Johann Stamitz

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Johann Stamitz

Johann (Wenzel Anton) Stamitz , Czech: Jan (Václav Antonín) Stamic (born probably on June 17, 1717, according to the church book baptized on June 19, 1717 in Deutschbrod in Böhmen; buried March 30, 1757 in Mannheim ) was a Bohemian composer and Violinist . First name is: Jan, Johann; Stamitz called himself Johannes.

Stamitz was initially concert master and from 1750 until his death instrumental music director in the court orchestra of Elector Carl Theodor von der Pfalz . The violin virtuoso is considered the spiritus rector and founder of the famous Mannheim school . As a composer he had a decisive influence on the type of concert symphony. The Johann Wenzel Stamitz Prize is awarded in honor of the artist .

Life

Johann Stamitz was the son of Anton Ignaz and Rosina Stamitz. He was the fourth of his parents' five children. He probably received his first musical lessons from his father, who for a long time held the office of organist at the local dean's church and was also a councilor. After Johann Stamitz attended the local school for a short time, he switched to the Jesuit grammar school in Iglau at the age of eleven. There he came into contact with Italian music for the first time in the course of his Jesuit music education, oriented towards Rome. Johann Stamitz's first compositions were probably sacred pieces, but he certainly got to know the folk songs and dances typical of the country. After six years of schooling (1728-1734) Johann Stamitz attended Karl Ferdinand University in Prague for a year as a philosophy student.

Unfortunately, there are no specific records for the period from 1735 to 1741, but it is assumed that Stamitz occupied himself extensively with musical studies, which is particularly indicated by his early virtuosity on the violin. The Italian concert symphony and Italian music in general could Stamitz in Prague, where since the coronation of King Charles VI. and the associated festivities in 1723 where numerous Italian composers were staying. Eventually he left Bohemia with the aim of finding work as a musician. Music research is divided over the stations which Johann Stamitz took as a traveling virtuoso until he was hired as a Mannheim musician. In addition, the reconstruction of the start of his career in Mannheim is made more difficult by the fact that no employment certificate from the Mannheim Elector for Johann Stamitz can be found. Some researchers claim that Stamitz played with Maria Anna during the double wedding of Prince Elector Carl Theodor with Elisabeth Augusta and Duke Clemens of Bavaria with Maria Anna in January 1742 and thus attracted Karl Theodor's attention. Other musicologists assume that Stamitz was present at the imperial coronation of Charles VII and that Carl Theodor signed him there. However, this is considered unlikely, since Carl Philipp was still an elector and Carl Theodor, as a distant relative, could not have known about his electoral inheritance. Still other music historians see the reason for Stamitz's employment in Mannheim in the mediation of an influential Jesuit partner who was friends and who knew there was a vacancy in Mannheim.

What is certain is that he was accepted as a violinist in the Mannheim court orchestra at the latest in 1741 or 1742. In 1742 he gave a concert in Frankfurt am Main, where he was already announced as a virtuoso at ticket sales. In 1743, Elector Carl Theodor von der Pfalz appointed the violin virtuoso concertmaster of the Mannheim court music. On February 27, 1750, he was promoted to court instrumental music director. From 1751 to the summer of 1753, when the Viennese composer Ignaz Holzbauer was engaged, he was also in charge of the second position of court conductor.

In 1747 Stamitz began building up the violin class in the Mannheim court orchestra. He is therefore still regarded as the founder of the famous Mannheim School , which had a great influence on the further development of the concert symphony and orchestral culture in Europe. Stamitz made several concert tours, especially to Paris, where he also took over the direction of the orchestra from Alexandre Jean Joseph Le Riche de la Pouplinière from 1754 to 1755 . During this time in particular, he consolidated his reputation as a recognized composer and virtuoso. He died two years later at the age of 39 in Mannheim.

Stamitz's successor in the Mannheim court orchestra was his master student, the violinist Christian Cannabich , who helped the orchestra to the legendary fame of the 1770s through his strict leadership.

Composers of the Mannheim School and their style

Johann was the father of the also well-known violinists and composers Carl Stamitz and Anton Stamitz , of which the elder achieved some fame. In addition to Stamitz, Ignaz Holzbauer , Christian Cannabich, Franz Xaver Richter , Anton Fils and Carl Joseph Toeschi belong to the “Mannheim School”.

The first important contribution to the concert symphony in terms of composition history was made by Johann Stamitz, who after Ludwig Finscher shaped the history of the concert symphony more than any other composer before Joseph Haydn . Up until the masterpieces of the Viennese Classic, the type of symphony that was cultivated in Mannheim was considered exemplary: on the one hand, the composition is massively orchestral, on the other hand, thanks to the new inclusion of wind episodes, it is more relaxed and colorful than before; Due to the simple harmonic relationships and the regular period, the large forms are very stable and thus the solid basis for playing with constantly new surprises, for which a whole arsenal of melodic figures is now being developed, which Hugo Riemann called " Mannheimer Manner “made famous: the terms such as the rocket , the roller , the Mannheim sigh or the little bird are still often used to describe these melodic figures. Characteristic of the Mannheim symphonies are also orchestral effects, which were celebrated by the orchestra under Cannabich's direction in the perfectly functioning interplay and whose effects both shocked and enthusiastic the audience: What is meant above all is the famous, well-composed orchestral crescendo. This new symphony style, which was structurally conceived from the orchestra, was celebrated as a sensation. With their modern, expressive symphonies and their unique playing culture, the Mannheim-based company set standards that were also to have a lasting influence on the orchestral music of the Romantic era. The achievements of this unique orchestra and composition workshop, the development of which began with Johann Stamitz, will not be forgotten. Today they are recognized worldwide under the term Mannheim School.

Works (selection)

Literature (selection)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c Peter Gradenwitz: Johann Stamitz: Life - Environment - Works . tape 1 . Heinrichshofen's Verlag, Wilhelmshaven / Locarno / Amsterdam 1984, p. 75 .
  2. ^ Ludwig Finscher: Mannheim orchestral and chamber music . In: Ludwig Finscher (Hrsg.): The Mannheim court orchestra in the age of Carl Theodor . J & J Verlag GmbH, Mannheim 1992, p. 146 .
  3. ↑ Bärbel Pelker: "The research project The Mannheim Court Chapel in the 18th Century of the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences", in: Mitteilungen der Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Mittelrheinische Musikgeschichte, 58 (1992), pp. 303-312
personal data
SURNAME Stamitz, Johann
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Stamitz, Johann Wenzel Anton; Stamitz, Johannes; Steinmetz, Johann; Stamic, Jan Václav Antonín (Czech)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bohemian violinist, conductor and composer
DATE OF BIRTH baptized June 19, 1717
PLACE OF BIRTH Deutschbrod, today Havlíčkův Brod
DATE OF DEATH buried March 30, 1757
Place of death Mannheim