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[terug naar inhoud Suppe-biografie]

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inhoud:

• Origin, childhood and youth 
• The Theater in der Josefstadt 
• Conductor at the Theater in der Josefstadt, in Bratislava and Sopron
• Marriage and professional success
• The Theater an der Wien
• Suppé at the Theater an der Wien
• The open-air stage in Vienna-Fünfhaus 
• The overture to „Dichter und Bauer" 
• „Das Mädchen vom Lande" 
• The song „Das is' mei' Österreich" 
• The opera „Paragraph 3" 
• The birth of the German operetta - „Das Pensionat" 
• The example: Jacques Offenbach's plays

 With fifteen, he was sent to the school of law of the University of Padova, because he should enter upon the civil service career like his father. But he was interested above all in music here too. In Milan, that he visited often, he became acquainted with the contemporary opera productions at the Scala and he met Rossini, Donizetti and the young Verdi.

 With sixteen, the young Suppé finished his first major work, a Mass in F major. Forty years later, he published it as „Missa dalmatica".

 After the death of the father (in January 1835), Franz and his mother left Zara in September 1835, moved to Vienna and went to live with the father of the mother, who lived in the 4th district.

 In Vienna, Suppé began medical studies, but he stopped them soon in favor of the career as musician. He became student under the musicologist Simon Sechter (1788-1867) and the composer and conductor Ignaz Ritter von Seyfried (1776-1841), who has been Beethoven's friend. He paid for his studies also in giving Italian lessons.

 Already one year after his arrival in Vienna, Suppé had finished a major composition, another Mass (on August 15th 1836), and tackled then an opera. A year later, on August 15th 1837, he finished the opera Virginia (adapted from a text by Ludwig Holt), which was never performed however.

 After having finished his studies, Suppé found soon a post as conductor at the Theater in der Josefstadt.

Pokorny, born in Bohemia, has been first clarinetist at the orchestra of the Theater in der Josefstadt in the twenties of the 19th century. In 1827, he moved to Preßburg (Bratislava/Slovakia), where he became conductor and finally musical director of the theater there. In 1837, he took over the management of the totally mismanaged Theater in der Josefstadt. Under his management, the repertoire was wide-ranging, on the program were among other plays Singspiels, farces and burlesques as well as operas seria and comic operas. Due to the great repertoire, several conductors were engaged, which had not only to conduct the orchestra, but also to compose themselves music for the different plays. Pokorny continue to manage the theater in Bratislava, furthermore a theater in Baden and one in Ödenburg, today Sopron (Hungary). In 1840, two conductors left the theater and Pokorny engaged the young Franz von Suppé.

In autumn 1840, Suppé started to work as conductor at the Theater in der Josefstadt. He was the less experienced of the four conductors. Karl Binder and Emil Titl worked since 1837 for Pokorny, Friedrich Witt was engaged at the same time as Suppé. In accordance with the contract, Suppé had to conduct also performances at other stages, but at the beginning he was only in charge of the orchestral rehearsals. In winter 1840, he began to compose the stage music for C. Wallis' farce „Jung lustig, im Alter traurig oder: die Folgen der Erziehung", which was performed for the first time on March 5th 1841 at the Theater in der Josefstadt. The critics reacted quite friendly, applauded Suppé's musical talent, but criticized that the music had almost nothing to do with the play - as a matter of fact, the young „Italian" did often not understand the text written in Viennese dialect and took a chance on setting it to music.
Suppé did not finish the opera „Gertrude della Valle", he had begun during the next winter. From July 1841 on, Suppé stayed mainly in Bratislava. Now, he conducted himself performances there and in Sopron, where guest performances of the theater of Bratislava were regularly staged.

Marriage and professional success

 Till 1845, Suppé composed the stage music for about twenty plays - vaudevilles, farces and spectaculars, which were performed at the different theaters of director Pokorny. Particularly successful was a work by the dramatic poet Franz Xaver Told: his magic play „Der Zauberschleier oder: Maler, Fee und Wirtin" enjoyed great popularity a long time after its première on February 11th 1842. At first, it had a run of 100 performances and then another 240 within the next three years.

 Suppé was not only successful as conductor and composer - on May 2nd 1842, he made his debut as singer in Bratislava playing the part of Dulcamara in Donizetti's „l'Elisir d'Amore". When Pokorny retired from the theater in Bratislava, Suppé returned to Vienna in April 1844. At first, he conducted only at the Theater in der Josefstadt. The repertoire covered besides the usual farces and vaudevilles also more demanding works such as Gaetano Donizetti's „Maria, die Tochter des Regiments" or Gioacchino Rossini's „Othello".

 At this time, Suppé lived in the Josephstadt. His son Peter Dominik (1844-1894) was born on October 16th 1844. Despite his musical talent, Peter von Suppé did not take up later the profession of musician, but he became - at his father's request - officer at an Austrian bank.

 In 1845, Franz Pokorny, whose successes at the Theater in der Josefstadt had made him a well-off man, bought the ruined Theater an der Wien. Now, the twenty-six-year-old Suppé had a new field of activity at this house and he left the theater in the Josefstadt.

 The Theater an der Wien

The theater was inaugurated by Emanuel Schikaneder (1751-1812) in 1799. The clever impresario Schikaneder put here not only folk plays and dramas on the stage, but also operas. Occasionally, he took himself part as stage manager or even as actor, as in the performance of Mozart`s„Zauberflöte" (1791) at the Theater auf der Wieden.

There were again and again memorable performances at this theater - Beethovens first version of „Fidelio" („Leonore") was performed for the first time at this house in 1805.

Till the opening of the opera house of Vienna in 1869 it was considered to be Vienna's most beautiful and magnificent theater. In 1826, the smart actor Carl Carl (pseudonym of Karl von Bernbrunn, 1787-1854, born in Krakow) took over the house and switched the repertoire totally to popular plays. With his programs he achieved for a long time great financial success. It was a lucky strike for him to engage Johann Nestroy, whose plays enjoyed great popularity with the Viennese public. In 1838, Carl put his fortune into being up for sale theater of Leopoldstadt. From that time on, he took a particular interest in his new purchase at the second district. He neglected more and more the Theater an der Wien - after drastic financial losses it had to be auctioned off in April 1845. Franz Pokorny acquired it. After an expensive renovation the house was inaugurated on August 39th 1845.

The young conductor „moved" to the Theater an der Wien and occupied there a two-room company flat. His first commission for the new theater consisted in composing a festive overture for the ceremonial reopening. After the overture, Friedrich von Flotow's (1812-1883) opera „Alessandro Stradella" was performed for the first time in Vienna.

 Franz Pokorny wanted to program more operas, because he wanted to convert his new theater into a formidable rival of the Kärtnertortheater. He augmented the stage ensemble and engaged qualified singers.

 Between 1845 and 1847, no less than 36 operas were in rehearse, but the manager of the theater Pokorny had to realize soon that the costly opera productions would ruin the theater. He was finally compelled to play a more popular repertoire.

 In this time, Suppé continued to compose stage music, such as „Die Gänsehüterin oder: Hans und Gretchen" adapted from a text by G. Ball. The première was performed on February 11th 1846 at the Theater an der Wien.

 Director Franz Pokorny died in August 1850. Dismayed at the unexpected death of his patron, Suppé began to compose a requiem. Five years later, on November 22nd 1855, it was performed at the church Maria Treu in the Josefstadt.

 Pokorny's twenty-five-year-old son Alois took over the management of the theater. The Viennese public knew him already as stage manager. The bad financial situation of the theater required stringent economy measures. Pokorny adhered, contrary to his father, to a fixed program.

 In the meantime, Suppé separated from his wife. He spent a part of his leisure time with the members of the artists' association „Die grüne Insel", to which he was admitted in March 1856.„Die grüne Insel" was an association of creative and interpretative artists, which was founded in 1855 at a wine tavern of the Heiligenkreuzerhof. It had no political character, but stood up for social amelioration for musicians and actors - it demanded from public institutions for instance pensions and donations to cover artists financially.

The open-air stage in Vienna-Fünfhaus

The overture to „Dichter und Bauer"

„Das Mädchen vom Lande"

 The story of the opera: The poor young composer Violanti lives in Naples. He loves a beautiful girl coming from the country named Teresa, who is in reality a famous singer and stays incognito in the town for a while. Violanti has composed an opera. Erminia, a rich patron, pleads for the performance of the work, but her jealous fiancé Luigi Vulcani tries to forestall the performance with the aid of the stage manager and the secretary of the theater. Battista, the smart servant of the composer, succeeds in thwarting Vulcani's plans. But the prima donna falls ill shortly before the première. Thereupon, Teresa plays her part and reveals so the secret of her identity. After a few performances, the opera was taken off the programs of the Viennese theaters. But Italian theater companies adopted it and continued to perform it under the title „L'intrigo teatrale".

The song „Das is' mei' Österreich"

The opera „Paragraph 3"

 The story: A young girl is to inherit a great fortune, provided that she complies with the condition specified under paragraph 3 of the last will and testament in getting married. As she loves a young man and he loves her too, that poses not a great problem for her. But her guardian is suppressing the will to gain possession of the inheritance. A painter finds the „lost" document and there is nothing to prevent the bliss of the young couple.

 The new work was not successful. The critics, especially Eduard Hanslick, provided it with withering reviews. After just three performances, the opera was taken of the program of the court theater.

The birth of the German operetta - „Das Pensionat"

 Suppé's newest composition after an anonymous text (the librettist hid himself under „C. K.") appealed to both the Viennese public and the critics. Even Eduard Hanslick expressed an positive opinion about the operetta. He wrote in the press dated November 25th 1860:

 „The libretto, probably copied on the French model, is simple, it does not lack the funny matter and is done up with many allusions and quite a few witty remarks moreover. The music is distinguished by a great variety of melodies, is very simple and will soon become popular. In the near future, we will probably not lack „Pensionat" waltzes and quadrilles."

 The story: Helene lives in a girls' boarding school, run by the headmistress Brigitta. Helene loves Karl, who asks her parents for her hand in marriage. At first, they turn down, but they promise to give him their daughter in marriage, if he finds a job within 48 hours. During Brigitta's absence, Karl steals in the boarding school and pours out his troubles to his love. Helene finds immediately a way out, because the post of manager of the boarding school is vacant, and works out a plan. Through false assertions of love, Karl puts Brigitta, who feels attracted to him, in an awkward situation. Helene calls the other girls and Brigitta can only save herself from the compromising situation in appointing Karl as manager.

 The play was very successful and was put on several new productions. Suppé composed several new interludes for these new productions.

Jacques (Initially Jakob) Offenbach was born on June 20th 1819 in Cologne. His father Isaac Juda Eberst (called „Offenbacher", because he came from Offenbach am Main) took him and his brother to Paris for studies. Offenbach studied violoncello for a year at the Conservatoire, left it at the age of fifteen and kept above water as cellist in different orchestras. In 1838, he met Fromental Halévy (1799-1862), who imparted the compositional foundations to him. With varying success, Offenbach tried his skill as interpreter of own waltzes, romances and salon works. The final breakthrough came only in 1855 with the world's fair in Paris. He rented with friends a theater at the Champs-Elysées and opened there the Bouffes Parisiens on July 5th 1855. At first, he had got a privilege to play with three actors - at the most three actors were permitted to be on the stage at the same time - and he composed now for these conditions comic one-act plays. In no time, this new musical genre caused quite a stir. The Parisian public went in crowds to the performances. Already the next winter, the troupe could move to a more spacious theater. In the course of the next years, the composer wrote about sixty plays, which he staged in parts expensively. As a result, the theater got into difficulties despite great financial successes and Offenbach had to flee from the bailiffs to Brussels.

 In the meantime, he had received a full privilege, i. e. an unlimited number of actors and singers were allowed to act on the stage at the same time. In 1858, he put on the stage the „Ópera bouffon" „Orpheus in der Unterwelt" and provoked with it a storm of controversies among the Parisian reviewers. This enhanced the success of the play even more - it had a run of 228 consecutive performances. Theaters in all parts of Europe took over Offenbach's works. In Vienna, Karl Treumann was first to see the possibility to make capital out of this success. He had heard Offenbach's pieces at the Bouffes Parisiens and was able to convince the director of the Carltheater, Johann Nestroy, to put them on the stage. Treumann paid no attention to the clarification of the copyrights, ordered the new instrumentation of the piano scores, he brought from Paris, and the translation of the text into German. The one-act plays were very successful from the start. Since the success continued, Treumann decided to propose a settlement for the unauthorized use of his works to Offenbach, who accepted indeed. When Johann Nestroy retired from theater life in 1860, Treumann seized the opportunity and opened his own theater. Now he invited Offenbach to present himself his newest works in Vienna at his Theater am Franz-Josefs-Kai.