Michael, David Moritz
Michael, David Moritz
Michael, David Moritz , German violinist, clarinetist, horn player, and composer; b. Keinhausen, near Erfurt, Oct. 21, 1751; d. Neuwied, Feb. 26, 1827. He spent some years as a Hessian army musician. In 1781 he joined the Moravian church, and from 1795 to 1815 he lived in the Moravian settlements at Nazareth and Bethlehem, Pa., and was the leading spirit in the musical performances in both towns. He played violin and most winds, and as a novelty, would amuse his audience by performing simultaneously on 2 horns. A list of programs of the Collegium Musicum at Nazareth, beginning with 1796, is preserved in the Moravian Historical Soc. in Nazareth. He composed 14 woodwind Parthien, 2 “Water-music” suites, 18 anthems for Solo Voice or Chorus and Instruments, and Psalm CIII for Soloists, Chorus, and Orch. The greater portion of his MSS are housed in the Moravian Church archives in Bethlehem, and others are in the Moravian Foundation in Winston-Salem, N.C. See A. Rau and H. David, A Catalogue of Music by American Moravians, 1742–1842 (Bethlehem, Pa., 1938).
Bibliography
D. Roberts, The Sacred Vocal Music of D.M. M.: An American Moravian Composer (diss., Univ. of Kentucky, 1978); K. Hahn, The Wind Ensemble Music of D.M. M. (thesis, Univ. of Mo., 1979).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire