Reproduction of a lithograph portrait by Schlick, made in 1855, Spohr being then in his seventy-second year.
LUDWIG SPOHR
UDWIG SPOHR, celebrated as a composer and as a violinist, was born on April 25, 1784, at Brunswick. His father, a physician, and his mother both had musical inclinations, the former being a flute player and the latter a pianist and singer. They left Brunswick when Ludwig was two years old and went to Seesen, where the early childhood of the future composer was passed. The boy's musical gifts made themselves known early in life and he sang with his mother when he was only four years old. According to his own story in his autobiography, he began to play the violin without instruction at the age of five. He must have shown some talent, for he was turned over to Herr Riemenschneider for instruction. In a short time he was allowed to practise music with the family in the evenings and with his parents performed trios by Kalkbrenner for violin, flute and piano.
About the year 1790 or 1791, Dufour, a French violinist, arrived at Seesen and the boy, having heard him play, did not rest until he became the Frenchman's pupil. Dufour perceived the child's great gifts and persuaded Dr. Spohr to abandon the idea of educating his boy in medicine, and to decide to make a musician of him. While studying with Dufour, Spohr made his first crude attempts at composition, even beginning an opera, which, however, went no further than an overture, a chorus and an aria. Dufour advised that the child be sent to Brunswick to continue his studies. At Brunswick he lived in the house of one Michaelis, a rich baker, and studied the violin under Kunisch, of the Ducal orchestra, and counterpoint under Hartung, an old organist. Hartung was very severe with his young pupil and scratched out so much that the boy felt that none of his ideas were left. However, the ill health of the organist brought the lessons to an end in a few months, and this was all the instruction in theory that Spohr ever received. He now continued his studies by reading scores, which Kunisch obtained for him from the theatre library. He made such progress that he appeared at one of the concerts of the Catherine School with a violin composition of his own. His success was such that he was invited to play at the subscription concerts of the Deutsche Haus and was allowed to play for practice in the theatre orchestra, where he became acquainted with much good music.
He was now, by the advice of Kunisch, put under the instruction of Maucourt, the leading violinist of Brunswick. A year later the young violinist set out for Hamburg with a few letters of introduction and a determination to appear as an artist. He failed, however, to get a hearing, and his money being exhausted, he set out on foot to return to Brunswick. In his despair he determined to make a personal appeal to the Duke of Brunswick, to whom he drew up a petition and presented it when he met the nobleman, walking in his park. The Duke asked who had worded the petition. "Well, who but I myself?" answered Spohr; "I need no help for that." The Duke said: "Come to the palace tomorrow at eleven; we will then speak further about your request." Upon which the boy departed quite happy. The Duke questioned Maucourt about Spohr's ability, and when the lad called the next day told him that he was to play one of his own compositions at the next concert in the apartments of the Duchess. His performance so pleased the Duke that the nobleman promised him instruction under competent masters and appointed him chamber musician, Aug. 2, 1799. Spohr's salary was small, but it made him independent, and enabled him to take his younger brother, Ferdinand, to live with him.
At first the young chamber musician heard a good deal of French music, but an operatic company from Magdeburg introduced him to Mozart's music, and he says in his autobiography, "Mozart now became for my lifetime my ideal and model." He spent whole nights studying the scores of "Don Giovanni" and "Die Zauberflöte." Now, too, he played chamber music and first learned Beethoven's quartets. Finally the Duke asked him to select a teacher among the great violinists of the day. He at once named Viotti, but he had given up music for the business of selling wine. Ferdinand Eck was the next choice, but he declined to receive pupils. Francis Eck, his younger brother, accepted the Duke's offer and Spohr was sent with him to St. Petersburg, where he had engagements to fill. They left Brunswick on April 24, 1802. Owing to Eck's engagements his instruction of Spohr was irregular, but the boy gained much instruction from constantly hearing him. The young violinist was very industrious, often practising ten hours a day, composing considerably, and painting for recreation. While on this tour he wrote his first published violin concertos, Opus 1, A minor, and Opus 2, D minor, and the "Duos Concertants" for two violins, Opus 3. In St. Petersburg he met Clementi, Field and many minor musicians, and played frequently in chamber-music rehearsals. He also wrote in 1803 for Breitkopf and Härtel, the eminent Leipsic publishers, an article on the state of music in Russia. He returned to Brunswick in the summer of that year and heard Rode for the first time. He gave a public concert which pleased the Duke and resumed his duties as a member of the orchestra.
In 1804 he started for Paris with his fine Guarnerius violin, given him by Remi, a Russian violinist. Just outside of Göttingen it was stolen from the carriage. Spohr returned to Brunswick and with the Duke's help got another violin. Then he made a tour, playing in several German cities, including Leipsic, Dresden and Berlin, in the last place having the assistance of Meyerbeer, then a clever pianist thirteen years old. In 1805 Spohr became leader of the Duke of Gotha's band. He married Dorette Schneidler, a harp-player, and wrote for her and himself some compositions for harp and violin. He wrote his first opera, "Die Prüfung," which reached a concert performance. With his wife in 1807 he visited Leipsic, Dresden, Munich, Prague, Stuttgart, Heidelberg and Frankfort. His second opera "Alruna" was written in 1808, but it was never performed, though accepted at Weimar. In this year Spohr went to Erfurt to see Napoleon's congress of princes, but found that ordinary human beings like himself could not enter the theatre which they attended in the evenings. He persuaded the second horn player in the orchestra to allow him to take his place and practised on the horn all day. In the evening, being forbidden to stare at the august audience, he viewed the assembled potentates in a small mirror which he had taken with him for that purpose.