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Johann Michael Vogl (August 10, 1768 – November 19, Michael Lorenz: ''Studien zum Schubertkreis'', Phil. Diss. Vienna, 2001 1840), was an Austrian
Johann Michael Vogl (August 10, 1768 – November 19, Michael Lorenz: ''Studien zum Schubertkreis'', Phil. Diss. Vienna, 2001 1840), was an Austrian baritone
A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
singer and composer. Though famous in his day, he is remembered mainly for his close professional relationship and friendship with composer Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...
.
Vogl was born in Steyr. As a young man he enrolled at the ''Gymnasium'' at Kremsmünster
Kremsmünster is a town in Kirchdorf an der Krems District, in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. Settled in 777, it is home to the Kremsmünster Abbey.
The Abbey was founded 777 by Duke Tassilo III of Bavaria and is one of the oldest abbeys o ...
, where he studied languages, philosophy, and sang in several musical productions by his friend Franz Süßmayr (the same man who completed Mozart's ''Requiem''). In 1786 Vogl went to Vienna to study, and later to practice law. In 1795 he debuted at the Vienna Hofoper
The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August S ...
, and quickly attracted a following for both his acting capability and the beauty of his voice.
In 1813, Franz Schubert attended a performance of Gluck's '' Iphigénie en Tauride'' in which Vogl sang the role of Orestes; Schubert never forgot the experience and determined to write for Vogl. The following year, when Vogl sang the role of Pizarro at the premiere of the final version of Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
's ''Fidelio
''Fidelio'' (; ), originally titled ' (''Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love''), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with ...
'', it is said that the 17-year-old Schubert actually sold his schoolbooks in order to afford a ticket.
When composer and singer finally met, in 1817, Vogl was as impressed with the quality of Schubert's music as Schubert was with Vogl's singing. Schubert wrote many of his subsequent songs with Vogl in mind. One of their early successes was an 1821 performance of '' Erlkönig'', prior to its publication and to significant popular acclaim.
Rarely in music history has the relationship of a composer and a specific singer been so musically productive. Vogl continued to sing Schubert's music after the death of his friend in 1828, famously singing a complete performance of ''Winterreise
''Winterreise'' (, ''Winter Journey'') is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert ( D. 911, published as Op. 89 in 1828), a setting of 24 poems by German poet Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two song cycles on Müller' ...
'' accompanied by the pianist shortly before his own death on the twelfth anniversary of the death of his friend. He died in Vienna.
References
Further reading
* "Johann Michael Vogl", "Franz Schubert", in ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
''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. Stanley Sadie
Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...
. 20 vol. London, Macmillan, 1980. (with a wrong date of death)
* Ewan West: "Johann Michael Vogl", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed November 6, 2004), (subscription access) (with the same wrong date of death)
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vogl, Johann Michael 1768 births 1840 deaths Austrian male composers 18th-century Austrian male opera singers Austrian operatic baritones Lieder singers Franz Schubert People from Steyr 19th-century Austrian male opera singers