Ernesto Köhler (4 December 1849 – 17 March 1907) was an Italian

flautist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

and composer. He was considered one of the best flautists of his era. Born in Modena, Köhler was taught the flute by his father, Venceslau Joseph Köhler, who was the first flute of the Duke of Modena's

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

.Flutepage.de
/ref> He moved to Vienna in 1869 as a flautist, and then became a member of the orchestra of the Imperial Opera in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

beginning in 1871. Noted as a composer for flute, Köhler wrote over 100 works for the instrument: études, duets, and solos. He also produced an

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 libr ...

and several

ballets Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

. He is well known among flute players for ''"Flöten-Schule"'' (c. 1880), his popular method for learning the flute, and for ''Progress in Flute Playing'' (his Opus 33, published in the 1880s), a series of three progressive instructional books for the flute player. Ernest Köhler, A new and practical school for Mandolin

Ernest Köhler, A new and practical school for Mandolin

Köhler also had ties to the mandolin community; he is credited with writing an early mandolin method, ''Mandolinen Schule, self instructor for the mandolin'', first published in 1887. His mandolin method is thought to be the first mandolin method published in Russian. His publisher was Julius Heinrich Zimmermann. Ernesto Köhler died in Saint Petersburg on 17 March 1907.

References

Sources

Köhler's Page
* Inside cover biography of Ernesto Köhler, "Progress in Flute playing (Op.33) Book 3: 8 Advanced studies", Chester Music, edited by Edward Blakeman http://www.chesternovello.com/default.aspx

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kohler, Ernesto 1849 births 1907 deaths 19th-century classical composers 19th-century Italian male musicians 20th-century classical composers 20th-century Italian composers 20th-century Italian male musicians Italian classical composers Italian classical flautists Italian male classical composers Italian people of German descent Italian Romantic composers 20th-century flautists