Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser
Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser (born June 19, 1806 in Vienna ; † March 11, 1875 there ) was one of the most famous magicians of the 19th century. He is considered the greatest card artist of his time, but was also known for his work as a theater critic .
His main occupation was an official of the Imperial and Royal Ministry of Finance .
Life
Childhood and adolescence
Leopold Hofzinser, the father of Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser, was the owner of the silk and haberdashery shop "Zum schwarzen Adler" on Vienna's Graben. On April 24, 1798, he married Maria Theresia Magdalena, the daughter of a K & k cloakroom and clothes maker. There were four sons from this marriage. Nepomuk Hofzinser's three older brothers were called Leopold Franz Xaver-, Franz Xaver Fidelis and Karl Josef Hofzinser. He himself was born on June 19, 1808 in the former Vienna suburb of Landstrasse , today's third district of Vienna , and was baptized the next day in the parish of St. Rochus. Presumably his mother was surprised by the labor pains while visiting relatives. The family themselves lived at Seilergasse 1154, close to their father's shop.
Little is known about Hofzinser's childhood and youth. We know that he and his parents visited the spa town of Baden near Vienna in 1814 . There he probably got to know the young Ludwig Döbler , who later made a world career as a magician himself, but above all was to cause a stir with his Laterna Magica . It is believed that Hofzinser's love for magic was sparked by his early friendship with Döbler.
The later magician attended a class at the Academic Gymnasium . Presumably, like the majority of students at the time, he was taught privately. Through his father's business relationships, he mastered the Italian language. The military authorities described him as a man with a delicate and lean physique, a weak chest and a bloated neck. He never got a college degree. After his retirement, however, Hofzinser used the title “Professor and Doctor of Higher Physics” as his stage name .
Civil servant career
At first Hofzinser worked as a commercial intern in his family's business, which was continued by the brothers Leopold and Karl after the death of his father in 1816. On July 4, 1825, he took the oath of office and became an intern in the tobacco gradient administration. He served there until 1839, when he switched to the General Court Chamber, today's Ministry of Finance, through an exchange of duties. In 1835 he already reached the peak of his civil servant career when he was awarded the rank of 2nd Officant. Today this corresponds to the position of a D to C official. Hofzinser's request for an exchange of duties primarily served to promote his artistic career. "Graf Stadion, the director of the Hofkammer , was seen as a sponsor of artistically gifted people." Among other things, he sponsored the Austrian poets Franz Grillparzer and Otto Prechtler as well as the composer Franz Schubert , who "worked in the Hofkammer with a minimum of work commitments but with a secure existence" could pursue their artistic career. Hofzinser worked in the court chamber for more than 25 years. His civil service career ended in 1865 when he retired.
Marriage with Wilhemine Bergmann
On September 21, 1854, Hofzinser married the 27-year-old Wilhemine Bergmann in the church of the Mariahilf parish . Bergmann was born on March 21, 1827 in the Vienna General Hospital as the illegitimate daughter of Anna Bergmann. Newspapers described her as a charming and voluptuous blonde. She survived her husband and just one year after Hofzinser's death in 1875, Wilhemine Hofzinser, who had remained childless, married the Vienna university professor Dr. August Biela. She was to survive this marriage and finally died on May 11, 1900.
It is not known how Hofzinser met his wife. That Hofzinser only got married at the relatively old age of 48 was nothing unusual at the time. At that time, as a man, one usually only entered the state of marriage if one dared to maintain a family. Hofzinser's artistic career in particular should benefit from this wedding. During this time, the magician planned to open a “Salon Hofzinser” for his magic demonstrations. Since it was forbidden for him as a civil servant to advertise with his name, he needed a trustworthy partner under whose name he could open his salon .
Hofzinser the magician
Hofzinser was already known as a magician in Viennese society in the 1840s . He tried everything to be present in the newspapers and to get attention. Among other things, he took part in a balloon flight over Vienna by the Goddard brothers in 1853 . The prospect of media attention prompted him to found his “Salon Hofzinser” in 1857. At that time, salons were a popular meeting place for Viennese society. As early as the 1840s, there were salons for the magicians Bosco and Döbler in Vienna .
The Hofzinser salon
The first Salon Hofzinser was opened on January 3, 1856 at Wollzeile 789 (today 38). Several articles in Viennese newspapers announced this event in advance. In addition, advertisements in almost all daily newspapers drew attention to the opening of the Wilhelmine Hofzinser salon. As a civil servant, Hofzinser was allowed to pursue secondary activities, but was not allowed to use his name for advertising purposes.
The name Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser was not mentioned either in the advertisements or in most of the articles.
Excerpt from the morning post of December 18, 1856: "Frau Hofzinser - a name well known and valued in Vienna's social circles - will open her salon in the next few days for productions in the field of magic." "An hour of deception, ..., will captivate the audience ... through the poetic conception ... through the novelty of the presentation, ... through the elegance and the incomprehensibility of its implementation. "
The opening program consisted of ten program items, which mainly included card art pieces . However, the Hofzinser couple caused the greatest sensation with a mental feat in which the alleged clairvoyance of Ms. Hofzinser was tested. On the basis of this point in the program, a newspaper wrote: "Ms. Hofzinser knows everything, including what she does not know, she sees everything, including what she cannot see, and hears everything, including what she cannot hear."
The newspapers praised both the cozy atmosphere of the venue and the intimacy of the performance.
Extract from the Allgemeine Wiener Theaterzeitung on December 18, 1858: “The salon is still the watchword of the evening every Saturday and Sunday. The most elegant "beautiful world" of art notables and nobility of both sexes gathered there to admire the magician par excellence. "
The entry price for the performance was deliberately kept high. The most expensive seats cost 2 guilders, which at that time was unaffordable for large parts of the population. Nevertheless, Hofzinser demonstrably often gave charity performances for the poor and soldiers. Demonstrations took place up to four times a week from November to April. This period was divided into several sections, so-called "cycles", which consisted of up to twenty successive performances. At the end of a cycle, the Hofzinsers usually allowed themselves a break of several days or weeks. The two also used this time to change the program and incorporate new tricks.
The name of the first cycle was "Hour of Deception". This title soon found its way into common usage. The newspapers used it as a catchphrase for incidents of disappearance, appearance and skillful transformation. Since this title was well received by the public, it was retained and only given the suffix “With changed program”.
The major renovation work in the area around the Wollzeile, which took place due to the demolition of the bastion, prompted him to look for a new location for his salon in the city center in 1859 . After Hofzinser's attempt to open an event room in the Café Corti in Volksgarten failed due to his official status, he and his wife finally found new rooms for their salon in early 1861 at Himmelpfortsgasse 953 (now 15). But as early as 1862 the Hofzinsers rented one of the splendid buildings at Walfischgasse No. 8, which had been newly built as part of the Ringstrasse construction. Hofzinser also rented the premises to external events. Readings on Schopenhauer's philosophy were often given there.
Due to the construction of the opera , the salon on Walfischgasse also suffered from noise and dust. As a consequence, the Hofzinsers decided to move again. They finally found a new location in 1865 at the meat market in the “City of London” hotel. The 1865 season was very successful, but it was to be the last for Hofzinser in his own salon for the time being, because his approved retirement opened up new perspectives for his performances.
The travels
Even while he was working as a civil servant, Hofzinser undertook several artistic trips to Paris , Graz and Prague . In the year of his retirement he made trips to Graz , Marburg and Laibach . In the following years he made guest appearances in health resorts such as Karlsbad , Franzensbad , Marienbad and cities such as Berlin , Munich , Budapest , Trieste and many provincial towns and spas of the Austrian monarchy .
Like many other artists, Hofzinser often worked for private associations and private events. There are only a few written records of these events, as they were not mentioned in the newspapers of the time, which is why it is difficult today to accurately record his travels and tours.
Theater critic and writer
Even in his younger years as an official, Hofzinser wrote newspaper reviews about concerts. As a critic he was particularly active for the Wiener Allgemeine Theaterzeitung . In the newspapers of the time you can find hundreds of concert and theater reviews, but also poems about famous musicians and actors at the time. These included the dancer Fanny Elsner, the concertmaster Johann Strauss' father , the poet Nestroy and the composer Franz Liszt . Hofzinser also dealt with magicians such as Bartolomeo Bosco and Ludwig Döbler in his poems and reviews. Hofzinser was soon recognized in the Viennese press scene as an expert on magicians and the circus scene.
In 1833 Hofzinser wrote in the magazine Collector about Johann Strauss father:
“Strauss was in plague and received stormy applause. Dance music in general has become a feast for the ears that is generally amusing. ... to come back to Mr Straß, he is not entitled to the nickname "artist" either through his composition or his playing. ... Strauss is an excellent composer of waltzes, ... all that nobody will deny ... "
There are book reviews, literary stories and stories from everyday life by Hofzinser. But he also wrote word puzzles, so-called charades. Hofzinser published his first poems in 1829. The Viennese magazine for art, literature, music and theater published a poem Hofzinser that year, which was dedicated to the artist Fanny Sallamon. In the same year the Allgemeine Wiener Theaterzeitung published a poem of fame to Emperor Franz I. In 1833 the Wiener Theaterzeitung announced a volume of poems with contributions from many well-known writers, one of whom was Hofzinser. Unfortunately this volume never seems to have been released.
His death
Hofzinser died after a short, serious illness at the age of 69, three months after he held his last performance for the Vienna Merchants' Club on New Year's Eve 1874/75 - contrary to what is often claimed, but not wasting away in poor conditions after years of illness. Today there is no reliable information about the causes of his death.
Hofzinser was buried in the Vienna Central Cemetery (4-2-16). On the initiative of Ottokar Fischer, the grave was designated an honorary grave by the City of Vienna in 1916 . Because of this, it still exists today. In 1978 the Hofzinsergasse in Vienna- Ottakring (16th district) was named after him.
Presentation technology
Hofzinser made it important to note that all of his deceptions were done by natural means. He himself once said: "... when they are largely based on a physiological and scientific basis, whose powers unfold in an original and imaginative way in a wonderful way ..." While most jugglers of his time, such as Anton Kratky-Baschik, who was very popular with the common people, tones were rather popular When they hit, Hofzinser's lectures were tailored to his intellectual audience and some of them were full of poetry . He included current events in particular, which he illustrated with his tricks. Hofzinser attached great importance to an elegant and natural atmosphere. He was one of the first to completely dispense with elaborate decorations, hung tables or black curtains.
Accordingly, the Allgemeine Wiener Theaterzeitung wrote :
“… It seems as if Mr. Hofzinser deliberately wanted to make everything difficult for himself in his productions; namely while z. For example, curtained tables, apparatus of all kinds, costumes, etc., are the stereotypical devices of ordinary Escamoteurs, we see here just the opposite; Even the favorite color of the Escamotage, the black one, is frowned upon here - because only the brightest colored objects play the most wonderful shimmering roles here - and so everything is combined in this salon, paired with fantasy, poetry and nobility, which is common with ordinary things There is usually no productions, therefore the "hour of deception" at Hofzinser turned out to be the most interesting and visited ... "
The texts he presented were written by him in advance, but he always presented them apparently improvised. He recognized the power of breaks in lectures early on, as well as the effectiveness of psychological tricks. For example, he used his gaze to emphasize trivialities in order to divert the audience's attention from the actual trick act. He also used his language to force playing cards . Thanks to these measures, despite the intimate atmosphere and the closeness of the audience in his salon, he was able to perform the most astonishing tricks undetected.
Miscellaneous
Hofzinser is considered the father of modern salon and card magic. The "Salon Hofzinser" at the magic castle Schönfeld (Dresden) is named in his honor. The well-known card artist Ricky Jay transforms a photo of Hofzinser into a playing card in his card program, which he previously used for a Hofzinser trick. On Hofzinser's 200th birthday, international card artists met in Vienna for a commemorative event at which Hofzinser's original art pieces were presented as a tribute. In 1933 the German magician Robert Farchmin donated the Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser Memorial Ring , which is awarded to magicians who have distinguished themselves with outstanding achievements in the field of magic.
literature
- Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser: Card arts , collected and edited by Ottokar Fischer. Edition Olms, Zurich 1983, reprint of the edition Vienna and Leipzig 1910, ISBN 3-283-00161-8
- Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser: Magic arts collected by Ottokar Fischer and edited by Fredo Marvelli. Edition Olms, Zurich 1984, reprint of the Berlin 1942 edition, ISBN 3-283-00211-8
- Magic Christian : Non plus ultra. Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser. The magic of the 19th century. Ed. Huber, Offenbach am Main, 1998, 2004, 2012,
- Felderer, Strouhal: Rare arts. On the cultural and media history of magic. 2006
- Hofzinser Johann Nep .. In: Austrian Biographical Lexicon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Volume 2, Publishing House of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1959, p. 388 f. (Direct links on p. 388 , p. 389 ).
Web links
- Literature by and about Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser in the catalog of the German National Library
- biography
- Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser
- DasZauberschloss.de
- Photograph by Josef Löwy
Individual evidence
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, p. 45.
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, pp. 62–64
- ↑ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, p. 7
- ↑ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, p. 70, quoted from the satirical newspaper Der Teufel in Vienna , 1857
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, pp. 67–85
- ^ Advertisement from the Wiener Zeitung , April 29, 1863
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, The Magic of the 19th Century , 1st Edition 1998. Edition Volker Huber, p. 201
- ^ Magic Christian: Non Plus Ultra, Hofzinsers Kartenkünste . 2004, p. 16
- ^ Allgemeine Wiener Theaterzeitung , February 10, 1869
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Hofzinser, Johann Nepomuk |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Austrian magician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 19, 1806 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Vienna |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 11, 1875 |
| Place of death | Vienna |