Johann Vesque von Püttlingen (pseudonym Johann Hoven) (23 July 1803 – 29 October 1883), born J. Vesque de Puttelange, was an Austrian lawyer, diplomat, author, composer and singer. His full name and title in German was Johann Vesque,

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in ...

von Püttlingen.

Early life

He was born in the Lubomirski Palace (pl:''Pałac Lubomirskich'') in

Opole Lubelskie Opole Lubelskie is a town in southeastern Poland. As of 2004, it had 8,879 inhabitants. The town is situated in Lublin Voivodeship, some 10 kilometers east of the Vistula River, and is the capital of Opole Lubelskie County. It was founded in the 1 ...

(at the time located in

West Galicia New Galicia or West Galicia ( or ''Galicja Zachodnia''; or ''Westgalizien'') was an administrative region of the Habsburg monarchy, constituted from the territory annexed in the course of the Third Partition of Poland in 1795. The Austrian E ...

, a province of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

in eastern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, now in

Lublin Voivodship Lublin Voivodeship ( ) is a voivodeship (province) of Poland, located in the southeastern part of the country, with its capital being the city of Lublin. The region is named after its largest city and regional capital, Lublin, and its territory ...

). ;Background His father, Jean Vesque de Puttelange, born in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, was a state official (civil servant) in Brussels, at the time in the

Duchy of Brabant The Duchy of Brabant, a Imperial State, state of the Holy Roman Empire, was established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant of 1085–1183, and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries. The Duchy comprised part of the Bu ...

, a region of the

Austrian Netherlands The Austrian Netherlands was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The period began with the acquisition by the Austrian Habsburg monarchy of the former Spanish Netherlands under the Treaty of Ras ...

, themselves part of the

. Jean Vesque had to leave in a hurry after the French invasion of the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

in 1793, but found himself banned (with the other Belgian officials of the late Brussels administration) from Vienna, where there were enough civil servants already; having rejected a French offer of citizenship of the new greater France - now including southern Belgium and Luxembourg - his estates were confiscated and he found himself stateless. image:Opole lubelskie pałac barokowy.jpg, left, His birthplace, Lubomirski Palace in

, designed c.1770 by ''inter alia, i.a.'' Domenico Merlini After many years of wandering in Europe, often on foot, Jean Vesque obtained a position c1801 at the palace of Prince Aleksander Lubomirski (1751–1804), Alexander Lubomirsky in

, where he worked as librarian and tutor to his daughter Alexandra Francis Rzewuska, Alexandra Francis Lubomirska, and where his son, also Johann Vesque (later von Püttlingen), was born in 1803. West Galicia had recently come under

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

control after the

Third Partition of Poland The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...

in 1795. The ban on Austro-Belgian officials settling in Vienna was lifted the following year, 1804, and the family moved to

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. ...

. The subsequent life of the infant Johann Vesque divides into two intertwining careers, that of a government official, and that of a composer.

Civil service career

After schooling - including some musical training - he entered the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

in 1822 to study law, gaining his LLD (''Dr. jur.'') with honours in 1827. He then became a civil servant, entering the

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

n legal service (or magistracy) as an 'Auscultant' or probationer (''Anwärter'' auf das Richteramt), rising to become chief administrative officer of Salzburg by 1872. He moved to the Austrian diplomatic service, making his way to head of section in the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

, and in 1866 he was elevated to the

barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

(''Freiherrenstand''). In 1876 he became a Privy Councillor of the Imperial Council. He was one of Austria's leading lawyers and was also active as a writer in this field: among other things he published a ground-breaking work on "The rights of the musical author" (1864); a description of the law relating to foreign citizens in Austria; and a review of Austria's agreements with foreign states.

Musical career

Aged 13, he had started piano lessons with :de:Maximilian Josef Leidesdorf, a well-known pianist who was a friend (and publisher) of

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

and

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

. He studied composition with Eduard von Lannoy, who came from Brussels like Johann's father, Jean Vesque; he got to know Schubert in 1827-8, and through him had singing lessons with the renowned baritone Johann Vogl. The critic

Eduard Hanslick Eduard Hanslick (11 September 18256 August 1904) was an Austrian music critic, aesthetician and historian. Among the leading critics of his time, he was the chief music critic of the '' Neue Freie Presse'' from 1864 until the end of his life. Hi ...

described his well-trained tenor voice: "The witty, lightly emphasised, almost French 'breathy' tone, which Vesque - especially in his recital of his humoristic ''lieder'' - was aware of putting on, was quite unique."„Der geistreiche, leicht pointierende, fast französisch angehauchte Ton, den Vesque in den Vortrag namentlich seiner humoristischen Lieder zu legen wusste, war ganz einzig". Starting in 1828, he published a number of his own compositions under the name 'J. Hoven', or later 'Johann van Hoven'. many of which - like the rest of his oeuvre - were contributions to the

lyric Lyric may refer to: * Lyrics, the words, often in verse form, which are sung, usually to a melody, and constitute the semantic content of a song * Lyric poetry is a form of poetry that expresses a subjective, personal point of view * Lyric, from t ...

vocal The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound producti ...

repertoire; over 100 of his songs were settings of

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; ; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was an outstanding poet, writer, and literary criticism, literary critic of 19th-century German Romanticism. He is best known outside Germany for his ...

. In total he composed over 330

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, notably the ''Ironischen Lieder''; six operas, including ''Turandot'' (1838) and ''Jeanne d'Arc'' (1840); and about twenty

quartet In music, a quartet (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations of four instruments in chamber music is the string quartet. String quar ...

s, in both sacred and secular settings. Among his contacts were numbered

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

and

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; ; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic music, Romantic era, she exerted her influence o ...

Hector Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

Carl Loewe Johann Carl Gottfried Loewe (; 30 November 1796 – 20 April 1869), usually called Carl Loewe (sometimes seen as Karl Loewe), was a German composer, tenor singer and conductor. In his lifetime, his songs ("Balladen") were well enough known for ...

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 ...

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

and

Otto Nicolai Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of Shakespeare's comedy ''The Merry Wives of Wi ...

. Four of his six operas were successfully produced at the Kärntnertortheater: ''Turandot'' 1838, ''Johanna d’Arc'' 1840, ''Liebeszauber'' 1845, ''Ein Abenteuer Carl des Zweiten'' 1850. He helped to reconstruct the threatened

Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde The (), also known as the (German for 'Viennese Music Association'), is an Austrian music organization that was founded in 1812 by Beethoven’s friend Joseph Sonnleithner, general secretary of the Court Theatre in Vienna, Austria. Overview ...

, and was its vice-president 1851/52, while continuing on the building of the Conservatory of the GdM, whose director he was. He organised performances of

Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonie ...

's oratorios in Vienna, and directed the musical festivals in the Royal winter

Spanish Riding School The Spanish Riding School () is an Austrian institution based in Vienna, dedicated to the preservation of classical dressage and the training of Lipizzaner horses, whose performances in the Hofburg are also a tourist attraction. The leading hor ...

. He was a member of the Royal Commission for the World Fair 1873, and also collected autographs. He died in Vienna.

Works

According to Grove, his published compositions reach to Opus no. 58. *Complete list of works ;Operas * ''

Turandot ''Turandot'' ( ; see #Origin and pronunciation of the name, below) is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. Puccini left the opera unfinished at the time of his death in 1924; it ...

'', 2 acts (1838). **Overture, arr. piano 4 hands **Vocal score arr. composer, .de & .it text * ''Joan of Arc'', 3 acts (1840). Performed in Dresden in 1845, with Johanna Wagner in the title part. Vocal score by Diabelli * ''Liebeszauber'' 4 acts (1845). * ''Catherine de Heilbronn'' (1847) * ''Burg Thaya'', 3 acts (1847) ('Thaya Castle'). Apparently not performed. * ''Ein Abenteuer Carl des Zweiten'', 1 act (1850) ('An adventure of Carl II'). * ''Der lustiger Rath'', 2 acts (1852). Produced at

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

. * ''Lips Tullian'', 1 act. Not performed. Operettas reviewed by Hanslick, 15 Jan 1850 ;Choral works * Mass in D (1846), for soloists, chorus and orchestra, performed at the Vienna Hofkapelle * A second Mass. ;Piano (and violin) * Six Cotillons, op. 1, pour le pianoforte * Twelve Ländler, op. 2, for piano * Cotillons et galopade, op. 3, piano 4 hands * Cotillons et galopade, op. 4, arr. for violin and piano * ''Flüchtiger Lust''. Walzer und Galoppe fur pianoforte, op. 5 ;Vocal works * c.300 songs for voice and piano, including **''Die Heimkehr''. Acht und achtzig Gedichte aus Heinrich Heine's Reisebildern in Musik gesetzt von J. Hoven" (Vesque). Wien, aus der konlig. Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, 1851 (''Die Heimkehr'': 88 poems from

's 'Travel Pictures') **45 Songs __ *Balladen, Romanzen und Lieder. 3 Hefte, opp. 6, 7 & 8 ** op. 6. - 2 songs #1. ''Ritter Toggenburg'' ('Toggenburg the knight'), text by

Friedrich Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, philosopher and historian. Schiller is considered by most Germans to be Germany's most important classical playwright. He was born i ...

. #2. ''Die Eisersucht'' ** op. 7 - 3 songs ** op. 8 - 6 songs, texts by Salis & Heine *Drei Gedichte, op. 9, from Heine's ''Reisebildern'' *Three songs by Zerboni di Sposetti, op. 10 *Die zwölfte Stunde, op. 11, poems by Heine * ''Der Doktor und der Patient'', Op. 13, comic duet for two bass voices and piano (ed. Martin Wiener) *Liebesleiden, op. 21, poems of Heine *Abendbilder, op. 22, from Heine's ''Reisebildern'' *"Standchen" von Koerner (Serenata), 0p. 24 *Wie der Mond sich leuchtend dränget, op. 27 *"Liebsvoll" *Sonntag auf dem Meere, 30. Werk (L. A. Frankl) 12 songs for voice & piano, 2 books No. 9 - Goethe Dämmerung *Vier Lieder by Heinrich Heine, op. 36 *Humoristica from Heine's poems, op. 38 *Six Heine poems, op. 39 *Fünf neue Gedichte von Heinrich Heine, op. 40 *Ironische Lieder von H. Heine op. 41 *Sei ''ariette'' dedicate a Mad. Albina Maray, op. 42 *Six songs for alto voice and piano, op. 43 *Songs, op. 44 *7 Gedichte aus dem "neuen Fruhling" von Heine, op. 45 *Six poems from 'New Spring' by Heine, op. 46 *Sechs Gedichte von Chamisso, op. 47 (2 Hefte) *Three songs, op. 48 *Six songs, op. 49 *Three songs, op. 51 *Six songs, opp, 52, 54, 55, 56 *''Lieder frommer Stimmung'', op. 57 __ *''Liebesrauch'', von J. Hoven (Curci, C. "L'estasi di amore" di G. Perruzzini) *"Der Sängerskampf", komische Ballade, text von August Schmidt (1843) __ *Jagers Qual (von Seidl), for tenor, horn and piano ;Vocal ensemble: * Vocal quartets, op. 20 for male quartetNeue Zeitschrift für Musik, Volume 19, 1848
p. 111

References

;Notes ;Citations ;Sources * * * Hanslick, Eduard. (1869) ''Geschicte des Concertwesens in Wien, 1'' (in German) * * * Online copy a

both retrieved 27 October 2015. * * *

External links

* (In German) *
Brief biography under "Bientôt le Printemps musical en pays mosellan du 11 au 24 mars 2007"
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Vesque Von Puttlingen, Johann 1803 births 1883 deaths Austrian male opera composers Austrian opera composers Austrian Romantic composers Austrian barons Composers from Austria-Hungary Composers from the Austrian Empire People from Opole Lubelskie County