David Popper (June 16, 1843 – August 7, 1913) was a

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D ...

and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...

. Some other sources list his date of birth as December 9, 1843.

Life

Popper was born in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, and studied music at the Prague Conservatory. His family was

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. He studied the cello under Julius Goltermann (1825–1876), and soon attracted attention. He made his first tour in 1863; in Germany he was praised by

Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...

, son-in-law of

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

, who recommended him as Chamber Virtuoso in the court of Prince von Hohenzollern-Hechingen in Löwenberg. In 1864, he premiered Robert Volkmann's Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 33, with Hans von Bülow conducting the

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. History The Berlin Philharmonic was fo ...

. He lost this job a couple of years later due to the prince's death. He made his debut in Vienna in 1867, and was made principal cellist at the Hofoper. From 1868 to 1870 he was also a member of the

Hellmesberger Quartet The Hellmesberger Quartet was a string quartet formed in Vienna in 1849. It was founded by Joseph Hellmesberger Sr. and was the first permanent named String Quartet. Composition Violinist Leopold Jansa had started a string quartet in 1845. Hellme ...

. In 1872, he married pianist

Sophie Menter Sophie Menter (29 July 1846 – 23 February 1918) was a German pianist and composer who became the favorite female student of Franz Liszt.Schonberg, 262. She was called ''l'incarnation de Liszt'' in Paris because of her robust, electrifying playing ...

, a pupil of Liszt. She later joined the staff at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. In 1873, Popper resigned from his post at the Hofoper so as to continue his tours with his wife on a larger scale, giving concerts throughout Europe. Popper's and Menter's marriage was dissolved in 1886. That year, Liszt recommended Popper for a teaching position at the newly opened string department at the Conservatory at Budapest. In Budapest, he participated in the Budapest Quartet with Jenő Hubay.Campbell, ''The Cambridge Companion to the Cello'', p. 71 He and Hubay performed chamber music on more than one occasion with

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

, including the premiere of Brahms's Piano Trio No. 3 in Budapest, on December 20, 1886. Popper died in

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden i ...

, near

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. Among his notable students were

Arnold Földesy Arnold may refer to: People * Arnold (given name), a masculine given name * Arnold (surname), a German and English surname Places Australia * Arnold, Victoria, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria Canada * Arnold, Nova Scotia U ...

Jenő Kerpely Jenő () is a Hungarian male given name, equivalent to Eugene. In Austria and Germany the name is often simplified to Jenö (which in Hungarian is a shorter vowel) and pronounced as German umlaut ö. Jenő is also the legendary founder of one of H ...

Mici Lukács Mici may refer to: People * Gledi Mici (born 1991), football player * Mici Erdélyi (1910–1994), Hungarian actress * Mici Haraszti (1882-1964) * Micí Mac Gabhann (1865–1948) Places Many Romanian toponyms have include the word Mici. . Oth ...

Ludwig Lebell Ludwig may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ludwig (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Ludwig (surname), including a list of people * Ludwig Ahgren, or simply Ludwig, American YouTube live streamer and co ...

and

Adolf Schiffer Adolf Schiffer (1873–1950) was a Hungarian-born Czech cellist and teacher of Jewish heritage, who for many years served as professor in cello at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. He is best remembered as being the link between two gr ...

(teacher of

János Starker János Starker (; ; July 5, 1924 – April 28, 2013) was a Hungarian-American cellist. From 1958 until his death, he taught at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he held the title of Distinguished Professor. Starker is consider ...

). David Popper was one of the last great cellists who did not use an endpin. An 1880 drawing of Popper playing in a string quartet shows that although he started his cello career without using an endpin, he adopted it later in his life.

Works

Popper was a prolific composer of cello music, writing four

concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typ ...

s, a ''Requiem'' for three cellos and orchestra (1891) and a number of smaller pieces which are still played today, including the solo piece ''

Tarantella () is a group of various southern Italian folk dances originating in the regions of Calabria, Campania and Puglia. It is characterized by a fast upbeat tempo, usually in time (sometimes or ), accompanied by tambourines. It is among the mo ...

''. His shorter showpieces were written to highlight the unique sound and style of the cello, extending the instrument's range with pieces such as ''Spinnlied'' (Spinning Song), ''Elfentanz'' (Dance of the Elves), or the ''Ungarische Rhapsodie'' (Hungarian Rhapsody), which was published by the

Friedrich Hofmeister Musikverlag Friedrich Hofmeister Musikverlag (abbreviated to Hofmeister) is a publisher of classical music, founded by Friedrich Hofmeister in Leipzig in 1807. Early listings included composers Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt. Hofm ...

.Aufführungstermine

2011 He also wrote instructional pieces. Popper is also known for his High School of Cello Playing (Op. 73), a book of cello études that is widely used by advanced cello students. An old edition of the ''

Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and th ...

'' described him thus: "His tone is large and full of sentiment; his execution highly finished, and his style classical." *Op. 2, Five Songs for Soprano *Op. 3, ''Scenes From a Masked Ball'', cello and piano ** No. 1, ''Arlequin (Harlequin) in F Major'' ** No. 2, ''Warum? (Why?) in A Major'' ** No. 3, ''Erzählung (Story) in E Major'' ** No. 4, ''Papillon (Butterfly) in D Major'' ** No. 5, ''Begegnung (Meeting) in F Major'' ** No. 6, ''Lied (Song) in G Major'' *Op. 5, ''Romance'', cello and piano *Op. 8, Concerto No. 1 in D minor, cello and orchestra *Op. 10, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, Sarabande **No. 2, Gavotte, in D minor **No. 3, ''Trio-Pastoral'' *Op. 11, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, ''Widmung'' **No. 2, ''Humoreske'' **No. 3, Mazurka in G minor *Op. 12, Mazurka in D minor, cello and piano *Op. 14, ''Polonaise de concert'', cello and piano **''Chanson d'autrefois'', cello and piano *Op. 16, Suite for two cellos **March for two cellos *Op. 18, ''Sérénade orientale'', cello and piano *Op. 22, Nocturne in G major, cello and piano *Op. 23, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, . d.**No. 2, Gavotte in D major *Op. 24, Concerto No. 2 in E minor, for cello and orchestra *Op. 27, Preludes for cello solo **No. 1, ''Andante serioso''; . d.*Op. 28, Concert-Polonaise No. 2 in F major, cello and piano *Op. 32, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, Nocturne **No. 2, Mazurka in A major *Op. 33, ''Tarantella'', cello and piano *Op. 35, Four Mazurkas, cello and piano *Op. 38, ''Barcarolle'' in G major, cello and piano *Op. 39, ''Dance of the Elves'', cello and piano *Op. 40, Three Songs (for Soprano or Tenor) *Op. 41, Nocturne, cello and piano *Op. 42, Three Nocturnes, cello and piano *Op. 43, ''Fantasy on Little Russian Songs'', cello and piano *Op. 46, 2 Transcriptions for Cello and Piano **No. 1, Schlummerlied aus der “Mainacht" by Rimsky-Korsakov **No. 2, Träurmerei aus den “Kinderszenen” by Schumann *Op. 47, Nocturne No.4 in B Minor for cello and piano *Op. 48, Menuetto in D major, cello and piano *Op. 49, Kaiser-Marsch zur Krönung Seiner Majestät Kaiser Alexander III. for Orchestra *Op. 50, ''Im Walde'', Suite for cello and orchestra **No. 1, ''Eintritt'' (Entrance) **No. 2, ''Gnomentanz'' (Gnomes Dance) **No. 3, ''Andacht'' (Devotion) **No. 4, ''Reigen'' (Round Dance) **No. 5, ''Herbstblume'' (Autumn Flower) **No. 6, ''Heimkehr'' (Homecoming) *Op. 51, Six Mazurkas, cello and piano *Op. 54, Spanish Dances, cello and piano **No. 1, ''Zur Gitarre'' **No. 2, ''Serenade'' **No. 3, ''Spanische Tänze'' **No. 4, ''L'Andalouse'' **No. 5, ''Vito'' *Op. 55, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, ''Spinning Song'' **No. 2, ''Hunting Piece'' *Op. 59, Concerto No. 3 in G major, cello and orchestra *Op. 60, ''Walzer Suite'', cello and piano *Op. 62, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, ''La Mémoire'' **No. 2, ''La Chanson villageoise'' (Village Song) **No. 3, ''La Berceuse'' *Op. 64, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, ''Wie einst in schöner’n tagen'' (Once in Fairer Days) **No. 2, ''Tarantelle'', in A major **No. 3, ''Wiegenlied'' (Lullaby) *Op. 65, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, Adagio **No. 2, Menuetto **No. 3, Polonaise *Op. 66, ''Requiem'', for three cellos and piano (originally for three cellos and orchestra) *Op. 67, Pieces for cello and piano **No. 1, Largo **No. 2, Gavotte in D minor **No. 3, . d.**No. 4, Gavotte in D minor *Op. 68, ''Hungarian Rhapsody'', cello and piano *Op. 69, Suite for cello and piano **''Largo à l'ancienne mode'' *Op. 71, ''Scottish Fantasy'', cello and piano *Op. 72, Concerto No. 4 in B minor, cello and orchestra *Op. 73, High School of Cello Playing (''Hohe Schule des Violoncellospiels''): ''Forty Études for Cello Solo'' *Op. 74, String Quartet in C minor *Op. 75, ''Serenade'', cello and piano *Op. 76, ''Zehn mittelschwere große Etüden'' /k/a ''Studies (Preparatory to Op. 73)''*Op. 76a, ''Fünfzehn leichte melodisch-rhythmische Etüden'' *Op. 81, Gavotte in A Major for Cello and Piano Works with unknown or no opus number *''Cadenzas for cello'' ** Joseph Haydn: Cello Concerto in D major **Camille Saint-Saëns: Concerto in A minor, Op. 33 **Robert Volkmann: Cello Concerto in A minor **Robert Schumann: Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 129 **Molique, B.: Cello Concerto in D major *Romance in G major for cello and piano, originally for violin and piano *''Chant du soir'', cello and piano Arrangements and transcriptions for cello and piano *Bach, J.S., Arie aus der D-dur Suite *Chopin, Nocturne, Op. 9, No. 2 *Campioni, ''Minuet Pastoral'' *Cherubini, ''Ave Maria'' *Giordani, ''Caro mio ben'' *Handel, ''Largo; Sarabande'' *Jámbor, Nocturne, Op. 8, No. 1 *Jensen, ''Murmelndes Lüftchen'', Op. 21, No. 4 *Mendelssohn, ''Auf Flügeln des Gesanges; Reiselied'', Op. 19, No. 6 *Pergolesi, ''Nina (Tre giorni)'' *Purcell, ''Aria'' *Rubinstein, ''Mélodie'', Op. 3, No. 1 *Schubert, ''Du bist die Ruh’''; ''Ave Maria'', Op. 52, No. 4; ''Der Neugierige''; ''Sei mir gegrüsst''; ''Litanei auf das Fest "Allerseelen"''; ''An die Musik'' *Schumann, ''Träumerei'', Op. 15, No. 7; ''Abendlied'', Op. 85, No. 12; ''Schlummerlied'', Op. 124, No. 16 * Svendsen, ''Romance in G-major, op. 26'' *Tchaikovsky, ''Song Without Words'', Op 2, No. 3; ''Chanson triste'', Op. 40, No. 2; ''Barcarolle'', Op. 37, No. 6; ''Perce-Niegre'', Op. 37, No. 4; ''Chant d’automne'', Op. 37, No. 10''

Notes

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Popper, David 1843 births 1913 deaths 19th-century Austrian people 19th-century classical composers 19th-century Czech people 19th-century Hungarian people 19th-century Czech male musicians 20th-century Austrian people 20th-century classical composers 20th-century Czech people 20th-century Hungarian people 20th-century Czech male musicians Austrian expatriates in Russia Austrian male classical composers Austrian Romantic composers Czech classical cellists Czech expatriates in Hungary Czech expatriates in Russia Czech Jews Czech male classical composers Czech music educators Czech Romantic composers Franz Liszt Academy of Music alumni Hungarian classical cellists Hungarian classical composers Hungarian male classical composers Jewish classical composers Musicians from Prague Composers for cello