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Franz Wüllner (28 January 1832 – 7 September 1902) was a German composer and conductor. He led the premieres of Richard Wagner's operas Das Rheingold and Die Walküre, but was much criticized by Wagner himself, who greatly preferred the conductors Hans von Bülow and Hermann Levi.
Wüllner was born in Münster and studied in his native place, and at Frankfort, Berlin, Brussels, and Munich. In 1856 he was appointed instructor in pianoforte at the Munich Conservatory. He held the position of town musical director at Aix-la-Chapelle from 1858 to 1864. In 1867 he became director of the choral classes in the reorganized School of Music at Munich and wrote for them Chorübungen der Münchener Musikschule, text of score reading and singing (Solfege).[1]
In 1869 he succeeded Bülow as conductor of the Court Opera and the Academy Courts. Here he conducted the first performances of Rheingold and Walküre (1869, 1870) before the production of the entire Ring cycle at the first Bayreuth Festival of 1876. He became court kapellmeister at Dresden and artistic director of the conservatory in 1877, and director of the Cologne conservatory and conductor of the Gürzenich concerts in 1884. After 1864 he appeared frequently as conductor of the Lower Rhenish Musical Festival.[2]
He died in Braunfels. Among his works are: Heinrich der Finkler, a cantata for solo, male chorus, and orchestra; additional recitatives to Weber's Oberon, accepted by many of Germany's principal theatres; Psalm 125, for chorus and orchestra; Miserere for double choir; and Stabat Mater for double choir; besides masses, motets, songs, chamber music, and pianoforte pieces.
This article is based on a translation of the article Franz Wüllner from the German Wikipedia.
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