Louis Dulcken
fortepianobouwer van Eugène de Beauharnais
Die verstorbene Kaiserin Josphine von Frankreich kaufte bey ihrer Anwesenheit zu München zwei Fortepiano’s von Hrn. Dülken, und bestellte kurz darauf noch ein drittes, mit welchem man in Paris so sehr zufrieden war, daß es deselbst längere Zeit offentlich ausgestellt wurde. Auch nach St. Petersburg ist vor kurzem ein Dülckenisches Instrument gegangen, das dort allgemeinen Beyfall erhielt.
The late Empress Josephine of France bought two fortepianos from Mr Dülken when she was in Munich, and shortly afterwards ordered a third, which was so well received in Paris that it was exhibited there for some time. A Dülcken instrument also recently travelled to St. Petersburg, where it received general acclaim.
De overleden keizerin Joséphine van Frankrijk kocht tijdens haar verblijf in München twee fortepiano’s van de heer Dülken en bestelde kort daarna nog een derde, waar men in Parijs zo tevreden over was dat het daar geruime tijd openbaar werd tentoongesteld. Ook is onlangs een instrument van Dülken naar Sint-Petersburg gegaan, dat daar alom bijval oogstte.
Nadat Vogler van 1780 tot 1805 bijna onafgebroken had gereisd en overal buitengewone bijval, roem en eer had verworven door zijn uitmuntende enkelvoudige orgelspel, zijn diep inzicht in de muziek en zijn prachtige composities, kwam hij in het laatste jaar 1805 naar München. Hier had hij de grote eer om zijn grote heroïsche opera Castore e Polluce, vroeger gecomponeerd voor dit hof en uitgevoerd met buitengewone bijval in 1786 en 1787, te laten uitvoeren in aanwezigheid van de keizer van de Fransen en koning van Italië Napoleon, toen van het Koninklijk Beierse Hof, ter gelegenheid van de ceremoniële opening van het hoffeest. Het werd opgevoerd in het Koninklijk Hof Theater in München op 15 januari 1806 ter gelegenheid van het ceremoniële huwelijk van de Koninklijke Beierse Prinses Augusta met de onderkoning van Italië, Eugene Napoleon.
Having travelled almost without interruption from 1780 to 1805, and having garnered extraordinary acclaim, fame and honour everywhere he went thanks to his superb solo organ playing, his profound understanding of music and his magnificent compositions, Vogler arrived in Munich in the final year of 1805. Here he had the great honour of having his grand heroic opera *Castore e Polluce* – previously composed for this court and performed to great acclaim in 1786 and 1787 – staged in the presence of Napoleon, Emperor of the French and King of Italy, then a guest of the Royal Bavarian Court, on the occasion of the ceremonial opening of the court festival. It was staged at the Royal Court Theatre in Munich on 15 January 1806 to mark the ceremonial marriage of the Royal Bavarian Princess Augusta to the Viceroy of Italy, Eugene Napoleon.
Born in 1781, Eugène de Beauharnais became aide-de-camp to his stepfather Bonaparte in 1797. He served in Egypt and at the Battle of Marengo and pursued a distinguished military career before being named Viceroy of Italy, a daunting task which he fulfilled to the best of his abilities and the relative freedom given to him by the Emperor. Officially adopted by Napoleon in 1806, he married the daughter of the King of Bavaria, Augusta Amalia. Their marriage was a happy one and they had six children.
Highly decorated during the Russian campaign, his loyalty to the Emperor earned him the respect of his contemporaries and proved him worthy of the motto he had adopted: "Honour and loyalty". After Waterloo he fled to Munich where his father-in-law named him Duke of Leuchtenberg, and devoted himself to his properties. Eugène remained the close friend and confidant of his sister Hortense, who he visited at her retreat in Arenenberg, but he died prematurely in Munich where he was buried in 1824. One of his daughters, Joséphine de Leuchtenberg, married the Swedish Prince Oscar Bernadotte who ruled from 1844 to 1859. She thus founded the lineage of sovereigns of Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Belgium and Luxembourg.
Hortense de Beauharnais songs - Sister of Eugene de Beauharnais
Douze romances : mises en musique et dédiées au Prince Eugène / par sa soeur [Hortense, Königin der Niederlande. Mit 12 Lithogr. von Charles Louis Constans]- BLB
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