A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Louis Ferdinand, Prince
LOUIS FERDINAND, Prince,—accurately Friedrich Christian Ludwig,—born Nov. 18, 1772, killed at the battle of Saalfeld, Oct. 13, 1806, was the son of Prince August Ferdinand of Prussia, and therefore nephew of Frederick the Great and of Prince Henry (the patron of J. P. Salomon, and cousin of Frederick William II), the cello-player for whom Beethoven wrote his op. 5. His sister Louise married Prince Radziwill, who composed the Faust music and to whom Beethoven dedicated the Overture op. 115. Louis Ferdinand thus belonged to a musical as well as a royal family, and he appears to have been its brightest ornament on the score of natural gifts—his uncle the Great Frederick excepted—even down to our own time; in music undoubtedly so. He was kindly and generous in the highest degree, and free from all pride of rank; energetic and enterprising, and as a soldier bold to temerity. In conversation he was brilliant, in social intercourse delightful. On the point of morals his reputation was not good; but one who knew him well, while admitting that, being prevented by his rank from making a marriage of affection, 'he chose female friends with whom he lived in the most intimate relations,' asserts positively that 'he never seduced an innocent girl, or destroyed the peace of a happy marriage.' This, in the time of Frederick William II, was high praise. He was passionately fond of his two illegitimate children, and left them to the care of his sister, Princess Radziwill. That he very early entered the army was a matter of course, for no other career was open to a Prussian prince; but that, amid all the distractions of a military life, no small part of which (1792–1806) was spent in hard service, he should have become a sound practical musician and composer proves his energy and perseverance no less than his talent; but music was his passion, and in garrison or camp he had musicians with him and kept up his practice. He preferred English pianofortes, of which he is said to have purchased no less than thirteen.
We find no account of his masters and early studies, nor any but vague notices of his rapid progress, until 1793. He was then with his regiment at Frankfort, and is reported to have aided a poor musician not only with his purse, but by a very fine performance of a sonata in a concert. Three years later, in 1796, Beethoven, then in Berlin, formed that opinion of his playing which he afterwards expressed to Ries (Biog. Not. p. 110), that, though the playing of Himmel—then among the most renowned of pianists—was elegant and pleasing, it was not to be compared to that of the Prince. Ries also (Ib.) records Beethoven's compliment to him—that he did not play at all like a king or a prince, but like a thorough solid pianist. [See the article on Dussek for an account of his relations with that great musician.] In 1804 he made a journey to Italy. In Bohemia he visited Prince Lobkowitz at his seat, Raudnitz. We see no sufficient reason to doubt the truth of an anecdote the scene of which lay then and there. Lobkowitz had purchased from Beethoven the recently composed Heroic Symphony, and had had it performed in his palace at Vienna. He consulted with Wranitzky, his Kapellmeister, as to a programme for the entertainment of his guest. Wranitzky proposed the new symphony. Louis Ferdinand listened with the utmost interest, and at the close of the performance requested a repetition, which was of course granted. After supper, having to depart early the next morning, he besought the favour of a third performance, which was also granted.
It was under the fresh impression of this music that Louis Ferdinand renewed his acquaintance with Beethoven. We have no particulars of the meeting. Ries (Biog. Not. p. 11) only relates, that an old [1]Countess, at the supper after a musical entertainment, excluded Beethoven from the table set for the Prince and the nobility, at which the composer left the house in a rage. Some days later Louis Ferdinand gave a dinner, and the Countess and Beethoven being among the guests, had their places next the Prince on either hand, a mark of distinction of which the composer always spoke with pleasure. A pleasant token of their intercourse survives in the dedication to the Prince of the P.F. Concerto in C minor, which was first played in July 1804, and published in November.
In the autumn of the next year (1805), the Prince being at Magdeburg on occasion of the military manoeuvres, Spohr was invited to join them. 'I led,' says Spohr (Selbstbiog.), 'a strange, wild, stirring life, which for a short time thoroughly suited my youthful tastes. Dussek and I were often dragged from our beds at six in the morning and called in dressing-gown and slippers to the Prince's reception room, where he, often in shirt and drawers (owing to the extreme heat), was already at the pianoforte. The study and rehearsal of the music selected for the evening often continued so long, that the hall was filled with officers in stars and orders, with which the costume of the musicians contrasted strangely enough. The Prince however never left off until everything had been studied to his satisfaction.' Louis Ferdinand's compositions, like his playing, were distinguished for boldness, splendour, and deep feeling; several of those which are in print were composed before the intercourse with Dussek had ripened his taste, and made him more fully master of his ideas. These he would gladly have suppressed. The Pianoforte Quartet in F minor is considered to be his most perfect work.
Ledebur's list of the published compositions (made 1861) is as follows:—
Op. 1 Quintet for P.F. and Strings, C. minor.
" 2. Trio for P.F., Violin, and Cello, A♭.
" 3. Do.,do.,E♭.
" 4. Andante, do.,B♭.
" 5. Quartet for P.F., Violin, Viola, and Cello. E♭.
" 6. Do.,do., F minor.
" 7. Fugue, 4 voix, for P.F. solo.
" 8. Nocturno for P.F., Flute, Violin, Cello obligati. and 2 Horns ad lib., F.
Op. 9. Rondo for P.F., 2 Violins, Flute, 2 Clarinets, 2 Horns, Viola, and Cello, B.
" 10. Trio for P.F., Violin, and Cello, E♭.
" 11. Larghetto, variations, P.F., with Violin, Viola, and Cello, oblig.
" 12. Octet for P.F., Clarinet, 2 Horns, 2 Violins, 2 Cellos.
" 13. Rondo for P. F.
Also a 2nd Quintet for P.F. and Strings.
- ↑ Not the Countess Thun, as has been stated—she died long before.