Jan August Vitásek
Encyclopedia
Jan Matyáš Nepomuk August Vitásek (or Johann Matthias Wittasek/Wittaschek) (March 23, 1770, Hořín
, Bohemia
– December 7, 1839) was a Bohemia
n composer.
Vitásek was born at Hořín
. He studied under his father and then under František Xaver Dušek
and Leopold Kozeluch
, the latter of whom he would succeed in the position of music director in 1814 at the Cathedral of St. Vitus in Prague. Vitásek remained in Prague for the rest of his life and became one of the city's leading musical figures, even refusing an offer of a directorship at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna. He became the director of the organ school for a Bohemian organization called the Society for the Promotion of Church Music in 1830. He died in Prague
.
Vitásek's compositional output includes one opera
(David, 1810), twelve mass
es, seven requiem
s, many other choral works both sacred
and secular, some symphonies
, concerto
s, chamber music
, and preludes and fugues for organ
. In 1823–24, he was one of the 50 composers who composed a variation on a waltz by Anton Diabelli
for Vaterländischer Künstlerverein
.
Hořín
Hořín is a village and municipality in Mělník District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. There are only one groceries, which are opposite of burial vault of the family of Lobkowicz....
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
– December 7, 1839) was a Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
n composer.
Vitásek was born at Hořín
Hořín
Hořín is a village and municipality in Mělník District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. There are only one groceries, which are opposite of burial vault of the family of Lobkowicz....
. He studied under his father and then under František Xaver Dušek
František Xaver Dušek
František Xaver Dušek , was a Czech composer and one of the most important harpsichordists and pianists of his time....
and Leopold Kozeluch
Leopold Kozeluch
Leopold Kozeluch was a Czech composer and teacher of classical music. He was born in the town of Velvary, in Bohemia .-Life:...
, the latter of whom he would succeed in the position of music director in 1814 at the Cathedral of St. Vitus in Prague. Vitásek remained in Prague for the rest of his life and became one of the city's leading musical figures, even refusing an offer of a directorship at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna. He became the director of the organ school for a Bohemian organization called the Society for the Promotion of Church Music in 1830. He died in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
.
Vitásek's compositional output includes one 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...
(David, 1810), twelve mass
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
es, seven requiem
Requiem
A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead or Mass of the dead , is a Mass celebrated for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, using a particular form of the Roman Missal...
s, many other choral works both sacred
Sacred
Holiness, or sanctity, is in general the state of being holy or sacred...
and secular, some symphonies
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, 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 preludes and fugues for organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
. In 1823–24, he was one of the 50 composers who composed a variation on a waltz by Anton Diabelli
Anton Diabelli
Anton Diabelli was an Austrian music publisher, editor and composer of Italian descent. Best known in his time as a publisher, he is most familiar today as the composer of the waltz on which Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his set of thirty-three Diabelli Variations.-Early life:Diabelli was born in...
for Vaterländischer Künstlerverein
Vaterländischer Künstlerverein
Vaterländischer Künstlerverein was a collaborative musical publication or anthology, incorporating 83 variations for piano on a theme by Anton Diabelli, written by 51 composers living in or associated with Austria. It was published in two parts in 1823 and 1824, by firms headed by Diabelli. It...
.