3. Copy of the baptismal certificate (05.09.1800).

2. The following is an extract of a letter sent by Raudnitz on 8 June 1819 to Dr. Iwan.

4. Musical works by Antonio Cartellieri.


 
 
 
 
 

1. Report by Joseph Cartellieri to the secretary of the Gesellschaft (für Musikfreunde)     on the life of his father Casimir Anton Cartellieri with a list of his compositions           (December 16, 1826).  

Click here to read the transcription in German language of the 19th century, edited by Josef Loeffler.

Casimir Anton Cartellieri was born in Danzig

on 27 September 1772. His father, 

an Italian, had been a tenor singer

at the Carolath1 court

in Silesia in his youth and then at the court

of Bishop and Count v. Schafgotsch in Jonnanensberg.

Later, in 1783, he was a chamber singer of the Duke Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

From there he went to Berlin,

and his last post was at the Konigsberg Cathedral.

His wife Elisabeth, a native of the electorate,

was devoted to heart and soul to her little sweet Antonio.

She herself gave his first,

playful instruction in the art to which

he would later dedicate his life. As she herself

related in her old age, she often

had to sing for him for hours; the delicate little boy

listened with great interest,

and tear of joy rolled down his cheeks. He eagerly and quickly

understood her instruction and soon

surprised his beloved teacher with

a little arietta that he himself had composed on the piano,

singing it with childlike naivetè.  

Once, on the day before his mother’s name day,

he comes to his father

with a page of music

and asked him to sing it with him

when Mama came back from the evening performance.

He too wanted to sing along and play

the piano accompaniment.

His father was amazed. The boy had composed a duet

and sang one voice part

and played the piano accompaniment.

 

 

 

He had completed his eight years at the time. From then on

his father taught him.

But he did not long enjoy the nurturing

atmosphere of his parents’ home. Misunderstandings

between the two upset the sensitive boy led him to decide

to leave them. Before they could do anything about it,

he was already gone. It is unknown

where he may have wondered

about at the time; 

he was barely fourteen years old

and did not have a thorough command of German.

He himself never had anything to say

about the topic during his later years.

It is highly likely that Salieri became his teacher

because of a quadrophonic arrangement in the possession

of his son Joseph Cartellieri

has this superscription

in his hand: “Palmira ridotto nel

IV e dedicate al maestro suo Salieri da

Antonio Cartellieri”. He probably began

his service to Polish Count Oborsky,

a great patron of the arts,

already in 1791 and served him

as a composer and music director.

During the stay of this count in Vienna,

he studied the strict compositional style

under Albrechtsberger’s direction and with strenuous diligence.

It was here that he made the acquaintance of that

unforgettable friend of music, His Highness

Prince Joseph v. Lobkowitz, at an

academy presented by Oborsky. Cartellieri

conducted his Symphony in C minor. The amazed

prince immediately asked Oborsky for his services;

Oborsky was unhappy to lose him.


 

 

It was thus that Cartellieri became the music director

of this great patron of all fine arts in 1796.

As is well know, his court was gathering place for all the artists, and it was

there that Cartellieri made the acquittance

of all the famous composers and virtuosos,

and his intellect found continuous stimulation.

The prince had operas performed in Vienna

as well as at his castles in Raudnitz2 and Eisenberg3

in Bohemia, and thus Cartellieri always

had a heavy workload

as a composer and director.

In 1803 he married Franziska Kraft,

the daughter of Anton Kraft, the famous Lobkowitz violoncellist.

She bore him three sons: the eldest,

Joseph Cartellieri, is currently,

in 1826, the Lobkowitz music

director of the Loreto Orchestra

in Prague, the second has a carrier

in economics, and the youngest

is studying medicine.

Cartellieri was often ill during the last years.

His strenuous, restless work pace

had ruined his health,

and here a hurtful

disharmony with one of his colleagues

may have contributed its part.

His wife and the prince himself

had been concerned

about accompanying (1807)

the prince from the Eisenberg Castle

to Raudnitz, his illness broke out

with an uncommon force. He had no strength left in him

when he was taken to

 

 

 

Liebshausen, (a village under the prince’s jurisdiction about 

four miles from Eisenberg). He longed 

for his wife, his mother,

who had been living with the family 

since he had obtained his appointment, and children, 

who were following in the count’s traveling party,

but, by the time they had caught up,

he was already dead.

He died on 2 September 1807 at the age of thirty-four. 

His widow lives in Prague on a pension 

from the generous prince.

 

 

His son, Joseph Cartellieri,

communicated this news to

the secretary of the Gesellschaft

on December 16, 1826, and added

the following list of the late father's

compositions with the comment that

the list was probably not complete

and that perhaps his father's other works

might also have been known.


                                            Concerts

1. Four concerts for clarinet.

2. Concert for flute.

3. Concert for horn.

4. Two double concerts for oboe and bassoon.

5. Double concert for flutes

6. Concerto for oboe, horn, and bassoon.                                                   

                                          Furthermore

1. Seven Missa Solennis, including some in polychoral style.

 

2. Two Motets. 

3. Choral.

4. Two Symphonies Op. 1 and other two symphonies in C and E flat Major for grand orchestra. 

 

5. Divertimento for full orchestra.

6. Serenade (for grand orchestra).

7. Three Ouvertures (for grand orchestra).

8. Two themes with variations for clarinet and variations for cornetto.


9. Sextet for two violins, viola, two horns, and basso.


10. Sextet for 2 clarinets, 2 horns, 2 bassoons.


11. Three octets for 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 horns, and 2 bassoons.


12. Theme and variations for 2 clarinets, 2 horns and, 2 bassoons.


13. Fuga for harmonie.

14. Adagio and Fuga 2 violins, 1 viola and, 1 cello.

15. Three quartets with 2 violins, 1 viola and, 1 cello.

16. Three quartets with clarinet concertante: and 1 violin, 1 viola e cello.


 

Following the order that you gave me, I have no hesitation in communicating

with you the result. Although the widow of Cartellieri is in possession of a

portrait of her deceased husband, she does not want to separate it, because it is

the only memory of the deceased that she has. After trying to convince her for

so long, she finally decided to send this portrait to the father in Vienna via

Raudnitz's forest inspector, who then took him to Mr. von Peters for the

necessary use. The widow has no biography of the deceased who, as can be

seen from the copy of the added baptismal certificate, was born in Gdansk. His

parents were famous singers in Berlin and it is said that his father is still alive

and lives in Königsberg as a singer. The mother, on the other hand, died in

Bohemia and was buried in Zemiech under the reign of the Swolinowesers, not

far from Mühlhausen. But he himself was, as we know, one of the most

excellent musicians of our time, he died at 34, on 2 September 1807 and is

buried at the property of Prince Lobkowitz Liebhausen; left the widow with

three orphans: Joseph, Paul, and Anton; he could not say more.

                                          Operas

1. Angarda, Regina di Bohemia.

2. Attalinda.

3. Il Segreto.

4. Il Duello Fortunato.

5. Il giudice nella propria causa.

6. Die Geisterbeschwörung.

7. Der Rübezahl

                                         Oratories

1. Gioias, Re di Giuda.

2. Purificazione della Maria.

3. Per celebrare il St. Natale di Cristo.

The following translation is edited by Elia Celegato.

 

17. Introduction and double Fuga for two orchestras. 


18. A lot of single vocal composition with orchestral accompaniment, of which the son Joseph, knew 17 arias, 5 duets, and 1 terzet.




19. Some compositions for piano and songs with piano accompaniment; his son Joseph had the ballade for bass voice, “Fluch des Vatermörders” di Mr. Ch. Schubert.





20. Fourteenth marches for Harmonie, with obbligato military trumpet.



21. Rondò for 12 trumpeters and few other things.

 

Musical works by Antonio Cartellieri.

 

                                                  Opera

1. Die Geisterbeschwörung  

2. Der Rübezahl 

3. Angarda, Regina di Bohemia

4. Attalinda.

5. Il Segreto.

6. Il Duello fortunato.

7. Il Giudice nella propria causa.

 

                                               Oratories


1. Gioias, Re di Giuda.

2. Per celebrare il St. Natale di Cristo

 

 

Messe: 7, including one for double choir.

Symphonies: 2.

Excerpts from arias, terzets and, quartets.

It was attested according to the register of the baptized and

authenticated with the church seal and a sign that the son of Mr.

Antonio Cartellieri and his consort Elisabeth called Casimir Antonio,

was born into the world in a legitimate way on September 27,

1772, and baptized in the presence of sublime godparents (Starost

Ežacki and his wife, Starost Leduchowsky and guardian Marianna

Landskoronsky) in the local Catholic church, called the Royal

Chapel. Gdansk, 5 September 1800


 

 

Grünwald,
Preacher himself