Everything about Karl Ditters Von Dittersdorf totally explained
August Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (
November 2,
1739 –
October 24,
1799) was an
Austrian
composer and
violinist.
Life
Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf was born in
Vienna as Carl Ditters. His father was a military tailor, serving in Austrian Imperial Army of
Karl VI, in a number of German-speaking regiments. Having retired successfully from his martial obligations, he was provided with Royal Letters of Reference and a sinecure with the Imperial Theatre. In 1745, the six year old August Carl was introduced to violin and his father's moderate financial position allowed him to take violin lessons. By 1750, August Carl had obtained a post with the Viennese Schottenkircheorchestra.
Prince Joseph Friedrich von Sachsen-Hildburghausen noticed him and hired him for his court orchestra. At the princely demesne he studied violin with
Francesco Trani and composition with
Giuseppe Bonno; and it was during this period that he became acquainted with
Gluck and
Joseph Haydn. In 1761 he was made violinist for the Imperial Theatre, and in 1763 he traveled to Bologna with Gluck. It was this "Italian Tour" that was to leave the greatest impression on his musical opus, as his early compositions are Gluckian in structure but don't exhibit the courtly style then popular in Germany and Austria. Ditters' early work was a prefiguration of his serious output that was to come in later years - an almost Italianate style focused on melodic development without the overt flourishes characteristic of
le style français.
In 1764 Ditters assumed the post of
Kapellmeister at the court of Ádám Patachich, Hungarian nobleman and Bishop of Nagyvárad (
Oradea, Romania). The following year he was introduced to
Philipp Gotthard von Schaffgotsch, the
Prince-Bishop of Breslau, whose wish was to create a cultural centre around his court at château
Jánský Vrch (Johannesberg) in
Javorník, (today
Czech Republic). In 1771 Ditters accepted the post of
Hoffkomponist (court composer); and it was during his tenure at Johannesberg that most of his creative output was produced. Over the next twenty years, he composed symphonies, chamber music, and
opere buffe. In 1773 the
prince-bishop made Ditters
Amtshauptmann of nearby
Jeseník (Freiwaldau); one of several measures to help entice the cosmopolitan composer to remain at isolated Johannesberg. Since this new post required a noble title, Ditters was sent to
Vienna and received a noble title
von Dittersdorf.
In 1794, after twenty four years at Johannesberg, von Dittersdorf experienced a serious clash with von Schaffgotsch and was expelled from the palace. Next year he was invited by Baron Ignaz von Stillfried to live at his spare castle Červená Lhota in southern Bohemia. His final decade was occupied with overseeing operatic productions and with compiling and editing his own music for publication.
With the exception of his pieces for the
double bass, his works are seldom performed today. He was well known in his day, though, and is still considered an important composer of the
Classical era. After some early Italian
opera buffa, he composed a number of German
Singspiele, with
Der Apotheker und der Doktor (1786, generally known today as
Doktor und Apotheker) in particular being a tremendous success in his lifetime, playing in houses all over Europe. His
symphonies (around 120 of them) are also considered fine pieces with their folk-like melodies and witty passages; they include twelve based on
Ovid's
Metamorphoses (six of which have survived to the present day). He also wrote
oratorios,
cantatas,
concertos (including two for the double bass and one for the viola),
chamber music,
piano pieces and other works. His memoirs,
Lebenbeschreibung, were published in Leipzig in 1801.
He died in estate Nový Dvůr (Neuhof) at château
Červená Lhota,
Southern Bohemia. His grave lies in
Deštná town.
Operas
- Amore in Musica (1767, Grosswardein)
- 25 000 Gulden oder im Dunkeln ist gut munkeln (1785, Vienna)
- Doktor und Apotheker (1786, Vienna)
- Betrug durch Aberglauben (1786, Vienna)
- Die Liebe im Narrenhaus (1787, Vienna)
- Hieronymus Knicker (1789, Vienna)
- Das rote Käppchen (1788, Vienna)
- Das Gespenst mit der Trommel (1794, Oels)
- Don Quixote der Zweyte (1795, Oels)
- Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor (1796, Oels)
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