Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Johann Nepomuk Hummel ( born November 14, 1778 in Bratislava, † October 17, 1837 in Weimar) was an Austrian composer and pianist.
Life
Johann Nepomuk Hummel's father, John Hummel, before music master at the Military pen in Wartberg, moved in 1786 with his family to Vienna to work as a conductor at Emanuel Schikaneder's Theater auf der Wieden. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart took the talented Johann Nepomuk on in his household, and gave him free lessons. 1788-1793 took the young piano virtuoso accompanied by his father's concert tours to Denmark and England. After his return to Vienna, he studied composition with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger and Antonio Salieri.
1804 Bumblebee on Joseph Haydn's recommendation, his successor as Kapellmeister to Prince Esterházy; where he worked for seven years until he was dismissed on account of discrepancies. On May 16, 1813, he married in Vienna, the opera singer Elisabeth Rockel; one of the witnesses was Salieri. Two sons, who later became bandmaster Edward Hummel and the later painter Carl Hummel was born in 1814 and 1821. 1816-1818 was Johann Nepomuk Hummel Kapellmeister in Stuttgart, from 1819 Kapellmeister in Weimar. Here he worked as a music teacher of the 1811 -born Augusta of Saxe- Weimar -Eisenach, who later became Queen of Prussia and German Empress.
Hummel acquired great merit by significantly campaigned for uniform copyright laws within the states of the German Confederation. Opposite end of life faded, his fame; yet he died as one of the first composers of the rich musical history. His grave is located in the Historical Cemetery of Weimar.
After Hummel's death Liszt made the construction of a bumblebee Memorial in Bratislava, by giving a series of benefit concerts; the Bumblebee bust right in front of the German Embassy there is from 1887, the Bumblebee bust behind the National Theatre in Weimar from 1895. since 1898 carries a street in Vienna's Hietzing in memory of Johann Nepomuk Hummel called " Hummelgasse ".
The composer
Hummel publications include six concertos for piano and orchestra, eight piano sonatas (including two for four hands ), numerous other compositions for solo piano and chamber music; He also composed a number of operas and operettas, cantatas and masses. Only symphonies missing in his catalog; he probably did not want to compare in this area with Ludwig van Beethoven.
Under Hummels works for piano solo especially the fantasy -flat major Op practiced. 18 and the Sonata in F sharp minor Op. 81 great influence on the contemporaries of, for example, Franz Schubert and Felix Mendelssohn. Hummel's influence is also in the early works of Frédéric Chopin and Robert Schumann clearly visible. Among his chamber works is the Septet in D minor for piano, flute, oboe, horn, viola, cello and double bass Op. 74 remarkable, as the quintet Es-Dur/es-Moll for piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass Op. 87, which anticipates the occupation of Schubert's Trout Quintet.
From undiminished importance of the Concerto in E flat major is (actually E major ) whose first sentence is a standard work for entrance exams and orchestral preludes for trumpet and orchestra, today.
Hummel's music represents the transition from the classical to the romantic era. This can be well on his compositions for flute track: The early works are similar to those of his teacher Mozart, the middle are early romantic. The later work is highly romantic virtuoso character.
Works
- Catalog of works by opus numbers at IMSLP
The pianist and piano teacher
Hummel was regarded as the most important pianist of his time, and in this capacity in addition to Joseph Cub as fiercest competitor Beethoven, whom he was associated in crisis- prone friendship. Like Beethoven, Hummel was a great improviser; after Beethoven's death and its customization accordingly he improvised during the funeral service about topics of the deceased.
Late in his career worked his piano playing some old-fashioned; he still preferred the smooth and bright sounding Viennese fortepiano, whereas the dynamic English and French instruments had prevailed in the concert world. During the game he sat very quiet, even in coping with the highest game of technical difficulties; His ideal was the "right and beautiful presentation".
He was a sought-after piano teacher and trained many well-known musicians, including Ferdinand Hiller, Adolf Henselt, Sigismund Thalberg, and Friedrich Silcherstraße for a short time Mendelssohn. Even Liszt pupil Carl Czerny wanted originally take at Hummel teaching, but whose fees claimed was too high. Czerny himself, although Beethoven students, estimated Hummels game and advice.
1828 Hummel published his three-volume detailed theoretical and Practical instruction for piano -forte game that illustrates a "thorough " Übepraxis basis of numerous musical examples.
Memberships
1820 Hummel was initiated in the Weimar Lodge Amalia, who also belonged to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, as a Freemason. Hummel was a member of the Institut de France, the Société des Enfants d' Apollon, the Legion of Honour, the Geneva Société de Musique, the Dutch Maatschappij tot Bevordering the Toonkunst, the Vienna Society of Friends of Music, the London Philharmonic Society, the Weimar House Order of the White Falcon and, in contrast to the Protestant court of Weimar, the Catholic Church.