Archive Item of the Month: March 2022

Peter von Winter (Mannheim bap. 28 August 1754 – Munich, 17 October 1825)

Grand March; [inter 1803-1805]. MBM264.  Presented by the composer. 

The composer Peter von Winter was a gifted child who played violin in the court orchestra at Mannheim at the age of just ten although his post was not permanent until 1776.  From 1778 the electoral court moved to Munich and Winter was made director of the orchestra.  As an orchestral musician he was exposed to opera, the idiom of which he composed many works.  He was to meet Mozart, soon began to write for the stage and, on a concert tour, met Salieri with whom he learnt the bel canto style.  His first opera, Helena und Paris, was performed in 1782 and, although his operas were not a huge success, Winter travelled to Naples, Venice, Prague and Vienna.  In the latter city his Das unterbrochene Opferfest was received with great success.  The Haymarket Theatre in London saw the premières of four operas by Winter, all with texts by Lorenzo da Ponte, which were La grotto di Calipso (31 May 1803), Il trionfo dell’amor fraterno (22 March 1804), Il ratto di Proserpina (5 May 1804) and Zaire (29 January 1805).

Although remembered mainly for his operatic and church music Winter did compose a small amount of instrumental music.  The March, which is in the RSM’s collection, we might suppose was composed during that period when he visited London and his new operas were performed; the work does not appear to be listed in the list of works cited in the New Grove.  The later binding notes that the manuscript was presented by the composer. 

The March was performed at the anniversary dinner festivals along with the other Marches written for and held by the RSM.  The Governors Meeting of 1 October 1826 notes a request for the use of the manuscript:

A Letter was read from Mr Mackintosh, containing a request from the Directors of the Birmingham Music Meeting for the use of the Society’s March composed by Winter, to be performed in a sacred Drama of his composition at the ensuing Festival, for the benefit of the Public Charities in that town.  It was moved by Mr Calkin & seconded by Mr Jones that the March be copied in the presence of the Secretary, and forwarded to Mr Mackintosh with a reliance on his pledge that the same shall not be out of his possession until returned to the Society.

Birmingham Grand Musical Festival, 1826 : grand selection of sacred music, St. Philip’s Church, Friday morning, 6th of October.  © Gerald Coke Handel Collection 

We see from the Minutes of 1 October that the concert in Birmingham was just five days later!  The March, although not mentioned in the programme as a separate piece, was presumably played at some point during the performance of Winter’s oratorio The Triumph of Gideon in part II of the concert.

Grand March; [1826].  MBM214. 

As a result of this request for permission from the RSM, a set of manuscript parts exists originally made for use in the performance in 1826.  John Mackintosh (1767-1844) was a bassoonist and the parts are likely to be in his musical handwriting.  The clarinet primo ripieno part has the name of Thomas Lindsay Willman (1784-1840, Member A369) added to it, he being one of the other performers at the Birmingham Festival, as seen in the list of performers below, and a famous name of the period.