Leopold Damrosch
Leopold Damrosch ( born October 22, 1832 in Poznan, † February 15, 1885 in New York City ) was a German composer, conductor, violinist and music teacher.
Life
Damrosch, who came from a Jewish family, studied according to the wish of his parents in Berlin medicine, but continued his earlier passionate operated musical studies continued at the same time, by taking the concertmaster Ries on violin, Dehn in the composition lessons, and went finally, after he had received his doctorate in 1854 as a doctor, much to the art above. His debut as a violinist in Magdeburg ( 1855), then in Berlin ( 1856) was successful; soon afterwards appointed him Liszt in the Grand Ducal Chapel in Weimar; In 1858 he became conductor of the Orchestral Society at Breslau in 1866 and Kapellmeister of the local town theater. He was a strong supporter of new music ( Berlioz, Wagner, Liszt) and entered as a conductor and as a writer (in the " Neue Zeitschrift für Musik " ) for them.
In 1872 Damrosch moved to New York, where he took to as conductor of the Sing Association Arion and the newly founded by him clubs Oratorio Society ( 1873) and New York Symphony Society (1878 ), as well as a writer, violinist and singing teacher a respected position. He was a Freemason and initiated in 1881 during the centenary of the Grand Lodge of New York the musical part of the great hard work.
Family
1858 Damrosch married Helene von Heimburg, an opera singer. Children:
- Three sons died in infancy in Germany: Richard, Ernst and Hans.
- Frank Damrosch was choirmaster and teacher,
- Walter Damrosch worked as a composer and conductor,
- Marie, married Ferdinand Wiechmann,
- Clara, married David man - the only musical of the Daughters
- Elizabeth, married Henry T. Seymour.
Work
Among his numerous compositions especially his songs ( 12 issues ), a Violin Concerto and some choral works ( "Bride singing ", " Ruth and Naomi " ) are to be mentioned.
Monument
The sculptor Friedrich Helbig from bladder joke in Dresden created as his last major work, the Monument to the bandmaster of the German Opera in New York.