Franz Ignaz von Beecke (28 October 1733 – 2 January 1803) was a
classical music
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
born in
Wimpfen am Neckar, Germany.
Life
Von Beecke served in the Bavarian Dragoon Regiment of
Zollern Zollern may refer to:
* House of Hohenzollern, a German former royal dynasty
** Beatrix of Zollern (1362–1414), wife of Duke Albert III of Austria
** Count of Zollern, including a list of people with the title
* County of Zollern, a medieval co ...
from 1756, during which time he fought in the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754†...
. He served with distinction and was promoted to Captain. He was known at the time chiefly for his great skill in playing the
harpsichord
A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecÃn; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...
, although he composed a wide range of music as well, having studied with
Christoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire, he g ...
. He died in
Wallerstein, Germany.
In 1775, von Beecke met the 19-year-old
Wolfgang Amadeus 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. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
in Munich and the two engaged in a piano playing competition at the well-known inn ''Zum Schwarzen Adler''. The poet and composer
Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart
Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart (24 March 1739 – 10 October 1791), was a German poet, organist, composer, and journalist. He was repeatedly punished for his social-critical writing and spent ten years in severe conditions in jail.
Life
Bor ...
, who was in the audience, wrote in his ''Teutsche Chronik'' (27 April 1775) that in his opinion, von Beecke played far better than Mozart: "In Munich last winter I heard two of the greatest clavier players, Mr Mozart and Captain von Beecke. Mozart’s playing had great weight, and he read at sight everything that we put before him. But no more than that; Beecke surpasses him by a long way. Winged agility, grace and melting sweetness."
[ ohn Irving: Mozart Piano Sonatas: Contexts, Sources, Style. Cambridge University Press 1997, , page 56/ref>
]
Selected works
Stage works
* Roland (opera) - 1770?
* Claudine from Villa Bella (singspiel in one act with libretto by Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...
) - 1780
* The jubilee wedding (comic opera in 3 acts with libretto by Weiße) - 1782
* The grape harvest (singspiel in 2 acts) - 1782
* List against List (The Bell) (singspiel) - c.1785
* The heart retains its rights (singspiel) - 1790
* The destroyed pastoral celebration (pastoral) - 1790
* Nina (singspiel) - 1790
Instrumental music
* 33 symphonies
* 1 sinfonia concertante
* Several piano concertos
* Piano quintet in A minor
* 17 string quartets
* 6 flute quartets
* Numerous works for piano
References
External links
*
German Classical-period composers
German male classical composers
1733 births
1803 deaths
19th-century German male musicians
{{Germany-composer-stub