Caspar Joseph Brambach
Encyclopedia
Caspar Joseph Brambach born 14 July 1833 in Oberdollendorf
, North Rhine-Westphalia
, died 20 June 1902 in Bonn
, Westphalia
, was a famous 19th century German musician
, pedagog, composer
whose reputation extended beyond Germany to America, and a renowned conductor
of the leading choirs
in Bonn.
He was the son of organ builder, piano tuner and music teacher Franz Jacob Brambach. Brambach's mother, born Lückerath, was the daughter of the free-roving puppet master builder Lückerath. Caspar Joseph Brambach was born the same year as Johannes Brahms
.
and Carl Reinecke
before he himself became a teacher in 1858.
In 1861 he was appointed municipal music director in Bonn, where he led performances of classical oratorios of Bach
, Haydn, Handel
and other famous composers. He retired from this position in 1869 to devote himself entirely to his compositions and the musical life in Bonn. The same year Brambach got married to Magdalena Gohr. From 1862 to 1877 he conducted the Men's Choir "Concordia" and from 1861 to 1869 the Municipal Choral Society, now known as the Bonn Philharmonic Choir.
In the obituaries of his time,His obituary is inscribed on the General Gazette of 21 June 1902, No. 4428 the importance of Caspar Joseph Brambach as a musician and his work in the city of Bonn was highlighted. It was also added that he was one of the kindest and most unselfish people, no one will forget.
who, for some time during his high school years, was taught by him.Schillings was taught by Brambach from 1879 on.
Friedrich Nietzsche
was asked by Brambach for advice someday whether he should become a musician or a scholar. Brambach, whose works are almost forgotten today, was known primarily as a composer of works for male choir, besides writing numerous songs among which the melody of the Bergische anthem resembles his best known song.The Bergisch home song is the anthem of the Bergisch land. The text was taken from Hartkopf Solinger Rudolf (1859-1944) and the melody from Caspar Joseph Brambach. Almost all singers on festivals of the time, in Leipzig
, Munich
and Wien
, sung Brambach's compositions, sometimes even in the presence of the imperial family.
Brambach music style corresponds to the post-Mendelssohn era, with a very cantabile mood which stands out from the majority of his contemporaries. Many admirers among musicians, conductors, the general public and no less a figure than Hans von Bülow
(1830 - 1894) himself, one of the most important musical personalities of the German music history in the 19th Century spoke highly not only of his most recognised work, but mainly of the Piano Concerto Op. 39.
Oberdollendorf
Oberdollendorf is a suburb of Königswinter, a town and summer resort in the Rhein-Sieg district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated between the right bank of the Rhine and the Siebengebirge mountain range...
, North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
, died 20 June 1902 in Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
, Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
, was a famous 19th century German musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, pedagog, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
whose reputation extended beyond Germany to America, and a renowned conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
of the leading choirs
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
in Bonn.
He was the son of organ builder, piano tuner and music teacher Franz Jacob Brambach. Brambach's mother, born Lückerath, was the daughter of the free-roving puppet master builder Lückerath. Caspar Joseph Brambach was born the same year as Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
.
Life
The young Caspar Joseph Brambach spent his first years in his native town Oberdollendorf, where he received his first music lessons from his father, which continued after he passed in Bonn elementary and high school and at the Conservatory of Music at the City of Cologne. After that, Brambach followed his musical career as first violinist of the Bonn Opera House between 1847 and 1850, and from 1851 to 1854 he studied at the Cologne Conservatory, which promoted young composers and where he was awarded with a string quartet and various songs for the Mozart scholarship at Frankfurt Liederkranz. Later he studied there as a private pupil of Ferdinand HillerFerdinand Hiller
Ferdinand Hiller was a German composer, conductor, writer and music-director.-Biography:Ferdinand Hiller was born to a wealthy Jewish family in Frankfurt am Main, where his father Justus was a merchant in English textiles – a business eventually continued by Ferdinand’s brother Joseph...
and Carl Reinecke
Carl Reinecke
Carl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke was a German composer, conductor, and pianist.-Biography:Reinecke was born in Altona, Hamburg, Germany; until 1864 the town was under Danish rule. He studied with his father, Johann Peter Rudolph Reinecke, a music teacher...
before he himself became a teacher in 1858.
In 1861 he was appointed municipal music director in Bonn, where he led performances of classical oratorios of Bach
Bạch
Bạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
, Haydn, Handel
HANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
and other famous composers. He retired from this position in 1869 to devote himself entirely to his compositions and the musical life in Bonn. The same year Brambach got married to Magdalena Gohr. From 1862 to 1877 he conducted the Men's Choir "Concordia" and from 1861 to 1869 the Municipal Choral Society, now known as the Bonn Philharmonic Choir.
Death
On 20 June 1902 Brambach died in his home in Bonn, Wet 9th Street. His funeral was accompanied by singers from all over Germany. With great sympathy of the German minstrelsy, two years after his death a memorial designed by the architect Karl Senff was built on his grave at the cemetery in Poppelsdorfer. The relief on his donated, well elaborate tomb is signed by the Bad Honnef sculptor Charles Menser (1872-1929) and bears the inscription "Dedicated to German singers."Even 25 years after his death, Brambach was honored by an American delegation headed by Mark P. Campbell on behalf of the "Music Industries Chamber of Commerce" at the Beethoven Festival in Bonn in 1927. It is now a grave of honor, located under the Cross Mountain Church and which obtained from the City of Bonn the number 278/279.In the obituaries of his time,His obituary is inscribed on the General Gazette of 21 June 1902, No. 4428 the importance of Caspar Joseph Brambach as a musician and his work in the city of Bonn was highlighted. It was also added that he was one of the kindest and most unselfish people, no one will forget.
Considerations
From 1861 until his death Brambach was no longer in evidence in the European musical scene as a performing musician always acclaimed by the masses, devoting himself entirely to music works and the training of young musicians in private lessons.His retreat was probably also a result of infighting that reduced its work force but not in any way. One of his most important pupils was Max von SchillingsMax von Schillings
Max von Schillings was a German conductor, composer and theatre director. He was chief conductor at the Berlin State Opera from 1919 to 1925....
who, for some time during his high school years, was taught by him.Schillings was taught by Brambach from 1879 on.
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
was asked by Brambach for advice someday whether he should become a musician or a scholar. Brambach, whose works are almost forgotten today, was known primarily as a composer of works for male choir, besides writing numerous songs among which the melody of the Bergische anthem resembles his best known song.The Bergisch home song is the anthem of the Bergisch land. The text was taken from Hartkopf Solinger Rudolf (1859-1944) and the melody from Caspar Joseph Brambach. Almost all singers on festivals of the time, in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
and Wien
Wien
Wien is the German language name for Vienna, the city and federal state in Austria.* Wien , in Vienna, Austria* Theater an der Wien, a theater in Vienna located at the former river WienWien may also refer to:...
, sung Brambach's compositions, sometimes even in the presence of the imperial family.
Brambach music style corresponds to the post-Mendelssohn era, with a very cantabile mood which stands out from the majority of his contemporaries. Many admirers among musicians, conductors, the general public and no less a figure than Hans von Bülow
Hans von Bülow
Hans Guido Freiherr von Bülow was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. He was one of the most famous conductors of the 19th century, and his activity was critical for establishing the successes of several major composers of the time, including Richard...
(1830 - 1894) himself, one of the most important musical personalities of the German music history in the 19th Century spoke highly not only of his most recognised work, but mainly of the Piano Concerto Op. 39.
Music
Brambach's best works are his cantatas The Eleusinian Festival, A Hymn to Spring, The Power of Prometheus, Lorelei and the choral work Columbus, which acquired recognition in the U.S. where he was awarded a prize. He also wrote the opera Ariadne and several minor pieces, which were very popular in his time. His best instrumental works date from the last third of the 19th century. Among them are:- Sextet in c minor, Op. 5 (for 2 violins, 2 violas, cello and piano)
- Piano Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 14
- Piano Quartet in a minor, Op. 43
- Violin Sonata in d minor, Op. 55
- Violin Sonata in a minor, Op. 74
- Piano Quartet in g minor, Op. 110
Books
- Josef Niesen, Bonner Personenlexikon, 2nd Edition, Bouvier Verlag, Bonn 2008.
- Karl J. Brambach, For TTBB Men's Choir a cappella. Published by Tonos Music (TO.234)
- Karl J. Brambach, Bergisches Heimatlied for Male voice choir (TTBB) Published by Tonos Musikverlags GmbH
External links
- Compositions by: Brambach, Carl Joseph on the International Music Score Library ProjectInternational Music Score Library ProjectThe International Music Score Library Project , also known as the Petrucci Music Library after publisher Ottaviano Petrucci, is a project for the creation of a virtual library of public domain music scores, based on the wiki principle...