London, and produced 'Fidelio,' 'Der Freischütz,' and other masterpieces of the German school, at the King's Theatre; the principal artists being Schröder-Devrient and Haitzinger, with Hummel (Roeckel's brother-in-law) as conductor. In 1835 he retired from operatic life, and in 1853 finally returned to Germany, where he died, at Anhalt-Cöthen, in September, 1870.
Augustus, the eldest son of the above, was born Dec. 1, 1814, at Gratz. He was joint Kapellmeister at the Dresden Opera with Richard Wagner, but being, like the latter, involved in the Revolution of 1848, he abandoned music and devoted himself entirely to politics. He died at Buda Pesth on June 18, 1876.
Edward, the second son of Professor Roeckel, was born at Trèves on Nov. 20, 1816, and received his musical education from his uncle J. N. Hummel. He came to London in 1835, and gave his first concert in 1836 at the King's Theatre. He subsequently went on a concert-tour in Germany, and performed with great success at the courts of Prussia, Saxony, Saxe-Weimar, Anhalt-Dessau, etc. In 1848 Mr. Roeckel settled in England, and resides at Bath, where he succeeded the late Henry Field. He is known as the composer of a considerable quantity of pianoforte music, and is otherwise much esteemed.
Joseph Leopold, the youngest son of Professor Roeckel, was born in London in the year 1838. He studied composition at Würzburg under Eisenhofer, and orchestration under Götze, at Weimar. Like his brother, Mr. J. L. Roeckel has settled in England, and lives at Clifton; he is well known as a teacher, and a voluminous composer of songs. His orchestral and instrumental compositions are less well known, but his cantatas 'Fair Rosamond,' 'Ruth,' 'The Sea Maidens,' 'Westward Ho,' and 'Mary Stuart,' have been received with much favour. The first of these was performed at the Crystal Palace in 1871.
RÖNTGEN, Engelbert, born Sept. 30, 1829, at Deventer in Holland, entered the Conservatorium at Leipzig in 1848; as a pupil of David's became a first-rate violinist, and in 1869 took David's place as Concertmeister in the Gewandhaus orchestra. He is now a teacher in the Conservatorium. He married a daughter of Moritz Klengel, himself Concertmeister at the Gewandhaus for many years. Their son,
Julius, was born at Leipzig May 9, 1855, and soon displayed a great gift for music. His parents were his first teachers, and he afterwards learned from Hauptmann, Richter, Plaidy and Reinecke. In 1872 he went to Munich, and remained there for some time studying counterpoint and composition under Franz Lachner. A tour with Stockhausen in 1873–4, during which he played chiefly his own compositions, launched him favourably before the world. He now lives in Amsterdam. His published works amount to 18, almost all of a serious character. They are, for the PF.—a duet for 4 hands, in 4 movements, (op. 16); two sonatas (op. 2, 10), a phantasie (op. 8); a suite (op. 7); a ballade (op. 5), a cyclus of pieces (op. 6), and a theme with variations (op. 17), etc. etc.; a sonata for PF. and violin (op. 1) and for PF. and cello (op. 3); a concerto for PF. and orchestra (op. 18); a serenade for 7 wind instruments (op. 14); 'Toskanische Rispetti,' a Liederspiel (op. 9); 9 songs (op. 15) etc. etc. The cello sonata was played at the Monday Popular Concert of Feb. 14, 1881, and was well received.
ROGEL, Jose, Spanish conductor and composer, born at Orihuela, Alicante, Dec. 24, 1829; began music under Cascales and Gil, organist and conductor of the cathedral, and made great progress, till sent to Valencia by his father to study law. The six years which he spent there were however devoted much more to music than to law, under the guidance of Pascual Perez, a musician of ability, from whom he learned composition and other branches of practical music. After completing his legal course and taking his degree at Madrid, Rogel was able to indulge his taste, plunged into music without restraint and became, or at any rate acted as, conductor and composer to several theatres. The notice of him in M. Pougin's supplement to Fétis, from which this notice is taken, enumerates no less than 61 zarzuelas or dramatic pieces of his composition, 14 of them in three acts, 8 in two acts, and the remainder in one act, besides a dozen not yet brought out. The titles of the pieces are of all characters, ranging from 'Revista de un muerto' and 'Un Viage de mil demonios' to 'El General Bumbum.' No criticism is given on the merits of the music, but it must at least be popular.
ROGER, Gustave Hippolite, eminent French singer, born Dec. 17, 1815, at La Chapelle-Saint-Denis, Paris. He was brought up by an uncle, and educated at the Lycée Charlemagne for the legal profession, but his studies were so neglected for an amateur theatre of which he was the leading tenor and self-constituted manager, that he was at length allowed to follow his real vocation. He entered the Conservatoire in 1836, and after studying for a year under Martin carried off the first prizes both for singing and opéra-comique. He obtained an immediate engagement, and made his début at the Opéra Comique, Feb. 16, 1838, as Georges in 'L'Eclair.' To a charming voice and distinguished appearance he added great intelligence and stage tact, qualities which soon made him the favourite tenor of the Parisian world, and one of the best comedians of the day. Ambroise Thomas composed for him 'Le Perruquier de la Régence' and 'Mina,' Halévy gave him capital parts in 'Les Mousquetaires de la Reine' and 'Le Guitarrero,' and Auber, always partial to gentlemanlike actors, secured him for 'Le Domino Noir,' 'La Part du Diable,' 'La Sirene,' and 'Haydée.' Clapisson too owed to him the success of his 'Gibby la cornemuse.' In 'Haydée' the tenor of the Théâtre Favart so distinguished himself as Lorédan that Meyerbeer declared him to be the only French artist capable of creating the part of John of Leyden. In consequence, after ten years of uninterrupted
