Friedrich Wilhelm Berner

Full biography Friedrich Wilhelm Berner

Friedrich Wilhelm Berner was a German composer, teacher, organist, and writer on music theory who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was born on March 16, 1780, and died on May 9, 1827. Berner studied at the Berlin Singakademie, where he became a teacher in 1804, and at the Lauchstädt court theater. He was appointed organist at the Reformed Church in Magdeburg in 1807. In 1810, he became the director of music at the Berlin Sophienschule, where he taught music theory and composition. In 1815, he helped organize and then led the Royal Academic Institute of Church Music in Berlin.

Berner was particularly known for his work in choral music , and he wrote several church cantatas, as well as masses, motets, and other works. His music is characterized by its formal clarity, lively rhythms, and strong melodic themes. He also wrote extensively on music theory, publishing several treatises on counterpoint and harmony.

In addition to his work as a composer and scholar, Berner was also a renowned organist. He is known to have played for the composer Carl Maria von Weber , and is credited with introducing Weber to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Berner died on May 9, 1827, in Berlin, leaving behind a legacy of music and scholarship that continued to influence composers and musicians for many years to come.