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Robert Nicolas-Charles Bochsa (9 August 1789 – 6 January 1856) was a harpist and composer. His relationship with Anna Bishop was popularly thought to have inspired that of Svengali and Trilby in George du Maurier's 1894 novel Trilby.[1]

Nicolas-Charles Bochsa
portrait by Peter Copmann, 1837
Born9 August 1789 
Montmédy 
Died6 January 1856  (aged 66)
Sydney 
OccupationComposer, harpist 
Spouse(s)Georgette Ducrest, Amy Wilson
Parent(s)
  • Charles Bochsa 
Nicolas-Charles Bochsa, 1842
Nicolas-Charles Bochsa, 1842

Life


The son of a Bohemian-born musician, Karl Bochsa (de), Bochsa was born in Montmédy, Meuse, France.[2] He was able to play the flute and piano by the age of seven. In 1807, he went to study at the Paris Conservatoire. He was appointed harpist to the Imperial Orchestra in 1813, and began writing operas for the Opéra-Comique. However, in 1817 he became entangled in counterfeiting, fraud, and forgery, and fled to London to avoid prosecution. He was convicted in absentia, and sentenced to twelve years hard labour and a fine of 4,000 francs.[3]

Safe from French law in London, he helped found the Royal Academy of Music in 1821, and became its secretary. He taught there, amongst others, the British harp virtuoso Elias Parish Alvars. When his criminal conviction was revealed in 1826, he was forced to resign. He then became Musical Director of the Kings Theatre in London.

Bochsa's grave in Camperdown Cemetery, Sydney
Bochsa's grave in Camperdown Cemetery, Sydney

In 1839, he became involved in another scandal when he ran off with the opera singer Anna Bishop, wife of the composer Henry Bishop. They performed together in North America and throughout Europe (except France). In Naples Bochsa was appointed Director of the Regio Teatro San Carlo, (the Royal Opera House) and stayed there for two years.

Bochsa arrived with Anna Bishop in Sydney, Australia, at the time of the gold rush in December 1855, but they gave only one concert together before Bochsa died. Bishop was heartbroken, and commissioned an elaborate tomb for him in Camperdown Cemetery.


Operas



Bibliography



References


  1. Lawrence, Vera Brodsky. (1999). Strong on music: the New York music scene in the days of George Templeton Strong. University of Chicago Press. p. 65. ISBN 0226470156. OCLC 60191288.
  2. An obituary, undoubtedly informed by his lover Anna Bishop, described him as "a native of Prague but at an early age became celebrated in Paris". See Death and Obsequies of the Late M. Bochsa The Sydney Morning Herald, 9 January 1856. Birth at Montmédy is recorded (without verification) in the French Wikipedia article and in the 1969 monograph in Australian Dictionary of Biography.
  3. Lea-Scarlett, E. J., "Bochsa, Robert Nicholas Charles (1789–1856)" entry in Australian Dictionary of Biography (1969).



На других языках


[de] Robert Nicolas-Charles Bochsa

Robert Nicolas-Charles Bochsa (* 9. August 1789 in Montmédy (Département Meuse); † 6. Januar 1856 in Sydney) war ein französischer Komponist und Harfenvirtuose.
- [en] Nicolas-Charles Bochsa

[es] Nicolas Bochsa

Robert Nicolas Charles Bochsa (Montmédy, Francia, 9 de agosto de 1789 – Sídney, Australia, 6 de enero de 1856), fue un compositor y arpista francés célebre en su época. Compuso numerosas óperas, ballets y abundantes composiciones para arpa.

[ru] Бокса, Николя

Робе́р Николя Шарль Бокса́ (фр. Robert Nicolas Charles Bochsa; 9 августа 1789 (1789-08-09), Монмеди — 6 января 1856, Сидней) — французский арфист-виртуоз, композитор, дирижёр и музыкальный организатор чешского происхождения.



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