Anthony Philip Heinrich

[eschiss1]

Have only seen this Bohemian-born, Boston-and-New York-resident composer (1781-1861) mentioned here once (a few months ago, for his Ornithological Combat of the Birds- the one work of his I had heard of until recently, actually, though the programmatic suggestion of the title turned me off at the time it was on the radio, I believe (sorry!). Anyhow, the Library of Congress has quite a bit of his music that was published in his lifetime scanned, and in a commentary on that project one of the organizers, I believe, selects him as one of the most interesting and idiosyncratic composers working in America in the mid-19th century. That piqued my interest. Looking at the scores they have scanned in did not disappoint...

A couple of publishers are making new editions of his music, at least one intended to be fairly complete, I've seen (and has a few webpages up about specific works and the project in general- that would be Kallisti Music.) Anyone heard/seen/played a representative sampling of his music in various genres (choral, piano, solo vocal, ... ? orchestral probably still mostly, except for that Ornithological Combat aforementioned, requires critical editions not yet prepared for the most part- with a few exceptions already out, I gather.) 

Trying to remember who, but read someone describe him as the first 'full-time' composer working in the USA... (that the quality of his works does seem to be fairly high along with its innovation, judging only however from browsed scores though... - though PD Music has some MIDI samples I haven't heard yet - augurs well.)
Eric

[edurban]

Father Heinrich at last!  One of the great eccentrics: his 80-odd years were neatly divided into two halves...rich amateur violinist (his family owned a glass works that eventually went bust) for 40 years, and after that semi-impoverished composer of increasingly large, mostly unperformed, and fantastically complicated works (in a style that never really goes beyond late Haydn with curious flourishes) based on the history and natural wonders of his adopted country.  The titles are wonderful, the pieces not so much revised as added to over the years with a maze of additional orchestral lines, the vision is certainly unique.  He is probably the first composer to lobby the US President on behalf of the arts, and stormed out of his meeting with John Tyler muttering, if I remember, "The people who elected John Tyler are an idiot, he knows no more of music than an oyster!"

Some years back Vanguard issued an LP (was it on CD?) called "The Dawning of Music in America" based on Heinrich's published 1820 collection The Dawning of Music in Kentucky, or the Pleasures of Music in the Solitudes of Nature.  Nealy Bruce led a collection of singers and instrumentalists and played piano, if I remember.  Mary Louise Boehm played The Chromatic Ramble of the Peregrine Harmonist (a wild and free-associative piano fantasy from about that time) in NYC about 25 years ago.  I played her recording for my musicology prof Jan Larue in class once and he listened with a stone face before pronouncing..."Well, now we know what the problem is with American Music."

David

[britishcomposer]

New World Records has released his symphony "The Ornithological Combat of Kings" and a weird choral work "Philanthropy", both still available through amazon.
A few years ago Deutschlandradio Kultur broadcast a concert by the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland Pfalz conducted by Howard Griffith. They announced that the three works played would soon be realeased by CPO but so far nothing has been heard about it. If you like I will try to upload the whole concert - including an interview with H.G. and a portrait of Father Heinrich - in GERMAN.. 

[eschiss1]

I'd be interested...

[edurban]

Me, too.  The German is fitting, I suppose, as it was Father Heinrich's native tongue.

Maybe those interested in Heinrich can turn up or borrow a copy of William Treat Upton's old biography Anthony Philip Heinrich: A Nineteenth Century Composer in America.  It's wonderfully entertaining, even if it doesn't go too deeply into the music (if I remember, Upton was not a musician.)  Same situation as with Upton's biography of William Henry Fry.

David

[Gareth Vaughan]

New World Records has released his symphony "The Ornithological Combat of Kings" and a weird choral work "Philanthropy", both still available through amazon.

Hmm... I've found The Ornithological Combat of Kings (coupled, rather pointlessly, with the 2-piano version of Gottschalk's "Night in the Tropics" - already recorded in its colourful orchestral version, twice), but not that "weird choral work".

[britishcomposer]

It's here, the last track of CD 1: Philanthropy

http://www.amazon.com/Flowering-Vocal-Music-America-1767-1823/dp/B0000030IN/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1308393743&sr=8-5

And here is a short piano piece, Laurel Waltz From 'The Elssler Dances'. A lovely piece, quite Schubertian.

http://www.amazon.com/Wind-Demon-George-William-Warren/dp/B0000030FL/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1308393743&sr=8-9

[Gareth Vaughan]

Thank you very  much. I love the piano piece. As you say, almost Schubertian.

[edurban]

Well, I finally had time to listen to britishcomposer's download of Heinrich's War of the Elements and the Thundering of Niagara (did I get that right?) and, gosh it was entertaining.  Eleven minutes beginning with Haydn, early Beethoven and some Italian opera and then all hell breaks loose with a noisefest approaching Berlioz.  Kind of a Wellington's Victory of the elements.  I was laughing out loud by the end.  Performed with commendable enthusiasm by Griffiths & Co...

This certainly confirms Heinrich's credentials as one of the great musical eccentrics.

David