Leopold Hofmann (also Ludwig Hoffman, Leopold Hoffman, Leopold Hoffmann; 14 August 1738 – 17 March 1793) was an

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n composer of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

Biography

Hofmann was the son of a highly educated civil servant, and at the age of seven became a chorister in the chapel of the Empress Elisabeth Christine, where his choral director and teacher was very likely

František Tůma František Ignác Antonín Tůma (2 October 1704, in Kostelec nad Orlicí, Bohemia – 3 February 1774, in Vienna) was a Czech composer of the Baroque era. He lived the greater part of his life in Vienna, first as director of music for Franz J ...

. He was also a student later on of

Georg Christoph Wagenseil Georg Christoph Wagenseil (29 January 1715 – 1 March 1777) was an Austrian composer. He was born in Vienna, and became a favorite pupil of the Vienna court's Kapellmeister, Johann Joseph Fux. Wagenseil himself composed for the court from 1 ...

and

Giuseppe Trani Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph, from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף. It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it. The feminine form of the name is Giusep ...

(violin). His studies included at various points violin, harpsichord and composition. In 1758 Hofmann secured what may have been his first appointment, as "musicus" at St. Michael's. He is known to have become choral director at St. Peter's Church in 1764 and, in 1766,

kapellmeister (, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...

. In 1769 he became a teacher to the royal family. The position of Kapellmeister at the Cathedral of St. Stephan, a post he acquired in 1772, was among his next responsibilities. At this time he declined the directorship of the Imperial Chapel, but did apply there two years later in 1774, failing in his application. ( Giuseppe Bonno became director of the Imperial Chapel instead, which had become open upon the death of

Florian Leopold Gassmann Florian Leopold Gassmann (3 May 1729 – 21 January 1774) was a German-speaking Bohemian opera composer of the transitional period between the baroque and classical eras. He was one of the principal composers of '' dramma giocoso'' immed ...

.) On 9 May 1791, at his own request,

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

was appointed assistant-Kapellmeister to Hofmann, an unpaid position. At the time Hofmann was ill and Mozart anticipated becoming Kapellmeister upon Hofmann's death. However, Hofmann survived Mozart and kept his post as Cathedral Kapellmeister until he died.

Selected worklist

Symphonies

The following list was drawn up by George Cook Kimball in his Ph.D. thesis.

Concertos

The following list was drawn up by Allan Badley in his Ph.D. thesis.Badley, Allan. ''The concertos of Leopold Hofmann (1738–1793)'' Thesis. (University of Auckland.)

Other works

mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

a cappella (republished with masses by Wagenseil and

Georg Reutter Georg Reutter (3 November 1656 – 29 August 1738) was an Austrian organist, theorbo player, and composer. Biography Georg Reutter was born in Vienna and became a pupil of Johann Caspar Kerll, whom he later succeeded as organist at St. Stephen ...

by A-R Editions in 2004) *Duos and sonatas for various instruments, including a divertimento for flute and bassoon, one for 2 violins with continuo, one for two violas with bass. His opus 1 is a set of sonatas a tre for viola and violoncello with cello accompaniment. *Choral music **Motet "Altra nocte" **"Pastor bone : chorus pastoralis" for mixed choir, concertante organ, two violins and bass (2 oboes, 2 trumpets and drums probably added later). ** Missa "Sancti Aloysii" in D major ** Requiem in C minor (Recent recordings of his music include recordings of many of the concertos, some of the symphonies including five on

Naxos Records Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about 1 ...

, etc., including a CD from 2000 of Artaria discoveries and others of cello flute, violin and oboe concertos.) His compositions have been catalogued by

Allan Badley Allan may refer to: People * Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name * Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker * Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...

References

External links

*
HOASM bio

Bio and list of works at the Michael Haydn Site

Editions by Leopold Hofmann at Artaria Editions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hofmann, Leopold 1738 births 1793 deaths Austrian Classical-period composers Composers for cello 18th-century classical composers 18th-century Austrian male musicians Austrian male classical composers