Arnold Krug (16 October 1849 – 14 August 1904) 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

music teacher Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as primary education, elementary or secondary education, secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a res ...

Biography

Born in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Krug began his music studies with piano lessons from his father,

Diederich Krug Diederich Krug (25 May 1821 – 7 April 1880) was a German pianist and composer. He was born in Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = ...

, who was himself a pianist and composer. Later he was sent to the

Leipzig Conservatory The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig) is a public university in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany). Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn ...

where he studied with

Carl Reinecke Carl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke (23 June 182410 March 1910) was a German composer, conductor, and pianist in the mid-Romantic era. Biography Reinecke was born in what is today the Hamburg district of Altona; technically he was born a Dane, as ...

and then went on to

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 ...

, where he continued with

Friedrich Kiel Friedrich Kiel (8 October 182113 September 1885) was a German composer and music teacher. Writing of the chamber music of Friedrich Kiel, the scholar and critic Wilhelm Altmann notes that it was Kiel’s extreme modesty which kept him and his ex ...

and

Eduard Franck Eduard Franck (5 October 1817 – 1 December 1893) was a German composer, pianist and music pedagogue. Life Franck was born in Breslau, the capital of the Prussian province of Silesia. He was the fourth child of a wealthy banker who exposed h ...

. After completing his studies, he taught in Berlin at the

Stern Conservatory The Stern Conservatory (''Stern'sches Konservatorium'') was a private music school in Berlin with many distinguished tutors and alumni. The school is now part of Berlin University of the Arts. History It was founded in 1850 as the ''Berliner Musi ...

for several years before returning to Hamburg where he remained for the rest of his life, working primarily as a music teacher and choral director.

Gustav Jenner Gustav Jenner (3 December 1865 – 29 August 1920), born Cornelius Uwe Gustav Jenner was a German composer, conductor and musical scholar. He was the only formal composition pupil of Johannes Brahms. Biography Jenner was born in Keitum on the isl ...

was among his many students.

Music

While he wrote works in several different genres, including symphonies, orchestral overtures, operas, piano works, and chamber music, it is his choral works which received the most attention. However, today he is primarily remembered for his

String Sextet In classical music, a string sextet is a composition written for six string instruments, or a group of six musicians who perform such a composition. Most string sextets have been written for an ensemble consisting of two violins, two violas, and ...

in D Major, Op. 68. This work was known as the "Prize Sextet" because Krug won the Stelzner Prize for chamber music with this composition. The Prize Sextet was originally for two violins, viola, violotta, cello and cellone, but the publisher of the work (Fritz Kistner) wisely hedged his bets and produced an edition for the standard combination of two violins, two violas and two cellos in addition to the so-called Stelzner version. Of this work, Wilhelm Altmann, the famous chamber music critic, has written:

''“If not a masterpiece of the highest order from start to finish, Krug’s Sextet nonetheless comes away with high honors. He uses his themes skillfully and his sonorities are quite successful. The first movement, Allegro, begins with a short but powerful introduction which gives the impression of storms ahead. Instead, the main melody is quite genial and broad. Later, Krug cleverly weaves the introduction into the second theme and uses it as part of the coda. The second movement, Adagio tranquillo, is characterized by a calm, deeply felt melody, which is interrupted by an urgent and highly dramatic middle section. There is no scherzo, but the lively first theme to the finale, Allegro, seems to fill this gap. A quieter and more lyrical second theme provides excellent contrast.”''

Works (selection)

Symphonies

*Symphony No. 1 in B minor, WoO (1866) *Symphony No. 2 in C major, Op. 9 (1877)

Orchestral

* ''Tragödienouvertüre'', WoO (1860s) * ''Symphonic Concert

Ouverture Overture (from French ''ouverture'', "opening") in music was originally the instrumental introduction to a ballet, opera, or oratorio in the 17th century. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn composed overtu ...

on the

Nibelungenlied The ( gmh, Der Nibelunge liet or ), translated as ''The Song of the Nibelungs'', is an epic poetry, epic poem written around 1200 in Middle High German. Its anonymous poet was likely from the region of Passau. The is based on an oral tradition ...

'', WoO (1870s) * ''Symphonic Prologue to Shakespeare’s "Othello"'', Op. 27 (1884) * Orchestral Suite, ''Aus der Wanderzeit'' (1890) * ''Romanische Tänze'' for Orchestra (1881)

Choir and orchestra

* ''The May Queen (La régine Avrillouse)'', for women's choir and orchestra, Op. 10 (1877) * ''Der Abend'', for mixed choir and orchestra or piano, Op. 15 (1879) * ''Sigurd'' Poem on

Emanuel Geibel Emanuel von Geibel (17 October 18156 April 1884) was a German poet and playwright. Life Geibel was born at Lübeck, the son of a pastor. He was originally intended for his father's profession and studied at Bonn and Berlin, but his real interests ...

Epos ''König Sigurd’s Brautfahrt'' for soloists, choir and orchestra (1883) * ''Fingal'', Poem on a text by Theodor von Souchay for soloists, male choir and orechstra, Op. 43 (1891) * ''Der Künste Lobgesang: „Allmacht Gottes erschuf die Natur“'', cantata for mezzo-soprano, male choir and orchestra, Op. 86 (1900)

Solo instruments and orchestra

* ''Italienische Reiseskizzen'' for violin and string orchestra, op. 12 (1878) * ''Liebesnovelle, and Idyll in four parts'', Op. 14, for harp ad lib and string orchestra (1878) * ''Nomadenzug, „Abgegrast die Haide steht“'' for piano, male chorus, and orchestra, WoO (1878)

Choral

* ''Lobgesang'', Cantata, WoO (1900) * ''The March of Death'' for male choir, Op. 100 (1906)

Chamber music

* Piano Quartet in C minor, Op. 17 (1879) * ''Serenade'' (Sextet), Op. 34 (1887)　 * String Sextet in D major, Op. 68 (1897) * String Quartet in F major, Op. 96 (1900)

Bibliography

* J. Sittard: ''Geschichte des Musik und des Concertwesens in Hamburg'' (Altona, 1890) * Wilhelm Altmann: ''Handbuch fũr Streichquartettspieler'' (Wilhelmshaven, 1972) * Sound-bites and short biography. Some of the information on this page appears on the website of Edition Silvertrust but permission has been granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Krug, Arnold 1849 births 1904 deaths 19th-century German musicians 19th-century German male musicians 20th-century German male musicians German male classical composers German Romantic composers Musicians from Hamburg