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Christian Samuel Barth (Oboe, Composer, Bach’s Pupil) |
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Born: January 111 2 or 133, 1735 - Glauchau, Saxony, Germany
Died: July 8, 1809 - Copenhagen, Denmark. |
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Christian Samuel Barth was a German oboist and composer. He was born the son of Samuel Barth (d 1748; businessman in Glauchau) and Christiana Sophia Barth. He attended the Thomasschule in Leipzig (c1748-1750; as an external?), where he was taught by J.S. Bach. After his stiudies he was active as an orchestral player and soloist (oboist): from 1753 in the Hofkapelle (court orchestra) in Rudolstadt; from 1762 in the Hofkapelle in Weimar; c1768 in the Hofkapelle in Hannover; and from 1768 in the Hofkapelle in Kassel. Finally, in 1786, he became a member of the Hofkapelle at the royal court in Copenhagen, which was then briefly under the direction of Johann Gottlieb Naumann. On account of his age and infirmity, he was relieved from his duties in 1798 and received an annual pension of 500 Reichsthaler until his death in 1809. His elder brothers were also Thomaners: Georg Heinrich Barth (1730-1813) in 1746-1751; Karl Friedrich Barth (1734-1813) in 1746-1757. His two sons from his marriage to Christiana Sophia (d 1748), Frederik Philip Carl August (1774-1804) and Christian Frederik (1787-1861), having been taught by their father, both became virtuoso performers on the oboe as well as composers. The youngest son became renowned as a touring soloist.
According to the biography of Gerber (1790) based on his own information, Christian Samuel Barth "seine ersten Jugendjahre nebst seinen Brüdern, unter den Augen des großen Sebast. Bachs, auf der Thomasschule zu Leipzig zugebracht" (had his first youth together with his brothers, under the eyes of the great Sebast. Bachs, brought to the Thomasschule zu Leipzig). However, since his name, unlike his brother Karl Friedrich Barth (B-40), is not to be found in the alumni register, he may have been an external person. This does not prove that he would also have been J.S. Bach's private pupil.
References: Koska: B-44; GND: 11606319X |
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Works |
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It seems that most of Christian Samuel Barth's compositions have been lost. He is known to have composed an Ouverture in E major, op. 18, 4 oboe sonatas, a Cantata Gelobet seist du Jesu Christ, and at least 4 oboe concertos (lost). His numerous compositions have only survived by handwriting and still require research. |
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Christian Samuel Barth [01] |
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Sources:
1. Oxford Composer Companions J.S. Bach (Editor: Malcolm Boyd, OUP, 1999)
2. Bernd Koska: Bachs Privatschüler in Bach-Jahrbuch 2019, English translation by Aryeh Oron (May 2020)
3. Wikipedia Website (April 2020)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (January 2011, May 2020) |
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Links to other Sites |
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Christian Samuel Barth (Wikipedia)
Barth, Christian Samuel (DNB) |
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Bibliography |
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Sources 2: Gerber ATL, Bd. I, Sp. 109f. (= Dok 950); Löffler 1929/31, Anh. Nr. 8; Löffler 1953, Anh. Nr. 6; BJ 1988, S. 111f. (W. Hüttel); MGGo
Bibliography 3:
Rudolf Elvers (1953), "Barth, Christian Samuel", Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB) [German], 1, (Berlin: Duncker & Humblot), pp. 601–602; (full text online)
Schilling, Gustav (1835). Encyclopädie der gesammten musikalischen Wissenschaften, oder, Universal-Lexicon der Tonkunst [German] (Stuttgart: Franz Heinrich Köhler), p. 451. |
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