Franz Seraph von Destouches

Franz Seraph Destouches ( born January 21, 1772 in Munich, † December 10, 1844 ) was a German musician and composer.

Destouches was born in 1772 as the son of Joseph of Bavaria Hofkammerrats Touches and his wife Sabina in Munich. He received his musical training at Green Theodor Berger and Joseph Haydn. He played the cello in the orchestra of the Esterházy princes and undertook as a pianist concert tours to Austria and Switzerland. In 1791 he wrote the opera The Thomas Night, to which his older brother Joseph Anton contributed the libretto.

After two years as Music Director of the City of Erlangen Destouches 1799 appeared as concertmaster, and later as court conductor in the services Duke Karl August of Saxe- Weimar. In Weimar he wrote incidental music to Schiller's drama Wallenstein's Camp, Turandot, The Bride of Messina, The Maid of Orléans and William Tell, August von Kotzebue's The Hussites before Naumburg in 1432 and Zacharias Werner Wanda, Queen of the Sarmatians. He also composed the operetta The misunderstanding and Aloe, the oratorio, the text of which came from Johann Gottfried Herder The Adoration of Jesus in the tomb, as well as numerous instrumental pieces.

Destouches 1811-1814 taught music at the University of Landshut, was then conductor of the Prince of Oettingen- Wallerstein and since 1820 as a Hessian court conductor in Homburg active. In 1842 he returned to his native city of Munich, where the " very old but still lively sprightly old man " to a libretto by his nephew Ulrich comic opera composed The Devil and the tailor. Destouches whose marriage remained childless with Wilhelmine van Couven died 1844.