Hans Christian Lumbye

Hans Christian Lumbye ( born 2 May 1810 in Copenhagen, † March 20, 1874 ) was a Danish conductor and composer.

Lumbyes childhood

Lumbyes father, Rasmus Hansen Lumbye, was a soldier and came from the village Lumbye (now Lumby ) north of Odense. When Hans Christian was born, the family already lived in Copenhagen. When Hans Christian was six years old, the father was transferred with his company to Randers. It was in winter 1816. During the crossing from Zealand to Funen, the boy was allegedly ill, and his hearing to have been damaged. This should have led later to the fact that as an older man Lumbye was very hard of hearing.

The military musician

In Randers Hans Christian Lumbye learned to play the violin. In 1821, when he was eleven years old, Lumbyes father was transferred again. This time to Odense. Here Lumbye learned to play the trumpet and was a military musician than 14 years, just like Carl Nielsen, about 50 years later. Lumbye musician was the Dragon Regiment. The Town Musicians became aware of Lumbyes talent, and taught him in music theory. Lumbye began soon thereafter was little songs and marches to compose. In 1829 Lumbye sought a transfer to Copenhagen, where he was trumpeter with the Dragon Regiment.

Lumbyes Orchestra

If Lumbye duty had of the Dragon Regiment, he played to dance under the guidance of Copenhagen's leading city orchestra leader Füssel. Lumbye continued to work as a composer and wrote a lot of dance music. Gradually Lumbye was a sought-after orchestra director at balls and festivals in which the high society of Copenhagen.

It came at a crucial turning point in its production, as an Austrian orchestra from Styria the works of Joseph Lanner and Johann Strauss (father) introduzierte Copenhageners. Her works have been very popular quickly. Lumbye accepted the challenge, and soon he composed and played in the new style. This pleased the fastidious audience, and Lumbye was a very popular man.

Lumbyes family life

Lumbye married his Georgine 1832. They had two sons, Carl and George, and three daughters, Caroline, Julie and Amalie. His son Carl Lumbye ( born July 9, 1841 in Copenhagen, † August 10, 1910 ), who also composed dance music took over his father's band. He was succeeded in 1891 by his younger brother George Lumbye ( born August 26, 1843 in Copenhagen, † 1922 in Copenhagen). This has composed a number of vaudeville, theater music and the operetta The Witches Flute ( 1869). The daughters Caroline and Julie were actresses, and Caroline could also compose and write lyrics.

Several of his descendants were felt in musical life. His grandson, George Høeberg, was conductor of the Royal Chapel, and a second grandchild, Tippe Lumbye, conducted the Tivoli Orchestra.

In 1872 Lumbye had to stop as an orchestra leader and conductor, for he was weak and hard of hearing. In May 1873 he conducted the last time the champagne gallop at a concert - sitting. Lumbye died on 20 March 1874.

The Tivoli

1843 was the amusement park in the heart of Copenhagen, the Tivoli opened. Lumbye was there from the beginning. The man who had the idea for the amusement park, called Georg Carstensen. He put the amusement park at the old city walls outside Copenhagen. Copenhagen has since grown so much that the Tivoli is now in the town center.

In the concert hall of Tivoli Lumbye played with his orchestra from spring to early autumn. When the Tivoli was closed for the winter, Lumbye played with his orchestra in Copenhagen theaters and at festivals in Copenhagen better society, or they made concert tours throughout Denmark or abroad.

In 1847, the orchestra leader Füssel raised against Lumbye and the management of the Tivoli lawsuit. Füssel said that he had the sole right to the dance music production in Copenhagen. Füssel lost his suit, and Lumbye continued his success. Lumbyes orchestra was getting bigger and respected. Lumbyes orchestra also took lighter symphonic music into the program, and Lumbyes musicians made ​​the fundamental parent in the orchestra of the Copenhagen Musical Society since 1850. This orchestra was led by Niels Wilhelm Gade.

During the winter months in the years 1844 to 1846 Lumbye visited with his orchestra Paris, Vienna and Berlin. In 1850 he spent five months in St. Petersburg, and later he again visited Paris, Berlin and Hamburg as well as Sweden. Even the larger cities in Denmark were visited. Lumbyes Orchestra still exists today; in summer it is called Symphony of Tivoli, and in winter it is called Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

The Music

Lumbye has written more than 700 pieces of music. He is among the very few Danish composer whose music abroad is known and played. Where the Strauss family and Joseph Lanner in Vienna mostly wrote waltzes, Lumbye composed a lot Galoppe, mazurkas, polkas and marches. In addition, he also wrote an extended divertissement and fantasies. He also composed ballet music for the royal theater and music for plays, such as Pieces of Hans Christian Andersen.

Lumbye was quick and current. He wrote music when something extraordinary happened in the city, and he wrote songs in honor of the royal family and other prominent people. Almost hundred of his melodies have female names as the title.

His orchestra had a special structure in comparison to today's concert orchestra. The string section was quite small in comparison to the group of wind instruments. In addition Lumbye used a lot of noise devices, bells and Zitars etc.

His most popular piece of music is the champagne gallop, but a whole series of works is still performed today. The dream images, the Concert Polka for two violins ( first performed by his sons ), The Copenhagen Railway Galop, Kroll ball sounds of the waltz Amalie, Mon Salut à St. Petersbourg are all examples of its production.

Lumbye has been called the bouquet of the North. It is said that Strauss senior one of the concerts in Lumbyes visited Vienna in 1844; maybe he wanted to boo Lumbye, but he liked the music, and after the concert he was enthusiastic. The French composer Hector Berlioz is said to have said the following: "His waltzes are not only attractive and beautiful but also well- written and well- orchestrated ... without Charlatanerei. " The truth is that Lumbye Strauss was inspired, but he utilized his inspiration, unlike the Viennese composer family.

• Composer ( romance )
• Danish composer
• Born in 1810
• Died in 1874
• Man