Thooft, Willem Frans

1829-1900

Dutch composer; born in Amsterdam; studied piano at Delft under J. A. Klerk; then went to The Hague for further instructions of Karel van der Voes and of Joseph Dupont in composition. In 1852 he went to Leipsic Conservatory and became a pupil of Richter and Hauptmann. He went to Paris for a short time in 1855; then settled in Rotterdam, establishing German Opera there in 1859. He has written the opera, Aleida von Holland; an overture to Die Jungfrau von Orleans; the symphony cantata, De Kropning van Keizer Karel V.; a fantasia for orchestra called Freud und Leid; sonatas for piano; songs, and a trio for piano and strings; and the prize choral symphony, entitled Charles V.