Self-portrait of Spohr as a young man.

Louis Spohr (April 5, 1784 – October 22, 1859) was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Born Ludwig Spohr, he is usually known by the French form of his name outside Germany. Louis Spohr as a young man: a self-portrait The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... Self Portrait is a 1970 double album by Bob Dylan. ... is the 95th day of the year (96th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1784 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... For the Anne Rice novel, see Violin (novel). ... A conductor conducting at a ceremony A conductors score and batons Conducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. ...

Life

Spohr was born in Braunschweig in the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg to Karl Heinrich Spohr and Juliane Ernestine Luise Henke. Spohr's first musical encouragement came from his parents: his mother was a gifted singer and pianist, and his father played the flute. Dufour gave him his earliest instruction on the violin. His first attempts at composition date from the early 1790s. Dufour, recognizing the boy's musical talent, persuaded his parents to send him to Brunswick for further instruction. The failure of his first concert tour, a badly planned venture to Hamburg in 1799, caused him to ask Duke Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand of Brunswick for financial help. A successful concert at the court impressed the duke so much that he engaged the 15-year old Spohr as a chamber musician. In 1802, through the good offices of the duke, he became the pupil of Franz Eck and accompanied him on a concert tour which took him as far as St. Petersburg. Eck, who completely retrained Spohr in violin technique, was a product of the Mannheim school, and Spohr became its most prominent heir.^[1] Spohr's first notable compositions, including his First Violin Concerto, date from this time. After his return home, the Duke granted him leave to make a concert tour of North Germany. A concert in Leipzig in December 1804 brought the influential music critic Friedrich Rochlitz "to his knees", not only because of Spohr's playing but also because of his compositions. This concert brought the young man overnight fame in the whole German-speaking world. Coordinates: Time zone: CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country: Germany State: Lower Saxony District: Urban district City subdivisions: 20 Boroughs Lord Mayor: Gert Hoffmann (CDU) Governing parties: CDU / FDP Basic Statistics Area: 192. ... Brunswick-Lüneburg was an historical state within the Holy Roman Empire. ... Leipzig ( ; Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk from the Sorbian word for Tilia) is, with a population of over 506,000, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. ...

In 1805, Spohr got a job as concertmaster at the court of Gotha, where he stayed until 1812. There he met the 18-year-old harpist Dorette Scheidler, daughter of one of the court singers, and fell in love with her. They were married the next year. They performed successfully together as a violin and harp duo, touring in Italy (1816-1817), England (1820) and Paris (1821), but Dorette later abandoned her harpist's career and concentrated on raising their children. Her untimely death in 1834 brought him great sorrow. Gotha is a town in Thuringia, in Germany. ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... This article is about the capital of France. ...

Spohr later worked as conductor at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna (1813-1815), where he became friendly with Beethoven; subsequently he was opera director at Frankfurt (1817-1819) where he was able to stage his own operas — the first of which, Faust, had been rejected in Vienna. Spohr's longest post, from 1822 until his death in Kassel, was as the director of music at the court of Kassel, a position offered him on the suggestion of Carl Maria von Weber. In Kassel on January 3, 1836, he married his second wife, the 29-year-old Marianne Pfeiffer. She survived him by many years, living until 1892. The Theater an der Wien is a historic theatre in Vienna. ... For other uses, see Vienna (disambiguation). ... Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized December 17, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer of Classical music, the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. ...   (German: , English: American English: ) is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a mid-2007 population of 663,567. ... This article is about the city of Kassel in Hessen, Germany. ... Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst, Freiherr von Weber (November 18, 1786 in Eutin, Holstein – June 5, 1826 in London, England) was a German composer, conductor, pianist and critic, one of the first significant composers of the Romantic school. ...

In 1851 the elector refused to sign the permit for Spohr's two months' leave of absence, to which he was entitled under his contract, and when the musician departed without the permit, a portion of his salary was deducted. In 1857 he was pensioned off, much against his own wish, and in the winter of the same year he had the misfortune to break his arm, an accident which put an end to his violin playing. Nevertheless he conducted his opera "Jessonda" at the fiftieth anniversary of the Prague Conservatorium in the following year, with all his old-time energy. In 1859 he died at Cassel. [1] 1851 (MDCCCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Like Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and his own slightly older contemporary Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Spohr was an active Freemason. (Franz) Joseph Haydn (in German, Josef; he never used the Franz) (March 31, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was a leading composer of the classical period. ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (January 27, 1756 – December 5, 1791) was one of the most significant and influential of all composers of Western classical music. ... Johann Nepomuk Hummel Johann Nepomuk Hummel or Jan Nepomuk Hummel (14 November 1778 – 17 October 1837) was a composer and virtuoso pianist of Austrian origin who was born in Pressburg (present-day Bratislava, Slovakia). ... American Square & Compasses Freemasonry is a worldwide fraternal organization. ...

Louis Spohr.

Louis Spohr This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Louis Spohr This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ...

Works

A prolific composer, Spohr produced more than 150 works with opus numbers, in addition to a number of works without such numbers. He wrote music in all genres. His nine symphonies (a tenth was left unfinished, but was brought to completion by Eugene Minor and premiered by the Bergen Youth Orchestra) show a progress from the classical style of his predecessors to the programme music of the ninth symphony, Die Jahreszeiten (The Seasons). Between 1803 and 1844 Spohr wrote more violin concertos than any other composer of the time, sixteen in all. Some of them are formally unconventional, such as the one-movement Concerto No. 8, which is in the style of an operatic aria, and which is still periodically revived (Jascha Heifetz championed it), most recently in a 2006 recording by Hilary Hahn. There are two double-violin concertos as well. Better known today, however, are the four clarinet concertos, all written for the virtuoso Johann Simon Hermstedt, which have established a secure place in clarinettists' repertoire. Opus, from the Latin word opus meaning work, is usually used in the sense of a work of art. In this sense the plural of opus, opera, is used to refer to the genre of music drama. ... A symphony is an extended piece of music for orchestra, especially one in the form of a sonata. ... Program music is music intended to musically represent, or accompany, an extra-musical theme, constrasting with absolute music. ... A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble, customarily orchestra. ... Jascha Heifetz (February 2 [O.S. January 20] 1901 – December 10, 1987) was a Jewish Lithuanian-born American violin virtuoso. ... Hilary Hahn - credit Kasskara courtesy of Deutsche Grammophon Hilary Hahn (born November 27, 1979 in Lexington, Virginia) is an American Grammy Award–winning violinist. ... A clarinet concerto is a concerto for clarinet and orchestra (or concert band). ... Johann Simon Hermstedt was one of the most famous German clarinettists of the early 19th century. ...

Among Spohr's chamber music is a series of no fewer than 36 string quartets, as well as four interesting double quartets for two string quartets. He also wrote an assortment of other quartets, duos, trios, quintets and sextets, an octet and a nonet, works for solo violin and for solo harp, and works for violin and harp to be played by him and his wife together. Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. ... The resident string quartet of the Library of Congress in 1963 A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string instruments—usually two violins, a viola and cello—or a piece written to be performed by such a group. ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ...

Though obscure today, Spohr's best operas Faust (1816), Zemire und Azor (1819) and Jessonda (1823) remained in the popular repertoire through the 19th century and well into the 20th when Jessonda was banned by Nazis because it depicted a European hero in love with an Indian princess. Spohr also wrote dozens of songs, many of them collected as Deutsche Lieder (German Songs), as well as a mass and other choral works. His oratorios, particularly Die letzten Dinge (The Last Judgement) (1825—1826), were greatly admired during the 19th century. Spohr was so popular in the Victorian era that Gilbert and Sullivan mention him in the same breath as Bach and Beethoven in Act 2 of The Mikado in a song by the title character. For other uses, see Opera (disambiguation). ... Jessonda is a would-be tragic opera in German by Louis Spohr, written in 1822, with the first performance in 1823. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the fixed portions of the Eucharistic liturgy (principally that of the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, generally known in the US as the Episcopal Church, and also the Lutheran Church) to music. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... An oratorio is a large musical composition for orchestra, vocal soloists and chorus. ... Year 1825 (MDCCCXXV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... The oldest surviving photograph, Nicéphore Niépce, circa 1826 1826 (MDCCCXXVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... W. S. Gilbert Arthur Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian era partnership of librettist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900). ... In music, the BACH motif is the sequence of notes B flat, A, C, B natural. ... Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized December 17, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer of Classical music, the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. ... The Mikado, or The Town of Titipu, is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations. ...

Louis Spohr, with his fifteen violin concertos, won for himself a conspicuous place in the musical literature of the nineteenth century. He endeavored to make the concerto a substantial and superior composition free from the artificial bravura of the time. He achieved a new romantic mode of expression. The weaker sides of Spohr’s violin compositions are observed in his somewhat monotonous rhythmic structures; in his rejection of certain piquant bowing styles, and artificial harmonics; and in the deficiency of contrapuntal textures.^[2]

Spohr was a noted violinist, and invented the violin chinrest, about 1820. He was also a significant conductor, being one of the first to use a baton and also inventing rehearsal letters, which are placed periodically throughout a piece of sheet music so that a conductor may save time by asking the orchestra or singers to start playing "from letter C", for example). This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A modern wooden conducting baton Harvard University student Kenton Hetrick with the worlds largest baton A baton is a stick that is used by conductors primarily to indicate the musical beat of a piece through horizontal and vertical movements. ... A rehearsal letter is a boldface letter of the alphabet in an orchestral score, and its corresponding parts, that provides a convenient spot from which to resume rehearsal after a break. ... Sheet music is written representation of music. ...

In addition to musical works, Spohr wrote an entertaining and informative autobiography, published posthumously in 1860. A museum is devoted to his memory in Kassel.

Spohr's best works are his wistful, elegiac minor-mode first movements, hailed by many of his contemporaries as quintessentially Romantic and inherited by Mendelssohn; his deft scherzos whose influence was felt as late as Brahms; his expressive slow movements with their chromatic alterations which, on occasion, become cloyingly sentimental; and his light-hearted finales which are able to avoid the trap of trivial thematic material.^[3]

Media

Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Sei_Still_Mein_Herz. ... Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Zwiegesang. ... Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Sehnsucht. ... Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Wiegenlied. ... Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Das_Heimliche_Lied. ... Image File history File links Louis_Spohr_-_Wach_auf!.ogg‎ File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ...

Citations

1. ^ Weyer 1980, p.10.
2. ^ Swalin 1937, p.28.
3. ^ Longyear 1988, p.64.

References

• Brown, Clive. Louis Spohr: A Critical Biography. Cambridge University Press. 1984. ISBN 0-521-23990-7.
• Weyer, M (1980). "Spohr, Louis" , The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians, Macmillan Publishers Limited. 1980.
• Swalin, B (1937). "The Violin Concertos of Louis Spohr" Bulletin of the American Musicological Society, No. 2. 1937.
• Longyear, R (1988). Nineteenth-Century Romanticism in Music, Prentice Hall. 1988.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Louis Spohr

• The Spohr Society of Great Britain
• Spohr Piano Trio No.3, Op.124 Soundbites and short bio
• [2] (in German)
• www.closelinks.com Free Family Tree
• Louis Spohr was listed in the International Music Score Library Project