Backgrounds, countries, languages of composers

[Bob]

I need a refresher


For the top/standard, composers...
What is their home country?  Maybe even significant towns/cityies?
What countries did they actually live/work in?
What languages did they work in?


Like for Mozart...
Salzburg,
Vienna (anywhere else?)
Was he using German?


Chopin...
Polish born I think
Worked in Paris
used which language?  French?

[gerryjay]

hey bob!

what do you need specifically? do you mean a list of all composers, or a selection, or just these two? i´ll be glad to help you, but i really didn´t get your point. 

btw and meanwhile, did you have a look on wikipedia? here are the links for mozart and chopin.

hope that helps a bit! best regards!

[Bob]

Just a general list.  From anybody.  If it's not perfectly accurate, I don't care.  Someone will come along to correct it.

It seems like a lot are concentrated in Europe.  Germany.  Austria.  And then a few in France.  The nationalistic ones out in Norway, etc.   A group of Russians. 

Just curious about their region -- born and worked in -- and what language they use in their music.

[Petter]

I just know there´s no great composers from Sweden.

[retrouvailles]

I just know there´s no great composers from Sweden.

WRONG

Wilhelm Stenhammar, Kurt Atterberg, Allan Pettersson, Franz Berwald, Hugo Alfvén...

Should I go on?

[richard black]

Yes, of course most of the most famous names in classical music are from Germany, Austria, France, Italy and Russia. But all European countries and most American ones (North and South) have produced significant composers too, plus Australasia, India, Japan and South Africa. And lots of them moved around, e.g. Liszt, born Hungary, lived in practically every major country in Europe at one time or another, wrote songs with words in Hungarian, French, German, Italian and English and presumably spoke several languages. Or on the contrary Bach, born in northern Germany and as I recall lived, worked and died there. Or Rachmaninov, born and bred Russian, ended his days as a homesick expat in America. Or Prokofiev,  also born and bred Russian, lived in France for a bit but ended up back in Russia/USSR when homesickness got the better of him.

But in general I'd agree that Wikipedia is a good place to start! When you're done with the obvious, try looking up the following for a bit of variety (in absolutely no particular order):

Douglas Lilburn
Erik Chisholm
Tomas Rajna
Vytautas Bacevicius
Veljo Tormis
Carlos Guastavino
Bernard van Dieren
Victor Kosenko
Zakharia Paliashvili
Naresh Sohal
Sophie-Carmen Eckhardt-Gramatté

[Bob]

Grr... You guys are going to make me do my own work here...

I don't want to research.  Just off the top of your head.  Standard classical composer.  No one less known.

Bach -- lived in Germany, used German
Mozart -- Austrian?  used German
Beethoven -- lived in Germany, used German
Wagner -- Germany, German
Brahms -- Germany, German
Schubert -- Germany, German
Schumann -- Germany, German

Correct me if I' m wrong.  It's been awhile for some one of these guys...

Debussy, Ravel -- France, used French


Let's see... who else?....

Greig -- Norway,  used... what language?


Seems like there should be more from Germany though... Hmm....  I'm just not thnking of them...

Schoenberg -- German? but also worked in the US right?  used German I think.

Webern -- Germany, German?
Weber -- Germany, German?   


Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky -- Russia, used Russian
Mousorkgsky too -- Russia, Russian


I'm just looking for a general group of composers, their home country and place they worked, and the language(s) they used.


Chopin -- Born in Poland, but work in France, used French   (I think...)

Sibleius? -- Finland, used what language? 

Copland, Gershwin -- USA, English
Brittain, Grainger, Elgar, Fields -- England, English


Mahler -- Germany   worked in the US though ?, still used German?  or was he Austrian?

Bruckner?
Wolf?


Handel -- England?, used English ?   I'm getting fuzzy.
Haydn -- England?, English?



Oh well.  Someone add some more, or correct me please.  Doesn't have to be a big deal.  I don't want to research and I want these things in my head, so pulling them out like this is good, better than looking them up.

[gerryjay]

Schubert

Schoenberg
Webern

Mahler
Bruckner
Wolf

Haydn

hey bob!

would you excuse me a joke?  there is a little country south of germany, north of italy, east of switzerland...

boy, all the composers above were born in austria (well,  mahler was born in bohemia actually and wolf somewhere else, but they are considered austrian). about the languages, mainly german but haydn and mahler (when moving to english speak lands, as you pointed out).

best regards!

[Petter]

Im pretty sure grieg used norwegian and worked in norway mostly but spend some time in italy and denmark

[Bob]

Austria, yes, yes.  That one never quite clicked in my mind.  It's just hidden in there.  The "nice" "lite" version of Germany maybe. 

Austria... Austria... Austria.....    (Bob wonders if Austria will sudden appear now.)


Same area anyway.  How difference is there really between Austria and Germany?  Culture?  Philosophy?

[gerryjay]

Austria... Austria... Austria.....    (Bob wonders if Austria will sudden appear now.)

hey bob! had i ever said i´m your fan?

How difference is there really between Austria and Germany?  Culture?  Philosophy?

it´s very difficult to tell. i can´t understand a single word in german.

[mike_lang]

How about Fauré?  France, head of the Paris Conservatoire (until they discovered he was growing deaf).  Spoke French of course.

[Bob]

Faure.  Good one.  Very French then.


I think Austria's kind of hidden in there.  I'm much more aware of its "country" status now for sure.  I don't know what I was thinking, if it was more of a region or race thing.  Like "Scandinavien" countries -- Those three in northern Europe right?  Or Jewish.... Persian.. that type of thing.   

After all, it's only Mozart... Salzburg, AUSTRIA and Vienna, AUSTRIA...  haha...


Hmm... What about Strauss?  Rickhart Strauss?  German... (raises eyebrow)... or Austrian? 

I'm not looking him up.  That's what this thread is for.  Who wants to bet he was neither German nor Austrian now?  (Bob decides not to bet on himself.)

He's German.   

Alpine Symphony... (looks it up)  dedicated to orchestra in Dresden.  That's Germany. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Strauss
German.  Born in Munich, Germany.    Yes, I see Vienna in there though.  Vienna, Austria.   

I should get out my history books....

[gerryjay]

well, strauss...

that´s interesting indeed. richard strauss was german, but his non-relatives (the Waltzing Strauss Family) are not only austrian: they´re viennese, to their bones, literally:

johann (baptist) strauss, the 1st: born in vienna, 14 mar 1804; died in vienna, 25 sep 1849.
johann (baptist) strauss, the 2nd: born in vienna, 25 oct 1825; died in vienna, 03 jun 1899 (first son of the first).
josef strauss: born in vienna, 20 aug 1827; died in vienna, 22 july 1870 (2nd son of the first).
eduard strauss, the 1st: born in vienna, 15 mar 1835; died in vienna, 28 dec 1916 (3rd son of the first).
johann (maria eduard) strauss, the 3rd: born in vienna, 16 feb 1866; died in berlin...well, nothing is perfect at all... 09 jan 1939 (first son of the first eduard, hence first grandson of the first (joseph).
eduard (leopold maria) strauss, the 2nd: born in vienna, 24 mar 1910; died in vienna, 06 apr 1969 (grandson of the first eduard, hence...)

this is probably of no help, but i´ll post it anyway.

best regards!