Benedict, Sir Julius
Benedict, Sir Julius
Benedict, Sir Julius, German-English conductor and composer; b. Stuttgart, Nov. 27, 1804; d. London, June 5, 1885. He was the son of a Jewish banker, and from his earliest childhood he showed a decisive musical talent. He took lessons with J.C.L. Abeille in Stuttgart, then had further instruction with Hummel at Weimar. Hummel introduced him to Weber, and he became Weber’s private pupil. In 1823, Benedict was appointed conductor of the Kàrnthnertortheater in Vienna, and in 1825 he obtained a similar post at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples and also at the Fondo Theater there. He produced his first opera, Giacinta ed Ernesto, in Naples in 1827. His second opera was 7 Portoghesi in Goa, produced in Naples on June 28, 1830. In 1834 Benedict went to Paris, and in 1835 he proceeded to London, where he remained for the rest of his life. In 1836 he became music director at the Opera Buffa at the Lyceum Theatre. He conducted opera at the Drury Lane Theatre from 1838 to 1848. His first opera in English, The Gypsy’s Warning, was produced at Drury Lane under his direction on April 19, 1838. He also conducted at Covent Garden, led the Monday Popular Concerts, served as music director of the Norwich Festivals (1845–78), and conducted the Liverpool Phil. Soc. (1876–80). In recognition of his services, he was knighted in 1871. From 1850 to 1852 he accompanied Jenny Lind on her American tours. His reputation as a conductor and composer was considerable, in both Europe and America. Among his operas the most successful was The Lily of Killarney, which was produced at Covent Garden on Feb. 8, 1862; it was also staged in America and Australia. His other operas were The Brides of Venice (Drury Lane, April 22, 1844), The Crusaders (Drury Lane, Feb. 26, 1846), The Lake of Glenaston (1862), and The Bride of Song (Covent Garden, Dec. 3, 1864). He also wrote the cantatas Undine (1860), Richard Coeur-de-Lion (1863), The Legend of St. Cecilia (1866), and Graziella (1882), an oratorio, Si. Peter (1870), a Sym., two piano concertos, and other instrumental works. He publ. biographies of Mendelssohn (London, 1850) and Weber (London, 1881; 2nd ed., 1913), both comprised of information from his personal acquaintances.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire