Pavel Vranický

Paul Wranitzky (Pavel Vranický) (1756–1808) was a Moravian-Austrian classical composer. His half brother, Antonín, was also a composer. Wranitzky was born in Neureisch (Nová Říše) in Habsburg Moravia. He studied at the Faculty of Theology of University of Olomouc and later a theological seminary in Vienna. At age 20, like so many other Czech composers of that period, he moved to Vienna to seek out opportunities within the Austrian imperial capital. From 1790, he conducted both royal theater orchestras. He was highly respected by Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven; the latter two preferred him as conductor of their new works (e.g., Beethoven's First Symphony in 1800). Wranitzky was a prolific composer. His output comprises ten operas, 44 symphonies, at least 56 string quartets (some sources give a number as high as 73)[This quote needs a citation] and a large amount of other orchestral and chamber music. His opera, Oberon – The Fairy King from 1789 was a favorite in this genre and inspired Emanuel Schikaneder to write the libretto of The Magic Flute for Mozart in 1791; in the mid-1790s, Goethe sought to collaborate with Wranitzky on a sequel to the Mozart opera. Today, Wranitzky is identified as being one of three possible composers said to have composed the Austrian national anthem (the identity of the actual composer is not definitively known). In 1797, four years after the execution of Louis XVI, Wranitzky wrote Grand Characteristic Symphony for the Peace with the French Republic, which includes the "Funeral March on the Execution of Louis XVI". Wranitzky died in Vienna on 29 September 1808. Beethoven wrote Variations on a Russian Dance (WoO 71), based on a theme in Wranitzky's ballet Das Waldmädchen (The Forest Maiden).