of Schröder-Devrient, he shortly added Schumann's 'Dichterliebe' and others. His first appearance on the stage seems to have been at Mannheim in 1852, 53, and he joined the Opera Comique at Paris in 1857–59, supporting such parts as the Seneschal in 'Jean de Paris.' At this time he became much lié with Ary Scheffer; and with Mme. Viardot, Berlioz, Duprez, St. Saëns, and others, formed one of the circle by whom much German music was performed in the studio of the great painter.
1859 to 62 were occupied in more concert tours, and it was during this time at Leipzig and Cologne that he first attempted Schumann's Faust music. In 1862 he came to an anchor at Hamburg as Director of the Philharmonic Concerts and of the Singakademie, a position which he retained till 1869, when he was made Kammersinger to the King of Wurtemberg at Stuttgart with a salary of 2000 gulden, residing at Canstatt. During all this time he took many concert tours, especially with Mme. Schumann, Joachim and Brahms. In the latter part of 1870 he brought over his pupil Sophie Löwe to England, and remained till late in 1871. He once more sang at the Philharmonic, and appeared at the Crystal Palace and the Monday Populars, where he introduced several fine unknown Lieder of Schubert. He and Miss Löwe reappeared here the next winter, and remained till the end of the summer season of 1872.
In 1874 he moved from Stuttgart to Berlin, and took the direction of the Vocal Society founded by Stern (Sternsches Gesangverein), which under his genial and able direction rose to the highest point of excellence. In the four years that he conducted it there were no less than 28 performances of great works, including Beethoven's Mass in D, Mozart's Requiem, Bach's Matthew Passion, Schumann's Faust music (complete) and Paradise and the Peri, Brahms's Requiem, etc. In 1878 he again changed his residence, this time to Frankfort, to take the department of singing in the Conservatorium founded by Dr. Hoch, and presided over by Raff. This post, however, he soon gave up, and retired to his house at Frankfort, teaching the many private pupils who resorted to him there. Since the death of Raff in 1882 he has returned to the Conservatorium. [App. p.796 "Add that his Method of Singing has lately been translated into English by Mme. Sophie Löwe (Novello & Co.)."]
Stockhausen's singing in his best days must have been wonderful. Even to those who, like the writer, only heard him after he had passed his zenith, it is a thing never to be forgotten. Perhaps the maturity of the taste and expression made up for a little falling off in the voice. His delivery of opera and oratorio music—his favourite pieces from Euryanthe, Jean de Paris, Le Chaperon rouge, and Le Philtre; or the part of Elijah, or certain special airs of Bach—was superb in taste, feeling, and execution; but it was the Lieder of Schubert and Schumann that most peculiarly suited him, and these he delivered in a truly remarkable way. The rich beauty of the voice, the nobility of the style, the perfect phrasing, the intimate sympathy, and, not least, the intelligible way in which the words were given—in itself one of his greatest claims to distinction—all combined to make his singing of songs a wonderful event. Those who have heard him sing Schubert's 'Nachtstück,' 'The Wanderer,' 'Memnon,' or the Harper's songs; or Schumann's 'Frühlingsnacht,' or 'Fluthenreicher Ebro,' or the 'Löwenbraut,' will corroborate all that has just been said. But perhaps his highest achievement was the part of Dr. Marianus in the third part of Schumann's Faust, in which his delivery of the scene of the 'Drei Himmelskönigin' ('Hier ist die Aussicht frei'), with just as much of acting as the concert-room will admit—and no more—was one of the most touching and remarkable things ever witnessed.
[ G. ]
STODART. A family of eminent pianoforte-makers, whose business was founded in Wardour Street, Soho, about the year 1776, by Robert Stodart. It is said he had been in the Royal Horse Guards, to be a private in which corps involved at that time the payment of £100, an amount that must now be estimated by the then higher value of money. Having, little duty and much leisure, Stodart became a pupil of John Broadwood to learn pianoforte-making, and in the books of Broadwood's firm appears, during the year 1775, to have taken his share in tuning for customers. It was while he was under Broadwood that he had the privilege, enjoyed by them as friends, of assisting Americus Backers in the invention of the new movement for the grand pianoforte since generally known as the 'English' action. After Backers' death, Stodart, now upon his own account, entered upon grand pianoforte making with energy and ability, and soon made a considerable reputation. The pianoforte was at that time hardly emancipated from the harpsichord, and there were frequent endeavours to combine both principles in one instrument. An endeavour of this nature was patented by Stodart in 1777, which is otherwise remarkable by the first mention of the word 'grand' in connection with a pianoforte. In it he worked his crowquill registers, and also a swell, by means of pedals.
We find the business in 1795 removed to Golden Square, William Stodart in that year taking out, from that address, a patent for an 'Upright Grand.' This was the horizontal grand turned up vertically in the same way the upright harpsichord had been. The giraffe-like upright grand was then coming into fashion, and the speciality of Stodart's patent was to introduce one in the form of a book-case. Of the highest importance was the patent of James Thorn and William Allen, who were in Stodart's employ, a compensating framing of metal tubes and plates at once secured by Stodart's-firm. This meritorious invention, which was really Allen's, was brought out in 1820, and paved the way to the general introduction of iron in pianofortes as a resisting power. [See Pianoforte.] When Malcolm Stodart, who had shown great promise, died, the interest of the survivors ceased, and the business, which had been declining, came, in 1861, to an end.
[ A. J. H. ]
