Composer (1805-1900)
Listen to Hartmann’s music as recorded by Dacapo Records
Hartmann was one of Denmark’s leading national romantic composers. Especially for a decade from the mid-1840s he captured a special Danish quality in his music without its thereby becoming pastiche or pure folklore. Among the works deriving from these years are the Hans Christian Andersen opera Liden Kirsten (Little Kirsten) and the music for Bournonville’s ballet Et folkesagn (A Folktale).
Hartmann came to occupy a series of important positions in Danish musical life: he was the organist at the Cathedral Church of Our Lady, the co-founder of the Music Society and a professor at Copenhagen University. Hartmann composed for all genres, from opera and ballet to hymns, including the melodies to some of those by Grundtvig. During his lifetime, Hartmann achieved the status of national hero, and his music had a great influence on later Scandinavian composers such as Grieg and Carl Nielsen.
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Facts
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1827-1840
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Teacher at the Siboni Academy of Music
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1828
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Graduated in law and appointed secretary to the Civic Guard
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1836
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Co-founder of the Music Society
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1842
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Organist at the Cathedral Church of Our Lady after the death of Weyse
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1849
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Professor at Copenhagen University
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1867
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Director of the new Royal Danish Academy of Music
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Selected Works
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1832
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Guldhornene (The Golden Horns), melodrama, music for Oehlenschläger’s poem of the same name
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1835
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Symphony No. 1 in G minor
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1846-1847
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Liden Kirsten (Little Kirsten), opera, text by Hans Christian Andersen
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1854
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Et Folkesagn (A Folktale***), ballet, choreography by Bournonville
A number of songs including Flyv, Fugl, Flyv (Fly, bird, fly) and I Sne staar Urt og Busk i Skjul (In snow are hidden flower and bush)
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More About Hartmann
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