Biographical
Christian Cannabich, who was the son of the flautist and composer Friedrich Cannabich was born in Mannheim in 1731. A pupil of Johann Stamitz, Christian Cannabich entered the Mannheim court orchestra as a 'scholar' at the age of 12 (1744) and in 1746 he was formerly chosen as a violinist. The Elector Carl Theodor contracted him an electoral salary to study in Italy and in the fall of 1750, he then started a course of training with Jommelli in Rome where he endured until 1753. He is known to have accompanied Jommelli to Stuttgart but returned to Italy in 1754, where he then continued until his appointment as frontrunner of the Mannheim court orchestra after the death of Stamitz in 1757. In 1759 he married Maria Elisabeth de la Motte, lady of the bedchamber to the Duchess of Zweibrecken, and through his Zweibrecken family acquaintances, he was able to inspire Duke Christian IV to use his inspiration to uphold the works of Mannheim composers in the French capital. Cannabich accompanied the Duke to Paris in 1764 and lived at his Parisian palace. In 1766 he was in Paris again where he gained a privilege to print six symphonies and six trios and met Leopold and Wolfgang Mozart. After 1766, most of Cannabich's works were distributed by Parisian publishers. In a later visit, he performed as a soloist at the Concert Spirituel and earned a medal …show more content…
He was a composer of over 200 works, and he continued the legacy of Johann Stamitz and helped turn the Mannheim orchestra into what Charles Burney defined as "the most complete and best disciplined in Europe." The orchestra was particularly known for the carefully graduated crescendos and diminuendos characteristic of the Mannheim school. Together with Stamitz and the other composers of the Mannheim court, he helped develop the orchestral texture that paved the way for the orchestral treatment of the First Viennese
Christian Cannabich, who was the son of the flautist and composer Friedrich Cannabich was born in Mannheim in 1731. A pupil of Johann Stamitz, Christian Cannabich entered the Mannheim court orchestra as a 'scholar' at the age of 12 (1744) and in 1746 he was formerly chosen as a violinist. The Elector Carl Theodor contracted him an electoral salary to study in Italy and in the fall of 1750, he then started a course of training with Jommelli in Rome where he endured until 1753. He is known to have accompanied Jommelli to Stuttgart but returned to Italy in 1754, where he then continued until his appointment as frontrunner of the Mannheim court orchestra after the death of Stamitz in 1757. In 1759 he married Maria Elisabeth de la Motte, lady of the bedchamber to the Duchess of Zweibrecken, and through his Zweibrecken family acquaintances, he was able to inspire Duke Christian IV to use his inspiration to uphold the works of Mannheim composers in the French capital. Cannabich accompanied the Duke to Paris in 1764 and lived at his Parisian palace. In 1766 he was in Paris again where he gained a privilege to print six symphonies and six trios and met Leopold and Wolfgang Mozart. After 1766, most of Cannabich's works were distributed by Parisian publishers. In a later visit, he performed as a soloist at the Concert Spirituel and earned a medal …show more content…
He was a composer of over 200 works, and he continued the legacy of Johann Stamitz and helped turn the Mannheim orchestra into what Charles Burney defined as "the most complete and best disciplined in Europe." The orchestra was particularly known for the carefully graduated crescendos and diminuendos characteristic of the Mannheim school. Together with Stamitz and the other composers of the Mannheim court, he helped develop the orchestral texture that paved the way for the orchestral treatment of the First Viennese