Wilhelm Friedrich Riem

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Wilhelm Friedrich Riem (born December 17, 1779 in Kölleda , † April 20, 1857 in Bremen ) was a German composer and conductor .

biography

Riem was the son of a lawyer. Just ten years old, without having taken any lessons worth mentioning, he was already playing the piano in Jena. He was able to attend the St. Thomas School in Leipzig , where he was a student of Johann Adam Hiller , but became an orphan at an early age and initially studied law at the request of his grandfather . Hiller is said to have encouraged him to return to music after completing his legal exam. He became solo pianist in the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig . His opus 1, published in 1804, is said to have caused a sensation due to its originality. He worked as an organist and later as director of the Leipzig Singing Academy, founded in 1802, 1807 as organist at the Reformed Church in Leipzig.

In 1814, Riem was appointed organist at Bremen Cathedral as the successor to Justus Theophilus (Theodorus) Rauschelbach . At the beginning of his term of office, he had the organ rebuilt and enriched it with romantic voices in order to achieve a stronger fundamental tone. In 1815 he founded the Bremen Singakademie with other music lovers , and was generally also its conductor (cathedral cantor) until his death. In 1820 he founded the Bremen Concert Orchestra, from which the Bremen State Orchestra emerged. When the "Association for Private Concerts" was founded in 1825 and one of the first civil orchestras in Germany was founded, he took over the direction of the performances. In 1895 the Association for Private Concerts was to become the Philharmonic Society. In addition, Riem was given the task of music director of the city orchestra and that of music teacher at the Bremen teachers' seminar . His functions made him a central figure in Bremen's musical life.

For his grave, the sculptor Diedrich Samuel Kropp designed a large, free-standing sandstone figure as the “muse of mourning” in the form of St. Cecilia .

Works

Many of his sonnets , cantatas and quartets have been published since 1804 . His late work, the oratorio The Redeemer , was only performed after his death. A complete edition of his organ compositions was published by Körner in Erfurt.

  • Our father , early romantic a cappella composition
  • Glory to God
  • The Redeemer , oratorio

literature

personal data
SURNAME Riem, Wilhelm Friedrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German composer and conductor
DATE OF BIRTH December 17, 1779
PLACE OF BIRTH Koelleda
DATE OF DEATH April 20, 1857
Place of death Bremen