Felix Mendelssohn

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy , |group=n}} (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, Ludwig) Felix Mendelssohn as the entry title, with "Mendelssohn" used in the body text. In German and some other languages the surname "Mendelssohn Bartholdy" (sometimes hyphenated) is generally used.|group=n}} was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonies, concertos, piano music, organ music and chamber music. His best-known works include the overture and incidental music for ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' (which includes his "Wedding March"), the ''Italian Symphony'', the ''Scottish Symphony'', the oratorio ''St. Paul'', the oratorio ''Elijah'', the overture ''The Hebrides'', the mature Violin Concerto, the String Octet, and the melody used in the Christmas carol "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing". Mendelssohn's ''Songs Without Words'' are his most famous solo piano compositions.

Mendelssohn's grandfather was the renowned Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, but Felix was initially raised without religion until he was baptised aged seven into the Reformed Christian church. He was recognised early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his talent. His sister Fanny Mendelssohn received a similar musical education and was a talented composer and pianist in her own right; some of her early songs were published under her brother's name and her ''Easter Sonata'' was for a time mistakenly attributed to him after being lost and rediscovered in the 1970s.

Mendelssohn enjoyed early success in Germany, and revived interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, notably with his performance of the ''St Matthew Passion'' in 1829. He became well received in his travels throughout Europe as a composer, conductor and soloist; his ten visits to Britain – during which many of his major works were premiered – form an important part of his adult career. His essentially conservative musical tastes set him apart from more adventurous musical contemporaries such as Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner, Charles-Valentin Alkan and Hector Berlioz. The Leipzig Conservatory,, website of the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Leipzig, retrieved 26 January 2019. English-language Mendelssohn authorities, for example R. Larry Todd and Erich Werner, refer to it as the Leipzig Conservatory.|group=n}} which he founded, became a bastion of this anti-radical outlook. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and antisemitism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, his creative originality has been re-evaluated. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era. Provided by Wikipedia