Alexander Müller (1808 - 28 January 1863) was a German pianist, teacher, conductor and composer.

Biography

Alexander Müller was born in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

, and studied with

Johann Nepomuk Hummel Johann Nepomuk Hummel (14 November 177817 October 1837) was an Austrian composer and virtuoso pianist. His music reflects the Transition from Classical to Romantic music, transition from the Classical period (music), Classical to the Romantic ...

. In 1833 he met

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg is ...

, and the two men became friends. In 1834 Müller moved to Zurich, where he worked as a piano teacher, pianist and conductor. He took over the Listesche Singinstitut, founded by Anton List, and established a mixed choir in 1837, the Müllerschen Gesangverein. From 1852 to 1863 Müller served as leader for the General Music Society's subscription concerts series. Richard Wagner took refuge with Müller when he fled after the May uprising in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

in 1849 and moved to Zurich. Müller died in Zurich. Notable students include

Fanny Hünerwadel Fanny Hünerwadel (26 January 1826 – 27 April 1854) was a Swiss pianist, singer and composer. Life Hünerwadel was a native of Lenzburg and came from a long-established family of the city. She was the oldest child of the physician Johann Fri ...

, Wilhelm Baumgartner and

Johann Carl Eschmann Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

Works

Müller's compositions are mostly lost. However, they included two operas ''Die Flucht nach der Schweiz'' (1841) and ''Die Mühle von St. Alderon oder die beiden Galeriesklaven'' (1851) that premiered in Zurich. Other compositions include a ''Tempo di Mazurka'', for piano solo

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muller, Alexander 1808 births 1863 deaths German classical composers German conductors (music) German male conductors (music) German writers about music Musicians from Erfurt 19th-century classical composers German male classical composers 19th-century German composers 19th-century German male musicians