Johann Nepomuk Hummel: Short Profile

Johann Nepomuk Hummel was the last great representative of the Viennese Classical style and his death in 1837 symbolised the passing of an age. This remarkable man had been a pupil of Mozart, Haydn’s successor as Kapellmeister to the Esterházy family, and a friend and rival of his great contemporary Beethoven for decades. At his death Hummel’s reputation was already in decline and his works thereafter suffered a largely undeserved neglect. Since Beethoven’s style defied imitation, it was instead the music of Hummel that most profoundly influenced the early Romantics Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn and Chopin. This profile of Hummel includes more than an hour of music by the composer. Audio samples are contained in the text: just tap to listen while you read.