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Donald Macleod explores how the young Weber survived the extreme dramas of his early years, swerving from crisis to crisis.

Weber’s relationship with European cities mirrored his life and work, from the restless wandering of his earlier years, to the way his life changed after the success of his opera Der Freischütz. And in his final months he travelled to London to compose and produce another major opera, Oberon, but would die after giving its first performances.

The young Weber had an unerring ability to cause offence. He got involved in multiple love affairs that caused him problems. He was also very good at racking up debts. These traits unfold as we follow Weber’s picaresque journeys around Europe, flitting from city to city: sometimes chasing opportunities, sometimes in disgrace, at other times escorted away under armed guard.

In this episode, Donald Macleod explores how the young Weber survived the extreme dramas of his early years, swerving from crisis to crisis. We start with the composer’s first brush with death. His apparently lifeless body is discovered in his home, after he accidentally drunk acid from a wine bottle which his father had been using for engraving.

In his work for the royal court, Weber’s goading of the king rose to such levels that he was jailed.

Socially, intellectually, romantically, these were engaging, frenetic times for the young composer, who sometimes needed reminding about his vocation. On top of everything else, Weber’s father was meddling in the composer’s affairs, with disastrous results.

Grande polonaise in E flat major, Op. 21, J59
Jean Martin, piano

Der Beherrscher der Geister (The Ruler of the Spirits), J122
Suisse Romande Orchestra
Ernest Ansermet, conductor

Clarinet Quintet in B flat major, Op. 34, J182
I. Allegro
Vienna Chamber Ensemble

Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 19, J50
I. Allegro con fuoco
II. Andante
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Wolfgang Sawallisch, conductor

Silvana:
Act I: Das Hifthorn schallt (Huntsmen's Chorus)
Act I: So soll denn dieses Herz nie Liebe finden
Alexander Spemann (Graf Rudolph von Helfenstein)
Hagen Philharmonic Orchestra
Gerhard Markson, conductor

Presented by Donald Macleod
Produced by Iain Chambers