Primary Instrument: Composer/conductor/leader
Louis Moreau Gottschalk - pianist, composer (May 8, 1829 - Dec. 18, 1869)
Traditionally, Gottschalk is remembered as a virtuoso, as well as a prolific composer of popular music. While there may be some truth in this statement, it is our belief that there is more to Gottschalk and his music than just that. Gottschalk was also the first and, one might well argue, possibly the last Pan-American composer and artist. Not only did he travel frequently outside the United States, as did, by necessity, most virtuoso pianists at the time; he also lived in South America and the Caribbean for extended periods of time, incorporating, without prejudice but with critical judgment, many local influences and musical traditions. His influence on New Orleans music is undeniable, consequently leading into jazz and its origins.
Born in New Orleans in 1829, Louis Moreau Gottschalk grew up in a neighborhood where he was exposed to the Creole music with its African-Caribbean rhythms and the melodious folk songs that would later become a characteristic ingredient of much of his own music. The house where he was born still stands at the southwest corner of Esplanade and Royal streets in New Orleans, and it was from this rather unassuming place that his brilliant career started -- a career that would eventually spur him on to international fame.
The general musical climate of New Orleans may have played its role during Gottschalk’s childhood, but he was exposed to the music also within the household; via his Grandmother Buslé and his nurse Sally, both of whom were natives of Saint-Domingue.
However, none of this is to suggest that Gottschalk's later work was derivative: When he borrowed from traditional sources he did so openly and acknowledged his sources, and at any rate such occasional “quotations” are outweighed by his playful inventiveness and creativity. An example of this is his informal début at the (then) new St. Charles Hotel in 1840, at a time when despite his numerous recitals in salons of wealthy New Orleans households he had not yet performed in public concerts. The program described Gottschalk as “a young Creole” and his début already foreshadowed his later work: Taking a Latin dance tune and performing a series of variations on the tune, thus combining the popularity of the tune and subjecting it to a very Gottschalkian treatment, he charmed the audience, and the début became an instant success.
In 1842 he left the United States and sailed to Europe, realizing that a classical training would be required to achieve his musical goals. In Europe, however, Gottschalk had a rather bumpy start, as the Conservatoire in Paris rejected his application. For this reason, Gottschalk had to study privately with Karl Hallé, Camille-Marie Stamaty and Pierre Malenden (the latter teaching composition). In the years to follow, despite the initial rejection by the musical establishment, he built a first career as a pianist virtuoso, prompting Frédéric Chopin to predict that Gottschalk would soon become one of the foremost pianists of the century.
In 1853, Gottschalk returned to the United States, possibly trying to escape an environment that he regarded as being dominated by egotism and vanity. Re-adjusting to American culture seems to have been accompanied by some problems and in the years to come he would travel extensively throughout the United States and Canada to earn a living. In 1854 he also spent an extensive period of time in Cuba, his musical interest gradually shifting towards Central and South America.
In the 1860s, he had established himself again as a major figure in American musical life, partly as a result of tremendous hard work -- as is evident from his travel schedule which, at one point in 1862, included 85 concerts (all at different locations) in just four and a half months.
In September 1865, his career took a sharp turn when Gottschalk had to leave the United States after a scandal about his relationship with a student at Oakland Female Seminary. Gottschalk left the country, embarking on what would become his last (and perhaps most successful) tour, during the course of which he traveled to Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires, and Rio de Janeiro (and many other less well-known locations). His concerts were tremendously successful all across South America and sometimes took the form of “monster concerts” involving up to 650 performers.
Louis Moreau Gottschalk died Saturday, December 18, 1869, in Tijuca (Brazil), three weeks after collapsing during one his concerts, just when he had finished playing his sorrowful “Morte!!” and was about to begin moving on to the next piece.
Source: Alec Gelfelt
