Charles Hommann (July 25, 1803-?1872) was an American

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 ...

. A native of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, he was among the first American-born composers to produce

chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...

and orchestral music successfully.

Life

Charles Hommann was the son of John C. Hommann and his wife Constantia. His father, who had immigrated to the United States from Germany in the 1790s, worked as a music promoter and publisher in Philadelphia. Charles Hommann was one of the first American composers to be trained exclusively in the United States, though his musical training likely came mostly from his German father. Early in his career, Charles held positions at St James's Church and the Third Dutch Reformed Church in Philadelphia.Swenson-Eldridge, Joanne
''Hommann, Charles''
Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online (accessed July 25, 2013). As a violinist and

violist ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

for the

Musical Fund Society The Musical Fund Society is one of the oldest musical societies in the United States founded in February 1820 by Benjamin Carr, Raynor Taylor, George Schetky and Benjamin Cross, and the painter Thomas Sully. Its first public concert on April 22, 182 ...

of Philadelphia, Hommann was exposed to the works of the major European composers of his time. His own music was performed by the Bethlehem Philharmonic Society as well as the Philadelphia Philharmonic Society, and he won a gold medal prize from the latter for his

overture 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 overt ...

in D in 1835. Hommann moved to New York around 1854, where his music was performed at

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

concerts given by the New York American-Music Association. Although his music was relatively unknown by the time of his death, he left behind a significant body of orchestral, chamber, and church music that is important for the early history of American musical composition.Swenson-Eldridge, Joanne, ed. ''Charles Hommann: Surviving Orchestral Music''. Music of the United States of America (MUSA) vol. 17. Madison, Wisconsin: A-R Editions (2007), p. lvii.

References

External links

*
Information on the orchestral music of Charles Hommann
a
Music of the United States of America (MUSA)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hommann, Charles 1803 births 1872 deaths American male classical composers American Romantic composers 19th-century classical composers 19th-century American composers 19th-century American male musicians String quartet composers