Ignaz Pleyel (June 18, 1757–November 14, 1831) was an Austrian composer of the Classical music era. June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 1757 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... November 14 is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 47 days remaining. ... 1831 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The Republic of Austria (German: Republik Österreich) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. ... The Classical period in Western music occurred in a large part of the 18th century, and into the early 19th century. ...

Life

He was born in Ruppersthal in Lower Austria, the son of a schoolmaster named Martin Pleyl. While still young he probably studied with Vanhal, and from 1772 he became the pupil of Joseph Haydn in Eisenstadt. As with Beethoven, born 13 years later, Pleyel benefited in his study from the sponsorship of aristocracy, in this case Count Ladislaus Erdődy (1746-1786). Pleyel evidently he had a close relationship with Haydn, who considered him to be a superb student. Events February 17 - First partition of Russia and Prussia, later including Austria May - Watauga Association formed in East Tennessee as the first independent Anglo-American government. ... Franz Joseph Haydn, (March 31 or April 1, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was a leading composer of the Classical period, called the Father of the Symphony and Father of the String Quartet. He used his second name, spelled in German Josef. He was the brother of Michael Haydn, himself a... Eisenstadt (Hungarian Kismarton) is a city in Austria, the state capital of Burgenland. ... 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. ...

Among Pleyel's apprentice work from this time was a puppet opera Die Fee Urgele, (1776) performed in the marionette theater at the palace of Eszterháza and in Vienna. Pleyel apparently also wrote at least part of the overture of Haydn's opera Das abgebrannte Haus, from about the same time. A puppet is any controlled character, whether formed by a shadow, strings, by the use of a glove, by direct mechanical contrivance (for example a cable-controlled figure for film or TV) or electronic guidance (such as a radio or infrared remote controller). ... This article is about opera as an art form. ... This article is about the year 1776. ...

Pleyel's first professional position may have been as Kapellmeister for Count Erdődy, although this is not known for certain. Among his early publications was a set of six string quartets, his Opus 1. A Kapellmeister is nowadays the director or conductor of an orchestra or choir. ... 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. ...

In the early 1780's, Pleyel visited Italy, where composed an opera (Ifigenia in Aulide) and works commissioned by the King of Naples.

Pleyel moved to Strasbourg in France in 1783, where he henceforth went by the French version of his name, "Ignace". He was first the assistant Kapellmeister at Strasbourg Cathedral under František Xaver Richter, then became full Kapellmeister in 1789 on Richter's death. In 1788 Pleyel married Francoise-Gabrielle Lefebvre, the daughter of a Strasbourg carpet weaver. The couple had four children, the oldest being their son Camille, discussed below. City motto: – City proper ( commune) Région Alsace Département Bas-Rhin (67) Mayor Fabienne Keller ( UMP) (since 2001) Area 78. ... Events February 3 - Spain recognizes United States independence. ... 1789 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1788 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

In 1791, the French Revolution abolished musical performances in church as well as public concerts. Seeking alternative employment, Pleyel traveled to London, where he led the "Professional Concerts" organized by Wilhelm Cramer. In this capacity Pleyel inadvertently played the role of his teacher's rival, as Haydn was at the same time leading the concert series organized by Johann Peter Salomon. Although the two composers were rivals professionally, they remained on good terms personally. Events January 25 - The British Parliament passes the Constitutional Act of 1791, splitting the old province of Quebec into Upper and Lower Canada March 3 - The U.S. Congress passes a resolution calling for the establishment of the United States Mint (U.S. Mint not created until next year). ... The period of the French Revolution in the history of France covers the years between 1789 and 1799, in which democrats and republicans overthrew the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church was forced to undergo radical restructuring. ... Johann Peter Salomon (baptized February 20, 1745, died November 28, 1815) was a violinist, composer, conductor and musical impresario. ...

Just like Haydn, Pleyel made a fortune from his London visit. On his return to Strasbourg, he bought a large house, the Château d’Itenwiller in nearby St. Pierre.

With the onset of the Reign of Terror in 1793, life in France became dangerous for many. According to some sources, Pleyel's loyalty to his adopted country was brought into question, and he is said to have avoided what could easily have been a fatal outcome by composing works of patriotic music. The Reign of Terror (June 1793 - July 1794) was a period in the French Revolution characterized by brutal repression. ... 1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Pleyel as businessman

Pleyel moved to Paris in 1795. In 1797 he set up a business as a music publisher ("Maison Pleyel"), which among other works produced a complete edition of Haydn's string quartets (1801), as well as the first miniature scores for study (the Bibliothèque Musicale, "musical library"). The publishing business lasted for 39 years and published about 4000 works during this time, including compositions by Boccherini, Beethoven, Clementi, and Dussek. Events January 16 - French occupy Utrecht, Netherlands. ... 1797 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Events January 1 - Legislative union of Ireland completed under the Act of Union 1800, bringing about the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. ... Luigi Boccherini (February 19, 1743 – May 28, 1805) was a classical era composer and cellist from Italy, mostly known for one particular minuet from one of his string quintets, and the Cello Concerto in B flat major (G 482). ... 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. ... Muzio Clementi (January 24, 1752 – March 10, 1832) was a classical composer, and acknowledged as the first to write specifically for the piano. ... Johann Ladislaus Dussek (Jan Ladislav Dusík) was a Czech composer and pianist. ...

Pleyel visited Vienna on business in 1805, meeting his now elderly mentor Haydn for a final time and hearing Beethoven play. Events January 11 - Michigan Territory is created. ... 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. ...

In 1807, Pleyel became a manufacturer of pianos; for more on the Pleyel piano firm, see below. 1807 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The piano Piano is a common abbreviation for pianoforte, a large musical instrument with a keyboard (see keyboard instrument). ...

Pleyel retired in 1824 and moved to the countryside about 50 km outside Paris. He died in 1831, apparently quite aware that his own musical style had been fully displaced by the new Romanticism in music. He was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris. 1824 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1831 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Romantic music is defined as the period of European classical music that runs roughly from the early 1800s to the first decade of the 20th century, as well as music written according to the norms and styles of that period. ... The Cimetière du Père Lachaise is the largest cemetery in Paris, and one of the most famous cemeteries in the world. ...

Works

Pleyel is one instance of the phenomenon of a composer (others include Cherubini, Meyerbeer, and Thalberg) who was very famous in his own time but presently obscure. According to some, during the brief period between Joseph Haydn's prime and the rise to fame of Beethoven, Pleyel was the most celebrated composer in Europe. Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini (September 14, 1760 – March 15, 1842) was an Italian composer. ... Giacomo Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (September 5, 1791 - May 2, 1864) was a noted opera composer. ... Sigismond Thalberg (January 7, 1812–April 27, 1871) was a Swiss pianist of Austrian heritage, born in Geneva. ... 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. ...

His fame even reached the then-remote musical regions of America: there was a Pleyel Society on the island of Nantucket off the coast of Massachusetts, and tunes by Pleyel made their way into the then-popular shape note hymnals. (Pleyel is in fact the only classical composer represented in the principal modern descendant of these books, The Sacred Harp.) Nantucket is an island south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, formed of glacial moraine. ... State nickname: Bay State Other U.S. States Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney Official languages English Area 27,360 km² (44th)  - Land 20,317 km²  - Water 7,043 km² (25. ... Shape notes are a system of music notation designed to facilitate choral singing. ... Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States. ...

Like his teacher Haydn, Pleyel was prolific, composing 41 symphonies, 70 string quartets and several string quintets and operas. Many of these works date from the Strasbourg period; Pleyel's production tailed off after he had become a businessman. A symphony is an extended piece of music for orchestra, especially one in the form of a sonata. ... 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. ... A string quintet is an ensemble of five string instrument players or a piece written for such a combination. ... This article is about opera as an art form. ...

Recent scholarship has suggested that the theme for the Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn, by Johannes Brahms, opus 56a, was probably composed not by Haydn but by Ignaz Pleyel. The Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn, consisting of a theme, eight variations, and a finale, was composed in 1873 by Johannes Brahms. ... Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (May 7, 1833 – April 3, 1897) was a German composer of classical music. ...

Pleyel continues to be known today a composer of didactic music: generations of beginning violin and flute students, for example, learn to play the numerous duets he wrote for those instruments. The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a fifth apart. ... This article pertains to the musical instrument. ...

Pleyel pianos

The piano firm Pleyel et Cie was founded by Ignaz Pleyel and continued by Pleyel's son Camille (1788-1855, a piano virtuoso who became his father's business partner as of 1815). The firm provided pianos used by Frédéric Chopin, and also ran a concert hall, the Salle Pleyel, in which Chopin performed his first---and also his last--Paris concerts. Toward the end of the 19th century, the Pleyel firm produced the first chromatic harp. In the early 20th century, at the behest of Wanda Landowska, it helped to revive the harpsichord. Pleyel continues to manufacture pianos today, under the corporate auspices of the Schimmel piano company. 1788 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1855 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1815 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Frédéric-François Chopin ( March 1, 1810 – October 17, 1849) is widely seen as the greatest of Polish composers and among the very greatest of composers for the piano, the instrument for which he wrote almost exclusively. ... Harp is also a slang term for the diatonic harmonica. ... Wanda Landowska (July 5, 1879 – August 16, 1959), harpsichordist whose performances, teaching, recordings and writings played a large role in reviving the popularity of that instrument in the early 20th century. ... A harpsichord is the general term for a family of European keyboard instruments, including the large instrument nowadays called a harpsichord, but also the smaller virginals, the muselar virginals and the spinet. ...

Nomenclature

"Pleyel" is pronounced in German as, approximately, "plile". In French it is (again roughly) "play-ELL". English speakers generally follow the French pronunciation.

Book

• Careful coverage of Pleyel's life and work may be found in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, available in print and on line as a fee site.

The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians is a dictionary of music and musicians, generally considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. ...

External links

• A biography from Artaria Publishers (http://www.artaria.com/Composer/FullBios/PleyelFull.htm)
• Pleyel pianos (http://www.pleyel.fr/uk/main.htm)
• A web site on Pleyel pianos (http://real.uwaterloo.ca/~sbirkett/pleyel_info.htm) by Stephen Birkett of the University of Waterloo; includes pictures of Pleyel and of historical Pleyel pianos
• Web site (http://www.pleyel.at) of the Ignaz Pleyel Museum (in German); includes biography