Josef Triebensee (Trübensee) (November 21, 1772 Třeboň - April 22, 1846 Prague) was a Bohemian composer and oboist.[1]
He studied composition with Albrechtsberger and oboe with his father, Georg Triebensee (January 28, 1746-June 14, 1813) who served in the private orchestra of Prince Schwarzenberg, and then from 1782 to 1806 as first oboist of the Austrian Emperor's Harmonie (wind band). Concurrently, he also served as principal oboist at the Nationaltheater of Vienna with Johann Went playing 2nd oboe. Josef II had basically poached the principal oboe, principal cor anglais and principal bassoonist from the Schwarzenberg Harmonie (founded 1771) to head up his own Harmonie.
Josef was the second oboist, with Olivier Hue, at the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna in 1791 when he played in the premiere of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte—explaining the peculiar difficulty of the second oboe parts in that work.
Josef then became second oboist at the Kärntnertortheater in 1793 moving up to 1st oboe in 1794. He was also 1st Oboe in Prince Liechtenstein's Harmonie at Feldsberg, and in 1796 became its Kapellmeister.
In 1796 he played 2nd oboe to his father who was on 1st oboe playing in the National Theatre Orchestra in Vienna. The Jahrbuch de Tonkunst in Wien und Prag declared "The Triebensees in the National Theatre Orchestra, father and son, are two great Artistes on the Oboe, which they also play with a most soulful feeling. The son has also written some beautiful compositions, principally for Harmonie music."
In 1809 he left Prince Lichtenstein's Harmonie when it was disbanded.
In 1811 he joined the private orchestra of Count Hunyady, whilst also working as a theater composer in Brno. and from 1816 to his retirement in 1836, director of the Prague Opera where he succeeded composer Carl Maria von Weber. Unlike Weber, his operas found little success.
In this period he often played as soloist in the concerts of the Tonkünstler Societät.
In January 1816 he performed his own 'Variations on the beloved melody "Redoute Deutschen" for Oboe and Orchestra.
In the same year he succeeded Weber as Director of Prague Opera, a position that he held until his death on December 31st in 1836.
In 1817 he was appointed senior Professor of Singing.
Triebensee's most important compositions were two sets of Harmoniemusik, the second appearing in 32 installments of ten or more movements. He wrote 12 comic operas for Vienna and Prague as well as vocal, orchestral, and chamber works.
Compositions
Works for Winds
Chamber music
Grande Sonate for piano and violin (C. F. Whistling p.318
Sonate pour le Piano-Forte. Composée et dediée à Son Altesse Mademoiselle La Princesse Julis de Sulkowsky published in 2020 by Musica Aeterna Verlag/ Germany (http://www.musica-aeterna.de/Katalog.htm)
1790-96 Trio in F Major, for two oboes and alto oboe [English horn]
1790-96 Trio in C Major, for two oboes and alto oboe
1790-96 Trio in B-flat Major, for two oboes and alto oboe
1790-96 Variations on Hadyn's symphony nr. 94 „mit dem Paukenschlag“, for two oboes and alto oboe
3 Oboe Quartets for Oboe and String Trio
Grand Sonata for Oboe and Piano
Gran Quintuor, for piano, clarinet, alto oboe, basset horn, and bassoon
Quintetto. In F : a Clavicembalo, Oboa, Violino, Viola e Violoncello(A-Wien Mus.Hs.11409 Mus)
Quintett in Eb 1799 for strings (A-Wien S.m. 11517)
Menuetto con Variazioni in F
Variace na Mozartovo téma
6 Variationen über das tyroler Alpenlied for piano, violin and guitar (AMZ 1811, Intelligenzblatt)
Arrangements for Harmonie ensemble
Joseph Haydn (1732–1809): Symphony in G Major - "Oxford" (Nr. 92), arranged for 9-part harmonie.
Adagio / Allegro spirituoso
Adagio
Menuetto, Allegretto
Presto
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791): Don Giovanni, Overture and arias for harmonie (2 ob, 2 cl, 2 hn, 2 bsn, cbsn (ad lib.))
