GRAUN, Carl Heinrich (1704-1759) - Ouverture 'Cesare e Cleopatra' (1742)

Carl Heinrich Graun (1704-1759) - Ouverture 'Cesare e Cleopatra' (1742)

Performers: Orfеus Barock; Francesco Cοrtі (conductor)

Painting: Antoine Pesne (1683-1757) - Carl Heinrich Graun with his wife Anna Luise

Further info: Carl Heinrich Graun (1704-1759) - Sinfonia in C

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Carl (Karl, Carolus, Carlo) Heinrich Graun [Braun, Craun, Grann, Grau, Graue, Grauen]

(Wahrenbrück, 7 May 1704 - Berlin, 8 August 1759)

German composer and singer. Born into a family of musicians, his brothers August Friedrich Graun (c.1698-1765) and Johann Gottlieb Graun (1702-1771) were also musicians and composers. Carl Heinrich Graun was educated at the Kreuzschule in Dresden in 1714, where he composed his earliest works, sacred compositions, under the tutelage of Johann Zacharias Grundig. In 1718 he matriculated at Leipzig University, where he continued his musical studies with Emanuel Benisch, Johann Christoph Schmidt and Christian Pezold. In 1725 he was employed in Braunschweig as a tenor, and it was there that he composed his earliest opera 'Polydorus'. Further successes led to his coming to the attention of Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia, into whose musical establishment at the court in Rheinsburg he was admitted in 1735. He remained at the Prussian court after it moved to Berlin when the crown prince became Frederick II, and in 1742 he was appointed Kapellmeister at the opera. Along with colleagues Johann Joachim Quantz, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Franz Benda, as well as his brother Johann Gottlieb Graun, he was part of the inner intellectual artistic circle that formed around the king, and during the last decade of his life he was known, along with Johann Adolph Hasse, as one of the chief opera seria composers of the period. His inaugural opera for Berlin, 'Cesare e Cleopatre' (1742), can be considered a seminal work in the composition of the Italian opera in German, and his 'Montezuma' (1755), to a text by Frederick II, explores an exotic subject unusual for the period. The same year he collaborated with poet Carl Ramler in writing a new type of Passion titled 'Der Tod Jesu', which only a few years later Johann Adam Hiller stated was an indispensible piece for any music library. It remained the quintessential German Easter oratorio on into the 19th century. The scope of Graun’s compositions has yet to be determined, given that many compositions, particularly chamber works, bear only his last name. This leads to inevitable confusion with his brothers’ works, and there remain issues of proper attribution. He did, however, write 32 operas (mostly opera seria), six Easter oratorios/cantatas, a Te Deum, six cantatas, seven Masses, 15 German sacred cantatas, 32 songs, three symphonies, seven concertos for keyboard, 25 trios (mainly two violins or flutes and basso), and numerous smaller works. The music has been cataloged by Christoph Hewel and is known by GraunWV numbers, further specified as CHG in the catalog itself. 

MARTINES, Marianne (1744-1812) - Missa solemnis (1765)

Marianne Martines (1744-1812) - Missa solemnis in D-Dur (1765)

Performers: Katharina Spiеlmann (soprano); Nina Amοn (mezzosoprano); Felix Riеnth (tenor); Michael Krеis (bass); Chorgemeinschaft Kirchdοrf; Peter Lοοsli (conductor)

Painting: Anoniem - Angel playing music

Further info: Marianne Martines (1744-1812) - Concerto da Cimbalo (c.1771)

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Marianne (Maria Anna Katharina) von Martines [Martinez]

(Vienna, 4 May 1744 - Vienna, 13 December 1812)

Austrian composer, singer and keyboardist. She was the daughter of a Neapolitan who had come to Vienna as ‘gentiluomo’ to the papal nuncio. She spent her childhood under the educational guidance of Pietro Metastasio, a friend of the family who lived in the same house; she was taught singing, the piano and composition by Nicola Porpora and Jospeh Haydn, who were also living there, by Giuseppe Bonno and possibly by J.A. Hasse. As a child she had attracted attention at court with her beautiful voice and her keyboard playing, and in 1761 a mass by her was performed in the court church. She acknowledged in 1773, when she became an honorary member of the Bologna Accademia Filarmonica, that as a composer she took as her principal models Hasse, Jommelli and Galuppi. Not only did she possess a thorough understanding of imitation and fugue, but she also knew how to set words in the Baroque manner. Her predilection for coloratura passages, leaps over wide intervals and trills indicate that she herself must have been an excellent singer. In 1772 Burney praised her singing for all the typical virtues of the Italian school as well as for ‘touching expression’. Burney’s remark that her vocal works were ‘neither common, nor unnaturally new’ applies to her instrumental works as well. A typical composer of the early Classical period in Vienna, she wrote in the Italian style. Her works include four Masses, six motets, three litanies, numerous Psalms and other sacred works, two oratorios, three keyboard sonatas, a keyboard concerto, and a symphony, as well as songs. 

DELLER, Florian Johann (1729-1773) - Suite 'Orfeo Ed Euridice' (1763)

Florian Johann Deller (1729-1773) - Suite-Ballet 'Orfeo Ed Euridice' (1763)

Performers: Consortium Musicum; Walter Thoеnе (conductor)

Drawing: Johann Hieronymus Löschenkohl (1753-1807) - Sprievod bratislavských mäsiarov (1790)

Further info: Am Hofe Des Herzogs Karl Eugen Von Württemberg

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Florian Johann (Giovanni) Deller [Teller, Döller, Töller]

(Drosendorf, bap. 2 May 1729 - Munich, 19 April 1773)

Austrian composer and violinist. Little is known of his early education, save that it was at regional monastic schools. He first appears in 1751 as a violinist in Stuttgart, where he studied under Niccolò Jommelli. His first success as a composer was with a ballet 'Orfée et Euridice' (1763), choreographed by Jean-Georges Noverre. By 1769 he had achieved a success as an opera composer in Vienna with a production at the Burgtheater of 'Il maestro di cappella' (1773) and had been appointed concertmaster and Hofcompositeur in Stuttgart. He soon left and settled in Munich, where he is reputed to have received a commission from Maria Antonia Walpurgis to write a mass for Dresden. He died in Munich on his way back from further work in Vienna. As a composer, he was known as a facile composer particularly of ballet music, with a good solid sense of danceable rhythm. His music was generally in the Viennese Classical style with the addition of Italian orchestral recitative for the large pantomime scenes and folklike melodies. His works include 11 ballets, nine comic operas, four symphonies, six trio sonatas, two flute concertos, and numerous sacred compositions.

RODRIGUEZ, Felipe (1760-1815) - Sonata III (1801)

Felipe Rodríguez (1760-1815) - Sonata (III, en Si bemol mayor) from 'Quaderno de Sonatas para Organo Del Rdo. P. Fr. Felipe Rodríguez. Para uso de Fr. Francisco Moll Orgta. Año 1801'

Performers: Josep Maria Roger (fortepiano)

Painting: José del Castillo (1737-1793) - Un paseo a la orilla del Estanque del Retiro (1780)

Further info: Rodriguez - Obras Para Fortepiano

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Felipe Rodríguez

(Madrid, 1 May 1760 - Madrid, 5 May 1815)

Spanish organist and composer. His parents, Matías and Josefa, were born in the city of Corella, Navarre. As a boy he studied music in the Escolanía of Montserrat with Anselm Viola Valentí, and where Narcís Casanoves Bertrán held also the post of organist. He finished his stay there at the age of 17 years and on 13 February 1778 he took the monastic novice habit from the hands of Dídac Camino, president of the monastery, in the absence, surely, of Abbot Pere Viver (abbot during years 1777-1782). The following year he took his full monastic vows at Montserrat. Is not documented when he was transferred to the monastery of Montserrat of Madrid, where he cultivated his musical talents as organist (he was a very fine player) and composing a book of organ sonatas. It is interesting to note that his works were fairly well known in Catalonia, since there are different copies made outside Montserrat, and that they were well received. It is not certain whether he composed any vocal works for the escolanía. 

HIRSCHBERGER, Albericus (1709-1745) - Concerto I (1743)

Albericus Hirschberger (1709-1745) - Concerto I (C-Dur) aus Philomela Cisterciensis ex valle Bernardina Raittenhaslacensi In Orbem evolans, tàm in Urbe, quàm Rure Dei Laudem ter tremulâ Voce decantatura, id est Opus tripartitum constans Sex Missis, totidémque Offertoriis, ac Concertis, adjuncto Te Deum, &c (1743)

Performers: Kammerorchester Musica Bavarica; Alois Kirchbеrgеr (conductor)

Painting: Bernardo Bellotto (1722-1780) - Widok lak Wilanowskich

Further info: Musik aus Bayerischen Klöstern

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(Josef Joachim) Albericus (Alberico, Alberich) Hirschberger [Hirshperg, Hirsperger, Hyrschperger]

(Ried im Innkreis, 11 March 1709 - Schupfing bei Halsbach, 27 September 1745)

German priest and composer. In 1727 he entered the Cistercian abbey of Raitenhaslach in Upper Bavaria, where he was ordained a priest in 1734. In 1731 he settled at the Benedictine monasteries of Rott am Inn (1732-33) where he received music lessons. Few years later, he was appointed music director in Raitenhaslach in a post he held until 1743. As a composer, despite he wrote many works, he was mainly known by his collection 'Philomela Cisterciensis ex valle Bernardina Raitenhaslacensi in orbem evolans' (1743) which includes 6 masses, 1 Te Deum, 11 church sonatas (concertos), 1 pastorello as well as other minor sacred pieces. The masses included in that collection were highly praised and were reprinted several times. He was family-related to the organists Johann Amand Hirschberger (1678-1727), Anton Hirschberger (1700-1736) and Anton Claudius Hirschberger (1734-1810).

DOUBRAVSKY, František (1790-1867) - Missa solemnis

František Doubravský (1790-1867) - Missa solemnis

Performers: Collegium musicum Český ráj; Jiří Zahradník (conductor)

Painting: Auguste Matthieu (1810-1864) - Vue de la Grande Place de Prague et de l'ancien Hôtel de Ville

Further info: František Doubravský (1790-1867) - Sacred music

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František Doubravský [Dobravský, Dobrawsky, Dobrowsky]

(Lomnice nad Popelkou, 7 February 1790 – Lomnice nad Popelkou, 28 April 1867)

Bohemian composer, choirmaster and organist. Son of the composer Ferdinand Doubravský (1747-1829), he received music lessons from his father. In 1820 he was appointed organist of the St. Mikuláš church in Lomnice nad Popelkou in a post he probably held the rest of his life. He was also active there as teacher, composer and music director. As a composer, he mainly wrote sacred music, among them, 73 masses, 13 requiems, 5 Stabat Mater, 11 Te Deum, Litanies. Apparently, he also composed 4 symphonies and a violin concerto but all of them are currently lost.

SARRIER, Antonio (fl. 1725-1762) - Sinfonía en Re mayor

Antonio Sarrier (fl. 1725-1762) - Sinfonía en Re mayor

Performers: RIAS Sinfonietta Berlin; Jorge Velasco (conductor)

Drawing: Pieter van den Berge (1659-1737) - Vooraanzicht van het Koninklijk Paleis te Madrid

Further info: Antonio Sarrier (fl. 1725-1762)

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Antonio Sarrier

(Madrid, fl. 1725 - 1762)

Spanish composer and instrumentist. Nothing is known about his year of birth and youth. By 1725 he was documented as timpanist in the Real Caballería (Royal Cavalry) located in Madrid. In 1736 he was documented as trumpetist there. In 1749 he was appointed, by Fernando VI, trumpetist in the Royal Chapel of Madrid in a post he held at least until 1762. After that year his trace was lost and some sources indicated he had moved to New Spain but no evidences extant. This was due to the fact his 'Sinfonía en Re mayor' was found in the school archive of the Santa Rosa, Michoacán (México).

HAAS, Ildephons (1735-1791) - Exultate jubilate Deo (1766)

Ildephons Haas (1735-1791) - Exultate jubilate Deo aus 'XV offertoria', opus II (1766)

Performers: Dorothea Rieger (soprano); Freiburger Domsingknaben; Philarmonic Orchestra Freiburg;

Raimung Hug (conductor)

Painting: Giacinto Diano (1731-1803) - The Dedication of the Temple at Jerusalem

Further info: Festliche Musik Aus Sudwestdeutschen Benediktinerklostern

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Ildephons (Johann Georg) Haas

(Offenburg, 23 April 1735 - Ettenheimmünster, 30 May 1791)

German violinist and composer. He received his first lessons as a choirboy and when he was 12 studied violin in the Baden court. In 1750 he entered the Benedictine monastery in Ettenheimmünster, where he met and studied with Johann Stamitz. He later joined him in Mannheim and received further lessons from Leopold Mozart. After completing theological studies, he was ordained priest in 1759 and later held many positions in the monastery, including those of choir director (1761-73) and prior (1781). As a composer, he mainly wrote sacred music, among them, the collections 'XXXII hymni vespertini' (1764), 'XV offertoria' (1766), 'Geistliche Arien' (1769) and a Missa de nativitate. In his later years he was praised as one of the best violinists and church composers in the Upper Rhine valley.

KAMMEL, Antonín (1730-1784) - Sonata I in D Major (1766)

Antonín Kammel (1730-1784) - Sonata I in D Major, Op.1 (1766)

Performers: Paul Luchkow (violin); Sam Stadlen (Viola da Gamba); Michael Jarvis (Fortepiano)

Painting: Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) - Portrait of a musician, probably Antonín Kammel

Further info: Giordani & Kammel - Sonatas

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Antonín Kammel [Kamel, Kammell, Kamml, Khaml, Cammell]

(Běleč, bap. 21 April 1730 - London, 5 October 1784)

Bohemian composer and violinist. Born on the Wallenstein estate, he attended the Patris Piares College in Slaný before moving to Prague to attend university in law beginning in 1751. When he decided to dedicate his life to music, he was sent by Count Vincent of Waldstein to Padua to study with Giuseppe Tartini. By 1765 he had made London his residence, performing frequently as a musician in the royal chambers with colleagues Carl Friedrich Abel and Johann Christian Bach. He frequently toured England as a soloist, and he had a reputation for performing adagios in a fine, sensitive manner. He composed exclusively instrumental works, mostly for strings: violin sonatas, duos, string trios, quartets and violin concertos, as well as sinfonias and divertimentos, where he also used wind instruments. In his time he was a very successful composer, as is indicated by the number of works he published and their numerous re-editions. Most of his works were published between 1770 and 1777 in London, Paris, Amsterdam, The Hague and Berlin.

MALZAT, Johann Michael (1749-1787) - Missa in C-Dur (c.1780)

Johann Michael Malzat (1749-1787) - Missa in C-Dur (c.1780)

Performers: Heіke Hеіlmаnn (sopran); Martha Sеnn (alt); Johannes Puchlеіtnеr (tenor); Ralf Ernst (bass);

Chor und Orchester der Akademіe St. Blаsіus; Karlheіnz Sіеssl (conductor)

Drawing: Georg Daniel Heumann (1691-1759) - Die Servitenkirche in Wien am Alsergrund, Kupferstich

Further info: Johann Michael Malzat (1749-1787) - Sinfonia concertante in C

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Johann Michael Malzat [Maltzath, Maltzbach, Malzahn, et al.]

(Vienna, 21 April 1749 - Innsbruck, 13 May 1787)

Austrian composer and choirmaster, son of the composer and violinist Josef Malzat (1723-1760). He attended the grammar school in Kremsmünster, where he was a chorister and possibly also a cellist. He was subsequently a teacher in the abbeys of Stams in the Tyrol (1778–80) and Lambach in Upper Austria (1781), a member of the church choir in Bozen (now Bolzano) (1780–81), household musician in Schwaz (1784) and finally choirmaster in the university church in Innsbruck (1786–7). His instrumental works in particular enjoyed wide distribution and were advertised by Traeg in Vienna as late as 1799. His music has been little studied but consists of five Masses, a Requiem, an oratorio, a Singspiel, a cantata, two smaller sacred works, five symphonies, five concertos (several lost), a sinfonia concertante, 10 quartets, three string trios, and five sonatas. His brother Ignaz Malzat (1757-1804) was an oboist and composer active as principal oboe at the court of the Prince-Archbishop of Passau.

REBEL, Jean-Féry (1666-1747) - Les Elémens, simphonie nouvelle (c.1737)

Jean-Féry Rebel (1666-1747) - Les Elémens, simphonie nouvelle (c.1737)

Performers: Frеiburgеr Barockorchester; Amandine Bеyеr (conductor)

Painting: Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714-1789) - The Shipwreck (1772)

Further info: Jean-Féry Rebel (1666-1747) - Sonatas pour le violon

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Jean-Fery Rebel [le père]

(Paris, bap. 18 April 1666 - Paris, 2 January 1747)

French violinist, harpsichordist, conductor and composer. Son of Jean Rebel (c.1636-1692), he showed talent for music and began playing the violin at an early age, winning the approbation of the King and Jean-Baptiste Lully when he was only 8. He then became his pupil in violin and composition. From 18 August 1705 he was one of the 24 Violons du Roi and then became batteur de mesure in that ensemble and in the Opéra orchestra. On 30 March 1718 he obtained from Michel-Richard de Lalande rights of reversion to the post of chamber composer to the king, and he duly succeeded his brother-in-law in this post on Lalande's death. He also was active at the Academic Royale de Musique in various capacities, being made its 'maitre de musique' (1716) and also conducted at the Concert Spirituel (1734-35). As he grew older he gradually gave up his various posts in favour of his son, the composer and violinist François Rebel [le fils] (1701-1775). He was held in high regard by his contemporaries. His last work, 'Les Elémens, simphonie nouvelle' (c.1737), preceded by a movement called Cahos (‘Chaos’), served as an introduction to the suite of dances making up Les elemens. Its harmonic daring, its orchestral colouring and the originality of its conception make 'Cahos' a masterpiece of 18th Century French instrumental music. His sister Anne-Renée Rebel (1663-1722) was a singer and she married Michel-Richard de Lalande.

HAYES, Philip (1738-1797) - Concerto for the Organ (1769)

Philip Hayes (1738-1797) - Concerto (II, B-flat major) for the Organ (1769)

Performers: Stеphеn Fаrr (organ); London Bаch Consort

Drawing: John Donowell (fl. 1753-1786) - A View of part of St. Mary’s Church, All Saints Church,

the Conduit, Carfax Church, & c. in the University of Oxford

Further info: Organ Concertos

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Philip Hayes

(Oxford, bap. 17 April 1738 - London, 19 March 1797)

English composer, organist and singer, second son of William Hayes (1708-1777) and brother of William Hayes Jr. (1741-1790). He received his earliest musical education from his father. In 1763 his masque 'Telemachus' earned him a BMus degree, and in 1767 he spent a short period as a singer at the Royal Chapel in London. In 1776 he was appointed as organist of the New College in Oxford and a year later succeeded his father as professor of music, at the same time earning his doctorate. Over the next decade he added positions as organist at Magdalen College, the University Church, and St. John’s College, where he became known for his lectures consisting of his own odes and oratorios. In 1780 he founded the Festival of the Sons of the Clergy at St. Paul’s in London, and thereafter he commuted frequently between the two cities. He hosted Joseph Haydn at Oxford when that composer arrived to receive an honorary doctorate there. He was a prolific composer of catches, glees, and such. His works include 48 anthems, over 30 songs, 16 Psalms, 16 odes, two oratorios, the aforementioned masque, two services, six keyboard concertos (1769), and six violin sonatas. As a composer, his natural language was a mixture of galant and early classical idioms allied with a characteristically English preference for simple, symmetrically phrased melodies and an assured technique founded upon a thorough acquaintance with the works of Handel. His six keyboard concertos (1769) were the first published in England to offer the option of performance on the fortepiano, and beginning with the masque 'Telemachus' (1763) his large-scale works often included parts for clarinets.

AVONDANO, Pedro António (1714-1782) - Sonata em Do Maior

Pedro António Avondano (1714-1782) - Sonata em Do Maior

Performers: Rosana Lanzеlοttе (harpsichord)

Painting: Unknown artist (18th Century) - Portrait of Anna Mária Horvath-Stansithová-Szirmay

Further info: Pedro Antonio Avondano (1714-1782) - Cravo Sonatas

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Pedro (Pietro) António Avondano [Avondanij, Avandano]

(Lisbon, bap. 16 April 1714 - Lisbon, 1782)

Portuguese composer and violinist. The son of a Genoese-born violinist, he probably received his earliest musical education from his father and later probably also studied under Domenico Scarlatti. Much of the information concerning his education and training is unknown due to the destruction of documents in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, but it is known that he was commissioned by the theatre in Macerata, Italy, to compose an opera, Berenice, in 1742. By 1764 he was appointed as principal violinist of the Royal Chamber, a post he held until his death. During this time, he wrote a substantial number of dances for the court, as well as a popular opera, 'Il mondo della luna', and a pair of oratorios in 1770, 'Il voto di Jefte' and 'Adamo ed Eva'. He also composed a large number of sacred works, including Masses, a Te Deum, Psalms, and other smaller works, in addition to keyboard sonatas and two symphonies. Other members of the Avondano family, all active in the Real Câmara, include his brother António José Avondano (c.1715-1783) and his son Joaquim Pedro Avondano (c.1760-1804), João Francisco Avondano (1713-1794), Joaquim António Avondano (?-1828) and João Baptista Andre Avondano (fl. 1769-1801), who published a set of Quattro sonate e due duetti for two cellos (c.1784) and was a pupil of Jean Pierre Duport.

FASCH, Johann Friedrich (1688-1758) - Magnificat (c.1724)

Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688-1758) - Magnificat anima mea Dominum (c.1724), FWV H:G1

Performers: Vokalensemble sirventes berlin; Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin; Stefan Schuck (conductor)

Painting: Johann Georg Platzer (1704-1761) - Der Raub der Sabinerinnen

Further info: Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688-1758) - Missa Brevis à 4 voci

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Johann (Johannes) Friedrich Fasch

(Buttelstädt, 15 April 1688 - Zerbst, 5 December 1758)

German composer. He was one of the most significant German contemporaries of Bach, and his orchestral works are characteristic of the transition from the late Baroque style to the Classicism of Haydn and Mozart. Fasch was descended from a line of Lutheran Kantors and theologians. His earliest musical studies were as a boy soprano in Suhl and Weissenfels, and at 13 he was enlisted by J.P. Kuhnau for the Leipzig Thomasschule; his first compositions followed the style of his friend Telemann. While a student at the University of Leipzig he founded a collegium musicum which rivalled the eminence of the Thomasschule in the city's musical life. In this cosmopolitan city he encountered the concertos of Vivaldi, which greatly influenced his whole generation. Although he had no regular instruction in composition, he soon became so well known as a composer that his sovereign Duke Moritz Wilhelm of Saxe-Zeitz commissioned him to write operas for the Naumburg Peter-Paul festivals in 1711 and 1712. For purposes of study Fasch undertook a long journey through several courts and cities, eventually arriving at Darmstadt, where he studied composition with Graupner and Grünewald. He then held several positions, including those of violinist in Bayreuth (1714), court secretary and organist in Greiz (until 1721) and Kapellmeister to the Bohemian Count Wenzel Morzin in Prague, whose accomplished chapel orchestra earned Vivaldi’s praise. In 1722 Fasch reluctantly accepted the position of court Kapellmeister in Zerbst. In the same year he was twice invited to apply for the position of Thomaskantor in Leipzig, but withdrew from the competition shortly after Telemann did so, deciding that it was too soon to leave Zerbst. 

In 1727 he spent some time at the Saxon court in Dresden, where his friends Pisendel and Heinichen were in charge of orchestral music and the Catholic chapel respectively. Heinichen's death in 1729 is a 'terminus ante quem' for several of Fasch's surviving liturgical pieces, which were performed by the chapel choir under Heinichen, who noted the duration of pieces on the manuscripts (as well as rewriting sections, which Pfeiffer has taken as an indication that the Dresden experience was another learning venture). Surviving correspondence, particularly with Nikolaus Ludwig, Reichsgraf von Zinzendorf, head of the Pietist Brotherhood in Herrnhut, reveals Fasch's unhappiness in strictly Lutheran Zerbst. Only one further application for a formal position is recorded (Freiberg, 1755), but it was unsuccessful, and Fasch remained at Zerbst for the rest of his life. During his 36 years there Fasch was primarily occupied with the composition of church cantatas and festival music for the count. His fame as a composer spread far beyond Saxony: his works were familiar to numerous courts and city churches, from Hamburg (where in 1733 Telemann performed a cycle of his church cantatas) to as far afield as Prague and Vienna. He enjoyed especially close relations with the famed Hofkapelle in Dresden, at which the Kapellmeister Pisendel performed many of his concertos (to some extent in arrangements), and likewise with the court at Cöthen, which attracted him by its Pietist leanings. Through his son C.F.C. Fasch, harpsichordist at the court of Frederick the Great in Berlin from 1756, he was connected with C.P.E. Bach.

FODOR, Carolus Antonius (1768-1846) - Simphonie à grand orchestre (c.1805)

Carolus Antonius Fodor (1768-1846) - Simphonie [c] à grand orchestre ... œuvre XIX (c.1805)

Performers: NetherIands Radio Chamber Orchestra; Anthony Hаlsstеаd (conductor)

Drawing: Dirk Langendijk (1748-1805) - Anti-Engelse demonstratie te Rotterdam, 2 maart 1781

Further info: Carolus Antonius Fodor (1768-1846) - Tweede symfonie in G, Op.13 (1802)

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Carolus Antonius Fodor

(Venlo, 12 April 1768 - Amsterdam, 22 February 1846)

Dutch composer and pianist, brother of Josephus Andreas Fodor (1751-1828) and Carel Emanuel Fodor (1759-?). Born into a musical family, he studied in Mannheim and Paris before returning to Amsterdam in 1795. In 1798 he married Geertruida Tersteeg. At the death of Bartholomeus Ruloffs in 1801 he was named conductor of the orchestra of Felix Meritis, which he was to lead for twenty-five years. In the following year he was nominated to the position of the orchestra Eruditio Musica. In 1808 Louis Bonaparte appointed him to head the Instituut voor Wetenschappen, Literatuur en Schone Kunsten, precursor of the Koninklijke Nederlandse Academie van Wetenschappen, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1811 he established, with Johann Wilhelm Wilms and some others the series of Tuesday concerts. He became one of the leaders of Dutch musical society, writing works that reflect early 19th century Romantic forms. His music includes several symphonies, eight concertos for fortepiano, an opera, numerous songs in Dutch and a large number of chamber works.

ZECHNER, Johann Georg (1716-1778) - Motetta de St. Blasio

Johann Georg Zechner (1716-1778) - Motetta de St. Blasio 'Kommet nur ihr Christen her' in G-Dur

Performers: Ursula Fiеdlеr (soprano); Lydia Viеrlingеr (Alt); Johannes Chum (Tenor); Gerd Kеnda (Bass);

Concіlіum Musicum Wien; Paul Angеrеr (1927-2017, conductor)

Painting: Johann Ludwig Ernst Morgenstern (1738-1819) - Umrisse eines gotischen Kircheninterieurs (c.1793)

Further info: Musik aus dem Stiftsarchiv Göttweig

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Johann Georg Zechner [Cehner, Zehetner]

(Gleisdorf, 9 April 1716 - Stein an der Donau, 7 June 1778)

Austrian composer and organist. Almost nothing is known about his youth until he was documented as organist at the Benedictine abbey of Göttweig in 1736, a post he held until 1746. That year he was appointed choral director of St Veit, Krems an der Donau (1746-1753) while he was studying philosophy and theology. In 1752 he was ordained priest and a year later he was appointed to the charge of the Chapel of All Saints at Stein an der Donau, in a post he held the rest of his life. As a composer, he show the influence of his fellows Johann Joseph Fux and Antonio Caldara, both active in Vienna, but evolving to early Classical style in his later works. Despite he focused on sacred music, among them, masses (the foremost was his Große Orgelmesse in C, 1761), requiems, and many liturgical pieces, he also wrote instrumental music very close to Georg Christoph Wagenseil and Georg Matthias Monn on style terms.

CART, Jiří (1708-c.1778) - Sonata a Violino Solo con Basso e Cembalo (1753)

Jiří Čart (1708-c.1778) - Sonata (II, C-Dur) a Violino Solo con Basso e Cembalo, Op.2 (1753)

Performers: Berliner Barock Compagney

Painting: Jan Josef Horemans (1682-1759) - Musikstunde und Tanz

Further info: Evening concerts at the Rheinsberg Castle

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Jiří (Georg) Čart [Czard, Czarth, Szarth, Tzarth, Zardt]

(Hochtann, 8 April 1708 - Mannheim, c.1778)

Bohemian composer and violinist. He received his earliest musical instruction from Lukas Lorenz, the Deutschbrod teacher with whom Johann Stamitz is alleged to have studied. After attending school in Vysoká, he furthered his musical education in Prague and then, at the age of 17, in Vienna. There he received violin instruction from the Royal Court musicians Franz Josef Timmer and Johann Otto Rosetter, and flute lessons with Johann Franz Piarelli. In 1729 he met the violinist and composer Franz Benda and as both were equally dissatisfied with their positions they left Vienna abruptly and fled to Poland. In Warsaw he took up a concertmaster post of the Jakub Suchorzewski's orchestra. In 1733 he followed Franz Benda to the Royal Polish Chapel at the Saxon Court in Warsaw. On the accession of August II in 1733 both musicians transferred to the Dresden Hofkapelle. Their appointment was, however, of short duration, for in 1734 he followed Benda in accepting a summons to the chapel of Crown Prince Frederick at Ruppin. Zarth remained in Frederick’s service for over 20 years, moving with the rest of the chapel to Rheinsberg in 1736 and then to Berlin after Frederick’s accession in 1740. It was not until 1757 or 1758 that the careers of Benda and Zarth diverged: while Benda remained in Berlin, Zarth took up a post at Mannheim, the city where he remained the rest of his life.

GLEISSNER, Franz Johannes (1761-1818) - Missa Breve IV (1793)

Franz Johannes Gleissner (1761-1818) - Missa Breve IV aus "VI. Missae Breves op. I" (1793)

Performers: Marianne Rüеggе (soprano); Cornelia KrätIi-Riеckmаnn (alto); Reto Hofstеttеr (tenor); Frédéric Bοlli (bass); Thurgаuer Kammerchor; Thurgаuer Barockensemble; Raimund Rüеggе (conductor)

Drawing: Francesco Salvatore Fontebasso (1709-1769) - Konzert (c.1747)

Further info: Franz Gleissner - Messe in G

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Franz (Francesco) Johannes Gleissner [Gleisner, Glausner, Pleisner]

(Neustadt, 6 April 1759 - Munich, 18 September 1818)

German composer, singer, contrabass player and publisher. Trained at the Jesuit Gymnasium in Amberg, he composed his first work, a Requiem, in 1778. In 1780 he went for further education in Munich, where he was attached to a military regiment in 1785. He was able to compose for the stage during the next several years, and in 1791 he became employed by the court orchestra as a contrabassist. In 1796 he founded a lithographic process for notation, which he and publisher Johann André used under royal privilege in Offenbach. In 1806 he returned to Munich to become inspector of royal printing. Gleissner worked with André on the first catalog of the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He himself was a prolific composer, writing 30 Masses, two Requiems, eight litanies, three vespers, five offertories, 12 other sacred works, an oratorio, 12 stage works (ballets and Singspiels), 13 symphonies, four quartets, 12 Lieder, 12 flute duets, over 60 works for keyboard, and several other smaller chamber works.

MASEK, Václav Vincenc (1755-1831) - Parthia in D

Václav Vincenc Mašek (1755-1831) - Parthia in D

Performers: Collegium Musicum Pragеnsе

Drawing: Alexander Sauerweid (1783-1844) - Musicians of the Life-Guards Pavlovsky Regiment

Further info: Vincenc Václav Masek (1755-1831) - Keyboard Concertino for 4 hands (1803)

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(Wenceslaus Vincentius) Václav Vincenc (Vincenzo) Mašek [Maschek, Machek]

(Zwikowetz, 5 April 1755 - Praha, 15 November 1831)

Bohemian composer and keyboardist. Like his brother Lambert Mašek (1761-1826), he received his first musical education from his father, Tomás Mašek, a village cantor, before moving to Prague, where his teachers included Frantisek Xaver Dušek and Josef Seger. He obtained a position with Count Vtrba, who allowed him to tour central Europe as a performer. In 1791 he settled in Prague, where he taught privately and was chorusmaster at the German opera. In 1794 he was appointed as music director of the St. Mikuláš Church, but in 1802 he decided to devote his attentions to his music shop, one of the first in the city. His music reflects not only the predominant Viennese style, it also shows its Czech origins in the lyrical melodies. His works include two operas, several ballets, 30 Masses, 40 graduals, 70 offertories, 26 sacred arias, 16 hymns, 13 motets, five antiphons, 10 symphonies, seven concertos, 15 quartets (mostly for strings), eight sonatas, seven serenades, five partitas, four pastorellas, and a large number of smaller dances and individual works for keyboard.

DU PUY, Edouard (c.1770-1822) - Sinfonia 'Ungdom og galskab' (1806)

Edouard Du Puy (c.1770-1822) - Sinfonia 'Ungdom og galskab, eller List over list' (1806)

Performers: The Royal Danish Orchestra; Johan Hye-Knudsen (1896-1975, conductor)

Painting: Elias Martin (1739-1818) - View of Stockholm

Further info: Edouard Du Puy (1770-1822) - Flute Concerto in d, No.1

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(Jean Baptiste) Edouard (Louis Camille) Du Puy [Dupuy]

(Baigory, c.1770 - Stockholm, 3 April 1822)

French composer and singer. He studied violin with Charles Chabran and piano with Jan Ladislav Dussek in Paris. In 1789, he was appointed concertmaster at the court of Heinrich of Prussia in Rheinsberg, replacing Johann Abraham Peter Schulz. He worked in Rheinsberg for four years while studying harmonies under Carl Friedrich Christian Fasch. In 1792 he was banished from Rheinsberg because he interrupted a Sunday service by riding into church on horseback. After working as a touring violinist in Germany and Poland he went to Stockholm in 1793, where he joined the opera orchestra as a violinist. In 1795 he became a member of the Swedish Academy of Music. In 1799, he fell out of favor with king Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden by praising Napoleon and he was banished from Sweden and settled in Copenhagen. There he joined the opera orchestra as a violinist. A highpoint in his stage career was the première of his 'Ungdom og galskab' (1806), for which he composed the music and sang the role of Ritmester Rose. In 1809 he sang the first act of this opera with his pupil Crown Princess Charlotte Frederika at Amalienborg Palace; but scandal broke out later in the year when he was discovered in bed with the princess and had to leave Denmark at two hours’ notice. He went to Paris, but with the election of Napoleon’s commander Jean Baptiste Bernadotte to the Swedish throne he was able to return to Stockholm. He became court violinist and singer and from 1812 conductor. In 1814 he became titular professor of the Swedish Academy of Music. As a composer, he wrote several stage works, symphonic works, concertos, chamber music as well as songs, ballets and a Requiem. 

D'ANGLEBERT, Jean-Henry (1629-1691) - Suite en Sol majeur (1689)

Jean-Henry D'Anglebert (1629-1691) - Suite en Sol majeur (1689)

Performers: Brigitte Tramier (clavecin)

Engraving: Cornelis Vermeulen (c.1654-c.1708) - Jean-Henri d'Anglebert

Further info: Jean-Henry d'Anglebert - Suites Pour Clavecin

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Jean Henry D’Anglebert

(Bar-le-Duc, bap. 1 April 1629 - Paris, 23 April 1691)

French composer, harpsichordist and organist. Nothing is known of his early musical training or how he came to Paris. He is thought to have been a pupil of Jacques Champion de Chambonnières. After serving in the position of first organist to the Duke of Orleans and to the Jacobins in the rue St. Honore in Paris, he was made 'ordinaire de la chambre du Roy pour le clavecin' by Louis XIV in 1662, a post he held until at least 1668. After 1679 D'Anglebert was also in the service of the Dauphine Marie-Anne de Bavière, Duchess of Burgundy. As a composer, he was mainly known by his 'Pieces de clavecin avec la maniere de les jouer' (Paris, 1689), which contains 4 dance suites, 5 organ fugues, transcriptions of popular tunes, arrangements of works by Lully, a treatise on keyboard harmony, and a table of ornaments, with many new signs that were widely accepted. The volum stands as a major source for the French Baroque style. His son, Jean-Baptiste Henri D'Anglebert (1661-1735), succeeded him at the French court. 

MELCELIUS, Jiří (1624-1693) - Missa absque Nomine (1666)

Jiří Melcelius (1624-1693) - Missa absque Nomine (1666)

Performers: Consortio Mеlcеlii; Michael Pοspíšіl (conductor)

Painting: Jan Victors (1619-1679) - Boas übernimmt das Erbe Elimelechs (c.1652)

Further info: Missa absque Nomine (1666)

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Jiří (Georg) Melcelius [Meltzelius, Mältzel, Möltzel, Melcl, et al.]

(Horšovský Týn, 1624 - Prague, 31 March 1693)

Bohemian organist and composer. Nothing is known about his youth and musical education. He was a member of the Premonstratensian order. His life was passed in a succession of ecclesiastical musical appointments, the most notable of which was at St Benedikta, Prague, between 1663 and 1669. There he was organist and choirmaster and was apparently responsible for modernizing the repertory and building up an archive. In his last years, he retired to the Strahov monastery in Prague. As a composer, he mainly wrote sacred music, among them, several masses, a Requiem, a Te Deum and Vespers. His music style was close to Adam Michna and Pavel Vejvanovský, the foremost bohemian composers during 17th Century.

WILMS, Johann Wilhelm (1772-1847) - Concertino pour la Flute Principale

Johann Wilhelm Wilms (1772-1847) - Concertino (sol mineur) pour la Flute Principale (1814)

Performers: Jaques Zoon (flute); Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra; Thierry Fischer (conductor)

Painting: Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714-1789) - Eine Meeresbucht bei untergehender Sonne (1760)

Further info: Johann Wilhelm Wilms (1772-1847) - Sinfonie Op.14 (1809)

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Johann Wilhelm Wilms

(Witzhelden, bap. 30 March 1772 - Amsterdam, 19 July 1847)

Dutch pianist, organist, teacher and composer of German birth. He received his early music training from his father and elder brother. In 1791 he settled in Amsterdam as a pianist, flutist and teacher, and later was organist of the United Baptist Church (1823-46). He fastly became one the foremost composers active in Amsterdam, being on several committees, including the music faculty of the Koninklijk Nederlandsch Instituut voor Wetenschappen, Letteren en Schoone Kunsten (1808-47), and the Maatschappij tot Bevordering der Toonkunst (1829-41). As a composer, he was mainly known by his 'Wien Neerlands bloed door d'aderen vloeit' (1815), the semi-official Dutch hymn of the 19th century. He also wrote three symphonies, several symphonies concertantes and concertos, overtures, chamber music, violin and flute sonatas, and keyboard pieces as well as secular songs and the sacred cantata 'Zahlreiche weitere Gelegenheits' (1814). His style was mostly inherited by the 18th Century composers with some early Romantic traits.

REICHENAUER, Antonín (1694-1730) - Ouverture in B-Dur

Antonín Reichenauer (1694-1730) - Ouverture (Suite) in B-Dur

Performers: Camerata Bеrn; Sergio Azzοlіnі (conductor)

Painting: Hendrick Govaerts (1669-1720) - An elegant company in a garden

Further info: Antonin Reichenauer (1694-1730)

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(Johann) Antonín (Anton) Reichenauer [Reichenau]

(Prague, bap. 26 March 1694 - Jindřichův Hradec, 17 March 1730)

Bohemian composer. Nothing is known about his youth. The first mention was in 1721 as a choirmaster at the St. Mary Magdalene church in Prague. Also there he was documented as musician under the patronage of Count Wenzel Morzin. According to some sources, he also worked for Count Franz Joseph of the House of Czernin. In his last years he was appointed organist at the parish church Jindřichův Hradec, a post he briefly held before his death in 1730. As a composer, he wrote both concertos and sacred music following the trends of italian style. His music was highly praised and can be found in several Bohemian archives.

HASSE, Johann Adolf (1699-1783) - Sinfonia 'Alcide al bivio' (1760)

Johann Adolf Hasse (1699-1783) - Sinfonia (D-Dur) 'Alcide al bivio' (1760)

Performers: moderntimes_1800; Ilia Kοrοl (conductor)

Painting: Austrian School (18th Century) - Portrait of a singer with her accompanist

(probably Faustina Bordoni and Johann Adolf Hasse)

Further info: Johann Adolf Hasse (1699-1783) - Messe in d (1751)

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Johann (Giovanni) Adolf (Adolph) Hasse

(Bergedorf, nr Hamburg, bap. 25 March 1699 - Venice, 16 December 1783)

German composer. He was the second of five children of the organist Peter Hasse (c.1668-1737) and Christina Klessing, daughter of a mayor of Bergedorf. He studied in Hamburg before joining the opera company there. He quickly established himself as a tenor of reputation, but his career changed when his opera Antioco opened at Brunswick on 1 August 1721. Soon, he left Germany for a long tour of Venice, Bologna, Florence, and Rome, finally settling in the major opera center of Naples for six years, until 1730. There he studied with Alessandro Scarlatti and possibly Nicolo Porpora, worked with the superstar castrato Carlo Broschi (Farinelli), and his rise in Neapolitan opera was spectacular. Hasse appeared in Venice for the 1730 Carnival season, a milestone of his career. In his opera Artaserse, he set a libretto of Metastasio, later to become his most important collaborator, for the first time. He also met in Venice another famous singer, the mezzo-soprano Faustina Bordoni, whom he married in June 1730 and who created many of the female protagonists in his later operas. Sometime after Carnival but before Ascension in 1730, he was granted the title of Kapellmeister to the court of the Elector August I of Saxony at Dresden, but he and Faustina Bordoni did not arrive there until 6 or 7 July 1731. Although this appointment lasted until 1763, the couple took frequent and substantial leaves of absence to various cities of Italy and Vienna to produce operas that had been commissioned by the nobility of Europe. In 1745, King Frederick the Great of Prussia visited and heard Hasse’s Te Deum and opera seria Arminio. 

The king, a fine musician, thereafter often invited the composer and his wife to Potsdam. The Prussian bombardment of Hasse’s Dresden house in 1760, causing the loss of many manuscripts, may have soured this relationship. Porpora, possibly Hasse’s teacher in Naples, was brought to Dresden in 1748 to teach the Princess Maria Antonia of Saxony and was given the title Kapellmeister, but Hasse was promoted to Oberkapellmeister in 1750. In 1763, Hasse joined the imperial court in Vienna where he worked closely with Metastasio. In 1775, he and Faustina Bordoni retired to Venice. Although most of his work was quickly forgotten after he died, while active, he was the most renowned composer of Italian opera seria in Italy and German-speaking lands. He composed at least 58 operas, mostly seria, but also a few comedies, which were produced in many European opera centers. He was the favorite composer of the age’s most eminent opera librettist, Metastasio. Hasse composed fluently, with a particular gift for vocal melody, which he generally displayed to full advantage without distraction from contrapuntal textures. Besides the operas, he composed about 11 intermezzi, 11 Italian oratorios, 60 Italian chamber cantatas, and 33 more cantatas for voice and orchestra. His instrumental music includes 54 concertos, mostly for transverse flute and strings, and 24 trio sonatas. He also composed sacred music, most of it for four-voiced choir and orchestra: 15 masses, 2 requiems, 36 single mass ordinary settings, 10 mass offertories, 21 psalms, 18 antiphons, six hymns, and 38 motets for solo voice and orchestra.

DE IRIBARREN, Juan Francés (1699-1767) - Dixit Dominus à 8

Juan Francés de Iribarren (1699-1767) - Dixit Dominus à 8

Performers: Arantza Irаñеta (tiple); Lola Elοrza (tiple); David Sаgаstume (alto); Jesús García Aréjulа (tenor);

Nova Lux Ensemble de la Coral de Cámara de Pаmplonа; David Guindаno (conductor)

Map: Joan Blaeu (1596-1673) - Navarra Regnvm (1643)

Further info: Juan Francés de Iribarren (1699-1767) - Aries al Santíssim

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Juan Francés de Iribarren

(Sangüesa, bap. 24 March 1699 - Málaga, 2 September 1767)

Spanish composer and organist. He was christened on 24 March 1699 at the Church of St. James the Great in Sangüesa. He was a choirboy at the Colegio de Cantorcicos, Madrid, under José de Torres, who in 1717 recommended him for the post of organist at the cathedral of Salamanca, where he remained for 16 years until 1733. In 1733 he came second in the competition for maestro de capilla at the cathedral of Málaga, and was awarded the position when the winner, Manuel Martinez Delgado, died suddenly. In 1741, Iribarren's salary was raised to prevent him taking the post of maestro di cappella of the cathedral of Valladolid, thereafter he remained in Málaga until his retirement, a year before his death. He was buried in the cathedral. As a composer, he wrote more than 800 works, mostly sacred and currently preserved in the Málaga cathedral archive. The style of his music is characterized by an infrequent use of the polychoral technique. He probably was the most prolific Spanish villancico composer of the 18th century; since his entire collection is dated (1722-1766).

SPERGER, Johannes Matthias (1750-1812) - Concerto per il clarino (1779)

Johannes Matthias Sperger (1750-1812) - Concerto (No.2, D-Dur) per il clarino (1779)

Performers: Edward Tarr (1936-2020, trumpet); Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra

Painting: Alexander von Sauerweid (1783-1844) - Saxon Army. Trumpeter, Garde du Corps (1816)

Further info: Johannes Matthias Sperger (1750-1812) - Sinfonie concertante à 3 voci (c.1785)

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Johannes (Johann) Matthias Sperger [Spergher]

(Feldsberg [now Valtice], 23 March 1750 - Ludwigslust, 13 May 1812)

German composer and contrabass player. Following studies under Franz Becker, he became a student of Johann Georg Albrechtsberger in Vienna. He is said to have made his début as a composer there at the age of 18, and a symphony and a double bass concerto of his were performed by the Tonkünstler-Societät in 1778. In 1777 he was employed by Cardinal von Batthyani in Pozsony (Pressburg, now Bratislava, Slovakia), and in 1783 he became a member of the Kapelle of Count Erdődy in Fidisch. After the dissolution of the ensemble he made his living as a copyist, as well as touring both Germany and Italy as a bass soloist. In 1789 he was appointed to the Kapelle of the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, where he remained for the rest of his life. A supposed period in the service of Prince Esterhazy under Haydn is not documented. As a composer, he was well versed in the styles of music of his time, becoming a significant composer of symphonies in particular. His music consists of 45 symphonies, 22 concertos (18 for double bass), three sinfonia concertantes, two nonets, an octet and a septet, two sextets, 12 quartets, two keyboard sonatas, 14 other sonatas (duos), five cantatas, three sacred songs, three hymns, three antiphons, and two offertories, as well as 50 partitas and several organ fugues. Sperger's reputation as a leading double bass player is generously acknowledged by critical writing of the time; his achievements as an executant were generally accorded more significance than his prolific output as a composer.

VAN HELMONT, Charles Joseph (1715-1790) - Overtura a 2: chori (1754)

Charles Joseph Van Helmont (1715-1790) - Overtura a 2: chori (1754)

Performers: Les Solistes de Liège; Géry Lеmairе (1926-2013, conductor)

Painting: Giuseppe Maria Crespi (1665-1747) - Singer at the spinet with admirers

Further info: Charles Joseph van Helmont (1715-1790) - Missa Sanctae Gudilae (1745)

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Charles Joseph (Carol Josephus) Van Helmont

(Brussels, 19 March 1715 - Brussels, 8 June 1790)

Flemish composer and organist. He studied as a choirboy under Petrus Hercules Brehy at the collegiate church of St Michel et Ste Gudule in Brussels where, at the age of 18, he succeeded Josse Boutmy as titular organist. In 1737 he was appointed choirmaster at the Kapellekerk of Brussels. The premature death of Joseph-Hector Fiocco in 1741 enabled him to return to Ste Gudule, this time as music director, a position he had aspired to since the onset of Brehy's terminal illness in October 1736, but which had gone to Fiocco. For the next 36 years, Van Helmont lived with his growing family in the choraelhuys (maîtise) where he supervised the musical and general education of the choristers, composed frequently for the service, and undertook the task of conserving Ste Gudule's extensive music collection. In 1768 he founded a musical association which gave weekly public concerts; this was one of the first societies of its kind in Brussels. In 1777 he resigned from Ste Gudule passing his duties to his son, the composer and teacher Adriaan Joseph van Helmont (1747-1830). As a composer, he wrote much sacred music, including masses, motets, Magnificats, and litanies. Among his secular works were an opera, 2 symphonies, an overtura, a divertissement, Pieces de clavecin (Brussels, 1737), and 6 organ fugues.

GRENSER, Johan Fredrik (1758-1795) - Sinfonia alla Posta

Johan Fredrik Grenser (1758-1795) - Sinfonia (Es-Dur) alla Posta

Performers: Kungliga Operаns Orkester; Philip Brunеllе (conductor)

Painting: Franz de Paula Ferg (1689-1740) - An elegant hunting party capturing a stag and boar

Further info: Various - Post Classics

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Johan Fredrik (Johann Friedrich) Grenser

(Dresden, 1758 - Stockholm, 17 March 1795)

German composer active in Sweden. He was born in Dresden and it's uncertain if he was related with the Gresner family of wind instrument makers and musicians established there. Almost nothing is known about his youth until he was appointed as a member (first oboist and later flautist) of the Royal Court Orchestra in Stockholm, a post he held the rest of his short life. As a composer, his output came to light in the 1780’s and 1790’s and were intended for various performers, among those his colleagues in the court orchestra. He was very appreciated and some of his works were published by Hummel printers in Amsterdam. Among his compositions, most of them lost, he wrote 4 ballets (Mölnarebalett, Pantomime för herr Marcadet, Slädpartiet, incidental ballet music in Vogler’s Gustaf Adolf och Ebba Brahe), orchestral works (4 sinfonias, 1 overture, 2 solo concertos, 2 arias with orchestra (Ah se t’adoro, Med din sång du redan funnit seger i min ömma själ), chamber music (trios, duets), works for wind ensemble (14 partitas, 2 arrangements) and piano pieces.