Great hall of 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 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 ...

’s friend Joseph Sonnleithner, general secretary of the Court Theatre in

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. ...

, Austria.

Overview

Its official charter, drafted in 1814, stated that the purpose of the Gesellschaft was to promote music in all its facets. In early 1818,

Franz 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 ...

was rejected for membership in the Gesellschaft as a professional musician, something that might have furthered his musical career. The Gesellschaft accomplished its goals by sponsoring concerts, founding the Vienna Conservatory in 1819, founding the Wiener Singverein in 1858, constructing the

Musikverein The ( or ; ), commonly shortened to , is a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, which is located in the Innere Stadt district. The building opened in 1870 and is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. The acoustics of the building's 'Grea ...

building in 1870, and by systematically collecting and archiving noteworthy music-history documents. It is now one of the world's leading music archives. The first music director of the Gesellschaft was Carl Heissler, who was followed by

Anton Rubinstein Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein (; ) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. He was the elder brother of Nikolai Rubinstein, who founded the Moscow Conservatory. As a pianist, Rubinstein ran ...

(appointed in 1871) and

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

(appointed in 1872). Other notable music directors include

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , ; ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is regarded as one of the greatest Symphony, symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a majo ...

Herbert von Karajan Herbert von Karajan (; born ''Heribert Adolf Ernst Karajan''; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, ...

and

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

. Membership in the Gesellschaft has included a

who's who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

of notable 19th- and 20th-century musical figures, including composers, conductors and instrumentalists.

External links

Official website

Website of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde archives

Johannes Brahms: Life and Letters
– Selected and annotated by Styra Avins. Oxford University Press, 2001, p. 419. 19th century in music Music in Vienna Austrian music history Music organisations based in Austria Organizations established in 1812 {{music-org-stub