Page:A Dictionary of Music and Musicians vol 3.djvu/266

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254
SCHLESINGER.
SCHMITT.

30) much influence for good in Germany. [See vol. ii. 430.] He died in 1839.

His second son, Heinrich (born 1807), carried on the business till his death in 1879 [App. p.785 "Dec. 14."]. He founded the 'Echo' in 1851, a periodical which remained in his hands till 1865.

The eldest son, Moritz Adolph, left Berlin, and in 1819 entered the bookselling house of Bossange père at Paris. In 1823 he endeavoured to found a similar business for himself. Police difficulties prevented him from carrying out his intention, and he founded a music business instead, which for many years has had the lead among French publishers, and is now nearly as famous as Paris itself. He brought his German tastes with him, and an unusual degree of enterprise. His first serious effort was an edition of Mozart's operas in PF. score, for which Horace Vernet designed the titlepage. This was followed by editions of the complete works of Beethoven, Weber, Hummel, etc., and a 'Collection de chefs d'œuvre' in 24 vols. He published also the full scores of Meyerbeer's 'Robert,' and 'Les Huguenots'; Halévy's 'L'Eclair,' 'La Juive,' 'Les Mousquetaires,' 'La Reine de Chypre,' 'Guido et Ginevra,' 'Charles VI'; Donizetti's 'La Favorite'; Berlioz's 'Symphonie fantastique,' and overture to the 'Carnaval Romain'; the arrangements of Wagner; the chamber-music of Onslow, Reissiger, and a host of other pieces of all descriptions, for which the reader must be referred to the catalogue of the firm. Amongst the educational works the 'Méthode des Méthodes' is conspicuous. On Jan. 5, 1843, he issued the first number of the 'Gazette Musicale,' which in a few months was united to the 'Revue Musicale,' and ran a useful and successful course till its expiry in 1881. [See vol. iii. 121b.] In 1846 M. Schlesinger sold the business to MM. Brandus and Dufour, and retired to Baden Baden, where he died in Feb. 1871.

[ G. ]

SCHLOESSER, Louis, born at Darmstadt in 1800, learnt music there from Rinck, and in Vienna from Seyfried, Salieri, and Mayseder. In due time he entered the Conservatoire at Paris, and attended the violin class of Kreutzer and the composition class of Lesueur. He then went to Darmstadt and became first leader and then conductor of the Court band. His works comprise 5 operas, a melodrama, music to Faust, a mass, a ballet, and a quantity af instrumental music of all descriptions. His son, Carl Wilhelm Adolph, was born at Darmstadt Feb. 1, 1830. He was educated by his father, and in 1847 established himself at Frankfort. In 1854 he went to England, where he has been ever since settled in London as an esteemed teacher.

He has published both in England and Germany a great number of PF. works, both solos and duets; including a suite dedicated to Cipriani Potter, and a set of 24 studies; many songs and vocal pieces, including 'Merrily, merrily over the snow' and an 'Ave Maria'—and has many larger works in MS. His 'Schumann Evenings' were well known, and did much to advance the knowledge of Schumann in England.

[ G. ]

SCHMID, Anton, Custos of the Hofbibliothek in Vienna, born at Pihl, near Leipa in Bohemia, Jan. 30, 1787, entered the Imperial Library at Vienna in 1818, became Scriptor in 1819, Custos in 1844, and died at Salzburg, July 3, 1857. His department as a writer was the history and literature of music and hymns. He contributed to the following works:—Dr. Ferdinand Wolf's 'Ueber die Lais, Sequenzen, und Leiche' (Heidelberg, 1841); Becker's 'Darstellung der musikalischen Literatur' (supplement, Leipzig, 1839); A. Schmidt's 'Allg. Wiener musik. Zeitung' (from 1842 to 48); Dehn's 'Cäcilia' (from 1841 to 48; Mavence, Schott); and the 'Oesterreich. Blätter für Lit. und Kunst' (1844, 45). His independent works are 'Ottaviano dei Petrucci of Fossombrone, the inventor of moveable metal types for printing music, and his successors' (Vienna, Rohrmann, 1845); 'Joseph Haydn und Nicolo Zingarelli,' proving that Haydn was the author of the Austrian national hymn (Vienna, Rohrmann, 1847); 'Christoph Willibald Ritter von Gluck, his life and musical works. A biographical æsthetical study (Leipzig, Fleischer, 1854); also a work on chess, 'Tschaturanga-vidja' (Vienna, Gerold, 1847).

Schmid was of a modest and retiring disposition, and distinguished in his official capacity for conscientiousness, industry, and courtesy. To him in the first instance is due the orderly and systematic arrangement of the musical archives of the Hofbibliothek. In recognition of his unwearied industry and research he was made a member of the Historische Verein of Upper Bavaria, of the Dom-Musikverein and the Mozarteum of Salzburg, of the Congregazione ed Accademia Pontifica di Santa Cecilia of Rome, of the Societa litteraria dell' Areopago of Genoa, and of the Archæological Societies of Vienna, Nuremberg, etc.

SCHMITT, a German musical family. The founder of it was Cantor at Obernburg in Bavaria. His son Alois was born at Erlenbach on the Main in 1789, and taught to play by his father; he then learned composition from Andre of Offenbach, and in 1816 established himself in Frankfort as a PF. teacher. After a few successful years there—during which, among others, he had taught Ferdinand Hiller—and much travelling, he migrated to Berlin, then to Hanover, where he held the post of Court Organist, and lastly back to Frankfort, where he died July 25, 1860. His reputation as a teacher was great, though he had a passion for journeys, and his pupils complained of his frequent absences. He composed more than 100 works, chiefly instrumental, of all descriptions, including some useful PF. studies.

His brother Jakob, born at Obernburg Nov. 2, 1803 [App. p.785 "1796"], was a pupil of Alois. He settled in Hamburg, where he brought out an opera (Alfred the Great) and a prodigious amount of music, including many sonatas for the piano, solo and with violin, variations, three books of studies, etc., in all more than 300 works; and died June 1853.