born March 13, 1860, Windischgraz, Austria
died Feb. 22, 1903, Vienna
Austrian composer.
He entered the Vienna Conservatory at age 15, but, as a rabid Wagnerian, he lost patience with his teachers' conservatism and soon left. By age 18 he probably had contracted the syphilis that would make him mentally unstable and eventually kill him. His volatile personality made it difficult for him to keep private students. As a critic (188487), he attracted attention for his vituperative comments. His productivity came in bursts; in 188889 he produced the remarkable songs of the Mörike Lieder , the Eichendorff Lieder , the Goethe Lieder , and much of the Spanish Songbook
more than half his total output. After beginning the Italian Songbook in 1891, he wrote nothing for three years, then quickly composed the opera Der Corregidor (1896) and finished the Italian Songbook (1896). In 1897 he suffered a complete breakdown, and he thereafter lived largely in an asylum.