Norbert Burgmüller
Encyclopedia
Norbert Burgmüller was a German
composer
.
, the youngest son in a musical family. His father, August Burgmüller, was the director of a theatre
. His mother, Therese von Zandt, was a singer and piano teacher. He had two brothers, Franz and Friedrich
, who was also a composer. After the death of their father the family had financial problems, but they got support from count Franz von Nesselrode-Ehreshoven.
Burgmüller studied with Joseph Kreutzer
in Düsseldorf, and Louis Spohr
and his pupil Moritz Hauptmann
in Kassel
. After his study he became their piano teacher. He became engaged to Sophia Roland, but in 1830 the relationship ended, to Norbert's distress. He became epileptic
and began to drink excessively.
In the same year he returned to Düsseldorf to live with his mother. There he befriended Felix Mendelssohn
. He became engaged to Josephine Collin, but this relationship ended too. After Mendelssohn left for Leipzig
in 1835, Burgmüller made plans to leave for Paris
, where his brother Friedrich had gone. In 1836 he went to a spa
in Aachen
, where he drowned during an epileptic seizure.
Robert Schumann
, who arranged for the posthumous publication of Burgmüller's two symphonies, and completed the orchestration of the scherzo
of the unfinished Symphony No. 2, wrote in a memorial notice that no death was more deplorable than that of Norbert Burgmüller since the early death of Franz Schubert
.
The opus numbers do not correspond with the order of composition.
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
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...
.
Life
Burgmüller was born in DüsseldorfDüsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
, the youngest son in a musical family. His father, August Burgmüller, was the director of a theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
. His mother, Therese von Zandt, was a singer and piano teacher. He had two brothers, Franz and Friedrich
Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmüller
Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmüller, generally known as Friedrich Burgmüller was a German pianist and composer.-Biography:...
, who was also a composer. After the death of their father the family had financial problems, but they got support from count Franz von Nesselrode-Ehreshoven.
Burgmüller studied with Joseph Kreutzer
Joseph Kreutzer
Joseph Kreutzer was a German violinist, composer, and conductor. His compositions consisted mostly of chamber music and instructive pieces for bowed strings and guitar...
in Düsseldorf, and Louis Spohr
Louis Spohr
Louis Spohr was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Born Ludewig Spohr, he is usually known by the French form of his name. Described by Dorothy Mayer as "The Forgotten Master", Spohr was once as famous as Beethoven. As a violinist, his virtuoso playing was admired by Queen Victoria...
and his pupil Moritz Hauptmann
Moritz Hauptmann
Moritz Hauptmann , was a German music theorist, teacher and composer.Hauptmann was born in Dresden, and studied violin under Scholz, piano under Franz Lanska, composition under Grosse and Francesco Morlacchi,...
in Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
. After his study he became their piano teacher. He became engaged to Sophia Roland, but in 1830 the relationship ended, to Norbert's distress. He became epileptic
Seizure
An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain". The outward effect can be as dramatic as a wild thrashing movement or as mild as a brief loss of awareness...
and began to drink excessively.
In the same year he returned to Düsseldorf to live with his mother. There he befriended Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
. He became engaged to Josephine Collin, but this relationship ended too. After Mendelssohn left for Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
in 1835, Burgmüller made plans to leave for Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where his brother Friedrich had gone. In 1836 he went to a spa
Destination spa
A destination spa is a short term residential/lodging facility with the primary purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters...
in Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
, where he drowned during an epileptic seizure.
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
, who arranged for the posthumous publication of Burgmüller's two symphonies, and completed the orchestration of the scherzo
Scherzo
A scherzo is a piece of music, often a movement from a larger piece such as a symphony or a sonata. The scherzo's precise definition has varied over the years, but it often refers to a movement which replaces the minuet as the third movement in a four-movement work, such as a symphony, sonata, or...
of the unfinished Symphony No. 2, wrote in a memorial notice that no death was more deplorable than that of Norbert Burgmüller since the early death of Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
.
Works
- Orchestral works
- Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 2 (1831-33)
- Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 11 (1834/35, unfinished).
- Ouvertüre in F minor, Op.5 (1825)
- 4 Entr'actes, Op. 17 (1827/28)
- Piano Concerto in F sharp minor, Op. 1 (1828/29)
- Vocal works
- "Dionys", Opera after Schiller'sFriedrich SchillerJohann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life , Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe...
Ballad "Die Bürgschaft" (1832/34, Fragment) - 6 Songs, Op. 3 (pub. 1838)
- 5 Songs, Op. 6 (pub. 1839)
- 5 Songs, Op. 10 (pub. 1840)
- 5 Songs, Op. 12 (pub. 1864)
- Frühlingslied in G major (pub. 1840)
- Morgenlied in E flat major (1834, Fragment)
- "Dionys", Opera after Schiller's
- Chamber music
- String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 4 (1825)
- String Quartet No. 2 in D minor, Op. 7 (1825/26)
- String Quartet No. 3 in A flat major, Op. 9 (1826)
- String Quartet No. 4 in A minor, Op. 14 (1835)
- Ständchen in E flat major for clarinet (or cello), viola and guitar (1825)
- Duo in E flat major for clarinet and piano, Op. 15 (1834)
- Piano music
- Sonata in F minor, Op. 8 (1826)
- Waltz in E flat major (1827)
- Mazurka in E flat major
- Polonaise in F major, Op. 16 (1832)
- Rhapsody in B minor, Op. 13 (1834)
The opus numbers do not correspond with the order of composition.