Vaňhal - Symphonies

Jan Křtitel Vaňhal (generally known as Johann Batist Vanhal) was a Czech composer of classical era (1739-1813). Born in Nechanice, Bohemia, to a Czech peasant family, Vanhal received his early training from a local musician. From these humble beginnings he was able to earn a living as a village organist and choirmaster. The Countess Schaffgotsch, who heard him playing the violin, took him to Vienna in 1760, where she arranged lessons in composition with Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf. Further patronage helped him to travel and gain further knowledge of music and by the age of 35, he was moving in exalted musical company: it is reported he played quartets with Haydn, Mozart, and Dittersdorf. Vanhal tailored his output to economic realities of the day and ceased writing symphonies in the late-1770s. He wrote three operas: Il Demofoonte (1770), Il trionfo di Clelia (1770), and The Princess of Tarento. In the 1770s, Vaňhal met the contrabassist Johannes Matthias Sperger and wrote a double bass concerto for him. The English music historian Charles Burney visited Vaňhal in 1772. Mozart performed Vanhal’s Violin Concerto in B flat in Augsburg in 1777. In or around 1784, Haydn, Dittersdorf, Mozart and Vaňhal played string quartets together; Haydn and Dittersdorf played the violins, Mozart the viola, and Vaňhal cello. This recording is performed by London Mozart Players with conductor Matthias Bamert.

VJS