Gustav Albert Lortzing (23 October 1801 – 21 January 1851) was a German composer, librettist, actor and singer. He is considered to be the main representative of the German ''

Spieloper In the 19th century, Spieloper (, 'opera play') was understood to mean a light opera genre, developed from Singspiel. Works typical of the genre include those by Albert Lortzing, such as ''Zar und Zimmermann'', and Otto Nicolai's ''The Merry Wives ...

'', a form similar to the French ''

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular ''opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Théâtre de la foire, Fair Theatres of St Germain and S ...

'', which grew out of the ''

Singspiel A Singspiel (; plural: ; ) is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera. It is characterized by spoken dialogue, which is alternated with ensembles, songs, ballads, and arias which were often strophic, or folk- ...

''.

Life and career

Lortzing was born in Berlin to Johann Gottlieb and Charlotte Sophie Lortzing. They had abandoned their leather shop and travelled through Germany as itinerant actors, founding the Berlin theatre company ''Urania'', and turning their amateur passion into a profession. The young Lortzing's first stage appearance was at the age of 12, entertaining the audience with comic poems during the interval in the ''Kornhaus'' at the

Freiburg Münster Freiburg Minster ( or ) is the cathedral of Freiburg im Breisgau, southwest Germany. The last duke of Zähringen had started the building around 1200 in romanesque style. The construction continued in 1230 in Gothic style. The minster was partly ...

. From 1817, the Lortzing family were part of

Josef Derossi Josef or Joseph Derossi or de Rossi (6 August 1768 – 18 December 1841) was an Austrian actor. He is notable as the first manager of the Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus in Düsseldorf from 1818 onwards. Life He began his career in 1786 playing l ...

ensemble in the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

, treading the boards at

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

Barmen Barmen is a former industrial metropolis of the region of Bergisches Land, Germany, which merged with four other towns in 1929 to form the city of Wuppertal. Barmen, together with the neighbouring town of Elberfeld founded the first electric ...

and

Aachen Aachen is the List of cities in North Rhine-Westphalia by population, 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, 27th-largest city of Germany, with around 261,000 inhabitants. Aachen is locat ...

. Albert Lortzing became an audience favourite, playing the roles of a youthful lover, a country boy and bon vivant, sometimes also singing small

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

roles. On 30 January 1824 he married the actress Rosina Regine Ahles, with whom he subsequently had 11 children. The couple belonged to the Hoftheater (court theatre) in

Detmold Detmold () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of . It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947. Today it is the administrative center of ...

from late 1826, which toured to Münster and Osnabrück. Lortzing joined the

Freemasons Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, a popular refuge for artists in

Metternich Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar, Prince of Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein ( ; 15 May 1773 – 11 June 1859), known as Klemens von Metternich () or Prince Metternich, was a Germans, German statesman and diplomat in the service of the Austrian ...

's police state. Lortzing composed an oratorio in Detmold, ''Die Himmelfahrt Christi'' (''Christ's Ascension''), which premiered in Münster, and predictably earned a rebuke for the young composer from the Münster regional governor, who claimed that Lortzing was "a composer of no renown". Lortzing composed the music for

Christian Dietrich Grabbe Christian Dietrich Grabbe (11 December 1801 – 12 September 1836) was a German dramatist of the ''Vormärz'' era. He wrote many historical plays conceiving a disillusioned and pessimistic world view, with some shrill scenes. Heinrich Heine s ...

's Don Juan und Faust, playing the role of Don Juan himself, with his wife as Donna Anna. Lortzing received a glowing report from an anonymous reviewer in a

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

paper, who also mistakenly praised Lortzing for the text "by this brilliant poet". Grabbe, the real poet, was outraged, although the review did bring good publicity for the piece. On 3 November 1833 the young Lortzings gave their debut at the Leipziger Stadttheater. Lortzing's parents had been members of this ensemble since 1832, under Friedrich Sebald Ringelhardt. Here, Lortzing became a member of the artists' club "''Tunnel unter der Pleisse''" ("Tunnel under the

Pleiße The Pleiße () is a river of Saxony and Thuringia, Germany. It flows from south to north into the White Elster in Leipzig. Originally, its natural length was ; however, south of Leipzig, it has been straightened, which shortened it to around . Th ...

"), and in 1834 he became a member of the Leipzig Freemasons lodge "''Balduin zur Linde''" ("Balduin to the

Linden Tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperateness, temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Great Bri ...

"). Lortzing was much loved in the Leipzig ensemble, particularly when acting in

Johann Nestroy Johann Nepomuk Eduard Ambrosius Nestroy (; 7 December 1801 – 25 May 1862) was a singer, actor and playwright in the popular Austrian tradition of the Biedermeier period and its immediate aftermath. He participated in the 1848 revolutions and ...

's comedies. However, his tendency to improvise and to deviate from the script attracted the attention of the theatrical police. His first comic opera, ''

Zar und Zimmermann ''Zar und Zimmermann'' (''Tsar and Carpenter'') is a comic opera in three acts, music by Albert Lortzing, libretto by the composer after Georg Christian Römer's ''Der Bürgermeister von Saardam, oder Die zwei Peter'', itself based on the French p ...

'', had a tough time with the Leipzig censors. It premiered in Leipzig on 22 December 1837. Lortzing himself sang the role of Peter Iwanow, but it did not make a major breakthrough until its Berlin performances in 1839, where it was much praised. In 1844, Lortzing became

Kapellmeister ( , , ), from German (chapel) and (master), literally "master of the chapel choir", designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term has evolved considerably in i ...

of the Leipzig Stadttheater. After a quarrel with management, he was dismissed in April 1845 due to his "rheumatic troubles". The repeated protests of the public got him reinstated, but he was soon dismissed again after another argument. In an open letter, signed by almost everyone in the ensemble, he made a plea against the measures taken by the city government. Between 1846 and 1848, Lortzing worked as Kapellmeister at the

Theater an der Wien The is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served prim ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. At the behest of the Freedom Movement, he wrote text and music in 1848 for his political opera '' Regina'', named after his wife. This work concerned both labour struggles and fear of suicide. His last full-length opera was an 1849 fairy-tale satire of the

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

n military state called ''Rolands Knappen'' (''Roland's Squires''), featuring the repeated line "And this is supposed to be a world order?" ("''Und das soll eine Weltordnung sein?''") In 1848 he lost his appointment and had to return to work as a touring actor to support his large family. He worked at Gera and Lüneburg, among other cities. Finally in 1850, he became the Kapellmeister in Berlin at the newly opened Friedrich-Wilhelmstädtisches Theater. Lortzing also wrote music for

masonic Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

rituals. On 20 January 1851, the night his musical comedy '' Die Opernprobe'' premiered in Frankfurt, Lortzing suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

at his home in Berlin and died without medical treatment on the morning of the following day, under huge stress and deeply in debt. A number of luminaries from the musical world were present at his funeral, including

Giacomo Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Meyer Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart and Richard Wa ...

, Heinrich Dorn, Wilhelm Taubert and

Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen (first name also sometimes given as Karl;Eitner (1889) 27 September 1778 – 21 December 1851) was a German composer and academic teacher at the Prussian Academy of Arts. Life Rungenhagen abandoned early study of ...

. Lortzing's theatrical colleagues decorated his coffin with black, red and gold, a combination forbidden after 1848. A public benefit was then later held for his already impoverished family.

Works

His first

singspiel A Singspiel (; plural: ; ) is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera. It is characterized by spoken dialogue, which is alternated with ensembles, songs, ballads, and arias which were often strophic, or folk- ...

, '' Ali Pascha von Janina'', appeared in 1824, but his fame as a musician rests chiefly upon the two operas ''

'' (1837) and ''

Der Wildschütz ''Der Wildschütz oder Die Stimme der Natur'' (''The Poacher, or The Voice of Nature'') is a German ''Komische Oper'', or comic opera, in three acts by Albert Lortzing from a libretto by the composer adapted from the comedy ''Der Rehbock, oder Die ...

'' (1842). ''Zar und Zimmermann'' was received with very little enthusiasm by the public of

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. However, at subsequent performances in Berlin there was a much more positive reaction. The opera soon appeared on all the stages of Germany, and today is regarded as one of the masterpieces of German comic opera. It was translated into English, French, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, Bohemian, Hungarian and Russian. The story is based around Tsar Peter I 'The Great' of Russia, who travelled to Germany, Holland and England disguised as a carpenter in order to gain first-hand technical knowledge he believed necessary for his country's economic progress, such as modern shipbuilding. ''Der Wildschütz'' was based on a comedy by

August von Kotzebue August Friedrich Ferdinand von Kotzebue (, ; – ) was a German playwright, who had also worked as a Russian diplomat. In 1817, one of Kotzebue's books was burned during the Wartburg festival. He was murdered in 1819 by Karl Ludwig Sand, a ...

, and was a satire on the unintelligent and exaggerated admiration for the highest beauty in art expressed by the

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...

gentilhomme. Of his other operas, ''Der Pole und sein Kind'', produced shortly after the Polish insurrection of 1831, and ''Undine'' (1845) are notable. His ''Hans Sachs'' (on a subject later used by

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

) was revived in 2024 in the city where it received its first performance, at the

Musikalische Komödie The Musikalische Komödie (colloquially MuKo) is an operettas and musicals theatre in Leipzig. Its venue is located in the Lindenau (Leipzig), Lindenau district in the Haus Dreilinden, which is often referred to as the "Musical Comedy" itself. It ...

Leipzig.Gahre, Jürgen. Report from Leipzig. ''

Opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

'', August 2024, Vol.75 No.8, p1064-1065. Lortzing was popular in Berlin and after his death, a memorial statue was erected in the Tiergarten in Berlin.

Selected list of works

*'' Ali Pascha von Janina'' (1824) *''Die Himmelfahrt Christi'' (''

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

's Ascension'') – oratorio (premiered in

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

in 1828) *Incidental music for Grabbe's '' Don Juan und Faust'' (1829) *''Der Pole und sein Kind'' (''The Pole and His Child'') (1831) *''Szenen aus Mozarts Leben'' (''Scenes from

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

's Life'') (Münster 1832) *''Der Weihnachtsabend'' (''Christmas Eve'') (Münster 1832) *''Die beiden Schützen'' (''The Two Riflemen'') (

1837) *''

'' (''Tsar and Carpenter'') (Leipzig 1837) *''Hans Sachs'' (Leipzig 1840) *''Casanova'' (Leipzig 1841) *''

'' (''The Poacher'') (Leipzig 1842) *''

Undine Undines (; also ondines) are a category of elemental beings associated with water, stemming from the alchemical writings of Paracelsus. Later writers developed the undine into a water nymph in its own right, and it continues to live in modern l ...

'' (

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

1845) *''

Der Waffenschmied ''Der Waffenschmied'' (The Armourer) is an opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal t ...

'' (''The Armourer'') (

1846) * ''

Zum Groß-Admiral ''Zum Groß-Admiral'' (LoWV 74) is a comic opera in three acts by Albert Lortzing; it premiered on 13 December 1847 at the Altes Theater in Leipzig.

'' (1847) *'' Regina'' (Vienna 1848) (called his ''freedom opera''. Not performed in Lortzing's lifetime) *''Rolands Knappen oder Das ersehnte Glück'' (''Roland's Squire, or The Longed-For Happiness'') (Leipzig 1849) *'' Die Opernprobe'' (''The Opera Rehearsal'') (

1851)

Literature

* Dario Weißenhoffer: ''Das Verzeichnis von Gustav Albert Lortzing (LoWV)'' (''The Gustav Albert Lortzing Catalogue'') * Irmlind Capelle: ''Chronologisch-thematisches Verzeichnis der Werke von Gustav Albert Lortzing (LoWV)'' (''Chronological and Thematic Catalogue of Gustav Albert Lortzing's Works'') Studio, Köln 1994, * Irmlind Capelle: ''Albert Lortzing. Sämtliche Briefe'' (''Collected Correspondence of Albert Lortzing'') Bärenreiter, Kassel 1995, * Hans Christoph Worbs: ''Albert Lortzing''. Rowohlt, Reinbek 1980, * Heinz Schirmag: ''Albert Lortzing. Glanz und Elend eines Künstlerlebens'' (''Albert Lortzing: Glamour and Squalor of an Artist's Life'') Henschel, Berlin 1995, * Jürgen Lodemann: ''Lortzing. Leben und Werk des dichtenden, komponierenden und singenden Publikumslieblings, Familienvaters und komisch tragischen Spielopernweltmeisters aus Berlin'' (''Lortzing: Life and Work of the poem-writing, composing and singing darling of the audience, devoted father and comically tragic world champion of the Spieloper from Berlin'') Steidl, Göttingen 2000, * Jürgen Lodemann: ''Oper – O reiner Unsinn – Albert Lortzing, Opernmacher'' (''Opera – O Total Nonsense – Albert Lortzing, Opera-maker''
Edition WUZ
Nr. 19, Freiberg a.N. 2005

References

External links

*
George Overmeire's Albert Lortzing Website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lortzing, Albert 1801 births 1851 deaths Writers from the Kingdom of Prussia German librettists Male actors from the Kingdom of Prussia Composers from the Kingdom of Prussia German male stage actors 19th-century German male singers German opera composers German male opera composers Male actors from Berlin Musicians from the Province of Brandenburg German Romantic composers Composers from Berlin 19th-century German male actors 19th-century German classical composers Composers of masonic music