Conradin Kreutzer
Conradin Kreutzer or Kreuzer was a German composer and conductor. His works include the operas Das Nachtlager in Granada and incidental music to, both produced in 1834 in Vienna.
Biography
Born in Meßkirch, Baden, Kreutzer abandoned his studies in the law and went to Vienna about 1804, where he met Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn and may have studied with Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, while he tried his hand unsuccessfully at singspiele. He spent 1811–12 in Stuttgart, where at least three of his operas were staged and he was awarded the post of Hofkapellmeister, succeeding Franz Danzi. He was from 1812 to 1816 Kapellmeister to the king of Württemberg. Once he was successful, he became a prolific composer, and wrote a number of operas for the Theater am Kärntnertor, Theater in der Josefstadt and Theater an der Wien in Vienna, which have disappeared from the stage.In 1840, he became conductor of the opera at Cologne. His daughters, Cecilia and Marie Kreutzer, were sopranos of some renown.
Kreutzer owes his fame almost exclusively to Das Nachtlager in Granada, which kept the stage for half a century in spite of changes in musical taste. It was written in the style of Carl Maria von Weber. The same qualities are found in Kreutzer's part-songs for men's voices, which at one time were extremely popular in Germany. Among these "Das ist der Tag des Herrn". His Septet for wind and strings, Op. 62, remains in the chamber music repertory. He was one of the 50 composers who wrote a variation on a waltz of Anton Diabelli for Part II of the "Vaterländischer Künstlerverein".
He died in Riga.
Selected works
Operas', 1 March 1815, StuttgartAdele von Budoy, one-act opera, 13 August 1821, Stadttheater Königsberg, revised as, one act, 15 February 1823, Vienna, Theater am KärntnertorLibussa, romantische Oper 4 December 1822, Theater am Kärntnertor- , romantische Oper 27 February 1833, Berlin, Königstädtisches TheaterDas Nachtlager in Granada, romantische Oper 13 January 1834, Vienna, Theater in der JosefstadtDer Taucher, 1813 and revised for premiere on 24 January 1824, Kärntnertortheater
- Septet in E-flat, Op. 62 for clarinet, horn, bassoon, string trio, double bass
- Clarinet Trio in E-flat major, Op. 43
- Duo in C major
- Fantasia for Bassoon in F major
- Variations in G for the Chromatic Trumpet
- Variations in B-flat major for Bassoon and Piano
- Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat major, Op. 42
- Piano Concerto No. 2 in C-minor, Op. 50
- Piano Concerto No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 65
Vocal worksDer Todte Fagott for baritone, bassoon, and pianoforteDas Mühlrad song for soprano, clarinet and pianoforte Die Lüfte weh'n so lind Frühlingsglaube
- Da streiten sich die Leut' herum for Ferdinand Raimund's 1834 play