s. In 1806 he became a conductor in the so-called Meidlinger Summer Theatre, for which he even wrote some small Singspiels. Later he moved to the Innere Stadt of Vienna and performed in the Redoutensaal and Theater an der Wien successfully. He was active as a teacher, including of Leopoldine Blahetka. Payer introduced in 1821 in Vienna for the first time the Physharmonica in a public concert. Three years later he became a conductor in Amsterdam (at the Hoogduitse Schouwburg) and in 1825, in Paris. In 1832 he returned to Vienna as conductor for a short time in the Theater in der Josefstadt. As a pianist he had been compared by his contemporaries with Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Ignaz Moscheles and Ferdinand Ries. Works (selection) 6 masses and other sacred works, 10 operas and operettas, including; * Der wilde Jäger, Meidling 1806 or 26. July 1807 * L’arbre creux, Meidling 1808 * Der

Hyacinthe Jadin

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Hyacinthe Jadin (27 April 1776 – 27 September 1800) was a French composer who came from a musical family. His uncle Georges Jadin was a composer in Versailles and Paris, along with his father Jean Jadin, who had played bassoon for the French Royal Orchestra. He was one of five musical brothers, the best known of whom was Louis-Emmanuel Jadin. Life and career Jadin was born in Versailles. At the age of 9, Jadin’s first composition, a Rondo for piano, was published in the Journal de Clavecin. By the age of thirteen, Jadin had premiered his first work with the Concert Spirituel. Jadin took a job in 1792 as assistant rehearsal pianist (Rezizativbegleiter) at the Theatre Feydeau. In this year he composed the Marche du siège de Lille (“March of the Siege of Lille”), commemorating the successful resistance of the citizens of Lille when besieged by Austrian forces. In 1794, Jadin published an overture for 13 wind instruments entitled Hymn to 21 January. The piece commemorated the one-year anniversary of the execution of Citizen Capet (the name given to Louis XVI during his trial for treason). In 1795, he began teaching a female piano class at the Paris Conservatoire. From 1795 until his de

Hyacinthe Klosé

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Hyacinthe Eléonore Klosé (11 October 1808 – 29 August 1880) was a French clarinet player, professor at the Conservatoire de Paris, and composer. Life and music Klosé was born in Corfu (Greece). He was second clarinet at the Théâtre Italien to Frédéric Berr beginning in 1836, then to Iwan Müller following Berr’s death in 1838, finally becoming solo clarinettist when Müller left in 1841. In the Paris Conservatory, Klosé had many notable pupils including: * K.I. Boutruy, who received First Prize in 1852. * A. Grisez, who received First Prize in 1857. * Augusta Holmès. * Adolphe Marthe Leroy, who succeeded Klosé in his Paris professorship in 1868. * Louis A. Mayeur, to whom he also taught the saxophone in the early 1850s. * I.G. Paulus, who received the “Légion d’Honneur” in the same year as Klosé. * Cyrille Rose, who received First Prize in 1847. * Frédéric Selmer, who was so accomplished that a special “Prize of Honour” was created for him in his final year, 1852. * Charles Paul Turban, who received Second Prize in 1864 and First Prize in 1865. Klosé was also noted for his design improvements to the clarinet using the principles laid down by Theobald Boehm in his innovative work on t

Ignacy Feliks Dobrzyński

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Ignacy Feliks Dobrzyński (15 February 1807 – 9 October 1867) was a Polish pianist and composer. He was the son of Ignacy Dobrzyński, the brother of Edward Dobrzyński, and the father of Bronisław Dobrzyński. Life Dobrzyński was born on former Polish territory in Romanów, in Volhynia, Russian Empire, now Romaniv, Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine (Ukr. Романів), known from 1933 to 2003 as Dzerzhynsk (Rus. Дзержинськ, Pol. Dzierżyńsk). He attended a Jesuit school in Romanów, then continued his education at Vinnitsa, where he graduated from the Gimnazjum Podolskie (Podole Gymnasium). He first studied music with his father Ignacy, a violinist, composer and music director. Beginning in 1825 he studied in Warsaw with Józef Elsner, at first privately, then in 1826–28 at the Warsaw Conservatory, where he was a classmate of Frédéric Chopin. In 1835, he won second prize in a composition competition for his Symphony No. 2 in C minor, Op. 15. This symphony was later called “Symphony in the Characteristic Spirit of Polish Music” and movements were conducted by Felix Mendelssohn. In 1845 Dobrzyński toured Germany as a soloist and also conducted operas and concerts. In 1857 he founded “Ignacy Feliks Dobrzy

Ignaz Assmayer

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Ignaz Assmayer (11 February 1790 – 31 August 1862) was an Austrian composer of liturgical music. An organist at St. Peter’s Abbey in Salzburg, he lived in Vienna from 1815, and was in 1846 the conductor of the Court Orchestra. Assmayer was a friend of Franz Schubert. Life Assmayer was born at Salzburg. He studied under Andreas Brunmayr and Michael Haydn, and later, when he went to Vienna, he received further instruction from Joseph Leopold Eybler. In 1808 he was organist at St. Peter’s in Salzburg, and here he wrote his oratorio “Die Sündfluth” (The Deluge) and his cantata “Worte der Weihe”. Some time after his move to Vienna, in 1815, he became choirmaster at the Schotten Kirche, and in 1825 was appointed imperial organist. After having served eight years as vice-choirmaster, he received in 1846 the appointment of second choir-master to the Court, as successor to Joseph Weigl. He died in Vienna. Works His principal oratorios, , , and , were repeatedly performed by the , of which he was conductor for fifteen years. He also wrote fifteen masses, two requiems, a Te Deum, and various smaller church pieces. Of these, two oratorios, one mass, the requiems, and the Te Deum, and furthermo

Ignaz Lachner

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Ignaz Lachner (11 September 1807 – 24 February 1895) was a German composer and conductor. Life and career Lachner was born into a musical family at Rain am Lech. He was the second of the three famous Lachner brothers. Lachner’s brothers Franz and Vinzenz were also composers. His older brother Franz was the best known, having heavily traded on his youthful friendship with Franz Schubert, certainly more than Ignaz who also knew Schubert. Ignaz was taught (as were the others) organ, piano and violin. Upon the latter instrument, he was somewhat of a prodigy, but despite this, his father insisted he become a teacher. After his father’s death, he studied violin with Bernhard Molique, a violin virtuoso and then joined his brother Franz in Vienna, where he too befriended and was influenced by Schubert. Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven were also influences. In 1826, he became organist at the Reformed Church in Vienna and then a member of the orchestra at the Hofoperntheater. He was appointed a Music Director in Stuttgart in 1831 and soon thereafter in Munich. From 1853, Lachner served as a Kapellmeister in Hamburg and moved into the same position again in 1861 at the Stadttheater in Frankfurt, f

Ignaz Moscheles

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Isaac Ignaz Moscheles (; 23 May 1794 10 March 1870) was a Bohemian piano virtuoso and composer. He was based initially in London and later in Leipzig, where he joined his friend and sometime pupil Felix Mendelssohn as professor of piano in the Conservatory. Life Early life and career Moscheles was born 1794 in Prague, Bohemia, the son of Klara Popper (Lieben) and Joachim Moises Moscheles. He was from an affluent German-speaking Jewish merchant family. His first name was originally Isaac. His father played the guitar and was keen for one of his children to become a musician. Initially his hopes fixed on Ignaz’s sister, but when she demurred, her piano lessons were transferred to her brother. Ignaz developed an early passion for the (then revolutionary) piano music of Beethoven, which the Mozartean Bedřich Diviš Weber, his teacher at the Prague Conservatory, attempted to curb, urging him to focus on Bach, Mozart and Muzio Clementi. After his father’s early death, Moscheles settled in Vienna in 1808. His abilities were such that he was able to study in the city under Albrechtsberger for counterpoint and theory and Salieri for composition. At this time he changed his first name from “I

Ignaz von Mosel

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Ignaz (Franz) von Mosel (1 April 1772 – 8 April 1844) was an Austrian court official, composer and music writer. Life Born in Vienna, Mosel entered the royal Bancal-Staatsbuchhaltung (State Bank Bookkeepers) in 1797, later joining the Obersthofmeisteramt and finally the royal Hofrath. He became the first ‘kustos’ of the court library. In 1812 he was the first conductor in Vienna to use a baton, whilst conducting a memorial concert with . He conducted and organized the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde’s music festivals (set up by Andreas Streicher) from 1812 to 1816, including the Handel concerts at the Winterreitschule, which ultimately led to the foundation of the society and its choir, which developed into the Wiener Singverein. On 18 July 1818 he was raised to the nobility and from 1820 he served as vice-director of the court theatre, though he had little influence on the Hofoper after Domenico Barbaja took it over. From 1821 he was vice-director of the Hofbibliothek and from 1829 its director. He also bore the title of ‘hofrat’ or court councilor. Influence An influential figure in the musical life of Vormärz-era Vienna, he was a friend of the Schubert Circle. He composed mainly v

Ignaz von Seyfried

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Ignaz Xaver Ritter von Seyfried (15 August 1776 – 27 August 1841) was an Austrian musician, conductor and composer. He was born and died in Vienna. According to a statement in his handwritten memoirs he was a pupil of both Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Georg Albrechtsberger. He edited Albrechtsberger’s complete written works after his death, published by Tobias Haslinger. His own pupils included Franz von Suppé, Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst, Antonio Casimir Cartellieri, Joseph Fischhof and Eduard Marxsen who would later teach Johannes Brahms. As conductor In his youth Seyfried served as the assistant conductor for Emanuel Schikaneder’s opera troupe at the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna, becoming musical director in 1797 and serving (in its new building, the Theater an der Wien) until 1826. His memoirs offer accounts of the first production, under Schikaneder’s auspices, of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, as well as a curious anecdote concerning the composer’s death a few weeks later; see Death of Mozart. In 1805, Seyfried conducted the première of the original version of Beethoven’s Fidelio. Seyfried’s memoirs also include some striking tales about Beethoven, and the information he prov

Ilya Lyzohub

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Illia Ivanovych Lyzohub , , (23 October 17871867), was a Ukrainian patron of the arts, composer-cellist, and pianist who founded an influential artistic circle in Sedniv. A friend and patron of the poet Taras Shevchenko. In his youth, he served as an aide-de-camp to the Governor-General of Little Russia, Nikolai Repnin-Volkonsky. Biography Early years Part of the Lyzohub family, he was born on 23 October 1787 in the village of Kulykivka, Chernihiv Governorate, Russian Empire (now Ukraine). Military career From 25 November 1807, Lyzohub served as a corporal in the Life Guards Jager Regiment. He took part in the Austro-Polish War of 1809. For the courage and bravery shown in the Battle of Borodino (7 September 1812), in which his regiment repeatedly attacked the French cavalry, he was awarded a golden sword. During the War of the Sixth Coalition (March 1813 – May 1814), he received the Order of Saint Vladimir, 4th class, after the Battle of Bautzen, and the Order of Saint Anna, 4th class, after the Battle of Leipzig. After the Battle of Leipzig, he was briefly an orderly officer for General Dmitry Golitsyn and then for Crown Prince Eugene of Württemberg. He became an adjutant of the , N

Isidora Zegers

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Isidora Zegers Montenegro (also known as Isidora Zegers de Huneeus or Isidora Zegers; 1 January 1803 – 14 July 1869) was a Spanish musician and composer. She is known for her contributions to Chilean culture during the 19th century. She co-founded a weekly musical publication, and the Philharmonic Society of Santiago. She was honorary president of the National Academy of Music, and co-founded the Philharmonic Society of Santiago. Biography Isidora Zegers was born in Madrid, Spain on 1 January 1803, and was of Flemish origin. She studied voice under Federico Massimino, composition under Paer, and harp, guitar, piano in Paris, France. In 1852, Zegers was named honorary president of the National Academy of Music. In 1826, she co-founded the Philharmonic Society of Santiago with Carlos Drewetcke. In addition, she contributed to charities as a singer and organizer of musical events. Zegers died on 14 July 1869 in Santiago. The University of Chile has a performance space named in Zeger’s honour, the Sala Isidora Zegers. Works Isidora Zegers’s compositions are for voice and piano or piano solo, mostly dating from her years in Paris and some written in French. She completed five compositio

Iwan Müller

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Iwan Müller, sometimes spelled Iwan Mueller (14 December 1786, Reval, Governorate of Estonia – 4 February 1854, Bückeburg), was a clarinetist, composer and inventor who at the beginning of the 19th century was responsible for a major step forward in the development of the clarinet, the air-tight pad. Biography Müller was born in Reval (present-day Tallinn), at that time a city with a strong Baltic German community in the Governorate of Estonia, part of the Russian Empire. He became a chamber musician in Saint Petersburg before he was twenty. At the same time, he was constantly striving to improve the clarinet, with new types of keywork. At the time, the standard clarinet used flat brass plates covered in soft leather to cover the toneholes. Since these leaked air, the number of them had to be kept to a minimum, which meant that notes outside the main scale of the clarinet (accidentals) had to be obtained by complicated fingerings which were difficult to play quickly and rarely were in tune. Clarinets would have five or six keys, the bare minimum to obtain an acceptable chromatic scale. Müller’s solution was the stuffed pad, originally made of kid leather stuffed with felt. These pa

Jacob Niclas Ahlström

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Jacob Niclas Ahlström (5 June 1805 in Visby, Gotland – 14 May 1857 in Stockholm) was a Swedish Kapellmeister and composer. Beginning his studies at Uppsala University in 1824, Ahlström dropped out due to lack of money and joined a touring theatrical troupe. From 1832 to 1842, he served as a cathedral organist and music teacher in Västerås and then became a Court Kapellmeister and organist in Stockholm until his death. In 1845, he held a concert in Berlin, during which he played Swedish folk songs and dances. During the years 1842 to 1854 Ahlström worked at the Nya theater in Stockholm where he wrote music in various genres for more than one hundred theatrical works. Ahlström composed two operas based on libretti by Frans Hedberg, incidental music (for plays such as Agne, Positivhalaren, Ringaren i Notre Dame, and Hinko och Urdur), a vocal symphony, chamber music, and lieder. Together with Per Conrad Boman, he published Svenska folksånger, folkdanser och folklekar, the best-known collection of Swedish folk songs which appeared during the 19th century. In 1852, he also published the Musikalisk fickordbok (Musical Pocket Book), which enjoyed several reissues. References Further readin

Jacob Schmitt

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Jacob Schmitt, also called Jakob, Jaques or Jacques, (2 November 1803 – June 1853) was a German composer and piano teacher who worked in Hamburg. He was born in Obernburg near Aschaffenburg and died in Hamburg. Life Jacob Schmitt was the youngest of the seven children of Franz Bartholomäus Schmitt and Anna Maria Scheller; his oldest brother was the composer Aloys Schmitt. His father was already an aspiring musician, who supported his salary as a teacher by being an organist in the town’s parish church St. Peter and Paul. He supported his sons musically, giving them their first musical lessons and making sure, that they were taken up in the house of the music publisher Johann Anton André in Offenbach. There, Schmitt was taught by André as well as his brother Aloys and had his first performances as a piano accompanist in 1814. At this time in the view of the public, he was the little brother of the already well-known Aloys whom he had a close relationship with. Schmitt’s way into the world of the free music business began around 1823. This becomes clear from an exchange of letters with his former patron André. In these letters, Schmitt initially asked for the financing of a new grand pi

Jacques Féréol Mazas

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:For Mazas Prison, see here. Jacques Féréol Mazas (23 September 1782 – 26 August 1849) was a French composer, conductor, violinist, and pedagogue. Biography Born in Lavaur, Mazas was a pupil of Pierre Baillot at the Paris Conservatoire, from which he received the first prize in 1805. In 1808, he played a violin concerto dedicated to him by Auber. He then performed widely across Europe. In 1831, he accepted the post of first violin at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal. A short time later, he was appointed Directeur des concerts in Orléans, where he directed that city’s Opéra Comique theatre. From 1837 to 1841, he was director of the Conservatoire in Cambrai. He died in Bordeaux. Music One of his operas, Le Kiosk had eight performances at the Opéra-Comique in Paris. His compositions for violin are, for the most part, studies and duets for young string players of all abilities that constitute methods for both violin and viola. Selected works * 3 Trios for 2 violins and cello (or viola), Op. 18 * La Consolation, Élégie No. 2 in G major for viola and orchestra (or piano), Op. 29 (1831) * 75 Études mélodiques et progressives (in 3 parts), Op. 36 # Études spéciales # Études brillantes # Études

Jakob Zeugheer

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Jakob Zeugheer (known also as J. Z. Herrmann; 20 July 1803 in Zürich – 15 June 1865 in Liverpool) was a Swiss violinist, conductor and composer. Childhood Born at Zürich in 1803, Zeugheer learned the violin first from Heinrich Joseph Wassermann in his native town, and in 1818 was placed at Munich under Ferdinand Fränzl, for the violin, and Joseph Graetz for composition and musical science. A visit to Vienna in 1823 confirmed his enthusiasm for chamber-music and Beethoven, who remained through life the object of his highest veneration. Career as a quartet player The example of Schuppanzigh, and of the four brothers Moralt, suggested to Zeugheer the idea of attempting the same with his friends in Munich, as “das Quartett Gebrüder Herrmann”. Zeugheer was leader; Joseph Wex of Immenstadt, second violin; Carl Baader, viola; and Joseph Lidel (grandson of Andreas Lidel, the eminent performer on the baryton), violoncello. They started Aug. 34, 1824, for the south, and gave performances at the towns of south Germany and Switzerland, and along the Rhine to the Netherlands and Belgium. In the spring of 1826 they played in Paris, before Cherubini and Pierre Baillot, and gave a public performan

James P. Clarke (composer)

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James Paton Clarke (1807/08–1877) was a Canadian organist, conductor and composer. He was the first person to receive a bachelor’s degree in music in North America. He is best known for his work Lays of the Maple Leaf (1853) and for leading several of Toronto’s earliest musical organizations. Early life Clarke was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. As a young man he worked as music dealer’s assistant in Edinburgh and led the singing of psalms in St George’s Church in Glasgow. Career Clarke emigrated to Canada in 1835, taking a job as the organist for St. James Cathedral in York (Toronto). In 1844 he became the organist for Christ Church in Hamilton. Clarke was the first conductor of the Toronto Choral Society, which was founded in 1845. He was a composer of choral music; a collection of his songs about the Canadian landscape, Lays of the Maple Leaf, was published in 1853 by A. & S. Nordheimer. Clarke constructed a new kind of organ for which the pipes were made of glass. In 1872 Clarke became the conductor of the Toronto Philharmonic Society. Clarke taught organ and piano; one of his pupils was his son Hugh, who became a professor of music at the University of Pennsylvania. Works * Lays

Jan George Bertelman

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Jan George Bertelman (Amsterdam, January 21, 1782 - January 25, 1854), was a Dutch composer and music teacher. Life and work Bertelman was born in Amsterdam, Dutch Republic, in 1782. He was the son of Henry Joost Bertelman and Johanna Shock. When Bertelman was nine years old, his father died. He studied with Daniel Bracht Huyser (1769), a blind organist who worked at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. In addition to his musical studies, Bertelman provided for his mother and himself through working other jobs. In Amsterdam, Bertelman was a composer, organist and music teacher. His pupils included John Bree, Richard Hol and Hermina Maria Dijk. Bertelman was an honorary member of four organizations: the Royal Academy of Arts, the Society for Utilities General, the Society for the Promotion of Musical Arts, and the Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome. In 1842, he was appointed Knight of the Order of the Dutch Lion. Bertelman married Dorothea Christina Kathman in Amsterdam on April 28, 1820. He died in January 1854 at the age of 72 in Amsterdam. His son, Johannes Jacobus Bertelman, was a painter and later became the co-founder of the Museum Gouda. Bertelman was buried in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amst

Jan Kalivoda

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Jan Křtitel Václav Kalivoda (Johann Baptist Wenzel Kalliwoda in German; February 21, 1801 – December 3, 1866) was a composer, conductor and violinist of Bohemian birth. Life Kalivoda was born in Prague in 1801 and as early as 1811 started studying violin and composition at the Prague Conservatory. He made his debut as a violinist at the age of 14. Upon completion of his studies he became a member of the Prague Opera Orchestra. His diploma from the Conservatory read “Excellent player solo or in an orchestra…shows great talent in composition.” More prosperous tours as a violinist, for instance to Linz and Munich, followed. Kalivoda lived what appears to have been a stable, hardworking musical life. For more than 40 years, from 1822 to 1865, he held the post of conductor at the court of Prince Karl Egon II of Fürstenberg and his successor in Donaueschingen (where the Danube begins in the Black Forest). His duties there included not only the writing of and care for the music of the court and church, but also the management and conducting of a choir, and annual musical journeys for education. These manifold responsibilities may have foreshortened his life. In any case, he went into re

Jan Václav Voříšek

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Jan Václav Hugo Voříšek (; ; 11 May 1791 – 19 November 1825) was a Czech composer, pianist and organist. Life Voříšek was born in the town of Vamberk, Bohemia, where his father was schoolmaster, choirmaster and organist. As a child prodigy, he started to perform publicly in Bohemian towns at the age of nine. His father taught him music, encouraged his playing the piano and helped him get a scholarship to attend the University of Prague, where he studied philosophy. He also had lessons in piano and composition from Václav Tomášek. He found it impossible to obtain sufficient work as a musician in Prague and in 1813, at the age of 22, moved to Vienna to study law, hoping to meet Beethoven. In Vienna Voříšek was able to greatly improve his piano technique under Johann Nepomuk Hummel, but once more failed to gain full-time employment as a musician. Although Voříšek was enthralled by the classical style of Mozart, he was more intrigued by the incipient romanticism of Beethoven. In 1814, as he was starting to compose, he did indeed meet Beethoven in Vienna. He also met other leading musicians there, including the composers Louis Spohr, Ignaz Moscheles, Hummel, and especially Franz Schuber

Jane Bianchi

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Jane Jackson became Jane Bianchi and later Jane Bianchi Lacy (1776 – 19 March 1858) was a British soprano singer in London and Oudh, India. She was also a good pianist, painter and linguist. and published again, possibly in 1812. On 12 March 1806, the Austrian composer Joseph Woelfl published “Six English Songs” which he dedicated to Bianchi. She and Francesco had a daughter who died aged five, shortly after her husband took his own life. He and their daughter were buried in the old Kensington Church, now St Mary Abbots, Kensington. Bianchi married again to another singer named William Lacy. Her English husband had trained in Italy and was a bass singer. In 1813 she again sang at the Concerts of Antient Music where she was paid £126 (see illustration). She had sung at that concert in 1800 when she was “Miss Jackson”. They left England and sailed for Calcutta in 1818 where they stayed for seven years performing at the court of Oudh. At the time the King of Oudh was Saadat Ali Khan II. Whilst she was away she published an unseen work by her first husband in 1820/1821. Bianchi died in Ealing in 1858. Her second husband survived her. References External links *

Jane Stirling

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Jean (“Jane”) Wilhelmina Stirling (15 July 1804 – 6 February 1859) was a Scottish amateur pianist who is best known as a student and later friend of Frédéric Chopin, who dedicated Nocturnes, Op. 55 to her. She took him on a tour of England and Scotland in 1848, and took charge of the disposal of his effects and manuscripts after his death in 1849. Life Jane Stirling was born Jean Wilhelmina Stirling as the youngest of 13 children of John Stirling of Kippendavie, at Kippenross House, near Dunblane in Perthshire, and was descended from a noble Scottish family. Her father died when Jane was 12, and her mother died when she was 16. perhaps in 1842 She became his pupil immediately. Chopin does not mention her until 1844. However, whether Chopin intended this collection to serve as a basis for a revised collected edition of his music is an open question. She also became his secretary, agent and business manager. She arranged his concert at the Salle Pleyel on 16 February 1848, and also attended to the heating, the ventilation, and the flowers. The concluding item of the concert was the Barcarolle in F-sharp major, but Chopin was too exhausted to complete the final section. After managing

Jean-Baptiste Chollet

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Jean-Baptiste Marie Chollet (20 May 1798 – 10 January 1892) was a French musician and operatic singer (baritone, later tenor). He also composed a few romances and nocturnes. He married the opera singer Geneviève-Aimé-Zoë Prévost and their daughter Caroline Chollet also became an opera singer under the stage name Mademoiselle Monrose. Life Born in Paris, Chollet studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, where from the age of eight he studied solfège and violin. He graduated with a prize in solfège in 1814 and began singing as a high baritone in the church choir at Saint-Eustache, Paris, where his father was choirmaster. In 1815 he also became a chorus member at the Opéra de Paris, then at the Théâtre-Italien, and finally at the Théâtre Feydeau, where he remained for two years. In 1818 he took the stage name Dôme-Chollet and appeared with a troupe of comic actors. In 1823 he was at the Théâtre du Havre, playing the roles of Martin, Lays and Soulié, which he continued to play during a one-year engagement at the Théâtre de La Monnaie in Brussels in 1825. He had a noted success in La Fête au village voisin. In 1826 he rejoined the Théâtre Feydeau and the following year became a partner in

Jean-Baptiste Roucourt

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Jean-Baptiste Roucourt (Brussels, 28 October 1780 - Brussels, 1 May 1849) was a music pedagogue, singer and composer. He founded the music school which was the cradle of the Royal Conservatoire of Brussels. Early life (1780-1812) Jean-Baptiste Roucourt was born in Brussels in the Austrian Netherlands. His father François Roucourt was from Diest and his mother Catherine Barbe Bormans from Gingelom in the Bishopric of Liège, but they lived in Brussels, near the Treurenberg, by the time of Jean-Baptiste’s birth. The household counted at least two older children, Catherine Henriette and Louis. Jean-Baptiste was baptized at the Church of St. Michael and St. Gudula on the day of his birth. In his early childhood, he had music education from Adrien-Joseph Van Helmont, who had succeeded his father Charles-Joseph as music master at the Church of St. Michael and St. Gudula in 1777. However, Van Helmont junior being also employed as a singer at the royal chapel since the same year, and Van Helmont senior having declared in his resignation letter that he would keep the pay and the duties as a music master as long as his health allowed him to (this was a normal way to ensure one’s retirement al

Jean-Louis Tulou

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Jean-Louis Tulou (born 12 September 1786 in Paris – died 23 July 1865 in Nantes) was a French flute teacher and performer, composer, and instrument maker. Family and life His father, Louis-Prosper Tulou (1749–1799), was a bassoonist in the Paris Opera and professor at the Paris Conservatoire from 1795 until his death. Jean-Louis studied at the Paris Conservatoire from the age of 10. He became a professor there in 1829 and remained until 1856. He was involved in flute manufacture. He died on 23 July 1865 in Nantes. List of compositions Flute method *“Méthode de Flûte”, published 1835 (Paris) includes flute duets etc. Piccolo method *Metodo Populare (Popular Method) Flute and piano Note: arrangements may exist for quartet/orchestra as well as with piano. *Air Varie, Op. 22 *Air Ecossais - Fantaisie Brillante Op.29 *Fantasie, Op. 30 *Air Varie, Op. 35 *Fantasie, Op. 36 *L’Angelus Fantaisie, Op. 46 *Welsh Air and Variations on “All Through The Night” Op. 48 *Air Varie, Op. 62 *Grand Solo No. 1 *Grand Solo No. 2 Op. 70 *Air Varie, Op. 73 *Grand Solo No. 3 Op. 74 *Grand Solo No. 4 Op. 77 *Grand Solo No. 5 Op. 79 *Grand Solo No. 6 Op. 82 *Grand Solo No. 7 Op. 86 *Grand Solo No. 8 *Grand S

Joachim Nicolas Eggert

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Joachim Nicolas Eggert (22 February 1779 – 14 April 1813) was a Swedish composer and musical director. Eggert was born in Gingst on Rügen, at that time part of Swedish Pommern. At a very young age he started studying to play the violin. In Stralsund he continued his musical education in the subjects of violin and composition. These studies were followed, in the first years of the 19th century, by studies in musical theory in Braunschweig and Göttingen, with Johann Nikolaus Forkel as a teacher. In 1802 he got his first appointment as a Kapellmeister at the court theater of Schwerin. A year later he became violinist at the Royal Court Orchestra of Sweden. He soon received his first commissions for compositions. In 1807 he was appointed a member of the Royal Swedish Musical Academy; in the same year he made his debut as a musical director. Between 1808 and 1812 he worked as a Hofkapellmeister at the Royal Court Orchestra. He died at Thomestorp, Östergötland, Sweden, of tuberculosis, at the age of 34 years. The main part of his compositional creations are instrumental works like operas, cantatas, musical dramas and symphonies. He also composed numerous works commissioned by the Swedish

João Domingos Bomtempo

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João Domingos Bomtempo (; also Buontempo; Lisbon, 28 December 1775 – Lisbon, 18 August 1842) was a Portuguese classical pianist, composer and pedagogue. Biography Bomtempo was the son of an Italian musician in the Portuguese court orchestra, and studied at the Music Seminary of the Patriarchal See in Lisbon. Unlike most of his contemporaries, he was not interested in opera and, in 1801, instead of going to Italy, he traveled to Paris, where he started a career as a virtuoso pianist. He moved to London in 1810 and became acquainted with liberal circles in that city. During 1822 he returned to Lisbon, and founded there a Philharmonic Society to promote public concerts of contemporary music. After the Portuguese civil war between liberals and absolutists had resulted in a liberal victory, Bomtempo became a music teacher to the young Queen Maria II of Portugal and first Director of the National Conservatory, created in 1835 to replace the old Patriarchal Seminary, which had been abolished by the new liberal regime. Bomtempo composed a vast number of concertos, sonatas, variations and fantasies for the piano. His two known symphonies are the first to be produced by a Portuguese composer

Johan Christian Gebauer

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Johann Christian Gebauer (6 August 1808 – 24 January 1884) was a Danish composer, organist and music theorist. Gebauer showed promise as a musician early on. He received his first formal training in music from German-born composer Friedrich Kuhlau. Later Royal Court composer Christoph Ernst Friedrich Weyse and still later composer Peter Casper Krossing taught Gebauer music, although Kuhlau remained the most influential. Music career Gebauer took on teaching music after completing his formal training. In 1842, he became editor of “Sangfuglen”, a compilation of the compositions of budding Danish composers. He was employed at the Royal Danish Academy of Music as a teacher in harmony from 1866-1883. In 1870, his collected songs were published and he received the title of professor in 1876. In 1846, he was given the job of the organist at St. Peter’s Church, Copenhagen. From 1859, he held the position of organist at Church of the Holy Ghost, Copenhagen, a job he held until his death. See also *List of Danish composers References *This article was initially translated from the Danish Wikipedia.

Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann

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Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (14 May 1805 – 10 March 1900) was, together with his son-in-law Niels W. Gade, the leading Danish composer of the 19th century, a period known as the Danish Golden Age. According to Alfred Einstein, he was “the real founder of the Romantic movement in Denmark and even in all Scandinavia”. J.P.E. Hartmann was the third generation of composers in the Danish musical Hartmann family. Biography Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann was born and died in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was the son of composer August Wilhelm Hartmann (1775–1850) and Christiane Petrea Frederica Wittendorff (1778–1848), and the grandson of composer Johann Hartmann (1726-1793), who had originally emigrated to Denmark from Silesia. J.P.E. Hartmann himself was largely self taught. Complying with his father’s wishes (who wanted to protect him from the uncertainties of a musician’s life), he studied the law and worked as a civil servant from 1829 to 1870, whilst pursuing an extensive musical career. By 1824, he became organist at the Garnisons Kirke in Copenhagen, and in 1832, made a first major impression on audiences with the opera Ravnen. The opera received a long and positive review from Robert Sc

Johann Anton André

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Johann Anton André (6 October 1775 – 6 April 1842) was a German composer and music publisher of the Classical period, best known for his central place in Mozart research. Life Born in Offenbach am Main, André wrote operas, symphonies, masses, and lieder, as well as an unfinished (Textbook of the Art of Composition) in two volumes. His teachers were Ferdinand Frenzel (violin) and Johann Georg Vollweiler (theory and composition). In 1799, André purchased a large volume of Mozart’s musical papers (the ) from the composer’s widow Constanze, and brought them to Offenbach. This collection contained over 270 autographs and included the operas The Marriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute, a series of string quartets and string quintets, several piano concertos, and Eine kleine Nachtmusik. Based on these autographs, the André publishing house (founded in 1774 by André’s father Johann André (1741–99) and still owned by the family today) prepared and issued some highly respected editions of Mozart’s works, bringing many compositions into print for the first time. For this, André earned the title “father of Mozart research”. He supplied the title Zaide to Mozart’s hitherto unnamed and incomplete

Johann Baptist Cramer

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Johann (sometimes John) Baptist Cramer (24 February 1771 – 16 April 1858) was an English pianist, composer and music publisher of German origin, born in the Holy Roman Empire. He was the son of Wilhelm Cramer, a famous London violinist and conductor, one of a numerous family who were identified with the progress of music during the 18th and 19th centuries. Biography Cramer was born in Mannheim and was brought to London as a child, where he worked for most of his musical career, Legacy Cramer was one of the most renowned piano performers of his day. He met Beethoven in Vienna, initiating a mutually rewarding relationship, while renewing his friendship with Haydn. After 1800, he was based almost exclusively in England. Following the successful example of his former teacher Clementi, he also became a successful music publisher in London. His many compositions take second place to his pianistic prowess; Beethoven considered him the finest pianist of the day from the standpoint of pure technical perfection. In 1818 Cramer was a founding member of the Regent’s Harmonic Institution, a music publishing firm established with the intent of raising funds for the Royal Philharmonic Society and

Johann Baptist Krall

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Johann Baptist Krall (1803–4 May 1883) was an Austrian composer, conductor, music editor/arranger, and member of the board of directors of the Wiener Singverein of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde. Early life He was a pupil of the organist and composer :de:Joseph Preindl (1756-1823), who succeeded Johann Albrechtsberger as Domkapellmeister at St Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna in 1809; Krall was also a pupil of Preindl’s successor Ignaz von Seyfried. An Offertory of Krall’s was sung in Vienna in 1825. Krall was a torchbearer (Fackelträger) aged c.23 in Beethoven’s funeral procession on 29 March 1826, in which his teacher von Seyfried held one of the cords attached to the pall covering Beethoven’s coffin. Concerts at the Piarist church In early 1845, Krall was the chorus director of the Music Society of the Piarist Church, Vienna (‘Piaristenkirche Musikverein’). The church (finished 1758) dedicated to Maria Treu (Faithful Maria) has a long-standing musical tradition because of its excellent acoustics: the Piarists, the oldest Catholic educational order, had commissioned Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli, first performed there in 1796. A church musical society (‘Musikverein’) was first est

Johann Bernhard Logier

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Johann Bernhard Logier (9 February 1777 – 27 July 1846) was a German composer, teacher, inventor, and publisher resident in Ireland for much of his life. He invented the chiroplast, a device to help students learn the piano, and developed one of the first systems for attempting to teach music in groups, which faced heavy opposition at the time. Except for a three-year stay in Berlin (1822–26), he spent the remainder of his life in Dublin, where he died in 1846. Logier invented the chiroplast, a sliding frame meant as a pedagogical device to guide the hands and fingers while playing the piano, the intention being to improve and control the position of the hand and wrist. Green’s music shop in London had sold 1,600 chiroplasts by 1824. He also developed his own teaching method, later called the Logierian System of Musical Education, which he published in a series of pamphlets and instruction books beginning with The First Companion to the Royal Patent Chiroplast, or Hand-Director (1815). In this method, several pupils are taught at a time, with technical instruction done together with instruction in principles of harmony. This method of teaching multiple students simultaneously was n

Johann Caspar Aiblinger

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Johann Caspar Aiblinger (23 February 1779 – 6 May 1867) was a German composer associated with the Cecilian Movement. Biography Aiblinger was born in Wasserburg am Inn, Bavaria. In his eleventh year, he commenced his studies at Tegernsee Abbey, where he was instructed in piano and organ-playing. Four years later, he entered the gymnasium at Munich, where he studied under Professor Schlett, his countryman. In 1800 he began his studies at the University of Landshut. Inwardly drawn to the Catholic Church, he completed his study of philosophy and began that of theology, but the secularization of many religious orders in Bavaria prevented his entrance into a cloister. He now devoted himself solely to music. Led by the then prevailing idea that without a visit to Italy no musical education is complete, he turned his footsteps southward. After a stay of eight years at Vicenza, where he fell under the influence of his countryman Johann Simon Mayr, Aiblinger (1811) went to Venice and there met Meyerbeer, who procured for him an appointment at the Conservatory. His failure to establish a school for classical music led him to Milan to assume the direction of the local ballet. On his return to

Johann Friedrich Naue

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Johann Friedrich Naue (November 17, 1787, in Halle (Saale) – May 19, 1858, in Halle) was a German composer, organist, and choir director and music theorist. He was a student of Ludwig van Beethoven and Daniel Gottlob Turk and Carl Friedrich Zelter. He composed both secular and spiritual music, and is known for reforming Protestant liturgical music in romantic-era Germany. Naue studied music in Berlin. Along with Felix Mendelssohn, Naue took lessons from Carl Friedrich Zelter. Zelter exposed him to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frederic Handel. In 1808, he returned to Halle to study with Daniel Gottlob Türk. In 1815 Naue became a member of the Halle Masonic Lodge “of the three swords” along with Türk and Carl Loewe. Naue went to Vienna to study briefly with Ludwig van Beethoven. On November 23, 1823 Beethoven dedicated his three-part canon “Kurz ist der Schmerz”, WoO 163, to Naue. The text “Kurz ist der Schmerz und ewig ist die Freude” (“Brief is the pain and forever is the joy”), is from The Maid of Orleans by Friedrich von Schiller, the same poet who wrote the text for Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.” In 1829, Naue sold all of his books and spent all of his inheritance in

Johann Friedrich Schubert

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Johann Friedrich Schubert (17 December 176913 October 1811) was a German composer and violinist. Schubert was born in Rudolstadt, in either 1770 or 1769, and was an apprentice to Christian Hieronimus Krause in Sondershausen. After the premiere of his opera , Schubert was appointed music director. He was the music director of various theatrical companies in Stettin, Glogau, Ballenstedt, etc. He also directed the concerts of the Cologne Merchant Society in Mülheim. Among his published compositions are a violin concerto, a concertante for oboe and bassoon, violin duets, and pianoforte pieces; Schubert also composed an opera in Stettin and published the book in 1804. He went to Mülheim as a music director and teacher, staying there until his death. References External links *Free scores by Johann Friedrich Schubert at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) *Johann Friedrich Schubert. In: Deutsche Biographie (Index-Eintrag); accessed 16 February 2024. *Johann Friedrich Schubert. Information in the Bach digital portal of the Bach-Archivs Leipzig. accessed 16 February 2024. *Johann Friedrich Schubert at weber-gesamtausgabe.de *Johann Friedrich Schubert in the Bayerischen Mu

Johann Gottfried Arnold

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Johann Gottfried Arnold (15 February 1773 – 16 July 1806) was a German cellist and composer. Life He was the son of the schoolmaster of Niedernhall near Oehringen in Württemberg. From his earliest childhood he showed such a passion and aptitude for music that his father apprenticed him in his twelfth year to the musical director (Stadtmusikus) of the neighbouring town of Künzelsau. During this time he devoted himself chiefly to the practice of the cello, at which, under the influence of a most exacting master, he worked with such diligence as, it is said, permanently to injure his health. In 1789, his term of apprenticeship came to an end, and the following year he took his first regular engagement at Wertheim, where his uncle, Friedrich Adam Arnold, was established as musical director. He continued to study with unabated energy. After making concert tours in Switzerland and Germany, he spent some time at Regensburg in order to take advantage of the instruction of the able cellist Maximilian Willmann. Making constant improvement, he visited Berlin and Hamburg, at which latter town he had the good fortune to make the acquaintance of Bernhard Romberg, whose style and method he studie

Johann Heinrich Walch

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Johann Heinrich Walch (1776–1855), was a German conductor, chamber musician and choral master at the court of the Dukes of Saxe-Coburg. Life Walch acted in various capacities for Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, and after his death for Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the father of Queen Victoria’s husband Albert, Prince Consort. Works Walch composed many well-known marches, some of which have long been wrongly attributed to Beethoven and the Prince Consort, Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Many marches supposedly written by Prince Albert for cavalry regiments are actually by Walch, including the regimental quick march of the Somerset Light Infantry. References Sources * Werner Probst, “Johann Heinrich Walch komponierte den bekannten Trauermarsch von Beethoven” in Mitteilungsblatt des Arbeitskreises Militärmusik (German Society for Military Studies, 21st Year, No. 2, June 1998), pp. 98–105 External links * Beethoven Funeral March No 1 played during * Beethoven Funeral March No 1 played during * Beethoven Funeral March No 1 played during

Johann Kaspar Mertz

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Joseph Kaspar Mertz (17 August 1806 – 14 October 1856) was an Austrian guitarist and composer. Biography Caspar Joseph Mertz (baptised Casparus Josephus Mertz) was born in Pressburg (now Bratislava, Slovakia), then the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary and part of the Austrian Empire. He never used his full name when performing or on his publications, preferring only the initials “J. K.”. The name “Johann Kaspar” first appeared in the German guitar journal “Der Guitarrefreund” in 1901 and since that time has been incorrectly repeated. In 1900 J. M. Miller used the name “Joseph K. Mertz” for his publication of three previously unpublished manuscripts of Mertz in Three Compositions For Guitar. He was active in Vienna (c. 1840 – 1856), which had been home to various prominent figures of the guitar, including Anton Diabelli, Mauro Giuliani, Wenceslaus Matiegka and Simon Molitor. As virtuoso, he established a solid reputation as a performer. He toured Moravia, Poland, and Russia, and gave performances in Berlin and Dresden. In 1846 Mertz nearly died of an overdose of strychnine that had been prescribed to him as a treatment for neuralgia. Over the following year he was nursed back to he

Johann Ludwig Böhner

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Johann Ludwig Böhner (7 January 1787 - 28 March 1860) was a German composer, pianist, and organist. He was known as the “Thuringian Mozart” by his contemporaries. Life Böhner was born in Töttelstädt, Thuringia, near Erfurt. After his musical exposure and training by his father, Johann Matthias Böhner (a cantor and organist), Johann Christian Kittel, and , he worked as a piano teacher in Gotha, where he met Ludwig Spohr, until attaining the position of music director in Nuremberg in 1811. During his years at Nuremberg (1811-1814), many of his more well-known works were composed, including his Fantasies for Bassoon and Orchestra and Clarinet and Orchestra, and his romantic opera Die Mädchen in einsamen Mühlenthale. As a pianist, Böhner scored his first success in Leipzig’s Gewandhaus on 16 May 1814. From 1815 onwards, he toured through Germany, Austria, Denmark, and Switzerland. However, Böhner’s successful piano career was soon to be compromised by increasing eccentricity, fraud, and ill health. Because of his character flaws, he had a mental breakdown in Hamburg in 1819 and stayed mostly in Gotha for the rest of his life. At a performance in Leipzig in September 1834, composer Robe

Johann Nepomuk Hummel

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Johann Nepomuk Hummel (14 November 177817 October 1837) was an Austrian composer and pianist. His music reflects the transition from the Classical to the Romantic musical era. He was among Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri’s best students. He also studied under Joseph Haydn. Hummel significantly influenced later piano music of the nineteenth century, particularly in the works of Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt, and Felix Mendelssohn. Life Early life Hummel was born in Pressburg, Kingdom of Hungary (now Bratislava, Slovakia). Unusually for that period, he was an only child. He was named after the Czech patron saint John of Nepomuk. His father, Johannes Hummel, was a violinist and music teacher who served in the household orchestra of Count Grassalkovich and later as orchestra director at the Pressburg Theatre before becoming music director at the military academy in Wartberg (now Senec, Slovakia) around 1780. Following the dissolution of this institution under Joseph II’s reforms, the family relocated to Vienna in late 1786 or early 1787, where Johannes became music director at the Theater auf der Wieden and later at the Apollo-Tanzsaal. His mother, Margarethe Sommer Hummel,

Johann Nepomuk Schelble

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Johann Nepomuk Schelble (16 May 1789 – 6 August 1837), was a German conductor, composer, singer (tenor) and music teacher. Best known as the founding conductor of Cäcilienverein (the Choir of Saint Cecilia, known today as the Cäcilienchor Frankfurt), he also helped revive interest in the work of Johann Sebastian Bach. Biography Johann Nepomuk Schelble was born in Hüfingen, a small town in the Black Forest in what is now the Schwarzwald-Baar District in the south of what would soon be the Grand Duchy of Baden but was still at that point part of the soon to end Holy Roman Empire. He was the second of 14 children and the only son of barrel painter Franz (or Franciscus) Joseph (Donat) Schelble (17 February 1762 – 13 February 1835) and Katharina Schelble née Götz (1 November 1760 – 4 April 1847), The Schelble family had a history of musical interest. Katharina Götz, the daughter of a wealthy farmer, was both musically inclined and possessed a beautiful singing voice. Franz Josef Scheble had received instruction in Donaueschingen in both organ and piano playing, although he gave up his aspirations as a musician due to his poor singing voice; he continued to make pianos as a hobby. Both F

Johann Peter Pixis

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Johann Peter Pixis (10 February 178822 December 1874) was a German pianist and composer, born in Mannheim. He lived in Vienna from 1808 to 1824, then in Paris to 1840, during which time he was among the city’s most prominent pianists and composers, although he is almost entirely forgotten nowadays. Biography He was the son of Friedrich Wilhelm Pixis (1755–1805), who in 1790 followed his own father to become Preceptor and Organist at the Evangelical Reformed Church. Johann Peter’s older brother, also Friedrich Wilhelm Pixis (1785–1842), was a violinist who later became prominent in the musical life of Prague. The two brothers received early musical training from their father, who took the talented boys on concert tours beginning in 1797; they traveled through Germany and to Denmark, Russia (St. Petersburg), and Poland (Warsaw). During the tour, the older brother also played piano duets with Johann Peter, who in turn accompanied his brother on the cello and violin. While in Hamburg in 1798, Viotti was so impressed by Friedrich Wilhelm junior that he gave daily lessons, which Johann Peter also attended, for two months, and he organized a concert for the two boys. Friedrich Wilhelm sen

Johann Strauss I

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Johann Baptist Strauss I (; ; 14 March 1804 – 25 September 1849), also known as Johann Strauss Sr., the Elder or the Father (), was an Austrian composer of the Romantic Period. He was famous for his light music, namely waltzes, polkas, and galops, which he popularized alongside Joseph Lanner, thereby setting the foundations for his sons—Johann, Josef and Eduard—to carry on his musical dynasty. He is best known for his composition of the Radetzky March (named after Joseph Radetzky von Radetz). Life and work Johann Strauss was born in Leopoldstadt (now in Vienna). Strauss’s parents, Franz Borgias Strauss (10 October 1764 – 5 April 1816) and Barbara Dollmann (3 December 1770 – 28 August 1811), were innkeepers (). He was born a Roman Catholic. Strauss had a Jewish grandfather, Johann Michael Strauss (1720–1800), who converted to Catholicism. Strauss’ mother died of ‘creeping fever’ when he was seven and five years later his father drowned, possibly as a result of suicide, in the Danube river. Strauss’ guardian, the tailor Anton Müller, placed him as an apprentice to the bookbinder, Johann Lichtscheidl; Strauss took lessons in the violin and viola in addition to fulfilling his apprentic

Johann Vesque von Püttlingen

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Johann Vesque von Püttlingen (pseudonym Johann Hoven) (23 July 1803 – 29 October 1883), born J. Vesque de Puttelange, was an Austrian lawyer, diplomat, author, composer and singer. His full name and title in German was Johann Vesque, Freiherr von Püttlingen. Early life He was born in the Lubomirski Palace (pl:Pałac Lubomirskich) in Opole Lubelskie (at the time located in West Galicia, a province of the Holy Roman Empire in eastern Poland, now in Lublin Voivodship). ;Background His father, Jean Vesque de Puttelange, born in Brussels, was a state official (civil servant) in Brussels, at the time in the Duchy of Brabant, a region of the Austrian Netherlands, themselves part of the Holy Roman Empire. Jean Vesque had to leave in a hurry after the French invasion of the Low Countries in 1793, but found himself banned (with the other Belgian officials of the late Brussels administration) from Vienna, where there were enough civil servants already; having rejected a French offer of citizenship of the new greater France - now including southern Belgium and Luxembourg - his estates were confiscated and he found himself stateless. After many years of wandering in Europe, often on foot, Jean V

Johann Wilhelm Wilms

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Johann Wilhelm Wilms (March 30, 1772 (baptized) – July 19, 1847) was a Dutch-German composer, best known for setting the poem Wien Neêrlands Bloed to music, which served as the Dutch national anthem from 1817 to 1932. Biography Wilms was born in Witzhelden, a small town near Solingen. After receiving lessons from his father and oldest brother in piano and composition, Wilms studied flute on his own. He moved to Amsterdam in 1791 where he played the flute in two orchestras and was soloist in Mozart and Beethoven piano concertos, giving them their Dutch premieres. Here, he also received further instruction in musical theory from the Saxony-born composer Georg Casper Hodermann (1740-1802). Around 1793, his first composition was published, a sonata for keyboard (harpsichord or possibly fortepiano), which is lost. Three years later, Wilms was one of the six founders of the society Eruditio Musica, which organised concerts at which he was active as pianist and composer. He taught piano at the Koninklijk Nederlandsch Instituut voor Wetenschappen (the precursor of the present Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) after it was founded by the first King of Holland, Louis Napoleon.

Johannes Bernardus van Bree

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Johannes Bernardus van Bree (29 January 1801 – 14 February 1857) was a Dutch composer, violinist and conductor. Van Bree was born and died in Amsterdam. He was a pupil of Jan George Bertelman. From 1829 to the year of his death he directed the Felix Meritis Society. He was also the director of the Music School of the Society of the Promotion of Music, Amsterdam. As a conductor he gave the Dutch premieres of Berlioz’ Symphonie fantastique (in 1855) and Richard Wagner’s Faust Overture (1856). Incomplete list of works *Operas **Sappho ) *Choral and Vocal Works **Mass for Soloists, Mixed Chorus and Orchestra in A flat (ca. 1830) **Mass for Two-Part Chorus and Organ in F **Three Masses “tribus vocibus humanis, comitante organo” for Three-Part Male Chorus and Organ (1837) **Fantasy in form of a symphony (1845) **Allegro for Four String Quartets in D minor (about 1845) References External links *

Johannes Frederik Fröhlich

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Johannes Frederik Fröhlich (21 August 1806 – 21 May 1860) (or Frølich), a Danish violinist, conductor and composer, was a precursor of Niels Gade and J.P.E. Hartmann, and a central figure in Danish musical circles during the Romantic era. Biography He was a pupil of violinists Claus Schall and Friedrich Kuhlau. From 1827 he worked at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen, where he was chief conductor from 1836. Fröhlich was a co-founder of the Music Society of Copenhagen and its first chairman. Works He wrote a symphony (in E-flat, Op. 33), and choral works and chamber music, as well as violin and piano compositions and a violin concerto. He wrote ballet music for the ballet-master and choreographer August Bournonville, founder of the Danish ballet tradition. The main cache of his musical manuscripts is conserved in the Kongelige Bibliotek, Copenhagen. Notable works *op. 1 Strygekvartet nr. 1 i d-mol (1825) *op. 2 Strygekvartet nr. 2 i A-dur *op. 3 violinkoncerter (1825) *Ouverture til Kong Salomon og Jørgen Hattemager (1825) *op. 4 Koncertino for Violin (1826) *op. 6 Introduktion og Polonaise for Violin med Orkester *op. 7 violinkoncert *op. 14 violinkoncert *op. 15 Strygekvartet (1827) *

John Barnett (composer)

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John Barnett (15 July 1802 – 16 April 1890) was an English composer and writer on music. Life Barnett was the eldest son of a Prussian Jew named Bernhard Beer, who changed his surname on settling in England as a jeweller. According to some he was a cousin of the composer Giacomo Meyerbeer. Barnett was born at Bedford, and at the age of eleven sang at the Lyceum Theatre stage in London. His good voice led to his being given a musical education, and he soon began writing songs and lighter pieces for the stage. In 1834 he published a collection of Lyrical Illustrations of the Modern Poets. His opera The Mountain Sylph – with which his name is nowadays most associated – received a warm welcome when produced at the Lyceum on 25 August 1834, as the first modern English opera, and was given over 100 performances, which was an unusual success. It was followed by Fair Rosamond in 1837, and Farinelli in 1839, to librettos by his younger brother Charles Zachary Barnett, but Barnett never again achieved the success that he had enjoyed with The Mountain Sylph. Disappointed with his reception as a composer, Barnett retired to the country. He had a large connection as a singing-master at Cheltenh

John Christian Bechler

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John Christian Bechler (7 January 1784 in Oesel, Governorate of Livonia (present-day Estonia) – 18 April 1857 in Herrnhut, Saxony (present-day Germany)) was a Moravian bishop, composer, and organist. Biography Bechler was educated at the Moravian school in Niesky, Germany and continued studies at the Theological Seminary in Barby, Germany. He was called to the United States in 1806 to teach at the boys school of Nazareth Hall, in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, as a tutor. In the following year the Moravian Theological Seminary was founded in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and he was appointed one of its first professors. In 1817 he accepted the principalship of Nazareth Hall, and subsequently had charge of various churches in Pennsylvania and on Staten Island. In 1829 Bechler was transferred to Salem in North Carolina, and presided over the Moravian work in the South (Wachovia Tract) around what is now Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was consecrated to the episcopacy at Lititz, Pennsylvania, 17 May 1835. In the following year he went to Europe as a member of the general synod, and did not return, but was transferred to Russia, where he stood at the head of the Moravian establishment at Sarept

John Field (composer)

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John Field (26 July 1782 – 23 January 1837) was an Irish pianist, composer and teacher widely credited as the inventor of the nocturne. While many of his contemporaries wrote in a similar style, Field was the first to use the term to apply to a character piece featuring a cantabile melody over an arpeggiated accompaniment. Born into a musical family in Dublin, he received his early education in the city, particularly with Tommaso Giordani. The family moved to London in 1793 where, under the tutelage of Muzio Clementi, Field soon became a famous and sought-after concert pianist. Together, they visited Paris, Vienna, and Saint Petersburg. Ambiguity surrounds Field’s decision to remain in the latter, but it is likely that Field acted as a sales representative for Clementi & Co.. Field was very highly regarded by his contemporaries and his playing and compositions influenced many major composers, including Felix Mendelssohn, Frédéric Chopin, Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann, and Franz Liszt. Although little is known of Field’s time in Russia, he undoubtedly contributed substantially to concerts and teaching, and to the development of the Russian piano school. Amongst his students were

John Goss (composer)

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Sir John Goss (27 December 1800 – 10 May 1880) was an English organist, composer and teacher. Born to a musical family, Goss was a boy chorister of the Chapel Royal, London, and later a pupil of Thomas Attwood, organist of St Paul’s Cathedral. After a brief period as a chorus member in an opera company he was appointed organist of a chapel in south London, later moving to more prestigious organ posts at St Luke’s Church, Chelsea and finally St Paul’s Cathedral, where he struggled to improve musical standards. As a composer, Goss wrote little for the orchestra, but was known for his vocal music, both religious and secular. Among his best-known compositions are his hymn tunes “Praise, my soul, the King of heaven” and “See, Amid the Winter’s Snow”. The music critic of The Times described him as the last of the line of English composers who confined themselves almost entirely to ecclesiastical music. From 1827 to 1874, Goss was a professor at the Royal Academy of Music, teaching harmony. He also taught at St Paul’s. Among his pupils at the academy were Arthur Sullivan, Frederic Cowen and Frederick Bridge. His best-known pupil at St Paul’s was John Stainer, who succeeded him as organist

John Howard Payne

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John Howard Payne (June 9, 1791 – April 10, 1852) was an American actor, poet, playwright, and writer who had nearly two decades of a theatrical career and success in London. He is today most remembered as the creator of “Home! Sweet Home!”, a song he wrote in 1822 that became widely popular in the United States and the English-speaking world. Its popularity was revived during the American Civil War, as troops on both sides embraced it. After his return to the United States in 1832, Payne spent time with the Cherokee in the Southeast and interviewed many elders. Intending to write about them, he amassed material about their culture, language and society, which have been useful to scholars. But his published theory that suggested their origin as one of the Ten Lost Tribes of ancient Israel has been thoroughly disproved. At that time, European Americans were still strongly influenced by a Biblical basis of history in trying to understand origins of the peoples in the Americas. Early life and education John Howard Payne was born in New York City on June 9, 1791, one of seven sons among nine children. Early in his childhood, the family moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where his father h

John Lodge Ellerton

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John Lodge Ellerton (11 January 1801 – 3 January 1873) was an English composer of classical music. Life Ellerton was born in Cheshire with the name of John Lodge. He attended Rugby School and graduated with an MA from Brasenose College, Oxford University in 1828. Between 1829 and 1831 he studied under in Rome, where he wrote 7 operas in Italian. In 1837 he adopted the name of Ellerton and on 24 August that year married Henrietta Barbara Lumley, the sister of the 8th Earl of Scarbrough. His English opera “Domenica” was produced at Drury Lane in 1838, but this was unsuccessful; his oratorio Paradise Lost (op. 125; for soloists (SSAATTTBB), chorus (SATB) and orchestra.), published in 1857, had more critical success although apparently few performances. His Mass in D appeared in 1843: a reviewer wrote, “This is the composition of an amateur, and evidently one who has studied in the right school… it is by no means a discreditable work, nor undeserving of attention. The Kyrie is well conceived, but contains many passages that remind us of Haydn…. The fugue, Cum Sancto Spiritu is well written, but smacks rather much of Mozart’s spirited effusions to the same words. The same may be sai

John Purkis

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John Purkis (1781 – 10 April 1849), was an English organist and teacher. He was blind at birth. A child prodigy, Purkis studied with Thomas Grenville (circa 1744–1827), also blind, and the organist at the Foundling Hospital in London. He became organist at St Margaret’s Chapel at the age of nine, and then, aged 12, at St Olave Southwark, after a public competition and three day poll. His salary there was £30. He was consultant to the organ building firm Flight and Robinson during the construction of the Apollonicon a self-playing barrel organ, presented to the public for the first time in 1817. Over the next 21 years he performed popular Saturday afternoon recitals on the instrument at the firm’s showroom, 101, St Martin’s Lane. At the recitals Purkis often played fantasias on opera themes that were later published as piano pieces by William Hodsoll, and these became very popular with home pianists in the 1820s. A tutorial book by Purkis was published. But rival William Bainbridge, inventor of the six finger-hole “improved English flageolet” in 1803, produced a more popular double flageolet, for which he was granted a patent in 1810. In 1811 Purkis went through a series of operatio

John Thomson (composer)

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John Thomson (28 October 1805 – 18 May 1841) was a Scottish classical composer. He was born in Sprouston, Roxburghshire, the son of Andrew Mitchell Thomson, the minister of Sprouston Church. Life and career Thomson studied in Germany with a letter of introduction to the Mendelssohn family, and his Drei Lieder were published in Leipzig in 1838. John Purser contends that we have to look to Schumann to find anything comparable to these songs published two years before Schumann composed any songs in his mature style. The first song, Keiner von den Schönheit Töchtern, is based on the poem There be none of beauty’s daughters by Byron, set in German by Thomson to match the other songs. Thomson became the first Reid Professor of Music at the University of Edinburgh in 1838. As a musicologist he edited the Vocal Melodies of Scotland, and he was one of the first conductors to provide his audience with a programme of his concerts giving a critical analysis of the works to be performed. His other compositions included a fine bagatelle for solo piano, a six-part Glee With Whispering Winds, three operas, a flute concerto and a flute quartet, and concert arias. However his career was cut short by

Jonathan Blewitt

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Jonathan Blewitt (19 July 1782 – 4 September 1853) His father, Jonas Blewitt (died 1805), was a distinguished organist in the late 18th century, author of A Complete Treatise on the Organ, and Ten Voluntaries and Twelve Preludes for the organ. He was educated by his father and his godfather Jonathan Battishill, and he is said to have received some instruction from Joseph Haydn. At the age of eleven he acted as deputy to his father, and subsequently he held several appointments as organist in London. He was also organist at Haverhill, Suffolk, and at Brecon, where he remained for three years. In about 1808 he returned to London for the production of an opera he had written for Drury Lane, but the theatre was burnt down before the work was produced. In 1810 he was appointed organist at Sheffield Cathedral. Ireland In 1811 Blewitt moved to Ireland, where he was a private organist of Lord Cahir. He was appointed organist of St. Andrew’s, Dublin; in 1813 he became composer and director of music at the Theatre Royal. He was appointed by the Duke of Leinster as organist to the Freemasons of Ireland. When J. B. Logier came to Ireland to introduce his system of music teaching, Blewitt joine

José Bernardo Alzedo

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José Bernardo Alzedo (August 20, 1788 – December 28, 1878) was a Peruvian composer. Alzedo was born in Lima, Peru. He studied music at the Convento de San Agustín, and composed Misa en Re Mayor (Mass Hymn in D Major) when he was 18 years old. In 1806, he became a Dominican friar; his behaviour was considered lax by the fellow members of that religious order. Alzedo was the winner of an 1821 contest sponsored by General José de San Martín to choose a national anthem for Peru, being his winning opus called Somos libres, seámoslo siempre (“We are free; so shall we ever be”), with lyrics by José de la Torre Ugarte. In 1822, Alzedo went to Chile as a soldier in a military band. In Santiago, he left the military and dedicated himself to music. He joined the choir of the Cathedral of Santiago in 1833. In 1846, he became kapellmeister. He resided in Chile for 42 years, returning to Peru in 1864. He became director of the Peruvian military band, and president of the Philharmonic. He spent the last years of his life in Peru, and wrote the book Filosofía Elemental de la Música (Elementary Philosophy of Music) in 1869, in which he discourses upon Quechuan music. He composed folk songs, numerous r

José Eulalio Samayoa

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José Eulalio Samayoa (c. 1781 – c. 1866) was a Guatemalan classical composer. Biography José Eulalio Samayoa was educated within the system of guilds, progressing from apprentice to journeyman before becoming a master. He founded the Philharmonic Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, with a series of musical and liturgical celebrations held on July 2, 1813. The same day he was admitted to the Guatemala Cathedral choir, as third tenor, which he regarded as a heavenly grace for having established the Philharmonic Society. In 1842 he wrote the history of this Society, with an extended historical appendix on the development of Music in Guatemala since the earliest days of the Spanish missions, thus becoming the first music historian in Central America and perhaps all of Latin America. Samayoa is one of the first composers in the Americas to attempt the composition of larger instrumental forms that culminates in the symphony. Having been trained in the tradition of Spanish church music, he was taught how to write well for voices with instrumental accompaniment. The resulting forms, mainly those of the villancico and cantata, were defined by the poetic form of the text. When the Cathedra

José Mariano Elízaga

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Elízaga Prado, José Damián (27 September 1786 – 2 October 1842) was a Mexican composer, music theorist, pianist, organist and teacher. He was the Kapellmeister of emperor Agustín I of Mexico and was the first great Mexican composer of the beginning of the 19th century. Life Elízaga was born in Valladolid (Morelia), and was a child prodigy. He played before the viceroy Juan Vicente de Güemes, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo when he was 6. The viceroy became his main protector and sent him to the Colegio de Infantes de la Catedral. Elízaga later returned to Valladolid and in 1799 to Morelia where he worked as an organist. He acquired the best pianoforte of Mexico City to teach the local aristocracy. One of his pupils was Ana María de Huarte y Muñiz who later became the wife of Agustín de Iturbide, the emperor of the First Mexican Empire. In 1822, Elízaga was appointed ¨maestro de capilla¨ (Kapellmeister) of the Capilla Imperial. In 1823 he published his Elementos de música in Mexico City, a copy can be found in the Biblioteca Nacional in Mexico. The end of the First Mexican Empire damaged Elizaga’s reputation but the Mexican government continued to support him. Elizaga settled the bases f

José Melchor Gomis

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José Melchor Gomis y Colomer (6 January 1791 – 4 August 1836) was a Spanish Romantic composer. Career He was born in Ontinyent, Vall d’Albaida, Valencia Province. He served as the music director for an artillery regiment during the Napoleonic Wars. An early melodrame voiced by Gomis was performed in Valencia in 1817. He composed the music for the Himno de Riego, named after the rebellious General Riego (1784-1823), which has since been used as the national anthem by various republican governments of Spain. Gomis’s political views led him to live in exile after the accession of Ferdinand VII in 1823, first in Paris and then in London. In both cities, he was a friend of fellow exile and composer Santiago Masarnau, whom he may have introduced to London musical life. In Paris, Gomis wrote a successful singing method, published in 1826 with dedications to Gioacchino Rossini and François-Adrien Boieldieu. In London, his choral work L’inverno was performed in 1827. In 1830, his opera Aben-Humeya was performed in Paris. Gomis’s Paris operas Diable à Seville (1831) (staged with the support of Rossini) and Le revenant (1836) gained respectful reviews from Hector Berlioz. Le portefaix, the mo

Josef Slavík

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Josef Slavík (26 March 1806 – 30 May 1833) was a Czech violin virtuoso and composer. He was expected by Viennese musical critics to become Paganini’s successor after composing a supposedly unplayable Concerto in F-sharp minor and teaching himself to play Paganini’s “La Campanella” after a single hearing. Career The first son of Barbora (born Krásová) and Antonín Slavík, teacher and musician, who started to teach Josef violin in the age of four. Later on, he was a student of violin by Friedrich Wilhelm Pixis and music theory and composition by Friedrich Dionys Weber at the Prague Conservatory. Before leaving Prague, Slavík played his final concert. He went to Vienna in 1825 and became enjoyed critical success. He was then a young man of nineteen, but already technically superior to other violinists that had been heard in the Austrian capital. The celebrated Mayseder called him a “second Lipinski”. Frédéric Chopin who heard Slavík on several occasions described his skills as: “With the exception of Paganini, I have never heard a player like him. Ninety-six staccatos in one bow! It is almost incredible! He plays like a second Paganini, but a rejuvenated one, who will perhaps in time s

Josef Triebensee

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Josef Triebensee (Trübensee) (November 21, 1772 Třeboň - April 22, 1846 Prague) was a Bohemian composer and oboist. He studied composition with Albrechtsberger and oboe with his father, Georg Triebensee (January 28, 1746-June 14, 1813) who served in the private orchestra of Prince Schwarzenberg, and then from 1782 to 1806 as first oboist of the Austrian Emperor’s Harmonie (wind band). Concurrently, he also served as principal oboist at the Nationaltheater of Vienna with Johann Went playing 2nd oboe. Josef II had basically poached the principal oboe, principal cor anglais and principal bassoonist from the Schwarzenberg Harmonie (founded 1771) to head up his own Harmonie. Josef was the second oboist, with Olivier Hue, at the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna in 1791 when he played in the premiere of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte—explaining the peculiar difficulty of the second oboe parts in that work. Josef then became second oboist at the Kärntnertortheater in 1793 moving up to 1st oboe in 1794. He was also 1st Oboe in Prince Liechtenstein’s Harmonie at Feldsberg, and in 1796 became its Kapellmeister. In 1796 he played 2nd oboe to his father who was on 1st oboe playing in the National The

Josef Vorel

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Josef Vorel (also Worel) (13 November 1801 – 19 December 1874) was a Czech priest and composer. He is known mainly as a composer of songs and choirs in the folk style. Vorel was born in Opočno, the son of a teacher. He began his musical training at an early age. He learned the piano, viola and organ at age five. From 1813 he studied at gymnasium in Rychnov nad Kněžnou, where he founded and led a student brass orchestra. During his theological studies in Prague he met and befriended the writer and translator Karel Alois Vinařický, an important exponent of the Czech cultural scene during the period of the Czech National Revival. In 1835 he moved to Zdice, where he served as a priest for the rest of his life. During his active career he maintained contacts with several Czech artists and poets such as Josef Jungmann, Šebestián Hněvkovský and brothers Jan and Vojtěch Nejedlý. He died in Zdice. Vorel’s musical output is influenced by the patriotic atmosphere of the Czech National Revival. Some of his songs became popular due to their nationalistic view and openly declared affection to the native country. Selected compositions Songs *Návrat rytíře (published in Věnec, 1836) *Píseň letní (

Joseph Christoph Kessler

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Joseph Christoph Kessler (26 August 180014 January 1872), also seen as Kötzler, was a German pianist and composer who was active mostly in the Austrian Empire. His études, nocturnes, variations, preludes and bagatelles He studied under the organist Bilek at Feldsberg and at a seminary at Nicolsburg. who used some of Kessler’s works in their own pedagogical material. He also taught at Landshut. Frédéric Chopin became exposed to Kessler’s music while he was in his teens, in Warsaw. Kessler arrived in Warsaw in 1829, and quickly became part of the musical life there. He was one of a number of people who gave regular musical soirees attended by Chopin. It was at such Kessler soirees that Chopin heard for the first time works such as Beethoven’s “Archduke” Trio. Kessler and Chopin became firm friends. Kessler’s Études were arranged in a circle of fifths, unlike Johann Sebastian Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, which is arranged in ascending chromatic order. It has been said that Chopin may have even borrowed the title “étude” from Kessler, and copied from Kessler the idea of using metronome marks in his scores. A decade later, Chopin repaid the dedication in his own 24 Preludes, Op. 28

Joseph Czerny

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Joseph Czerny (17 June 1785, Hořovice – 7 January 1842, Vienna) was a pianist, composer, music publisher, and piano teacher from the Austrian Empire. He was not related to Carl Czerny. Among his compositions is Variation No. 5 from Part II of Diabelli’s Vaterländischer Künstlerverein and about 60 other works consisting of fantasias, rondos, other variations, etc., which he published. Fétis was also critical of him: “Joseph’s talent on the piano was less than mediocre; his compositions are not of a much higher order.” Apparently, Joseph only started composing after Carl gave fame to the name “Czerny”, and he understood that he could capitalize on this coincidence. It was doubted that Joseph had ever composed anything, and that he instead had his works done by young artists whom he paid to obtain permission to put his name on their productions. But this suspicion eventually proved untrue, for the piano pieces bearing Joseph Czerny’s name were already forgotten by about 1867. In the last years of his life, he had adopted the profession of bookseller-publisher. References

Joseph Daussoigne-Méhul

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Joseph Daussoigne-Méhul (10 June 1790 – 10 March 1875) was a French composer and music educator. He served as the first director of the Royal Conservatory of Liège from 1826–1862; having been appointed to that post by William I of the Netherlands. In addition to his duties as director, he also taught courses in harmony and composition at the school. Among his notable pupils were Adolphe and Caroline Samuel, César Franck, and Jean-Théodore Radoux, the latter of whom succeeded him as conservatory director. In 1859, he was made a Commander of the Order of Leopold. Life and career Born Louis-Joseph Daussoigne in Givet, Ardennes, he legally changed his name to Joseph Daussoigne-Méhul on 12 August 1845 when he was 55 years old. He and his younger brother had been adopted by their uncle, the composer Étienne Méhul, in 1797 when he was seven years old. His brother served as a lieutenant in the French Army during the War of 1812 and was killed in action. In 1799, Daussoigne-Méhul entered the Conservatoire de Paris when he was just nine years old. He studied there for the next 10 years, during which time he received several academic honours and competition prizes from the Conservatoire, incl

Joseph Eschborn

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Peter Joseph Eschborn (March 4, 1800, in Mainz – November 17, 1881, in Coburg)

Joseph Gungl

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Joseph Gungl, correct: Josef Gung’l (1 December 1809 – 1 February 1889), was a Hungarian composer, bandmaster, and conductor. He was soprano Virginia Naumann-Gungl’s father. Biography Gungl was born in Schambeck, Austrian-Hungarian monarchy (now Zsámbék, Hungary). After working as a school-teacher in Buda, and learning the elements of music from the school-choirmaster, he became first oboist at Graz, and, at twenty-five, bandmaster of the 4th Regiment of Austrian Artillery. His first composition, a Hungarian march, written in 1836, attracted some notice, and in 1843 he was able to establish an orchestra in Berlin. With this band he travelled far, even to the United States in 1848–1849. Mendelssohn’s complete A Midsummer Night’s Dream music is said to have been first played by Gungl’s orchestra. In 1853 he became bandmaster to the 23rd Infantry Regiment at Brno, but in 1864 he moved to Munich, and in 1876 at Frankfurt, after having conducted with great success a series of promenade concerts at the Covent Garden in London in 1873. From Frankfurt, Gungl went to Weimar to live with his daughter, a well-known German opera singer, and died there. Compositions Gungl was a very prolific co

Joseph Kemp (organist)

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Joseph Kemp (1778–1824) was an English musical composer, organist and teacher. He is noted as an early proponent of teaching music in classes and the playing of exercises by students. In 1810, at the Russell Institution Kemp began a series of lectures on musical education in which he advocated the teaching of music in classes and the playing of exercises by pupils in concert. On account of failing health he returned with his wife and family to his native city, and resided there until 1824, with the interruption of a visit to France in 1818–21. He had founded a musical college at Exeter in 1814. A journey to London in April 1824 proved too fatiguing for Kemp, then in a weak state of health, and he died in his lodgings on 22 May. He had married in 1805, and left at his death his widow, two sons, and one daughter. Works Kemp published two pedagogical works: # Upwards of 100 cards, containing more than 500 points in music, connected with the new system of musical education (1810–19) # The new system of musical education, being a self instructor and serviceable companion to music masters (c. 1821) His compositions include: # Op. I., twelve songs, London, 1799, which show some originalit

Joseph Kreutzer

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Joseph Kreutzer (11 November 1790 – 16 June 1840) was a German composer, conductor, guitarist, and violinist. Kreutzer was born in Aachen, the son of a local music teacher. He lived in Düsseldorf from about 1805, where he established himself among the leading musicians of the city. He is known to have been a violin teacher to Norbert Burgmüller and probably concert master at the local theatre for a time. He died in Düsseldorf. His compositions consisted mostly of chamber music and instructive pieces for bowed strings and guitar. It is for his charming though conservative guitar works that he is still being performed and recorded today. He also penned a lost symphony. Works Guitar * 6 Variations on a Theme from Weber’s “Der Freischütz” op. 6 (for 2 guitars) * 6 Variations on a theme by Mozart op. 7 * Six Variations brillants über das Lied “A Schüsserl und a Reindl” op. 10 * Six Variations in C major op. 11 * Six Variations on “God Save the King” op. 12 * Variationen über das Lied “Kind willst du ruhig schlafen” aus Peter von Winters Oper “Das Opferfest” op. 13 * 8 Variations in A major on a favourite Tyrolean song op. 14 * 12 Pièces amusantes op. 17 * Trois Rondeaux op. 23 * 6 Varia

Joseph Küffner

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Joseph Küffner (Kueffner) (31 March 1776 in Würzburg – 9 September 1856 in Würzburg) was a German musician and composer who, among other achievements, contributed significantly to the guitar repertory, including chamber music. Life He was a violinist with the Würzburg court orchestra, and was later, when Würzburg became part of Bavaria (1802), assigned to take charge of military music. At this point he became bandmaster with a Bavarian Army regiment. Music A quintet of Küffner’s for clarinet and strings was once attributed to Carl Maria von Weber, He composed seven symphonies and a large number of works for various chamber music combinations. His output also contains a substantial quantity of music for classical guitar (some of it being available in modern editions). Compositions *Symphonies **First Symphony op. 75 (pub. Schott, 1818) **Second Symphony op. 76 (Schott) **Third Symphony op. 83 (pub. André, ca 1820) **Fourth Symphony op. 141 (Schott) **Fifth Symphony op. 142 (pub. by 1824) (Schott) **Sixth Symphony op. 150 (Schott) **Seventh Symphony op. 164 (pub. 1826) (Schott) *Concertante **Polonaise for trumpet and orchestra, op. 126 **Potpourri, Concerto No. 1 in D for viola and

Joseph Lanner

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Joseph Lanner (12 April 1801 – 14 April 1843) was an Austrian dance music composer and dance orchestra conductor. He is best remembered as one of the earliest Viennese composers to reform the waltz from a simple peasant dance to something that even the highest society could enjoy, either as an accompaniment to the dance, or for the music’s own sake. He was just as famous as his friend and musical rival Johann Strauss I, who was better known outside of Austria in their day because of his concert tours abroad, in particular to France and England. Lanner had a lesser-known son, August Lanner, who was just as musically gifted and prodigious as his father, but whose budding career was cut short by his early death at age 20. His daughter Katharina became a well-known international ballet dancer, settling in London where she became an influential choreographer and teacher. Biography Lanner was born in St. Ulrich in Vienna (today the district of Neubau). Largely self-taught on the violin, he joined a small string orchestra of Michael Pamer at about the same time as Johann Strauss I did, although he decided to venture into the music business himself and partnered with Karl and Johann Drahan

Joseph Maria Wolfram

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Joseph Maria Wolfram (21 July 1789 – 30 September 1839) was a German-Czech politician and amateur composer who wrote operas which were performed with success. Biography Wolfram was born on 21 July 1789 in Dobřany in Bohemia. He first studied philosophy at the Karls-Universität in Prague, but also harmony with Leopold Koželuch. References

Joseph Mayseder

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Joseph Mayseder (27 October 1789 – 21 November 1863) was an Austrian violin virtuoso and composer. Biography Mayseder showed musical promise from an early age, and was a student of Joseph Suche (1797), Paul Wranitzky (1798) and Ignaz Schuppanzigh. By the age of eleven, he was performing in public concerts at the Augarten in Vienna. He received lessons in composition from Emanuel Aloys Förster. In 1810, he was appointed concertmaster of the Vienna Court Opera. In 1816, he was the violin soloist of the Hofburg Palace chapel orchestra, which he conducted from 1836. He was a major quartet player, as well as a teacher and composer for his instrument. Among his students were the highly esteemed Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst. Mayseder was the recipient of multiple awards and honorary memberships. He was appointed to the in Rome, along with Franz Liszt and others. He was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Franz Joseph in 1862, and was an honorary member of the . He was one of 51 composers who contributed to the . He was made an honorary citizen of Vienna in 1817. He was buried in a grave of honour in the Central Cemetery in Vienna. The in the Viennese was named after him in 1876. Selected

Joseph von Blumenthal

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Joseph von Blumenthal, also known as Joseph de Blumenthal (1 November 1782 – 9 May 1850 ), was an Austrian violinist and violist, influential pedagogue and composer. Biography Joseph von Blumenthal was born in Brussels, the son of Baron Joseph von Blumenthal and Baroness Maria Therese, née Malabreck. His father, who had a job with the Austrian government, took the family to Prague during the Brabant Revolution (1789–1790). The young Blumenthal and his two brothers, Casimir and Léopold, learned to play the violin and studied composition with Abbé Vogler. When Vogler went to Vienna in 1803 to produce his opera Samori, he recommended his students to the director of the Theater an der Wien, and on his testimony, they were accepted into the theatre orchestra, Joseph on viola, his siblings on violin. During the first two decades of the nineteenth century, Joseph von Blumenthal wrote a great deal of dramatic music, of which a part was attributed to his brothers. His brother Casimir von Blumenthal (1787–1849) went on to become music director in Zurich, and Léopold von Blumenthal (born 1790) was a musician employed by a nobleman in Hungary. Both published compositions for violin and various

Joseph Wackenthaler

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Joseph Wackenthaler (20 November 1795 – 3 March 1869) was a French Kapellmeister from 1819, an organist from 1833 to 1869 at the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, and a composer. Wackenthaler’s reputation is due to his genius for improvisation and his ability to adapt the organ to liturgical requirements. He published many small organ compositions for teaching purposes as well as edited organ pieces by German composers. Life Born in Sélestat (Bas-Rhin) (Alsace), Wackenthaler’s father, François-Joseph Wackenthaler (1767–1828), organist of the main church of Sélestat, was the founder of a family of musicians. Two of his brothers, François-Charles and François-Louis, and his nephew Nicolas-Joseph Wackenthaler were organists at the St. George’s Church of Sélestat. His second son, François Xavier Joseph (1823–1856), was organist at Haguenau and later in Paris, where he was the first organ teacher at the École Niedermeyer of Paris. His father taught him music, without neglecting literary studies. Joseph Wackenthaler shared first prizes of the college in his hometown with the most distinguished students. At the time he finished his studies, he first planned to entering a religious orde

Joseph Woelfl

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Joseph Johann Baptist Woelfl (surname sometimes written in the German form Wölfl; 24 December 1773 – 21 May 1812) was an Austrian pianist and composer of the late Classical period. Life Woelfl was born in Salzburg, where he studied music under Leopold Mozart and Michael Haydn. He first appeared in public as a soloist on the violin at the age of seven. Moving to Vienna in 1790 he visited Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and may have taken lessons from him. His first opera, Der Höllenberg, appeared there in 1795. Woelfl was over 6 feet tall, with an enormous finger span (his hand could span a thirteenth, according to his contemporary Václav Tomášek); to his wide grasp of the keyboard he owed a facility of execution which he turned to good account, especially in his improvised performances. Like the virtuoso violinist Paganini, he probably had Marfan syndrome, which is associated with these physical characteristics. Although he dedicated his 1798 sonatas Op. 6 to Beethoven, the two were rivals. Beethoven bested Woelfl in a piano ‘duel’ at the house of Baron Raimund Wetzlar in 1799, after which Woelfl’s local popularity waned. However, Beethoven deeply admired his music following the duel. Afte

Josiah Andrew Hudleston

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Josiah Andrew Hudleston (22 February 1799 – 19 August 1865) was an Anglo-Irish civil servant, guitarist and composer. The Hudleston Collection at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin, Ireland, is one of the largest collections of early 19th-century music for the guitar. Life Hudleston was born in Bray, Berkshire (England). His father, John Hudleston (1749–1835), was an employee of the East India Company and a short-term (1805−6) Member of Parliament, while his mother came from County Donegal, Ireland. He was educated at Haileybury College, Hertfordshire, from 1815, and took up the guitar in the following year, possibly as a result of a visit to London by the Spanish guitarist Fernando Sor in April of this year. Hudleston spent almost all of his life (1817–55) in India in various positions within the East India Company. In 1820, he was appointed Second Assistant to the Collector and Magistrate of Tinnevelly, in 1824 Head Assistant to the Registrar of the Sudder and Foujdarry Adawlut, Deputy Collector of Madras (1828–1831 and 1836–1843), and from 1831 to 1835 he was Superintendent of Stationery there. His most influential time came when he was Chief Collector at Madras from 184

Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga

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Juan Crisóstomo Jacobo Antonio de Arriaga y Balzola (27 January 1806 – 17 January 1826) was a Spanish Basque composer. He was nicknamed “the Spanish Mozart” after he died, because, like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, he was both a child prodigy and an accomplished composer who died young. They also shared the same first and second baptismal names; and they shared the same birthday (due to both having been born on the feast of St. John Chrysostom), 27 January (fifty years apart). Life Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga was born in Bilbao, Biscay, on what would have been Mozart’s fiftieth birthday. His father (Juan Simón de Arriaga) and the boy’s older brother first taught him music. Juan Simón had some musical talent and at age seventeen Juan Crisóstomo was an organist at a church in Berriatúa. sent Juan Crisóstomo to Paris, where in November of that year Arriaga began his studies. Music The amount of Arriaga’s music that has survived to the present day is quite small, reflecting his early death. It includes: * Opera: Arriaga wrote an opera, Los esclavos felices (“The Happy Slaves”), in 1820 when he was fourteen. It was produced in Bilbao. Only the overture and some fragments have survived. * Sympho

Juan Pedro Esnaola

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Juan Pedro Esnaola (17 August 1808, in Buenos Aires – 8 July 1878, in Buenos Aires) was an Argentine composer from the first half of the nineteenth century. He is remembered as the arranger of the Argentine National Anthem. Biography Esnaola was born in Buenos Aires to a Spanish-Basque father and a local-born mother of Basque background. He began musical training as a child, under his uncle, the priest José Antonio Picasarri (1769–1843), chapel master at the cathedral of Buenos Aires. As the region became independent from Spain in 1810, and Picasarri decided not to resign his Spanish citizenship, he was forced to leave the country (1818). He took along his nephew, who then was able to take piano and counterpoint lessons from European music teachers in Madrid and Paris (and perhaps also other cities). Esnaola wrote an unspecified number of piano pieces in Madrid (now lost). Picasarri and Esnaola could return to Buenos Aires on 29 June 1822 thanks to an amnesty law that Governor Martín Rodríguez issued on that year. They soon founded a “School of Music and Singing” supported by the provincial government, and participated in the performances of the local Philharmonic Society. Esnaola

Julian Klemczyński

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Julian Klemczyński was a Polish composer and teacher who spent the bulk of his career in France. Biography Julian Klemczyński was born in either 1807 or 1810 in the old section (Stare Miasto) of Kalisz, Poland. His father was a musician. He graduated high school in 1825 (today the Adam Asnyka High School) and began the study of law and administration in Warsaw. He joined the secret student society, the Association of Knights of Narcissus. That year he was arrested by the police and put in custody; he was expelled from university in 1827. In 1831 he participated in the November Uprising - he was in the 6th Lancers Brigade under General Maciej Rybiński and was awarded the Cross of the Order of Military Virtue. 1831 was the year Klemczyński emigrated to France, first settling in Meaux, and then in Paris in 1833. Between 1832 and 1837 he was a member of the Polish Democratic Society. He supported himself by giving lessons and through publication of his compositions. He specialized in writing salon music, often fantasies based on themes from opera, writing for solo piano or piano with violin. Twenty music publishers published his work, attesting to his popularity. He was married to Marg

Julius Benedict

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Sir Julius Benedict (27 November 1804 – 5 June 1885) was a German-born composer and conductor, resident in England for most of his career. Life and music Benedict was born in Stuttgart, the son of a Jewish banker, and in 1820 learnt composition from Johann Nepomuk Hummel at Weimar and in 1821 from Carl Maria von Weber at Dresden; it was Weber who introduced him in Vienna to Beethoven on 5 October 1823. In the same year, he was appointed Kapellmeister of the Kärnthnerthor theatre at Vienna, and two years later in 1825, he became Kapellmeister of the San Carlo theatre at Naples. It was here he gave piano lessons to the young prodigy Theodor Döhler. In Naples his first opera, Giacinta ed Ernesto, premiered in 1827, and another, written for his native city, I Portoghesi in Goa, was given there in 1830; neither of these was a great success, and in 1834 he went to Paris, leaving it in 1835 at the suggestion of Maria Malibran for London, where he spent the remainder of his life. In 1836 he was given the conductorship of an operatic enterprise at the Lyceum Theatre, and brought out a short opera, Un anno ed un giorno, previously given in Naples. In 1838 he became conductor of the English o

Karl August Krebs

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Karl August Krebs (16 January 1804 as Karl August Miedke – 16 May 1880), also Carl Miedtke, was a German pianist, composer, conductor and Kapellmeister. Life Krebs was born in Nuremberg in 1804. His parents were the actor Carl Miedke and the singer Charlotte Miedke, née Pfister, who both worked at the Staatstheater Nürnberg there. In 1805, the family moved to Stuttgart, where his mother died just one year later. Karl August was adopted, with his father’s consent, by the court singer Johann Baptist Krebs and his wife Maria Anna, and subsequently took the name of his foster father. His foster father’s activities at the and his many contacts in artistic circles encouraged Karl August’s interest in music. As early as his sixth year, he played piano concertos by Mozart, Dussek and Ries, taught by Johann Nepomuk Schelble. His talent for composition, nurtured by his adoptive father, also caused a great stir and he was counted among the child prodigies of his time. In 1825, at the age of 21, he went to Vienna, studied with Ignaz von Seyfried composition and improved his piano playing skills. He distinguished himself as a piano virtuoso and on 1 April 1826 became third Kapellmeister at the

Karl Keller

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Karl Keller (; 16 October 1784, Dessau – 19 July 1855, Schaffhausen) was a German flautist and composer. His name is sometimes rendered as Charles in English-speaking countries. Keller’s works are mostly oriented towards the usage of flutes in a concert setting as well as a paucal number in guitar exists. Despite this, he was described in the 19th edition of the British music magazine, The Monthly Musical Record, as " c omposer of several pieces". Life Keller was born to the musician, Johann Gotthilf Keller, who died at a very early age. His father’s colleagues and friends later taught music while having an additional benefit of possessing a soprano voice that later became a baritone voice. As he grew up, he developed an interest in acting roles in theaters. This later encouraged conflicts between him and his father’s music-oriented connections who were his music instructors. As this turn of event influenced him, he chose the flute as his primary musical instrument, in which he became an accomplished flautist after two years. His time in Donauschingen was also the moment of his life, in which he was married to the opera singer, Wilhelmine Meierhofer. Keller settled in Schaffhausen

Karl Ludwig Drobisch

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Karl Ludwig Drobisch (24 December 1803 – 20 August 1854) was a German composer, music theorist and church musician. He wrote an oratorio about Saint Boniface, but it was not successful, which made him turn to composing sacred music including 18 masses. Biography Karl Ludwig Drobisch was born on 24 December 1803 in Leipzig to Karl Wilhelm Drobisch, a Leipzig city clerk, and his second wife, Renata Dorothee Wilhelmine Klotz. He was the younger brother of Moritz Wilhelm Drobisch. The oratorio was not successful, and he traveled to Munich to study at the libraries there. He left Munich in 1837 and took the position of music director at the Church of St. Anne in Augsburg. He was not employed there long, soon resigning in order to entirely focus on composing. Drobisch died 20 August 1854 in Augsburg. Compositions Drobisch wrote one oratorio in 1825–1826, which was not successful. Following this his style changed, and he focused on works of a purer religious nature, including 18 masses as well as graduals, offertories and psalm settings. References

Karol Kurpiński

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Karol Kazimierz Kurpiński (March 5, 1785 – September 18, 1857) was a Polish composer, conductor and pedagogue. He was a representative of late classicism and early romanticism as well as being a member of the Warsaw Society of Friends of Learning (Polish: Towarzystwo Warszawskie Przyjaciół Nauk, TWPN). He is also known for having composed the music to the 1831 patriotic song La Varsovienne with lyrics by Casimir Delavigne. He was also a mentor and an influence on young Chopin. Early life Karol Kurpiński was born in Włoszakowice, Greater Poland, shortly before his baptism on 6 March 1785, probably 4 or 5 March. He was the sixth child Marcin Kurpiński (né Kurp), organist at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Włoszakowice, and Franciszka née Wańska, the daughter of the village sołtys and member of a prominent musical family in Poland. Marcin changed his ethnic family name Kurp to the noble-sounding Kurpiński around 1768. In 1800, Karol’s maternal uncles Roch and Jan Wański—a professional cellist and a popular composer, respectively—arranged for him to travel to Moszków (now Huta, Ukraine), where Roch held a position in an orchestra under the supervision of starost Feliks Polanowski. The y

Karol Lipiński

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Karol Józef Lipiński (30 October 1790 – 16 December 1861) was a Polish music composer and virtuoso violinist active during the partitions of Poland. The Karol Lipiński University of Music in Wrocław, Poland is named after him. Life Lipiński was born in Radzyń Podlaski. His father was Feliks Lipiński (1765–1847), and he had a younger brother of the same name Feliks (1815–1865). In 1810 he became the first violin and two years later the conductor of the opera orchestra at Lwów (now Lviv, Ukraine). In 1817 he went to Italy in the hope of hearing Niccolò Paganini. The two met in Milan, met daily to play, and even performed two concerts together in April 1818, which added immensely to Lipiński’s reputation. Paganini dedicated his Burlesque Variations on “La Carnaval de Venise”, Op. 10 for unaccompanied violin to Lipiński. Later, in 1827, Lipiński returned the honour by dedicating his “Three Caprices for Violin” to Paganini. In 1818 on his return to Poland he stopped in Trieste to receive instruction from Dr Mazzurana, a very elderly former pupil of Giuseppe Tartini; Mazzurana was ninety years old, and could no longer play himself, but gave his criticism of Lipiński’s performance of one

Kaspar Fürstenau

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Kaspar Fürstenau (26 February 177211 May 1819) was a German flautist and composer. He wrote about sixty compositions for his instrument among rondos, fantasias, suites and concertos. Together with his son Anton Bernhard Fürstenau he traveled extensively around Europe always with acclaimed success. Life Kaspar Fürstenau was born in Münster and received his first musical instruction from his father, an oboist of the court orchestra of the Bishopric of Münster. After his father’s death, his employer, the prince bishop of Münster Maximilian Friedrich von Königsegg-Rothenfels, organized further training for him with the bassoon teacher Bernhard Anton Romberg. Fürstenau was booked in 1788 by Maximilian Friedrich’s successor, Archduke Maximilian Francis of Austria, in whose court chapel he stayed. Then the flautist Josef Antoni became among other things his teacher. From 1793, Furstenau was again sent by his employer on study trips to the courts of London, Paris and Vienna, to become a member of the court chapel of Augustus, Grand Duke of Oldenburg, who was for some time his teacher from 1794. He died in Oldenburg. Selected works * Flute Concerto * Pot-Pourri by Rodolphe Kreutzer arr. by

Leopold Schefer

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Leopold Schefer (30 July 1784 in Muskau – 13 February 1862 in Muskau), German poet, novelist, and composer, was born in a small town in Upper Lusatia (then under Saxon rule), the only child of a poor country doctor. Biography Leopold Schefer was educated, privately, by his parents, later on by the principal of the Muskau primary school, Andreas Tamm, afterwards in a small private school of the former hofmeister of the local Earl of Callenberg, Johann Justus Röhde. From 1799 up to 1805 he attended the secondary school (“Gymnasium”) at Bautzen. During this time he started writing diaries, poems, and compositions, the last under the influence of his teacher Johann Samuel Petri. After that he returned to Muskau, helping his widowed mother, while writing and composing. During Napoleon’s failed campaign in Russia in 1812, Schefer was appointed manager of the big estates of his newly-won friend, Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau, doing well under hard circumstances until 1816. The prince, recognizing the literary abilities of his friend, encouraged his early poetical efforts. Having visited England together with Pückler for studying landscape gardens (and being deeply impressed by Eliza O

Leopold von Zenetti

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Joseph Leopold von Zenetti (15 November 1805 – 12 October 1892) was an Austrian composer. He was the organist and choirmaster of the parish church in Enns in Upper Austria for 63 years. Life Biographers of Anton Bruckner recently revived interest in one of his masters, the long-forgotten Leopold von Zenetti. Zenetti was born in the sexton’s house in Enns. His youth was marked by the French occupation and by the turbulent events in Upper Austria at the time. Zenetti had early access to music through his father who served as a bassist, the local organist and the Thurnermeistern whose instrumental skills were appreciated in the church and for musical representations. During his studies in Linz, he played in the orchestra of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Linz. He later became the organist and sacristan in Enns, where he lived at Kirchenplatz Nr. 5. Zenetti was actively involved in the liturgical and musical life of his home town. Anton Bruckner was born near Enns and worked in Kronstorf and St Florian. Between 1843 and 1845, he was the pupil of Leopold von Zenetti in Enns. He visited his master up to three times a week to study figured bass using The Well-Tempered Clavier by Joh

Leopoldine Blahetka

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Marie Leopoldine Blahetka (16 November 1809 – 17 January 1885) was an Austrian pianist and composer. Life Leopoldine Blahetka was born in Guntramsdorf near Vienna, the child of George and Barbara Joseph Blahetka Sophia, née Traeg. Her father was a history and mathematics teacher and had good relations with Ludwig van Beethoven, and her mother a physharmonica teacher and performer. Her maternal grandfather was the Viennese composer Andreas Traeg. At the age of 9, Leopoldine Blahetka made her first public appearances, and the Viennese press described her as a “child prodigy”. At the age of 11 she created her first compositions, which she also performed regularly as part of her concerts. The family moved to Vienna and George Blahetka took a job with the Traeg music publishing house. Leopoldine took piano lessons from her mother and made her debut as a pianist in 1818. Afterwards, she studied with Joseph Czerny, Hieronymus Payer, Eduard Freiherr von Lannoy, Joachim Hoffmann, Catherina Cibbini-Kozeluch, Friedrich Kalkbrenner, Ignaz Moscheles, and later composition with Simon Sechter. In 1821 Blahetka began touring Europe, accompanied by her mother, and continued to tour for about twenty

Lev Gurilyov

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Lev Stepanovich Gurilyov (; 1770–1844) was a Russian serf musician and liturgical music composer, along with pedagogue and composer, who was active in Moscow during the late-18th to early-19th centuries. The father of pianist and composer Aleksander Gurilyov, Lev was a violin player and kapellmeister in the orchestra of Count Vladimir Grigorievich Orlov, the younger brother of Catherine the Great, to which was owned according to the principles of serfdom. The majority of his life was spent on the Semenovskoye-Otrada estate rus , owned by the Orlov family, although several moves occurred. Due to the inherited musical aptitude in his son Aleksander, Count Orlov had the son sent to study under the guidance of Irish composer John Field for music composition, and Joseph Iosifovich Genishta rus for music theory. although this cannot be confirmed. So competent and proficient was Gurilyov at his duties that performances had become well-attended, with popularity of work reaching other royal families and being notable for its praised combination of serf musicians from other regions. * Piano Sonata No. 1 (published in 1954) * E Minor Polonaise * G Minor Polonaise * Russian song “The people bl

Louis Clapisson

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Louis Clapisson (15 September 1808 – 19 March 1866) was a French composer and violinist. He composed numerous art songs as well as 22 operas, largely in the opéra comique genre. In his later years he was a professor of harmony at the Paris Conservatory and the curator of the conservatory’s museum of musical instruments, many of which had come from his own large collection. However, Clapisson soon decided to devote himself to composition instead. His first compositions were vocal pieces (quartets and duets) which were performed at the Paris Conservatory concert series from 1835. His first operatic work was La Figurante, a five-act opéra comique to a libretto by Eugène Scribe and Jean-Henri Dupin. It premiered on 24 August 1838. Twenty-one more would follow, almost all in the opéra comique genre, although he did produce one grand opera, Jeanne la folle, which premiered at the Paris Opera in 1848. His last work was an operetta, La Poularde de Caux. It was co-written with five other composers and premiered in 1861, the same year he was appointed professor of harmony at the Paris Conservatory. His most successful works were the opéras comiques La Promise (1854) and La Fanchonnette (1856

Louis Drouet

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Louis-François-Philippe Drouet (14 April 1792 – 30 September 1873) was a 19th-century French flutist and composer. Biography Born of a French father expatriated in the Netherlands and barber by profession, Louis Drouet began learning to play the flute as a self-taught man before entering the Conservatoire de Paris at the age of seven. At 16, he was first flutist and teacher of Louis Bonaparte, Napoléon’s brother, and King of Holland. After touring trips to England, the United States and Europe, in 1840 he became director of music by the Duke of Saxe-Cobourg-Gotha. Drouet was a great friend of Felix Mendelssohn. William Gordon, co-inventor of the Boehm system, and were among his pupils. He was often referred to as the “Paganini of flute”. Works The musicologist Arthur Pougin wanted to attribute to Louis Drouet (apparently wrongly) the melody of the unofficial hymn of the Second French Empire, “”, although considered as having been composed by Hortense de Beauharnais, Queen of Holland from 1806 to 1810, and Napoléon III’s mother. ;Compositions * 10 concertos * more than 20 duets, trios, solos and fantasies * more than 300 studies ;Pedagogic method * Méthode pour la flûte, ou Traité c

Louis François Dauprat

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Louis François Dauprat (24 May 1781 – 16 July 1868) was a French composer, horn player, and professor at the Conservatoire de Paris. He played and taught natural horn only, but was also very interested in the first experiments with keyed horns. He successfully ensured the development of a distinctively French school of playing, marginally influenced by the invention of the valve horn. Biography Born in Paris, Dauprat first studied at the Conservatoire de Paris with Johann Joseph Kenn, and in 1795, setting up in his horn class where he won the 1798 “Premier Prix”. As a prize, he was awarded an experimental horn model made by Lucien Joseph Raoux’s studio, now one of the most impressive pieces in the museum of the Paris Conservatory. From 1806 to 1808, he was the principal hornist in the orchestra of the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, and from 1808 to 1811, he worked for the Paris Opera Orchestra and the Conservatoire de Paris. He succeeded his teacher as professor in the Conservatory and held that position until 1842 when he was succeeded by the famous solo horn player (and his own former student) Jacques-François Gallay. Dauprat wrote the textbook Méthode pour cor alto et cor basse (Par

Louis Lambillotte

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Louis Lambillotte (born La Hamaide, (Hainaut, Belgium), 27 March 1797; died Paris, 27 February 1855) was a Belgian Jesuit, composer and palaeographer of Catholic music, associated with the restoration of Gregorian music, which he inaugurated and promoted by his scientific researches and publications. Early life Louis Lambillotte was born at La Hamaide, near Charleroi and began studying solfège, piano, and harmony at the age of seven. At the age of fifteen, he became organist in Charleroi; later he went in a similar capacity to Dinant (Belgium). In 1820 he was appointed choirmaster and organist of the Jesuit College of Saint-Acheul, Amiens. While exercising these functions he also studied the classics, and at the end of five years, in August, 1825, he entered the Society of Jesus. The thirty years of his Jesuit life were spent successively in the colleges of Saint-Acheul, Fribourg, Estavayer, Brugelette and Vaugirard (Paris). While occupied in teaching and directing music, he gave himself up more entirely to composition, with a view to enhance both the religious ceremonies and the academic entertainments in those newly founded colleges. His powers of composition were checked by the

Louis Niedermeyer

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Abraham Louis Niedermeyer (27 April 180214 March 1861) was a Swiss and naturalized French composer. He chiefly wrote church music and a few operas. He also taught music and took over the École Choron, renamed École Niedermeyer de Paris, a school for the study and practice of church music, with students that include several eminent French musicians such as Gabriel Fauré and André Messager. Life and career Niedermeyer was born in Nyon in 1802. His father was a music teacher from Würzburg, Germany, who had settled in Switzerland after his marriage. There, he studied piano with Ignaz Moscheles and composition with Emanuel Aloys Förster. He then studied in Rome with Vincenzo Fioravanti, the choirmaster of the papal Chapel (1819) and in Naples with Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli. While in Rome, he met Gioachino Rossini, who befriended him and encouraged him to write operas. His first opera, Il reo per amore (Guilty for Love), premiered at the Teatro del Fondo in Naples in 1820 and encountered some success. After his studies, he came back to Switzerland and composed Le Lac. He later composed Marie Stuart (on a libretto written by Theodore Anne ) which premiered at the Théâtre de l’Académie Ro

Louis Schlösser

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Louis Schlösser (17 November 1800 – 17 November 1886), born in Darmstadt where he made his career, was a violinist, composer, and conductor. He met Ludwig van Beethoven in 1822, and his recollections of this give a useful impression of Beethoven. Life He was born in Darmstadt in 1800, son of Falk (or Frank) Schlösser. Originally named Lazarus or Löser, he was later known as Louis. His brother Bernhard Schlösser (1802–1859) became a painter in Frankfurt am Main, and his brother Theodor Schlösser became an academy professor in Colmar. He played violin in the court orchestra of Darmstadt, and studied with Christian Heinrich Rinck. As a talented young musician he received a scholarship, and studied for three years, in Vienna with Ignaz von Seyfried, Joseph Mayseder, Jan Václav Voříšek and Antonio Salieri, and in Paris with Jean-François Le Sueur and Rudolph Kreutzer. He wrote his first compositions in Vienna. In Darmstadt he became concertmaster and from 1846 Hofkapellmeister; he gave concerts as soloist and conductor in Darmstadt and elsewhere. He was also a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. Louis Schlösser died in 1886. His grave is in the Jewish cemetery in Darmstadt. Co

Louis Spohr

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Louis Spohr (, 5 April 178422 October 1859), baptized Ludewig Spohr, later often in the modern German form of the name Ludwig, was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Highly regarded during his lifetime, Spohr composed ten symphonies, ten operas, eighteen violin concerti, four clarinet concerti, four oratorios, and various works for small ensemble, chamber music, and art songs. Spohr invented the violin chinrest and the orchestral rehearsal mark. His output spans the transition between Classical and Romantic music, of interest in his oeuvre, primarily in Europe, but his reputation has never been restored to that during his lifetime. Life Spohr was born in Braunschweig in the duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel to Karl Heinrich Spohr and Juliane Ernestine Luise Henke on 5 April 1784; then in 1786 the family moved to Seesen. Spohr’s first musical encouragement came from his parents: his mother was a gifted singer and pianist, and his father played the flute. A violinist named Dufour gave him his earliest violin teaching. The pupil’s first attempts at composition date from the early 1790s. Dufour, recognizing the boy’s musical talent, persuaded his parents to send him to Brunswick

Louise Bertin

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Louise-Angélique Bertin (; 15 January 1805 – 26 April 1877) was a French composer and poet. Life and music Bertin was born in Les Roches, Essonne, France. Her father, Louis-François Bertin, and also later her brother, were the editors of Journal des débats, an influential newspaper. As encouraged by her family, Bertin pursued music. She received lessons from François-Joseph Fétis, who directed a private family performance of Guy Mannering, Bertin’s first opera, in 1825. This opera, never formally produced, took its storyline from the book of the same name by Sir Walter Scott. Two years later, Bertin’s second opera, Le loup-garou, was produced at the Opéra-Comique. At age 21, Bertin began working on the opera semiseria Fausto to her own libretto in Italian, based on Goethe’s Faust, a subject “almost certainly suggested” by her father. A performance of the opera was scheduled for 1830, but due to many unforeseen complications, Fausto did not reach the stage until 1831. It was not well received and had only three performances. Shortly before this, Bertin became friends with Victor Hugo. Hugo had sketched out an operatic version of his book Notre-Dame de Paris (The Hunchback of Notre-D

Louise Farrenc

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Louise Farrenc (; 31 May 1804 – 15 September 1875) was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher of the Romantic period. Her compositions include three symphonies, a few choral works, numerous chamber pieces and a wide variety of piano music. Life and career Born Jeanne-Louise Dumont in Paris, she was the daughter of Jacques-Edme Dumont and sister to Auguste Dumont. Her father was in the fourth generation of a master craftsman dynasty employed by the French Royalty; her brother Auguste was in the fifth and final generation of this chain. Growing up, she lived in an apartment connected to the historic Sorbonne University, where many artist families were housed by the French government. She began piano studies at an early age with Cecile Soria, a former student of Muzio Clementi. When it became clear that she had the ability to become a professional pianist she was given lessons by such masters as Ignaz Moscheles and Johann Nepomuk Hummel, and, given the talent she showed as a composer, her parents decided to let her, in 1818 at the age of fifteen, study composition with Anton Reicha, a professor of counterpoint and fugue at the Conservatoire de Paris. However, she was taught t

Louise Geneviève de La Hye

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Louise Geneviève de La Hye née Rousseau (7 March 1807 - 18 November 1838) was a French pianist, organist and composer, who sometimes used the pseudonym M. Leon Saint-Amans. Life and career Louise Geneviève Rousseau was born in Charenton, France, on March 7, 1807. She was the daughter of Marie-Anne Noblot and of the musician Charles-Louis Rousseau, therefore the grand niece of philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. She studied piano with her father and with Louis Joseph Saint-Amans, and in 1821 entered the Paris Conservatory. Rousseau began teaching at the Conservatory in 1830, but moved to Cambrai after she married with the marquis Chaumont de la Hye. She had two children and returned to Paris in 1834 where she continued teaching and composing. She suffered from poor health and died in Paris at the age of 31. Works La Hye composed works including an opera, cantatas, masses, piano works, duos and string quartets. Selected compositions include: *Le songe de la religieuse *Six mélodies italiennes Her Méthode d’orgue expressif was published after her death, en 1839. Romances * Le Corsaire rouge !, lyrics by M. de la Hye * Chant du crépuscule, lyrics by Victor Hugo, in La Gazette des salons

Louise Reichardt

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Louise Reichardt or Luise Reichardt (11 April 1779 – 17 November 1826) was a German composer and choral conductor. Her German songs, or Lieder, were written in an accessible style akin to folk music and were popular. Louise Reichard was known for composing in the style of “romantic songs,” which are based on poetic settings. Additionally, she was influential in the musical life of Hamburg, Germany, where she lived from 1809. Biography Early life She was born in Berlin. She was the daughter of composers Juliane Reichardt (1752–1783) and Johann Friedrich Reichardt (1752–1814) and the granddaughter of Franz Benda (1709–1786). Her grandfather and father were, respectively, Konzertmeister and Kapellmeister at the court of Frederick the Great. After Juliane Reichardt died when Louise was only four years old, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven also contributed greatly to the collection. Hamburg In 1809 she moved to Hamburg, where she studied with Johann Frederich Clasing. Nor did she rely on her family for financial stability. However, due to the prevailing sexism of the times, she was never allowed to conduct them in public. * XII Deutsche und italiänische romantische Gesän

Lowell Mason

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Lowell Mason (January 8, 1792 – August 11, 1872) was an American music director and banker who was a leading figure in 19th-century American church music. Lowell composed over 1,600 hymn tunes, many of which are often sung today. His best-known work includes an arrangement of “Joy to the World” and the tune Bethany, which sets the hymn text Nearer, My God, to Thee. Mason also set music to Mary Had A Little Lamb. He is largely credited with introducing music into American public schools, and is considered the first important U.S. music educator. He has also been criticized for helping to largely eliminate the robust tradition of participatory sacred music that flourished in North America before his time. Life Mason was born and grew up in Medfield, Massachusetts, where he became the music director of First Parish (now First Parish Unitarian Universalist) Church at age 17. His birthplace residence was saved from development in 2011. It was relocated to a town park on Green Street. The Lowell Mason House foundation is an effort to create a Lowell Mason museum and music education center. The foundation remains active as of 2021. He spent the first part of his adulthood in Savannah, Geo

Ludwig van Beethoven

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Early life and education#

Beethoven was the grandson of Ludwig van Beethoven, a musician from the city of Mechelen in Austrian Netherlands (now Belgium), who moved to Bonn at the age of 21. Ludwig was employed as a bass singer at the court of Clemens August, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne, eventually rising to become, in 1761, Kapellmeister (music director) and hence a preeminent musician in Bonn. The portrait he commissioned of himself toward the end of his life remained displayed in his grandson’s rooms as a talisman of his musical heritage. Ludwig had two sons, the younger of whom, Johann, worked as a tenor in the same musical establishment and gave keyboard and violin lessons to supplement his income. Johann married Maria Magdalena Keverich in 1767; she was the daughter of Heinrich Keverich (1701–1751), who was head chef at the court of Johann IX Philipp von Walderdorff, Archbishop of Trier. Beethoven was born of this marriage in Bonn, at what is now the Beethoven House Museum, Bonngasse 20. There is no authentic record of the date of his birth; but the registry of his baptism, in the Catholic Parish of St. Remigius on 17 December 1770, survives, and the custom in the region at the time was to carry out baptism within 24 hours of birth. There is a consensus (with which Beethoven himself agreed) that his birth date was 16 December, but there is no documented proof of this. Of the seven children born to Johann van Beethoven, only Ludwig, the second-born, and two younger brothers survived infancy. Kaspar Anton Karl (generally known as Karl) was born on 8 April 1774, and Nikolaus Johann, who was generally known as Johann, the youngest, was born on 2 October 1776. Johann was Beethoven’s first music teacher. He later had other local teachers, including the court organist Gilles van den Eeden (d. 1782), , a family friend, who provided keyboard tuition, Franz Rovantini, a relative who instructed him in playing the violin and viola, and court concertmaster Franz Anton Ries, who instructed Beethoven on the violin. His tuition began in his fifth year. The regime was harsh and intensive, often reducing him to tears. With the involvement of Pfeiffer, who was an insomniac, there were irregular late-night sessions with the young Beethoven dragged from his bed to the keyboard. Beethoven’s musical talent became obvious at a young age. Aware of Leopold Mozart’s successes in this area with his son Wolfgang and daughter Nannerl, Johann attempted to promote his son as a child prodigy, claiming that Ludwig was six (he was seven) on the posters for his first public performance in March 1778. Beethoven’s musical abilities far exceeded his mathematical capabilities. As a student at the Tirocinium, Beethoven learned how to add numbers but he could neither divide nor multiply. Throughout Beethoven’s life, he instead used addition as a means of simulating multiplication (thus adding up a column of sixteen sevens, rather than multiplying 16 × 7).

Ludwig Wilhelm Maurer

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Ludwig Wilhelm Maurer (February 8, 1789 – October 13–25, 1878) was a German composer, conductor, and violinist born in Potsdam. In 1802, he debuted in Berlin with his first major violin performance. After a brief period of studying French violin style in Mitau (Latvia), Maurer went to Russia at age 17 in 1806, where he would stay for most of his life. For this reason, Maurer is considered both a German and a Russian composer. Upon his arrival in St. Petersburg, Maurer performed extensively until the French violinist and composer Pierre Baillot aided Maurer in becoming the conductor of the Count Vsevolozhsky’s orchestra in Moscow. Maurer conducted the orchestra until 1817 when he toured as a performer in Germany and Paris. In 1819 Maurer began using Hanover as a base for directing and conducting, while touring and composing. During this period Maurer also maintained a composing partnership with Aleksey Nikolayevich Verstovsky in the opera-vaudeville form. Toward the end of this period in Maurer’s life, he toured Germany with his sons Vsevolod and Alexis, who played violin and cello respectively. By 1833, however, Maurer was back in St. Petersburg, where he would remain for the rest

Ludwig Wilhelm Reuling

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Ludwig Wilhelm Reuling (also Wilhelm Ludwig Reuling; 22 December 1802 – 29 April 1877) was a German composer and conductor at opera houses in Vienna. Life Reuling was born in Darmstadt in 1802; his father was the city priest of the Protestant church. His first music lessons were at his parents’ home. From 1818 he studied violin and composition with Christian Heinrich Rinck, and from 1819 was in the orchestra of the court theatre of Darmstadt. In 1824 he moved to Vienna, where he studied with Ignaz von Seyfried and Emanuel Aloys Förster. Becoming acquainted with members of the Theater in der Josefstadt, he composed short works for the theatre, which were well received. His Zauberoper Das graue Männchen (The dull little man), commissioned by the theatre and performed in October 1829 was successful, and as a result he became Kapellmeister of the Theater in der Josefstadt. He composed Singspiele for this theatre, and for the Theater in der Leopoldstadt and the Theater an der Wien; other commissions included two operas that were performed in Trieste. From 1830 Reuling was Kapellmeister at the Theater am Kärntnertor. While Louis Duport was director until 1836, he wrote many Singspiele an

Luigi Astolfi

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Luigi Astolfi (; 1790s–1860s) was an Italian dancer, choreographer and composer. Life Luigi Astolfi was born in Lombardy in the 1790s. In 1817 he had his first success as a dancer performing Osvaldo e Olfrida by Giuseppe Sorrentino at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice. In the following years he also started to practise as a choreographer, especially in Lisbon and, to a lesser extent, also in Porto, in Vienna, and in Russia, but with less success; performances of Belisario and Gli esiliati in Siberia (1831) by Gaetano Donizetti, and La muette de Portici by Daniel Auber (1838) were warmly received by critics and audience. Later he was also composed the music that he performed as a dancer; his first success was Le sette reclute, performed for the first time in 1832 at the Teatro alla Canobbiana in Milan. Again at the Canobbiana in 1837 I minatori di Salerno was performed for the first time: this was his most performed ballet, not only by Astolfi himself but also by other performers; this was the only work by Astolfi to be performed after his death. He was premier danseur of both Italian and Portuguese dancers at the Royal Theatre of Saint John in Lisbon until the season 1839–40, whic

Luigi Carlini

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Luigi Carlini was an Italian composer specializing in opera, with a career centered in Milan in the 19th century. Life and career Luigi Carlini was born in Naples, Campania, Italy in the late 18th century. Luigi Carlini’s Maria Stuarda, regina di Scozia, a cultural depiction of Mary, Queen of Scots, was his debut opera. The production was adapted from a 1802 drama by Camillo Federici, titled The Triumph of the Carbonari (). In September 1817, Carlini presented a two-act drama featuring Luigi Lablache, Giovanni David, and Luigi Sirletti. The composer premiered the opera The Youth of Henry V () in 1819 at the Teatro Nuovo sopra Toledo in Naples, featuring a libretto by Italian poet Felice Romani. He returned with a production of Solimano II, or The Three Sultanas () at Teatro San Carlo in 1820, collaborating with Andrea Leone Tottola and Charles-Simon Favart. Carlini premiered Adelaide di Baviera at Teatro San Carlo in 1821 with libretto provided by Andrea Leone Tottola. In collaboration with Austrian composer Robert Gallenberg, he contributed to the musical composition of Niobe by Italian choreographer Gaetano Gioja, later staged at Naples’ Teatro di San Carlo in January 1822. That

Luigi Castellacci

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Luigi Castellacci (1797 in Pisa – 1845) was an Italian virtuoso on the mandolin and guitar, an instrumental composer and the author of popular French romances with guitar and piano accompaniments. He was the son of musical parents and as soon as he was capable of holding a mandolin, his father placed one in his hands and gave him instruction on the instrument and in the theory of music. Castellacci’s progress was rapid; he performed frequently as a musical prodigy in his native city. Having thoroughly studied the mandolin for some years, he extended the sphere of his concert performances with the instrument throughout northern Italy. He then turned his attention to the guitar, devoting several years to this instrument. He taught both instruments. About the year 1820 he left his native Pisa to tour as a professional mandolin and guitar virtuoso. He was drawn to Paris (as had Ferdinando Carulli and Matteo Carcassi). He made a name there in the musical world, particularly by his performances on the guitar and his vocal compositions with guitar accompaniment. He was well established by 1825 and appeared as a guitarist in the most influential musical circles, being esteemed and recogniz

Luigi Ferdinando Casamorata

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Luigi Ferdinando Casamorata (15 May 1807 – 24 September 1881) was an Italian composer and music critic. Life Before 1849 Born in Würzburg in the Grand Duchy of Würzburg (now Bavaria), Casamorata was the son of the Grand Duke’s inspector Luigi Giacomo Casamorata, who stayed with the Grand Duke Ferdinando III in exile in Germany. Already when he was seven years old, he moved to Florence and studied piano. In 1825, while he was attending law school at the university, he tried a competition for composition at the Accademia di Belle Arti with Ferdinando Giorgetti. was gonfalonier in Fiesole, and town counselor/representative in Florence. Characteristics as a critic Casamorata was a very traditionalist critic, linked to formalist ideals. He was convinced that the main scope of music was to imitate nature, and that of the first representation in Italy, at the Pergola in 1843, of Der Freischütz by Carl Maria von Weber, judged as unbalanced between the wind instruments and strings. The debate regarding sacred music He actively participated in the debate regarding the esthetics of sacred music, inaugurated by the Cecilian Movement (with which he actively collaborated in the writing of the Ma

Luigi Legnani

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Luigi Rinaldo Legnani (7 November 1790 – 5 August 1877) was an Italian virtuoso guitarist, singer, composer and luthier. Life Born in Ravenna, Legnani was trained as a string player while very young but dedicated himself to guitar and voice. His debut as an operatic tenor was in Ravenna in 1807; his singing career spanned 17 years. His career as a guitarist began with a concert in Milan in 1819, and continued with the 1822 concerts in Vienna and return visits in 1833 and 1839. He tried to continue the guitar tradition established there by Mauro Giuliani. Music Legnani is perhaps best known for his 36 Caprices op. 20 for the guitar, which cover all the major and minor keys, and which were probably inspired by Paganini’s 24 Caprices for the violin. He and Paganini were friends from the 1830s; while it was once thought that he and Paganini performed together in public (Powroźniak mentions a concert in Northern Italy in 1837), there is no evidence to support this claim. After the 1850s Legnani retired from active performance and became an instrument maker, concentrating on guitars and violins. The “Legnani model” guitar was popular in Central Europe through the middle of the nineteenth

Luigi Maria Viviani

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Luigi Maria Viviani (? – 1856) was an Italian composer, conductor and violinist of Florentine origin. He was primarily noted for his ballet scores, most of them composed for the choreographers Giovanni Galzerani and Antonio Cortesi. His 1851 score for Fausto was particularly praised for its obbligato written for the bimbonclaro (a variation on the bass clarinet invented by the Florentine clarinetist and instrument-maker, Giovanni Bimboni). Viviani also composed two operas: L’eroe francese, which premiered in 1826 at the Teatro Grande in Brescia, and L’amore in guerra, which premiered in 1829 at the Teatro Alfieri in Florence. Ballet scores *Ero e Leandro, Giovanni Galzerani (choreographer), premiered Teatro Regio, Turin, 7 December 1823 *La conquista del Perù, Giovanni Galzerani (choreographer), premiered Teatro Comunale, Bologna, 1 May 1824 *L’eroe peruviano, Giovanni Galzerani (choreographer), premiered La Fenice, Venice, 26 December 1824 *Virginia, Giovanni Galzerani (choreographer), premiered La Fenice, Venice, 8 February 1825 *Oreste, Antonio Cortesi (choreographer), premiered Teatro Regio, Turin, 26 December 1825 *Chiara di Rosemberg, Antonio Cortesi (choreographer), premiere

Luigi Mosca

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Luigi Mosca (1775 – 30 November 1824) was an Italian composer of operas and sacred music and a noted singing teacher. He composed eighteen operas, most of which were originally for theatres in Naples, but played throughout Italy in their day. Biography Mosca was born in Naples and studied at the Pietà dei Turchini Conservatory there. Like his elder brother Giuseppe Mosca (also an opera composer), he studied composition under Fedele Fenaroli. Works Operas *L’impresario burlato (opera buffa, libretto by Francesco Antonio Signoretti, Teatro Nuovo, Naples, 1797) *La sposa tra le imposture (opera buffa, libretto by Francesco Antonio Signoretti, Teatro Nuovo, Naples, 1798) *Un imbroglio ne porta un altro (opera buffa, libretto by Giuseppe Palomba, Teatro Nuovo, Naples, 1799) *Gli sposi in cimento (opera buffa, libretto by Francesco Saverio Zini, Teatro Nuovo, Naples, 1800) *L’omaggio sincero (musical allegory in honour of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, libretto by Giuseppe Pagliuca, Teatro del Palazzo Reale, Naples, 1800) *Le stravaganze d’amore (opera buffa, libretto by Francesco Saverio Zini, Teatro Nuovo, Naples, 1800) *Gli amanti volubili (opera buffa, libretto by Jacopo Ferretti,

Luigi Ricci (composer)

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Luigi Ricci (8 July 1805 – 31 December 1859) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. He was the elder brother of Federico Ricci, with whom he collaborated on several works. He was also a conductor. Life Ricci was born on 8 July 1805. He was born and educated in Naples, where he wrote his first opera at the conservatory in 1823. His triumphs in 1831 at La Scala with Chiara di Rosembergh and in 1834 with Un’avventura di Scaramuccia made him famous throughout Europe, and in 1835 he and his younger brother Federico collaborated in the first of the four operas they wrote together. In 1837 Ricci ran into financial problems, brought about mainly by his extravagant life-style. He was forced to accept a job at Trieste, and he composed no operas for seven years. Then, however, he fell in love, at the same time, with both Francesca and Ludmila, the 17-year-old identical twin sisters of the singer Teresa Stolz, also singers, and this inspired him to create (in 1845) an opera for them both to sing in, at Odesa. Back in Trieste he married Ludmila (without, however, letting go of the other). He then composed three more operas on his own, which were well received, although his greatest su

Madame Ronssecy

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Madame Ronssecy (active 1780-1820) was a French composer and harpist who emigrated to England. Little is known about her, although several of her works for harp were published in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. After moving to England in the 1790s, Ronssecy taught in London. She bought Sébastien Érard harp #333, as well as several other Érard harps, probably acting as an agent for her students. Her compositions and arrangements for harp were published by S. Straight (London), and included: *Andantino Variations *Dirge in Cymbeline (by Venanzio Rauzzini; arranged for harp or piano by Ronssecy) *Lullaby (by Stephen Storace; arranged for harp with variations by Ronssecy) *Minuetto Variations (by Jean Baptiste Krumpholtz; variations by Ronssecy) *Scotch Air Variations *Scotch Tune Variations *Shepherds I Have Lost My Love References

Marc-Antoine Madeleine Désaugiers

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Marc-Antoine Madeleine Désaugiers (17 November 1772 – 9 August 1827) was a French composer, dramatist, and songwriter. Désaugiers is easily confused in historical writings with his father, Marc-Antoine Désaugiers (1742 in Fréjus – 10 September 1793 in Paris), who was himself a composer of eleven operatic works, mostly comedies, for the stages of Paris, and left ten stage compositions unperformed. Both father and son died in their early 50s. Biography Desaugiers was born in Fréjus (Var), son of an accomplished composer for the stage. He studied at the Collège des Quatre-Nations, known as “Mazarin College” in Paris, where he had for one of his teachers the critic Julien Louis Geoffroy. He entered the Saint-Lazare seminary with a view to the priesthood, but soon gave up his intention. In his nineteenth year he produced in collaboration with his father a light opera (1791) adapted from Le Médecin malgré lui of Molière. During the French Revolution he emigrated to Santo Domingo, and during the Negro revolt he was made prisoner, barely escaping with his life. He took refuge in the United States, where he supported himself by teaching the piano. In 1797, he returned to his native country,

Marco Aurelio Zani de Ferranti

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Marco Aurelio Zani de Ferranti (23 December 1801 – November 1878) was an Italian classical guitarist and composer. Biography Marco Aurelio Zani de Ferranti was born in Bologna on 23 December 1801. He began on the violin, but switched to guitar at age 16. In 1820, he moved to Paris and later to Saint Petersburg, before settling in Belgium. He later toured in France, England, Italy, and the United States. His range of works for solo guitar are extensive, and include a set of innovative and demanding Exercices Op. 49, and also a group of twenty-four Caprices Op.11 (probably inspired by the earlier work of his compatriot Paganini). Sets of variations were composed on themes by Weber Op.9 and Rossini Op.7, and are formally inventive as well as challengingly virtuosic. His original work Nuit de Walpurgis indicates a reference to a Faust opera on the frontispiece, but was more probably an original piece inspired by a work by Mendelssohn, which was in turn based on a poem, De Erste Walpugisnacht, by Goethe (as detailed in a Wikipedia article on the subject). His oeuvre is a testament to his originality as inspired by his contemporaries, rather than simply creating stock sets of variations

Maria Brizzi Giorgi

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Maria Brizzi Giorgi (7 August 1775 – 7 January 1812 in Bologna) was an Italian organist, composer and pianist noted for her improvisational ability. A military march composed by Brizzi was performed for Napoleon when he passed through Bologna in 1807. Haydn, Muzio Clementi and Leopold Kozeluch dedicated works to her. She taught music and was member of the Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna. Biography Maria Brizzi Giorgi was born on the 7 August 1775 in Bologna, into a musical family and began to perform in public at an early age. Brizzi married Luigi Giorgi in 1793 and opened a salon, continuing to perform as a pianist in Europe. She was admired as a performer, and Haydn, Muzio Clementi and Leopold Kozeluch dedicated works to her. A military march composed by Brizzi was performed for Napoleon when he passed through Bologna in 1807. She taught music and was member of the Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna. Brizzi died in Bologna after childbirth at the age of 36. Giordani wrote a funeral elegy for her, Elogio funebre, and recounts that shortly before her death she got up to improvise at the piano, asking her sister, who was also a pianist, to record her last composition. References

Maria Frances Parke

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Maria Frances Parke (26 August 1772 – 31 July 1822) was an English soprano, pianist and composer of keyboard works. Parke was born in London. Her father was the oboist John Parke, while her uncle was the oboist and composer William Thomas Parke. She is known to have played the harpsichord for a concert in 1781. with whom she is sometimes confused. As soprano soloist, Parke performed at the Handel Commemorations, at the Hanover Square Rooms, and at the Salomon concert series (1791–1795) in which Joseph Haydn also participated. Haydn directed a symphony at one of her benefit concerts. Her compositions, performed at the Vauxhall Gardens, included keyboard and vocal works. The Three Grand Sonatas for the piano forte with additional keys, op. 1, were published in 1799. In 1815 she married John Beardmore, following which she retired from music. She died in London in 1822. Works Selected works include: *A Divertimento and Military Rondo for the Piano *Grand Sonata in F Major for Solo Piano *Grand Sonata in E-flat Major for Solo Piano *Grand Sonata in D Major for Solo Piano References External links *

Marià Obiols

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Marià Obiols (26 November 1809 – 10 December 1888), also known as Mariano Obiols, was a Catalan composer, conductor, and professor of music. He served as the music director of the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona from its founding in 1847 until his death. A protégé of Saverio Mercadante, he composed three operas, the cantata Il regio imeneo which inaugurated the Liceu theatre, art songs, chamber music, and several pieces of sacred music. His vocal music was largely Italianate in style, reflecting his years of study in Italy as well as the influence of Mercadante. As a professor at the Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu, Obiols influenced the development numerous singers, composers, and conductors and wrote books on piano and solfège methods which became standard texts at the conservatory. Notes References External links *Score of Divertimento for Flute, Clarinet and Piano by Obiols at the International Music Score Library Project

Maria Szymanowska

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Maria Szymanowska ( Polish pronunciation: ; born Marianna Agata Wołowska; Warsaw, 14 December 1789 – 25 July 1831, Saint Petersburg, Russia) was a Polish composer and one of the first professional virtuoso pianists of the 19th century. She toured extensively throughout Europe, especially in the 1820s, before settling permanently in Saint Petersburg. In the Russian imperial capital, she composed for the court, gave concerts, taught music, and ran an influential salon. The salons in 18th-century France were intellectual gatherings held at home by educated women. In 1837, the composer and music critic Robert Schumann defined salon music as elegant light music and stated that this type of social music should sound beautiful, delicate, and fashionable. Szymanowska was highly praised by Schumann for her salon music works, especially her etudes. Her compositions—largely piano pieces, songs, and other small chamber works, as well as the first piano concert etudes and nocturnes in Poland—typify the of the era preceding Frédéric Chopin. She was the mother of Celina Szymanowska, who married the Polish Romantic poet Adam Mickiewicz. Biography Marianna Agata Wołowska was born in Warsaw, Poland,

Marianna Bottini

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Marianna Bottini née Motroni-Andreozzi (7 November 1802 – 25 January 1858) was an Italian composer and harp teacher. A contemporary of Rossini, Bottini was of the most prominent voices in Italian classical music in the 19th century. She was born, lived, and died in Lucca. She was the daughter of a noble family, born to parents Sebastiano Motroni-Andreozzi and Eleonora Flekestein. Bottini studied counterpoint with Domenico Quilici and was admitted to the Accademia Filarmonica in Bologna in 1820 as an ‘honorary master composer’. The majority of her compositional output dates from 1815-1822 (between the ages of 13-20). She subsequently stopped composing at the age of 22 in 1824, after she married the Marquis Lorenzo Bottini, a prominent political figure. Life and work Bottini is well known for at least one clarinet concerto, written for a clarino. Her surviving manuscripts, including her clarinet concerto, are preserved at the Istituto Musicale Luigi Boccherini in Lucca (in the Bottini collection). This includes several chamber works for various instruments, including a quadrino for two violins, clarino, and bass. Reproductions of scores and parts may be made available upon request. S

Marianne Sessi

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Marianne Sessi Natorp (died 10 March 1847) was an Italian soprano and canzonetta composer. Her birth date is listed as 1770, 1771, 1773, or 1776 in various sources. She was best known as a member of the musical Sessi dynasty and a renowned operatic soprano who performed and composed as Marianne or Marianna Sessi. She toured internationally throughout Europe, and was awarded a gold medal by the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. Life Sessi was born in Rome to Franziska Lepri and Giovanni Sessi, who were both singers, as were Sessi’s four younger sisters Imperatrice, Anna-Maria, Victoria, and Carolina. She toured internationally, singing throughout eastern and western Europe, Russia, and Scandinavia from 1817 through until 1836. Compositions Sessi was best known as a singer, but she also composed canzonettas which were published by Breitkopf & Hartel. Her vocal compositions include: *“Amare un Infedele Veder si Abandonare” *“Di Puri Affeti Miei” *“E Dunque Vero” *“Ecce Quel Fiero Instante” *“Nasce Nel Vago Aprile Porporea Rosa” *Nocturne (two voices and piano) *“Non t’Accostar a l’Urna” *“Placido Zeffiretto” *“Sempre piu t’Amo” *“Stanco di Pascolar le Pecorelle” *Ten Canzonettes *Thre

Mariano Rodríguez de Ledesma

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Mariano Rodríguez de Ledesma (Zaragoza, 14 December 1779 - Madrid, 28 March 1847) was a Spanish composer. His musical training commenced when, at the age of 8 he entered the Zaragoza Cathedral choir. He was a disciple of Francisco Javier García, “el Españoleto”, and was influenced by Italian music. Works Songs Spanish Canción fúnebre, (s.a.,1819?), RL 30 Los cantos del trovador, (s.a., 1809?), RL 31 Delio a la ausencia de su amada Nise (s.a., 1810?), RL 32 O sí o no (s.a., 1810?), RL 33 El pescador (s.a., 1810?), RL 34 El pescador (s.a., 1814?), RL 35 La persuasión, s.a., 1831?), RL 36 El propósito inútil (s.a., 1810?), RL 37 Las señas de amor, (s.a.), RL 38 El sueño de mi amor (s.a., 1810?), RL 39 Ya tengo dueño (s.a., 1810?), RL 40 Italian Amo te solo, te solo amai, (s.a., 1825?), RL 41 Aria e vocalizzio, (s.a., 1827?), RL 42 Il capriccio (s.a., 1815?), RL 43 Ch’io mai vi possa, (s.a., 1825?), RL 44 Clori mia bella Clori, (s.a., 1815?), RL 45 Da quel sembiante appresi, (s.a., 1825?), RL 46 Dov’e il mio bene, (s.a.,1825?), RL 47 Un fanciullin tiranno, (s.a., 1815?), RL 48 La felicità (Der Glückliche), (s.a., 1815?), RL 49 In te spero o sposo amato, (s.a., 1825?), RL 50 La nebbia,

Marie Bigot

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Marie Kiéné Bigot de Morogues (3 March 1786 – 16 September 1820) was a French pianist and composer. She is best known for her sonatas and études. Career Marie Kiéné was born in Colmar in Alsace. After marrying M. Bigot, she moved to Vienna in 1804, where she lived for five years. She was highly accomplished at the piano and played for Haydn, who exclaimed, “Oh, my dear child, I did not write this music – it is you who has composed it!” He wrote on the sheet from which she played, “On 20 February 1805, Joseph Haydn was happy”. She became a friend of Salieri. Her husband being the librarian of Count Razumovsky, she also became friendly with Beethoven, who admired her playing. She was the first to play for him, from the autograph, his newly written Appassionata Sonata, impressing him so much that he told her, “That is not exactly the character I wanted to give this piece; but go right on. If it is not wholly mine, it is something better.” He gave her the autograph of the Appassionata. In 1808, after a misunderstanding over Beethoven’s invitation to take Marie and her three-year-old daughter, Caroline, for a drive and her refusal, the famous composer sent an apologetic letter to her an

Marion Dix Sullivan

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Marion Dix Sullivan (1802–1860) (fl. 1840–50) was an American songwriter and composer. She was born in Boscawen, New Hampshire, the daughter of Timothy Dix and Abigail Wilkins and the sister of General John Adams Dix of New York. She married John Whiting Sullivan in 1825 and had one son, John Henry, who died of drowning in 1858. Little is known about her background, but she was considered the first American woman to write a “hit” song, “The Blue Juniata,” which was referenced by Mark Twain in his autobiography. The Blue Juniata was the basis for variation sets by other well-known 19th century American composers, such as Charles Grobe and J. Edgar Gould. The song was recorded in 1937 by Roy Rogers and the early Sons of the Pioneers. The song was also referenced with the full lyrics by Laura Ingalls Wilder in her book Little House on the Prairie. It was recorded again by soprano Mara Sindoni as part of her project, Parlor, Music Hall, And Church: A Quilt of Songs By American Women Composers (1790 – 1890) From the American Antiquarian Society’s Collections. Thanks to the research of Pennsylvania musician, Zachariah King, Marion’s gravesite and headstone has been located and is current

Márk Rózsavölgyi

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Márk Rózsavölgyi (; born Mordecai Rosenthal; 14 August 1787 – 23 January 1848) was a Hungarian composer and violinist. He has been called “the father of csárdás”. Life and music Rózsavölgyi was born to a poor tradesman’s family in Balassagyarmat, where his bust (made by Jelena Veszely in 1973) can be found in the Palóc-parkland. His family is believed to have had klezmer connections. From the ages of 11 to 19 he worked as a clerk in Vienna, Pressburg (now Bratislava), and Prague, teaching himself to play the violin. Returning to Pest, he dedicated himself to music, composing in the Hungarian traditional styles, including the verbunkos. His first works were published in Pest in 1811; eventually he published over 200 works. In 1812, he was appointed conductor of the orchestra at the German Theater in Pest. Basing himself in Pest, he travelled through the Habsburg Empire for many years, including extended stays in Baja and Temesvár (now Timișoara, Romania). In 1824, he was made a regular salaried member of the Philharmonic Society of the county of Veszprém, and his name “Rosenthal” was Magyarized to “Rózsavölgyi” (both mean ‘rose valley’ in German (or Yiddish) and Hungarian respective

Martin Pierre d'Alvimare

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Martin Pierre d’Alvimare du Briou (18 September 1772 – 3 June 1839), sometimes spelled Dalvimare, was a French musician, harpist and composer. He was harp master of Queen Hortense. Biography Martin Pierre d’Alvimare du Briou was born on 18 September 1772 at Dreux. His parents were Pierre d’Alvimare du Briou, a lawyer in the Parliament and receiver of gabelles, and Cécile Doury de Sacy. He received an excellent education, and at an early age learned drawing, as well as the harpsichord and harp. Noticed by Duke of Penthièvre residing in the nearby château d’Anet, he was introduced by the latter and Madame de Lamballe to the court at the age of 7, where he played in front of Queen Marie Antoinette. In 1788, he composed his first opéra, Églé. At the age of fourteen, he obtained the office of receiver of salt-tax of his father, but the position did not interest him and it could be done by proxy. He therefore embarked on a military career and became a bodyguard of Louis XVI, which enabled him to compose at leisure. We was at his post for the Insurrection of 10 August 1792 and managed to escape, taking refuge in the porter’s house of one of his friends, who made him pass for his sick son.

Massimiliano Quilici

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Massimiliano Quilici (3 April 1799 - 18 October 1889) was an Italian composer. Born in Lucca, Quilici began his studies under his uncle Domenico Quilici; later he attended the Liceo Musicale di Lucca, of which he would later become director. His opera Francesca da Rimini premiered at the Teatro del Giglio in Lucca in 1829, and his opera Batrolomeo della Cavalla was first seen at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice in 1838; the former is to a libretto by Felice Romani, while the latter is set to a text by Jacopo Ferretti. Francesca da Rimini is recorded as having been a fiasco at its premiere. A third opera, La penna del Diavolo of 1861, is also recorded as having been performed in Florence. He also wrote much sacred music, He died in the city of his birth, and is interred in the Cimiterio di Lucca. References

Mateusz Rudkowski

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Mateusz (or Mieczysław) Rudkowski (also ; c. 1809 — c. 1887) was a Polish composer of choral and piano music. He received his musical education in Lviv and Vienna. In 1850-1860 he was kapellmeister of the choir of Greek Catholic seminary in Lviv, and directed the Ukrainian choir of Stauropegion Institute. Rudkowski was a member of the Galician Music Society in Lviv, and taught its members choral and especially church singing. Some of his compositions were published at his own expense and by Żupański in Poznań, and others by Wild and Kallenbach in Lviv. He composed a mass performed in Lviv in 1855 or 1856. Rudkowski’s compositions were regularly reviewed in Ruch Muzyczny: Opp. 2 and 3 in 1860, Opp. 4 and 5 in 1861. Sources * * * Енциклопедія українознавства: Словникова частина: в 11 т. / Наукове товариство імені Шевченка; гол. ред. проф., д-р Володимир Кубійович. Париж; Нью-Йорк: Молоде життя; Львів; Київ: Глобус, 1955—2003. * Муха Антон. Композитори України та української діаспори. К.: 2004. References External links * * Scores by Mateusz Rudkowski in digital library Polona

Mathilda d'Orozco

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Mathilda Valeria Beatrix d’Orozco (14 June 1796 – 19 October 1863), also by marriage known as Cenami, Montgomery-Cederhjelm and Gyllenhaal, was a Swedish (originally Spanish-Italian) noble and salonist, composer, poet, writer, singer, amateur actress and harpsichordist. Biography D’Orozco was born in Italy to the Spanish ambassador in Milan, Count Nicolas Blasco d’Orozco and Sabina Lederer. She was first married to marquess Cenami, stable master of the court of the sister of Napoleon, Princess Elisa Bonaparte, while she was appointed lady-in-waiting to Elisa. She was widowed before she was twenty. In 1817 in Vienna, she married second to the Swedish Count colonel Josias Montgomery-Cederhjelm (d. 1825), with whom she had four children. In 1839, she married the Swedish Baron Carl Alexander Fredrik Gyllenhaal. In connection with her second marriage (1817), d’Orozco moved to Sweden, where she was to live the rest of her life. In Sweden, she became a noted socialite in the capital, later called “one of the most noted ornaments in the salons of high society during the first happy and vibrant period of the reign of Charles XIV John (reign 1818–1844). Used to the warmer climate of Italy, s

Matteo Carcassi

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Matteo Carcassi (8 April 1792 – 16 January 1853) was an Italian guitarist, teacher and composer. Biography Carcassi was born in Florence, Italy, and first studied the piano, but learned guitar when still a child. He quickly gained a reputation as a virtuoso concert guitarist before the age of twenty. By 1815, he had settled in Paris, where he earned his living as a teacher of both the piano and the guitar. On a concert tour in Germany in 1819, he met his friend Jean-Antoine Meissonnier for the first time. Also a well-known guitarist, Meissonnier published many of Carcassi’s works in his Paris publishing house. For Meissonnier, he also arranged a number of popular songs for guitar that were originally written for piano, including works by Théodore Labarre and Loïsa Puget. From 1820 onward, Carcassi spent the majority of his time in Paris. In 1823, he performed an extremely successful series of concerts in London that earned him great fame, both as a performing artist and as a teacher. However, in Paris, a long time passed before his talents were truly recognized, partly because of the presence of Ferdinando Carulli. Carcassi was in Germany again during the autumn of 1824. Afterwards

Matthäus Stegmayer

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Matthäus Stegmayer (also Matthias; 29 April 1771 – 10 May 1820) was an Austrian composer, musician, music publisher, librettist and actor. Life and career Born in Vienna, Stegmayer was the son of a master tailor and citizen of Vienna and. His sons were Karl Stegmayer (1800–1862; conductor, and the author of several montanistic half-timbering and stage plays), Ferdinand Stegmayer (1801–1863; choirmaster) and Wilhelm Stegmayer (born 1805; a child actor and later a military officer). Stegmayer was a member of the Wiener Sängerknaben in the Dominican Church, Vienna and attended the Akademische Gymnasium from 1783 to 1789, but following his inclination he joined the acting society of Johann Christian Kunz and in 1790 the troupe of Christof Ludwig Seipp in Bratislava, with whom he travelled the Austrian provinces. From 1792, he started to compose incidental music for the stage with Seipp, his first work being the music for August von Kotzebue’s Singspiel Der Eremit von Formentara. In the same year, he was engaged at the Theater in der Josefstadt as a young lover. From 1796, he worked at Emanuel Schikaneder’s Theater auf der Wieden as a composer, comic actor and playwright. From 1801, he

Mauro Giuliani

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Mauro Giuseppe Sergio Pantaleo Giuliani (27 July 1781 – 8 May 1829) was an Italian guitarist, cellist, singer, and composer. He was a leading guitar virtuoso of the early 19th century. One of his best known works is his Grand Overture, which has become standard early Romantic classical guitar repertoire. Biography Although born in Bisceglie, Giuliani’s centre of study was in Barletta, where he moved with his brother Nicola in the first years of his life. His first instrumental training was on the cello—an instrument which he never completely abandoned—and he may have also studied the violin. Subsequently, he devoted himself to the guitar, becoming a skilled performer on it in a short time. The names of his teachers are unknown. He married Maria Giuseppe del Monaco, and they had a child, Michael, born in Barletta in 1801. After that, he was possibly in Bologna and Trieste for a brief stay. By the summer of 1806, fresh from his studies of counterpoint, cello and guitar in Italy, he had moved to Vienna without his family. There, he began a relationship with the Viennese Anna Wiesenberger (1784–1817), with whom he had four daughters, Maria Willmuth (born 1808), Aloisia Willmuth (born 1

Maximilian Joseph Leidesdorf

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Maximilian Joseph Leidesdorf (5 July 1787 – 27 September 1840) was an Austrian pianist, composer and music publisher. Life Leidesdorf was born in Vienna, and studied under Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, Antonio Salieri and Emanuel Aloys Förster. He became a highly regarded pianist and teacher of the piano in Vienna. In 1822 he joined the music publishing firm of Ignaz Sauer 1759–1833), which had existed since 1798 as the publishers Zu den Sieben Schwestern. Sauer withdrew from the business in 1827, and the company was eventually taken over by Diabelli in 1835. Leidesdorf was a friend of Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert; Sauer & Leidesdorf published works by them, also works of Carl Maria von Weber and piano reductions of operas by Gioachino Rossini. He went in 1828 to Florence, where, after a performance of his oratorio Esther, he was appointed court pianist by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and taught at the local conservatory. He died in Florence in 1840. He was the father of the psychiatrist Maximilian Leidesdorf. Works Leidesdorf composed orchestral and chamber music, three masses, a cantata St Cecilia, an oratorio Esther, other choral pieces, songs, and piano music, includin

Michael Costa (conductor)

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Sir Michael Andrew Angus Costa (14 February 180829 April 1884) was an Italian-born conductor and composer who achieved success in England. Biography He was born as Michele Andrea Agniello Costa in Naples, into a family of Sephardic Jewish descent. He studied there with his father, at the Real Collegio di Musica, and later with Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli. In his youth, as throughout his life, he wrote a great quantity of music, including operas, symphonies and cantatas, all of which have long since passed into oblivion. In 1829, he visited the Birmingham Music Festival to conduct Zingarelli’s Cantata Sacra, a setting of some verses from Isaiah ch. xii. This was the occasion of his memorably inauspicious début. The intention was that Costa should rehearse and conduct the work, but J. B Cramer and Thomas Greatorex elbowed him out and was instead engaged as a tenor soloist in another concert. Unfortunately, both the work and Costa’s singing met with ferocious criticism: " This cantata is one of the most tame, insipid things we were ever doomed to hear: a heap of commonplace trash from the first to the last note. After twaddling in B flat for half an hour, he ventures for a few bars int

Michael William Balfe

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Michael William Balfe (15 May 1808 – 20 October 1870) was an Irish composer, best remembered for his operas, especially The Bohemian Girl. After a short career as a violinist, Balfe pursued an operatic singing career, while he began to compose. In a career spanning more than 40 years, he composed at least 29 operas, almost 250 songs, several cantatas and other works. He was also a noted conductor, directing Italian Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre for seven years, among other conducting posts. Biography Early life and career Balfe was born in Dublin and grew up on Pitt Street, which was renamed Balfe Street in 1917 in his honour. His musical gifts became apparent at an early age, and he received instruction from his father, a dancing master and violinist, and from the composer William Rooke. Balfe’s family moved to Wexford when he was a child. Between 1814 and 1815, Balfe played the violin for his father’s dancing-classes, and at the age of seven composed a polacca. In 1817, he appeared as a violinist in public, and in this year composed a ballad, first called “Young Fanny” and afterwards, when sung in Paul Pry by Madame Vestris, “The Lovers’ Mistake”. In 1823, upon his father’s deat

Michele Carafa

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Michele Enrico Francesco Vincenzo Aloisio Paolo Carafa di Colobrano (17 November 1787 – 26 July 1872) was an Italian opera composer. He was born in Naples and studied in Paris with Luigi Cherubini. He was professor of counterpoint at the Paris Conservatoire from 1840 to 1858. One of his notable pupils was Achille Peri. Life and work Michele Enrico was born the second son of Giovanni Carafa, prince of Colubrano and duke of Alvito, and princess Teresa Lembo. He was given a solid musical education. In 1802, he composed his first opera, Il Fantasma, which was staged at the theater of his father-in-law, prince of Caramanico, in 1805. He moved in 1806 to Paris, where he was taught composition by Luigi Cherubini and piano by Friedrich Kalkbrenner. However, pressured by his father to give up music for a military career, he became a lieutenant of the hussars in Napoleon’s army. Taken prisoner in the Battle of Campo Tenese in 1806, he was freed and participated in the war against Sicily, where he became captain. Returning to Naples in 1808, he married Antoinette d’Aubenton (or Daubenton) and studied music under Fedele Fenaroli. Again pressured by his father, he followed Joachim Murat in the

Mikhail Glinka

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Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (; 1 June 180415 February 1857) was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition within his own country and is often regarded as the fountainhead of Russian classical music. His compositions were an important influence on other Russian composers, notably the members of The Five, who produced a distinctive Russian style of music. Early life and education Glinka was born in the village of Novospasskoye, not far from the Desna River in the Smolensk Governorate of the Russian Empire (now in the Yelninsky District of the Smolensk Oblast). His wealthy father had retired as an army captain, and the family had a strong tradition of loyalty and service to the tsars, and several members of his extended family had lively cultural interests. His great-great-grandfather was a Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth nobleman, Wiktoryn Władysław Glinka of the Trzaska coat of arms who was given lands in the Smolensk Voivodeship. In 1655, Wiktoryn converted to Eastern Orthodoxy with the new name Yakov Yakovlevich (Jacob, son of Jacob), and remained the owner of his lands under the tsar. Mikhail was raised by his overprotective and pampering paternal grandmother, who fed him s

Moritz Hauptmann

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Moritz Hauptmann (13 October 1792, Dresden – 3 January 1868, Leipzig), was a German music theorist, teacher and composer. His principal theoretical work is the 1853 Die Natur der Harmonie und der Metrik explores numerous topics, particular the philosophy of music. Biography Hauptmann was born in Dresden, and studied violin under Scholz, piano under Franz Lauska, composition under Grosse and Francesco Morlacchi (who was a rival in Dresden of Carl Maria von Weber). He completed his education as a violinist and composer under Louis Spohr, and until 1821 held various appointments in private families. In addition, he studied mathematics and acoustics. Hauptmann was initially employed as an architect before finding success as a musician. Notable in his early musical output is a grand tragic opera, Mathilde. He joined the orchestra of Kassel in 1822 under Spohr’s direction. There, he first taught composition and music theory. His pupils included Ferdinand David, Friedrich Burgmüller, Gustav Graben-Hoffmann, Charles Edward Horsley, Friedrich Kiel, Ernst Naumann, Oscar Paul, Isidor Seiss and others. In 1842, Hauptmann became Thomaskantor in Leipzig (a post once held by Johann Sebastian Bach

Mykola Markevych

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Mykola Markevych (; 7 February 1804 – 21 June 1860) was a Ukrainian historian, ethnographer, musician and poet of Ukrainian Cossack descent, who was known as a friend of Alexander Pushkin, Wilhelm Küchelbecker, Anton Delvig and Kondraty Ryleyev. His main work is his five-volume History of Little Russia, which was published in Moscow between 1842 and 1843. Life Background and early life Mykola Markevych was of Ukrainian Cossack descent. He was born in Dunaiets, Chernigov Governorate, Russian Empire (now in modern-day Ukraine) on 7 February 1804. He studied at the Saint Petersburg Pedagogical Institute from 1817 to 1820, before studying piano and composition under John Field in Moscow. His collections Elegies and Jewish Melodies and Erotic Poems and a translation of Byron’s poem Parisina were published in Moscow in 1829, followed in 1831 by Ukrainian Melodies. Death and legacy Markevych died in Turivka, Poltava Governorate, Russian Empire on 21 June 1860. Many of his works remain unpublished. His personal archive and diary are kept at the Institute of Russian Literature in Saint Petersburg. References External links * Косачевская Н. А. Маркевич, 1804—1860. — Л. : Изд-во ЛГУ, 1987. —

Napoléon Coste

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Claude Antoine Jean Georges Napoléon Coste (27 June 1805 – 14 January 1883) was a French classical guitarist and composer. Biography Napoléon Coste was born in Amondans (Doubs), near Besançon, France. He was first taught the guitar by his mother, an accomplished player. As a teenager he became a teacher of the instrument and appeared in three concerts in the Franche-Comté. In 1829, at the age of 24, he moved to Paris where he studied under Fernando Sor and quickly established himself as the leading French virtuoso guitarist. Despite declining demand in Paris for guitarists during the years after he arrived, Coste achieved financial stability as a professional musician and composer. Unable to find a publisher, he had to self-publish his works. Napoléon Coste was influenced by the Early Classical-Romantic composers of the time including Hector Berlioz. Coste’s Opus no.47, La Source du Lyson is inspired by nature much like Berlioz’s program music. Coste injured his left shoulder in 1863, though was able to continue public performances until 1881, two years before his death. After Sor’s death, Coste edited and republished Sor’s original method for guitar as Méthode complète pour la Gui

Napoléon Henri Reber

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Napoléon Henri Reber (21 October 1807 – 24 November 1880) was a French composer. Life and career Reber was born in Mulhouse, Alsace, and studied with Anton Reicha and Jean François Lesueur, wrote chamber music, and set to music works of French poets. He became professor of harmony at the Conservatoire de Paris in 1851, succeeded Fromental Halévy as professor of composition in 1862 and served as inspector of the branch conservatories. In 1853, he was elected to the chair previously occupied by George Onslow in the Académie des Beaux Arts. His instrumental arrangement of Frédéric Chopin’s Funeral March from the Funeral March Sonata was played at the graveside during Chopin’s burial at Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris on 30 October 1849. He was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 1855, and an officer in 1870. On his death, he was succeeded as a member of the Institut by Camille Saint-Saëns. Notable students include Adolphe Danhauser and Jules Massenet. Reber died in Paris. Works Among his works are a ballet, Le Diable amoureux (written jointly with François Benoist, 1840); the comic operas, Le Nuit de Noël (1848), Le Père Gaillard (1852), Les Papillotes de M. Benoist (1853), an

Napoleon Orda

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Napoleon Mateusz Tadeusz Orda (; ; 11 February 1807 – 26 April 1883) was a Polish–Lithuanian musician, pianist, composer, and artist, best known for numerous sketches of historical sites of the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Biography Napoleon Orda was born in the village of Varacevičy in the Pinsky Uyezd of Minsk Governorate (now in Ivanava District of Belarus) in his father’s manor. His father, Michał Orda, was an impoverished noble of Lithuanian ancestry and the marshal of the powiat of Kobryn. His mother was Józefa (nee Butrymowicz). After finishing Svislach gymnasium in 1823, he started mathematical studies at the Imperial University of Vilnius. However, his university career came to an end on 27 August 1826, when he was arrested by the Russian secret police for taking part in a secret student society “Zorzanie”, which was active in Svislach and Białystok gymnasiums. Although he was released soon afterwards, he was expelled from the university and was not allowed to continue his studies. Orda took part in the failed November Uprising of 1830 against Russian Empire and served with distinction in the famous 4th Regiment (Czwartacy). For his bravery he received the highes

Narcisse Girard

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Narcisse Girard (28 January 179716 January 1860) was a French violinist, conductor and composer. Life Girard was born in Nantes. A pupil of Pierre Baillot (violin, winning first prize in 1820), and Anton Reicha (counterpoint) at the Conservatoire, after completing his studies there he went to Italy for a year to further his training. After conducting orchestras at the Hotel de Ville, Girard became the conductor of the Opéra Italien from 1830 to 1832. He was chief conductor at the Opéra Comique from 1837 to 1846, then moving to the Paris Opéra, where he conducted the premieres of Le prophète and Sapho. On 30 October 1849 Girard conducted Mozart’s Requiem as part of the funeral service for Frédéric Chopin. From 18 October 1848 to 17 January 1860 Girard was the conductor of the Société des Concerts du Conservatoire, leading them in over 100 concerts. Girard conducted the first performance of Harold en Italie by Hector Berlioz at the Salle du Conservatoire on 23 November 1834, with Chrétien Urhan (viola). Girard was a professor of violin at the Paris Conservatoire where his pupils included Jules Danbé, Charles Lamoureux and Édouard Colonne. His compositions included an overture Antigon

Niccolò Paganini

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Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (; ; 27 October 178227 May 1840) was an Italian violinist, guitarist and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique. His 24 Caprices for Solo Violin Op. 1 are among the best known of his compositions and have served as an inspiration for many prominent composers. Son of a ship chandler from Genoa, Paganini showed great gifts for music from an early age and studied under Alessandro Rolla, Ferdinando Paer and Gasparo Ghiretti. Accompanied by his father, he toured northern Italy extensively as a teenager. By 1805 he had come into the service of Napoleon’s sister, Elisa Bonaparte, who then ruled Lucca where Paganini was first violin. From 1809 on he returned to touring and achieved continental fame in the subsequent two and a half decades, developing a reputation for his technical brilliance and showmanship, as well as his extravagant, philandering lifestyle. Paganini ended his concert career in 1834 amid declining health, and the failure of his Paris casino left him in financial ruin. He retired and died in Nice (at that time still part of the Kingdom of Sardinia) in

Nicola Antonio Manfroce

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Nicola Antonio Manfroce (20 February 1791, in Palmi – 9 July 1813, in Naples) was an Italian composer. His first work was a cantata for Napoleon’s birthday, which was performed at the Neapolitan court on 15 August 1809. Early life and education Little is known about Manfroce’s early years. He was the son of Carmela Rapillo and Domenico Manfroce, who served as maestro di cappella (chapel master) in Cinquefrondi. Sent to Naples by his father, Nicola pursued humanistic studies at a college and soon showed exceptional musical talent. From 1804, he studied composition at the Pietà dei Turchini Conservatory under Giovanni Furno and Giacomo Tritto. Career Manfroce’s first known work was the cantata La nascita di Alcide, composed in honor of Napoleon I and performed in 1809 at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples for the royal court of Joachim Murat and Caroline Bonaparte. His early successes encouraged him to move to Rome, where he perfected his counterpoint studies under Nicola Antonio Zingarelli. His first opera, Alzira, premiered in Rome in 1810 at the Teatro Valle. Hecuba and final years The celebrated impresario Domenico Barbaja commissioned Manfroce to write a new opera, the three-act

Nicola Vaccai

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Nicola Vaccai (15 March 1790 – 5 or 6 August 1848) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas, and a singing teacher. Life and career as a composer Born at Tolentino, he grew up in Pesaro, and studied music there until his parents sent him to Rome to study law. Having no intention of becoming a lawyer, he took voice lessons and eventually studied counterpoint with Giuseppe Jannaconi, an important Roman composer. When Vaccai turned twenty one, he went to Naples and became a disciple of Paisiello, whose Barber of Seville was considered a comic masterpiece until Rossini’s Barber swept it from the stage 35 years later. Vaccai launched his career in Venice, initially earning his living by writing ballets and teaching voice. He had his first operatic success with I solitari di Scozia in Naples in 1815. In Parma he was commissioned to write Pietro il grande, where he was also one of the soloists in the first performance. This was followed by Zadig e Astartea (Naples, 1825) and then his best known opera Giulietta e Romeo (Milan, 1825). Vaccai’s sojourn in London began with a production of his most successful opera, Romeo and Juliet, at Kings Theatre in April, 1832. His charm and conti

Nicolas Chopin

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Nicolas Chopin (; 15 April 17713 May 1844) was a teacher of the French language in Partitioned Poland, and father of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin. Life Nicolas Chopin was born in the village of Marainville-sur-Madon (Vosges department), in the province of Lorraine, France. He was the son of François Chopin (9 November 1738, Ambacourt – 31 January 1814, Marainville), a wheelwright and village administrator for Marainville, and Marguerite, née Deflin (1 February 1736, Diarville – 21 August 1794, Marainville), an educator respected by her colleagues and students. François and Marguerite were married on 17 January 1769. Nicolas had four sisters, only two of whom survived to adulthood: Anne (b. 23 November 1769, Marainville), who married Joseph Thomas on 13 February 1798, and Marguerite (5 August 1775, Marainville – 10 March 1845), who married Nicolas Bastien on 2 December 1798. Nicolas’ godmother was his aunt Thérèse Lhumbert née Chopin, the half-sister of his father François. the Polish-born estate administrator for Count Michał Jan Pac. Weydlich took an interest in the education of young Nicolas, teaching him the rudiments of the Polish language, while Weydlich’s wife—a Parisian,

Nicolas Isouard

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Nicolas Isouard (; also known as Nicolò, Nicolò Isoiar or Nicolò de Malte; 18 May 1773 – 23 March 1818) was a Franco-Maltese composer. Biography Born in Valletta, Malta, Isouard studied in Rabat or Mdina with Francesco Azopardi, in Palermo with , and in Naples with Nicola Sala and Pietro Alessandro Guglielmi. From 1795 he was organist at St John’s Co-Cathedral - the Conventual Church of the Order of Saint John in Valletta He moved to Paris, where he worked as a free composer and became friends with Rodolphe Kreutzer. The pair worked together on several operas, including Le Petit page, ou La Prison d’état (1800) and Flaminius à Corinthe (1801). Isouard adopted the pseudonym Nicolò (or Nicolò de Malte) and found rapid success in the field of opéra comique with Michel-Ange (1802) and L’Intrigue aux fenêtres (1805). He composed regularly for the Théâtre de l’Opéra-Comique, writing some thirty works for the theatre. He composed masses, motets, cantatas, romances, and duos, along with over 45 operas. Family and legacy Isouard had two daughters, Sophie-Nicole (1809–1885), a composer of romances, and Annette-Julie (1814–1876), a pianist and composer. His brother Joseph (1794–1863) had a ca

Nicolas-Charles Bochsa

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Robert-Nicolas-Charles Bochsa (; 9 August 1789 – 6 January 1856) was a French harpist and composer. His relationship with Anna Bishop was popularly thought to have inspired that of Svengali and Trilby in George du Maurier’s 1894 novel Trilby. Life The son of a Bohemian-born musician, , Bochsa was born in Montmédy, Meuse, France. He was appointed harpist to the Imperial Orchestra of Napoleon in 1813, and began writing operas for the Opéra-Comique. However, in 1817 he became entangled in counterfeiting, fraud, and forgery, and fled to London to avoid prosecution. He was convicted in absentia, and sentenced to twelve years hard labour and a fine of 4,000 francs. Safe from French law in London, he helped found the Royal Academy of Music in 1821, and became its secretary. He taught there, among others, the British harp virtuoso Elias Parish Alvars. When his criminal conviction was revealed in 1826, he was forced to resign. He then became musical director of the Kings Theatre, London. In 1839, he became involved in another scandal when he ran off with the opera singer Anna Bishop, wife of the composer Henry Bishop. They performed together in North America and throughout Europe (except Fr

Nikolai Bakhmetev

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Nikolai Ivanovich Bakhmetev (, scientific transliteration: Nikolaj Ivanovič Bachmetev; 1807–1891) was a Russian soldier, composer, violinist and long-serving director of the Imperial Court Capella in Saint Petersburg. Biography Bakhmetev was born in 1807 in the Russian Empire. He served in the military before devoting himself to music. In 1861 he succeeded Alexei Lvov as director of the Imperial Court Capella. He remained in the position until 1883, overseeing repertoire, performance practice and the publication of official choral editions. Works Bakhmetev edited and published the two-volume Obikhod notnovo tserkovnovo peniya (Common Book of Musical Church Singing, 1869–1879), which became the standard liturgical collection of the Imperial Court. Under his supervision, three further volumes of sacred choral compositions were issued, and his editorial revisions of traditional chants had lasting influence on Russian Orthodox church music. Legacy Lvov-Bakhmetev’s Obikhod became the most widely used “court” edition of its time and influenced later four-part choral arrangements. Iakov Tichai for example adapted it extensively for Orthodox services in Japan under St. Nicholas of Japan. T

Nikolai Titov

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Nikolai Alexeyevich Titov (; 10 May 1800 in St. Petersburg – 22 December 1875 in St. Petersburg) was a Russian composer, violinist, and Major General in various regiments during the 19th century. He is considered to be the “Grandfather of the Russian Romance.” His compositional style was considered to be in the pre-classical orientation, thus setting the groundwork for the developments by Glinka and his contemporaries. He is considered to be one of the most popular romance composers of the 19th century. His songs were praised for their homely sensibility and ruminative harmonic language, albeit encased in simple yet effect forms that appealed to the at-home Amateurs and seasons musicians alike. His repertoire can still be heard today. Family and children Nikolai Alexeyevich Titov was born on April 28, 1800, in St. Petersburg to a family of art song and small-form composers. Titov also had a younger brother named Mikhail Alekseyevich, who was likewise a notable and technically proficient composer of romances, salon plays, and other small genres during the 19th century. Nikolai Titov was married in 1893 to Sofia Alekseevna Smirnova, great grandmother of Russian Postwar painter Nataly

Nikolaos Mantzaros

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Nikolaos Chalikiopoulos Mantzaros ( ; ; 26 October 1795 – 12 April 1872) was a Greek-Italian composer, born in Corfu. He was a major representative and founder of the so-called Ionian school of music (Επτανησιακή Σχολή). Recent research and performances have led to a re-evaluation of Mantzaros as a significant composer and music theorist. Biography Mantzaros was of noble Greco-Italian descent, coming from one of the most important and wealthy Venetian families of the “Libro d’Oro” di Corfu and therefore he never considered himself a “professional composer”, The first and second stanzas were adopted initially in 1864 as the Royal Anthem of Greece and on 28 June 1865 as the Greek national anthem. However, recent research and performances have proved that Mantzaros had broader activities as a significant composer and music theorist, which go beyond the established perception of him as the mere composer of the National Anthem. Recordings * Mantzaros-Solomos: The Hymn to the Liberty (Lyra, CD0064, 1991) * Music of the Ionian School. N.Mantzaros, N.Lambelet, P.Carrer (Motivo, NM1049, 1996). The ‘Nikolaos Mantzaros Chamber Music Ensemble’ performing arrangements from piano Sinfonias by Ma

Otto Lindblad

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Otto Jonas Lindblad (31 March 1809 – 26 January 1864), was a Swedish composer. He is most famous for the musical score of Kungssången, the Swedish royal anthem. Otto Lindblad was the son of a clergyman. He was born in Karlstorp and attended gymnasium in Växjö. In 1829 he began academic studies at the University of Lund where he was a pupil of Mathias Lundholm. In Lund, he formed a group with A. E. Christernin and J. Meurling, together with whom he played and sang a type of three part music pieces. The group became known as the “musical trefoil band”. In 1836 he ended his studies and fully devoted his time to music. Two years later he formed the Lund Student Singers Association. On 5 December 1844 he presented the Royal Anthem for the first time, at a celebration for King Oscar I. In 1846 Lindblad undertook a national tour with the noted Lund Quartet. The tour’s revenue was to have been used for student housing in Lund, but the profit was too small and they only managed to bring home 1500 Riksdaler. In the spring of 1847 he took up the position of parish clerk and organist in Mellby. He married Emma Andersson in 1855. Their only child, a daughter, died as an infant. Otto Lindblad di

Paul Struck

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Paul Friedrich Struck (6 December 1776 – 14 May 1820) was a German-Austrian classical composer. Biography Struck was born in Stralsund, and began studying music in Berlin in 1792. In later years he studied with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger and then with Joseph Haydn in Vienna. In 1802 he settled in Vienna as a piano teacher. He later moved to Bratislava where he lived from 1817 until his death in 1820. Selected works Vocal music * “Mother’s Birthday Party”, (Vienna, 1797) * “Cantate for Her Royal Majesty the Queen” for soprano and orchestra (1801) * “Mourning Cantata on the Death of His Child” op. 16 (Vienna, 1817) * 6 songs for soprano, alto tenor, bass Instrumental Music * Quatuor pour Clarinette, Violon (ou deux Violons), Alto & Violoncelle op. 12, Louis Maisch, Vienna, no date * Sonata pour le Clavecin ou Piano-Forte avec accompagnement de Violon et Violoncelle op. 1 No. 1, op. 1 No. 2, op. 1 No. 3 * Trois Sonates pour le Clavecin ou Piano-Forte avec accompagnement de Flûte ou Violon et Violoncelle obl. Composées et dediées à Madame CE Struck par son fils Struck. Elève de J. Haydn. Op. 4. Jean André, Offenbach s / M., Undated * Grand Duo op.7 (Sonata) pour le Pianoforte et Clar

Pauline Duchambge

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Pauline Duchambge née de Montet (1778 – 23 April 1858) was a French pianist, singer, and composer. Life Duchambge (Montet) was born in Martinique, the daughter of a noble family. She was taken to Paris, where she received a convent education and studied the piano from composer and author Jean-Baptiste Desormery, son of the famous comic opera actor and composer Léopold-Bastien Desormery. Pauline left the convent in 1792 and married Baron Duchambge in 1796. In 1798 at the age of 20, she lost both her parents and with them the family fortune. Soon afterwards she was divorced. It was after these events that Duchambge’s musical education began in earnest. She studied harmony and composition with Daniel Auber and Luigi Cherubini (who wrote several compositions for her) as well as piano and composition with Jan Ladislav Dussek. In 1815, Duchambge met the French poet and novelist, Marceline Desbordes-Valmore beginning a lifelong friendship and collaboration. Their friendship is documented by a lengthy correspondence and a number of songs by Duchambge on Debordes-Valmore’s texts including L’Adieu tout bas, La Fiancée del marin, Je pense à lui, La Jeune Châtelaine, Rêve du mousse, La Sincère

Pedro Albéniz

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Pedro Albéniz y Basanta (14 April 179512 April 1855) was a Spanish pianist and composer. He was unrelated to Isaac Albéniz. Life Albéniz was born in Logroño, La Rioja. He began his studies with his father Mateo Albéniz, a notable church musician in Spain. He furthered his education in Paris, where he was instructed by eminent teachers and received musical advice from Rossini. Returning to Spain in 1830, he served as organist at the Church of Santa María in San Sebastián and then became a professor at the Madrid Royal Conservatory, organist of the Capilla Real, and the personal piano teacher of Queen Isabella II. He died in Madrid. Later in life he neglected his career as a concert pianist and dedicated himself instead to teaching. He left behind many compositions for piano, chamber music and songs, but was subsequently remembered chiefly for his piano method, which was studied by all Spanish pianists at the Madrid Conservatory during the mid-19th century. Compositions Works for concert band * 1813 Himno - cantado en la ciudad de San Sebastián en obsequio a los Reyes N.N.S.S., dedicadoa sus Magestades, for concert band and great mixed choir * 1833 Marcha e himno para la jura de la P

Peter Hänsel

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Peter Hänsel (born 29 November 1770 in Leppe, Silesia Province; d. 18 September 1831 in Vienna) was a German-Austrian violinist and classical composer of almost exclusively chamber music. He has been recently viewed not only as the principal representative of the true quartet school of Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but also the composer responsible for incorporating French and Polish influences into the Viennese classical style, thus serving as mediator between Germany, France and Poland. Like his contemporary Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), he was one of Haydn’s composition pupils during the 1790s. He died in Vienna shortly before his 61st birthday. Life and works After a musical apprenticeship with his uncle in 1787 in Warsaw, Hänsel traveled to Russia and joined the orchestra of Prince Grigory Alexandrovich Potemkin in St. Petersburg, which at the time was under the direction of master Giuseppe Sarti. In 1788 he returned to Warsaw after the completion of his contract. In the spring of 1791 he was concert master at the court of Princess Izabela Lubomirska in Vienna, where he was employed from 1796 with a fixed annual salary. Hänsel took lessons with Joseph Haydn in

Peter Josef von Lindpaintner

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Peter Josef von Lindpaintner (8 December 1791 – 21 August 1856) was a German composer and conductor. Born in Koblenz as the son of a tenor, he studied with Peter Winter and Joseph Graetz. From 1819 onwards he was based in Stuttgart. Some of his early operas were Singspiele, but under the influence of Carl Maria von Weber his interest shifted to Romantic opera. He died in Nonnenhorn, Bavaria, on Lake Constance. Works Operas Bibliography * R. Hänsler: Peter Lindpaintner als Opernkomponist (diss., Munich, 1928) * R. Nägele: Peter Joseph von Lindpaintner: sein Leben, sein Werk (Tutzing, 1993) * R. Nägele: Peter von Lindpaintner – Briefe (letters, 1809–1856) (Göttingen, 2001) References * Clive Brown: “Lindpaintner, Peter Josef von”, in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London, 1992), External links * * * List of works, operone.de

Philip Knapton

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Philip Knapton (20 October 1788 – 20 June 1833) was an English organist and composer, active in the musical life of York. Life Knapton was born in York in 1788, son of Samuel Knapton, an organist and double bass player, and a music publisher. He received his musical education at Cambridge, studying under Charles Hague, but did not graduate from the university. He returned to York, where he was a resident until his death. In about 1812 he became organist of St Saviour’s Church, York, the first after the installation of the organ. Soon afterwards, feeling that psalmody had fallen into neglect, he produced A Collection of Tunes for Psalms and Hymns, Selected as a Supplement to those now used in several Churches in York and its Vicinities, published in York in 1816; he selected tunes that he considered had neither a “gloomy style” nor a “light and indecorous style”. It went into at least three editions. He was one of the assistant conductors at the York festivals of 1823, 1825, and 1828. References External links * Philip Knapton (1788 - 1833) The LiederNet Archive *

Philipp Jakob Riotte

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Philipp Jakob Riotte (16 August 1776 – 1856) was a German composer who lived primarily in Vienna. In the 1820s, his works were among the most-performed at the Theater an der Wien. He was a contemporary of Ludwig van Beethoven. Very few of his works remain in the active repertoire today. Life Philipp Jakob Riotte was born at St. Wendel (Saarland). He was probably descended from a French emigrant Huguenot family. The earliest records indicate he was expelled as choirboy in his hometown of Sankt Wendel. He studied violin, violoncello and later piano and organ. In 1793 he received his first employment as an organist at a seminar in Trier. In 1794 to 1805 he resided in Blieskastel, the residence of the Imperial counts of Leyen, as well as in Frankfurt am Main and Offenbach. In Offenbach, he continued his studies with the composer and music publisher Johann Anton André. From 1806 to 1808 Riotte was active as a Kapellmeister in Gdańsk and as a chief conductor in Magdeburg. In 1808, Riotte established himself in Vienna. At first he made a living by giving piano lessons and selling his own compositions. In addition, he was active as a musical correspondent. Between 1810 and 1815, he contrib

Philippe Musard

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Philippe Musard (8 November 1792 – 31 March 1859) was a French composer who was crucial to the development and popularity of the promenade concert. One of the most famous personalities of Europe during the 1830s and 1840s, his concerts in Paris and London were riotous (in several senses of the word) successes. Best known for his “galop” and “quadrille” pieces, he composed many of these numbers himself, usually borrowing famous themes of other composers. Musard plays an important role in the development of light classical music, the faculty of publicity in music, and in the role of the conductor as a musical celebrity. He has been largely forgotten subsequent to his retirement in the early 1850s. History Philippe Musard was born in Tours on 8 November 1792 to parents of limited financial means. Musard joined a unit of the Imperial Guards as a cornet player. When Napoleon was defeated, he moved to London, started as a violinist, and eventually his career progressed to the point of leading the orchestra of King George IV and organized balls, becoming wealthy in the process. Between 1821 and 1825 many of his compositions were published in London, and some of these were performed in Par

Pierre Baillot

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Pierre Marie François de Sales Baillot (; 1 October 1771 – 15 September 1842) was a French violinist and composer born in Passy. He studied the violin under Giovanni Battista Viotti and taught at the Conservatoire de Paris together with Pierre Rode (also a pupil of Viotti) and Rodolphe Kreutzer, who wrote the Conservatoire’s official violin method (published in the early 19th century). He was sole author of the instructional L’Art du violon (1834). Baillot’s teachings had a profound influence on technical and musical development in an age in which virtuosity was openly encouraged. He was leader of the Paris Opéra, gave solo recitals and was a notable performer of chamber music. Biography Early life Pierre Baillot, who was associated with Rode and Kreutzer in the compilation of the celebrated Methode du Violon, was born at Passy, near Paris, and became one of the best violinists of his time. His eminence in his profession was not obtained without a long struggle against great difficulties, for at the age of twelve he lost his father, who had kept a school, and became dependent upon friends for his education. His musical talent was remarkable at an early age, and he received his firs

Pierre Rode

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Jacques Pierre Joseph Rode (; 16 February 1774 – 25 November 1830) was a French violinist and composer. Life and career Born in Bordeaux, Aquitaine, France, Pierre Rode traveled in 1787 to Paris and soon became a favourite pupil of the great Giovanni Battista Viotti, who found the boy so talented that he charged him no fee for the lessons. Rode inherited his teacher’s style, to which he added more mildness and a more refined tone. It is also recorded that he made extensive use of portamento. He collaborated with Baillot and Kreutzer on the official Violin Method of the Conservatoire de Paris, published in 1802. Rode served as violin soloist to Napoleon and toured extensively in the Netherlands, Germany, England and Spain, staying with François-Adrien Boieldieu in Saint Petersburg from 1804 until 1809, and later spending much time in Moscow. When he returned to Paris, he found that the public no longer responded with much enthusiasm to his playing. Spohr, who heard him both before and after his Russian sojourn, wrote that Rode’s playing had become “cold and full of mannerism”. However, according to some sources, he suffered from a lymphatic infection caused by streptococcus bacteria

Pierre-Joseph-Guillaume Zimmerman

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Pierre-Joseph-Guillaume Zimmerman (19 March 178529 October 1853), known as Pierre Zimmermann and Joseph Zimmermann, was a French pianist, composer, and music teacher. Biography Zimmerman was born in Paris on March 19, 1785, as the son of a piano maker. He attended the Paris Conservatory in 1798, studying piano with François-Adrien Boieldieu; while a student there, he won first prizes for piano in 1800 (Friedrich Kalkbrenner came second) and harmony in 1802. He would later study under Luigi Cherubini. Zimmerman became a piano assistant at the Conservatory in 1811 and a full professor there in 1816, serving until 1848; he refused a position as a professor of counterpoint and fugue in 1821. Among his students were Charles Gounod (who married one of his daughters), Ambroise Thomas, Louis Lacombe, Alexandre Goria and Lefébure-Wély. In 1842 he denied Conservatory admission to 13-year-old Louis Moreau Gottschalk without an audition on account of Gottschalk’s American nationality, commenting that “America is a country of steam engines”. Zimmerman was often assisted in his teaching by Gounod. Zimmerman wrote two operas, L’enlèvement (Opéra-Comique, 1830) and Nausicaa (never staged). He also

Pierre-Louis Dietsch

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Pierre-Louis-Philippe Dietsch (also Dietch, Dietzch, Dietz) (17 March 1808 – 20 February 1865) was a French composer and conductor, perhaps best remembered for the much anthologized Ave Maria ‘by’ Jacques Arcadelt, which he loosely arranged from that composer’s three part madrigal Nous voyons que les hommes. Life and career Dietsch was born in Dijon. According to Fétis, Dietsch was a choirboy at Dijon Cathedral and studied from 1822 at Choron’s Institution Royale de Musique Classique et Religieuse in Paris. In 1830, Dietsch entered the Paris Conservatory and studied with Anton Reicha. Later, with the founding of the École Niedermeyer (successor of Choron’s Institution) in 1853, Dietsch taught harmony, counterpoint, and fugue in a position he held up until his death. Dietsch composed church music as well as an opera, Le Vaisseau fantôme, ou Le Maudit des mers (“The Phantom Ship, or The Accursed of the Sea”), which was first performed on 9 November 1842 at the Paris Opera. The libretto by Paul Foucher and H. Révoil was based on Walter Scott’s The Pirate as well as Captain Marryat’s The Phantom Ship and other sources, although Wagner thought it was based on his scenario for Der fliege

Pierre-Louis Hus-Desforges

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Pierre-Louis Hus-Desforges (24 March 1773 – 20 January 1838) was a French cellist, conductor and composer. He is sometimes incorrectly referred to as “Pierre-Louis Hus-Desforges Jarnowick”. The grandson of theatre manager Barthélemy Hus-Desforges, he came from a long line of entertainers, the Hus family, and his grandmother was a Courtenay. After he finished his studies at the Conservatoire de Paris with Benoit Tranquille Berbiguier, he began as a cellist in various orchestras. In the early nineteenth century, he was conductor at St. Petersburg, returned to Paris, then taught in Metz from 1819 to 1822. Works * Concerto pour violoncelle * Messe à trois voix et à grand orchestre * Several Quintetto pour deux violons, alto, violoncelle et basse * Several Sonatines brillantes et faciles pour violoncelle * Sinfonie concertante pour violon et violoncelle obligés (c. 1797) * L’Autel de sa patrie, melody by Citoyen Desforges (1798) * Méthode de violoncelle à l’usage des commençants (1828) * 3 duos opus 31 for violin and cello References External links * Some works on Klassika

Pietro Raimondi

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Pietro Raimondi (December 20, 1786, Rome – October 30, 1853) was an Italian composer, transitional between the Classical and Romantic eras. While he was famous at the time as a composer of operas and sacred music, he was also as an innovator in contrapuntal technique as well as in creation of gigantic musical simultaneities. He was the director of the Palermo Conservatory from 1833-1852. Raimondi was born in Rome, and received his early education in Naples. He spent part of his early career in Genoa, and then in Sicily, where he had operas performed in Catania and Messina; however he moved back to Naples in 1820, and began a career as an opera composer there. While he was best known as an opera composer during this time, he was obsessed with counterpoint, and spent his spare time writing fugues for many voices, as well as simultaneous fugues in different keys and modes for multiple groups of different instruments. He considered this work to be experimental, and did not incorporate his experimentation, early in his career, into his operas. Few of Raimondi’s operas were successful, and as soon as he realized he was being eclipsed by Rossini, and later by Bellini and Donizetti, he cha

Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia (1772–1806)

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Prince Frederick Louis Christian “Ferdinand” of Prussia (; 18 November 1772 – 10 October 1806), was a Prussian prince, soldier, composer and pianist. Prince Louis Ferdinand fought in the Napoleonic Wars. The 1927 German film Prinz Louis Ferdinand depicts his life. Early life Louis Ferdinand was born on 18 November 1772 in Friedrichsfelde Palace, near Berlin. He was a son of Prince August Ferdinand of Prussia and Elisabeth Louise of Brandenburg-Schwedt, and was a nephew of King Frederick the Great. He was given the baptismal name Friedrich Ludwig Christian, but was known as Louis and was soon given the nickname Ferdinand (after his father), so that he could be distinguished from his cousin, also named Louis, Prince Friedrich Ludwig Karl of Prussia (1773–1796). Military career Louis Ferdinand participated in the French Revolutionary Wars, fighting in the War of the First Coalition in 1792 to 1794 near Longwy and Verdun, took part in the Valmy cannonade and was wounded during the Siege of Mainz. Newly promoted to major general, he took part in the Battle of Kaiserslautern in November 1793. On 23 February 1795 Louis Ferdinand was appointed chief of the “von Baden” infantry regiment. Fr

Princess Amalie of Saxony

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Amalie Marie Friederike Auguste (10 August 1794 – 18 September 1870), Princess of Saxony, full name Maria Amalia Friederike Augusta Karolina Ludovica Josepha Aloysia Anna Nepomucena Philippina Vincentia Franziska de Paula Franziska de Chantal, was a German composer writing under the pen name A. Serena, and a dramatist under the name Amalie Heiter. She was the daughter of Prince Maximilian of Saxony and Princess Carolina of Parma. Life Princess Amalie was the eldest child of Prince Maximilian of Saxony and Princess Carolina of Parma. She was named after her maternal grandmother, Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma. She was also the granddaughter of Frederick Christian, Elector of Saxony; niece of Frederick Augustus I, King of Saxony and Anthony, King of Saxony; sister of Frederick Augustus II, King of Saxony and John, King of Saxony; and aunt of Albert, King of Saxony and George, King of Saxony. She spent most of her life in Pillnitz Castle near Dresden. Known for her education and intellectual interests, she composed chamber, opera, and sacred music, performed as a singer, wrote comedies, and played the harpsichord. Amalie was a young girl during the time of the Napoleonic Wars and had

Princess Cecilia of Sweden (1807–1844)

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Cecilia of Sweden (22 June 1807 – 27 January 1844) was a composer, a Swedish princess by birth, and Grand Duchess of Oldenburg by marriage. She was the daughter of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden and Frederica of Baden. Biography After birth, she was raised under the supervision of the royal governess Charlotte Stierneld. The youngest of four children, Cecilia left Sweden in 1810 with her family after her father was deposed as king of Sweden by the Coup of 1809. She was raised in her mother’s home country, the Grand Duchy of Baden (Germany). After her parents were divorced in 1812, she was raised mainly by her grandmother Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt in Bruchsal. She met Augustus, Grand Duke of Oldenburg in 1830, and after an hour’s conversation, the marriage was decided. She went to her brother in Vienna, where her wedding took place in the presence of the Austrian Emperor Francis I. She relocated to the city of Oldenburg in June 1831. Cecilia had an interest in culture. As Grand Duchess of Oldenburg she composed the melody of a hymn for Oldenburg. The hymn was later added with lyrics by Theodor von Kobbe and named ‘Heil dir, o Oldenburg’. In 1833, Cecila supported the founding of the

Ramón Carnicer

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Ramón Carnicer i Batlle (October 24, 1789 – March 17, 1855) was a Spanish composer and opera conductor, today best known for composing the National Anthem of Chile. Biography Carnicer was born in Tàrrega, Spain. His first major positions were as conductor for the opera, and he was influential in the development of the Spanish national opera style, zarzuela. He conducted the Italian Opera in Barcelona from 1818 to 1820, and the Royal Opera in Madrid from 1828 to 1830, as well as composing nine operas. * Il dissoluto punito, ossia Don Giovanni Tenorio (1822, premiered again in 2006), Opera in Italian, in two acts, libretto by Giovanni Bertati. * Elena e Malvina (1827), Opera in two acts * Cristoforo Colombo (1829), Opera * Eufemio di Messina (1832), Opera * Guglielmo Tell (1834), Opera * Eran due or sono tre, o sea, Gli esposti (1836), Opera buffa in two acts. Libretto by Jacopo Ferretti * Ismalia o Morte ed amore (1838), Opera in two acts * Laura y Don Gonzalo (1841), òpera in 4 acts. Music attributed to Carnicer. Libretto attributed to Manuel Bretón de los Herreros * Ipermestra (1843), drama in three acts. Words by Pietro Metastasio. Authorship discussed * Lucrezia Borgia. Attribut

Robert Führer

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Robert Jan Nepomuk Führer (2 June 1807 – 28 November 1861) was a Czech composer. Biography Born in Prague, he became the Director of Music at St. Vitus Cathedral at the age of 32. Despite his considerable artistic gifts, he lived beyond his means. To support his extravagant lifestyle he sold a valuable Stradivarius violin which was owned by the cathedral. This fact was discovered in 1845, when he was dismissed for the crime. Without a church to call home he wandered through several different towns and villages, but never stayed in any one place for too long. During this period he had to support himself from sales of his church music compositions. Luckily this was successful because his music was well loved. No other composer’s works enjoyed as widespread performance amongst the choirs in South Germany and Austria during the second half of the 19th century. His musical style varies from a composer such as Mozart, and is more in keeping with that of an early Cecilian. Many of his pieces were written for rural choirs, and as a consequence, they were not too musically demanding. In spite of this, larger and more difficult works can be found in his output. Although his material was some

Robert Lucas Pearsall

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Robert Lucas Pearsall (14 March 1795 – 5 August 1856) was an English composer mainly of vocal music, including an elaborate setting of “In dulci jubilo” and the richly harmonic part song Lay a garland of 1840, both still often performed today. He spent the last 31 years of his life abroad, at first in Germany, then at a castle he bought in Switzerland. Biography Pearsall was born at Clifton in Bristol on 14 March 1795 into a wealthy, originally Quaker family. His father, Richard Pearsall (died 1813), was an army officer and an amateur musician. Pearsall was privately educated. In 1816 Pearsall’s mother, Elizabeth (née Lucas), bought the Pearsall family’s home at Willsbridge, Gloucestershire, from her brother-in-law, Thomas Pearsall. Thomas had been ruined by the failure of the iron mill that had been the family’s business since 1712. After the death of his mother in 1837, Pearsall sold Willsbridge House again, but although he would never live there again, he regularly chose to be known in publications as ‘Pearsall of Willsbridge’. As for Willsbridge Mill, it was later converted into a flour mill and it stands to this day. Pearsall married Harriet Eliza Hobday in 1817. She was the d

Robert William Keith

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Robert William Keith (1787–1846) was an English musical composer and writer. Life Born at Stepney on 20 March 1787, he was the son of Cornelius Keith, organist of St. Peter’s, Cornhill, and of the Danish Chapel in Wellclose Street, and the grandson of William Keith, organist of West Ham Church (d. 1800). From the latter Keith learnt the rudiments of music, and from François Hippolyte Barthélémon and others the violin, harmony, and composition. Keith kept at 131 Cheapside a musical and musical instrument warehouse, and prepared many of his own publications. He died on 19 June 1846. Works While organist and composer to the New Jerusalem Church in Friars Street, Keith published A Selection of Sacred Melodies … to which is prefixed Instructions for the use of Young Organists …, London, 1816. There followed A Musical Vade Mecum, being a compendious Introduction to the whole art of Music; Part I, containing the Principles of Notation, etc., in an easy categorical form, apprehensible to the meanest capacity, London, 1820 (?); Part II, Elements of Musical Composition. Keith compiled instruction-books for pianoforte, flute, and Spanish guitar (by “Paulus Prucilli”), and a violin preceptor,

Rochus Dedler

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Rochus Dedler (15 January 1779 – 17 October 1822) was a German composer. He is best known as the author of a stage music for the version of the Oberammergau Passion Play by Father . Life Dedler was born on 15 January 1779 in Oberammergau. His father Johann (1737–1811) and his mother Barbara (1736–1825) ran the inn “Zum weißen Lamm” there. Originally Dedler was destined for a spiritual profession. He was a choirboy at Rottenbuch Abbey and went to Munich for further education, where he graduated in 1798 from the (present) Wilhelmsgymnasium (Munich). Subsequently, he began the obligatory basic studies (philosophy) at the affiliated Lyceum, but then returned to Rottenbuch to work as chamber scribe of the prelate. In 1802, however, he gave up his spiritual career and took a position as a teacher and choir director in Oberammergau. Dedler was married to Maria Josepha, née Sepp, from Uffing (1779–1824). Together they had three sons and six daughters. Dedler died on 17 October 1822 at age 43 due to a lung disease in Oberföhring, where his brother was a pastor, and was buried there at the cemetery of St. Lorenz. A path leading past the cemetery is named “Rochus-Dedler-Weg” in his honour. In

Salvatore Fighera

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Salvatore Fighera (1771? – 5 May 1837) was an Italian composer of both sacred and secular music. Born in Gravina in Puglia, he completed his musical studies at the Conservatorio di Sant’Onofrio a Capuana in Naples and spent several years in Milan after leaving the conservatory in 1783. On his return to Naples he served as the maestro di cappella of several churches, most notably the Santuario di San Sebastiano Martire, a post he held until his death. Life and works Fighera was born in Gravina in Puglia, a town near Bari in southern Italy, but the year of his birth remains uncertain. No documents have been found in the town’s archives recording his date of birth. After leaving the conservatory in 1783, Fighera spent time in Milan where his opera buffa La sorpresa premiered at the Teatro della Canobbiana in 1800. Parts of the opera had also been performed earlier at La Scala. In Milan he also composed two theatrical cantatas: La finta istoria and Lo sdegno e la pace. On his return to Naples he served as the maestro di cappella of several churches, most notably at the Santuario di San Sebastiano Martire, a post he held until his death. The sacred music he composed during this period i

Samuel Francis Smith

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Samuel Francis Smith (October 21, 1808 – November 16, 1895) was an American Baptist minister, journalist, and author. He is best known for having written the lyrics to “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” (sung to the tune of “God Save the King”), which he entitled “America”. Early life and education Smith was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 21, 1808. Smith attended Harvard College from 1825 to 1829, and was a classmate of William Henry Channing, James Freeman Clarke, Benjamin Robbins Curtis, George T. Davis, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., Isaac Edward Morse, Benjamin Peirce, George W. Richardson, and Charles Storer Storrow. From 1829 to 1834, he attended Andover Theological Seminary. “America” (“My Country, ‘Tis of Thee”) While a student at Andover Theological Seminary, Smith gave Lowell Mason lyrics he had written and the song was first performed in public on July 4, 1831, at a children’s Independence Day celebration at Park Street Church in Boston. The song, titled “America”, was first published by Lowell Mason in The Choir in 1832. In Newton, Smith became editor of the Christian Review and other publications of the Baptist Missionary Union. He continued his ministry as well, becomin

Samuel Lover

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Samuel Lover (24 February 1797 – 6 July 1868), also known as “Ben Trovato” (“well invented”), was an Irish songwriter, composer and novelist, and a portrait painter, chiefly in miniatures. He was the grandfather of Victor Herbert. Life Lover was born at No. 60 Grafton Street, Dublin and went to school at Samuel Whyte’s at No. 79, which now houses Bewley’s Café. By 1830 he was Secretary of the Royal Hibernian Academy and living at No. 9 D’Olier Street. In 1835 he moved to London and began composing music for a series of comic stage works. For some, like the operetta Il Paddy Whack in Italia (1841), he contributed libretto and music, for others just a few songs. Before committing himself to a literary career, he enjoyed considerable success as a miniature painter. Lover produced many Irish songs, of which several, such as The Angel’s Whisper, Molly Bawn, and The Four-leaved Shamrock, gained popularity. He also wrote novels, of which Rory O’Moore (in its first form a ballad) and Handy Andy are best known, and short Irish sketches, which with his songs he combined into a popular entertainment called Irish Nights or Irish Evenings, with which he toured North America in 1846–1848. He joi

Santiago Masarnau Fernández

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Santiago Masarnau y Fernández (9 December 1805 – 14 December 1882; also known as Santiago Fernández de Masarnau or Santiago de Masarnau) was a Spanish pianist, composer and religious activist for the poor. He established the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, an organization composed of laymen dedicated to serving the poor, in Spain. A cause for his canonization has been opened by that society. Early life Masarnau was born in Madrid in 1805 to Santiago Masarnau y Torres, a native of Copons in Catalonia and Beatriz Fernández y Carredano, from the Omoño sector of the town of Ribamontán al Monte in Cantabria, a family with close connections to the Spanish aristocracy and court. His mother died in 1808. At that same time, after the abdication of King Ferdinand VII of Spain and the subsequent outbreak of the Peninsular War, Masarnau senior was appointed the Secretary of the Royal Association of Nobility of Córdoba, in the service of the Count of Miranda, and the father moved with his three children to Andalucia. The son proved to be a musical prodigy in his childhood, and soon began the study of music under the organist of the Cathedral of Granada, José Rouré y Llamas. When King Ferdinan

Saverio Mercadante

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Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante (baptised 17 September 179517 December 1870) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Vincenzo Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond his own lifetime, he composed as prolifically as any of them, and his development of operatic structures, melodic styles and orchestration contributed significantly to the foundations upon which Giuseppe Verdi built his dramatic technique. Biography Early years Mercadante was born out of wedlock in Altamura, near Bari in Apulia; his precise date of birth has not been recorded, but he was baptised on 17 September 1795. Mercadante studied flute, violin and composition at the conservatory in Naples, and organized concerts among his compatriots. The opera composer Gioachino Rossini said to the conservatory Director, Niccolo Zingarelli, “My compliments, Maestro – your young pupil Mercadante begins where we finish”. an ascendancy which did not end until censorship problems with the latter’s Poliuto caused a final break. But Mercadante’s style began to shift with the presentation of I Normanni a Parigi at the Teatro Regio in Tur

Sidney Nelson

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Sidney Nelson (1 January 1800 – 7 April 1862) was an English composer, particularly of songs, including the popular “Rose of Allendale” and “Mary of Argyle”. Life Nelson was born in London in 1800, son of Solomon Nelson. Showing musical ability when quite young, he was adopted by a gentleman who gave him a good musical and general education. He was for some time a pupil of Sir George Smart, and eventually became a teacher in London. He was in partnership with Charles Jefferys as a music-seller until 1843, when he was elected an associate of the Philharmonic Society. Subsequently he became a music publisher, but, being unsuccessful, he arranged a musical and dramatic entertainment with members of his family, and went on tour in North America, Canada, and Australia. He married Sarah Moss, and had several children, including actresses and singers: Mrs Eliza Craven, Carrie Nelson, Sarah Nelson, and Maria Nelson, mother of Effie Adelaide Rowlands and Carrie Sidney. He died in Russell Square, London on 7 April 1862, and was buried at West Ham; he left a widow, Sarah, and son Alfred Nelson. Compositions Nelson was a prolific composer, and claimed to have written about eight hundred pieces

Sigismund von Neukomm

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Sigismund Neukomm or Sigismund Ritter von Neukomm after ennoblement as a knight (10 July 1778 – 3 April 1858) was an Austrian composer, conductor and pianist. He was a transitional figure between the Classical and Romantic periods of music. In 1814 Neukomm was responsible for erecting a tombstone to the memory of Haydn over his first grave in the Hundsturm cemetery in Vienna. The inscription included a puzzle canon composed by Neukomm himself. He was in regular contact with the composer in the last months of his life, visiting him every day between mid-November 1808 and February 1809. In 1816 he travelled to Rio de Janeiro with the Duke of Luxemburg and stayed there as court music director to John VI of Portugal until the revolution forced his return to Lisbon in 1821. He maintained his connection to Talleyrand until 1826 and then embarked on an extended trip to Italy, visiting Genoa, Florence, Rome, Naples, Bologna, Venice and Milan. In England his Symphony in E♭ was put on by the Philharmonic Society (on March 21, 1831) and his oratorios gained popularity. Mount Sinai received repeated performances in London, Worcester, Derby and elsewhere, and David was composed especially for t

Simon Sechter

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Simon Sechter (11 October 1788 – 10 September 1867) was an Austrian music theorist, composer, conductor, and organist. He is best known as a strict music teacher, whose many students included Anton Bruckner, Sigismond Thalberg, and Henri Vieuxtemps. In 1851, he was professor of composition at the Vienna Conservatory; after Sechter’s death, his student Bruckner would succeed him and continue teaching his approach to harmony and counterpoint. A highly prolific composer, his total output numbers more than 8000 compositions, particularly since he sought to write a fugue every day. compiled and adapted Sechter’s Die richtige Folge der Grundharmonien as The Correct Order of Fundamental Harmonies: A Treatise on Fundamental Basses, and their Inversions and Substitutes (Wm. A. Pond, 1871; G. Schirmer, 1898). Biography Sechter was born in Friedberg (Frymburk), Bohemia, then part of the Austrian Empire, and moved to Vienna in 1804, succeeding Jan Václav Voříšek as court organist there in 1824. In 1810 he began teaching piano and voice at an academy for blind students. In 1828 the ailing Franz Schubert had one counterpoint lesson with him. In 1851 Sechter was appointed professor of composition

Sophia Dussek

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Sophia Giustina Dussek (née Corri; later Moralt; 1 May 1775 in Edinburgh – c. 1831 in London) was a Scottish singer, pianist, harpist, and composer of Italian descent. In 1792, Dussek married the composer Jan Ladislav Dussek. Following Jan’s death in 1812, Sophia married the violist John Alvis Moralt. The couple lived in Paddington, where she founded a music school . The opus 2 sonatas were published in at least 3 editions in the 1790s by the Corri-Dussek company in London as by Madame Dussek, and there is no reason to doubt that the 6 sonatas of opus 2, including the famous C minor sonata published and misattributed by Schott as by JL, are anything but the work of Sophia. Paris editions of opus 2 published by Pleyel only bear the name Dussek, leading Zabaleta to his misattribution, but nobody actually claimed opus 2 as the work of JL rather than Dussek before the mid-20th century. Life and family Sophia Dussek was born into the Corri family. She studied voice with her father, composer, music publisher, and impresario Domenico CorriHer uncle was composer Natale Corri and her cousin was soprano Fanny Corri-Paltoni. Her father provided Sophia with vocal instruction and had her perfor

Sophie Bawr

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Baroness Sophie de Bawr (8 October 1773 – 31 December 1860), born Alexandrine-Sophie Goury de Champgrand, was a French writer, playwright and composer, also known as “Comtesse de Saint-Simon”, “Baronne de Bawr”, and “M. François”. Life She was born in Paris, the illegitimate daughter of Marquis Charles-Jean de Champgrand and opera singer Madeline-Virginie Vian. Her godmother was Madeleine-Sophie Arnould. She was raised by her father, and studied music with André Grétry, Nicolas Roze and Adrien Boieldieu and singing with Pierre Garat and Jean Elleviou. She secretly married a young aristocrat, Jules de Rohan-Rochefort, during the Terror who was executed soon after on the scaffold. Her son from this marriage died in infancy in 1797. After surviving the French Revolution, she supported herself by writing books, music and plays. In 1801 she married Claude-Henri de Saint-Simon. After a divorce, she married the Baltic German Baron de Bawr who died in an accident, leaving her again without financial support. However, she eventually received a pension from the French government. Her Suite d’un bal masqué was highly successful and received 246 performances between 1813 and 1869. She died in

Sophie Gail

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Edmee Sophie Gail née Garre (28 August 1775 – 24 July 1819) was a French singer and composer, famous for writing romances (a French song genre) and opéra comique. Life Sophie Garre was born in Paris in the parish of Saint Sulpice, the daughter of Marie-Louise Adelaide Colloz and surgeon Claude-Francois Garre (1730–1799). She studied piano as a child and published her first composition, a romance, at the age of 14. At the age of 19, she married editor Jean-Baptiste Gail (1755–1829) and had one son, Jean François Gail. She and her husband divorced in 1801, and Sophie Garre toured as a singer in Europe. She studied with Fétis, Perne and Sigismund Neukomm and wrote an opera comique as her first work for theater. Her compositions were praised by the critique Castil-Blaze as “the best works in this genre that flowed from the pen of a woman”. Her works were very popular during her lifetime, with her two most popular operas accruing more than 250 performances. Works Selected works include: *1797, Deus airs for the drama Montoni *1813, Les deux jaloux, opéra comique in 1 act *1814, Il est vrai que Thibaut mérite, romance *1853, Ma Fanchette est charmante, trio *1813, Mademoiselle de Launay

Stefano Pavesi

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Stefano Pavesi (22 January 1779, Casaletto Vaprio – 28 July 1850) was an Italian composer. He is primarily known as a prolific opera composer; his breakthrough opera was Fingallo e Comala, and his acknowledged opera masterpiece is Ser Marcantonio. He also served as the maestro di cappella of Crema Cathedral from 1814 to 1818 (shared with Giuseppe Gazzaniga), and alone from 1818 (upon Gazzaniga’s death) until his death at the age of 71. His first music studies were in Crema (neighboring his birthplace), followed by studies in Naples. While in Naples, Pavesi actively joined the Parthenopean Republic. After its suppression, Pavesi was denounced, imprisoned, and deported to France (allegedly Cimarosa intervened to prevent his execution). In France he played the serpent in Napoleon’s army band and remained in Italy after the Battle of Marengo. He returned to Crema in 1814 after the Austrian occupation of northern Italy after the War of the Sixth Coalition. He suffered a stroke in 1831 after the failure of his opera Fenella. Operas Among his 66 operas are: *La pace (Livorno, Teatro degli Avvalorati 1801) *L’avvertimento ai gelosi (La scuola dei gelosi) (Venezia, Teatro San Benedetto 1803

Stepan Davydov

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Stepan Ivanovich Davydov (, ; January 12 OS January 1 1777 – May 21 OS May 9 1825 in Moscow) was an Imperial Russian composer and singer. He was born in Chernihiv in the Russian Empire (present-day Ukraine). Biography When the principal choirboy of the Imperial Court Capella, he drew the attention of the Empress Catherine II, who consigned him to the care of the Italian composer Giuseppe Sarti (1729–1802). Davydov wrote and published a complete four-part liturgy and 13 Spiritual Choral Concerti, three of which were written for a double chorus. In the field of secular music Davydov participated in the composing of opera tetralogy Mermaid (together with Ferdinand Kauer and Catterino Cavos, 1803–1807, providing the additional music for the 1st, 3rd and 4th parts). He also wrote 10 ballets, various divertissements, a series of choruses to the tragedy Amboar and Aurungzeb (1814), a concert overture and numerous other works. He held the post of the Kapellmeister of the Imperial Theatres in St Petersburg (1806–1810). From 1810 he taught at the Theatrical School in Moscow. Operas *Dneprovskaja rusalka (Днепровская русалка – A Mermaid of the Dnepr, Russian libretto by Nikolai Krasnopolsky a

Stephen Codman

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Stephen Codman (c. 1796 – 6 October 1852) was a Canadian composer of English descent. His known compositions all date from before 1835, and mainly consist of works for solo voice or vocal ensembles. Early life and education Codman was born in Norwich, England. He was a pupil of John Christmas Beckwith and William Crotch. Career In 1816 Codman came to Canada to assume the post of organist at Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral in Quebec City, most likely succeeding John Bentley. He remained in that post up until his death in Quebec City 36 years later. and They Are Not All Sweet Nightingales, were published by Goulding, D’Almaine, and Co in 1827, placing them among the oldest published Canadian compositions. He also wrote an instrumental piece for the organ, titled “Invocation”. Codman died in Quebec City on 6 October 1852. References

Stephen Hale Marsh

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Stephen Hale Marsh was born in the United Kingdom and lived in other countries, including Japan, but thirty productive years of his career were spent in Australia. He gave popular lectures on music. He was fondly regarded as a pioneer of music. He taught singing in Sydney, where he was said to have raised the expectations of audiences. Although he was initially an ally of fellow composer Isaac Nathan, he later became a rival. Marsh took part in the inauguration of the Victorian Academy of Music. Marsh wore his beard in the chin-strap style. He played and wrote music for the harp. Works * 1824 There’s a magic in thine eye, love * 1841 Leichhardt’s Return * 1845 Australian Waltz * 1846 Leichhardt’s march * 1851 Ferrolana Polka Opus 63 https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-165655339/view?partId=nla.obj-165655347 * 1854 ‘By Murray’s Banks’ - setting of bush poem by ‘Ignotus’ or ‘Evelyn’ * 1854 Liechhardt March * 1854 Bathurst March * 1855 Brilliant fantasia *1856 Far O’er the Sea * 1856 Allan McGan * 1859 In Thee Oh Lord Do I Put My Trust * 1862 (arrangeur) ‘Le Bon Voyage’ * 1865 ‘The Stockman’s last bed’ setting of lines published as early as 1857 *1872 Illustrations of Pipelӗ *Advance Australia

Thaddäus Weigl

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Thaddäus Weigl (8 April 1776 – 10 February 1844) was an Austrian composer and music publisher. Life He was born in Vienna, son of Joseph Franz Weigl, a cellist in the Vienna Court Theatre, and younger brother of the composer Joseph Weigl. He studied music with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, who had taught his brother. He went on to study philosophy and law, and meanwhile pursued his interest in composing. A cantata dedicated to his philosophy teacher Franz Samuel Karpe was performed, and he was encouraged by its success. A comic opera Die Marionettenbude oder der Jahrmarkt zu Grünwalde, and an opera Idoli, were staged in the Theater in der Leopoldstadt, and were well received. In 1795 Peter von Braun, manager of the Court Theatre, founded the theatre’s music publishing firm Hoftheater-Musikverlag, and he entrusted Weigl with the work of making piano transcriptions of the operas and ballets that were performed at the theatre. In 1796 Weigl made extensive business trips for von Braun, to advertise the publishing house. He was afterwards appointed Court Theatre Composer, and subsequently wrote many ballets. He also organized the theatre’s archives, which had been in a state of disorder

Theobald Boehm

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Theobald Böhm (or Boehm) (9 April 1794 – 25 November 1881) was a German inventor and musician, who greatly improved the modern Western concert flute and Clarinet and its fingering system (now known as the “Boehm system”). He was a Bavarian court musician, a virtuoso flautist and a renowned composer. The fingering system he devised has also been adapted to other instruments, such as the oboe and the clarinet. Life and works Born in Munich, in the Electorate of Bavaria, to the goldsmith Carl Friedrich Böhm and his wife Anna Franziska (née Sulzbacher), the daughter of a court haberdasher, Böhm learned his father’s trade of goldsmithing in his childhood. This skill enabled him to make his own flute. He became proficient enough to play in an orchestra at the age of seventeen, and at twenty-one was appointed first flautist in the Royal Bavarian Orchestra. In 1871 Boehm published Die Flöte und das Flötenspiel (“The Flute and Flute-Playing”), a treatise on the acoustical, technical and artistic characteristics of the Boehm system flute. Boehm’s experience as a goldsmith was a key factor in his ability to redesign the flute. For example, in The Flute and Flute-Playing he recounts having mad

Théodore Labarre

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Théodore François Joseph Berry Labarre (23 March 1805 – 9 March 1870) was a French harpist and composer. He lived in Paris and in London and was awarded the Prix de Rome in 1823 as well as the Légion d’honneur in 1862. Life Labarre was born in Paris to parents Pierre Charles Berry Labarre and Sophie Genevelly. He studied the harp with Jacques-Georges Cousineau and at the Paris Conservatoire with François Joseph Naderman and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa, also harmony with Victor Dourlen and composition with François-Adrien Boieldieu. In 1823, after having won the Prix de Rome, he travelled to England to give several solo concerts, also including Ireland. This was followed by travels to Switzerland and Italy, before he returned to France in 1831. He tried his hand, with varying degrees of success, in opera and ballet, but his popularity largely stemmed from his romances and melodies rather than from his large-scale works. The main focus of his work were compositions for the harp. In 1837, he married the singer Algaé Caroline Antoinette Lambert, with whom he regularly performed in England. He was conductor of the Opéra Comique between 1847 and 1849, afterwards “inspecteur accompagnateur” of

Thomas Augustine Geary

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Thomas Augustine Geary (Timothy Geary) (1775 – November 1801) was an Irish composer, pianist and organist, with a precocious talent particularly in vocal and piano writing. Biography Geary’s original first name was Timothy; it is presumed that he chose “Thomas Augustine” as artist’s names in admiration for Thomas Augustine Arne. He was a choirboy and choral scholar at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, where he occasionally assisted the cathedral organist, Philip Cogan. In 1792, he performed a concerto by Dussek at a charity concert at the Rotunda, Dublin, at which one of his canzonets, Soft is the Zephyr’s Breezy Wing, was also performed. According to W.H.G. Flood, Geary studied at Trinity College, Dublin, but there is no evidence for this claim. According to an 1818 source, “labouring under some depression of mind he rushed out of the house, and was found drowned in the canal”. In Brian Boydell’s opinion, “his premature death undoubtedly robbed Irish music of a sensitive and promising talent”. Music Geary was the first Irish composer to systematically explore the form of popular airs or folktunes with variations, which were very much in demand at his time. He also excelled in vocal

Thomas Clark (composer)

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Thomas Clark (1775–1859) was a Canterbury shoemaker (cordwainer) and a prolific composer of West Gallery music, especially for the Nonconformist churches of the South East of England. Sally Drage, writing in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, notes that he was ‘particularly influential as the composer of early Sunday School collections’. Clark was born in St Peter’s parish in Canterbury and baptized on 5 February 1775. He was apprenticed as a shoemaker to his father, William Clark, and became a Freeman of the City of Canterbury in 1796 on completion of his apprenticeship as he was the son of a Freeman. He married Anne Ledger in St George’s Church, Canterbury, in November 1806. He took over the family business on his father’s death in 1823. He retired from business in about 1842-3. He died in Canterbury on 30 May 1859, aged 84. Clark served as precentor in a Wesleyan chapel and took to composing hymn tunes. The best-known of his tunes is Cranbrook: it was originally set to the words “Grace ’tis a charming sound” written by Philip Doddridge, and published in Clark’s first book A Sett of Psalm & Hymn Tunes 1805 . and Warsaw (tune 606), which was first published in his Th

Thomas Coates (musician)

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Thomas P. Coates (1803 – October 11, 1895) was a 19th-century American musician who achieved initial prominence in Pennsylvania for his performances on the cornet and French horn. The director of Pomp’s Cornet Band in Easton, Pennsylvania, he was commissioned as the first conductor of the regimental band of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the early months of the American Civil War. Post-war, he became a prolific and popular composer of band music, and was subsequently nicknamed “the Father of Band Music in America.” Early life and education Coates was born in Easton, Pennsylvania in 1803, the son of John and Barbara (Boynton) Coates who were natives of Tynemouth, Northumberland, England. His father became a naturalized citizen of the United States in Philadelphia in 1813. Career Band music In 1813, Coates joined a circus band but was left to fend for himself by band members sometime after they reached South Carolina. He survived by finding work as a French horn player with another band. By 1824, he was a cornetist with Pomp’s Cornet Band, and was a member of that ensemble when it performed for Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette when the general vis

Thomas Forbes Walmisley

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Thomas Forbes Walmisley (22 May 1783 – 10 July 1866) was an organist, and a composer of church music and of glees. Life Walmisley was born in Westminster, London in 1783, the third son of William Walmisley, clerk of the papers to the House of Lords. He, like his brothers, was a chorister in Westminster Abbey, and he was educated at Westminster School from 1793 to 1798. In 1796 he sang in oratorios at Covent Garden. He studied music under John Spencer and Thomas Attwood. From 1810 to 1814 he was assistant organist to the Female Orphan Asylum; in 1814 he succeeded Robert Cooke as organist of St Martin-in-the-Fields. He resigned, on a pension, in March 1854. He was elected a professional member of the Noblemen and Gentlemen’s Catch Club in 1827. From 1803 he was a teacher of piano and singing, and became well known as a teacher; pupils included Edward John Hopkins. Compositions Walmisley composed more than fifty glees, four of which won prizes; he also composed anthems, and a morning and evening service. He published A Collection of Glees, Trios, Rounds and Canons (1826), Three Canons (1840) and Sacred Songs (1841). References Attribution *

Thomas Hastings (composer)

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Thomas Hastings (15 October 1784 – 15 May 1872) was an American composer, primarily an author of hymn tunes of which the best known is “Toplady” for the hymn Rock of Ages. He was born to Dr. Seth and Eunice (Parmele) Hastings in Washington, Connecticut. He was a 3rd great-grandson of Thomas Hastings who came from the East Anglia region of England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634. Life and career Hastings moved to Clinton, New York, as a youth and began his career as a singing teacher, being largely a self-taught musician. Hastings compiled the hymn book Spiritual Songs with Lowell Mason in 1831, which included his most well-known hymn “Rock of Ages.” He then moved to New York City, where he served as a choir master for 40 years, from 1832 to 1872. Hastings was a prolific composer, writing some 1000 hymn tunes over his career, and what Mason calls the “simple, easy, and solemn” style of his music remains a major influence on the hymns of the Protestant churches to this day. Hastings’ 1822 Dissertation on Musical Taste, the first full musical treatise by an American author, was a notable voice in the shift in American music toward the models of German music rather than British

Thomas Haynes Bayly

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Thomas Haynes Bayly (13 October 1797 – 22 April 1839) was an English poet, songwriter, dramatist and writer. Life Bayly was born in Bath on 13 October 1797, the only child of Nathaniel Bayly, an influential citizen of Bath: he was related through his mother to the Earls of Stamford and Warrington and the Baroness le Despencer. He displayed a talent for verse from a young age, and in his eighth year was found dramatising a tale out of one of his story-books. He attended Winchester School, where he produced a weekly newspaper which recorded the proceedings of the master and pupils in the school. At the age of 17 he began working at his father’s office for the purpose of studying the law, but soon devoted himself to writing humorous articles for the public journals, and produced a small volume entitled Rough Sketches of Bath. He studied at St Mary Hall, Oxford with the intention of joining the church, but it is reported that “he did not apply himself to the pursuit of academical honours” and left university after three years. Bayly travelled in Scotland, and afterwards visited Dublin, where he distinguished himself in private theatricals and achieved his earliest successes as a ballad

Thomas Hudson (songwriter)

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Thomas Hudson (April 1791 – June 1844) was an English writer and performer of comic songs who was one of the earliest credited songwriters in the music hall tradition. Biography Tom Hudson was born in Mount Street, Lambeth, in 1791, the son of John Hudson who worked at the Stamp Office in Somerset House. He performed regularly in “song and supper rooms” such as the Cyder Cellars in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, which opened in the mid-1820s and had a very broad clientele ranging from tradesmen and apprentices to members of parliament; and the Coal Hole, near the Strand. He was considered to be “a man of considerable literary ability”, and his songs were described as “lively and really witty”. The Illustrated London News said of him: Though well known in the convivial circles of the metropolis, Hudson was not a dissipated man, for his habits were the reverse of intemperance: his talents impromptu were very great; he has often caught some incident which occurred at the table, or availed himself of the unexpected appearance of some public character, to produce appropriate joke or compliment, which never failed to tell upon the company…. He was by no means an Apollo in voice; but the n

Thomas Molleson Mudie

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Thomas Molleson Mudie (30 November 1809 – 24 July 1876) was a British composer and teacher, highly regarded during his early career, but composing little in later years. Life Mudie, of Scottish descent, was born in Chelsea, London on 30 November 1809. He showed musical talent from an early age, and in the first examination for admission to the Royal Academy of Music in 1823, he came third out of 32 candidates. He studied composition with William Crotch, piano with Cipriani Potter and clarinet with Thomas Willman, and achieved great success. He was appointed a professor of the piano in the academy in 1832, and held the post until 1844. From 1834 he was organist at Gatton, Surrey, and became a friend there of Lord Monson. He remained as organist after Lord Monson’s death in 1840, until 1844, when on the death of his friend Alfred Devaux, he went to Edinburgh to succeed him as a teacher of music. In 1863 he returned to London; from that time, except for an overture performed at a concert at the Crystal Palace, he came little before the public. He died in London, unmarried, on 24 July 1876, and was interred in Highgate Cemetery. Compositions As a composer Mudie’s successes were mainly

Thomas Simpson Cooke

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Thomas Simpson Cooke (July 1782 – 26 February 1848) was an Irish composer, conductor, singer, theatre musician and music director – an influential figure in early 19th-century opera in London. Life Mostly referred to as “Tom Cooke”, he was born in Dublin, the son of Bartlett Cooke, an oboist in the theatres of Smock Alley and Crow Street, and co-founder of the Irish Musical Fund (1787), also the owner of a music shop at 45 Dame Street and a music publisher. Thomas S. Cooke studied both with his father and with Tommaso Giordani, and displayed an early musical talent – his first benefit concert took place at age nine on 14 February 1792 at the Exhibition Room, William Street, Dublin, when he performed on the violin and sang. In 1797, he became leader of the orchestra of Crow Street Theatre and became its music director not long afterwards. At another benefit concert in 1804, he performed a “concertante” on eight instruments, the flute, violin, viola, cello, piano, clarinet, harp, and trumpet, a feat he often repeated with various instruments. In 1805 he married the actress and singer Fanny Howells; their eldest son was Henry Angelo Michael Cooke (1808–1889), later a well-known musici

Thomas Täglichsbeck

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Thomas Täglichsbeck (31 December 1799 – 5 October 1867) was a German violinist and composer. Täglichsbeck was born in Ansbach. His family settled in the region of the Vogtland between Bavaria, Thuringia and Saxony, in 1800. Following violin lessons from his father, Johann Täglichsbeck, young Thomas moved to Munich where he studied with Pietro Rovelli. In 1817 a mass of his, written under the supervision of Josef Gratz, was performed in Munich. That same year, Täglichsbeck became a violinist in the Isarthortheater orchestra. Two years later, at the age of 20, he succeeded Lindpaintner as music director, making him one of the youngest conductors of the theater orchestra in Lower Saxony. In 1822 he became a solo violinist at the Munich court, which had the added advantage of freeing up his time to work on composing. On 24 August 1823 his first opera, Webers Bild, premiered at the court theater. His variations on La gazza ladra also date from this period. In 1824 he made an extensive tour of Germany, Switzerland and northern Italy; he joined the Società Filarmonica of Bergamo, where Rovelli then lived. Reviews of his concerts in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung (1825–32) are laudato

Thomas Welsh (composer)

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Thomas Welsh (c. 1780 - 24 or 31 January 1848) was an English composer and operatic bass. Welsh spent most of his life in London and is now particularly remembered for his light-hearted stage works. Life The son of John Welsh, by his wife, a daughter of Thomas Linley the elder, he was born at Wells, Somerset. He became a chorister in Wells Cathedral, where his singing notice; Richard Brinsley Sheridan heard of him, and induced Linley to engage him for oratorio performances at the Haymarket Theatre, London, in 1796. Engagements followed for the stage, in course of which he sang in many operas, some of which, such as Thomas Attwood’s Prisoner, were written specially to exhibit his powers. He was also brought into notice as an actor, mainly through the influence of Kemble. Meanwhile he was completing a musical education under Karl Friedrich Horn, Johann Baptist Cramer, and Baumgarten. He produced two farces at the Lyceum Theatre, and an opera, Kamskatka, at Covent Garden, and ultimately settled down to his main work, as a teacher of singing. He had great success with his pupils, among whom were Charles Edward Horn, Catherine Stephens, Jane Shirreff, and Mary Anne Wilson, who became hi

Traugott Maximilian Eberwein

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Traugott Maximilian Eberwein (27 October 1775 – 2 December 1831 ), was a German composer and conductor, who is attributed with the start of early musical history in Rudolstadt. Family Eberwein was born into a musical family, his father Alexander Bartholomäus Eberwein (1751-1811) was a court musician and his brother Carl Eberwein was a composer who frequently worked with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, putting his work into music such as Faust. Eberwein had three children with his wife Catharina Bianchi, Caecilie Eberwein (1800-1800), Julius Eberwein (1802-1870) and Ludwig Eberwein (1805-1884). Biography Eberwein was taught music at an early age by his father, where he learned all sorts of instruments and already started composing music at the age of seven with a Timpani. In 1782, he was already making money for the family by playing music at weddings and funerals. In 1791, after his father thought he gained a basic understanding of music, he stopped teaching him. He later continued getting taught by Johann Matthäus Rempt. Eberwein later went to study musicology and violin and became a pupil of F.L.Æ. Kunzen in Frankfurt, and Ernst Johann Christoph Schick in Mainz. After his return from

Tymko Padura

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Tymko Padura (21 December 180120 September 1871, born Tomasz) was a Romantic poet Notes References

Václav Emanuel Horák

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Václav (Wenzel) Emanuel Horák (1 January 1800 – 3 September 1871) was a Czech composer and liturgical musician. Life Horák was born on 1 January 1800 in Lobeč, Bohemia. From 1813, he attended the Prague Gymnasium while working as a choir boy and later on as a choralist at St. Nicholas’s Church in the Malá Strana quarter. At Prague University he first read philosophy, later switching to law. The musical training from Václav Tomášek he wished for, was out of his financial reach. Only later did he become a pupil of Friedrich Dionys Weber’s and Jan August Vitásek’s. He started as an organist at Prague’s Church of the Holy Trinity around 1830, starting as a teacher at Prague Organ School shortly afterwards. In 1833 he was appointed organist at the Church of Our Lady in front of Týn, choir director at Our Lady of the Snows Franciscan church in 1837, and Regens chori at St. Adalbert’s Church in 1853. From 1859, he returned to Our Lady Before Týn, having accepted an appointment as Liturgical musician and director there. In his lifetime, he was made an honorary member of many musical associations and academies, e.g. the Salzburg Mozarteum. He died on 3 September 1871 in Prague. Style Stylis

Václav Tomášek

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Václav Jan Křtitel Tomášek (; 17 April 17743 April 1850) was an Austrian-Bohemian, by other accounts a Czech composer and music teacher. He was known as the Musical Pope of Prague. In the words of Kenneth Delong, “Highly opinionated, often sarcastic and projecting a sense of his own importance, Tomášek’s memoirs also reveal him to be deeply concerned about all things artistic and intellectual: a man of courage and idealism, unflinching in his pursuit of truth in music and in life.” Life As a pianist, he was an autodidact, becoming one of the most important piano teachers of Prague for a century. Tomášek studied violin and singing with Wolf. Until 1824 he worked as a piano teacher in aristocratic families. Afterwards he created a considerable school of music; among its most well-known pupils were Jan Voříšek, Alexander Dreyschock, Johann Friedrich Kittl and Eduard Hanslick. Tomášek made the acquaintance of Beethoven, and also of Goethe, whose poems he set. He maintained correspondence with the Polish pianist and composer Maria Agata Szymanowska. His autobiography was published in German, as well as in a Czech translation. He lived at number 15 Tomášská Street in Prague. The building

Veena Kuppayyar

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Veena Kuppayyar (1798–1860) was an exponent of Veena and a composer of Carnatic music. He was a student of the famous composer Tyagaraja. Kuppayar composed his songs in Telugu language and has left behind a number of popular kritis. Early life Veena Kuppayya was born in a Tamil Brahmin family in Tiruvottiyur, near Chennai. His father Sambamoorti Sastri was a famous vocalist as well as a veena player. Kuppayyar had his initial training from his father. Later he continued his musical training under Tyagaraja and learnt the art of music composition from him. Following the steps of his guru, Kuppaiyer has composed two groups of Pancharathnams – Kālahasti Pancharathna kritis and Vénkatésha Pancharathna kritis. The Panchrathna kritis are in Telugu and bears his nom de plume “Gópāla-dāsa” – his family deity, Sri Venugopala Swamy. These Panchrathna kritis also have been bedecked with beautiful Chittaswarams - solfa passages. Kuppayyar later moved to Chennai and sought the patronage of the local ruler Kovur Sundara Mudaliar. Kuppayyar trained a lot of disciples, who carried forward the legacy of Tyagaraja, helping to spread his krithis. Veena Kuppayar was a talented veena player. He also le

Victor Dourlen

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Victor Charles Paul Dourlen (3 November 1780 – 8 January 1864) was a French composer and music teacher at the Conservatoire de Paris during the first half of the nineteenth century. He is primarily known as a theorist on account of his treatises on harmony, based on the methods of Charles Simon Catel, which were widely used as reference works, especially his Traité d’harmonie (c. 1838), the Traité d’accompagnement pratique (c. 1840), and his Méthode élémentaire pour le pianoforte (c. 1820). Biography Victor Dourlen was born in Dunkerque. He entered the Paris Conservatory in 1799 at the age of 19, becoming a pupil of Charles-Simon Catel (harmony), François-Joseph Gossec (counterpoint), and Benoit Mozin (piano). He became a teacher of elementary singing at the institution in 1800. In 1805, he won the Prix de Rome for musical composition with his cantata Cupidon pleurant Psyché. Although he was prevented by war from going to Rome immediately, his opera Philoclès was performed at the Opéra-Comique in October 1806. However, with only four performances, the opera was not successful. Dourlen then went to Rome in 1807, and on July 14 his Te Deum for the Battle of Friedland was performed, f

Victor Magnien

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François Victor Antoine Magnien (21 November 1802 – 8 June 1885) was a French violinist, guitarist, conductor, teacher and composer. Life Magnien was born in Épinal, in the French department of Vosges. According to Bone (1914/54), but his father’s association with Colonel Augustin Joseph Caron who was executed for conspiracy in 1822 again led to him losing his job and throwing the family into financial difficulties. This caused the young musician to teach violin and guitar in order to support his family, soon gaining the benevolence of influential families in Colmar. After a few years he continued teaching in Mulhouse. From there, he spent three months a year in Paris to continue his own studies in Paris: violin now with Pierre Baillot and Charles Philippe Lafont, the guitar again with Carulli, and composition with François-Joseph Fétis. an orchestra he conducted for 13 years. In 1846, he became the director of the Conservatoire de Lille where he, besides administrative duties, still taught violin and guitar. The date of his retirement is not known. But when he became Chevalier of the Légion d’honneur on 14 August 1869, confirmed in a second document of 29 January 1872, he was stil

Vincent Novello

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Vincent Novello (6 September 17819 August 1861), was an English musician and music publisher born in London. He was an organist, chorister, conductor and composer, but he is best known for bringing to England many works now considered standards, and with his son he created a major music publishing house. Life Vincent, born at 240 Oxford Street, was the son of Giuseppe Novello, an Italian confectioner who moved to London in 1771. As a boy Vincent was a chorister at the Sardinian Embassy Chapel in Duke Street, Lincoln’s Inn Fields, where he learnt the organ from Samuel Webbe; and from 1796 to 1822 he became in succession organist of the Sardinian, Spanish (in Manchester Square) and Portuguese (at the Portuguese Embassy chapel off Grosvenor Square), and from 1840 to 1843 of St Mary Moorfields. He taught music privately throughout his career. One of his most notable pupils was musicologist and music critic Edward Holmes. He was an original member of the Philharmonic Society, of the Classical Harmonists and of the Choral Harmonists, officiating frequently as conductor, and was a conductor/accompanist at the King’s Theatre. Musical activities Many of Novello’s original compositions were

Vincenzo Bellini

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Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was an Italian opera composer famed for his long, graceful melodies and evocative musical settings. A central figure of the era, he was admired not only by the public but also by many composers who were influenced by his work. His songs balanced florid embellishment with a deceptively simple approach to lyric setting. Born to a musical family in Sicily, he distinguished himself early and earned a scholarship to study under several noted musicians at Naples’ Real Collegio di Musica. There he absorbed elements of the Neapolitan School’s style and was inspired by performances of Donizetti’s and Rossini’s operas, among others, in more modern idioms. He wrote his first opera, Adelson e Salvini (1825), for the conservatory, and his next, Bianca e Fernando (1826), on a Teatro di San Carlo-affiliated commission for promising students. He also became close friends with his peer and first biographer, Francesco Florimo. Bellini then went to Milan to compose for La Scala, where the success of Il pirata (1827) established his short but significant career. He wrote many celebrated operas, ascending to triumphal he

Vincenzo Fioravanti

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Vincenzo Gioacchino Fioravanti (5 April 1799 – 28 March 1877) was a prolific Italian opera composer active in Naples. He composed 39 operas, of which 34 were performed in his lifetime. Like his father, Valentino Fioravanti, he specialised in the opera buffa genre, but he also composed sacred music including two oratorios during his time as maestro di cappella of Lanciano Cathedral (1839–1843). Life and career Fioravanti was born in Rome to Angiola (née Aromatari) and Valentino Fioravanti. Despite his own success as a composer, Valentino wanted his son to study medicine. Valentino was living in Naples while Vincenzo was supposedly studying medicine in Rome. Unbeknownst to him, the young Vincenzo was secretly studying composition with his father’s old teacher Giuseppe Jannacconi. In 1816 Vincenzo arrived in Naples and confessed to his father that he had been studying music. Valentino relented and gave his son further lessons in composition. He made his debut as composer at the Teatro San Carlino in Naples in 1819 with the premiere of La Pulcinella molinaro, spaventato dalla fata Serafinetta, an opera buffa set to a libretto by Filippo Cammarano. The following year, he returned to Rom

W. E. Scholz

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W. E. Scholz (1807 or 1808 – September 1866) was a German composer and Kapellmeister / conductor at the court of Prince August zu Hohenlohe-Öhringen in Schlawentzitz in Upper Silesia. Life Wilhelm Eduard Scholz was born in Breslau. He was a pupil of Ignaz von Seyfried in Vienna. In 1838 he was appointed Kapellmeister of the Prince zu Hohenlohe-Öhringen at the court in Schlawentzitz in Upper Silesia. Most of his compositions – autographs of his works, autographs of the arrangements and prints – are now in the . He composed overtures, symphonies, sonatas, instrumental concertos, masses, art songs and harmony music. He also arranged well-known works for the Hofkapelle in Schlawentzitz. For example Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Carl Maria von Weber’s Oberon and Euryanthe, Gioachino Rossini’s Guillaume Tell and Otello, Ludwig van Beethoven’s Fidelio and Symphony No. 5, Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Frédéric Chopin’s Waltz in E-flat major. During his lifetime several of his compositions were published by and Weinhold. The composer’s main tenure dates back to the first half of the nineteenth century as evidenced by some aut

Wenzel Robert von Gallenberg

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Wenzel Robert von Gallenberg (28 December 1783 – 13 March 1839) (full name Johann Wenzel Robert Maria Joseph Sigmund Seyfried, Count Gallenberg) was an Austrian composer, particularly of ballets, which were produced in Vienna and Italy. Life Gallenberg was born in Vienna. Showing an interest in music at an early age, he did not pursue an official career. He studied composition with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (whose notable pupils included Beethoven). From 1801 his compositions appeared in print; he produced piano works and orchestral works. On 3 November 1803 he married Countess Giulietta Guicciardi. She had been a pupil of Beethoven, who dedicated his Piano Sonata No. 14 (“Moonlight sonata”) to her in 1802. In 1805 Gallenberg and his wife went to Naples, where he prepared the music, mostly his own compositions, for a concert on 31 May in honour of Joseph Bonaparte, which was well received. Early in 1806, when Joseph Bonaparte was King of Naples, Gallenberg became Directeur des ballets; in charge of music in the court theatre of Naples, he widened the repertoire of the company. In 1821 the impresario Domenico Barbaia, at that time manager of the court theatre in Naples, became ma

Wenzel Thomas Matiegka

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Wenzel Thomas Matiegka (; ; baptised 6 July 1773 – 19 January 1830 ) was a Czech composer and one of the most celebrated guitarists of the 19th century. Life Wenzel Thomas Matiegka was born in Choceň in the Kingdom of Bohemia, then part of the Habsburg monarchy. Upon completion of his primary studies, he continued his musical education under Abbé Gelinek, becoming accomplished on the pianoforte while reading law at the University of Prague. After legal employment in the service of Prince Ferdinand Kinský, one of Beethoven’s original sponsors, Matiegka moved to Vienna while in his late twenties, during the first years of the 19th century. There he was quickly acknowledged as a guitarist, composer and teacher of the piano. His ready acceptance in the musical circles of Vienna was evident by those to whom he dedicated several of his chamber works. Franz Schubert, as a young man, added a cello part to Matiegka’s Notturno Op. 21 (originally for flute, viola and guitar; Schubert arrangement D.96) for the important patron of music, Count Johann Karl Esterházy (1775 – 1834), an enthusiastic cellist to whom Matiegka’s original music was dedicated. Indeed the work was attributed to Schubert

Wilhelm Neuland

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Wilhelm Neuland (14 July 1806 – 28 December 1889) was a German musician and composer of the Romantic era, with activities mainly in Bonn (Kingdom of Prussia), London (UK) and Calais (France). Life Neuland was born in Bonn, the son of a tailor named Johann Caspar Neuland and his wife Catharina, née Frings. He attended a local private boys school and studied harmony and some musical instruments with Johann Gottfried Klebs as well as piano and composition with Carl David Stegmann until 1824. He spent the years until 1826 as a military band musician, performing on several instruments, retiring mainly on health grounds, and established himself as a music teacher and composer in Bonn. From 1828 to 1871, Neuland was conductor of the Société Philharmonique (an orchestra and choral society) in Calais, France, a position that he was able to pursue for some months in a year only. He also conducted frequently in neighbouring Boulogne-sur-Mer. In addition, Neuland spent the years 1830 to 1835 mainly in London, where he was much in demand as a guitarist and composer for the guitar, following his contacts with other German-speaking guitarist-composers from Germany and Austria, including Ferdinand

Wilhelm Würfel

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Wilhelm Würfel, aka Wenzel Würfel (, ; May 6, 1790 - March 23, 1832) was a Czech composer, pianist and conductor. Life He was born in 1790 in Plaňany near Kolín in central Bohemia. His father was a schoolteacher. He studied piano with his mother. In 1807 he went to Prague where he studied with Václav Jan Tomášek. In 1815 he went to Warsaw where he was appointed a professor at the Warsaw Conservatory. He gave piano performances in Poland, Bohemia, Germany and Russia. In 1824 he returned to Prague and conducted his opera Rübezahl. From 1826 he stayed as a conductor in Vienna. He had a meeting with Beethoven just before he died in 1827. Wurfel died in Vienna, aged 41. His most famous pupil is said to be the Polish-French romantic composer Frédéric Chopin, who it is claimed studied with him at the Warsaw High School of Music between 1823-26. However, although Würfel was a friend of the Chopin family and may have given Chopin some guidance, he returned to his native Prague in 1824 and did not encounter Chopin thereafter. According to Jonathan Bellman in his book Chopin’s Polish Ballade (45), one of Wurfel’s programmatic pieces that Chopin must have known is the Grande fantaisie lugubre

Wilhelmine von Troschke und Rosenwehrt

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Wilhelmine Auguste Charlotte Helene Apollonia von Troschke und Rosenwerth (1775-1830) was born in Lower Silesia and is considered to be a German composer. She published piano music under the name Wilhelmine von Troschke und Rosenwerth. Wilhelmine married Ernst Christoph Gunther von Bronsart and they had two children: Rosaline Louise Adele Antoinette von Bronsart in 1807, and Karl August Johann Georg Ludwig Adolf von Bronsart in 1808. She later married Karl Ludwig Hasenwinkel. Her works include: *4 Themes with Variations for Piano or Harpsichord (1801): **Theme and 6 Variations **8 Variations on ‘Die Milch ist gesünder’ for Harp or Piano *Variations on ‘Ein Männchen oder Weibchen’ for Piano (1801) Download free sheet music by Wilhelmine von Troschke und Rosenwerth References

William Crotch

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William Crotch (5 July 177529 December 1847) was an English composer and organist. According to the British musicologist Nicholas Temperley, Crotch was “a child prodigy without parallel in the history of music”, and was certainly the most distinguished English musician in his day. Crotch was later to observe that this experience led him to become a rather spoiled child, excessively indulged so that he would perform. Adult life Crotch was for a time organist at Christ Church, Oxford, from which he was later to graduate with a Bachelor of Music degree. His first attempt at an oratorio, The Captivity of Judah, was played at Trinity Hall, Cambridge on 4 June 1789 when he was 14. His most successful—and largest scale—composition was the oratorio Palestine (1812), after which he mainly returned to smaller scale works. He may have composed the Westminster Chimes in 1793, which are played by Big Ben each time it strikes the hour. In 1797, Crotch became Heather Professor of Music at Oxford University, and in 1799 he acquired a doctorate in music. While at Oxford, he became acquainted with the musician and artist John Malchair, and took up sketching. He followed Malchair’s style in recording

William Henry Kearns

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William Henry Kearns (1794 – 28 December 1846) was an Irish violinist, conductor and composer active mainly in England. Biography Kearns was born in Dublin and, like many of his Irish contemporaries, emigrated to England where he settled at least since 1817. Nothing is known about his musical education, but in London he was employed as a violinist in the orchestra of the Covent Garden opera house (principal first violin for the season 1818–9) and as organist at the Verulam Episcopal Chapel, Lambeth. On 16 July 1817 his operetta Bachelor’s Wives, or The British at Brussels received its first performance at the English Opera House (EOH) and “enjoyed a substantial run”. Kearns did not compose any further operas, but was later employed at the EOH as musical advisor to the directors, Samuel James Arnold and William Hawes. He also conducted noteworthy performances of Carl Maria von Weber’s Der Freischütz, Louis Spohr’s Zemire und Azor and Giacomo Meyerbeer’s Robert le diable. Weber’s original copy of the overture to Oberon was given to Kearns by William Hawes in 1827 “as a token of regard and friendship”. He also didn’t give up the violin; among other events he played at the Royal Musica

William Horsley

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William Horsley (18 November 177412 June 1858) was an English composer, organist and teacher. Career In 1790, Horsley became the pupil of the pianist and composer Theodore Smith (c. 1740–1810), who taught him sufficiently well to obtain the position of organist at Ely Chapel, Holborn, in 1794. He resigned this post in 1798 to become the organist at the Asylum for Female Orphans as well as the assistant to John Wall Callcott, with whom he had long been on terms of personal and artistic intimacy, and whose eldest daughter, Elizabeth Hutchins Callcott, he married. Callcott encouraged his interest in vocal music. In 1802 he became his friend’s successor upon the latter’s resignation. Besides holding this appointment he became the organist of Belgrave Chapel, Halkin Street, in 1812 and of London Charterhouse in 1838. More important are his glees, of which he published five books (1801–1807) besides contributing many detached glees and part songs to various collections. His glees include “By Celia’s Arbour,” “O, Nightingale,” and “Now the storm begins to lower”. His ballads, particularly Gentle Lyre and The Sailor’s Adieu enjoyed popularity in his lifetime. Two of his hymn tunes, ‘Belgra

William Mineard Bennett

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William Mineard Bennet (1778–1858), was an English miniature-painter, singer and composer. Life Bennett was born at Exeter in 1778. While apprenticed to the engraver Abraham Ezekiel in the city, he learned Hebrew and became enthusiastic about music. The Monthly Review continued: Mr. Bennett had long determined to make trial of the stage; and, towards the end of the season, made his debut in the character of Prince Orlando, in the comic opera of The Cabinet. His reception here was more flattering than at the concerts, and he made an engagement with the managers to play a few nights; which he did, in the following characters: Don Carlos, in the Duenna; Young Meadows, in Love in a Village; Don Alphonso, in The Castle of Andalusia; Lord William, in the Haunted Tower; Paul, in Paul and Virginia; and Patrick, in The Poor Soldier—in all of which he gave much satisfaction. Just before the opening of the Hay-market theatre, in the same season, he received an offer to play six nights there, which he accepted; but to get up an opera was deemed impracticable, and he played the six nights in musical after-pieces. His first appearance before a London audience was in the character of Paul, in Pau

William Oliver (songwriter)

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William Oliver (5 February 1800 29 October 1848) was a Tyneside poet, singer and songwriter from Newcastle upon Tyne. He is arguably best known for the song “Newcassel Props”, an example of the Geordie dialect. Career Oliver became a draper and hatter, working for a Mr.Bowes of The Bridge End, Gateshead, where he stayed there for many years. For a short time, he ran his own business as a hatter, but this was unsuccessful. He eventually left the business around 1830 and joined his brother Timothy working in his grocery shop situated at the corner of Cloth Market and High Bridge, and there he stayed until his death. Music Oliver was popular as both singer and songwriter in his time. His 1829 collection of songs was dedicated to Robert Bill, Mayor of Newcastle upon Tyne. Arthur’s Hill, Newcastle upon Tyne. Works His works include: * “The Bonassus” – the tale of a buffalo in a wild animal show; to the tune of “Jemmy Joneson’s Whurry” * “The Clock Face” to the tune “Bold Dragoon” * “England Awake” – a political song * “The Lament” to the tune “The Bold Dragoon” * “The New Markets” – to the tune “Canny Newcassel” * “Newcassel Props” – in which we remember the passing of local characters,

William Russell (organist)

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William Russell (6 October 1777 – 21 November 1813) was an English organist and composer. Life He was the son of William Russell, an organ-builder, and was born in London on 6 October 1777. From age seven Russell was taught by the organists William Cope, William Shrubsole, and John Groombridge. Between 1789 and 1793 he was deputy to his father, who was organist to St. Mary’s, Aldermanbury. In 1793, Russell was appointed organist to the Great Queen Street chapel; cathedral services were performed there until 1798, when the chapel became a Wesleyan meeting-house. On 2 September 1798 he was elected organist at St. Anne’s, Limehouse. In 1801 he was elected to a similar post at the Foundling Hospital. About the same time he resumed musical studies under Samuel Arnold. In 1808, Russell graduated Mus. Bac. at Oxford. He died on 21 November 1813 at Cobham Row, Coldbath Fields, in Clerkenwell. Works Russell’s organ voluntaries were in suite form. He published Twelve Voluntaries for the Organ or Pianoforte (1805), and a Second Book (1812). Job was an oratorio adaptation for organ or pianoforte, from Samuel Wesley, issued in 1826. He also composed music to Christopher Smart’s Ode on St. Cecil

William Walker (composer)

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William Walker (May 6, 1809 – September 24, 1875) was an American Baptist song leader, shape note “singing master”, and compiler of four shape note tunebooks, most notable of which are the influential The Southern Harmony and The Christian Harmony, which has been in continuous use (republished 2010). Life Walker was born in Martin’s Mills (near Cross Keys), South Carolina, and grew up near Spartanburg. From an early age he became deeply involved in music and became a song leader in the Baptist church. To distinguish him from other William Walkers in Spartanburg, he was nicknamed Singing Billy. In 1842 the Whites moved from Spartanburg District, SC to Harris County, Georgia, and in 1844 B. F. White, in concert with Elisha J. King published The Sacred Harp. Walker died in Spartanburg in 1875. Walker is buried in Magnolia Cemetery, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, South Carolina. Tunebooks Walker learned shape note music in singing schools; it had been used by Baptist and Methodist preachers in the Second Great Awakening to help spread Christianity in the South. Because the music could be read and sung by amateurs, hymns in shape note annotation became the centerpiece of many revivals

Wojciech Grzymała

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Wojciech Grzymała (23 April 1793 – 16 December 1871), also known as Albert Grzymala or Albert Grzymała, was a Polish soldier, politician, and banker who was a close associate in Paris of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin. Grzymała was born in Dunajowce (now Dunaivtsi, Ukraine). He began attending military school in 1807, and took part in the Battle of Borodino (1812), for which he received the medal Virtuti Militari. A freemason, and active in Polish politics during the 1820s, he was a principal orator at the funeral of Stanisław Staszic (1826). In 1828-1829, he was imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg for his association with the . As a director of the Bank Polski, he negotiated in London and Paris for financial and other support for Poland after the 1830 November Uprising. Grzymała remained in Paris and became a society figure. He often acted as Chopin’s adviser and “gradually began to fill the role of elder brother in his life.” He was a frequent correspondent of both Chopin and of George Sand; Sand, in a letter to Grzymała of June 1838, admitted her strong feelings for the composer and debated whether to abandon a current affair in order to begin a relation