Jan Dismas Zelenka

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Jan Dismas Zelenka (first name Jan Lukáš Zelenka ; * baptized October 16, 1679 in Launiowitz , Bohemia ; † December 23, 1745 in Dresden ) was a Bohemian Baroque composer .

Life

Memorial plaque of Vinzenz Wanitschke on the place of Zelenka's house in Dresden

Zelenka was the son of a Czech village teacher and organist and was trained at the Prague Jesuit College, probably at the Clementinum . The title page of the composition Immisit Dominus pestilentiam shows that Zelenka lived in the household of " Count Hartig " in 1709 . In 1712, Zelenka wrote in a letter of application to Elector Friedrich August I of Saxony that he had received musical instruction from the famous musician "Baron von Hartig" from Prague.

In 1710 he took up a position as violonist or double bass at the Saxon court in Dresden. Between 1716 and 1719 he traveled to Vienna, where he studied with Johann Joseph Fux . A stay in Italy , where he is said to have met Antonio Lotti and Alessandro Scarlatti , has not been proven. After the death of the Dresden conductor Johann David Heinichen in 1729, whom he had already represented during his illness, he applied to Elector Friedrich August II for his successor, but was defeated by Johann Adolf Hasse . In 1733 he was only appointed court composer and in 1735 "church composer" and, with the exception of occasional trips to Prague, he stayed in Dresden until his death in 1745.

Zelenka's grave in the Old Catholic Cemetery in Dresden has not been preserved. Since 1996 a memorial stele has been commemorating him in the cemetery . An authentic portrait of Zelenka has not survived. Alleged representations of Zelenka, which can often be found on the Internet, actually show Johann Joseph Fux .

plant

Monument to Zelenka in her birthplace Louňovice pod Blaníkem

Jan Dismas Zelenka composed highly original and unconventional orchestral and vocal works. Many of them only experienced a renaissance in the last third of the 20th century. The frequent incorporation of chords from other keys is characteristic of his compositions. In his outstanding sacred works for the Dresden court (since the politically motivated conversion of August the Strong to the Catholic faith) he combines archaic compositional techniques with the most modern means of expression of his time to create highly expressive creations.

Zelenka's most important preserved contribution to chamber music are six trio sonatas, which are characterized by long themes and consistently contrapuntal compositional technique. The works are specifically written for the technical possibilities and the sound effect of the specified instruments - in five sonatas the upper parts are played by two oboes, in one by an oboe and a violin; there is often a separate part for a bassoon that is not in unison with is performed on the violoncello of the continuo group. This is where Zelenka differs from several contemporaries in whom the upper parts of the sonatas could be taken over by various instruments.

Zelenka could look back on a rich Czech, albeit often anonymous, tradition. The Czech composers before Zelenka include Adam Václav Michna z Otradovic or Pavel Josef Vejvanovský . Like Zelenka, other Bohemian composers found employment and recognition outside their homeland, such as Andreas Hammerschmidt , Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber , Josef Mysliveček and Jan Křtitel Vaňhal .

Aftermath

Memorial stele for Zelenka in the Old Catholic Cemetery in Dresden

Zelenka owes his rediscovery in the Czech Republic in particular to the musicologist and flautist Milan Munclinger . In 1959 he recorded one of the chamber sonatas with his ensemble Ars Rediviva for the Supraphon label ( but was already performed in 1958 in the Ars rediviva concert cycle). In 1964, the recordings of further trio sonatas and orchestral works followed and in 1969 the Lamentationes Jeremiae Prophetae (soloists: Theo Altmeyer , Karel Berman , Nedda Casei ; Ars rediviva under the direction of Milan Munclinger), also for supraphone.

Since the mid-1970s, the ingenuity and virtuosity of Zelenka's oeuvre, which diverged considerably from the popular styles of the 18th century, have been appreciated more and more. A significant share in the rediscovery of the works of Zelenka had the oboist Heinz Holliger , the 1972 recordings of the six trio sonatas for the label DGG Archiv Produktion headed and 1977 on the recording of the orchestral works (also DGG Archiv Produktion) was involved. Due to the relationship to Johann Sebastian Bach's ideas about sound, Zelenka is increasingly recognized as its counterpart. JS Bach himself valued his colleagues very much, which was based on reciprocity.

Zelenka's church music work has been cultivated almost continuously at the Dresden Court Church since its creation , the place for which most of Zelenka's works were composed. The Dresden Kapellknaben perform together with members of the Staatskapelle Dresden , the successor institution of the Saxon court orchestra, Zelenka's mass and psalm settings, integrated into the liturgical context.

One of the most important interpreters of Zelenkasch church music is the Marburg Bach Choir , founded in 1966 by students from the Philipps University of Marburg . Under the direction of Wolfram Wehnert (formerly the Hanover University of Music and Theater ), the national choir acquired itself through numerous re-performances of Zelenka's music between 1978 and 1990, especially the Missa dei Patris , the Missa votiva and other, in part unique, compositions. international recognition. With Zelenka's music, the ensemble traveled with various orchestras through many European countries and contributed significantly to the renaissance of Zelenka's music at many festivals.

The Czech ensemble Collegium 1704 is mainly dedicated to the work of Zelenka. It also honors the composer with the year 1704 in his name: In August 1704, Zelenka's work Via Laureata was performed in the St. Nicholas Church in Prague .

Works

Zelenka's compositions were compiled and cataloged by the musicologist Wolfgang Reich in the Zelenka Works Directory (ZWV).

Sacred vocal music

  • 21 mass settings:
    • Missa Sancta Caeciliae, G major (ZWV 1, approx. 1711)
    • Missa Judica me, F major (ZWV 2, 1714)
    • Missa Corporis Domini, C major (ZWV 3, ca.1719)
    • Missa Sancti Spiritus, D major (ZWV 4, 1723)
    • Missa Spei, C major (ZWV 5, 1724 [lost])
    • Missa Fidei, C major (ZWV 6, 1725)
    • Missa Paschalis, D major (ZWV 7, 1726)
    • Missa Nativitatis Domini, D major (ZWV 8, 1726)
    • Missa Corporis Domini, D major (ZWV 9, approx. 1727)
    • Missa Charitatis, D major (ZWV 10, 1727)
    • Missa Circumcisionis DNJC, D major (ZWV 11, 1728)
    • Missa Divi Xaverii, D major (ZWV 12, 1729)
    • Missa Gratias agimus tibi, D major (ZWV 13, 1730)
    • Missa Sancti Josephi, D major (ZWV 14, approx. 1731)
    • Missa Eucharistica, D major (ZWV 15, 1733)
    • Missa Purificationis BVM, D major (ZWV 16, 1733)
    • Missa Sanctissimae Trinitatis, A minor (ZWV 17, 1736)
    • Missa Votiva, E minor (ZWV 18, 1739)
    • Missa Dei Patris, C major (ZWV 19, 1740)
    • Missa Dei Filii, C major (ZWV 20, ca.1740)
    • Missa Omnium Sanctorum, A minor (ZWV 21, 1741)
  • 4 Requiems (ZWV 45; 46; 48; 49)
  • Works for Holy Week:
    • Lamentationes Jeremiae (ZWV 53; 54)
    • Responsoria pro Hebdomada Sancta (ZWV 55)
    • 2 Miserere (ZWV 56; 57)
  • Spiritual oratorios
    • Il Serpente del bronzo (ZWV 61)
    • Gesù al Calvario (ZWV 62)
    • I penitento al Sepolchro del Redentore (ZWV 63)
  • Various psalm settings and magnificats
  • 19 Marian antiphons
  • Settings of the Te Deum and the litanies

Secular vocal music

  • Sub olea pacis: Melodrama de Sancto Wenceslao (ZWV 175)
  • 8 Italian arias (ZWV 176)
  • Serenata Il diamante (ZWV 177), 1737
  • 2 cancer cannons Emit amor (ZWV 178)
  • Cantilena circularis Vide Domine (ZWV 179)

Instrumental music

  • 6 trio sonatas for 2 oboes or oboe and violin, bassoon and basso continuo (ZWV 181).
  • Several orchestral works for different line-ups, marked with
    • "Capriccio" (ZWV 182-185; 190)
    • "Concerto" (ZWV 186)
    • "Simphonie" (ZWV 189)
    • "Hipocondria" (ZWV 187)

estate

The estate of Jan Dismas Zelenka is kept in the music department of the Saxon State Library - Dresden State and University Library under the signature Mus.2358-… . It contains music autographs totaling around 190 catalog numbers.

literature

Web links

Commons : Jan Dismas Zelenka  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

References and comments

  1. ^ Except in the baptismal register, Dismas , the (post-biblical) name of the "repentant thief" ( Lk 23.39–42  EU ) appears as the middle name everywhere ; when and why the name change occurred is unknown. Some suspect the company name Zelenkas in Dismas (according to David Charlton: Jan Dismas Zelenka , classical.net); However, even in the baroque era it was not customary to use the company name as a civil name.
  2. ↑ According to the standard work on Zelenka by Janice B. Stockigt, there are two brothers from the Bohemian noble family von Hartig : Probably is "Graf Hartig", with whom Zelenka lived in 1709, Jan Hubert Hartig (1671–1741), while " Baron von Hartig ”, Zelenka's musical teacher, was probably Joseph Ludwig Hartig (1685–1735) (see book preview , p. 5 f.). It is unclear with Stockigt why, in contradiction to the life dates given, she describes Jan Hubert Hartig as the younger of the brothers.
  3. ^ Volker Hagedorn: The bizarre next to Bach zeit.de, March 17, 2011
  4. ↑ For example hoasm.org , last.fm , rateyourmusic.com or classicalm.com
  5. ↑ Collegium 1704: About us (see end of text)
  6. ↑ Calliope | Union catalog for archival and archive-like stocks and national documentation instrument for personal papers and autographs. Retrieved May 14, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Zelenka, Jan Dismas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Zelenka, Jan Lukáš (baptismal name); Zelenka, Johann Dismas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bohemian composer of the late baroque
DATE OF BIRTH baptized October 16, 1679
PLACE OF BIRTH Launiowitz , Bohemia
DATE OF DEATH December 23, 1745
Place of death Dresden