Wilhelm Köchy

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Wilhelm Köchy (born December 12, 1814 in Braunschweig , † after 1846 ) was an important German violin virtuoso .

Origin and youth

Köchy was probably the only son of Christian Heinrich Gottlieb Köchy and a daughter of the orientalist Johann Wilhelm Friedrich Hezel . Köchy received his training from the then highly recognized violinist Carl Müller in Braunschweig . As a boy of 10 years, “the young son of Professor Köchy” stood out in June 1825 in Braunschweig in a violin concerto “to the general admiration”. When the father died on August 18, 1828, the "hopeful son" was in Braunschweig.

A wandering life

A biography of Köchy is missing in all relevant music dictionaries, so that the eventful life of Köchy has to be traced using individual sources.

In the 15 years alone in which his appearances can be followed in contemporary music magazines, Köchy can be found successively in Vienna (1832), Dresden (1833), Hanover (1834–1836), Berlin (1836/37?), Magdeburg ( 1837/38), (a call to Kassel zu Spohr (1838) is not made), Rudolstadt (1838/39), Jena, Sondershausen (1839), Erfurt (1839/40), Wiesbaden (1840/41), London , Manchester, Liverpool, Mainz (?) 1841, Hamburg (1843), Stettin (1843–1845) and finally in Rome (1845/46).

The year and place of Köchy's death are unknown. Gustav Flügel , who worked closely with him in Stettin, wrote in his autobiography (1882):

"Unfortunately, Köchy was already on a sloping path back then which, after a lot of unsteady wandering around (he was twice in Rome), was supposed to end in an asylum."

Style of play

The following are particularly emphasized about Köchy's style of play:

  • its precision
  • his "skill" (virtuosity)
  • its “bell-like” intonation
  • his perfect, virtuoso mastery of technical difficulties
  • his expressive, yes “soulful”, “all enchanting” lecture
  • the successful interaction with other musicians, especially in quartet play

meaning

On January 9, 1839, the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung in Leipzig published the article “The violin player Köchy” under the signature —f—, which is the main source of Köchy's life and art:

“But when we see how a really great talent is to be given over to disregard, in that up to now, if not to say nowhere, but at least only in individual places, it has found just appreciation and seems to be worked towards the same If we read in musical and other magazines, we are seized by the fact that talents that are by no means to be considered are praised in a strange way, which must be an abomination to anyone who truly loves music, a real shudder! [...] We believe that we must draw the attention of all bands to such an excellent violinist, so that this excellent talent may be preserved in the fatherland; because Germany can be proud of such an artist. "

This is what a critic of the AMZ who was very familiar with the greatest violin virtuosos of his time wrote . Another adds:

“Here, among other excellent compositions, he also played the first movement from Lipinski's grandiose and witty Concert militaire in a way that apparently only depends on the persistent study of the young artist, with a favorable lifestyle, whether he has reached the very highest levels in his Fache, which he is already close to, will really achieve. "

The Encyclopedia of the Entire Musical Sciences has no doubt in 1841 that on his travels Köchy “will fill the world with the fame and reputation [...] with a louder voice, which in fact already now his talent and his Earn excellent achievements. ”The Magdeburg musician Erdmann Schefter wrote in the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik in 1845 :

“As a violin player, Köchy is far greater than his reputation, and if he is named next to the best, he serves him well. For example, there would only be a few quartet players like Köchy. "

Wilhelm Köchy, despite his outstanding abilities as a violinist, which placed him in the forefront of contemporary violin virtuosos, never even came close to the public attention or prestige of a Paganini (1782–1840) or a Lipinski (1790–1861 ) or a Spohr (1784–1859).

This may be related to Köchy's almost restless search, which made his talent only briefly glow like a shooting star without ever finding its real goal.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Mannheim family sheets .
  2. ^ New Nekrolog Vol. I (1828) 652. Chr. Heinr. Gottl. In 1800 Köchy was a private lecturer in Jena , and since 1805 a full professor in Dorpat . After he was dismissed in 1816 in connection with a purchased doctorate, he privatized in St. Petersburg, later in Hamburg, London, Madrid and Paris. 1823 advocate and procurator in Wolfenbüttel; Under the pseudonym F. Glover, Köchy published a satirical pamphlet against Goethe. 1824 as corrector in Ilmenau, 1825 at Vieweg in Braunschweig.
  3. ↑ Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung (= AMZ ) 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 26f .; Gustav Flügel (autobiography) Urania 39.10 & 11 (1882) 151.
  4. ↑ Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung ( AMZ ) 27.25 (6.1825) 431
  5. ↑ New Nekrolog Vol. 6.1 (1828) 652.
  6. ↑ “A very good young violin player from Braunschweig, Wilhelm Köchy, gave a concert on January 3rd and played a concertino by Kalliwoda and variations by Mayseder. His beautiful, great lecture and his whole game were very popular. ” Article  in:  Wiener Zeitschrift für Kunst, Literatur, Theater und Mode , No. 18, February 11, 1832, p. 144 (online at ANNO ). Template: ANNO / Maintenance / wzz.
  7. ↑ In May 1833 the academy in Dresden was opened with a quartet by Maurer in which the chamber musician Köchy played the first violin. ( AMZ 35.23 (June 5, 1833) col. 382.
  8. ↑ From January 6, 1834 to January 5, 1836, Köchy (from Braunschweig) was employed as an orchestral musician in Hanover. Sh. Wulf Konold, Klaus-Jürgen Etzold, Lower Saxony State Theater Hanover: The Lower Saxony State Orchestra Hanover, 1636 to 1986 (Hanover, 1986) 181.
  9. ↑ “As we remember hearing, Mr. Köchy was also in Berlin and intended to give a concert there and was looking for a job. Even though the whole of Berlin does not have a violin player of his rank, he failed to do both because of not laudable counter-work (?) "( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 27.)
  10. ↑ From about December 1837 to November 1838 Wilhelm Köchy can be traced back to Magdeburg. There the Musikverein gave its Christmas concert under Mr. Ehrlich in 1837: "Was that in our mood or in the player, we don't know: the audience broke out into a storm of applause, which Mr. Köchy from Braunschweig also shared, who performed a concertino by Kalliwoda for the violin masterfully through skill, purity and expressive playing. "( AMZ 40.8 (February 21, 1838) Sp. 131.)" Hr. Köchy, who enchants everything ”also plays in December in a charity concert by the Magdeburg Lodge ( AMZ 40.8 (February 21, 1838) Sp. 131). In the concerts of the Singverein Köchy u. a. with the Stahlknecht brothers from Berlin and Schapler as virtuosos. ( AMZ 40.9 (February 28, 1838) col. 140). “We also owe a lot of enjoyment to the excellent violin virtuoso Köchy.” ( AMZ 41.12 (March 20, 1839) Col. 233 on the musical winter of 1838/39 in Magdeburg). In October / November 1838 , music director Georg Schmidt from Halle played "with Mr. Köchy, a good violinist, the A major variety from Kalliwoda, which was particularly popular with full applause." ( AMZ 40.46 (November 14, 1838) Col. 776)
  11. ↑ "Mr. Kapellmeister Dr. Spohr recently intended to draw Mr. Köchy near him, but circumstances prevented it. "( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 27)
  12. ↑ "At present [December 1838 / January 1839] Mr. Köchy is in Rudolstadt after a year, but not to his satisfaction, in Magdeburg, where, apart from the orchestral association, he was not supported by any of the numerous musical societies there and as much as we know as a court musician employed there. - The chapel of Rudolstadt can congratulate itself on having Mr. Köchy. ”( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) col. 27); “Nonetheless, for a long time he did not want to get a permanent job until he came to Rudolstadt, where he is now still busy studying his instrument in his leisure hours, and without a doubt soon to go on trips again [... ] “( Encyclopedia of the Entire Musical Sciences , Suppl. To Vol. 4 (1841) 242).
  13. ↑ Already in March 1839 the artist “from Hanover” found himself in Jena: “The longer stay here of a young artist, who was recently mentioned in this paper with great distinction, also contributed to the beautification of our last winter concerts. We mean the chamber musician Köchy from Hanover, [!] Who helped to glorify several private concerts, including the academic ones, with his excellent violin playing. We can dispel a more detailed characterization of the latter here all the more, since in the main points we meet that detailed report. [...] As we hear, he is just about to answer a call to Sondershausen. "( AMZ 41.11 (March 13, 1839) Col. 208f.)
  14. ↑ In the winter of 1839/40 the violin player Köchy can be heard as a traveling artist alongside other greats such as Dreyschok in Erfurt. ( New magazine for music (= '' NZfM '') 12:42 p.m. (May 22, 1840) 168).
  15. ↑ In 1840, the 25-year-old Köchy ('born in Braunschweig') was employed as concertmaster at the court theater in Wiesbaden. (Personnel files of the Wiesbaden Court Theater (Main State Archive Wiesbaden, inventory 428, no.191).
  16. ↑ "According to a memo, he broke his contract [with the court theater in Wiesbaden] in February 1841 to go to England with August Schumann's opera company." (Peter Cornelius, Günter Wagner, James Andrew Deaville: Collected essays: thoughts on music and theater, poetry and fine arts. (2004) 123 note 3). From 6.3. Until August 13th, 1841, Köchy will probably be in London, Manchester and Liverpool with the acclaimed Deutsche Operngesellschaft together with other greats recruited for this purpose. On the trips to England by the Mainz theater director August Schumann cf. Jakob Peth: History of the theater and music in Mainz. (Mainz, 1879) 217-220 u. 228f .; Münchner Tagpost 52 (February 21, 1840) 211; AMZ 42.24 (June 10, 1840) col. 510; NZfM 14.35 (April 30, 1841) 142; NZfM 14.37 (May 7, 1841) 150; NZfM 15.13 (August 13, 1841) 52)
  17. ↑ After returning from England in August 1841, Köchy may have stayed in Mainz for a while before moving to Hamburg, where he has been since 1843 at the latest. In any case, from December 1843 onwards, Köchy was in Stettin for 1 ½ years and joined Gustav Flügel, who practiced there as a music teacher: “On December 8, 1843, a Friday, Wilhelm Köchy met an excellent violinist from Hamburg in Stettin; he was a student of Carl Müller in Braunschweig ”. With him I have Seb by name. Bach's sonatas for piano and violin played a lot, but also the great Beethoven's a. s. w. (Gustav Flügel (autobiography) Urania 39.10 & 11 (1882) 151); “On February 11, 1845 we [Gustav Flügel and Wilhelm Köchy] were together in Berlin and lived in the opera house of a performance by CM v. Weber's Euryanthe (Jenny Lind) at. ”( Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung (= AMZ ) 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Sp. 26f .; Gustav Flügel (autobiography) Urania 39.10 & 11 (1882)); "Through Köchy I was with Dr. Keferstein, pastor in Wickerstedt near Apolda came into contact [...]. "( Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung (= AMZ ) 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Sp. 26f .; Gustav Flügel (autobiography) Urania 39.10 & 11 (1882)) .
  18. ↑ In mid-June 1845, 30-year-old Köchy travels to Rome. Flügel's friend, the music teacher Erdmann Schefter from Magdeburg, reports Köchy's departure from Stettin in the NZfM : “The violin player Wilhelm Köchy, who has been in Stettin since then, has been in Rome since mid-June and will attend some of the soirées of Professor Landsberger for classical music contribute. [...] “( NZfM 23.22 (September 12, 1845) 88). Köchy is still (or again) in Rome in February 1846 and celebrates successes there: “- Rome. Many who had the opportunity to take part in the excellent violin play Wilh. To enjoy Köchy's , it will be interesting to hear that he is now causing a sensation in Rome as a soloist and quartetist. He has already participated in four soirées of Prof. Landsberger as the first violinist of the string quartet, and was superbly supported by his fellow players. In particular, the trio of the minuet [sic!] In Mozart's D minor quartet aroused a storm of applause, and was demanded by Mr. Landsberger, as well as in the Association of German Artists in Rome, with never-ending applause from Capo . " ( NZfM 24.14 (February 15, 1846) 56).
  19. ↑ Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung (= AMZ ) 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 26f .; Gustav Flügel (autobiography) Urania 39.10 & 11 (1882)
  20. ↑ “The way in which Mr. Köchy treats the violin is definitely due to his teacher, the concertmaster Mr. Karl Müller in Braunschweig. This latter is characterized, as world-famous, by extremely precise and bold playing and a perfectly clear intonation. Mr Köchy probably knew how to use this, even if we have to say that Mr KM. Müller did not raise a better pupil, we cannot help but mention that Mr. Köchy knew how to place himself in the ranks of the first violin players through his own persistent study. ”( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 27 .)
  21. ↑ "masterly through skill, purity and expressive play" AMZ 40.8 (February 21, 1838) col. 131 .; “When judging a talent in general, one should not cite specials; but precisely because we are so fortunate to know the famous Lipinski exactly, we cannot fail to mention that Mr Köchy was able to play the first movement of Lipinski's 'Concert militaire' in public in a rarely heard perfection, and what this means "We leave every violin player to judge of rank". ( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) col. 27.);
  22. ↑ We had the opportunity to hear Mr. Köchy in the most varied nuances of violin playing. A purer intonation, as developed by Herr Köchy, has not yet occurred to us, even though we Paganini, Spohr, Müller, de Beriot , Lipinski, Baillot , Lafout and most of the other perfect living and recently deceased violin players not only in public, but rather to be heard and accompanied in private circles. [...] Thirds, sixths and octaves, decimals, chromatic runs and flageolets have always been a pure success for Mr. Köchy. ( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) col. 26f.); see. AMZ 40.8 (February 21, 1838) col. 131.
  23. ↑ “Finally, we draw the attention of the bands to Mr. Köchy again, as we are firmly convinced that the violin player will not only meet the greatest requirements, but will even exceed them: because there is hardly any difficulty for him!” “In the However, he lacks bowing styles (probably only on his own initiative) in drawn staccato. We regret that he no longer devotes any effort to this piquant style of stroke, because in our opinion he can still acquire it quite well in his years (23 years). "( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 27)
  24. ↑ "masterfully through [...] expressive play" ( AMZ 40.8 (February 21, 1838) col. 131); "His lecture is soulful and dignified." ( AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 27)
  25. ^ E. Schefter in: NZfM 23.22 (September 12, 1845) 88.
  26. ↑ AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) col. 26
  27. ↑ AMZ 41.11 (March 13, 1839) Col. 208f.
  28. ↑ Encyclopedia of the Entire Musical Sciences , Suppl. To Vol. 4 (1841) 242.
  29. ^ E. Schefter in: NZfM 23.22 (September 12, 1845) 88.
  30. ↑ AMZ 41.2 (January 9, 1839) Col. 26f .; AMZ 41.11 (March 13, 1839) Col. 208f.
personal data
SURNAME Kochy, Wilhelm
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German violinist
DATE OF BIRTH December 12, 1814
PLACE OF BIRTH Braunschweig
DATE OF DEATH after 1846