Andreas Jakob Romberg

Born in Vechta, 27 April 1767

Died in Gotha, 10 November 1821

Andreas Romberg was a gifted violinist from a large Münster-based family of court musicians. After many concert tours in the 1780s with his cousin Bernhard, which included performances at the Concerts spirituels in Paris, he and Bernhard were both hired by the Bonn court in November 1790. Andreas was a member of the court orchestra as well as Maximilian Franz’s chamber music ensemble along with Beethoven. He left for Hamburg at the end of 1793 and was released from court service shortly after Bonn was taken by the French in October 1794.

Beethoven appears to have composed his Violin Concerto WoO 5 (of which only around two-thirds of the first movement survives) for Romberg to perform.

Romberg was already an experienced composer before arriving in Bonn, having written at least five symphonies, seven violin concertos, and one mass. The Andreas Romberg Gesellschaft Vechta has released many of his compositions in a modern edition, as well as a thematic catalogue (ARWV).

Compositions written and/or performed in Bonn

• Violin Concerto No. VI (1790)
• Violin Concerto No. VII (1790)
• Violin Concerto No. VIII (1792)
• Sinfonia concertante for Violin and Cello (1792?)
• Symphony in D Major (1792)
• Der Messias, Oratorio (1793)
• Concert Aria “Con questo ferro indegno!” (1790)
• Concert Aria “Numi Tiranni!” (1792)
• Four String Quartets (1790–93)
• Variations for String Quartet on a Theme of Mozart (1792–93)

External Links

• Deutsche Biographie
• Biography at andreas-romberg.de
• Digitized music manuscripts at the SUB Hamburg

Select Bibliography

...