CHASE

b. Hamburg 19 January (?June) 1810; d. Klosters, Switzerland 18 July 1873

Teachers: Louis Spohr (violin) 1823-25, Moritz Hauptmann (theory) 1823-25

Family: Louise - Madam Dulcken (sister), Paul (son), Julius Eckhardt (son-in-law)

Associates:

Eduard Rietz, Felix Mendelssohn, Fanny Mendelssohn, Julius Rietz, Niels Gade, Bernhard Romberg, Friedrich Grützmacher, Friedrich Hermann, Moritz Klengel, Rudolf Sachse, Franz Brendel, Ignaz Moscheles 

Biographer:

Julius Eckhardt (Ferdinand David und die Familie Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Leipzig, 1888) 

Professional appointments:

Orchestral violinist (Königstadt Theater, Berlin, 1826-29); quartet leader (in private employ of Karl von Liphart, Dorpat, Estonia, 1829-35); Konzertmester (Gewandhaus Orchestra and Stadttheater, and director of church music, Leipzig, 1836-1873); Head of violin department (Leipzig Conservatorium, 1843-73)

Other professional activities:

Participant in domestic chamber music in Berlin, 1826-29 (with Eduard Rietz, violin, Felix Mendelssohn, viola, and Julius Rietz, cello); Leader Dorpat Quartet 1829-35, with Karl Matthias Kudelski (violin), Franz Hartmann (viola), and Bernhard Romberg / Johann Benjamin Gross, (cello); Leader/member Gewandhaus Quartet/chamber ensemble 1836-73 

Between 1836 and 1873 more than 20 musicians played in the Gewandhaus Quartet led by David (or sometimes with David playing viola), most for only a few seasons. These include:

1836: Wilhelm Carl Uhlrich (2nd violin), Carl Traugott Queisser (viola), Johann Andreas Grabau (cello). 

1837-9: Moritz Gotthold Klengel (2 violin), Friedrich Wilhelm Genser (cello). 

1840: Moritz Gotthold Klengel (2 violin), Carl Eckert (viola), Carl Franz Wittmann (cello). 

1842 Hermann Otto Hunger (viola). 

1851 Raimund Dreischock, Engelbert Röntgen (violins)

1860 Friedrich Grützmacher (cello)

In addition there were the following:

Chr. W. Hilf J. Gulomy (violin), J. W. Kalliwoda, ? Schulz (viola), J. Griebel (cello),  J. G. Temmler, H. A. O. Backhaus (Contrabass), C. A. Genser (flute), J. Fr. Diethe (oboe), Fr. A. F. Heinze (clarinet), Fr. L. Weissenborn (bassoon), C. G. Pfau (horn)

Pianists included Felix Mendelssohn (as David’s duo partner 1836-47; he also played violin and viola), F. Kufferath, Ferdinand Hiller, Clara Schumann, Carl Reinecke, Anton Rubinstein, William Sterndale Bennett 

Pupils: Joseph Joachim (1842-3?), Wilhelm von Wasiliewski, Friedrich Hermann, August Wilhelmj, Carl Courvoisier,  Henri Schradieck and very many others.

According to Paul David: ‘as a teacher his influence was probably greater than that of any preceding master.’ 

The collection, which is here in three separately issued volumes, was published by Senff in 1856. It could also be purchased as individual concertos, or as a single volume with all twelve concertos. Originally issued as solo violin parts only, a separate piano accompaniment by Friedrich Hermann was later published, which was also available in the same formats as the solo parts.

As the title page indicates, these concertos by the three most influential violinists of the late 18th- and 19th-century Viotti or Paris School were still regarded as essential study material in later 19th-century music conservatories such as the Leipzig Conservatorium where David was principal violin teacher. 

CB

The collection comprises the following concertos:

Volume 1: Giovanni Battista Viotti Violin Concertos (numbers 22, 23, 28, 29)

Volume 2: Pierre Rode Violin Concertos (numbers 4, 6, 7, 8)

Volume 3: Rudolphe Kreutzer Violin Concertos (numbers 13, 14, 18, 19)

The Hohe Schule is a collection of twenty works for violin, as listed below. Each work is available individually under its composer. The entire work is available here in David's personal, extensively annotated copy (from the Uppingham Collection). Each item was published separately, and then as a single collection.

The Uppingham volume seem to have been compiled from individual copies of each piece (probably after the music came into the possession of Paul David), since there are a number of places where Ferdinand David's manuscript annotations in the margins have been cropped during binding. David evidently used these copies for his own performances. In No. 6, Leclair's Sonata in G major, for instance, David wrote 'Umwender' (page turner) on p. 6, at the beginning of the Largo, and also the date '29 Oct. 1870' when we know that he performed the Largo and Chaconne in a Gewandhaus chamber concert. The volume also contains a significant number of annotations by his son Paul, which are, for the most part, easily distinguishable from those of his father.

I have marked and commented on interesting aspects of David's annotations in the text using red boxes. These appear only in the versions presented below as individual items. A copy of the whole volume without the red boxes can be accessed here. To see the red commentary boxes click on the links below.

Click here for a more detailed article on the collection.

CB

CONTENTS:

1. Biber, Sonata in C minor;
2. Corelli, La Follia;
3. Porpora, Sonata;
4. Vivaldi, Sonata;
5. Leclair, Sonata Le tombeau;
6. Leclair, Sonata in G;
7. Nardini, Sonata in D;
8. Veracini, Sonata in E minor;
9. Bach, Sonata in E minor;
10. Bach, Sonata in C minor;
11. Handel, Sonata in A;
12. Tartini, Sonata in D;
13. Vitali, Ciaccona;
14. Locatelli, Sonata in G;
15. Geminiani, Sonata in C minor;
16. Anon, Sonata in A minor;
17. Anon, Sonata in E flat;
18. Anon, Sonata in C minor;
19. Caprices by Benda, Mestrino and Stamitz;
20. Mozart, solo movements from the Haffner-Serenade

This collection contains the following violin concertos:

Beethoven op. 61 

Mendelssohn op. 64 

Ernst op. 23 

Lipinski op. 21 

Paganini op. 6 

David's own Fifth Violin Concerto op. 35  was added to the collection after his death.

This website also includes his autograph  of this concerto, which is in possession of Uppingham School.