Hans Christian Lumbye (; 2 May 1810 – 20 March 1874) was a Danish composer of

waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...

es,

polka Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

mazurkas The mazurka ( Polish: ''mazur'' Polish ball dance, one of the five Polish national dances and ''mazurek'' Polish folk dance') is a Polish musical form based on stylised folk dances in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, with character ...

and

galop In dance, the galop, named after the fastest running gait of a horse (see Gallop), a shortened version of the original term galoppade, is a lively country dance, introduced in the late 1820s to Parisian society by the Duchesse de Berry and popul ...

s, among other things.

Beginnings

As a child, he studied music in

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...

, and by age 14 he was playing the trumpet in a military band. In 1829, he joined the Horse Guards in Copenhagen, still continuing his music education. In 1839, he heard a Viennese orchestra play music by

Johann Strauss I Johann Baptist Strauss I (; also Johann Strauss Sr., the Elder, the Father; 14 March 1804 – 25 September 1849) was an Austrian composer of the Romantic music, Romantic Period. He was famous for his light music, namely waltzes, polkas, and galo ...

, after which he composed in the style of Strauss, eventually earning the nickname "The Strauss of the North".

Career

From 1843 to 1872, he served as the music director and in-house composer for

Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen Tivoli Gardens, also known simply as Tivoli, is an amusement park and pleasure garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. The park opened on 15 August 1843 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in the world, after Dyrehavsbakken in nearby Klampe ...

. Such was his popularity in the Danish capital that many Danes revered him and considered

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ov ...

as the "Lumbye of the South".

Works

Lumbye is best known for his light compositions, many of which evoke non-musical sources. The ''

Champagne Galop The ''Champagne Galop'' ( da, Champagnegaloppen) is a piece of orchestral music by the Danish composer Hans Christian Lumbye (1810–1874) which was written to celebrate the second anniversary of Copenhagen's Tivoli in 1845. Together with Lumby ...

'', for example, begins with the "pop" of a champagne cork, and the ''Copenhagen Steam Railway Galop'' faithfully recreates the sounds of a train chugging out of a station and grinding to a halt at the next stop. He honored the Swedish Nightingale with a "Souvenir de

Jenny Lind Johanna Maria "Jenny" Lind (6 October 18202 November 1887) was a Swedish opera singer, often called the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she performed in soprano roles in opera in Sweden and a ...

, Vals" from 1845.

Galops

* ''Jubel-Galop'' (1840(1844) * ''Juliane Galop'' (1843-1844) * Copenhagen Steam Railway Galop'' (1844) * ''Telegraph Galop'' (1844) * ''Castilianer-Galop'' (1847) * ''Capriccio Galop'' (1851) * ''Juleballet'' (1855) *''

'' (1865) * ''Cirque de Loisset Galop'' (1862) * ''Bouquet-Royal Galop'' (1870) * ''Kanon Galop'' (1853)

March music

* ''Marche du Nord'' (1856-1857) * ''Kronings Marsch'' (1860) * ''Kong Frederik den Syvendes Honneur-Marsch'' (1861) * ''Kong Christian D. 9des Honneur March'' (1864) * ''Kong Carl d. XVdes Honneur March'' (1869) * ''Kong Georg den 1stes Honneur Marsch'' (1973)

Polkas

* ''Caroline Polka'' (1843) * ''Casino-Polka'' (1846) * ''Amager-Polka'' /1849) * ''Camilla Polka'' (1863) * ''Otto Allins Tromme-Polka'' (1863/1864) * ''Petersborgerinden''

Valses

* ''Krolls Ballklänge'' * ''Amelie-Vals'' * ''Casino Vals'' (1847) * ''Catharina Vals'' (1857)

Personal life

He was the father of two musician sons, Carl Christian (9 July 1841 - 10 August 1911) and Georg August (26 August 1843 - 1922), who took over his orchestra after his father's death.ArkivMusic
/ref> His grandson

Georg Høeberg Georg Valdemar Høeberg ( 27 December 1872 in Copenhagen – 3 August 1950 in Vedbaek ) was a Danish violinist, conductor and composer. He was the brother of the opera singer Albert Høeberg and cellist Ernst Høeberg and grandson of Hans Christian ...

was an important Danish conductor at

Det kongelige Teater The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first ser ...

References

External links

*
The Danish Royal Library archive of Lumbye's works

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lumbye, Hans Christian 1810 births 1874 deaths Danish classical composers Danish male classical composers Danish Romantic composers Ballet composers Danish conductors (music) Male conductors (music) 19th-century classical composers 19th-century conductors (music) Burials at Holmen Cemetery 19th-century Danish composers