Franz Clement

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Franz Joseph Clement (November 17 or 18?, 1780 – November 3, 1842),[1] was an Austrian violinist, pianist, composer, conductor of Vienna's Theater an der Wien, and a friend of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Life and career[edit]

A talented violinist from a young age, he was known for his extraordinary ability to play complex pieces from memory after only briefly viewing them. He would alternate his virtuoso performances with lighthearted showmanship, with such intermission antics as playing a sonata on one string with the violin upside-down.[2] A critic in 1805 described his unique style as follows:




Clement went on to commission Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D major from his friend for the next benefit concert, given on December 23, 1806.[2] It is said that Beethoven worked on it up until shortly before the performance, and that Clement played the piece without rehearsing.

His works include, besides a number of compositions for violin and piano or orchestra, an offertorium "Ave, o rosa mistica"[4] published in 1848.[5]



  1. ^ "LAF based on New Grove 2nd Ed". Retrieved 2011-03-27.
  2. ^ a b Bathia Churgin, Transcendent Mastery: Studies in the Music of Beethoven, 3.
  3. ^ Brown, Clive (2008). "The Violin Concertos of Franz Clement and Ludwig van Beethoven". RachelBartonPine.Com. Retrieved 2008-10-02.
  4. ^ Austrian National Library
  5. ^ See HMB. Publication was by Diabelli- the "Ebend" in the line linked to means "same as the line above".


External links[edit]