Georg Matthias Monn
Encyclopedia
Georg Matthias Monn (April 9, 1717, Vienna
– October 3, 1750, Vienna) was an Austria
n composer
, organist
and music teacher whose works were fashioned in the transition from the Baroque
to Classical period
in music.
Together with Georg Christoph Wagenseil
and Josef Starzer, Monn formed the Viennese Pre-Classical movement (Wiener Vorklassik in German), whose composers are nowadays mostly known only by their names. However, his successful introduction of the secondary theme
in the symphony
was an important condition for the First Viennese School
that would come some fifty years later.
near Vienna. Afterwards, he was appointed in the same function in Melk
in Lower Austria
and at the Karlskirche
in Vienna's district Wieden
. Monn died from tuberculosis
when he was only 33 years old.
Monn's brother Johann Christoph Mann (never Monn, 1726?-82) was also a composer whose works have been confused at times with those of Georg Matthias Monn. The reason for this is that most of Monn's compositions only survive in copies from the 1780s and could therefore also be the works of his younger brother. We still have absolutely no proof that the Johann Georg Mann born in 1717 is the same person as the Georg Matthias Monn who died in 1750. His role as pioneer of the symphony is a scholarly image, coined in the early 20th century, could need some basic musicological reevaluation.
and other contemporaries such as Leopold Mozart
, Monn forms a school of Austrian composers who had thoroughly studied the principles of counterpoint
as practised by Johann Sebastian Bach
and Johann Joseph Fux, but also forced the change from the Baroque style to the looser, graceful Galante music
. Moreover, they renewed the sonata form
by expanding the concepts of secondary theme and development
. Later on, Michael
and Joseph Haydn
would develop these concepts to a high point.
The catalog of works written by Matthias Monn contains sixteen symphonies, a score of quartet
s, sonatas, masses
and compositions for violin
and keyboard
. A harpsichord concerto by Monn was freely transcribed by Arnold Schoenberg
into a cello concerto for Pablo Casals
. The Monn/Schoenberg cello concerto in D major has been recorded by Yo-Yo Ma
and many other cellists. Schoenberg also wrote "continuo realizations" for several works by Monn, including a cello concerto in G minor, which was recorded by Jacqueline Du Pré
.
Concerto in G minor for Cello or Double Bass
All the following links are in German.
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
– October 3, 1750, Vienna) was an Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, organist
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...
and music teacher whose works were fashioned in the transition from the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
to Classical period
Classical period (music)
The dates of the Classical Period in Western music are generally accepted as being between about 1750 and 1830. However, the term classical music is used colloquially to describe a variety of Western musical styles from the ninth century to the present, and especially from the sixteenth or...
in music.
Together with Georg Christoph Wagenseil
Georg Christoph Wagenseil
Georg Christoph Wagenseil was an Austrian composer.He was born in Vienna, and became a favorite pupil of the Vienna court'sKapellmeister, Johann Joseph Fux. Wagenseil himself composed for the...
and Josef Starzer, Monn formed the Viennese Pre-Classical movement (Wiener Vorklassik in German), whose composers are nowadays mostly known only by their names. However, his successful introduction of the secondary theme
Theme (music)
In music, a theme is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based.-Characteristics:A theme may be perceivable as a complete musical expression in itself, separate from the work in which it is found . In contrast to an idea or motif, a theme is...
in the symphony
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...
was an important condition for the First Viennese School
First Viennese School
The First Viennese School is a name mostly used to refer to three composers of the Classical period in Western art music in late-18th-century Vienna: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven. Franz Schubert is occasionally added to the list.In German speaking countries, the...
that would come some fifty years later.
Life
We know much less about Monn's life than about his musical ideas. Only his appointments as an organist are known, at first in KlosterneuburgKlosterneuburg
Klosterneuburg is an attractive small town in Lower Austria, Austria with a population of 24,442.It is located on the Danube, immediately north of Vienna, from which it is separated by the Kahlenberg and Leopoldsberg hills...
near Vienna. Afterwards, he was appointed in the same function in Melk
Melk
Melk is a city of Austria, in the federal state of Lower Austria, next to the Wachau valley along the Danube. Melk has a population of 5,222 ....
in Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
and at the Karlskirche
Karlskirche
The St. Charles's Church is a church situated on the south side of Karlsplatz, Vienna. It is located on the edge of the 1st district, 200 metres outside the Ringstraße...
in Vienna's district Wieden
Wieden
Wieden is the 4th municipal District of Vienna, Austria . It is near the center of Vienna and was established as a district in 1850, but borders changed later...
. Monn died from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
when he was only 33 years old.
Monn's brother Johann Christoph Mann (never Monn, 1726?-82) was also a composer whose works have been confused at times with those of Georg Matthias Monn. The reason for this is that most of Monn's compositions only survive in copies from the 1780s and could therefore also be the works of his younger brother. We still have absolutely no proof that the Johann Georg Mann born in 1717 is the same person as the Georg Matthias Monn who died in 1750. His role as pioneer of the symphony is a scholarly image, coined in the early 20th century, could need some basic musicological reevaluation.
From Baroque to Classical
Together with Georg Christoph WagenseilGeorg Christoph Wagenseil
Georg Christoph Wagenseil was an Austrian composer.He was born in Vienna, and became a favorite pupil of the Vienna court'sKapellmeister, Johann Joseph Fux. Wagenseil himself composed for the...
and other contemporaries such as Leopold Mozart
Leopold Mozart
Johann Georg Leopold Mozart was a German composer, conductor, teacher, and violinist. Mozart is best known today as the father and teacher of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and for his violin textbook Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule.-Childhood and student years:He was born in Augsburg, son of...
, Monn forms a school of Austrian composers who had thoroughly studied the principles of counterpoint
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
as practised by Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
and Johann Joseph Fux, but also forced the change from the Baroque style to the looser, graceful Galante music
Galant
In music, Galant was a term referring to a style, principally occurring in the third quarter of the 18th century, which featured a return to classical simplicity after the complexity of the late Baroque era...
. Moreover, they renewed the sonata form
Sonata form
Sonata form is a large-scale musical structure used widely since the middle of the 18th century . While it is typically used in the first movement of multi-movement pieces, it is sometimes used in subsequent movements as well—particularly the final movement...
by expanding the concepts of secondary theme and development
Musical development
In European classical music, musical development is a process by which a musical idea is communicated in the course of a composition. It refers to the transformation and restatement of initial material, and is often contrasted with musical variation, which is a slightly different means to the same...
. Later on, Michael
Michael Haydn
Johann Michael Haydn was an Austrian composer of the classical period, the younger brother of Joseph Haydn.-Life:...
and Joseph Haydn
Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
would develop these concepts to a high point.
The catalog of works written by Matthias Monn contains sixteen symphonies, a score of quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
s, sonatas, masses
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
and compositions for violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
and keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
. A harpsichord concerto by Monn was freely transcribed by Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
into a cello concerto for Pablo Casals
Pablo Casals
Pau Casals i Defilló , known during his professional career as Pablo Casals, was a Spanish Catalan cellist and conductor. He is generally regarded as the pre-eminent cellist of the first half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest cellists of all time...
. The Monn/Schoenberg cello concerto in D major has been recorded by Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma is an American cellist, virtuoso, and orchestral composer. He has received multiple Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 2001 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011...
and many other cellists. Schoenberg also wrote "continuo realizations" for several works by Monn, including a cello concerto in G minor, which was recorded by Jacqueline Du Pré
Jacqueline du Pré
Jacqueline Mary du Pré OBE was a British cellist. She is particularly associated with Elgar's Cello Concerto in E Minor; her interpretation has been described as "definitive" and "legendary." Her career was cut short by multiple sclerosis, which forced her to stop performing at 28 and led to her...
.
List of works
- Sixteen symphonies including
- Symphony in G major (also called SinfoniaSinfoniaSinfonia is the Italian word for symphony. In English it most commonly refers to a 17th- or 18th-century orchestral piece used as an introduction, interlude, or postlude to an opera, oratorio, cantata, or suite...
in G major) - Symphony in B major
- Symphony in F major
- Symphony in G major (also called Sinfonia
- Six Quartets including a Quartet in B major
- Concerti
- Concerto for Violin, Strings & Continuo In B Flat Major
- Keyboard concerto in D major
- Cello concerto in D major (freely transcribed from Monn's harpsichord concerto by Arnold SchoenbergArnold SchoenbergArnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
) - Concerto for Cello (or Double Bass) in G Minor
- Concerto for HarpsichordHarpsichordA harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
, Strings & Continuo In G Minor (after Cello Concerto) - Concerto for Harpsichord in G Minor
- Concerto for Harpsichord, Strings & Continuo in D Major
- Concerto in A for FortepianoFortepianoFortepiano designates the early version of the piano, from its invention by the Italian instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori around 1700 up to the early 19th century. It was the instrument for which Haydn, Mozart, and the early Beethoven wrote their piano music...
and Strings
Concerto in G minor for Cello or Double Bass
- Sonata in G minor
- Partitas, including
- Partita a tre no. 2 in G Minor
- Partita a tre no. 7 in D Major
External links
- Matthias Georg Monn in the Grove Concise Dictionary of Music, published in 1994 by Oxford University Press.
All the following links are in German.