Alexander Ernst Fesca (22 May 1820 in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

, 22 February 1849 in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the Nor ...

) was a German

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

Life

Alexander Ernst Fesca was born in Karlsruhe on 22 May 1820, as the second of four sons of composer

Friedrich Ernst Fesca Friedrich Ernst Fesca (15 February 1789 – 24 May 1826) was a German violinist and composer of instrumental music. Life and career He was born at Magdeburg. His father, Johann Peter August Fesca, was the market judge of Magdeburg and active in ...

(1789–1826) and his wife Charlotte (born Dingelstedt, daughter of the horn player Johann Heinrich Dingelstedt). Fesca received his first lessons from his father and made his debut at the age of 11 as a pianist in his hometown. At the age of 14 he graduated in composition at the

Prussian Academy of Arts The Prussian Academy of Arts (German: ''Preußische Akademie der Künste'') was a state arts academy first established in Berlin, Brandenburg, in 1694/1696 by prince-elector Frederick III, in personal union Duke Frederick I of Prussia, and late ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. His teachers included

August Wilhelm Bach August Wilhelm Bach (4 October 1796 – 15 April 1869) was a German composer and organist. He is unrelated to the family of Johann Sebastian Bach. He studied with his father, Gottfried, as well as with Carl Friedrich Zelter and Ludwig Berger as ...

(1796–1869),

Wilhelm Taubert Carl Gottfried Wilhelm Taubert (23 March 1811 – 7 January 1891) was a German pianist, composer, and conductor, and the father of philologist and writer Emil Taubert. Life Born in Berlin, Taubert studied under Ludwig Berger (piano) and Bernhard ...

(1811–1891) and

Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen (first name also sometimes given as Karl;Eitner (1889) 27 September 1778 – 21 December 1851) was a German composer and music teacher. Life Rungenhagen abandoned early study of art under Daniel Chodowiecki and jo ...

(1778–1851). In 1838, he returned to Karlsruhe. He got his first success with the

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

"Mariette" in the same year. Fesca was known during his short life mostly through his songs and piano pieces in which his talent is coupled with a certain musical lightness. This is probably also the reason why some music scholars deny "deeper level" and "artistic seriousness" of his works. In 1841, his

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

"The French in Spain" was staged with great success. In the same year, Prince

Egon von Furstenberg Egon is a variant of the male given name Eugene. It is most commonly found in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Hungary, Slovakia, Sweden, Denmark, and parts of the Netherlands and Belgium. The name can also be derived from the Ge ...

appointed Fesca as Chamber Virtuoso. From 1842, he settled in Brunswick. In the local court theater on 25 July 1847 was premiered Fescas major work, five-act heroic-romantic opera "Il Trovatore" with a libretto by Frederick Schmetzer. On 22 February 1849, Alexander Ernst Fesca, aged 28, died of lung disease in Braunschweig.

Works (partial list)

Adagio * Espérance (op. 24) Fantasias * Fantasie auf Motive der Oper „

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...

“ von

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

(op. 43) * Fantasie auf Motive der Oper „

Der Freischütz ' ( J. 277, Op. 77 ''The Marksman'' or ''The Freeshooter'') is a German opera with spoken dialogue in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind, based on a story by Johann August Apel and Friedrich Laun from their 181 ...

“ von

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (18 or 19 November 17865 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and critic who was one of the first significant composers of the Romantic era. Best known for his opera ...

(op. 50) * Le dernier soupir (op. 58) Piano Sextets * Klaviersextett B-Dur (op. 8) Piano Trios * Klaviertrio Nr. 1 (op. 11) * Klaviertrio Nr. 2 (op. 12) * Klaviertrio Nr. 3 (op. 23) * Klaviertrio Nr. 4 (op. 31) * Klaviertrio Nr. 5 (op. 46) * Klaviertrio Nr. 6 (op. 54) Piano Quartets * Klavierquartett Nr. 1 (op. 26) * Klavierquartett Nr. 2 (op. 28) Operas * „Die Franzosen in Spanien“ (UA Karlsruhe 1841) * „Der Troubadour“ (UA Braunschweig 1847) * „Ulrich von Hutten“ (unvollendet) Operettas * „Mariette“ (UA Karlsruhe 1838) Rondos * Introduction et grand rondeau (op. 3) Septets * Großes Septett Nr. 1 (op. 26) * Großes Septett Nr. 2 (op. 28) String Quartets * Streichquartett c-moll Lieder * Fünf Lieder von

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

für eine Tenor-Stimme mit Begleitung des Pianoforte (op. 13), Braunschweig, G.M. Meyer jr. 1842

External links

* * * Article on klassica.com: http://www.klassika.info/Komponisten/Fesca/

Notes

* This article is based on the German Wikipedia page * * 1820 births 1849 deaths Musicians from Karlsruhe Deaths from lung disease German classical pianists Male classical pianists 19th-century German composers 19th-century classical pianists 19th-century male musicians {{Germany-composer-stub