for a time threw 'Figaro' (produced six months before) into the shade. [See vol. ii. p. 391a. Mozart's opinion of his rival's powers is given on p. 396 of the same volume.] In the autumn of the following year 'Don Juan' appeared, and Martin unwittingly obtained immortality at the hands of his rival, since a theme from 'La Cosa rara' makes its appearance in the second finale of Mozart's masterpiece. (See also Köchel's Catalogue, 582, 583.) In 1788 Martin was appointed director of the Italian Opera at St. Petersburg, where he brought out 'Gli sposi in contrasto,' and a cantata 'Il sogno.' In 1801 the fashion for Italian opera passed away for a time, and a French opera took its place. Martin, thus deprived of his post, employed the rest of his life in teaching. He died in May 1810.[1]
MARTINI IL TEDESCO ('the German'), the name by which the musicians of his time knew Johann Paul Aegidius Schwartzendorf, born Sept. 1, 1741, at Freistadt, in the upper Palatinate, who was organist of the Jesuit seminary at Neustadt, on the Danube, when he was 10 years old. From 1758 he studied at Freiburg, and played the organ at the Franciscan convent there. When he returned to his native place, he found a stepmother installed at home, and set forth to seek his fortune in France, notwithstanding his complete ignorance of the language. At Nancy he was befriended, when in a penniless condition, by the organ-builder Dupont, on whose advice he adopted the name by which he is known. From 1761 to 1764 he was in the household of King Stanislaus, who was then living at Nancy. After his patron's death Martini went to Paris, and immediately obtained a certain amount of fame by successfully competing for a prize offered for the best march for the Swiss Guard. At this time he wrote much military music, as well as symphonies and other instrumental works. In 1771 his first opera, 'L'amoureux de quinze ans,' was performed with very great success, and after holding various appointments as musical director to noblemen, he was appointed conductor at the Théâtre Feydeau, when that establishment was opened under the name of Théâtre de Monsieur for the performance of light French and Italian operas. Having lost all his emoluments by the decree of Aug. 10, 1792, he went to live at Lyons, where he published his 'Melopée moderne,' a treatise on singing. In 1794 he returned to Paris for the production of his opera 'Sappho,' and in 1798 was made inspector of the Conservatoire. From this post he was ejected in 1802, by the agency, as he suspected, of Méhul and Catel. At the restoration of 1814 he received the appointment of superintendent of the Court music, and wrote a Requiem for Louis XVI. which was performed at St. Denis, Jan. 21, 1816. Very shortly afterwards, on Feb. 10 of the same year, he died. Besides the operas mentioned above he wrote 'Le fermier cru sourd' (1722); 'Le rendez-vous nocturne' (1773); 'Henri IV.' (1774); 'Le droit du Seigneur' (1783); 'L'amant sylphe' (1795); 'Annette et Lubin' and 'Ziméo' (1800). In the department of church music he wrote several masses, psalms, requiems, etc. A cantata written for the marriage of Napoleon with Marie Louise exists, besides much chamber music, but Martini's best-known composition is probably the charming song 'Plaisir d' amour.' (Mendel's Lexicon, etc.)
MARTUCCI, Giuseppe, born Jan. 6, 1856, at Capua, was first taught music by his father, a military bandmaster, and later received instruction at the Conservatorio, Naples (1867–72), in pianoforte playing from Cesi; in harmony from Carlo Costa, in counterpoint and composition from Paolo Serrao and Lauro Rossi. He became a pianoforte teacher at Naples, but soon after played with great success at concerts in Rome and Milan. He visited London and Dublin in 1875, playing at Arditi's concert in St. George's Hall, June 14, and elsewhere. He visited Paris in May, 1878, and introduced there with great success a quintet for piano and strings which had gained the prize of the Societa del Quartette at Milan earlier in the year, besides other compositions of his own. Rubinstein, according to a contemporary,[2] expressed himself in the highest terms of Martucci, especially as a composer. He was appointed a professor of the piano at the above Conservatorio in 1880, also director there of the Società del Quartetto, and conductor of the orchestral concerts instituted by the Prince of Ardore, introducing there for the first time in Naples the works of Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Berlioz, Brahms, and Wagner, in addition to works of the old Italian school. He gave similar orchestral concerts with great success at the Turin Exhibition in 1884, was for a short time director of the Società del Quartetto, Bologna, and became director of the Liceo Musicale there in 1886, which post he still holds. His compositions include an oratorio, orchestral works, two concertos (one of which he has played at Naples, Rome, Bologna, and Milan, 1887), quintets for piano and strings, sonatas and smaller pieces for violin or cello with piano, trios for the same instruments, sonatas for organ, a lyric poem for voice and piano, and about 150 works for piano solo, inclusive of sonatas, fugues, capriccios, scherzos, tarantellas, barcaroles, airs with variations, 'Moto Perpetuo,' op. 63, etc.
MARXSEN, Eduard. Add date of death, Nov. 18, 1887.
MASNADIERI, I. Line 3 from end of article, for the Huguenots read Die Räuber.
MASON, Rev. W. Correct date of birth to 1724, and that of death to April 7, 1794.
- ↑ The article in Mendel's Lexicon, from which many of the above facts are taken, contains several gross mistakes, such as the statement that 'Don Juan' was brought out before 'La cosa rara' (in which case it would have been difficult for Mozart to have used one of the themes from the latter opera in the former!), and the inclusion among works by him, of the book of canons with pianoforte accompaniment, published by Birchall in London, and edited by Cianchettini. These are by Padre Martini.
- ↑ L'Art Musical. May 23, 1878.
