Johann Baptist Novak

Johann Baptist Novak
Bornc. 1756
Ljubljana, Holy Roman Empire
(now Slovenia)
DiedJanuary 29, 1833(1833-01-29) (aged 76–77)
Ljubljana, Austrian Empire
(now Slovenia)
OccupationComposer

Johann Baptist Novak[Note 1] (Slovenized: Janez Krstnik Novak, c. 1756 – January 29, 1833) was a Slovene composer.

Life

Novak was born in Ljubljana, at that time part of the Holy Roman Empire, c. 1756.[4] He died in Ljubljana on January 29, 1833.[1]

Career

He made his living as an official in the provincial administration, but at the same time he actively participated in Ljubljana's musical life as a singer, violinist, and composer. Novak was one of the rare representatives of musical classicism in the Slovene territory. He was one of the founding members of the Ljubljana Philharmonic Society in 1794. He participated in the society's orchestra (the predecessor of the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra) as its concertmaster in 1799 and 1800, and from 1808 to 1825 he was the artistic director of this ensemble.

In 1790 he composed incidental music titled Figaro to Linhart's play Ta veseli dan ali Matiček se ženi.[5][6] Due to the quality of his music, the theatrical play approached opera in character. Along with some cantatas, this is one of Novak's more prominent musical works, most of which have been lost.

In 2007, Novak's "Birthday Cantata" (German: Cantate zum Geburts oder Namensfeste einer Mutter 'Cantata for a Mother's Birthday or Namesday') was performed for the first time in Ljubljana.[7] It is not known when it was written. It is preserved in the archives of the Giuseppe Tartini Conservatory in Trieste. This cantata—written for soprano, alto, tenor, and bass accompanied by a small orchestra (flute, string quartet, and double bass) to a German text by an unknown author that celebrates maternal love—was written by Novak for the celebration of the birthday of a lady in some noble or wealthy bourgeois house.

Notes

  1. ^ Novak's parish death record[1] and his death announcement[2] refer to him as Johann Nep[omuk]. Novak; compare the birth of a Johann Nepomuk Novak (Joannes Nepom. Novag) in the same parish on May 12, 1756.[3]
    Novak's parish death record
    Novak's death announcement

References

  1. ^ a b Sterb-Register. Ljubljana - Sv. Peter. 1791–1815. p. 101. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
  2. ^ "Verzeichniß der hier Verstorbenen". Amtsblatt zur Laibacher Zeitung. No. 17. February 7, 1833. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
  3. ^ Liber Baptizitorum. Ljubljana - Sv. Peter. 1756–1758. p. 7. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
  4. ^ "Katalog der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek". Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
  5. ^ Cvetko, Dragotin; Pokorn, Danilo (1988). Evropski glasbeni klasicizem in njegov odmev na Slovenskem. Ljubljana: Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti. p. 19.
  6. ^ Gruber, Gernot (1994). Mozart & Posterity. Boston, MA: Northeastern University Press. p. 41.
  7. ^ "Klasika za jutro po sobotnem žuru". RTV SLO. January 20, 2007. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
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