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Classical Era
 

1801-1802-1803-1804-1805

1801
Giuseppe Piazzi discovers the dwarf planet Ceres. – Italy 
 Thomas Jefferson elected President of the United States by the House of Representatives, following a tie in the Electoral College – United States The Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merge to form the United Kingdom Ranjit Singh crowned as King of Punjab  Napoleon signs the Concordat of 1801 with the Pope • Cairo falls to the British Assassination of Tsar Paul I of Russia British defeat French at the Second Battle of Abukir
1802
Treaty of Amiens between France and the United Kingdom ends the War of the Second Coalition
 Ludwig van Beethoven performs his Moonlight Sonata for the first time  William Symington demonstrates his Charlotte Dundas, the "first practical steamboat"
1803
The United States more than doubles in size when it buys out France's territorial claims in North America via the Louisiana Purchase. This begins the U.S.'s westward expansion to the Pacific referred to as its Manifest Destiny which involves annexing and conquering land from Mexico, Britain, and Native Americans
 The Wahhabis of the First Saudi State capture Mecca and Medina War breaks out between Britain and France; this is considered by some to be the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars
1804
Haiti gains independence from France and becomes the first black republic
 Austrian Empire founded by Francis I Napoleon crowns himself Emperor of the French World population reaches 1 billion First steam locomotive begins operation Morphine first isolated.
1805
The Battle of Trafalgar eliminates the French and Spanish naval fleets and allows for British dominance of the seas, a major factor for the success of the British Empire later in the century
 Vincenzo Camuccini – The Death of Caesar  Napoleon decisively defeats an Austrian-Russian army at the Battle of Austerlitz.

Thomas Jefferson (April 13,1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Father who was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and later served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. Previously, he had been elected the second vice president of the United States, serving under John Adams from 1797 to 1801.

1801

1801

John Fieldcomposes Three Piano Sonatas Op. 1

John Field  - Piano Sonata No. 1, Opus 1 No. 1. 

John Field - Sonata No.2 in A Major Op.1 No.2
1st Movement played by John O'Conor

Field - Piano Sonata No. 3 in C minor, Op. 1 No. 3 - Pietro Spada

Ludwig van Beethoven  composes his Piano Sonata No. 12, Op. 26, Piano Sonata No. 13 & No. 14 (Moonlight), Op. 27, Piano Sonata No. 15, Op. 28, String Quintet, Op. 29

Beethoven - Piano sonata n°12 op.26
Richter - Munich 1994

Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 13 in E flat major | Daniel Barenboim

Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor "Quasi una fantasia", Op. 27 No. 2, "Moonlight Sonata"
Piano: Evgeny Kissin

Beethoven - Piano Sonata No.15 in D major, Op.28 "Pastoral"
Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano, 1976

Beethoven - string quintet op. 29 in C
Hausmusik, Monica Huggett playing first violin

11 January
Domenico Cimarosa, composer, 51, is buried at Chiesa di Sant’Angelo, Venice, with a requiem mass performed by local musicians.

17 February
Etienne Méhul – 
L'irato, ou L'emporté (The Angry Man) is an opéra-comique (styled an opéra parade) in one act with a French-language libretto by Benoît-Joseph Marsollier. It was first performed at the Théâtre Favart, Paris on 17 February 1801. Written in a lighter style than Méhul's operas of the 1790s, L'irato is famous for being part of a deception the composer played on his friend Napoleon Bonaparte.

Etienne-Nicolas Méhul: L'Irato ou L'Emporté 

Scapin: MILJENKO TURK Bass
Lysandre: CYRIL AUVITY Tenor
Isabelle: PAULINE COURTIN Sopran
Pandolphe: ALAIN BUET Bass
Nérine: SVENJA HEMPEL Sopran
Balouard: GEORG POPLUTZ Tenor

Werner Ehrhardt conductor
Synopsis
Scene: The garden of Pandolphe's country house near Florence
Pandolphe is a rich but grumpy old man who becomes angry at the slightest thing. He has threatened to disinherit his young nephew Lysandre. As the opera opens, Lysandre is pacing the garden with his servant Scapin, awaiting a meeting with Pandolphe (Aria for Scapin: Promenerons-nous bien longtemps?). Lysandre is in love with Isabelle, but has not heard from her for a month, and Scapin has likewise lost contact with his beloved, Isabelle's maid Nérine. Nevertheless, the two men swear to be faithful forever (Duet:Jurons! Jurons de les aimer toujours!). Lysandre is enraged at Pandolphe's plans to marry Isabelle to Balouard, his pedantic and ridiculous former tutor. Scapin vows to do everything he can to help his master (Aria: Mais que dis-je?), but he runs off when Pandolphe emerges from the house in a foul temper (Aria for Pandolphe: Ah, les maudites gens!). Pandolphe tells Lysandre he intends to cut him out of his will and throw him out of the house as Lysandre's studied composure irritates him. Lysandre still refuses to become angry. Once Pandolphe has left, Scapin re-enters bringing Isabelle and Nérine with him. Lysandre tells Isabelle of his uncle's plan to marry her off to Balouard. Isabelle is horrified but Scapin says he has a plot to make Pandolphe angry with Balouard (Quartet: O ciel, que faire?). Isabelle hopes that by pretending to be vain and fickle she will put Balouard off (Aria: J'ai de la raison). Pandolphe introduces Isabelle to Balouard. Isabelle hints she already has a lover, which makes Balouard decline the marriage offer, much to Pandolphe's chagrin. Lysandre, who does not yet know the good news, is in a desperate state (Couplets: Si je perdais mon Isabelle). Scapin encourages Lysandre to drown his sorrows with the equally sad Balouard and the three sing in praise of wine and woman (Trio: Femme jolie et du bon vin). As Balouard becomes ever more drunk, the chorus mock him by comparing him to the god Mars (Chorus: Qu'il est joli, qu'il est charmant). Isabelle and Nérine escape from the house in which Pandolphe has locked them up. The old man surprises them as Lysandre is declaring his love for Isabelle and vows he will never let them marry. But he finally yields to the pleas of Lysandre, Isabelle, Scapin and Nerine and gives his blessing to the wedding (Finale: Ah, mon cher oncle).

28 March
Ludwig van Beethoven
's ballet The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43 (Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus) premières in Vienna's Burgtheater.

Beethoven - The Creatures of Prometheus, op.43

24 April
Franz Joseph Haydn
's oratorio The Seasons is premièred as Die Jahreszeiten in Vienna for its aristocratic patrons at the Palais Schwarzenberg; it has its public première on May 19 at the Redoutensaal.

RANZ JOSEF HAYDN: THE SEASONS
Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra
Howard Arman, conductor
Felicitas Fuchs, soprano
Andrew Staples, tenor
Reinhard Hagen, bass

MDR Radio Choir of Leipzig

23 October
Albert Lortzing, German composer, born.

3 November
Vincenzo Bellini, composer, born

9 November
Carl Philipp Stamitz, composer, dies, ages 56

Albert Lortzing

Albert Lortzing

Gustav Albert Lortzing (23 October 1801 – 21 January 1851) was a German composer, 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.


















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 in Detmold from late 1826, which toured to Münster and Osnabrück. Lortzing joined the Freemasons, a popular refuge for artists in Metternich's police state. Lortzing composed an oratorio in Detmold, Die Himmelfahrt Christi (Christ's Ascension), which premiered in Münster, and predictably earned a rebuke for the young composer from the Münster regional governor, who claimed that Lortzing was "a composer of no renown".
 

Lortzing composed the music for Christian Dietrich Grabbe's Don Juan und Faust, playing the role of Don Juan himself, with his wife as Donna Anna. Lortzing received a glowing report from an anonymous reviewer in a Frankfurt paper, who also mistakenly praised Lortzing for the text "by this brilliant poet". Grabbe, the real poet, was outraged, although the review did bring good publicity for the piece.

On 3 November 1833 the young Lortzings gave their debut at the Leipziger Stadttheater. Lortzing's parents had been members of this ensemble since 1832, under Friedrich Sebald Ringelhardt. Here, Lortzing became a member of the artists' club "Tunnel unter der Pleisse" ("Tunnel under the Pleiße"), and in 1834 he became a member of the Leipzig Freemasons lodge "Balduin zur Linde" ("Balduin to the Linden Tree"). Lortzing was much loved in the Leipzig ensemble, particularly when acting in Johann Nestroy's comedies. However, his tendency to improvise and to deviate from the script attracted the attention of the theatrical police.

His first comic opera, Zar und Zimmermann, had a tough time with the Leipzig censors. It premiered in Leipzig on 22 December 1837. Lortzing himself sang the role of Peter Iwanow, but it did not make a major breakthrough until its Berlin performances in 1839, where it was much praised.
 

In 1844, Lortzing became Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Stadttheater. After a quarrel with management, he was dismissed in April 1845 due to his "rheumatic troubles". The repeated protests of the public got him reinstated, but he was soon dismissed again after another argument. In an open letter, signed by almost everyone in the ensemble, he made a plea against the measures taken by the city government.
 

Between 1846 and 1848, Lortzing worked as Kapellmeister at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna. At the behest of the Freedom Movement, he wrote text and music in 1848 for his political opera Regina, named after his wife. This work concerned both labour struggles and fear of suicide. His last full-length opera was an 1849 fairy-tale satire of the Prussian military state called Rolands Knappen (Roland's Squire), featuring the repeated line "And this is supposed to be a world order?" ("Und das soll eine Weltordnung sein?")
 

In 1848 he lost his appointment and had to return to work as a touring actor to support his large family. He worked at Gera and Lüneburg, among other cities. Finally in 1850, he became the Kapellmeister in Berlin at the newly opened Friedrich-Wilhelmstädtisches Theater.
 

On 20 January 1851, the night he was to attend the premiere of his musical comedy Die Opernprobe, Lortzing suffered a stroke and died without medical treatment on the morning of the following day, under huge stress and deeply in debt. A number of luminaries from the musical world were present at his funeral, including Giacomo Meyerbeer, Heinrich Dorn, Wilhelm Taubert and Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen. Lortzing's theatrical colleagues decorated his coffin with black, red and gold, a combination forbidden after 1848. A public benefit was then later held for his already impoverished family.
 

Works
His first singspiel, Ali Pascha von Janina, appeared in 1824, but his fame as a musician rests chiefly upon the two operas Zar und Zimmermann (1837) and Der Wildschütz (1842).
 

Zar und Zimmermann was received with very little enthusiasm by the public of Leipzig. However, at subsequent performances in Berlin there was a much more positive reaction. The opera soon appeared on all the stages of Germany, and today is regarded as one of the masterpieces of German comic opera. It was translated into English, French, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, Bohemian, Hungarian and Russian. The story is based around Tsar Peter I 'The Great' of Russia, who travelled to Germany, Holland and England disguised as a carpenter in order to gain first-hand technical knowledge he believed necessary for his country's economic progress, such as modern shipbuilding.
 

Der Wildschütz was based on a comedy by August von Kotzebue, and was a satire on the unintelligent and exaggerated admiration for the highest beauty in art expressed by the bourgeois gentilhomme.
 

Of his other operas, Der Pole und sein Kind, produced shortly after the Polish insurrection of 1831, and Undine (1845) are notable.
 

Die Opernprobe - Opera in 1 Act

Albert Lortzing - Die Opernprob

Regina Marheineke - Soprano
Kari Lovaas - Soprano
Gisela Litz - Mezzo-soprano
Nicolai Gedda - Tenor
Klaus Hirte - Baritone
Walter Berry - Bass

Choir and Orchester der Bayerischen Staatsoper München  - Otmar Suitner - Conductor

Der Wildschütz oder Die Stimme der Natur (The Poacher, or The Voice of Nature) is a German Komische Oper, or comic opera, in three acts by Albert Lortzing from a libretto by the composer adapted from the comedy Der Rehbock, oder Die schuldlosen Schuldbewussten by August von Kotzebue. It had its premiere at the Stadttheater in Leipzig on 31 December 1842.
 

Roles:
Count von Eberbach    baritone 
Countess von Eberbach, his wife    alto  
Baron Kronthal, brother of the Countess    tenor
(Baroness von Freimann, widow, sister of the Count  soprano   
Baculus, schoolmaster    bass 
Gretchen, his fiancée    soprano
Pancratius, the Count's major-domo    baritone
Nanette, the Baroness's maid    mezzo-soprano
Synopsis
Act 1
At the village hotel, the schoolmaster Baculus is celebrating his engagement to Gretchen. A hunter from the Count von Eberbach then arrives at the festivities with a letter telling Baculus that he has been dismissed from his schoolmaster post, as Baculus had earlier gone hunting on the count's land without his permission. Baculus thinks to send Gretchen to change the count's mind, but then recalls the count's weakness for young women. The Baroness von Freimann, sister of the count and recently widowed, arrives disguised as a student to travel incognito. Her brother wants her to remarry with Baron Kronthal. The Baroness hears of Baculus' misfortune, and offers herself to plead his case in place of Gretchen. The Count then comes on the scene with his shooting party, as does Baron Kronthal. Both the Count and the baron are immediately attracted to Gretchen. The entire party is then gathered for the count's birthday celebration at his castle.

Act 2
The Countess von Eberbach has a weakness for ancient tragedies, particularly Sophocles, and she bores her servant when she expounds on them. Pancratius, the house master, advises Baculus to exploit this feature to gain favour with the countess. Baculus impresses the countess with quotations from these ancient literary works. However, the Count sees this and tries to banish Baculus from the proceedings. Baculus then tries to enlist the Baroness with the idea of her appearing as Gretchen, in disguise. A storm then arises, and this forces Baculus and Gretchen to remain locked in the castle. During a billiards party, the lights suddenly go out. The Count and the Baron take the opportunity to surprise Gretchen. However, the Countess helps Baculus and Gretchen to escape. The baron then offers a reward of 5000 Taler for delivering Gretchen to him.

Act 3
The Count's birthday celebration is continuing. The "correct" Gretchen is now brought to the castle. The Baron notices that Gretchen seems different from before. Baculus then reveals that the "previous" Gretchen was a student in disguise. After Baculus is pressed further, the Baroness reveals her true identity. The Baron demands an explanation from Baculus, and later the Count adds his voice to ask for clarification. The countess eventually arrives as well. The confusion is finally clarified. In the end, Baculus and Gretchen are reunited, and Baculus is restored to his schoolmaster position. It also turns out that Baculus had accidentally shot his own donkey initially, rather than a deer on the count's grounds.

Albert Lortzing - Der Wildschütz

Undine is an opera in four acts by Albert Lortzing. The German libretto was by the composer after Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's story of the same name.

Synopsis
Act 1

The knight Hugo von Ringstetten, having won a tournament, has been given a quest by Bertalda, the daughter of the Duke. She wants him to explore the enchanted forest. Hugo and his squire Veit have been forced by bad weather and floods to take refuge in a fishing village, and have been living there for some months. Hugo has fallen in love with the beautiful Undine, the foster daughter of the fisherman Tobias and his wife Marthe, and plans to marry her. He tells his bride of his previous life and that he had once loved Bertalda, but now has forgotten her. They are astonished at Undine's remark that she has no soul.

As farmers and fishermen follow the knight and Undine into the Chapel, Kühleborn, the Prince of the water spirits, suddenly appears, disguised as a farmer, and talks to Veit. He remarks that this Undine is probably only a creation of his Lord and will not be permanent. Kühleborn had once kidnapped the real daughter of the fishermen, Bertalda, and entrusted her to the Duke. Undine was left for Tobias and Marthe to raise instead. He wanted to test whether the people who have a soul, are better off than the soulless spirits that live in the waters. He decides to watch over Undine and accompanies the young couple and Veit to the imperial capital, disguised as a priest.

Act 2
The winemaker Hans is happy to welcome back his drinking friend Veit, who tells him about his adventures, and that he has married Undine, a mermaid without a soul. Bertalda learns that Hugo is married, and her love turns to hate. Kühleborn joins the celebration disguised as a count from Naples. As she reviles Undine because of her lowly origin, Kühleborn claims that Bertalda is actually the child of fisher people, who she contemptuously rejects. To prove that she is of noble blood, she displays a box belonging to her father the Duke. But a letter inside the box attests Kühleborn's claim. Horrified Bertalda collapses. Kühleborn declares that he is the Prince of the water and disappears before their eyes into the waters of the fountain in the Hall.

Act 3
Bertalda seduces Hugo. Hugo tells Undine that he will no longer live with a water goblin. Undine warns him of Kühleborn's revenge and anger, but he determines to make Bertalda his wife anyway. Kühleborn brings Undine back into the water depths. He explains that beings with a soul are no better than the spirits without them.

Act 4
Hugo cannot forget Undine and his bad dreams haunt him. Veit and Hans, who has entered into Hugo's service, celebrate the wedding of their Lord with Bertalda, which will take place that day. Intoxicated, they remove the stones blocking the castle fountain. Slowly arising from the water in a white mask, Undine goes weeping into the castle. During the marriage celebration in the castle hall, Hugo, in vain, seeks to dispel ill forebodings. At midnight, the lights go out. Undine appears, surrounded by a mysterious blue light. Hugo throws himself at her feet. A flood of water destroys the castle. The palace of Kühleborn appears with Undine and Hugo kneeling before him. Hugo is forgiven but must remain forever in the realm of the water spirits.

Bertalda: Ruth-Margret Pütz
Ritter Hugo von Ringstetten: Nicolai Gedda
Kühleborn: Hermann Prey
Tobias: Hans-Günther Grimm
Marthe: Sieglinde Wagner
Undine: Anneliese Rothenberger
Veit: Peter Shreier
Hans: Gottlob Frick
Peter Heilmann: Gottlob Frick

Kammerchor - Radio-Symphonie-Orchester - Robert Heger

Zar und Zimmermann (Tsar and Carpenter) is a comic opera in three acts, music by Albert Lortzing, libretto by the composer after Georg Christian Römer's Der Bürgermeister von Saardam, oder Die zwei Peter, itself based on the French play Le Bourgmestre de Saardam, ou Les deux Pierre by Anne-Honoré-Joseph Duveyrier de Mélésville, Jean-Toussaint Merle, and Eugène Centiran de Boirie.

Roles:

Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia    baritone 
Peter Ivanov, young Russian carpenter    tenor 
Van Bett, burgomaster of Saardam    bass 
Marie, daughter of van Bett    soprano 
Marquis de Chateauneuf, French ambassador    tenor 
Widow Browe, master carpenter    mezzo-soprano 
General Lefort, Russian ambassador    bass 
Lord Syndham, English ambassador    bass  
Synopsis
The action takes place in Saardam, Holland, in 1698.

Peter the Great of Russia, disguised as Peter Michaelov, a common laborer, is working in a shipyard in the Dutch town of Saardam, to learn shipbuilding techniques for his navy. He befriends a fellow Russian also working in the yard, Peter Ivanov, a deserter from the Russian army. Peter Ivanov is in love with Marie, the niece of Van Bett, the Burgomaster of Saardam. Tsar Peter is told of trouble in Russia, and decides to return home.

Van Bett has been told to find a foreigner named Peter in the shipyard. The English ambassador, Syndham, and the French ambassador, Chateauneuf, have both heard the rumor of Tsar Peter's disguised presence and are looking for him, which convinces Van Bett that "Peter" is an important man. But in confusion, he identifies the wrong Peter. Chateauneuf recognises the real Tsar, and concludes an alliance with him. Syndham is fooled and presents Peter Ivanov with a passport.

Van Bett, very confused, salutes Peter Ivanov with an elaborate ceremony. Peter Ivanov gives the passport to Tsar Peter, who uses it to leave quietly, having first blessed Peter Ivanov's marriage to Marie, and appointed him to a high office in Russia.

1802

1802

Franz Joseph Haydn  composes Harmoniemesse, his last major work 

J. Haydn - Hob XXII:14 - Mass in B flat major "Harmoniemesse"
- Kyrie (0:00)
- Gloria (8:07)
- Credo (18:40)
- Sanctus (29:40)
- Benedictus (32:39)
- Agnus Dei (36:46)

Nancy Argenta, soprano; Pamela Helen Stephen, alto; Mark Padmore, tenor; Stephen Varcoe, bass;
Collegium Musicum 90 conducted by Richard Hickox.

Carl Maria Von Weber - Peter Schmoll und seine Nachbarn

Peter Schmoll und seine Nachbarn (Peter Schmoll and his Neighbours) is the third opera by Carl Maria von Weber and the first for which the music has survived, though the libretto has not. It was written in 1802 when the composer was only 15 and premiered in Augsburg the following year. The opera takes the form of a Singspiel, mixing spoken dialogue and musical numbers. The libretto is based on a novel by C.G. Cramer.

Roles:
The cook (contralto)
Hans Bast (bass)
Karl Pirkner (tenor)
Martin Schmoll (baritone)
Minette (soprano)
Niklas (tenor)
Peter Schmoll (bass)

Johann Nepomuk Hummel – Piano Quintet for piano, violin, viola, cello and bass, Op. 87 

Jan Nepomuk Hummel: Piano Quintet op.87

Alejandro Drago – violin, Iakov Zats – viola
Ramute Kalnenaite – violoncello, Pavel Klečka – contrabas, Vsevolod Dvorkin – piano

20 January
Luigi Boccherini receives a pension from Joseph Bonaparte.

15 February
Muzio Clementi publishes the second volume of his Practical Harmony.

Franz Krommer – Concerto for 2 Clarinets in E-flat major, Op. 35

Franz Krommer - Concerto for two clarinets in E-flat major, op.35
Filarmonica "Paul Constantinescu" Ploiesti,
Dirijor: Ovidiu Balan
Clarinet: Mihai Ailenei, Daniel Radu

9 April
Louis Spohr begins his violin studies under Franz Eck.

5 May 
Composer Giovanni Paisiello, recently arrived in Paris, meets his host, Napoleon, for the first time.

1803

1803

Ludwig van Beethoven begins composing his:
Christus am Ölberge, oratorio
Piano Sonata No. 21 "Waldstein" 
Symphony No. 3 "Eroica"
Violin Sonata No. 7 published, composed between 1801 and 1802
Violin Sonata No. 9

Beethoven - Christus am Ölberge
Seraph - Christina Deutekom
Jesus - Nicolai Gedda
Peter - Hans Sotin

Bonn Orchester der Beethovenhalle 
Conductor Volker Wagenheim, Recording from 1969/70

Beethoven - Sonata N° 21 'Waldstein'
Daniel Barenboim

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 3
Philippe Herreweghe

Beethoven - Violin Sonata No.7 in C Minor, Op.30/2
I. Allegro con brio
Maxim Vengerov, violin
Lilya Zilberstein, piano

Beethoven - Violin Sonata No.9. Op.47 "Kreutzer"
Anne-Sophie Mutter 

Franz Joseph Haydn composes his unfinished String Quartet in D minor, Op 103

J. Haydn - Hob III:83 - String Quartet Op. 103 in D minor (unfinished)

Franz Krommer Concerto for Oboe in F Major (op 37)

Franz Krommer: Concerto in F Major Op. 37 for Oboe & Orchestra
Ingo Goritzki, Oboe
Polish Chamber Philharmonic
Wojciech Rajski, Conductor

5 April
First performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto

Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37
Piano: Alfred Brendel
Conductor: Claudio Abbado
Lucerne Festival Orchestra

1:04 - Allegro con brio
17:59 - Largo
27:25 - Rondo. Allegro

28 March
Giovanni PaisielloProserpine
Proserpine is a French-language opera by the Italian composer Giovanni Paisiello. It takes the form of a tragédie lyrique in three acts. The libretto, by Nicolas-François Guillard, is a reworking of Philippe Quinault's Proserpine. Paisiello's opera was first performed on 28 March 1803 at the Paris Opéra.
 

Paisiello: Proserpine  - Ouverture for orchestra in D major - Collegium Philarmonicum

24 July
Adolphe Adam, French composer, born.

4 October 
Luigi CherubiniAnacréon

Anacréon, ou L'amour fugitif is an opera-ballet in two acts by Luigi Cherubini with a French libretto by C. R. Mendouze. 

Cherubini - Anacreon
Anacréon : Franco Bonisolli
Corine : Katia Ricciarelli
Amour : Valeria Mariconda
Vénus : Pierrot Gallet
Bathille : Carlo Gaifa
Athanais : Mojique Bandouin
Glycère : Carmen Gonzales
Premier Esclave : Stavka Taskova
Second Esclave : Carmen Gonzales
orchestre et choeurs - Teatro Comunale di Firenze
direction musicale -Eliahu Inbal

 

Synopsis
Place: The Greek city of Teos in ancient Ionia
Act 1
The young hetaira Corine is in love with the poet Anacréon, unaware that he shares the same feelings for her. As she prepares for Anacréon's fiftieth birthday celebrations, she prays to Cupid to bring her and the poet together in spite of the difference in age between them. There is a storm outside and a tiny guest arrives at Anacréon's house, soaked to the skin. It is Cupid in disguise, on the run from his mother Venus. He uses his powers to charm all those present.

Act 2
Cupid moves Anacréon with the tale of his unhappy childhood. Then he plays a prank by making Glycère and Bathille renew their unhappy love affair. At this point a message arrives from Venus, who has just learned of her son's escape. She promises a prize to anyone who captures him: the fulfillment of every wish. The guests soon see through Cupid's disguise and tie him up, but his laments lead them to release him again. Once he begins to play more tricks, however, they capture him again and bind him to the statue of Wisdom. Venus is happy to fulfill Anacréon's two wishes: that the rest of his life should be devoted to the cult of beauty; and that Corine should return his love.

Joseph Wölfl – Symphony in G minor, Op. 40

Joseph Wölfl - Op. 40 - Symphony in G minor
1. Largo - Allegro (0:00)
2. Minuetto (7:21)
3. Andante con moto (12:13)
4. Finale: Presto (18:09)

11 December 
Hector Berlioz, composer, born.

26 December
Franz Joseph Haydn performs his last public concert.

Adolphe Adam

Adolphe Adam

(b. Paris, July 24, 1803; d. Paris, 
May 3, 1856)













 



French composer. Inclined to the theater from his youth, he became a student of Adrien Boieldieu (1775-1834) at the Paris Conservatoire and quickly emerged as one of the most prolific musical figures in 19th- Adolphe century France. He composed ca. 1840 approximately 70 operas, nearly all of them comedies, and more than a dozen ballets, of which the most famous, Giselle, received its premiere at the Paris Opera in 1841. With a scenario by Theophile Gautier (based on a story by Heinrich Heine), Giselle was the first great Romantic ballet and the model for later works by Delibes, Tchaikovsky, and others. While Adam’s operas broke little new ground, they appealed almost unerringly to Parisian tastes and enjoyed considerable popularity in their day. The best of them, Le postilion de Longjumeau (The Postilion of Longjunieau; 1836), Giralda (1850, set to a libretto by Eugene Scribe), and Sij’etais roi (If I Were King; 1852), are still occasionally performed. In addition to his works for the stage, Adam also wrote numerous potpourris and salon pieces, as well as a handful of sacred works and the Christmas carol “O Holy Night.”


 

Giselle 
Companhia: The Dutch National Ballet, 2009
Anna Tsygankova como Giselle
Jozef Varga como Albrecht
Jan Zerer como Hilarion
Igone de Jongh como Myrtha

Corsaire 
Novosibirsk opera ballet theatre

1804

1804

Ludwig van Beethoven composes Piano Sonata No. 22 in F major and Symphony No. 2 (published; composed 1801–02)

Beethoven - piano sonata 22 op. 54 in F major 
Wilhelm Kempff

Beethoven - Symphony No. 2 

1 January
Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Concerto for trumpet and orchestra receives its première in Vienna, in the presence of Nicholas II, Prince Esterházy.
Hummel completes Variations for piano Op. 115

Johann Hummel - Trumpet Concerto in E flat major

I. Allegro con spirito 00:00
II. Andante 11:34
III. Rondo (Allegro molto) 16:58

Maurice André, trumpet
Ensemble Orchestral de Paris
Jean-Pierre Wallez, conductor

Recorded in December, 1982 in Paris, France

Hummel - Grand Variations in B-flat major, Op.115
Howard Shelley, piano

23 January
François-Adrien Boieldieu becomes musical director at the court of Tsar Alexander I of Russia.

5 March
François-Adrien Boieldieu -Aline, reine de Golconde. Opéra-comique en 3 actes. - 1re représentation : Saint-Pétersbourg, Théâtre de l'Ermitage

Louis Spohr - Concerto for Violin No. 2 in D minor, Op. 2

Ludwig Spohr: Violin Concerto Nº2 in D Minor,Op.2
I.Allegro moderato:10:13
II.Adagio:7:06
III.Alla Polacca:11:03
C.Edinger - Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra - F.Cramer

22 April
Twelve-year-old Gioacchino Rossini gives a concert at Imola.

20 February
Giovanni Paisiello is appointed Maestro di Cappella at Naples.

14 March
Johann Strauss, the Elder, Austrian composer, born.

Joseph Wölfl – Symphony in C major, Op. 41

Joseph Wölfl - Symphony in C-major, Op.41

 May 14
Napoleon proclaims himself emperor, causing Ludwig van Beethoven to tear up the title page of his recently-completed Symphony No. 3 and rename it the Eroica.

17 May
Georg Joseph VoglerSamori, opera in 2 acts.
First Performance    1804/05/17 — Vienna. 
Librettist    Franz Xaver Huber

31 May
Louise Farrenc  (Jeanne-Louise Dumont), French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher, born.

1 June
Mikhail Glinka, Russian composer, born.

16 June
Johann Adam Hiller, conductor, composer and music writer, dies, ages 76.

3 October
Leonora, ossia L’amore coniugale (Leonora or Conjugal Love) is an opera by the Italian composer Ferdinando Paer.

Ferdinando Paër - Leonora or Conjugal Love 
Leonora : Ursula Koszut,
Marcellina : Krisztina Laki,
Florestano: Renzo Casellato,
Pizzarro :Tullio Pane,
Fernando : Ezio Di Cesare
Rocco : Giorgio Tadeo,
Giachino : Giancarlo Luccardi
Orchestra Sinfonica e coro della Rai di Milano
Direttore Peter Maag
Registrazione del 20 maggio 1979


Leonora, ossia L’amore coniugale (Leonora or Conjugal Love) is an opera (specifically a dramma semiserio) in two acts by the Italian composer Ferdinando Paer. The libretto, by Giovanni Schmidt, is based on Léonore ou L’Amour conjugal (1794) by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, which was also the source of Beethoven's Fidelio. Beethoven himself owned a score of Paer's opera and it is believed to have had some influence on his work. Leonora was first performed at the Kleines Kurfürstliches Theater, Dresden on 3 October 1804 with the composer's wife singing the title role.

Synopsis
Leonora disguises herself as a man in order to infiltrate the prison where her husband, Florestano, is being held by his enemy, Don Pizarro. She fools the jailer Rocco into giving her a job. When Don Pizarro hears of the imminent arrival of the governor, Don Fernando, he orders Rocco to execute Florestano. Leonora accompanies Rocco to the underground cell where Florestano is being held then threatens the jailer with a pistol until Don Fernando arrives and Florestano is freed.

 

27 November​
Milton is an opéra comique in one act by Gaspare Spontini

Gaspare Spontini - MILTON 
Milton: Giovanni Ciminelli,
Emma: Mariella Devia,
Lord Devanant: Antonio Savastano,
Godwin: Carlo Micalucci,
Carlotta: Silvana Mazzieri,
Messaggero : Nino Guida,
Servitore: Nino Guida
Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano della RAI 
Direttore  Alberto Paoletti
RAI, Milano 23 Novembre 1974


Milton is an opéra comique in one act by Gaspare Spontini. The French libretto, by Victor-Joseph Étienne de Jouy and Armand-Michel Dieulafoy, is based on the life of the English poet John Milton. Milton was first performed on 27 November 1804 by the Opéra-Comique at the Salle Feydeau in Paris . It was Spontini's first major success in France. The composer planned a reworked version for performances in Germany, under the title Das verlorene Paradies (Paradise Lost), but in the event it was never staged.

Synopsis
The blind poet Milton and his daughter Emma, fearing political persecution by King Charles II, find refuge with the Quaker Godwin. Godwin's niece Charlotte is in love with Milton's secretary, "Arthur". In reality, Arthur is Sir William Davenant, who has adopted this disguise because he is in love with Emma. Milton dictates verses from his poem Paradise Lost to his daughter. In the end, Davenant reveals his true identity and brings Milton a letter from the king promising he will not be punished. Davenant and Emma are now free to marry.

Johann Strauss, Elder

Johann Strauss, the Elder

Johann Strauss, the Elder, (born March 14, 1804, Vienna, Austria—died Sept. 24, 1849, Vienna), one of the principal composers of Viennese waltzes.













 





Strauss became a viola player in the dance orchestra of Michael Pamer, a composer of light music. Later he conducted the orchestra of Josef Lanner and in 1826 performed at the gardens of the “Zwei Tauben” the Täuberl-walzer, the first of many sets of Viennese waltzes named for the places where they were first played.

He established his reputation as a composer of Viennese waltzes in 1830 by conducting at the “Sperl,” a popular dance hall in the Leopoldstadt. There he was idolized to the extent of becoming known in the musical world as “the Austrian Napoleon.” In 1834 he was appointed bandmaster to the 1st Vienna Militia Regiment and the following year was made director of the imperial court balls. He embarked in 1833 on the first of his many European tours, visiting London in 1838. Of his 18 marches, the Radetzky March became particularly popular.

Strauss’s complete works, including—besides waltzes—galops, polkas, quadrilles, and other dances, were published by his son Johann the Younger in 1889. His works are remarkable for their rhythmic verve and charm of melodic design, and they represent the style of Viennese dance music at its best.

Strauss’s other sons, Josef (1827–70) and Eduard (1835–1916), became known as conductors, as did Eduard’s son Johann. Josef was also a composer of waltzes.
 

Johann Strauss, Sr.: Radetzky March
Susan Steber, Conductor

Johann Strauss Sr. - Bajaderen Walzer Op.53

Johann Strauss I - Kettenbrücke,Walzer Op.4

Johann Strauss I - Frohinns Salven Walzer Op.163

Johann Strauss I - Champagner-Walzer, op. 14

Louise Farrenc

Louise Farrenc

Louise Farrenc (31 May 1804 – 15 September 1875) was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher. 







 






Louise Farrenc enjoyed a considerable reputation during her own lifetime, as a composer, a performer and a teacher. She began piano studies at an early age with Cecile Soria, a former student of Muzio Clementi. When it became clear 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 1819 at the age of fifteen, study composition with Anton Reicha, the composition teacher at the Conservatoire, although it is unclear if the young Louise Dumont followed his classes there, since at that time the composition class was open only to men.
 

Farrenc died in Paris. For several decades after her death, her reputation as a performer survived and her name continued to appear in such books as Antoine François Marmontel’s Pianistes célèbres. Her nonet had achieved around 1850 some popularity, as did her two piano quintets and her trios. But, despite some new editions of her chamber music after her death, her works were largely forgotten until, in the late 20th century, an interest in women composers led to the rediscovery - and thence to the performance and recording - of many her works.
 

Louise Farrenc - Symphony No. 1 (1842)

Louise Farrenc - Trio for flute, cello and piano Op. 45 (1856)

Louise Farrenc - Nonet in E-flat major, Op.38 (1849)

Chamber Music of Louise Farrenc
-Sextet for Piano and Winds, op. 40, III Mvmt. Allegro Vivace. Anton Spencer-flute, Darby Hisckson-oboe, Zachary Myones-clarinet, Rohith Padmaraj-bassoon, Sophia Senderak-horn, Joey Wu-piano
-String Quintet No. 1, op. 30, Mvmt. II, Adagio
Ashley Roberson-vln, Ethan Bo-vla, Ethan Liaw-vcl,  Nathan Schneider-bs, Kevin Kwak-piano
-Nonet, Mvmt. III Scherzo
Richard Li-vln, Ericka Young-vla, Shu Ho Yeung-vcl, Patrick Raynard-bs, Megan Jung-fl, John Kwak-ob, Kentaro Umemori-cl, Claire Barratt-bsn, Blaise Whitesellhn

Mikhail Glinka

Mikhail Glinka
 

(b. Novospasskoye, June 1, 1804; d. Berlin, February 15, 1857)











 







Russian composer, acknowledged as the father of Russian nationalism. He was born into the landed gentry—his father was a retired army captain—and his musical education was essentially that of a dilettante, albeit a very gifted one. His early interest in music was whetted by hearing and working with the serf musicians on his uncle’s estate. He attended boarding school in St. Petersburg (1818-22), where he took a few piano lessons from John Field; later, he received some singing lessons and, during the winter of 1833-34, studied composition with Siegfried Dehn in Berlin.
 

During his adult years he frequently went abroad for extended periods. He spent three years in Italy (1830-33), taking in the latest works of Vincenzo Bellini and Gaetano Donizetti and acquiring a working knowledge of the art of bel canto; ten months in France (1844-45), where he developed a close rapport with Berlioz (whom he had met during his sojourn in Italy); two years in Spain (1845-47); and two more years in France (1852-54).

The influences on Cdinka’s compositional style included Russian folk music, the bel canto idiom of Bellini in particular, and the “magical” vein of German Romanticism that runs through the works of Carl Maria von Weber. Rather than writing in the Italian style he admired, he was determined to create a distinctively Russian style in opera. He made his breakthrough with A Life for the Tsar, composed in 1834-36 to a libretto by Yegor Fyodorovich Rozen, with contributions from several other well-connected literary figures, and premiered December 9, 1836, in St. Petersburg. The opera’s story, set in 1613, celebrates the virtues of patriotism and self-sacrifice. The tsar of the title (who does not appear as a character in the opera) is Mikhail Romanov, founder of the Romanov dynasty, the “life” that of the peasant Ivan Susanin, who sacrifices himself to prevent a contingent of Polish soldiers from capturing the tsar. Italian operatic elements abound, but for the first time one finds genuine Russian melodic inflections in the music, particularly in the scenes with chorus.

 

Immediately after the premiere of A Life for the Tsar, Glinka began work on an operatic setting of Pushkin’s Ruslan and Lyudmila. Pushkin’s demise early in 1837 deprived Glinka of the opportunity to work directly with him on the libretto; it took him five years of fitful work to finish the score. Ruslan and Lyudmila, while dramatically weaker than A Life for the Tsar, is musically stronger. It too is an amalgam of different elements: There is an “Eastern” flavor to some of the material, enhanced by a few borrowings from folk material, and there are allusions
to European, specifically Viennese, dance music. What stands out above all is the decidedly advanced treatment of harmony. This is immediately apparent in the overture, by far the most widely known of Glinka’s creations—which, thanks to its razzle-dazzle writing, especially for the strings, has won an unassailable place in the orchestral repertoire. 
 

Glinka wrote only a handful of works for the concert stage, but even there he proved an innovator. He was the first Russian composer to draw upon the rhythms and sounds of Spanish music in an orchestral work: his Capriccio brillante on the traditional “jota aragonesa,” composed in 1845. His other works include the orchestral fantasy Kamarinskaya (1848) and Recuerdos de Castilla (1848; sometimes referred to as his Second Spanish Overture), which he expanded into Souvenir d’une nuit d’ete a Madrid (Memory of a Summer Night in Madrid) in 1851. He composed a significant amount of salon music—variations, dances, characteristic pieces for piano and various chamber groupings—and songs to both Italian and Russian texts, including the cycle A Farewell to St. Petersburg (1840).
 

At once eclectic and inventive, Glinka opened the door for the triumphs of Russian music that would soon follow. His stage works provided models for the historically themed and fantastical operas of Mussorgsky and Rimsky, while his colorful evocations of central-Asian and Iberian settings influenced the orchestral imaginings of Balakirev, Rimsky, and Tchaikovsky. Most significant of all, the harmonic novelty of Ruslan and Lyudmila left its mark on the development of musical syntax in Russia right up to Stravinsky.
 

GLINKA - Summer Night in Madrid - Spanish Ouverture no. 2
Bulgaria, Radio Symphony Orchestra

Conductor: Luciano Di Martino

Glinka - Trio pathétique

David Oistrakh - Sviatoslav Knushevitsky - Lev Oborin
Recorded in the USSR, 19.VII.1957

Mikhail Glinka -  Grand Sextet in Eflat major (1832). 
Ruben Aharonian - 1st violin
Andrei Abramenkov - 2nd violin
Igor Naidin - viola
Vladimir Balshin - cello
Rustem Gabdullin - doublebass
Alexei Lubimov - piano

Mikhail Glinka - Divertimento Brillante on themes from Bellini's Opera 'La Sonnambula'
For piano, string quartet, and double bass (1832). Russian National Orchestra - Mikhail Pletnev (Piano)

Mikhail Glinka - Kamarinskaya
Filharmonie Brno - Oskar Danon

A Life for the Tsar

Mikhail Glinka - A Life for the Tsar
An Opera in tour Acts - Bolshoi theatre Moscow
Text by baron G. F. Rosen - Version by Evgeny Levashov
Producer Nicolai Kuznetsov - Designer Valery Levental
Ivan Susanin - Evgeny Nesterenko
Antonida, Susanin's daughter - Marina Mescheriakova

Synopsis
Time: The autumn of 1612 and the winter of 1613.[6]
Act 1 The village of Domnino

Antonida is eager to marry Sobinin, but her father Susanin refuses permission until a Russian has been duly chosen to take the Tsar's throne. When Sobinin informs him that the Grand Council in Moscow has chosen a Tsar, everyone celebrates.

Act 2 Poland

In a sumptuous hall, the nobility are celebrating the Polish dominance over the Russians with singing and dancing. Suddenly a messenger comes in, with the news that Mikhail Romanov has been selected as the Tsar of Russia and is now in hiding. The Poles vow to overthrow him.

Act 3 Susanin's cabin

Susanin and his adopted son Vanya pledge to defend the new Tsar. Susanin blesses Sobinin and Antonida on their upcoming wedding when a detachment of Polish soldiers bursts in, demanding to know the Tsar's whereabouts. Instead Susanin sends Vanya to warn the Tsar while he, Susanin, leads the soldiers off the trail, into the woods. Antonida is devastated. Sobinin gathers some men to go on a rescue mission.

Act 4 A dense forest

Sobinin reassures his men of the rightness of their mission. Night falls. In a part of the forest near a monastery, Vanya knocks at the gates and alerts the inhabitants to spirit the Tsar away. Susanin has led the suspicious Polish troops into an impassable, snow-covered area of the forest. The Poles sleep while Susanin waits for the dawn and bids farewell to his children. A blizzard sets in, and when day breaks, the Poles awake. When they realize that Susanin has deceived them, they kill him.

Epilogue Red Square, Moscow.

Across the stage walks a crowd of people, celebrating the triumph of the new Tsar. Alone in their own solemn procession, Antonida, Sobinin, and Vanya mourn Susanin. A detachment of Russian troops comes upon them and, after discovering their connection with Susanin, comforts them. As the scene changes to Red Square, the people proclaim glory to the Tsar and to Susanin's memory.
 

Ruslan and Ludmila
Opera in five acts (eight tableaux) composed by Mikhail Glinka between 1837 and 1842. The opera is based on the 1820 poem of the same name by Alexander Pushkin. The Russian libretto was written by Valerian Shirkov, Nestor Kukolnik and N. A. Markevich, among others. Pushkin's death in the famous duel prevented him from writing the libretto himself as planned.

1805

1805

Franz Krommer – Concerto for Oboe in F Major, Op. 52

Franz Krommer - Concerto for Oboe in F Major, Op. 52

00:00 Allegro
09:08 Adagio
14:19 Rondo, Allegretto

Heinz Holliger, Oboe
English Chamber Orchestra, Peter-Lukas Graf, Conductor

Niccolò Paganini begins touring Europe.

Louis Spohr is appointed musical director to the court of Gotha.

Joseph WölflPiano Sonata in C minor, Op. 25;
Three Piano Sonatas, Op. 33

Joseph Wölfl - Piano Sonata in C-minor, Op.25 

Mov.I: Introduzione- Adagio 00:00
Mov.II: Fuga [Allegro] 01:53
Mov.III: Sonata - Allegro molto 04:15
Mov.IV: Adagio 11:35
Mov.V: Allegretto 17:55 

Pianist: Jon Nakamatsu

Joseph Wölfl - Op. 33 No. 1 - Piano Sonata in C major
Laure Colladant, piano

Joseph Wölfl - Op. 33 No. 2 - Piano Sonata in D minor
Laure Colladant, piano

Joseph Wölfl - Op. 33 No. 3 - Piano Sonata in E major
Laure Colladant, piano

7 April  
Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 3, Eroica, has its public premiere at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna under his baton, marking the beginning of his middle period.

28 May
Luigi Boccherini, composer, dies, ages  62

June 
Luigi CherubiniFaniska, opéra comique in three acts by Luigi Cherubini. The German libretto, by Joseph Sonnleithner, is based on Les mines de Pologne by René Charles Guilbert de Pixérécourt.

Cherubini: Faniska - Overture
Odysseus North Texas Chamber Orchestra
Jason Lim, Conductor

Luigi Cherubini  -  FANISKA  “Qual orribil soggiorno... Da un dolore atroce oppressa...”
Soprano KATIA RICCIARELLI
Piano Martin Katz, 1975

Roles:
Rasinski, mayor of Rava    tenor    
Faniska, his wife    soprano
Hedwig, his daughter    soprano
Zamoski, mayor of Sandomir    bass 
Oranski, captain of the Cossacks in Zamoski's service    bass   
Moska, Zamoski's maid    soprano    
Rasno, her nephew    tenor  
Manoski, a friend of Rasinski    tenor    
Two Cossack officials    tenor and bass    
Chorus: Cossacks, guards, servants, countrymen and women

 

Synopsis
Act 1
Zamoski, the starosta of Sandomir, orders his Cossack henchman Oranski to kidnap Faniska, the wife of the starosta of Rava, Rasinski. Faniska is taken to Zamoski's castle but manages to resist his advances. Rasinski arrives at the castle disguised as a messenger. Zamoski sees through his disguise and throws Rasinski and Faniska into the castle dungeon.

Act 2
Zamoski's maid Moska and Moska's nephew Rasno try to free the couple from prison but their plan fails.

Act 3
The couple finally manage to escape with Rasno's help. Rasinski's soldiers attack the castle, Zamoski is killed and Oranski is captured and brought to trial.

14 November
Fanny Mendelssohn, pianist and composer, born.

20 November
Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera Fidelio in its original form is premiered at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna.
 

Fidelio (originally titled Leonore), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with the work premiering at Vienna's Theater an der Wien on 20 November 1805. The following year, Stephan von Breuning (de) helped shorten the work from three acts to two. After further work on the libretto by Georg Friedrich Treitschke, a final version was performed at the Kärntnertortheater on 23 May 1814. By convention, both of the first two versions are referred to as Leonore.

The libretto, with some spoken dialogue, tells how Leonore, disguised as a prison guard named "Fidelio", rescues her husband Florestan from death in a political prison. Bouilly's scenario fits Beethoven's aesthetic and political outlook: a story of personal sacrifice, heroism, and eventual triumph. With its underlying struggle for liberty and justice mirroring contemporary political movements in Europe, such topics are typical of Beethoven's "middle period". 

Fanny Mendelssohn

Fanny Mendelssohn

Fanny Mendelssohn, in full Fanny (Cäcilie) Mendelssohn (-Bartholdy), married name Fanny Hensel, (born November 14, 1805, Hamburg [Germany]—died May 14, 1847, Berlin, Prussia), German pianist and composer, the eldest sister and confidante of the composer Felix Mendelssohn.











 




Fanny is said to have been as talented musically as her brother, and the two children were given the same music teachers. Felix readily admitted that his sister played the piano better than he did, and Fanny remained his chief musical adviser until he left home. She is said to have memorized J.S. Bach’s complete Well-Tempered Clavier by age 13.
 

Fanny married the Prussian court painter Wilhelm Hensel in 1829. She traveled in Italy with her husband in 1839–40. Upon her mother’s death in 1842 she took over the direction of the Mendelssohn family home in Berlin, in which role she organized local concerts and occasionally appeared as a pianist. Fanny remained very close to her brother, and her death in May 1847 greatly contributed to Felix’s own demise six months later.
 

Fanny wrote about 500 musical compositions in all, including about 120 pieces for piano, many lieder (art songs), and chamber music, cantatas, and oratorios. Six of her songs were published under Felix’s name in his two sets of Twelve Songs (Opuses 8 and 9), while the few works published under her own name include several collections of short piano pieces, some lieder, and a piano trio. Most of her remaining works exist only in manuscript. Stylistically her music is similar to that of her brother.

Piano Trio Op 11 - Fanny Mendelssohn 
Claremont Trio

Fanny Mendelssohn - Das Jahr (The Year), cycle for piano (H. 385), 1841
Ulrich Urban

F Mendelssohn - Oratorium nach den Bildern der Bibel 

01  Introduction: Allegro moderato
02  Recitative: Horet zu, merket auf, alles, was in dieser Zeit lebet (Alto)
03  Arioso: Ich habe Kinder auferzogen und erloset (Bass and Soprano)
04  Wehe, weh, es ist geschehn (Choir)
05  Recitative: Sie rufen, aber da ist (Alto)
06  Recitative: Plotzlich muss das Volk sterben und um Mitternacht (Soprano)
07  Gott, unser Schild, schaue doch, Herr (Choir)
08  Aria: Ich bin elend und ohnmachtig (Tenor)
09  Recitative: Er wird dich mit seinen Fittichen decken (Soprano)
10  Arioso: Blick hin auf die, so vollendet haben (Soprano)
11  Sie sind dahin gegangen, wie das Gras verdorrt (Choir)
12  Ich habe einen guten Kampf gekampfet (Choir, Soprano, Bass)
13  Wir leiden um unsrer Sunden willen (Choir)
14  Recitative: Der Herr ist nahe allen, die ihn anrufen (Soprano, Alto, Bass)
15  Singet Gott, lobsinget dem Herrn (Choir)

Michaela Kramer - soprano, Mechthild Georg - alto,
Dominik Wortig - tenor, 'Andreas Haller - bass

Elzbieta Kalvelage - piano
Dortmund University Chamber Choir
Dortmund Instrumental Soloists,
Willi Gundlach - conductor

Vincenzo Camuccini – The Death of Caesar

fusli
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