Joseph Martin Kraus (1756-1792)
- Sinfonie ur Es Dur, VB 144
Performers: Svenska Kammarorkestern; Petter Sundkvist (conductor)
Further info: Joseph Martin Kraus (1756-1792) - Symphonies
---
German composer. Born in the Electorate of Mainz to a local assessor, he
exhibited precocious talent for both literature and music at an early
age. Trained at the local school in Buchen, he was sent to the Jesuit
Gymnasium und Musikschule in Mannheim, where he received education in
music from members of the Mannheim Kapelle and literature under Pater
Anton Klein. In 1773 he published a volume of poetry under Versuch von
Schäfersgedichte while in attendance at Mainz University. The following
year he moved to Erfurt to continue his studies in law, receiving
further musical training from Georg Peter Weimar and Johann Christian
Kittel. The indictment of his father on charges of bribery forced him to
return home, where he published a tragedy, Tolon, and devoted his
energies toward writing music for the Buchen church, including oratorios
Die Geburt Jesu and Der Tod Jesu. Resuming his study of law at
Göttingen University in 1776, he was persuaded to seek his fortune in
Sweden at the court of Gustav III by a fellow student. He also published
an aesthetical treatise, Etwas von und über Musik fürs Jahr 1776, which
applies the emotional philosophy of the literary Sturm und Drang to
music. After several years of trying to obtain a position, he was
finally appointed assistant kapellmästare in 1781 after the successful
trial performance of his opera Proserpin. From 1782 to 1786 he undertook
a grand tour of Germany, Austria, Italy, England, and France to observe
the latest musical and theatrical trends. Upon his return to Stockholm,
he was appointed as the educational director of the Royal Swedish
Academy of Music and in 1788 as full kapellmästare. An active
participant in all aspects of music, he helped to form Gustavian
cultural policy. He died of tuberculosis shortly after the assassination
of his patron in 1792. As a composer he was lauded by Joseh Haydn and
Christoph Willibald von Gluck as one of the most original geniuses of
the period, a sentiment that was echoed by Johann Baptist Cramer (who
ranked him among the five most important composers of the age) and
Johann Friedrich Reichardt. His compositions include five operas
(including a titanic six-act work, Aeneas i Cartago), three ballets, 18
symphonies, five violin sonatas, at least eight concertos (violin,
viola, flute, and cello), two piano sonatas, and over 100 songs and
piano cantatas. His music has been cataloged by VB (van Boer) numbers.
Cap comentari:
Publica un comentari a l'entrada