Ignaz Holzbauer
Encyclopedia
Ignaz Jakob Holzbauer was a composer of symphonies
, concerto
s, opera
s, and chamber music
, and a member of the Mannheim school
. His aesthetic style is in line with that of the Sturm und Drang
"movement" of German art and literature.
Holzbauer was born in Vienna
. His operas include Il figlio delle selve, which was the opening performance of the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
in 1753. Its success led to a job offer from the court at Mannheim, where he stayed for the rest of his life, continuing to compose and to teach, his students including Johann Anton Friedrich Fleischmann
(1766-1798), the pianist
, and Carl Stamitz
. Holzbauer died in Mannheim
, Germany.
His opera Günther von Schwarzburg
, based on the life of the eponymous king
(and described here), was an early German national opera, a performance of which Mozart
and his sister attended, through which they met Anton Raaff
, who was later to premiere a role in Idomeneo
. This opera has recently been recorded on the label cpo.
Mozart also composed nine numbers
for insertion in a Miserere
by Holzbauer on commission by the Parisian Concert Spirituel
in 1778, but they have been lost. They have been given the catalog number KV
297a in the list of Mozart's works.
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
, concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
s, opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s, and chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
, and a member of the Mannheim school
Mannheim school
Mannheim school refers to both the orchestral techniques pioneered by the court orchestra of Mannheim in the latter half of the 18th century as well as the group of composers who wrote such music for the orchestra of Mannheim and others.-History:...
. His aesthetic style is in line with that of the Sturm und Drang
Sturm und Drang
Sturm und Drang is a proto-Romantic movement in German literature and music taking place from the late 1760s through the early 1780s, in which individual subjectivity and, in particular, extremes of emotion were given free expression in reaction to the perceived constraints of rationalism...
"movement" of German art and literature.
Holzbauer was born in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. His operas include Il figlio delle selve, which was the opening performance of the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
Schlosstheater Schwetzingen
Schlosstheater Schwetzingen is a theater in Schwetzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The historic building, opened in 1753, is part of the Schwetzingen Castle and since 1952 the principal venue of the Schwetzingen Festival. It is also called Hoftheater , Hofoper , and Comoedienhaus...
in 1753. Its success led to a job offer from the court at Mannheim, where he stayed for the rest of his life, continuing to compose and to teach, his students including Johann Anton Friedrich Fleischmann
Johann Anton Friedrich Fleischmann
Johann Friedrich Anton Fleischmann was a German composer....
(1766-1798), the pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, and Carl Stamitz
Carl Stamitz
Karl Philipp Stamitz , who later changed his given name to Carl, was a German composer of partial Czech ancestry , and a violin, viola and viola d'amore virtuoso...
. Holzbauer died in Mannheim
Mannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
, Germany.
His opera Günther von Schwarzburg
Günther von Schwarzburg (opera)
Günther von Schwarzburg is a Singspiel in three acts by Ignaz Holzbauer set to a German libretto by Anton Klein. Loosely based on events in the life of the 14th century German king, Günther von Schwarzburg, the opera premiered on 5 January 1777 at the Hoftheater in the Mannheim...
, based on the life of the eponymous king
Günther von Schwarzburg
Günther XXI von Schwarzburg , German king, was a descendant of the counts of Schwarzburg and the younger son of Henry VII, count of Blankenburg....
(and described here), was an early German national opera, a performance of which Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
and his sister attended, through which they met Anton Raaff
Anton Raaff
Anton Raaff was a German tenor from Gelsdorf near Bonn.-Career:He studied at the Jesuit school in Bonn where the Elector of Bavaria, Clement Augustus, heard him singing and paid for him to train professionally. Raaff was brought to the capital, Munich, where he was engaged on an annual salary of...
, who was later to premiere a role in Idomeneo
Idomeneo
Idomeneo, re di Creta ossia Ilia e Idamante is an Italian language opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The libretto was adapted by Giambattista Varesco from a French text by Antoine Danchet, which had been set to music by André Campra as Idoménée in 1712...
. This opera has recently been recorded on the label cpo.
Mozart also composed nine numbers
Number (music)
A number in music is a self-contained piece that is combined with other such pieces in a performance. In a concert of popular music, for example, the individual songs or pieces performed are often referred to as "numbers." The term is applied also to sections of large vocal works when the...
for insertion in a Miserere
Miserere
Miserere may refer to:* Psalm 51, and its musical settings:** Miserere ** Miserere ** Miserere * Miserere by Zucchero* Plaza Miserere, a plaza in Buenos Aires...
by Holzbauer on commission by the Parisian Concert Spirituel
Concert Spirituel
The Concert Spirituel was one of the first public concert series in existence. The concerts began in Paris in 1725 and ended in 1790; later, concerts or series of concerts of the same name occurred in Paris, Vienna, London and elsewhere...
in 1778, but they have been lost. They have been given the catalog number KV
Köchel-Verzeichnis
The Köchel-Verzeichnis is a complete, chronological catalogue of compositions by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart which was originally created by Ludwig von Köchel. It is abbreviated K or KV. For example, Mozart's Requiem in D minor was, according to Köchel's counting, the 626th piece Mozart composed....
297a in the list of Mozart's works.
Operas
- Lucio Papirio (dramma per musicaDramma per musicaDramma per musica is a term which was used by dramatists in Italy and elsewhere between the late-17th and mid-19th centuries...
, libretto by Apostolo ZenoApostolo ZenoApostolo Zeno was a Venetian poet, librettist, journalist, and man of letters.-Early life:Apostolo Zeno was born of Cretan Greek descent in Venice in 1669...
, 1737, Holleschau) - Sesostri, re d'Egitto (dramma per musica, libretto by Zeno, 1738, Holleschau)
- Vologeso (dramma per musica, libretto by Zeno, 1739, Holleschau)
- La fata meravigliosa (dramma giocosoDramma giocosoDramma giocoso is the name of a genre of opera common in the mid-18th century. The term is a contraction of "dramma giocoso per musica" and is essentially a description of the text rather than the opera as a whole...
per musica, 1748, Vienna) - Il figlio delle selve (favola pastorale per musica, libretto by Carlo Sigismondo Capece, 1753, Schwetzingen)
- L'isola disabitata (azione per musica, libretto by Pietro Metastasio, 1754, Schwetzingen)
- L'Isspile (dramma per musica, libretto by Metastasio, 1754, Mannheim)
- Il Don Chisciotte (opera semiridicola, libretto by Zeno, 1755, Schwetzingen)
- I cinesi (componimento drammatico per musica, libretto by Metastasio and Mattia Verazi, 1756, Schwetzingen)
- Le nozze d'Arianna (festa teatraleFesta teatraleThe term festa teatrale refers to a genre of drama, and of opera in particular. The genre cannot be rigidly defined, and in any case feste teatrali tend to be split into two different sets: feste teatrali divided by acts are operas, while works in this genre performed without division, or merely...
per musica, libretto by Verazi, 1756, Schwetzingen) - La clemenza di Tito (dramma per musica, libretto by Metastasio and Verazi, 1757, Mannheim)
- Nitteti (dramma per musica, libretto by Metastasio, 1758, Mannheim)
- Alessandro nell'Indie (dramma per musica, libretto by Metastasio, 1759, MilanMilanMilan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
) - Ippolito ed Aricia (dramma per musica, libretto by Carlo Innocenzo Frugoni and Verazi, 1759, Mannheim)
- Günther von SchwarzburgGünther von Schwarzburg (opera)Günther von Schwarzburg is a Singspiel in three acts by Ignaz Holzbauer set to a German libretto by Anton Klein. Loosely based on events in the life of the 14th century German king, Günther von Schwarzburg, the opera premiered on 5 January 1777 at the Hoftheater in the Mannheim...
(singspielSingspielA Singspiel is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera...
, libretto by Anton Klein, 1777, Mannheim) - La morte di Didone (revised as Tod der Dido) (singspiel, based on a libretto by Metastasio, 1779, Mannheim)
- Tancredi (dramma per musica, 1783, MonacoMonacoMonaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
)