"'I know for a fact that my name and works are famous all over Europe, so I hope I have given pleasure to half a million people in this well-populated part of the world. If only each of these people were to give one penny 'in omni et toto' to me - or rather to my family, since it would be of little use to me now - it would represent a tiny oulay for the giver, but what a huge difference it would make for the bereft, disconsolate family of a man who, like the one in the parable, did not bury his talent in the ground!'
"It is certainly tru that Vienna-born Karl Dittersdorf (1739-1799) did not bury his talent: he produced four oratorios, various masses, some fifty stage works, as well as symphonies, concertos and chamber music. He did what he could to develop his talents and to become accepted in society. As one of the outstanding violin virtuosos of his generation he travelled widely, and as a highly respected composer for the stage he was invited to many of the great opera houses. His singspiel 'Doktor un Apotheker' (Doctor and Apothecary) was even more famous in his day that Mozart's 'Marriage of Figaro'. Yet, as befalls so many of those who are swept aloft on waves of applause, the end of his life brought total insignificance and the painful realisation that he was already forgotten in his own lifetime. That same world in which admiration once held sway continued to turn, and had spun away in a different direction. Nevertheless, Kart Dittersdorf, not yet sixty but already almost crippled by gout, worked away doggedly at a late composition, a set of several new pieces. He announced it for subscription in specialist journals, only to be disappointed: not a single buyer came forward for any of the pieces. Out of kindness of heart a prince took pity on him and his family and gave them a home.
"Instead of resigning himself to his fate, he dictated an autobiography to his son. This is a remarkable document in many respects. It is a rich source of information on life at small Central European courts, such as Grosswardein and Johannisberg, where Dittersdorf spent much of his career. One learns, for instance, that a prince bishop had so little to do that he could afford to spend a week translating a cantata text from Italian into Latin for the astonishing reason that oridnary gentlemen and ladies, the musical amateurs who formed the greater part of the operatic ensemble at small courts of this kind, knew no Italian but were fluent in Latin.
"The autobiography is remarkable also because Dittersdorf's account of his life is straightforward and honest, unembellished, at times bitter, and usually spiced with apt touches of irony. His time was one of wars that altered the political landscape, shifting power structures, plots and intrigues at the courts of princes and emperor, long journeys that took a toll on health, poor standards of hygeine, a lack of social security provision; but on the other hand it was a time when drama and orchestral music flourished even in the smallest towns; a time when the world seemed stable and untroubled by doubt. There was dignity and social etiquette (though also hypocrisy). In Vienna Haydn, Mozart, Vanhal and Dittersdorf met to play string quartets together for their own pleasure, occasionally joined by Paisiello, and there were times when the musical director at a princely court might also be called upon to fill the role of chief forester. They were times no less strange than our own.
"Dittersdorf was ennobled in 1773, an honour that cost him, as he ruefully recalls, 1100 gulden, of which 50 ducats went to an agent, Herr von Hoffmann, evidently an intermediary in these matters, although the prince did present him with 400 gulden. Dittersdorf is remembered today chiefly as a composer for the double-bass - which is absurd to start with. Many of his works are thoroughly original, but others are not. He never saw himself as a genius but as a person who strove to do the best he could in order to build a career for himself and become a respected member of society. No romanticism in this. And this explains why people nowadays would rather listen to Mozart work that is not entirely original than to an original one by Dittersdorf - yet amongst the potboilers there a handful of highly original works.
"As always, our contacts with historical figures tell us more about ourselves than about them. We are fortunate enough to have the wherewithal to introduce music from totally different historical contexts into our daily listening and thus to acquire a taste for music of all periods; this gives us the notion that we stand higher, see further, and understand better and more than preceding generations. This notion may not even be a mistaken one. But the Dittersdorfs alive today in our town, in our own country, in our own days, may die just as miserable and unregarded a death as Dittersdorf himself a couple of centuries ago. That's life.
"One thing emerges from Dittersdorf's life and autobiography: then as nowadays, the overriding concern was getting enough money to achieve a certain standard of living, and the romantic ideas that have always hovered the (dead) composer are nonsense. Dittersdorf the composer was pleased when an orchestral movement turned out particularly well, and he was pleased when a prince requested him to perform his piece.s The same was doubtless true of Mozart. But one must be allowed to ask this question: what else were they supposed to do to survive?
"'Laden with honour and money I arrived back in Johannisberg and was welcomed with happy smiles by my family and with friendly but quzzical looks by my creditors.' Thus wrote Dittersdorf. He is worth reading and listening to. He was one of the most entertaining composers and men." (Andreas Daams, tr. Celia Skrine. From the liner notes.)
Performers: Sharon Quartet
1. String Quartet No. 1 In D Major: I. Moderato
2. String Quartet No. 1 In D Major: II. Menuetto
3. String Quartet No. 1 In D Major: III. Finale. Allegro
4. String Quartet No. 3 In G Major: I. Moderato
5. String Quartet No. 3 In G Major: II. Menuetto. Moderato
6. String Quartet No. 3 In G Major: III. Finale. Presto
7. String Quartet No. 4 In C Major: I. Allegro
8. String Quartet No. 4 In C Major: II. Menuetto. Allegro
9. String Quartet No. 4 In C Major: III. Andante
10. String Quartet No. 5 In E-Flat Major: I. Allegro
11. String Quartet No. 5 In E-Flat Major: II. Menuetto
12. String Quartet No. 5 In E-Flat Major: III. Finale. Allegro
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