Robert Franz facts for kids
Robert Franz Julius Knauth (born June 28, 1815 – died October 24, 1892) was a German composer. He was best known for writing many beautiful songs, called lieder in German.
Contents
Life of Robert Franz
Early Life and Family Name
Robert Franz was born in Halle, Germany. His father was Christoph Franz Knauth. In 1847, his father decided to use his middle name, Franz, as his new family name. Robert also changed his last name to Franz.
Starting His Music Journey
When Robert was young, his parents did not want him to become a musician. It was very difficult for him. But when he was 20 years old, his father finally agreed. Robert moved to Dessau to study how to play the organ. His teacher was a famous musician named Friedrich Schneider.
Robert studied for two years with Schneider. This time helped him learn a lot about the music of Bach and Handel. He became very familiar with their works. Later, he even helped edit some of their famous pieces. These included Bach's St Matthew Passion and Magnificat, and Handel's Messiah.
Becoming a Composer
In 1843, Robert Franz published his first book of songs. People loved his music! He went on to publish about 50 more books of songs. In total, he wrote around 250 songs.
In his hometown of Halle, he held many important music jobs. He was the city organist. He also led the Singakademie (a singing academy) and the Symphony orchestra. He was even a royal music-director and a music teacher at the university.
Two very famous composers, Franz Liszt and Robert Schumann, praised his first book of songs. Schumann even wrote a long review about it in a music magazine.
Health Challenges
Robert Franz started to lose his hearing around 1841. He also developed a nervous illness. Because of his health, he had to stop working in 1868.
His friends, including Franz Liszt and Joseph Joachim, helped him. They held a concert tour and raised a lot of money for him. This money helped him live comfortably after he stopped working.
Searching for Manuscripts
Around 1878 or 1879, Robert Franz went looking for old music papers by Bach. He searched in many towns and country houses in Germany.
There was a story that he found some Bach papers in a park. The story said that young trees were wrapped in old paper instead of cloth. When he looked closely, the paper turned out to be Bach's music! The story claimed he found a whole trunk of these papers, including some violin sonatas. This exciting story was even printed in The New York Times. However, Robert Franz later said that the entire story was "completely untrue."
Other Musical Works
Besides his many songs, Robert Franz also composed other pieces. He wrote a setting of the 117th Psalm for two choirs. He also wrote a four-part Kyrie.
He also helped edit music by other composers. He edited Stabat Mater by Emanuele d'Astorga and Magnificat by Francesco Durante. For his 70th birthday, he published his only piece for the piano. He also arranged Schubert's famous Death and the Maiden for two pianos to play together. He also arranged some of Mozart's quintets.
Robert Franz passed away in his hometown of Halle.
See also
In Spanish: Robert Franz para niños
