Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber had talent – and names – to burn. Arguably Salzburg’s most brilliant musician prior to the birth of Mozart, Biber was an outstanding violinist – perhaps the best of his age (at least music historian Charles Burney thought so) – and an innovative composer.
Born in Bohemia in 1644, Biber settled in Salzburg at the age of 16, when during a trip to negotiate the purchase of some instruments on behalf of his employer, Karl II von Liechtenstein-Kastelkorn, Bishop of Olmütz, based in Kroměříž (where much of “Amadeus” would later be filmed), he found a better job working for Maximilian Gandolph von Kuenberg, Archbishop of Mozart’s future home town. Fortunately, the bishops were friends, so Biber avoided any serious repercussions.
Some of Biber’s experiments with clashing rhythms and layers of sound – most famously in his programmatic battle piece, “Battalia” – anticipate those of Charles Ives by several centuries. In fact, a number of his works are programmatic, with musical effects intended to convey extra-musical objects and ideas.
He also experimented with scordatura, the tuning of stringed instruments to unconventional intervals. His “Mystery Sonatas” (sometimes referred to as the “Rosary Sonatas”) have featured increasingly in concerts and recordings. Its monumental passacaglia for solo violin is one of the earliest known pieces of its kind.
We’ll hoist a Heineken for Heinrich today, among our featured composers, between 4 and 7 p.m. EDT on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
