Page:Pratt - The history of music (1907).djvu/537

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Thomasschule at Leipsic and in 1843 professor of counterpoint and composition in the new conservatory. He became one of the chief factors in the school's success, impressing himself upon hosts of pupils for 25 years and winning many official honors. His theory and practice placed the highest value upon clear, vigorous construction and perfection of detail, but his spirit was so broad that he held the respect of many who were less conservative. His writings included Die Natur der Harmonik und Metrik (1853), Die Lehre van der Harmonik (1868), an exposition of Bach's Art of Fugue, some essays (collected 1874), and many letters (collected 1871-6). In these he made a powerful contribution to modern theory, and also exhibited a masterly conception of musical art. His theoretic system, resting upon an analysis of tonality in its major and minor dualism, has been further developed by Arthur von Oettingen of Dorpat (in 1866), by Otto Tiersch of Berlin (from 1868), by Adolf Thürlings of Bonn (in 1877), by Ottokar Hostinský of Prague (from 1877) and by Hugo Riemann (from 1880).

Ignaz Moscheles (d. 1870) has already been treated (see sec. 180). His influence was more conservative than that of Hauptmann.

Close contemporaries of Mendelssohn and Schumann were the following:—

Ernst Friedrich Richter (d. 1879), born in Saxony in 1808, educated at Zittau and Leipsic (pupil of Weinlig), became Hauptmann's assistant at the Conservatory in 1843 and in 1868, after leading the Singakademie in 1843-7 and serving from 1851 as organist at three of the city churches, his successor as cantor at the Thomasschule. He was an excellent teacher and published valuable text-books on harmony, counterpoint and fugue (1853-72). He was also a sound and effective composer of both instrumental and choral music, including the oratorio Christus der Erlöser (1849).

Ferdinand David (d. 1873) was the third in the great triumvirate with Hauptmann and Moscheles. Born in 1810 at Hamburg, he early had instruction from Spohr and Hauptmann at Cassel, at 15 appeared as violinist at the Gewandhaus, from 1827 played in a theatre-orchestra at Berlin, from 1829 was leader in the private quartet of a noble at Dorpat (whose daughter became his wife), and was well known as a concert-player throughout Russia till 1835. In 1836 Mendelssohn secured him as concertmaster for the Gewandhaus and in 1843 engaged him in the conservatory. In both positions he won worldwide renown as virtuoso, trainer and inspirer, so that to him much of the Leipsic prestige must be attributed. He was not only a great interpreter in the noble style of Spohr, but a strong composer for his instrument and for chamber and orchestral combinations, besides one opera (1852), and the author of a foremost method and numerous standard editions of violin-classics.

Julius Rietz (d. 1877), born in 1812, was brought up at Berlin in the same general circle with Mendelssohn, and was trained as a 'cellist, playing in a theatre-orchestra from 1828. In 1834 he became Mendelssohn's assistant at Düsseldorf and in 1835 his successor, first as opera-conductor, later as town-musician, besides touring as a virtuoso. In 1847-54 he was conductor at the Leipsic theatre and the Singakademie, and from 1848 also conductor at the Gewandhaus and professor of composition in the conservatory. In 1860 he removed to Dresden to be court-choirmaster and later also the artistic head