Karl Traugott Queisser (11 January 1800, Döben, Electorate of Saxony – 12 June 1846,

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

) played trombone and viola in Germany as a member of the

Gewandhaus Orchestra The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...

under Felix Mendelssohn. He was Principal Viola of the Gewandhaus Orchestra from 1820 until 1843, where he also appeared as soloist on 27 occasions (playing trombone?). He was also the violist in the Gewandhaus String Quartet. When Mendelssohn became conductor of the orchestra in 1835 he was so impressed that he promised to write Queisser a concerto. Owing to his busy schedule and new lover, he persuaded his orchestra's leader Ferdinand David (and 1st violinist in the Gewandhaus String Quartet) to write him a piece. This Concertino remains the most popular 19th-century solo piece for trombone and is dedicated to Queisser. Queisser was known throughout Germany and performed at many music festivals where other virtuosi included Franz Liszt,

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a ...

and Nicolò Paganini. It has been suggested that Queisser was responsible for annoying Mendelssohn by putting a 'turn' in the opening trombone phrase of the 'Lobgesang' 2nd Symphony.

References

*Krause, Sebastian: "Der Posaunengott"/"God of the Trombone," Brass Bulletin 117 (2002), pp. 68–80 {{DEFAULTSORT:Queisser, Karl Traugott 1800 births 1846 deaths People from Grimma People from the Electorate of Saxony German classical trombonists Male trombonists German classical violists 19th-century classical trombonists 19th-century German musicians 19th-century male musicians