Radziwiłł, Antoni Henryk (EN)

Radziwiłł Antoni Henryk, prince, *13 June 1775 Warsaw (?), †7 April 1833 Berlin, Polish composer, cellist, patron of the arts, politician. In 1792–94, he studied at the University of Göttingen. In 1796, he married Fredericka Dorota Louise of Hohenzollern, niece of the Prussian king Frederick the Great; this marriage determined his political orientation, the goal of which was to bring the Polish nation closer to the Prussian dynasty. In 1815, he received the position of governor of the Grand Duchy of Poznań and moved to Poznań; Through his activities, he contributed to slowing down the Germanization process in Greater Poland. He was suspended from his duties after his brother Michał Gedeon R. took over as commander-in-chief in the November Uprising; he received his official resignation on 27 January 1833. He died in Berlin during the cholera epidemic and is buried in the cathedral in Poznań.

There are no detailed studies on Radziwiłł’s musical activities; it is known that he was multi-talented artistically (he was taught drawing, among others, by J.P. Norblin de la Gourdaine), played the cello, harp and guitar fluently, sang tenor and composed. In Berlin and Poznań he ran an open salon where, apart from the aristocracy, musicians, poets, painters and thinkers met; chamber concerts were a permanent element of weekly meetings, often with the participation of the prince and other family members. Musical evenings were also organised at Radziwiłł’s summer residences: Ciszyca (Ruheberg) near Kowary and Antonin near Ostrów Wielkopolski. Radziwiłł took part in court theatre performances (including during the Congress of Vienna) and Liedertafel meetings, for which he wrote three songs to texts by Goethe, Beckendorf and Elkanz. He was famous as a patron of art, his contacts are evidenced by, among others, dedications (by L. van Beethoven, F. Mendelssohn, F. Chopin, M. Szymanowska) as well as correspondence and memories of artists. He was closely associated with the Singakademie in Berlin, which organised a ceremonial funeral concert dedicated to his memory. He highly appreciated the work of L. van Beethoven, admired F. Chopin, whom he visited several times in Antonin (1827 and 1829), and was an admirer of Ch.W. Gluck and W.A. Mozart.

Radziwiłł made music history thanks to his Compositions for Goethe’s “Faust”; they were created on the occasion of the first-ever performance of the first part of the drama (in 1816–20). The entire series includes 25 issues, the last issue (The Witch’s Kitchen) was completed after Radziwiłł’s death by C.F. Rungenhagen. Musically, the compositions included mainly songs, choirs and scenes containing musical suggestions (e.g. peasants having fun), as well as highly dramatic texts (Faust’s monologues in the studio, prison scene) or lyrical texts (Margaret’s room, scenes in the garden). The belief in the significant role of theatre music was the basis of Radziwiłł’s concept, so the formal shape of individual numbers was subordinated to the course and character of the text. Most often, the composer uses melodrama, which takes the form of a recitation against the background of music, reflecting the waves of emotional tensions and sudden mood changes, including in Faust’s philosophical monologues (dramatic) or scenes developing the love story (lyrical). Solo parts are simple, lyrical verse or verse-variation songs (Małgorzata’s ballad Es war ein König in Thule, Mephisto’s serenade) or characteristic songs (e.g. Brander’s ballad about a rat or ballad about a flea) with rich illustrative means emphasising the humorous nature of the text, as well as extensive recomposed songs, the form of which was subordinated to the expressive side of the text and its dramatic function (Małgorzata’s song at the spinning wheel Meine Ruh’ and the prayer Ah, neige!). An important element of the music for Faust is the choirs, which perform an important dramatic function. The composer tried to convey the characters’ nature through music, e.g. to present the opposition of the pairs Margaret-Faust, and Mephisto-Marta, he used various types of melody (cantilena-buffo melody), means of articulation (legato-staccato) and accompanying instruments (flute, violin-viola, cello), he also tried to use reminiscent motifs (e.g. the motif of “Margaret’s room”). An important role is played by harmony (sequences of chords that are tonally distant, deceptive solutions, connections with the Neapolitan chord in dramatic moments, selection of keys due to their sound colour) and orchestra (selection of instruments depending on the nature of the text, instruments with a specific sound, e.g. glass harmonica, serpent solo, guitar; appropriate means of articulation), but the means used are rather typical.

The music for Faust shares many features with early Romantic opera; this is indicated by the theme itself and the mood, the introduction of commonly used formal factors (prayer, the spinner’s song, the Turkish march), the use of melodrama and attempts to introduce reminiscent motifs that give the music greater unity.

Songs reflecting local colours or presenting characters’ personalities and dance elements bring Compositions closer to a singspiel. Radziwiłł’s music shows the influence of W.A. Mozart, for example in the way of conducting the choir in the cathedral scene (Requiem), and also in the Turkish march, in the concept of the prison scene referring to the idea of a synthetic finale (Don Giovanni); Radziwiłł also draws directly from Mozart’s music, using the C minor fugue (Chronologisch-thematisches Verzeichnis sämtlicher Tonwerke Wolfgang Amadeus Mozarts 546) as an overture or introducing fragments of the minuet from the finale of Don Giovanni in the love scene in the gazebo. Equally clear influences of Ch.W. Gluck’s works are distinguished by the implementation of the dramatic functions of choirs. The involvement of professional musicians helping Radziwiłł in working on the scores remains unresolved; the most frequently mentioned are C.F. Zelter, B. Klein, C.F. Rungenhagen (harmonization) and G.A. Schneider (instrumentation). The compositions are not particularly outstanding works, but they have gained recognition and great popularity not only among their contemporaries. They were performed mainly on stage, and some fragments (choruses, characteristic songs) functioned independently. They were most often performed in their entirety or large fragments by the Singakademie in Berlin (as many as 25 repetitions in 1836–88), as well as in other cities (Hanover, Leipzig, Halle, Jena, Potsdam, Weimar, Prague, Königsberg, London). In 1848, on S. Moniuszko’s initiative, fragments of Faust were performed in Warsaw, and in 1934 and 1937 in Kraków in the translation by Z. Jachimecki, thanks to whom a complete recording was also made (PR conducted by S. Has, 1953). Radziwiłł’s work honoured the celebration of the 250^th anniversary of Goethe’s birth (20 July 1999, Minsk, translated into Belarusian); on 5 April 2003, they were performed as part of the 3^rd Hoffmann Festival in Poznań.

Literature: L. Rellstab Fürst Antoni Radziwill, “Iris im Gebiete der Tonkust” 1833 No. 15; L. Rellstab Beurteilung der Compositionen des Fürsten Radzivill zu Goethes “Faust”, “Iris im Gebiete der Tonkust” 1836 No. 12–19; J.P. Schmidt Über die erste Aufführung des “Faust” von Goethe, mit Musik vom Fürsten Radziwill…, “Allgemeine Musikalische”1835 No. 48, 49, J.P. Schmidt Partiturausgabe des Fürsten Antoni Radziwill Compositionen zu dem dramatischen Gedichte “Faust” von Goethe, “Allgemeine Musikalische” 1836 No. 37; F.A. Gotthold Über des Fürsten Antoni Radziwill Compositionen zu Goethes “Faust”. Nebst Goethes späteren Einschaltungen und Änderungen, Królewiec 1839; T. Strumiłło Źródła i początki romantyzmu w muzyce polskiej, Kraków 1956; Z. Jachimecki, W. Poźniak Antoni Radziwiłł i jego muzyka do „Fausta”, Kraków 1957; B. Macheta „Faust” Goethego w muzycznej interpretacji Antoniego Radziwiłła, master’s thesis, typewrite Jagiellonian University, 1989.