Johan Wikmanson
Encyclopedia
Johan Wikmanson was a Swedish
organist and composer
.
As a composer, Wikmanson is remembered above all for his string quartet
s. He composed five string quartets, none which were published during his lifetime. After his early death of tuberculosis in 1800, his close friend Gustav Silverstolpe published, at his own expense, what he considered to be the three best, titling them Opus 1. Later, Silverstolpe gave the rights to the well-known German publisher Breitkopf and Härtel, hoping they would publish the quartets and hence give them wider circulation. However, this appears not to have happened. No new edition appeared for more than 170 years. In the 1970s the Swedish firm of Edition Reimers published all three quartets of the Op.1 and recently (2006) Edition Silvertrust brought out a new edition of String Quartet No.1 in d minor, Op.1 No.1
It is not known exactly when the Opus 1 string quartets, as Silverstolpe styled them, were composed. They were not, however, his first work and probably among his last works. Of the five quartets, most scholars believe the so-called First Quartet was probably his fifth and last. There is evidence to support this in that Silverstolpe selected what he considered the strongest work to be placed first in the set of three which he published. This was common practice because it was generally felt that the first work of a published set had to be very strong to interest players in any of the others of the set. The weakest was usually placed in the middle and another strong work at the end. The Op.1 Quartets were dedicated to Haydn, albeit posthumously. Though Wikmanson did not know Haydn personally, it is clear that he was familiar with Haydn's quartets, including the Op.76 which were published in 1799, the year before his death. Haydn for his part, was very impressed by these works and tried, unsuccessfully, to stimulate interest in them.
String Quartet No.1 is in four movements--Allegro--Adagio--Minuetto and Allegro. Critics consider it the equal of any of Haydn's Op.64 quartets and, in some ways, in advance of them, particularly in its excellent use of the viola and cello. The most striking movement is the Adagio, a powerful funeral march--which was performed at Wikmanson's own funeral. It is reminiscent of the slow movement to Haydn's Op.20 No.2, one of the finest Haydn ever wrote. The minuet is also grave in mood although its lovely trio is much like an Austrian Ländler. The finale features a wild racing melody with a surprise ending.
Wikmanson also wrote two operas, Äfventyraren (1791) and Eremiten (1798). Both premiered in Stockholm.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
organist and 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...
.
Biography
Wikmanson was born in Stockholm and, except for 18 months spent in Copenhagen studying mathematics and instrument making, lived his entire life in the Swedish capital. He was a superb organist and for many years held the post of organist at the Storkyrkan, Stockholm's principal church. He was also an accomplished cellist. Nonetheless, like most Swedish musicians of this era, he was unable to earn his living solely as a practicing musician and was forced to find employment as a government accountant, working for the Royal Swedish National Lottery. He did, however, obtain some recognition during his lifetime. In 1788, he was made a member of the Swedish Royal Academy and later was put in charge of its music program.As a composer, Wikmanson is remembered above all for his string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
s. He composed five string quartets, none which were published during his lifetime. After his early death of tuberculosis in 1800, his close friend Gustav Silverstolpe published, at his own expense, what he considered to be the three best, titling them Opus 1. Later, Silverstolpe gave the rights to the well-known German publisher Breitkopf and Härtel, hoping they would publish the quartets and hence give them wider circulation. However, this appears not to have happened. No new edition appeared for more than 170 years. In the 1970s the Swedish firm of Edition Reimers published all three quartets of the Op.1 and recently (2006) Edition Silvertrust brought out a new edition of String Quartet No.1 in d minor, Op.1 No.1
It is not known exactly when the Opus 1 string quartets, as Silverstolpe styled them, were composed. They were not, however, his first work and probably among his last works. Of the five quartets, most scholars believe the so-called First Quartet was probably his fifth and last. There is evidence to support this in that Silverstolpe selected what he considered the strongest work to be placed first in the set of three which he published. This was common practice because it was generally felt that the first work of a published set had to be very strong to interest players in any of the others of the set. The weakest was usually placed in the middle and another strong work at the end. The Op.1 Quartets were dedicated to Haydn, albeit posthumously. Though Wikmanson did not know Haydn personally, it is clear that he was familiar with Haydn's quartets, including the Op.76 which were published in 1799, the year before his death. Haydn for his part, was very impressed by these works and tried, unsuccessfully, to stimulate interest in them.
String Quartet No.1 is in four movements--Allegro--Adagio--Minuetto and Allegro. Critics consider it the equal of any of Haydn's Op.64 quartets and, in some ways, in advance of them, particularly in its excellent use of the viola and cello. The most striking movement is the Adagio, a powerful funeral march--which was performed at Wikmanson's own funeral. It is reminiscent of the slow movement to Haydn's Op.20 No.2, one of the finest Haydn ever wrote. The minuet is also grave in mood although its lovely trio is much like an Austrian Ländler. The finale features a wild racing melody with a surprise ending.
Wikmanson also wrote two operas, Äfventyraren (1791) and Eremiten (1798). Both premiered in Stockholm.
External links
- Johan Wikmanson String Quartet No.1 at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...