Johann Joseph Abert (20 September 1832 – 1 April 1915 in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

) was a German composer. An

ethnic German Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The constitution of Germany, implemented in 1949 following the end of World War ...

from the

Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and ) is a German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the border districts of Bohe ...

, he is also known in Czech as Jan Josef Abert.

Life and career

Abert was born in Kochowitz near Gastorf,

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

, now Kochovice,

Hoštka Hoštka () is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,800 inhabitants. Administrative division Hoštka consists of four municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 cen ...

, Czech Republic. He studied

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

at the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory () is a public music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, the school offers four- or six-year courses, which can be compared to the level of a high school diploma in other countries. Graduates c ...

with Josef Hrabě and also received lessons in

theory A theory is a systematic and rational form of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the conclusions derived from such thinking. It involves contemplative and logical reasoning, often supported by processes such as observation, experimentation, ...

from

Johann Friedrich Kittl Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious ...

and August Wilhelm Ambros. In 1853, Peter Josef von Lindpaintner selected him as a double bassist for the Court Orchestra at

, the royal capital of

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Province of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern, two other histo ...

. He became the Court

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 ...

in 1867 and remained in this office, previously occupied by Lindpainter, Friedrich Wilhelm Kücken, and Karl Anton Eckerts, until 1888. Abert composed

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

and ''

lied In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...

er,'' as well as several successful

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 ...

s. Of his seven symphonies, the ''Frühlingssinfonie'' (''Spring Symphony'', No. 7) in C, the program symphony ''Columbus'' (No. 4), and the ''Symphony in C minor'' (No. 2) are generally considered to be the best. The

Württembergische Landesbibliothek The State Library of Württemberg ( or WLB) is a large library in Stuttgart, Germany, which traces its history back to the ducal public library of Württemberg founded in 1765. It holds about 4 million volumes and is the fourth-largest library ...

in Stuttgart and the

Deutsches Literaturarchiv Marbach The Deutsches Literaturarchiv Marbach (DLA – German Literature Archive), established in 1955, in Marbach am Neckar Marbach am Neckar (, ) is a town about 20 kilometres north of Stuttgart. It belongs to the district of Ludwigsburg, the Stutt ...

currently share responsibility for the preservation of his manuscripts and other personal papers. Abert's son, Hermann, became a noted music historian.

Recordings

Little of Abert's ''oeuvre'' has so far been recorded. However, there are recordings available of the String Quartet in A (together with a collection of songs), the opera ''Ekkehard'', the 4th Symphony (''Columbus''), and the concertante works for double bass and orchestra. The opera ''Ekkehard'' was recorded with a young

Jonas Kaufmann Jonas Kaufmann (born July 10, 1969) is a German- Austrian tenor opera singer. He is best known for the versatility of his repertoire, performing a variety of opera roles in multiple languages in recital Tommasini, Anthony (21 February 2014)"A Teno ...

in the title role.

Selected list of works

*Symphonies **Symphony No.1 in B minor (1852) **Symphony No.2 in C minor (1854) **Symphony No.3 in A major (1856) **Symphony No.4 in D major, Op. 31 (1865), ''"Columbus (Musikalisches Seegemälde in Form einer Sinfonie)"'' **Symphony No.5 in C minor (1870) **Symphony No.6 in D minor (1890), ''"Lyrische Sinfonie"'' **Symphony No.7 in C major (1894), ''"Frühlingssinfonie"'' *Other works for orchestra **Overture in E major for large orchestra (1850) **Overture in D minor for large orchestra (1851) **Jubilation Overture for large orchestra, dedicated to Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria (1855) **Festive Overture in D major, composed at the occasion of the Württemberg royal wedding (1874) **Concert Overture **Tragic March, dedicated to the soldiers fallen in 1866 war (1866) **Celebration March, for the 25-year anniversary of the reign of King Karl I (1889) **Festive March for Harmony Band for the anniversary of the Ulanen Regiment of Queen Olga of Württemberg (1883) *Concertos **Polonaise and Introduction in D major for double bass and orchestra (1848) ** **Variations and Rondo in C major for double bass and orchestra (1849) **Introduction and Polonaise in C major for double bass and orchestra (1849) **Concertino in F major for double bass and orchestra (1851) **Concerto for double bass and orchestra in D major (1851) **Rondeau for double bass and orchestra in C major (1852) *Chamber Music **String Quartet in A, dedicated to Karl Eckert (1862) *Operas **''Anna von Landskron'',

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

by Christian Gottfried Nehrlich, premiered 1858, Stuttgart **''König Enzio'', libretto by

Albert Friedrich Benno Dulk Albert Friedrich Benno Dulk (1819–1884) was a German author. Biography Dulk was born in Königsberg to Friedrich Philipp Dulk (1788–1851). He studied medicine and the natural sciences in Königsberg and in Leipzig and Breslau. He took an ac ...

, premiered 1862, Stuttgart **''Astorga'', libretto by

Ernst Pasqué Ernst Heinrich Anton Pasqué (3 September 1821 – 20 March 1892) was a German operatic baritone, opera director, theatre director, writer and librettist. Life Born in Cologne, at the age of 17 Pasqué decided to have his voice trained. At th ...

, premiered 1866, Stuttgart **''Enzio von Hohenstaufen'', premiered 1875, Stuttgart **''Ekkehard'', based on the novel by

Joseph Viktor von Scheffel Joseph Victor von Scheffel (16 February 1826 – 9 April 1886) was a German poet and novelist. His novel '' Ekkehard'' (1855) became one of the most popular German novels in the 19th century. Biography He was born at Karlsruhe. His father, a reti ...

about Ekkehard von St. Gallen, premiered 1878, Hofoper Berlin **''Die Almohaden'', based on the play ''The Clock of Almudaina'' by Don Juan Palou y Coll, libretto by A. Kröner. Premiered 1890, Leipzig

References

Hermann Abert Hermann Abert (; 25 March 1871 – 13 August 1927) was a German historian of music. Life Abert was born in Stuttgart, the son of Johann Josef Abert (1832–1915), the '' Hofkapellmeister'' of that city. From 1890 to 1896 he studied classical ...

. ''Johann Joseph Abert (1832–1915): Sein Leben und seine Werke''. 2nd extended edition, reprint of the Leipzig Edition. Bad Neustadt a. d. Saale, 1983. ("Beiträge zur Musikgeschichte der Sudetendeutschen", Vol. 1).

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abert, Johann Joseph 1832 births 1915 deaths People from Hoštka Sudeten German people Composers from the Austrian Empire Emigrants from the Austrian Empire German opera composers German male opera composers German Romantic composers German male conductors (music) Classical double-bassists Prague Conservatory alumni 19th-century German classical composers 19th-century German conductors (music) German string quartet composers 20th-century German conductors (music) 20th-century German male musicians