Thomas Baltzar
Encyclopedia
Thomas Baltzar was a German
violin
ist and composer. He was born in Lübeck
to a musical family; his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were all musicians. Sources suggest an array of music teachers who may have taught him in his early years. According to the writings of Samuel Hartlib
, composer and violinist Johann Schop
was one of those instructors. Baltzar may have studied the violin with Gregor Zuber and composition
with Franz Tunder
. He may have also received instruction from composer and violinist Nicolaus Bleyer, who taught Baltzar's younger brother.
Through contacts at Germany's embassy in Sweden (where, by 1653, Baltzar was employed), he may have come in contact with English musicians accompanying Bulstrode Whitelocke
's mission to Queen Christina
. This possible encounter may have been the impetus for Baltzar's decision to emigrate to England in 1655, leaving behind his newly attained position of Ratslutenist of Lübeck (he had returned briefly to his home city, probably shortly after Christina's abdication in June 1654). Hartlib's writings indicate that the Swedish ambassador to England, Christer Bonde, took in Baltzar.
Baltzar's arrival in England was met with acclaim. On March 4, 1656, he performed the violin at the residence of Roger L'Estrange
, where John Evelyn
was in attendance. Evelyn wrote in his Diary
that night:
In September 1656, Baltzar was listed as one of the musicians who helped premiere The Siege of Rhodes
in London
, thought to have been the first all-sung English opera. Two years later, according to Anthony Wood
, he was employed as a private musician for Sir Anthony Cope at Hanwell House in Banbury
. Wood, who had heard Baltzar play at a performance in Oxford
, described his "very great astonishment" at the German's skill. "[I] saw him run his fingers to the end of the finger-board
of the violin, and run them back insensibly," he wrote, "and all with alacrity and in very good tune, which [I] nor any in England saw the like before." Also in attendance was John Wilson
, a professor of music at the University of Oxford
, who, according to Wood, bowed at Baltzar's feet after the performance.
On December 23, 1661, Baltzar entered Charles II
's service as a member of the king's private music ensemble with an annual salary of £
110, a high figure for the time. Some of Baltzar's surviving compositions, including a work in C
major
that may be the earliest suite
for three violins, require virtuosity and technical mastery. According to Wood, Baltzar's drinking habits contributed to his death. He was buried in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey
on July 27, 1663.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
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....
ist and composer. He was born in Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
to a musical family; his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were all musicians. Sources suggest an array of music teachers who may have taught him in his early years. According to the writings of Samuel Hartlib
Samuel Hartlib
Samuel Hartlib was a German-British polymath. An active promoter and expert writer in many fields, he was interested in science, medicine, agriculture, politics, and education. He settled in England, where he married and died...
, composer and violinist Johann Schop
Johann Schop
Johann Schop was a German violinist and composer, much admired as a musician and a technician, who was a virtuoso and whose compositions for the violin set impressive technical demands for that area at that time. In 1756 Leopold Mozart commented on the difficulty of a trill in a work by Schop,...
was one of those instructors. Baltzar may have studied the violin with Gregor Zuber and 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 :...
with Franz Tunder
Franz Tunder
Franz Tunder was a German composer and organist of the early to middle Baroque era. He was an important link between the early German Baroque style which was based on Venetian models, and the later Baroque style which culminated in the music of J.S...
. He may have also received instruction from composer and violinist Nicolaus Bleyer, who taught Baltzar's younger brother.
Through contacts at Germany's embassy in Sweden (where, by 1653, Baltzar was employed), he may have come in contact with English musicians accompanying Bulstrode Whitelocke
Bulstrode Whitelocke
Sir Bulstrode Whitelocke was an English lawyer, writer, parliamentarian and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England.- Biography :...
's mission to Queen Christina
Christina of Sweden
Christina , later adopted the name Christina Alexandra, was Queen regnant of Swedes, Goths and Vandals, Grand Princess of Finland, and Duchess of Ingria, Estonia, Livonia and Karelia, from 1633 to 1654. She was the only surviving legitimate child of King Gustav II Adolph and his wife Maria Eleonora...
. This possible encounter may have been the impetus for Baltzar's decision to emigrate to England in 1655, leaving behind his newly attained position of Ratslutenist of Lübeck (he had returned briefly to his home city, probably shortly after Christina's abdication in June 1654). Hartlib's writings indicate that the Swedish ambassador to England, Christer Bonde, took in Baltzar.
Baltzar's arrival in England was met with acclaim. On March 4, 1656, he performed the violin at the residence of Roger L'Estrange
Roger L'Estrange
Sir Roger L'Estrange was an English pamphleteer and author, and staunch defender of royalist claims. L'Estrange was involved in political controversy throughout his life...
, where John Evelyn
John Evelyn
John Evelyn was an English writer, gardener and diarist.Evelyn's diaries or Memoirs are largely contemporaneous with those of the other noted diarist of the time, Samuel Pepys, and cast considerable light on the art, culture and politics of the time John Evelyn (31 October 1620 – 27 February...
was in attendance. Evelyn wrote in his Diary
John Evelyn's Diary
The Diary of John Evelyn, a gentlemanly Royalist and virtuoso of the seventeenth century, was first published in 1818 under the title Memoirs Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, in an edition by William Bray. Bray was assisted by William Upcott, who had access to the Evelyn family...
that night:
This night I was invited by Mr. Rog: L'Estrange to the incomperable Lubicer on the Violin, his variety upon a few notes & plaine ground with that dexterity, as was admirable, & though a very young man, yet so perfect & skillful as there was nothing so crosse & perplext, which being by our Artists, brought to him, which he did not at first sight, with ravishing sweetenesse & improvements, play off, to the astonishment of our best Masters: In Summ, he plaid on that single Instrument a full Consort, so as the rest, flung-downe their Instruments, as acknowledging a victory.
In September 1656, Baltzar was listed as one of the musicians who helped premiere The Siege of Rhodes
The Siege of Rhodes
The Siege of Rhodes is an opera written to a text by the impresario William Davenant. The score is by five composers, the vocal music by Henry Lawes, Matthew Locke, and Captain Henry Cooke, and instrumental music by Charles Coleman and George Hudson...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, thought to have been the first all-sung English opera. Two years later, according to Anthony Wood
Anthony Wood
Anthony Wood or Anthony à Wood was an English antiquary.-Early life:Anthony Wood was the fourth son of Thomas Wood , BCL of Oxford, where Anthony was born...
, he was employed as a private musician for Sir Anthony Cope at Hanwell House in Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
. Wood, who had heard Baltzar play at a performance in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, described his "very great astonishment" at the German's skill. "[I] saw him run his fingers to the end of the finger-board
Fingerboard
The fingerboard is a part of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument and above which the strings run...
of the violin, and run them back insensibly," he wrote, "and all with alacrity and in very good tune, which [I] nor any in England saw the like before." Also in attendance was John Wilson
John Wilson (composer)
John Wilson , was an English composer, lutenist and teacher. Born in Faversham, Kent, he moved to London by 1614, where he succeeded Robert Johnson as principal composer for the King's Men, and entered the King's Musick in 1635 as a lutenist. He received the degree of D.Mus from Oxford in 1644,...
, a professor of music at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, who, according to Wood, bowed at Baltzar's feet after the performance.
On December 23, 1661, Baltzar entered Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
's service as a member of the king's private music ensemble with an annual salary of £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
110, a high figure for the time. Some of Baltzar's surviving compositions, including a work in C
C (musical note)
C or Do is the first note of the fixed-Do solfège scale. Its enharmonic is B.-Middle C:Middle C is designated C4 in scientific pitch notation because of the note's position as the fourth C key on a standard 88-key piano keyboard...
major
Major scale
In music theory, the major scale or Ionian scale is one of the diatonic scales. It is made up of seven distinct notes, plus an eighth which duplicates the first an octave higher. In solfege these notes correspond to the syllables "Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti/Si, ", the "Do" in the parenthesis at...
that may be the earliest suite
Suite
In music, a suite is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral pieces normally performed in a concert setting rather than as accompaniment; they may be extracts from an opera, ballet , or incidental music to a play or film , or they may be entirely original movements .In the...
for three violins, require virtuosity and technical mastery. According to Wood, Baltzar's drinking habits contributed to his death. He was buried in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
on July 27, 1663.
External links
- Free scores Mutopia ProjectMutopia projectThe Mutopia Project is a volunteer-run effort to create a library of free content sheet music, in a way similar to Project Gutenberg's library of public domain books.The music is reproduced from old scores that are out of copyright...