Luigi Cherubini
Luigi Cherubini | |
---|---|
Born | Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini September 8, 1760 |
Died | March 15, 1842 | (aged 81)
Era | Classical, Romantic |
Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini (
Early years
Cherubini was born Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini in Florence in 1760. There is uncertainty about his exact date of birth. Although 14 September is sometimes stated, evidence from baptismal records and Cherubini himself suggests the 8th is correct. Perhaps the strongest evidence is his first name, Maria, which is traditional for a child born on 8 September, the feast-day of the Nativity of the Virgin.[1] His instruction in music began at the age of six with his father, Bartolomeo, maestro al cembalo ("Master of the harpsichord", in other words, ensemble leader from the harpsichord). Considered a child prodigy, Cherubini studied counterpoint and dramatic style at an early age. By the time he was thirteen, he had composed several religious works.
Adulthood and first operas
In 1780, he was awarded a scholarship by the
Feeling constrained by Italian traditions and eager to experiment, Cherubini traveled to London in 1785 where he produced two opere serie and an opera buffa for the
French assimilation
Cherubini adopted the French version of his name, Marie-Louis-Charles-Zénobi-Salvador Cherubini; this appears in all extant documents that show his full name after 1790,
Cherubini's music began to show more originality and daring. His first major success was
The fallout from the French Revolution affected Cherubini until the end of his life. Politics forced him to hide his connections with the former aristocracy and seek governmental appointments. Although Napoleon found him too complex, Cherubini wrote at least one patriotic work per year for more than a decade.[1] He was appointed Napoleon's director of music in Vienna for part of 1805 and 1806, whereupon he conducted several of his works in that city.
In 1808 Cherubini was elected an associated member of the Royal Institute of the Netherlands.[5]
From opera to church music
After Les deux journées, Parisian audiences began to favor younger composers such as
Disappointed with his lack of acclaim in the theater, Cherubini turned increasingly to church music, writing seven
Cherubini's
Later years and legacy
In 1822, Cherubini became director of the
Although chamber music does not make up a large portion of his output, what he did write was important. Wilhelm Altmann, writing in his Handbuch für Streichquartettspieler (Handbook for String Quartet Players) about Cherubini's six string quartets, stated that they are first rate and regarded Nos. 1 and 3 as masterworks. His String Quintet for two violins, viola and two cellos is also considered a first-rate work.
During his lifetime, Cherubini received France's highest and most prestigious honors. These included the Chevalier de la
Cherubini died in Paris in 1842 at age 81 and is buried at
Works
Orchestral music
- Overture in G (1815)
- Symphony in D major (1815)
- Marche funèbre (1820)
Chamber music
- String Quartet No. 1 in E-flat (1814)
- String Quartet No. 2 in C (1829) - transcription of Symphony in D major with new second movement
- String Quartet No. 3 in D minor (1834)
- String Quartet No. 4 in E (1835)
- String Quartet No. 5 in F (1835)
- String Quartet No. 6 in A minor (1837)
- String Quintet (2 violins, viola, 2 cellos) in E minor (1837)
Masses and sections of the Mass
- Five masses (written 1773–1776, lost)
- Messe solennelle brève in B-flat (1805, dubious)
- Credo a capella for eight voices and organ (1806)
- Mass in A for three voices (1809, dubious)
- Messe de Chimay in F (1809)
- Missa solemnis in D minor (1811) per il Principe Esterházy
- Mass (4th messe solennelle) in C (1816)
- Credo in D (1816)
- Requiem in C minorfor mixed chorus (1816) in memory of Louis XVI
- Missa solemnis in E (1818)
- Mass in G (1819) for the Coronation of Louis XVIII
- Mass in B-flat (1821, dubious)
- Messe solennelle in A for the Coronation of Charles X(1825)
- Requiem in D minor for male chorus (1836) written for his own funeral[7]
Motets and other choral works
- Cantata Amphion (1786)
- Cantata Circé (premiered 1789)
- Trois chœrs: Incidental music for the play La Mort de Mirabeau by Jean-Baptiste Pujoulx (1791)
- Cantata Clytemnestra (1794)
- Cantata Hymne au printemps ("Hymn to Spring") (1815)
- Hymne du Panthéon (1794) [8]
- 38 motets
Operas
Teaching manuals
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g Willis, in Sadie (Ed.), p. 833
- ^ "Luigi Cherubini | Biography, Compositions, & Facts | Britannica". 10 September 2023.
- ^ "There are clearly Romantic characteristics in his opera Médée, e.g. in many daring harmonic progressions." Sohlmans Musiklexikon
- ^ Holden, p. 174
- ^ "Marie Louis Charles Zenobie Salvator Cherubini (1760 - 1842)". Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
- ^ Willis, in Sadie (ed.), p. 834
- ^ Deane p.30
- Marie-Joseph Chénier, composed in 1794 in to celebrate Marat's death (Cf. Cherubini in Dictionnaire de la musique, by Gérard Pernon, page 57).
Sources
- Altmann, Wilhelm, Handbuch für Streichquartettspielers, Amsterdam: Hinrichtshofen, 1972
- Cherubini, Luigi (with Fromental Halévy, Cours de contrepoint et de fugue, Paris: M. Schlesinger, 1835 OCLC 11909698
- Deane, Basil, Cherubini (Oxford Studies of Composers, 1965)
- Cobbett, W.W. (Ed.), Cobbett's Cyclopedic Survey of Chamber Music, Oxford University Press, 1963.
- ISBN 0-14-029312-4.
- ISBN 0-935859-92-6.
External links
- Entry for Luigi Cherubini in The Catholic Encyclopedia
- Luigi Cherubini String Quartet Nos.1 & 3, and String Quintet--sound-bites and discussion of works
- Free scores by Luigi Cherubini at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)
- Free scores by Luigi Cherubini in the Choral Public Domain Library (ChoralWiki)