Lorenz Christoph Mizler
Encyclopedia
Lorenz Christoph Mizler von Kolof (or Mitzler de Koloff) (26 July 1711 – March 1778) was a German physician
, mathematician
, and writer on music
.
, Mittelfranken; his parents were Johann Georg Mizler, court clerk to the Margrave of Ansbach at Heidenheim, and Barbara Stumpf, of St Gallen. According to his autobiography
, his first teacher was N. Müller, a minister from Obersulzbach, and learnt the flute
and violin
. From 1724 to 1730, he studied at the Ansbach
Gymnasium with Rector Oeder and Johann Matthias Gesner
, who became director of the Thomasschule zu Leipzig
from 1731 to 1734. He enrolled at Leipzig University on 30 April 1731, and chiefly studied theology
; his teachers included Gesner, Johann Christoph Gottsched
, and Christian Wolff
. He took a bachelor's degree
in December 1733 and a master's degree
in March 1734. During this time, he also pursued the study of composition
, and had some association with J. S. Bach, who he said he had the honour to call his 'good friend and patron.'
He moved to Wittenberg
in 1735 to study law
and medicine
, and returned to Leipzig in 1736. From May 1737, he began lecturing on music history and Johann Mattheson
's Neu-eröffnete Orchestre; he was the first to lecture on music at a German university for 150 years. He also began the Neu eröffnete musikalische Bibliothek, a monthly publication; in 1738 it became the periodical of his newly-founded Korrespondierenden Sozietät der Musicalischen Wissenschaften, which had the support of Count Giacomo de Lucchesini and G.H. Bümler, Ansbach court Kapellmeister
. He also began a business publishing
music. In 1743 he became secretary, teacher, librarian and court mathematician to Count Małachowski of Końskie
, for which he learnt the Polish language
, and about Polish history and Polish literature
.
He decided to take a doctorate
of medicine at Erfurt University in 1747, and moved to Warsaw
in 1752, where he became court physician and was able to study the natural sciences. He again established a publishing business, in 1754, became a member of the Erfurt Academy of Sciences in 1757, and received Polish nobility in 1768. He died in Warsaw in 1778.
, advocating the establishment of a musical science based firmly on mathematics
and philosophy
, and the imitation of nature
in music. He translated Johann Joseph Fux's Gradus ad Parnassum into German (the original was in Latin), having written of it that 'this methodical guide to musical composition [is] among all such works the best book that we have for practical music and its composition.' In intellect and study he was a polymath
, his interests encompassing music, mathematics, philosophy, theology, law, and the natural sciences in great detail. He was influenced in philosophy by the ideas of Wolff, Gottfried Leibnitz, and Gottsched.
The Musikalische Bibliothek, which he published between 1736 and 1754, is an important document of the musical life in Germany at the time, and includes reviews of books on music written from 1650 up to its publication. Mizler himself contributed commentaries and criticisms on the writings of Printz
, Leonhard Euler
, Scheibe
, Schröter
, Spiess
, Gottsched, and Mattheson; especially the latter two's Critische Dichtkunst and Vollkommene Capellmeister. His essays were detailed and perceptive and offer a useful musicological resource for present-day scholars of Baroque music
.
He founded the Korrespondierenden Sozietät der Musicalischen Wissenschaften (Corresponding Society of the Musical Sciences) in 1738. The aim was to enable musical scholars to circulate theoretical papers and to further musical science by encouraging discussion of the papers by correspondence. Many of the papers appear in the Musikalische Bibliothek. It is to the entry requirements of this society that we owe both the famous 1746/1748 Haussmann
portrait of Bach and his Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her"
for organ
, BWV
769.
The membership was limited to twenty; the following joined:
Homepage Lorenz Christoph Mizler
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, mathematician
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, and writer on music
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
.
Biography
He was born in HeidenheimHeidenheim
Heidenheim an der Brenz is a town in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is located near the border with Bavaria, approximately 17 km south of Aalen and 33 km north of Ulm...
, Mittelfranken; his parents were Johann Georg Mizler, court clerk to the Margrave of Ansbach at Heidenheim, and Barbara Stumpf, of St Gallen. According to his autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, his first teacher was N. Müller, a minister from Obersulzbach, and learnt the flute
Western concert flute
The Western concert flute is a transverse woodwind instrument made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist, flutist, or flute player....
and 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....
. From 1724 to 1730, he studied at the Ansbach
Ansbach
Ansbach, originally Onolzbach, is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Ansbach is situated southwest of Nuremberg and north of Munich, on the Fränkische Rezat, a tributary of the Main river. As of 2004, its population was 40,723.Ansbach...
Gymnasium with Rector Oeder and Johann Matthias Gesner
Johann Matthias Gesner
Johann Matthias Gesner was a German classical scholar and schoolmaster.He was born at Roth an der Rednitz near Ansbach. His father, Johann Samuel Gesner, a pastor in Auhausen, died in 1704, leaving the family in straitened circumstances...
, who became director of the Thomasschule zu Leipzig
Thomasschule zu Leipzig
St. Thomas School, Leipzig is a co-educational and public boarding school in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1212 and is one of the oldest schools in the world.St. Thomas is known for its art, language and music education...
from 1731 to 1734. He enrolled at Leipzig University on 30 April 1731, and chiefly studied theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
; his teachers included Gesner, Johann Christoph Gottsched
Johann Christoph Gottsched
Johann Christoph Gottsched was a German author and critic.-Biography:He was born at Juditten near Königsberg, Brandenburg-Prussia, the son of a Lutheran clergyman...
, and Christian Wolff
Christian Wolff (philosopher)
Christian Wolff was a German philosopher.He was the most eminent German philosopher between Leibniz and Kant...
. He took a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in December 1733 and a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in March 1734. During this time, he also pursued the study of composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
, and had some association with J. S. Bach, who he said he had the honour to call his 'good friend and patron.'
He moved to Wittenberg
Wittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Germany in the Bundesland Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000....
in 1735 to study law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
and medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, and returned to Leipzig in 1736. From May 1737, he began lecturing on music history and Johann Mattheson
Johann Mattheson
Johann Mattheson was a German composer, writer, lexicographer, diplomat and music theorist.Mattheson was born and died in Hamburg. He was a close friend of George Frideric Handel, although he nearly killed him in a sudden quarrel, during a performance of Mattheson's opera Cleopatra in 1704...
's Neu-eröffnete Orchestre; he was the first to lecture on music at a German university for 150 years. He also began the Neu eröffnete musikalische Bibliothek, a monthly publication; in 1738 it became the periodical of his newly-founded Korrespondierenden Sozietät der Musicalischen Wissenschaften, which had the support of Count Giacomo de Lucchesini and G.H. Bümler, Ansbach court Kapellmeister
Kapellmeister
Kapellmeister is a German word designating a person in charge of music-making. The word is a compound, consisting of the roots Kapelle and Meister . The words Kapelle and Meister derive from the Latin: capella and magister...
. He also began a business publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
music. In 1743 he became secretary, teacher, librarian and court mathematician to Count Małachowski of Końskie
Konskie
Końskie is a town in central Poland with 20,328 inhabitants , situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Kielce Voivodeship . Most of the town labour force was employed in the local foundry in the late 80s and early 90s...
, for which he learnt the Polish language
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, and about Polish history and Polish literature
Polish literature
Polish literature is the literary tradition of Poland. Most Polish literature has been written in the Polish language, though other languages, used in Poland over the centuries, have also contributed to Polish literary traditions, including Yiddish, Lithuanian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, German and...
.
He decided to take a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
of medicine at Erfurt University in 1747, and moved to Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
in 1752, where he became court physician and was able to study the natural sciences. He again established a publishing business, in 1754, became a member of the Erfurt Academy of Sciences in 1757, and received Polish nobility in 1768. He died in Warsaw in 1778.
Work
He was only an amateur composer but deeply interested in music theoryMusic theory
Music theory is the study of how music works. It examines the language and notation of music. It seeks to identify patterns and structures in composers' techniques across or within genres, styles, or historical periods...
, advocating the establishment of a musical science based firmly on mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, and the imitation of nature
Natural World
Natural World is the longest-running nature documentary series on British television. 2008 marked the series' 25th anniversary under its present title, though its origins can be traced back to its predecessor The World About Us which began over 40 years ago...
in music. He translated Johann Joseph Fux's Gradus ad Parnassum into German (the original was in Latin), having written of it that 'this methodical guide to musical composition [is] among all such works the best book that we have for practical music and its composition.' In intellect and study he was a polymath
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
, his interests encompassing music, mathematics, philosophy, theology, law, and the natural sciences in great detail. He was influenced in philosophy by the ideas of Wolff, Gottfried Leibnitz, and Gottsched.
The Musikalische Bibliothek, which he published between 1736 and 1754, is an important document of the musical life in Germany at the time, and includes reviews of books on music written from 1650 up to its publication. Mizler himself contributed commentaries and criticisms on the writings of Printz
Printz
Printz is a family name. Persons and events include:* David Printz, Swedish ice-hockey player* Johan Björnsson Printz, Swedish governor of New Sweden* Stefan Printz-Påhlson, Danish writer* Michael L. Printz Award, named after a Kansas librarian...
, Leonhard Euler
Leonhard Euler
Leonhard Euler was a pioneering Swiss mathematician and physicist. He made important discoveries in fields as diverse as infinitesimal calculus and graph theory. He also introduced much of the modern mathematical terminology and notation, particularly for mathematical analysis, such as the notion...
, Scheibe
Scheibe
-People:* Adolf Scheibe , German physicist* Arnold Scheibe , German botanist* Emil Scheibe , German artist* Erhard Scheibe , German philosopher of science...
, Schröter
Schröter
Schröter or Schroeter may refer to:*A crater**Schröter **Schroeter *A family name**Albrecht Schröter, a German politician**Carl Schroeter, a German-Swiss botanist**Corona Schröter, a German actress and singer...
, Spiess
Spiess
- Family name :* August Von Spiess* Christian Heinrich Spiess, German writer of romances* Fred Spiess, American oceanographer* Gerry Spiess, American sailer- See also :* Joseph Spiess Company, American chain of department stores in Illinois...
, Gottsched, and Mattheson; especially the latter two's Critische Dichtkunst and Vollkommene Capellmeister. His essays were detailed and perceptive and offer a useful musicological resource for present-day scholars of Baroque music
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
.
Musical society
Elias Gottlob Haussmann
Elias Gottlob Haussmann was a German painter in the late Baroque era. Haussmann served as court painter at Dresden, and from 1720 as the official portraitist at Leipzig...
portrait of Bach and his Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her"
Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her"
The Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her" , BWV 769, are a set of five variations in canon for organ with two manuals and pedals by Johann Sebastian Bach on the Christmas hymn by Martin Luther of the same name...
for organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
, BWV
BWV
The Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis is the numbering system identifying compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. The prefix BWV, followed by the work's number, is the shorthand identification for Bach's compositions...
769.
The membership was limited to twenty; the following joined:
- 1738:
- G. de Lucchesini
- L.C. Mizler (permanent secretary)
- G.H. Bümler
- 1739
- C.G. Schröter
- H. Bokemeyer
- G.P. Telemann
- G.H. StölzelGottfried Heinrich StölzelGottfried Heinrich Stölzel was a prolific German composer.-Biography:Stölzel grew up in Schwarzenberg, Saxony in the Erzgebirge. From 1707 he was a student of theology in Leipzig, and of Melchior Hofmann, the musical director of the Neukirche. He studied, worked and composed in Breslau and Halle...
- 1742:
- G.F. Lingke
- 1743:
- M. Spiess
- G. Venzky
- 1745:
- G.F. Handel
- U. Weiss
- 1746:
- C.H. Graun
- 1747:
- J.S. Bach
- G.A. Sorge
- J.P. Kunzen
- 1748:
- J.C.F. Fischer
- 1751:
- J.C. Winter
- 1752:
- J.G. Kaltenbeck
- 1755:
- L. Mozart (invitation declined)
Musical compositions
- Sammlung auserlesener moralischer Oden, zum Nutzen und Vergnügen der Liebhaber des Claviers I (Leipzig, 1740), II (Leipzig, 1741), III (Leipzig, 1743). Facsimiles published (Leipzig, 1971)
Writings
- Dissertatio quod musica ars sit pars eruditionis philosophicae (Leipzig, 1734)
- Lusus ingenii de praesenti bello (Wittenberg, 1735)
- De usu atque praestantia philosophiae in theologia, jurisprudentia, medicina (Leipzig, 1736)
- Neu eröffnete musikalische Bibliothek, oder Gründliche Nachricht nebst unpartheyischem Urtheil von musikalischen Schriften und Büchern (Leipzig, 1739)
- Musikalischer Staarstecher, in welchem rechtschaffener Musikverständigen Fehler bescheiden angemerket, eingebildeter und selbst gewachsener sogenannter Componisten Thorheiten aber lächerlich gemachet werden (Leipzig, 1739–1740)
- Anfangs-Gründe des General-Basses nach mathematischer Lehr-Art abgehandelt (Leipzig, 1739)
- Gradus ad Parnassum, oder Anführung zur regelmässigen Composition, aus dem Lateinischen ins Deutsche übersetzt, und mit Anmerkungen versehen (Leipzig, 1742), translation of J.J. Fux: Gradus ad Parnassum (Vienna, 1725)
Further reading
- Johann Mattheson: Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte (Hamburg, 1740)
- J.G. Walther: Musicalisches Lexicon, oder Musicalische Bibliothec
- F. Wöhlke: Lorenz Christoph Mizler: ein Beitrag zur musikalischen Gelehrtengeschichte des 18. Jahrhunderts (Würzburg, 1940)
- J. Birke: Christian Wolffs Metaphysik und die zeitgenössische Literatur- und Musiktheorie: Gottsched, Scheibe, Mizler (Berlin, 1966)
- H.R. Jung: Telemann und die Mizlerische 'Societat' der musikalischen Wissenschaften, Georg Philipp Telemann, ein bedeutender Meister der Aufklärungsepoche (Magdeburg, 1967)
- H. Federhofer: L. Chr. Mizlers Kommentare zu den beiden Büchern des 'Gradus ad Parnassum' von J.J. Fux (Graz, 1995)
Sources
- George J. Buelow, 'Mizler von Kolof [Mitzler de Kolof, Koloff], Lorenz Christoph', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 2007-06-08), http://www.grovemusic.com/
Homepage Lorenz Christoph Mizler