Johan Daniel Berlin (born 12 May 1714, Memel,

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

– 4 November 1787,

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

) was a German-born

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

composer and

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

, remembered as one of the founders of the

Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters ( da, Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab, DKNVS) is a Norwegian learned society based in Trondheim. It was founded in 1760 and is Norway's oldest scientific and scholarly institution. The ...

Life

He was born in Memel (now

Klaipėda Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuania ...

, Lithuania). At the age of nineteen, he came to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, starting out as an apprentice to the privileged town musician there, Andreas Berg. In 1737, he became the privileged town musician in

. In 1741, he became organist of the Nidaros Cathedral (1741–1787) and

Vår Frue Church Vår Frue Church ( no, Vår Frue kirke / en, Our Lady's Church) is a medieval parish church of the Church of Norway in Trondheim municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the downtown Midtbyen area of the city of Trondheim, ...

(1752–1761). In addition, he held the positions as captain of the fire brigade and inspector of the water-works,Musikkmanuskriptene etter Johan Daniel Berlin og Johan Henrik Berlin
. Retrieved 23 November 2014 practiced as an architect, land-surveyor, artisan, constructor and maker of instruments, made a series of meteorological, geomagnetic, and astronomical observations, and was for 38 years an active member of the

. He allegedly composed many works, but only a few of his compositions have been preserved. His book, ''Musicaliske Elementer'' ''(Musical Elements)'', printed in Trondheim in 1744, was the first Norwegian textbook on the theory of music and instruments.Christopher Hogwood
"The Copenhagen Connection,"
''Fund og Forskning'', vol. 46 (2007), pp. 105-143. His son was Johan Henrich Berlin.

List of compositions

Works for cembalo

#Dances (composed with his son, Johan Heinrich Berlin) #Sonata in D minor #Allegro #Aria #Minuet, no. 15, no. 18, no. 40, no. 45, no. 48, no. 49.

Works for orchestra

#Symphony no. 1 in D major #Symphony no. 2 in D major #Symphony no. 3 in D major #Violin concerto in A major #Sinfonia for cornetto and strings in D major

References

Literature

*Johan Daniel Berlin: ''The Collected Works of Johan Daniel Berlin'', edited by Bjarne Kortsen. Bergen: editio norvegica 1977. *Karl Dahlback: ''Rokokkomusikk i trøndersk miljø. Johan Henrich Berlin (1741–1807)''. ''Norsk musikkgranskning'
ZDB-ID 401397-9
p. 137-274.

External links

* 1714 births 1787 deaths People from Klaipėda People from East Prussia German expatriates in Denmark German emigrants to Norway Norwegian classical composers Norwegian organists Male organists Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters 18th-century composers 18th-century male musicians 18th-century keyboardists {{Norway-composer-stub