JOHANN PETER EMILIUS HARTMANN  

The Danish composer and organist J.P.E. Hartmann, descendant of a family of musicians, played a leading part in the musical life of Copenhagen. He was organist of the principal church, the Vor Frue Kirk, and active in the Conservatory and in concert life, enjoying friendly relations with the leading European composers of the time.

Stage Works

Hartmann’s first opera, The Raven, or The Brother Test, was based on a libretto by Hans Christian Andersen and was favourably reviewed by Schumann; and a later opera based on the work of the same writer, Little Kirsten, was well received. He provided ballet music for his friend Bournonville and incidental music for plays by Adam Oehlenschlaeger, a leading literary figure in Danish Romanticism.

Orchestral Music

Hartmann’s orchestral music includes a number of concert overtures and two symphonies, all imbued with the spirit of Danish nationalism of the period.

Chamber and Keyboard Music

Hartmann added to the repertoire of popular Danish flute music and left three violin sonatas and a number of shorter pieces. His music for the piano includes two sonatas and a similar number of less demanding pieces, while his organ music includes a sonata, fantasia and funeral marches.