Asger Hamerik

Asger Hamerik

Asger Hamerik (born April 8, 1843 in Frederiksberg ; † July 13, 1923 there ) was a Danish composer and conductor .

Life

Hamerik, who was born with the name Asger Hammerich, was the son of theology professor Frederik Hammerich. Although he was supposed to study theology too, his musical talent proved so great that in 1859 he was able to begin studying music with, among others, Niels Wilhelm Gade and Johann Peter Emilius Hartmann , with whom he was distantly related through his mother. In 1862 he finished his studies and first traveled to London , but soon to Berlin , where he became a student of Hans von Bülow . However, when the German-Danish War broke out in 1864 , he preferred to leave Prussia and move to Paris . He also changed his German family name Hammerich to the Danish-sounding Hamerik. In Paris he studied with Hector Berlioz until 1869 . After his death he traveled through Europe before he took over the management of the Peabody Institute in Baltimore , a music academy, in 1871 . Here he worked as a teacher, composer and conductor until the institute was dissolved in 1895. In 1890 he planned to take over the management of the Copenhagen Music Academy , but this failed because of the death of Gade, with whom he had arranged this. Therefore, Hamerik could not leave Baltimore until 1898. After a concert tour through Europe, he settled back in his homeland in 1900. However, he played no role in Danish musical life, especially since from 1900 he hardly composed any more. Hamerik's son Ebbe was also a composer.

style

Outside Denmark, Hamerik was, together with Gade, the most famous composer in his country. However, this was hardly noticed in Denmark, as he was largely active in America. But there he was regarded as a highly significant figure in musical life. In accordance with his conducting activities, Hamerik concentrated as a composer on orchestral works. However, these are hardly oriented towards specifically Danish music - unless this is expressly stated in the title as in the Nordic Suites - but rather towards the Franco-German tradition and especially towards his teacher Berlioz. His vision of an idée fixe , ie a theme that pervades all parts of a cyclical work in modifications, is a frequently observed element in Hamerik's works (especially the symphonies). During his time in Paris, Berlioz's influence also manifested itself in some monstrous works such as the hymn à la paix . Overall, Hamerik is probably the least nationally oriented of the Danish Romantic composers . In return, he had a special feeling for the formation of form.

Works

• Orchestral works
  • Symphony in C minor op.3 (1860, lost)
  • Symphony No. 1 in F major, Op. 29 "Symphonie poètique" (1879/80)
  • Symphony No. 2 in C minor, Op. 32 "Symphonie tragique" (1882/83)
  • Symphony No. 3 in E major, Op. 33 "Symphonie lyrique" (1883/84)
  • Symphony No. 4 in C major op. 35 "Symphonie majestueuse" (1888/89)
  • Symphony No. 5 in G minor, Op. 36 "Symphonie sérieuse" (1889–91)
  • Symphony No. 6 in G major, Op. 38 "Symphonie spirituelle" for string orchestra (1897)
  • Symphony No. 7 op. 40 "Choral Symphony" for mezzo-soprano, choir and orchestra (1898, rev.1901-06)
  • Nordic Suite No. 1 in C major, Op. 22 (1871/72)
  • Nordic Suite No. 2 in G minor, Op. 23 (around 1872)
  • Nordic Suite No. 3 in A minor, Op. 24 (1873/74)
  • Nordic Suite No. 4 in D major, Op. 25 (around 1875)
  • Nordic Suite No. 5 in A major op.26 (around 1876)

• Vocal music
  • "Tovelille", opera op. 12 (1863–65)
  • "Hjalmar and Ingeborg", opera op. 18 (1868)
  • "La vendetta", opera op.20 (1870)
  • "The Traveler", opera op. 21 (1871)
  • "Hymne à la paix" op. 17 for solos, choir and large orchestra (1867)
  • "Christian Trilogy" op. 31 for baritone, choir and orchestra (1882)
  • Requiem op.34 (1886/87)

• Chamber music
  • Piano quintet in c minor op.6 (1862)
  • Romance for violoncello and piano (or orchestra) op.27 (1878)
  • Four preludes for organ op.39a (around 1905)