Adolf Jensen (composer)

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Adolf Jensen
Jensengasse street sign in Graz

Adolf Jensen (born January 12, 1837 in Königsberg , † January 23, 1879 in Baden-Baden ) was a German composer , pianist and music teacher .

Life

Adolf Jensen first discovered his musical talent as an autodidact . In 1852 he studied with Louis Ehlert and Friedrich Marpurg (1825-1884), the great-grandson of the music theorist Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg , in Berlin. Franz Liszt (1811–1886) became aware of him and promoted his pianistic talent. After completing his studies, he went to Russia in 1856 , initially as a music teacher, then became Kapellmeister at the Municipal Theater in Poznan in 1857 and then studied for another two years in Copenhagen with Niels Wilhelm Gade . In 1860 he returned to Königsberg, where he quickly gained a reputation as a composer and teacher. In 1866 he was appointed professor for piano in Berlin at Tausig's "School for Higher Piano Playing". He taught there until 1868, then moved to Dresden and moved to Graz in 1870 . He lived here until 1875, most recently in Maiffredygasse 2 (commemorative plaque by Hans Brandstetter, 1909).

He spent the last four years of his life in Baden-Baden, where he had regular contact with his friend Johannes Brahms (1833–1897). On January 23, 1879, at the age of only 42, he died in Baden-Baden of a serious lung disease.

Jensen's extremely poetic musical feeling made him the spiritual successor of Robert Schumann in his day . The romantic sensitivity of his compositions, but especially the popularity of some of his pieces in the context of house music for older daughters , meant that his music was occasionally labeled as kitsch and brought close to salon music .

His cousin was the actor Paul Jensen .

Works

Jensen composed mainly song settings (176 works) and piano works. Jensen wrote several song cycles, including Dolorosa, Gaudeamus, the Spanish songbook. His most important compositions, however, were mainly piano pieces. Particularly noteworthy here are: Inner Voices, Valse Brillante, Fantasy Pieces, Romantic Studies, Berceuse, Wanderbilder , Impromptus, Sonata in F sharp minor, 25 Etudes , Eroticon, Memories and the Scènes carnavalesques. Jensen also wrote an abundance of four-hand compositions.

literature

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personal data
SURNAME Jensen, Adolf
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German composer
DATE OF BIRTH January 12, 1837
PLACE OF BIRTH Koenigsberg
DATE OF DEATH January 23, 1879
Place of death Baden-Baden