Scan 164
The American history and encyclopedia of music, 1908
6 lines. Read by computer on 11 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1THE LAST JUDGMENT
3Ludwig Spohr, one of the greatest of violin players and among the foremost exponents of the Romantic school of opera, wrote two oratorios, both of which to English speaking people are known as "The Last Judgment." Frequent confusion has arisen from the error of the translator. An interval of fourteen years separate them, but they are united by one point of similarity, and that is the fact that before engaging in the composition of each one Spohr felt called upon to prepare himself for his labors by a self-inflicted course in counterpoint, a knowledge of which he deemed necessary to the writer of sacred music.
5Spohr has left an interesting autobiography which proves that, like many people accused of being unduly taciturn and reserved, he possessed a remarkable sense of humor. In this chronicle he tells how he came to write both of these works. The first was done in 1812, while he enjoyed the patronage of the Duke of Gotha. Upon his return from a concert tour with his wife, Dorette Scheidler, the famous harpist, he was approached with the suggestion that he write an oratorio for the fête to be held August 15 in celebration of the birthday of the Emperor Napoleon, which had been ordered by the French governor of Erfurt. Spohr was taken with the idea, for he had felt some inclination to try his hand at oratorio, and a young poet in the town had recently offered him an
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