Friedrich Witt


Friedrich Jeremias Witt was a German composer and cellist. He is perhaps best known as the likely author of a Symphony in C major known as the Jena Symphony, once attributed to Ludwig van Beethoven.

Biography

Witt was born in 1770, the same year as Beethoven, and was a German composer of considerable stature in his time.
He was born in the Württemberg village of Niederstetten, the son of a cantor and court clerk. Witt became a cellist in the court orchestra of Oettingen-Wallerstein when he was nineteen, taking composition lessons there with Antonio Rosetti, that is, the Bohemian-born Anton Rösler. Witt was most famous in his lifetime for his oratorio Der leidende Heiland- in English, The Suffering Saviour, securing an appointment as Kapellmeister for the Prince of Würzburg, and later for the theater, where he stayed until his death. He also wrote two operas: Palma and Das Fischerweib. His other compositions include concertos, church music, chamber music and symphonies. His best-known work, a symphony in C major known as the Jena, is largely based on the Symphony No. 97 by Joseph Haydn.
Stephen Fisher compiled a thematic index of Witt's symphonies.

Discography