Anton Fils
Encyclopedia
Anton Fils (baptized September 22, 1733 in Eichstätt
(Germany); died at 26 years of age and was buried March 14, 1760 in Mannheim) was a German classical composer.
Long thought to have been of Bohemian origin (e.g., Racek 1956), despite having been described as "from Bavaria" by Marpurg in 1756, his true origins were discovered in the 1960s (Wolf 2001). Fils studied law and theology at the University of Ingolstadt
, and in 1754 became part of the "Mannheim
er Hofkapelle" as a cellist (Wolf 2001). The Mannheim orchestra at the time was led by Johann Stamitz
(Würtz & Wolf 2001). In 1757 Filtz married Elizabeth Range, and in 1759 the couple bought a house (Wolf 2001).
Even though he died at only 26, he left an extensive body of work, including at least thirty-four symphonies
(Wolf 2001) which he wrote for the Mannheimer Hofkapelle, and about thirty concertos, mainly for cello and for flute, though only about half have survived (Wolf 2001).
Numerous contemporary accounts say that his premature death was caused by his habit of eating live spiders, which he claimed tasted like fresh strawberries.
His music was mostly forgotten and has only been recently rediscovered.
Eichstätt
Eichstätt is a town in the federal state of Bavaria, Germany, and capital of the District of Eichstätt. It is located along the Altmühl River, at , and had a population of 13,078 in 2002. It is home to the Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, the lone Catholic university in Germany. The...
(Germany); died at 26 years of age and was buried March 14, 1760 in Mannheim) was a German classical composer.
Long thought to have been of Bohemian origin (e.g., Racek 1956), despite having been described as "from Bavaria" by Marpurg in 1756, his true origins were discovered in the 1960s (Wolf 2001). Fils studied law and theology at the University of Ingolstadt
University of Ingolstadt
The University of Ingolstadt was founded in 1472 by Louis the Rich, the Duke of Bavaria at the time, and its first Chancellor was the Bishop of Eichstätt. It consisted of five faculties: humanities, sciences, theology, law and medicine, all of which were contained in the Hoheschule...
, and in 1754 became part of the "Mannheim
Mannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
er Hofkapelle" as a cellist (Wolf 2001). The Mannheim orchestra at the time was led by Johann Stamitz
Johann Stamitz
Jan Václav Antonín Stamic was a Czech composer and violinist. Johann was the father of Carl Stamitz and Anton Stamitz, also composers...
(Würtz & Wolf 2001). In 1757 Filtz married Elizabeth Range, and in 1759 the couple bought a house (Wolf 2001).
Even though he died at only 26, he left an extensive body of work, including at least thirty-four symphonies
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
(Wolf 2001) which he wrote for the Mannheimer Hofkapelle, and about thirty concertos, mainly for cello and for flute, though only about half have survived (Wolf 2001).
Numerous contemporary accounts say that his premature death was caused by his habit of eating live spiders, which he claimed tasted like fresh strawberries.
His music was mostly forgotten and has only been recently rediscovered.