Schelble, Johann Nepomuk

1789-1837

German conductor; born at Hofingen, in the Black Forest. Died at Frankfort. From 1800 to 1803 he was a choir-boy at the Marchthal Monastery; continued his studies under Weisse at Danaueschingen, and in 1807 set out for Darmstadt, where he studied under Vogler, later going to Stuttgart, where Krebs was his teacher. There, in 1812, he was Court singer and teacher at the Royal Institute of Music, but the next year went to Vienna, and remained there for three years as a tenor opera-singer, in the meantime composing. Though his voice was excellent his acting did not insure success, and, giving up the stage, he went to Frankfort to teach. There he was appointed director of the Akademie in 1817, but gave up the position in 1818 and founded a society of his own, which has become famous, called, after 1821, the Cacilienverein. He is best known as the conductor of this society, a post which he held until about a year before his death, and under him it presented works by Mozart, Handel, Bach, Cherubini and other great composers and Mendelssohn choruses as well. In teaching Schelble drilled his pupils long on a few notes, to make them hear and give a tone in absolutely true pitch, and his method is still successfully employed. He composed the opera, Graf Adalbert; some cantatas; songs; and other vocal music; and sonatas for piano; but they have not endured.