Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic era. Born in Hamburg and raised in Berlin, he wrote the String Octet at 16 and the overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream at 17, and he went on to write the Italian and Scottish symphonies, the Violin Concerto and the oratorio Elijah.
He packed a huge amount into 38 years. Here are 10 facts about his life, from his privileged childhood to the revival of Bach and his many trips to Britain.
The short version
Mendelssohn was a wealthy child prodigy who wrote 13 string symphonies by 14, brought Bach’s St Matthew Passion back to life at 20 and wrote The Hebrides after a trip to Scotland, one of ten visits he made to Britain.
1. He Was Born Into A Wealthy Family
1809 · Hamburg and Berlin
Mendelssohn’s grandfather was the Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, and his father, Abraham, was a banker. In 1811 the family left Hamburg in disguise, fearing French reprisals because the Mendelssohn bank had helped break Napoleon’s blockade, and settled in Berlin.
Their Berlin home was a meeting place for writers, scientists and musicians, and the children got the best education money could buy. As a teenager, Felix could hear his new works played at home by a private orchestra for his parents’ guests. His parents were careful, though, not to cash in on his talent.
Related: 15 of the greatest German composers
2. Queen Victoria Was A Huge Fan
1842 to 1847 · Buckingham Palace
Start with: “Italien (by Fanny Mendelssohn)”
Mendelssohn met Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, himself a composer, on his later visits to Britain, and both admired his music greatly. When he died in 1847, Victoria wrote in her journal that he was “the greatest musical genius since Mozart, and the most amiable man”.
Their meetings had one awkward moment. In 1842, at Buckingham Palace, the Queen offered to sing him her favorite of his songs, “Italien”. Felix had to confess that it was actually by his sister Fanny, whose early songs had been published under his name.
Listen on SpotifyApple MusicRelated: 10 interesting facts about Fanny Mendelssohn
3. He Was Gifted At Far More Than Music
Languages, literature and painting
Mendelssohn’s education went well beyond music. He studied art, literature, languages and philosophy, and at 16 he translated the Roman playwright Terence’s comedy Andria into German. His tutor was so impressed that he had it published in 1826.
He was also a keen artist who drew in pencil and painted watercolors all his life, and many of his pictures survive. His letters, written with real wit in German and English, were often decorated with funny sketches and cartoons.
4. He Led A Settled Family Life
1837 · Married Cécile Jeanrenaud
Unlike the stereotype of the wild Romantic artist, Mendelssohn lived a stable, respectable life. In 1837 he married Cécile Jeanrenaud, the daughter of a French Reformed Church clergyman, and by all accounts the marriage was a happy one.
The couple had five children: Carl, Marie, Paul, Lili and Felix August. Their marriage lasted only ten years, ending with Felix’s death in 1847. Cécile died less than six years later, in 1853.
5. He Revived Bach’s St Matthew Passion
1829 · Berlin Singakademie
Age 20
In 1829, at just 20, Mendelssohn conducted Bach’s St Matthew Passion in Berlin with the Singakademie, helped by the actor Eduard Devrient. His grandmother had given him a copy of the manuscript four years earlier, when the work was almost forgotten. It was one of very few performances since Bach’s death and the first ever outside Leipzig.
The concert was a sensation and became the central event in the revival of Bach’s music across Germany and then Europe. Mendelssohn himself remarked that it took “an actor and a Jew’s son to revive the greatest Christian music for the world”. He later led a similar revival of Handel’s oratorios in Germany.
Listen on SpotifyApple MusicRelated: 13 interesting facts about Bach
6. He Was Raised Without Religion And Baptized At Seven
1816 · Berlin
Abraham Mendelssohn had given up the Jewish religion before Felix was born, and he and his wife decided against having their son circumcised. The children grew up without religious teaching until 1816, when they were baptized as Reformed Protestants at home in Berlin. Felix was given the extra names Jakob Ludwig at the same time.
The family also took the surname Mendelssohn Bartholdy, borrowed from Lea Mendelssohn’s brother. Abraham saw it as a clean break with his father’s faith, but Fanny wrote of “this name that we all dislike”. Out of respect for his father, Felix signed his letters “Mendelssohn Bartholdy”, though he would not drop the name Mendelssohn altogether, as Abraham had asked.
7. He Loved Great Britain
1829 to 1847 · Ten visits
Start with: “The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave)”Ten visits
Mendelssohn made ten visits to Britain, starting in 1829, and many of his major works had their premieres there. On his first trip he visited Fingal’s Cave on the Hebridean island of Staffa and was so struck that he jotted down the opening of a new overture in a letter home that same evening. The result was The Hebrides (1830).
Scotland also inspired his Scottish Symphony, and his oratorio Elijah was written for the Birmingham Festival, where it premiered in 1846. He edited Handel’s oratorios and Bach’s organ music for British publishers, and on his last visit in 1847 he conducted his Scottish Symphony for the Queen and Prince Albert.
8. Bach, Mozart And Beethoven Inspired Him
1821 to 1823 · 13 string symphonies
Start with: “String Symphony No. 10 in B minor”13 string symphonies by 14
Mendelssohn started piano lessons with his mother at six and from 1819 studied composition with Carl Friedrich Zelter in Berlin. Between the ages of 12 and 14 he wrote 13 string symphonies for the family’s home concerts, and you can hear Bach, C. P. E. Bach, Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven in them.
His first published work, a piano quartet, appeared when he was 13. At 16 he wrote the String Octet, often seen as the start of his mature style, and a year later the overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Both are still among the most famous pieces ever written by a teenager.
Listen on SpotifyApple MusicRelated: 18 interesting facts about Mozart
9. Antisemitism Dimmed His Star After His Death
1850 to 1945 · Wagner and the Nazis
Three years after Mendelssohn died, Richard Wagner attacked him in an anti-Jewish pamphlet, Das Judenthum in der Musik (1850), praising his talent while claiming his music lacked real depth. Changing tastes and antisemitism kept his reputation low for decades in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Under the Nazis his music was banned because of his Jewish origins, and other composers, including Carl Orff, were asked to write new music for A Midsummer Night’s Dream. His monument in Leipzig was removed in 1936, and a replacement went up in 2008. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era.
10. He Died Young, Months After His Sister Fanny
1847 · Leipzig
Mendelssohn’s health was poor in his last years, made worse by overwork, and a final tour of England in 1847 left him exhausted. Then, on May 14, 1847, his sister Fanny died. The two had shared their musical education and stayed close all their lives, and her death caused him great distress.
Less than six months later, on November 4, 1847, he died in Leipzig after a series of strokes, aged 38. Strokes ran in the family: his grandfather Moses, Fanny and both of his parents had died the same way. In 1843 he had founded the Leipzig Conservatory, which still bears his name.
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Summing up
Mendelssohn lived only 38 years, but in that time he wrote some of the best-loved music of the Romantic era, brought Bach back into the concert hall and founded a conservatory that still bears his name. His reputation survived Wagner’s attacks and the Nazi ban, and his music is as popular as ever.
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