20 Easy Listening Piano Classics
HAENDEL Georg Friedrich
(1685 - 1759)
A naturalized English composer of
German origin, Haendel was adept at
drawing on all the influences of his
time for the types of repertoire he
worked in. As a result, he would
mark the end of the Baroque era
with his own unique musical style.
Haendel composed more than forty
opera seria in the Italian style,
twenty-two oratorios, two passions
and various instrumental works. His
elegant music was also powerfully
dramatic, less rigorous than the
contemporary Bach's, and was well-
known throughout all of Europe.
Georg Friedrich Haendel was born on the 23rd of
February, 1685 in Halle, Germany. He was the second-
born child of a barber-surgeon and the young daughter
of a minister. His father did not intend him to pursue
music as a career, but saw to it that he received
training on the organ and harpsichord because his
talents were so obvious. As a result, Handel was placed
under the tutelage of the most celebrated organist of
his city, Friedrich Wilhelm Zachau.
In 1702, after proving his talent for composition by
completing a few sonatas, he was engaged as the
organist for the cathedral at Halle. At the same time, he
enrolled at the university in order to study law. It was
here that he encountered Telemann. But the discovery
of opera drew him away from his career as a church
musician. Motivated by an ambition to work in this
genre, Handel, Handel left Halle in 1704 to move to
Hamburg, one of the great musical capitals of Europe
and a place where the operatic genre dominated. At the
opera, he worked as a second violin player, and later as
a harpsichordist. He composed his first two operas at
this time, including Almira, which afforded him some
relative success. Later in 1706, he undertook a journey
to Italy, from Florence to Rome, where encountered the
works of Domenico Scarlatti as well as opera seria. he
wrote several oratorios including The Resurrection
(1708) and Il triomfo del tempo that was later
conducted by Arcangelo Corelli.
He also wrote the serenade Aci Galatea e Polifemo for the
wedding of Duke Alvito and several operas of which
Agrippina enjoyed a triumphant premiere in Venice on the
26th of December, 1709. In 1710, Haendel left Italy for
the court of Hanover in Germany where he was appointed
Kappelmeister. But no sooner had he arrived than he took
advantage of a first leave to travel to London. There he
wrote the opera Rinaldo for the Queen's Theatre in
Haymarket. He also wrote specifically for the Queen, who
endowed him with a stipend.
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
.
.
In 1712, Haendel returned temporarily to Hanover and then
left the city permanently for London where his Utrecht Te
Deum and Jubilate, in the tradition of Purcell, were
performed at Saint Paul's Cathedral during the following
year. In 1714, the Elector of Hanover succeeded to the
British throne as George the First of England, an incident
that coincided with the doubling of Haendel's stipend. The
composer later wrote the music for a nautical party hosted
by the king, a group of works that we now refer to simply
as Water Music (1717). Under the patronage of the Duke of
Chandos between 1717 and 1720, Haendel also composed
several harpsichord suites, a collection of psalm settings
called the Chandos Anthems, the sacred oratorio Esther
(1718), the secular oratorio Acis and Galatea (1718) and
grand motets for choir, soli and orchestra (1717-20).
In 1719, Haendel became the Director of the Royal
Academy of Music and devoted much of his attention at this
time to recruiting musicians. In the following year, the
Academy opened its doors, and enjoyed considerable
success. However, financial problems began to emerge
fairly quickly and the Academy eventually crumbled in
bankruptcy in 1728. But during this period, Haendel wrote
some of his most important operas, Radamisto (1720),
Julius Cesar (1724), Tamerlano (1724), and Rodelinda
(1725). He also complete the four Coronation Anthems for
the coronation of George the Second in 1727.
In 1728, the year in which he became a naturalized English
citizen, Haendel put together his own theatrical company.
But problems of competition and rivalry lead him once
again into financial straits and he was obliged to give up the
company in 1734. In addition, an attack of paralysis
suffered in 1736 prevented him from further forays into the
business of operatic production even though he had already
recruited a new troupe. He left England to recover in the
more temperate climes of Aix-la-Chapelle. During this
period, from 1728 to 1740, Haendel composed between one
and two Italian operas per year, and oratorios including
Deborah (1733), Athalia (1733) and Saul (1739). He also
completed works for the concert stage, such as the Solo
Concertos (1736), the twelve Concerti grossi (1739), and
the Ode to Saint Cecilia (1739)
After 1741 and his fortieth and final opera Deidamia,
Haendel turned entirely towards English oratorio and in the
space of twenty-four days produced Messiah, a work that
conquered its Dublin audience of 1742 no less than its
London counterpart of the following year. Until 1751,
Haendel turned out about twenty oratorios including
Samson (1743) and Solomon (1749), but he also wrote six
organ concerti as well as the Dettingen Te Deum and the
Fireworks Music as part of the celebrations for the victory of
George the Second in France and the peace of Aix la
Chapelle respectively.
In 1750, Haendel's health was further compromised by a
carriage accident. In the following year, he underwent a
failed cataract operation and he suffered progressive
blindness as a result. Nonetheless, he continued to perform
as an organ improviser and to conduct from memory. In
1759, he slipped into unconsciousness during a
performance of Messiah and died shortly afterwards on April
14th in London.
Haendel was one of the first figures of music history to
have his biography (1760), as well as his entire works
published. His operas and oratorios were written for an
enlightened bourgeois society. His dramatic oratorios,
which he created by drawing on the traditions of opera,
served as models for composers of the Classic and
Romantic eras (of Joseph Haydn and Felix Mendelssohn),
while his operas languished in obscurity until their revivals
during the twentieth century, an era in which he would be
most well-known for the Water Music and Messiah.
Johann Sebastian Bach was born on the 21st of March, 1685
(1686 - 1750) in Eisenach, Germany. He was descended from a long line of
musicians, and from a tender age, his father, uncle and elder
brother undertook to teach him string instruments, organ,
harpsichord, and voice respectively. The young Bach showed
his talents early. By the age of ten, he lost both of his
Organist, multiple
parents and was taken under the care of his elder brother at
instrumentalist and composer,
Ohrdruf where he became a choir boy. At the same time, he
Johann Sebastian Bach figures
progressively assimilated the art of composition in an auto
amongst the greatest geniuses
didactical study of the works of composers of his era and
in the history of Western music.
through attempts to imitate them. At the age of fifteen, he
left for Lunenburg, where he became a violinist and chorister,
His work, particularly prolific,
studied composition and discovered the works of French
testifies to his mastery of the
composers, Louis Marchand and Franois Couperin the Great
arts of counterpoint and chorale
in particular.
and to the influence of more
than two centuries of music.
In 1703, Bach was engaged as organist at the church of
Arnstadt. There he composed his first cantatas and acquired
a solid reputation as a virtuoso and improviser. in 1707, he
married a distant cousin, Maria Barbara Bach and left
Arnstadt in order to take up the position of organist at
Mlhausen. One year later, Bach became part of the
entourage at the court of the Duke of Weimar, where he
worked for nine years as organist, solo violinist and
composer. It was during this period that he composed the
majority of his works for organ, as well as works and
concerts for harpsichord and cantatas. Bach was gifted with
virtuosic skill on the organ, capable of monumental
improvisations for which he earned a considerable reputation.
His work for organ was tremendously influenced by organists
from the North of Germany, such as Dietrich Buxtehude with
whom he studied in 1707, as well as great Italian composers
such as Antonio Vivaldi, Tomaso Albinoni and Arcangelo
Corelli whom he discovered in Weimar.

Between 1717 and 1723, Bach lived in Kthen, where he

became Kappelmeister at the court of Prince Leopold. Here
Bach enjoyed truly excellent working conditions as well as
ties of friendship with the Prince. This allowed him to
compose some of his most impressive instrumental works.

In 1720, his wife, Maria Barabara died after giving him

seven children. Bach remaried in the following year with
Anna Magdalena Wilcken, a soprano and daughter of a
trumpet player. Together the couple had thirteen children.
Bach was Lutheran by faith and possessed an unshakable
faith in God. It was this faith that let him to compose for the
church. In 1723, on the outs with Prince Leopold, he
decided to take up a position at Leipzig where he succeeded
Georg Philipp Telemann as cantor of the Lutheran Church of
Saint Thomas.

After 1723, his work forced him to produce a cantata for

each Sunday and feast of the year. In total, he composed
enough cantatas for five annual cycles, but unfortunately
only about two hundred have come down to us. During this
period Bach also composed some of his most beautiful
sacred works, the Magnificat (1723), The Saint John Passion
(1723), The Saint Matthew Passion (1729), the Mass in B
Minor (1733), the Christmas Oratorio (1734), the second
book of the Well-Tempered Clavier (1740-43), and the
Goldberg Variations (1742)

MOZART Wolfgang Amadeus
(1756 - 1791)
A child prodigy, and
prolific and gifted
composer, Mozart is
considered as one of the
most outstanding
geniuses in Western
music. He work in all
musical genres with
equal talent and an
apparent ease. His style
is one of high
"Classicism" marked by
balance, clarity and
concision.
Between 1769 and 1772, Wolfgang continued his tours
with his family, mainly in Italy, in order to nurture artistic
contacts. In 1770, he wrote his first opera seria of
classical inspiration, Mitridate Re di Ponte, a work that
afforded him international success. Two years later, his
opera Lucio Silla was premiered in Milan.
In 1773, he worked as first violin at the court of the
Prince Archbishop in Salzburg, and wrote more than two
hundred opus numbers. He began to realize the
expressive power of music and discovered Antonio Salieri
and Joseph Haydn, who would have a certain amount of
influence over his style. He experienced several difficult
years until 1779 after the failure of his romance with
Aloysia Weber, to whom he was greatly attached but who
preferred another to him. Financial grief, the death of his
mother and the hypocrisy of the aristocracy were all
sources of stress to Mozart. He composed a great deal
and gradually found his style with Symphony no. 29 in A
major and the first five piano sonatas in 1774; the opera
Il Re Pastor, the Piano Sonata no. 6 (Durmitz), the
Srnade in D major and five violin concerti in 1775. In
1779, he returned to Salzburg at the height of his artistic
development with the composition of masses, sonatas,
concerti, and symphonies. In 1782, Mozart married
Constanza Weber, the sister of Aloysia, who subsequently
gave birth to two daughters and four sons of whom only
Carl Thomas and Franz Xavier Wolfgang survived. In the
same year, he wrote The Abduction from the Seraglio, a
Singspiel commissioned by the Emperor of Austria,
followed by the Symphony no. 35, "Haffner" (1782) and
Symphony no. 36, "Linz" (1783). The Mozart family
experienced a number of pecuniary difficulties, and
Wolfgang regressed several times back into the
tuberculosis that he had contracted as an child
In 1784, he discovered and integrated himself in the
society of Free Masons by a spiritual undertaking. There
he found a certain ideal of values. In the following year,
he dedicated six string quartets to Joseph Haydn, who
affirmed that he considered Mozart to be one of the
greatest composers known to him.
.
.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on the 27th of January, 1756 in
Salzburg (Austria). His father, Leopold Mozart was a well-known and
highly regarded musician and took his son's musical education upon him
from an early age. Between 1762 and 1769, Leopold put his son on display
for the courts of Europe--audiences that were quick to recognize his
virtuoso talent at the harpsichord, organ, and violin. At this time, Mozart
wrote his first works: a minuet (1762), a sonata for harpsichord and violin
(1763), a symphony (1764), an opera buffa La Finta Semplice (1768) and
the Singspiel Bastien et Bastienne (1769).
In 1769, after having performed for the greater part of
Europe, notably before Louis the 16th, he was appointed
concert master for the Archbishop of Salzburg, and
decorated by the Pope with the Order of the Golden Spur.
.
.
After 1786, Mozart collaborated with
the celebrated librettist Lorenzo Da
Ponte and experience rather qualified
successes, mainly in Prague (but still
somewhat in Vienna) with the opera
The Marriage of Figaro (1786), the
Symphony no. 38 in D major,
"Prague" (1787), the opera Don
Giovanni (1787) and the opera Cosi
fan tutte (1790).
who had come to study in Vienna. During this period and in
spite of numerous successes, Mozart experienced continual
financial difficulties and was literally crushed by his work
load.
In 1791, the last year of his life, Mozart wrote a number of
masterworks: the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (K.
595), the String Quintet in B-flat Major, the opera La
Clemenza di Tito. While working at a furious pace on The
Magic Flute, a new Singspiel on a magical theme which
would enjoy great success, Mozart received a commission
for a requiem mass. He attacked the work but his general
state of health was rapidly deteriorating. He became
depressed and persuaded of a plot to poison him. Deprived
of all physical energy, he dictated the Requiem to his
student Sssmayer but would not have time to complete
the work before his death on the 5th of December, 1791 of
renal failure. After a pauper's funeral, his few faithful
admirers could not find the courage to confront the rain
and storm to witness his burial in the common grave of the
Saint Marx cemetery.
This was the death of a genius, a master of every genre
who became the chief representative of the "Classic" period
of music history.

BEETHOVEN Ludwig Van
(1770 - 1827)
Widely known and recognized as
a genius without equal, to
Beethoven is the sole
incarnation of an important era
placed between the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries. From
the Classic to the Romantic era,
he was the first to exalt
individual sentiments in his
music, and came to personify a
Romantic ideal through his own
extraverted and idealist
character. Imbued with
immense personal tragedy,
scarred by sentimental trials,
rejecting the path society had
taken in his lifetime, Beethoven
sought in his works an ideal that
his existence had denied him.
This search spawned one of the
most significant body of works in
the history of music.
During this period, Beethoven's previous assimilation of
Mozart's style, combined with his gleanings from the
lessons he had learned from both Mozart and Haydn were
united in a style at once individual and innovative. He wrote
numerous works for the piano (sonatas and concertos)
including the Piano Sonata no. 8, "Pathetic" (1799), and
Piano Sonata no. 14, "Moonlight" (1802). In 1800, his
Symphony no. 1 in C major was premiered and he also
completed the Opus 18 string quartets, a reputed difficult
genre in which to compose. His success was growing, and
his reputation would soon spread all over Europe.
But his worsening deafness resulted in a continually
increasing sense of social isolation, and in the fall of 1802,
he wrote his famous Heiligenstadt Testament to his two
brothers, a document he never sent to them (it was found
among his personal effects after his death). This act marks
the near conclusion of his own existence as a hearing
person, and his music would later come to us, gradually, as
a direct expression of his soul, an expression the composer
could only imagine.
Beethoven's earliest works, such as the Cantata on the Death
of Emperor Joseph the Second (1790), were written under
the guidance of his mentor Christian Gottlob Neefe. At the
same time, Beethoven worked as a viola player with the
Bonn opera, and this experience afforded him an introduction
to the operas of Mozart, including The Marriage of Figaro and
Don Giovanni. In 1808, Beethoven heard the premiere of
Joseph Haydn's Creation, the most famous composer of the
time. Moved by Haydn's work, he introduced himself to the
composer. In November of 1792, eleven months after the
death of Mozart, Beethoven traveled again to Vienna to study
with Haydn. He would never again leave the Austrian capital,
where he also studied with the composer Antonio Salieri. This
is also the time in which he embarked on the dual career of
piano virtuoso-improviser and composer.
In 1795, at the age of twenty-five, Beethoven played one of
his concerti for the first time, in the presence of Haydn. The
next year he undertook a series of tours (Prague and Berlin).
Although possessing a naturally blithe temperament, he was
on the brink of personal tragedy that would progressively
envelop him in deafness and silence, and would elicit a split
in his outward personality that oscillated between depression
and feigned joviality.
In works composed after this, he further developed the
Viennese Classical style that he had earlier assimilated. The
period between 1802 and 1812, often referred to as the
"heroic period," witnessed a remarkable flowering of
Beethoven's personality, manifested in a wealth of
production. This period was also heightened by love interests
(Theresa and Josephine von Brunswick and Bettina Brentano)
even as cruel emotional disappointments depressed it, and
finally brought to life a number of major works such as
Symphony no. 3, "Eroica" (1802-04), Piano Sonata,
"Appassionata" (1804), his only opera, Fidelio (1805),
Symphony no. 5 in C minor (1808), Symphony no. 6,
"Pastoral" (1808) and Piano Concerto no. 5, "Emperor"
(1809). Throughout this period of emotional highs and lows
and staggering compositional achievement, Beethoven
occupied a privileged place in the musical life of the time.
 .
.
CHOPIN Frdric
Between 1828 and 1829, Chopin undertook journeys to
(1810 - 1849) Berlin and later Prague, and also succeeded in having his
This Polish composer and Variations on La ci darem la mano by Mozart (op. 2). This
pianist, "poet of the piano" work drew the admiration of Robert Schumann who
exuding originality and responded with a now-famous quotation, "Hats off, Sirs!
refinement of style, is the This is a genius!" Upon his return to Poland in 1830, Chopin
BRAHMS Johannes archetype of the Romantic After 1849, Brahms made several important contacts
premiered his two piano concerti. And after three
composer. He wrote mainly including the Hungarian violinist Eduard Remenyi, who
(1833 - 1897) triumphant concerts, he took his leave to study further
for the piano and produced asked him to be his accompanist during a concert tour.
afield, stopping in Dresden, Prague, Vienna, Munich and
his best works in both In the course of this tour, Brahms would form a lasting
Stuttgart.
A composer
Romantic and pianist
genres of German
(Nocturnes, alliance with the soon-to-be acclaimed violin virtuoso
descent, Brahms
Impromptus, combined
Ballades, etc.)Romantic Joachim. This individual eventually cajoled the
inspiration with
and traditional forms, classical tradition, composer into a meeting with Franz Liszt in Weimar,
the latter
infused withaesthetic
new life. having been but this meeting proved somewhat uncomfortable for
shunned by the majority of Brahms. (Liszt sight read his E-flat minor piano
composers since Beethoven. Little Scherzo.) Joachim also brought him to Dusseldorf
inclined to gratuitous use of novel where he presented him to Robert Schumann, who
effects in terms of harmony and was impressed by his early works (e.g., sonatas and
Frdric Chopin was born on orchestration,March 1st, 1810 he inchampioned
Zelazowa a type Lieder) and extolled them in his New Journal for Music
Wola near Warsaw, to a French of music
fatherthatandran counter
Polish to the
mother. (Neue Zeitschrift fr Musik) in 1853. Brahms
A child prodigy, he began composing artistic currentat the of his
agetime. His
of five developed a profound respect for Schumann, and
and undertook musical studies profoundly
very personal
early with compositional
the remained a faithful servant to his wife Clara,
unassuming Czech piano output teacher makes him oneZywny.
Adalbert of the most celebrated pianist, when his mentor was committed in
Impassioned by both contemporary significantandcomposers
popular music of theas 1854 following a new psychological crisis that
well as literature, he pursuednineteenth studies in both century.music as well accompanied an attempted suicide. On Schumann's
as traditional
Johannes scholarly
Brahms topics.
was born intoIna 1825,
modest the Tzar on
family attended
the 7th of May death in 1856, his love for Clara transformed into an
two
1833 of his concerts,
in Hamburg. and in
His father, the same
bassist, introduced year,him Chopin
to music and epic love story. This tragic period is reflected in his
published
specifically his first composition,
the violin the First attracted
and cello. Instinctively Rondo in C piano,
to the music, notably in his Piano Concerto in D minor (1854-
minor.
young Brahms began to study the instrument with Otto Cossel, 58). He also composed the opus 5 piano sonata
From 1826 to 1829,
and appeared he for
in public studied counterpoint
the first time at the andageharmony
of ten. At the (1853), the four ballades (1854) and his first chamber
at the time,
same Warsaw Conservatory
music professor with Eduardthe institution's
Marxen initiated director,
him to the work, Trio for Piano and Strings, op. 8 (1854).
Joseph
world of Elsner. At this time,
composition, he wrote the
including several early works,
technique of classical
including
counterpoint. the Waltz
Brahms in A-flat
respondedmajor, a Mazurka
with in A minor,
the composition of his first In 1854, Brahms returned to his native city of
a
twoPolonaise in D minor,
piano sonatas. a Nocturne
As early as the age in Eofminor and he
thirteen, twobegan to Hamburg where he served for two years as a piano
piano
earn aconcerti (one in
living playing in Elocal
minor and another
orchestras, whichineasedF minor)
the families teacher and choirmaster at the court of Detmold, a
composed in 1830 which
pecuniary burdens, all thearewhilemodel Romantic
pursuing works. training.
his musical position that he made his own by founding his own
women's choir in 1859. During this time, his Piano
In 1830, Chopin left Warsaw for Vienna, one month . Concerto in D minor (no. 1) failed to please when
before the onset of the Polish insurrection of 29 performed in Liepzig in 1859. At the same time,
November. In July, while en route to Paris, he learned of Brahms composed, amongst other works, the String
the crushing of the revolution and the pillaging of Warsaw Sextet (1858-60), and the Variations and Fugue on a
by Russian troops--news that affected him deeply. In Theme by Handel for piano (1861).
Paris, where he would spend the majority of his time, his
After several
milieu
himself
includedsojourns
Mendelssohn,in Vienna
such notable
Hectorsometime
in different
figures as
Berlioz, afterand 1863,
cities,
FranzBrahms
Niccoloa Paganini,
Liszt, Felix
place where
After 1888, Brahms turned to
established
but he met
Johann
also Strauss.
Honore de Brahms's
Balzac et reputation
Eugene as a conservative
Delacroix. He was smaller-scale
composer, works, and
acquired by
intensely his as
active reluctant
a pianist positioning
within the at intimate
the headsalons of a movement
of
opposed
the day and to the
gave "New
much Germans"
sought after and instruction
Richard Wagner undertook a concert tour in
in particular,
to patrons
earned himtoanthe appointment as the of director of the choralInacademy
belonging
(Singakademie).
1832,
upper echelons
He judged
the warm reception the choir
accorded
Parisian society.
to hisinsufficient
Variations on and 1895 to showcase his most
a turned
himself of
Theme overDonentirely to composition
Juan prompted during himself
him to devote the summer recent works, the clarinet
once months
and
moreconducting and performing
to composition. He developed during athe winters.personal
strongly At this stage in
his career,
style, informed Brahmsby thebecame
studybest knownand
of Bach as Mozart,
a composer trio and quintet (1891) as
and for his
chamber works,
influenced by Fieldinand which
Hummel. he often produced works in genres .
perceived as challenging: two quartets for piano with strings well as the Sonata for
(1861-62)1832 and
Between and 1834,the he completed
piano quintet
the Twelve of Clarinet and Piano (1894).
Between 1838 and 1847, Chopin embarked on a
Etudes1862-64.
tumultuous liaison with George Sand. In the winter of
(op. 10), dedicated to Liszt, in which he expressed the
true essence of the piano by exploiting its different 1838, the two journeyed to the Baleares Islands to improve
registers, sonorities and harmonic possibilities, and in the the composer-pianist's health. This journey also saw the
doing brought the pianistic revolution begun by Beethoven Clara Schumann's death in
completion of the Twenty four Preludes (op. 28, 1836 and
to full fruition. In this period, he also composed six
nocturnes, and several rondos and mazurkas. Liszt, Clara
1896 dealt him a severe
1839). Around the same time he produced the second
Ballade, the third Scherzo, some new Polonaises and a
Wieck and Hiller also contributed in a significant way to an blow, and he increasingly
variety of Nocturnes...
increased knowledge of his work. In 1835, Chopin became
engaged to Maria Wodzinski even as Liszt introduced him retreated into his own world.
The "mature" years of 1840 to 1847 were filled with
to his future lover, George Sand. In 1837, he published
his second volume of Twelve Etudes (op. 25, 1832-36).
His death in Vienna on April
teaching, giving concerts and composing, summers at the
home of George Sand in the pastoral setting of Nohant,
3rd, 1897 of liver cancer was
and winters in Paris. he wrote a great deal, including the
In 1868, moved by the death of his mother, Brahms produced A and fourth Ballades, new Nocturnes, two piano
third
German Requiem, the triumphal success of which contributed marked by great funeral
sonatas and the Sonata for Cello and Piano (1846).
greatly to his renown, along with the reception of the Hungarian
Dances (1854-68). Brahms subsequently composed choral works pomp. His final is amongst
In 1847 he was plunged into solitude after ending his
that have some affinity with the requiem, including the Song of
relationship with George Sand. In 1849, after returning
exhausted from his last tour of England and Scotland, he
gave himself up to the tuberculosis which had plagued him
for most of his life on the 17th October in the city of Paris.
Fate (Schickssalslied, 1871) and much later the Gesang der
Parzen of 1882. In 1872, Brahms accepted the directorship of the
Society of the Friends of Music (Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde),
but resigned from his post three years later to devote himself once
again to composition. Until 1873, he wrote mainly for the piano,
his preferred instrument.
DEBUSSY Claude Achille
(1862 - 1918)
Claude Debussy, a product of the
French musical environment of his
time, is considered to be the most
significant artist of the early
twentieth century, and a precursor
of the modern style. His emphasis of
harmonic spheres and colour over
clarity of line and musical form,
often prompts comparisons with the
"impressionist" visual artists (Claude
Monet, Paul Cezanne, Edgar Degas,
etc.), even if Debussy himself felt
much closer to the "symbolism" in
his literary affinities as well as
friends such as Charles Baudelaire,
Paul Verlaine, and Stphane
Mallarm.
Claude Achille Debussy was born in Saint Germain en Lay on the
22nd of August 1862. His parents were relatively poor, non
musicians. A family friend and former student of Frdric Chopin
advised his parents to allow their young child of only three years of
age to study the piano with him. In 1873, he entered the Paris
Conservatory and studied, among other topics, the piano, organ and
compositions with such professors as Marmontel, Franck and de
Guiraud. He was relatively undisciplined as a student but very gifted.
Eventually, he decided to put the piano aside in favour of
composition, even though he appeared to possess the potential to be
a virtuoso.
In 1879, he accompanied, as a personal musician, Nadejda von
Meck, patron of the Russian composer Tchaikovsky. In Moscow, the
music of composers such as Tchaikovsky, Borodine, Balakirev, and
above all Mussorgski made a great impression on Debussy. He wrote
here a the well-known Three Nocturnes for orchestra (1879).
In 1884, Debussy won the prestigious Grand Prix de Rome with the
cantata l'Enfant Prodigue, which allowed him to study in Italy for two
years. There he wrote several works, including the symphonic suite
Printemps and the cantata La Demoiselle Elue, based on a work by
the British poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
his most well-known works,
the Four Serious Songs
(1896).dn (1873) for
orchestra, a work that
predates h is
immanent mastery of inked
with the historical classical
tradiagneriase.
From 1888 to 1889, Debussy traveled to Bayreuth
and discovered the music of Richard Wagner. He
wrote the Ariette Oublie (1888), two Arabesques
(1888), a cycle of melodies on texts by Baudelaire
(1888-89), the Suites Bergamasque (1890, revised
in 1905). At the Universal Exhibition of 1889, he
discovered a new source of inspiration in the works
of Mussorgski, as well as the exotic sounds of the
Javanese gamelan and oriental music.
During the 1890s, Debussy attended a performance
of Maeterlinck's Pellas et Mlisande and decided to
compose an opera with the same title (1892-02).
During this period, Debussy also wrote his first
orchestral score Prlude l'aprs-midi d'un faune
(Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun,1892-94),
inspired by a poem by Stphane Mallarm, and the
String Quartet in G minor (1893). Drawing on the
pentatonic collection, as well as exploiting the
whole-tone scale and chords chosen for their colour
instead of their function, Debussy infuses his work
with a dream-like quality, which invited comparison
with the "impressionists," referring to an effect
obtained by painters of this aesthetic persuasion.
These works endowed Debussy with a fair share of
public attention. in 1894, the premiere of the
Prlude l'aprs-midi d'un faune sealed the public's
opinion of Debussy as an original artist and marked
the end of his material difficulties. In 1902, the
opening of the opera Pellas et Mlisande projected
Debussy into the center of both polemic and glory.
Incidental music that Debussy had accepted to write
for financial reasons were actually orchestrated by
other hands. This is how Andr Caplet became
involved with the completion of La Bote joujoux
et Le Martyre de saint Sbastien, while Charles
Kchlin finished Khamma.
In 1904, Debussy met Emma Bardac-Moyse and
each left their respective spouse in order to move in
together. They had a daughter in 1905, and married
in 1908. From 1896 to 1914, Debussy wrote mainly
for the piano, Estampes (1903), Images, books I
and II (1905 and 1907), two books of Prludes
(1909-10 and 1911-13). His orchestral works of this
Back in Paris in 1887, Debussy set up house with a young woman period represent the summit of musical
and began to frequent the Tuesday gatherings of Stephane Mallarme. impressionism, La Mer (1905), as well three
There he met, among others, Paul Verlaine and Marcel Proust, arrangements of Images for orchestra, Gigues,
painters and musicians. He broadened his cultural references both Ibria, and Rondes de printemps (1908-1912).
here and at the house of Madame Vasnier, where he rubbed
shoulders with numerous artists.
JOPLIN Scott
(1867 - 1917)
Scott Joplin a black American musician,
pianist and composer occupies an important
place in the history of American music and
more particularly in that of Ragtime, a
characteristic style from with which its name
is inevitably associated.
Scott Joplin was likely born between June
1867 and July 1868 North of Texas but he
does not appear in civil record until the
census of 1870 where he appears to have
been already two years old.
While he was still a young child, the Joplin family left the farm where
his father had been a slave to establish themselves in a new city at
on the border between Texas and Arkansas. Legend has it that Joplin
discovered piano in the house of white persons where his mother
worked as a domestic employee, and that his apprenticeship was
entirely autodidactic. His innate talent was noticed by a local music
teacher who helped him perfect his art, and taught him classical
forms, including opera. The influence of this professor is certainly at
the root of the need that Joplin always felt to be recognized as a
composer of classical music. in 1911, he wrote his first opera,
Treemonisha, a work that recounts the history of a black mother who
receives from the white family for which she works, the musical
education of her son. Without a doubt, this work is an expression of
Joplin's gratitude to his mother
The first true trace of the beginnings of Joplin's musical career are
passed down in a journal article dating from 1891: he directed a jazz
group and played the trumpet. Once established in Sedalia, he led
the life of an itinerant musician and traveled a great deal, from
Syracuse to New York, mainly with his Texas Medley Quartet.
Business men from Syracuse who were impressed with his talent
contributed to the publication of his first two songs, "Please Say You
Will" and "A Picture of Your Face".
When he was not travelling, he worked in Sedalia as a pianist and
played in various black nightclubs, with a repertoire consisting of
works such as the now-famous "Maple Leaf Rag." He was often
surrounded by local young musicians, some of which would also
become famous, such as Scott Haydn, with whom he composed
several rags.
A fire of 1925 having destroyed the George R. Smith College where
he studied during the 1890s, we do not know the precise extent of
Joplin's musical studies. We can simply assume that he never
completely mastered musical composition since it was necessary for
him to obtain the services of "arrangers" in order to publish his first
rags, some of which were actually signed by these individuals.
Joplin subsequently retained the services of a young lawyer in order
to publish what has since become one of his most famous rags, the
"Maple Leaf Rag." Sales were weak at first but increased significantly
after 1909 for a total of half a million copies per year, and this for a
period of twenty years.
In 1901, he moved to St. Louis with his new wife,
Belle. In St. Louis, he played often with Tom Turpin
and other ratimers, but Joplin was more of a
solitary nature and preferred to devote himself
mainly to composition. His publisher, John Stark,
was also establish in St. Louis and Joplin spent a
great deal of time at the publishing house where he
courted Eleanor, Stark's daughter and chief editor,
and whose influence would lead him to meet Alfred
Ernst, the orchestral conductor of the highly
respected St. Louis Choral Symphony Society. Ernst
recognized Joplin's interest in classical music, but
told him that he found in him more a congenial
writer of ragtime and encouraged him to continue in
this area. Some of the most significant rags
composed in St. Louis include: Peacherine Rag, The
Easy Winners, The Ragtime Dance, The Entertainer.
In 1903, an extensive tour for an opera was
compromised very early on by the theft of the
proceeds, which also placed Joplin in financial
difficulties. As well, his publisher refused to print
the opera and this created a rift between the two
for some time. Joplin's works of the moment were,
however, printed by other publishers.
Following this failure, he returned often to
Arkansas, where he made the acquaintance of the
young Freddie Alexander, whom he married in the
month of July 1904, after having divorced Belle. The
marriage was unfortunately brief, since Freddie died
of pneumonia several weeks later.
The years that followed were rather dark, between
personal loss and financial difficulty, he turned out
small, minor works. In 1907, Joplin renewed his
business relationship with Starck, his publisher,
during a trip to new York, where he encountered
Joseph Lamb, the dedicatee of "Lamb's Sensation"
of 1908. Joseph Lamb would also become one of
the great composers of ragtime.
Joplin had rediscovered his inspiration and
published several other rags of prime order:
"Heliotrope Bouquet," "Nonpareil" and his manual
School of Ragtime.
Between 1911 and 1913, he undertook the
production of his opera Treemonisha and attempted
to have it published, without success. Repeated
failure became a motif in his work, the greater part
of which was never publish, the manuscripts now
lost.
Joplin died on the 1st of April, 1917, after a long
and painful illness related to syphilis, which he had
likely contracted twenty years earlier.
Following his death, he fell quickly into obscurity, as
the genre of ragtime itself, brushed aside by the
new style of jazz. It would not be until 1940 that
ragtime would be revisited by jazz musicians.
Treemonisha would finally be staged and performed
with success on Broadway in 1970. Ragtime and
Scott Joplin together form an integral part of the
American musical landscape and of the history of
music in general.
KHATCHATURIAN ARAM
(1903 - 1978)

A relatively unknown composer, Khatchaturian nonetheless composed several

works and songs that have been performed the world over, certain of which
have been co-opted and arranged by other musicians.

Aram Khatchaturian was born in Kodjori near Tbilissi on the 6th of June, 1903. The son of a modest book binder, he failed to
display an early gift for music and did not undertake musical studies until the age of nineteen. At this time, he studied the
cello at the Gnessine Institut, followed by composition and orchestration at the Moscow conservatory. He completed his
studies in 1934, with several piano works already to his credit.

He was well-acquainted with Caucasian folklore since his early childhood and was also influenced by French music, the
cultural traditions of Oriental and Christian Russia as well as those of Armenia with which he had regular contact. One might
say that Khatchaturian was more of an orchestrator than a composer-pianist. He produced numerous arrangements of
popular dances, pieces for the balalaka, marches, and patriotic songs.

His catalogue of works for the piano is not very significant, but includes some magnificent works, since, like many Soviet
composers (e.g., Prokofiev, Shostakovitch, and Kabalevsky), he had a strong interest in music "for children," expressed
mainly in his two albums (1947 and 1965). He also composed one Sonatina (1958) and one Sonata (1961).

Khatchaturian quickly became very popular in the Soviet Union and experienced his first big success with his Symphony,
written in 1934. He won the Stalin Prize twice and was decorated with the Order of Lenin.

After the last war, his reputation spread throughout Europe, thanks to the success of his piano and violin concerti and
moreover with his famous Dance of the Saber, excerpted from his ballet Gayaneh.

At the same time, other musicians undertook transcriptions of some of his orchestral compositions to be used as film or stage
music.

He died in Moscow on the 1st of May, 1978.

KULHAU Friedrich Daniel Rudolf
(1786 - 1832)
Friedrich Daniel Rudolf Kuhlau was a
Danish composer, contemporary of
Beethoven, little known by the
public at large, but whose works are
often played by debutante pianists
thanks to numerous short works
that he wrote for the instrument.
These works were written in parallel
with his more significant works in
the operatic and concerto genre,
and which have unfortunately not
weathered the ages as well.
Kuhlau was born in Uelzen, near Hannover on the 11th of
September, 1786. At the age of seven, an accident resulted
in the loss of vision of his right eye. Several members of
his family, were members of the military and oboe players,
including his father. As such, even though the family was
of modest means, his parents arranged for him to study
the piano, an instrument for which he would rapidly prove
his talent.
Following his parents, he traveled in Europe, from
Lunenburg to Brunswick before settling in Hamburg at the
age of 14, where, all the while pursuing piano studies, he
began to study composition with Schwenke, Kappelmeister
of the Chapel of Saint Catherine. His first compositions for
flute and piano were published while he was still a student.
After 1804, he began to give regular piano recitals.
In 1810, Hamburg was annexed by France, and Kulhau
took refuge in Copenhagen to avoid military service in
Napoleon's army. In 1811, he conducted his Piano concerto
in C major. This work had be significantly inspired by
similar works by Beethoven, a composer Kulhau took as his
model.
.
.
In the years that followed, Kulhau became a court musician
and composer as well as an honorary professor in 1828.
Under his influence, the National Danish Opera enjoyed
considerable success and Kulhau quickly earned the
reputation of being the greatest Danish composer. He
frequently used Danish folk song in his compositions, which
lent his music a unique colour that was highly regarded by
the Danes.
He profited from his comfortable position in order to take up
residence at a house near Copenhagen, where his parents
later joined him. He then composed several operas, Lulu, The
Magic Harp, Hugo and Adelaide, with continued public
success in his country since their strong sense of nationalism
excluded influence from beyond their own borders, even if
German, French and Italian elements were equally as present
in his works. In the rest of Europe, Kulhau was known mainly
for his talent as a pianist and the works he composed for this
instrument.
In 1825, during a visit to Vienna, he met Beethoven, with
whom he spend an inebriated evening, improvising canons
and contrapuntal passages to the great pleasure of his
friends.
In 1830, Kulhau's house burned to the ground, along with all
of his unpublished manuscripts including the second piano
concerto. His father also died during the incident, an event
that would affect him greatly, spurring a protracted and
serious illness that lasted more than one year. He died on the
12th of March, 1832, and his burial was a national event
including the performance of one of his own funeral marches.
A number of sonatas and sonatinas as well as short easy
works for the piano, stemming from his work as a teacher,
survived him. These works are still studied today, since they
help students acquire fundamental principals and techniques
of the piano, in the same manner as works by Clementi,
Diabelli, and Beethoven.
 ROSSINI GIOACCHINO
(1792-1868)
An Italian composer, he was also the most celebrated
musical author of his era. He reformed Italian opera, and
was also one of the greatest exponents of the bel canto
style during the nineteenth century-a style that
emphasizes beauty of melodic line over intrigue and
feeling.

Born the 29th of February, 1792 in Pesaro, he was trained

at the conservatory in Bologna. Rossini wrote thirty-seven
operas, from Demetrio e Polibio (1806) to Guillaume Tell
(1829). His first marriage was to the Spanish soprano,
Isabelle Colbrand.

In 1823, he was received in Paris with great enthusiasm, and took up the directorship of the Thtre-
Italien. In 1825, he was named principal composer to the king and inspector general of singing in
France. The most famous opera by Rossini is the Barbier de Sville, written in thirteen days and
premiered in Rome in 1816. Amongst his other operas, those most often performed and well-liked in
our time include L'Italiana in Algeri (An Italian in Algiers, 1813), Il Turco in Italia (A Turck in Italy,
1814), La Cenerentola (Cinderella, 1817), Semiramide (1823) and Le Compte Ory (1828).

At the age of thirty-seven, Rossini decided that he would no longer write for the theatre, and for the rest of his life wrote only
two major works, the Stabat Mater in 1842, and the Missa Brevis (1864). In spite of his extended retreat from composition,
he remains one of the most important individuals in the world of music.

He died in Passy, France, on the 13th of November, 1868. His operas were last and the best of Italian opera buffa. Their light
and lively music expressed light heartedness and vivacity. Rossini adopted a bel canto style for his brilliant melodies, that
singers could perform with striking effects as well as a great deal of expression.
TCHAKOVSKY Piotr Ilyitch .
(1840 - 1893) .
A profoundly Russian
composer, who also looked to
music of the West,
Tchaikovsky was one of the
foremost figures of the post-
Romantic musical era.

Piotr Illich Tchaikovsky was born on the 7th of May in 1840

in Voltkinsk (Oural). His parents had decided that he would
pursue a career in law. At the same time, they saw to it that
he received training in piano from a very early age. From
1850 to 1859, he studied law at the Saint Petersburg
school, and held the post of first class clerk for the minister
of justice until 1863. All the while, Tchaikovsky continued to
receive training in music at the Russian Music Society and
later at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory after 1862. he
took courses in singing, piano, composition, and
orchestration with such notable teachers as the composer
and pianist Anton Rubinstein. During the period he wrote
The Storm, a symphonic poem.

From 1866 to 1878, Tchaikovsky settled in Moscow where the brother of Anton Rubinstein secured him the post of harmony
professor at the conservatory. Tchaikovksy was already an anguished man, subject ot nervous depression, suppressing his
homosexual orientation. At this time in his life he wrote his first opera, Vovode (1868) on a libretto by the dramaturgist
Aleksandr Nikolaevitch Ostrovski, and later his operas Ondine (1869) and Opritchnik (1872) as well as the overture for
Romeo and Juliet (1869-70, revised in 1880). He also wrote his first three symphonies, no. 1 "Winter Dreams," no. 2 "The
Little Prussian" (1872) and no. 3 "Polonaise" (1875) as well as the B-flat piano concerto (1875). This last work was initially
dedicated to Nikola Rubinstein, who pronounced it unplayable although in the end it became part of his repertoire thanks to
numerous changes made by the composer. The concerto was later dedicated to Hans von Blow, who premiered it as part of
his U.S. tour (1875-76). Through a skillful use of popular melodies, this concerto became one of the most commonly
performed works of the piano repertoire.

As early as 1868, Tchaikovsky met the musicians of the Group of Five (or Russian Five), but his music was radically different
from theirs, that is, it was greatly influenced by the West. He sympathized with Balakirev, but kept his distance from Rimski-
Korsakov and was openly hostile to Mussorgski. In 1876, he attended performances of Richard Wagner's Ring cycle in the role
of music critic and reacted with some indifference to the German composer's style.
After 1876, Tchaikovsky was freed of his financial burdens by Nadejda von Meck, a wealthy widow and great enthusiast of his
music, who corresponded with him in an epistolary manner, maintaining written communication for a period of fourteen years
without ever meeting him. This was the beginning of a fruitful era for Tchaikovsky. he wrote operas: Eugene Onegin (1878),
Mazeppa (1883), The Sorceress (1887), ballets: Swan Lake (1876), Sleeping Beauty (1889), and The Nutcracker (1892) ; the
E-flat minor string quartet (1876), the Variations on a rococo theme for cello and orchestra (1876), Marche Slave (1876),
Francesca da Rimini (1876), Symphony no. 4 in F minor (1877), the Concerto for violin in D Major (1878), the 1812 Overture
(1880), the Piano Concerto no. 2 in G Major (1880), the Serenade for strings (1880), the Trio in A minor for violin, cello and
piano (1882).

In 1876, he married Antonina Milioukova, a student at the Moscow conservatory and effectively ended rumours of his
homosexuality. He hoped to resolve his internal dilemma by throwing himself into the serenity of family life, but this marriage
ended in failure and reinforced in him the idea of unchangeable destiny, an idea that appears in his "Manfred" symphony, as
well as in Symphony no. 5 in E minor (1888) and the opera, The Queen of Spades.

From 1887 onward, Tchaikovsky launched himself into a career as an orchestral conductor, and directed works throughout
Europe. He knew success across major European and American cities until 1891. During this period, however, Tchaikovsky's
life was clouded by persistent melancholy. In 1893, he undertook the composition of the Symphony no. 6 in B minor, later
renamed "The Pathetic Symphony" by his brother. The premiere of this work on the 28th of October 1893 under the
composer's direction failed to impress the public, and Tchaikovsky died later that year on the 6th of November in Saint
Petersburg, officially of cholera. The hypothesis that he had committed suicide began to spread, and it is perhaps possible
that he was ordered to poison himself after engaging in a liaison with a prince of the imperial family. This does not seem to
have harmed his reputation: the eminent Russian composer Igor Stravinsky would later see in his person a dignified
representative of his country's music.
SCHUMANN Robert
(1810 - 1856)
A German composer with
a Romantic personality
that favoured isolation
and a tragic destiny,
Robert Schumann
worked periodically in
every genre of music and
is responsible for an
impressive oeuvre
greatly indebted to
literature. He is one of
the most significant
composers of the
German Romantic
generation, in particular,
thanks to his works for
the piano.
Robert Alexander Schumann was born the 8th of June 1810
in Zwickau (Saxony). he learned to play the piano at a very
young age and his father, a bookseller by profession,
introduced him simultaneously to German poetry. The
young Schumann was thus as much at ease with writing
poems as Lieder. In 1826, however, his artistically fulfilling
life was shattered by the death of his father, followed by his
sister's suicide.
In 1828, he obtained the equivalent of a baccalaureate and
left on foot for Bayreuth. He later journeyed to Leipzig
where he studied law. Ever impassioned by literature as
well as music, he met Friedrich Wieck who became his piano
teacher. It was in this way that he met Wieck's daughter of
only nine years of age, Clara, who became a virtuoso
performer as a result of her father's tyrannical teaching
methods. in 1830, following a trip to Italy where was able to
hear the virtuoso Niccolo Paganini and, upon the advice of
his law professor, Schumann decided to give himself over
exclusively to the study of piano. During these years, he
wrote a number of works for the instrument including the
Toccata (op. 7, 1829-32), Six Etudes After the Paganini
Caprices (1832) and his set of intimate miniatures Papillons
(1831), inspired by a novel by the poet Jean Paul.
In 1832, anxious to improve the independence of his
fingers, he constructed a device intended to achieve this
and which certainly resulted in the definitive paralysis of his
ring finger and put an end to his career as a pianist. He
then devoted himself entirely to composition and wrote
works for the piano including the Symphonic Etudes (1834-
37), Carnaval (1835), Fantasy in C major (1836), Scenes
from Childhood (1838), Kreisleriana (1838) and three
sonatas.
In 1834, Schumann created and
later directed for a period of ten
years the serial Neue Zeitschrift fr
Musik (The New Journal For Music) in
which demonstrated his critical
talents through the voice of several
pseudonyms including the volatile
Florestan and the dreamy Eusebius,
respectively inspired by Beethoven
and Jean Paul and behind which he
preferred to hide the conflicting
aspects of his personality.
Behind the mask of his pseudonym's personalities,
Schumann aired his musical ideas, for example, the music of
Johann Sebastian Bach. He also encouraged young Romantic
composers, encouraged "a new poetic era" in music and
entered the polemic on the subject of grand opera (very
much in fashion at the time) denouncing excesses of
virtuosity that he believed to be a crippling force to musical
expression. At the same time, Schumann succumbed to
nervous depression following the death of one of his brothers
as well as his sister-in-law and also fell hopelessly in love
with Clara. But Wieck, faced with the young age of his
daughter (eighteen years) and being rather afraid that such
a union would compromise her budding career as a concert
pianist, refused to sanction the union that would take place,
regardless of Wieck's disapproval, three years later
(Schumann having resorted to legal action). The young
composer's passion for Clara, the only true happiness in his
life, led him to write a number of works. This was his "Song
Year," a time in which he would produce half of his one
hundred and thirty-eight Lieder, including among others the
Liederkreis (after poems by Heine and von Eichendorff), the
Dichterliebe cycle (with poetry by Heine), and the
Frauenliebe und Leben cycle which set the texts of von
Chamisso.
In 1842, Clara's health was compromised by the birth of their
second daughter, and she began to suffer nervous
depression. For his part, Schumann was ill-equipped to tend
to the needs of his family and found it difficult to accept his
wife's fame, which was greater
than his. He later became a
composition professor at the
conservatory in Leipzig, which
had been founded by his friend
Felix Mendelssohn, but he had
little talent for teaching. At the
same time, he dedicated the
opus 41 quartets to his
benefactor and friend and
produced other chamber works
such as the Piano Quartet (op.
47) and the Piano Quintet (op.
44). The next year he completed
the secular oratorio Paradise and
Peri.
In 1844, the Schumann family settled in Dresden. There the
composer finished his piano concerto (op. 54) and also the
opera Genoveva (1847-49), and the stage music for Manfred
(1848-49). In 1850, the year of the premiere of his opera in
Leipzig, which quickly fell into oblivion, Schumann was
appointed Music Director for the city of Dsseldorf and also
worked as the orchestral and choir conductor. A fruitful
period of composition began with the Symphony no. 3,
"Rhenish" (1850), his mass The Pilgrimage of the Rose
(1851), his Requiem (1852-53), and his violin concerto of
1853
In 1854, Schumann and Clara together enjoyed real success
in Holland where they met Johannes Brahms (then a mere
twenty years of age), and in whom Schumann saw the future
of music. It was Brahms who would watch over him and later
Clara when, in this same year, Schumann was incarcerated
in an asylum in Bonn, following several depressive episodes,
crises of dementia and moreover an attempt to drown
himself. Confined for the remainder of his life, Schumann
died on the 29th of July, 1856.
SCHUBERT Franz
(1779 - 1828)
In spite of a short life, Franz
Schubert left behind him an
enormous output in which every
genre is tested. However, it is the
Lied that occupies pride of place
and his work in this genre in
particular contributes to his
reputation as one of the foremost
composers of the Romantic period.
Schubert is a symbol, like Mozart,
of overwhelming musical genius.
During the final year of his life a fruitful outcropping of
masterworks appeared, the Mass no. 6 in E-flat major, the C
major string quintet, three piano sonatas and the assorted
Lieder entitled Schwanengesang. On the 19th of November,
1828, he died in Vienna of typhoid fever. He had rarely
known the joy of hearing his works played during his lifetime.
The majority of these were rediscovered and performed only
after his death.
His compositional principals remaining steadfastly Classical,
he nonetheless infused his works with the musical aesthetic
of his time, incorporating new sounds that heralded mature
Romanticism. Above all, he lent his noble touch to the Lied,
which had become his principal mode of musical expression.
.
.
Franz Schubert was born in Vienna on the 31st of January
1797 to a domestic worker and a cello teacher. His
childhood unfolded in a modest but harmonious
environment, and thanks to his father and three elder
brothers he learned to play the violin, piano, and viola.
In 1808 his talent was recognized by Michael Holzer who
oversaw his entry into the Stactkonvikt which trained
singers for the court. There he pursued studies that
presented him with few difficulties, for he was talented in
many fields. He was the principal violin of his school
orchestra and singer in the choir of the Imperial Chapel. he
wrote his first Lieder in 1811, "The Lamentations of Hagar"
and "The Paracide" which impressed his teachers
tremendously, including Antonio Salieri.
In 1813, he discontinued his musical studies and entered
teacher's college in Vienna, so that he would be able to
teach at his father's school the next year. He continued,
however, to compose at a prolific rate, his first opera
completed in 1814, his first mass (in F major) as well as
seventeen Lieder including "The Diver" and "Gretchen at
the Spinning Wheel." In the years following, he wrote
works in the form and style of Viennese Classical models,
including the second and third symphonies, two masses (in
G and B-flat major) and one hundred and forty six Lieder
including "The Erl King," five operas, various religious
works and chamber pieces (in 1815), the fourth or "Tragic"
symphony (in C minor) as well as the fifth (in B-flat
major), an opera, one hundred Lieder and several sacred
pieces in 1816, a set of Beethovenian piano sonatas in
1817, and his Symphony no. 6 in C major in 1818.
In 1818, he abandoned teaching in order to devote himself
completely to composition. He had enjoyed little public
success, however, it may also be said that he composed
mainly for his circle of friends: the painters von Schwind,
Kupelwierer, the poet Grillparzer, the musician
Httenbrenner and the singer Vogl. These latter persons
could usually be found on a regular basis at the intimate
and artistic soires known today as "Schubertiades."
Schubert was able to make a living giving lessons and
selling works to publishers.
Between 1818 and 1820, he wrote the piano quintet known
as "The Trout" (1819) as well as the Lied "Die
Zwillingbrder" (1820). Between 1820 and 1823, Schubert
experienced a period of crisis during which a number of his
projects failed to materialize. For instance, the
orchestration of the seventh (E major) symphony (1821)
was pushed aside like the eighth or "Unfinished"
symphony, likely as a result of the syphilis he had
contracted in 1822.
In 1823, Schubert was encouraged by a new wave of
energy and devoted all of his time to the composition of
sonatas, quartets, symphonies and the song cycle Die
schne Mllerin (The Beautiful Maid of the Mill) in 1823,
more Lieder, an octet in F major, and piano works for four
hands in 1824, three string quartets between 1824 and
1826, two piano trios in 1826 and 1827, the Symphony no.
9 in C major or "Great Symphony" in1825, and a song
cycle known to many, the Winterreise (A Winter's Journey)
in 1827.