Adolf Heinrich Anton Magnus Neuendorff (June 13, 1843 − December 4, 1897), also known as Adolph Neuendorff, was a
German American
German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...
composer, violinist, pianist and conductor,
stage director
A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...
, and theater manager.
Life
Early years
Born in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
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,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
on June 13, 1843, Neuendorff emigrated with his father to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in 1855.
In New York, he studied music, violin lessons with G. Matzka and Joseph Weinlich, and lessons of piano, music theory and composition with Dr. Gustav Schilling. In 1859, he made his debut as a concert pianist at Dodworth Hall. In 1861, went on a tour around
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, playing the violin.
Milwaukee
In 1864, he returned to the United States, now living in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
,
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
. Here he was conductor of the orchestra at the German Theatre and chorus-master of
Carl Anschutz's German Opera Company. Later he succeeded Anschutz as conductor.
New York
In 1867, he became music-director of the New Stadt Theatre in New York. It was here where he conducted the American first performances of
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
's ''Lohengrin'',
on April 3, 1871, and ''Die Walküre'', on April 2, 1877. In 1872, he brought
Theodor Wachtel to the United States, and, with Carl Rosa, gave a season of Italian opera at the Academy of music. In that same year, he also established the
Germania Theatre in New York, of which he was manager for eleven years. During that time he was also organist of a church and conductor of a choral society. In 1875, he gave a season of German opera with Wachtel and Madame Pappenheim, conducted the Beethoven centennial concerts, and in 1876 he went to the first
Wagner festival at
Bayreuth
Bayreuth (, ; bar, Bareid) is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtelgebirge Mountains. The town's roots date back to 1194. In the 21st century, it is the capital of U ...
as correspondent for the ''
New Yorker Staats-Zeitung
The ''New Yorker Staats-Zeitung'', nicknamed ''"The Staats"'', claims to be the leading German language, German-language weekly newspaper in the United States and is one of the oldest, having been published since the mid-1830s. In the late 19th c ...
''.
In the 1878–79 season he conducted the
New York Philharmonic Society
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
in the absence of
Theodore Thomas, who was away in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. The first American performance of
Brahms's 2nd Symphony was given by the Philharmonic orchestra under Neuendorff's direction on October 3, 1878. On December 21, 1878, he conducted the same orchestra during the United States premiere of
Tchaikovsky's ''Francesca da Rimini, Fantasy after Dante''. For the 1879/80 season, Thomas returned from
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
to New York, and was elected conductor of the Philharmonic well ahead of Neuendorff and
Leopold Damrosch
Leopold Damrosch (October 22, 1832 – February 15, 1885) was a German American orchestral conductor and composer.
Biography
Damrosch was born in Posen (Poznań), Kingdom of Prussia, the son of Heinrich Damrosch. His father was Jewish and his m ...
. Neuendorff began to compose comic operas and operettas himself, most of which were written to librettos in German as well as in English. Besides, he translated German operas into English to be performed on
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
, for example
Franz von Suppé
Franz von Suppé (né Francesco Ezechiele Ermenegildo de Suppe) (18 April 181921 May 1895) was an Austrian composer of light operas and other theatre music. He came from the Kingdom of Dalmatia, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now part of Croatia). A c ...
's ''Die Afrikareise''.
Boston
Between 1884 and 1889, he lived in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
and on July 11, 1885, conducted the first "Promenade Concert" performed by the
Boston Pops Orchestra
The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart.
Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...
at the
Boston Music Hall
The Boston Music Hall was a concert hall located on Winter Street in Boston, Massachusetts, with an additional entrance on Hamilton Place.
One of the oldest continuously operating theaters in the United States, it was built in 1852 and was the ...
. The first program included a novelty number titled ''An Evening with
Bilse'', which humorously tossed together scraps of Beethoven and Strauss, Wagner and Weber. Given that everything else on the program was European as well, the audience at the first "Promenade Concert" could not have imagined that it was launching a peculiarly American tradition.
Vienna
In 1889, he became the Director of
soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
Emma Juch
Emma Johanna Antonia Juch (July 4, 1861 – March 6, 1939) was a popular soprano opera singer of the 1880s and 1890s from Vienna, Austria. She sang with several companies and later formed her own company.
Early years and education
Emma Johan ...
's Grand Opera Company. Two years later, he moved to
Vienna
en, Viennese
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, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
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,
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 ...
with his wife, singer
Georgine von Januschofsky, before returning to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
where he died on December 4, 1897, aged 54.
[
]
Works
His compositions include two symphonies, operas, and numerous other instrumental and vocal works.
*''The Rat-Charmer of Hamelin''/''Der
Rattenfänger von Hameln
The Pied Piper of Hamelin (german: der Rattenfänger von Hameln, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany.
The legend dates back to ...
'' (opera, 1880)
*''Don Quixote'' (opera, 1882)
*''Prince Waldmeister'' (opera, 1887)
*''The Minstrel'' (opera, 1892)
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neuendorff, Adolf
1843 births
1897 deaths
American classical pianists
Male classical pianists
American male pianists
American conductors (music)
American male conductors (music)
American classical violinists
Male classical violinists
American male classical composers
American classical composers
German emigrants to the United States
American expatriates in Austria
American opera composers
Male opera composers
Music directors of the New York Philharmonic
19th-century classical composers
19th-century conductors (music)
19th-century classical pianists
19th-century classical violinists
American male violinists
19th-century American pianists
19th-century American composers