Daniel Steibelt
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Daniel Gottlieb Steibelt (October 22, 1765) was a German pianist and composer. His main works were composed in Paris and in London, and he died in Saint Petersburg, Russia.


Biography

Steibelt was born in Berlin, and studied music with
Johann Kirnberger Johann Philipp Kirnberger (also ''Kernberg''; 24 April 1721, Saalfeld – 27 July 1783, Berlin) was a musician, composer (primarily of fugues), and music theorist. He was a student of Johann Sebastian Bach. According to Ingeborg Allihn, Kirnberg ...
before being forced by his father to join the
Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...
. Deserting, he began a nomadic career as a pianist before settling in 1790 in Paris, where he attained great popularity as a
virtuoso A virtuoso (from Italian ''virtuoso'' or , "virtuous", Late Latin ''virtuosus'', Latin ''virtus'', "virtue", "excellence" or "skill") is an individual who possesses outstanding talent and technical ability in a particular art or field such as ...
as the result of a piano sonata called ''La Coquette'', which he composed for
Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child a ...
. Also in Paris, his dramatic opera entitled ''Romeo et Juliette'', which was later highly regarded by
Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...
, was produced at the Théâtre Feydeau in 1793. This is held by many to be his most original and artistically successful composition. Steibelt began to share his time between Paris and London, where his piano-playing attracted great attention. In 1797 he played in a concert of J. P. Salamon. In 1798 he produced his
Concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...
No. 3 in E containing a ''Storm Rondo'' characterized by extensive
tremolo In music, ''tremolo'' (), or ''tremolando'' (), is a trembling effect. There are two types of tremolo. The first is a rapid reiteration: * Of a single Musical note, note, particularly used on String instrument#Bowing, bowed string instrument ...
s, which became very popular. In the following year Steibelt started on a professional tour in Germany; and, after playing with some success in Hamburg, Berlin, Dresden, and Prague, he arrived at the end of March 1800 at Vienna, where he is reported to have challenged Beethoven to a trial of skill at the house of Count Moritz von Fries. The oft-quoted account by Ferdinand Ries was written 37 years later; Ries did not attend it and became only later a student and friend of Beethoven. Ries describes how Beethoven carried the day by improvising at length on a theme taken from the cello part of a new Steibelt piece, placed upside down on the music rack. Reportedly, Steibelt stormed out of the room, never to set foot in Vienna again. Ries' account, however, contains two factual errors. Following this supposed public humiliation Steibelt ended his tour. (The date of his departure from Vienna is not known, while Beethoven did leave Vienna at the end of April or beginning of May: he played in Buda, Hungary, on 7 May.) Steibelt went again to Paris, where he organised the first performance of
Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...
's oratorio '' The Creation'', which took place on 24 December 1800 at the Opera House. On his way to it, the First Consul Bonaparte narrowly escaped a bomb attack. Steibelt had just published one of his most accomplished sonatas, which he had dedicated to Bonaparte's wife, Josephine. After a second stay in England from March 1802 to March 1805, Steibelt returned to the continent, gave concerts in Brussels (April 1805), and was back in Paris in Summer. He celebrated Napoleon's triumph at
Austerlitz Austerlitz may refer to: History * Battle of Austerlitz, an 1805 victory by the French Grand Army of Napoleon Bonaparte Places * Austerlitz, German name for Slavkov u Brna in the Czech Republic, which gave its name to the Battle of Austerlitz an ...
with a ''Musical Interlude'' named ''La Fête de Mars'', whose première was attended by Napoleon in person (4 February 1806). In 1808 he was invited by Tsar Alexander I to Saint Petersburg, succeeding François-Adrien Boieldieu as director of the French Opera in 1811. He remained there for the rest of his life. In 1812, he composed ''The Conflagration of Moscow'', a grand fantasy for piano dedicated to the Russian nation. Steibelt generally ceased performing in 1814, but returned to the platform for his Concerto No. 8, which was premiered on March 16, 1820, in Saint Petersburg, and is notable for its choral finale. This was four years before Beethoven's unconventional Symphony No. 9, and was the only piano concerto ever written (excluding Beethoven's
Choral Fantasy The ''Fantasy'' for piano, vocal soloists, mixed chorus, and orchestra, Op. 80, usually called the ''Choral Fantasy'', was composed in 1808 by then 38-year-old Ludwig van Beethoven. Beethoven intended the ''Fantasy'' to serve as the conc ...
) with a part for a chorus until
Henri Herz Henri Herz (6 January 1803 – 5 January 1888) was a virtuoso pianist, composer and piano manufacturer, Austrian by birth and French by nationality and domicile. He was a professor in the Paris Conservatoire for more than thirty years. Among his ...
's 6th concerto, Op. 192 (1858) and
Ferruccio Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...
's
Piano Concerto A piano concerto is a type of concerto, a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for a piano player, which is typically accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuoso showpiec ...
(1904). Steibelt died in Saint Petersburg on September 20, 1823 (October 2, N.S.), following a prolonged illness.


Legacy

Besides his dramatic music, Steibelt left behind him an enormous number of compositions, mostly for the piano. His playing was said to be brilliant, though lacking the higher qualities which characterized that of such contemporaries as
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and Muzio Clementi. Despite this, his playing and compositional skills enabled him to build a career across Europe.
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describes him as "extraordinarily vain, arrogant, discourteous, recklessly extravagant and even dishonest." Such harsh moral judgements are justified by some of the facts of Steibelt's life as they have come down to us.As an example, Steibelt's kleptomania is documented in Norvins's ''Mémorial'', Paris, 1896-1897, vol. I, ch XIV.


Selected list of his works

1) Stage * ''Romeo et Juliette'', 3 acts (1793) * ''Albert et Adelaide'', 3 acts (1798) * ''Le retour de Zephyr'', 1 act ballet (1802) * ''Le jugement du Berger'', 3 acts ballet (1804) * ''La Belle Laitière, ou Blanche Reine de Castille'' (1805) * ''La Fête de Mars'', intermezzo (1806) * ''La Fête de l'Empereur'', ballet (1809) * ''Der Blöde Ritter'' (1810) * ''Sargines'', 3 acts, opera (1810) (This is most likely not a work by Steibelt.) * ''Cendrillon'', 3 acts opera (1810) * ''La Princesse de Babylone'', 3 acts opera (1812) * ''Le jugement de Midas'' (1823?) 2) Orchestral * Concerto No. 1 for Piano and Orchestra in C (Paris edition in 1794) * Concerto No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra in E minor (1796?) * Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Orchestra in E "L'orage" (created in 1798; Paris ed. 1799) * Concerto No. 4 for Piano and Orchestra in E (1800?) * Concerto No. 5 for Piano and Orchestra in E "À la chasse" Op. 64 (created in 1802; Paris ed. 1805) * Concerto No. 6 for Piano and Orchestra in G minor "Le voyage au mont Saint-Bernard" (Paris edition 1817) * Concerto No. 7 for Piano and Orchestra in E minor "Grand concerto militaire dans le genre grec", with 2 orchestras, (Paris ed. 1818) * Concerto No. 8 for Piano and Orchestra in E "with bacchanalian rondo, acc. chorus" (1820), not published. * Harp Concerto (1807) * Ouverture en Symphonie (1796) * Marches and Waltzes 3) Chamber * Rondo favorite, for violin or flute, and guitar * 3 String Quartets, Op. 17 (1796) * 3 Quintets for Piano and Strings, Op. 28 (1797) * 6 String Quartets, op. 34 (ca 1799) * 3 Duos for Violin and Guitar, Op. 37 * 3 String Quartets, Op. 49 (1800) * 3 Violin Sonatas, Op. 69 * 1 Quartet for Piano and Strings * 26 trios for piano and strings * 6 trios for harp and strings * 115 duos for piano and violin (?) * 6 duos for Piano and Harp (or for two pianos) * 6 sonatas for harp * 36 bacchanals and 12 divertissements for Piano, tambourine and triangle ad lib. * 77 sonatas for piano solo * 45 rondos * 32 fantasias * 21 divertissements * 12 caprices or preludes * 20 pots-pourris * 2 series of serenades * 25 series of variations * 16 sonatas for piano 4 hands (at least 6 of them are apocryphal works) * Descriptive pieces (Triumph, sieges, marches funebres ... ) * Waltzes, danses. * Studies, Op. 78 4) Methode de Pianoforte (1805) 5) Songs * 6 romances (1798) * Air d'Estelle (1798) * 30 songs, Op. 10 (1794)


Selective discography

* Variations on two Russian Folksongs, Irina Ermakova, piano (Arte Nova ANO 516260, 1996) * Sonata in E major, Hiroko Sakagami, piano (''Hans Georg Nägeli, publisher and composer'', MGB CD 6193, 2002) * Grand Sonata in E-flat major, dedicated to Madame Bonaparte, Daniel Propper, piano (''Echoes of the Battlefields'', Forgotten Records, fr 16/17P, 2012) * ''The Conflagration of Moscow'', a grand fantasia, Daniel Propper, piano (''Echoes of the Battlefields'', Forgotten Records, fr 16/17P, 2012) * Grand concerto for harp, Masumi Nagasawa, harpe,
Kölner Akademie Die Kölner Akademie - ''Damals und Heute'' are a German baroque and classical music orchestra founded in 1996 and based in Cologne. They are led by the American conductor Michael Alexander Willens who studied at the Juilliard School in New York.Fan ...
, dir. Michael Alexander Willens (Ars Produktion, ARS 38 108, 2012) * Sonata in C minor, Op. 6 No. 2, Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Gega New, GD 362, 2013) * Etudes, Op. 78 (Nos. 50, 32 and 3), Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Gega New, GD 362, 2013) * Sonata in D major, Op. 82, Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Gega New, GD 362, 2013) * Concerto in G minor, No. 6, ''Le voyage au Mont St. Bernard'', Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Gega New, GD 362, 2013) *Rondo ''The Storm'', from his Concerto No. 3, Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Forgotten Records, fr 32P, 2015) *Rondo ''Les Papillons'', Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Forgotten Records, fr 32P, 2015) *Fantaisie and Variations on two Russian themes, Anna Petrova-Forster (Forgotten Records, fr 32P, 2015) *Sonata in G major, Op. 64, Anna Petrova-Forster (Forgotten Records, fr 32P, 2015) *Etudes op.78, Nos. 10, 11, 24, 26, 30, 31, 33, Anna Petrova-Forster, piano (Toccata Classics, TOCN0005, 2021)


Notes


References

* Frank Dawes a.o.. "Steibelt, Daniel (Gottlieb)", ''
Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...
'', ed. L. Macy (accessed 27 April 2006)
grovemusic.com
(subscription access). * Gottfried Müller: "Daniel Steibelt: Sein Leben und seine Klavierwerke (Leipzig and Zurich, 1933/R1973) * Karen A. Hagberg: "Daniel Steibelt's Cendrillon: a critical edition with notes on Steibelt's life and works" (diss.Eastman School of Music,1975)


External links

* * Eight Sonatas of Daniel Steibelt mostly first time recorded in the sound of a period Johann Schantz Pianoforte (1790) and a modern grand piano a
resampled.de/steibelt
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steibelt, Daniel 1765 births 1823 deaths German classical pianists Male classical pianists German opera composers Male opera composers German Classical-period composers Musicians from Berlin German expatriates in Russia 18th-century keyboardists German male classical composers German pianists German male pianists 19th-century German male musicians