Julian Fontana (1810, Warsaw – December 24, 1865, Paris)

Polish composer, pianist, and writer. Born in Warsaw, he studied law and music at the University of Warsaw. For composition, he was a fellow student of Chopin, who was born in the same year, and studied under Józef Elsner (1769–1854). In 1831, after the November Uprising, he moved to Hamburg, and in 1832, he relocated to Paris, where he worked as a pianist and teacher. In 1833, he traveled to England, staying there until 1837. There, he performed in concerts as a pianist (e.g., in 1835, he performed with Moscheles, Cramer, Schulz, Sowiński, and Alkan on three pianos (12 hands) manufactured by instrument maker Pape). He returned to Paris in 1837, making it his base of operations. In 1842, he traveled to the Americas, living in New York and Havana, and performing in concerts in America. In 1852, he moved to Montgeron, a suburb of Paris, where he became acquainted with Mickiewicz and joined a Polish literary circle. However, hearing loss made it difficult to continue his career as a musician, and he took his own life on Christmas Eve in 1865, in his mid-fifties.

Fontana is confirmed to have published 15 works with opus numbers during his lifetime (Opp. 1–20, with missing numbers being Opp. 3, 4, 10, 16, 19). He was not a prolific composer for a pianist-composer. The fact that he did not publish until his thirties suggests that he did not prioritize his career as a composer; however, his works are written with a pianist's technical understanding, accurate harmony, and clear form. The genres he explored can be broadly categorized into character pieces, brilliant concert pieces based on operatic themes, etudes, and dances. Character pieces include Marche funèbre, Op. 1; Élégie, Op. 7; Ballade, Op. 17; and Nocturne, Op. 20. Works based on operatic themes include Grande fantaisie brillante sur des motifs de l'opéra Der Freischütz de Weber, Op. 6; and Grande fantaisie brillante sur des motifs de l'opéra La sonnambula de Bellini, Op. 14. Etudes include 12 Études de caractère, Op. 9. Dances include waltzes (Opp. 11, 13), mazurkas (Op. 15, etc.), polkas (Op. 19), and fantasies incorporating Cuban dance rhythms (Opp. 10, 12).

As a music editor, Fontana dedicated much time to publishing Chopin's works at the latter's request. Chopin's early works (Opp. 1, 3, 5, 10, 11), published by Wessel & Co., were edited by Fontana with fingerings during his time in England. Furthermore, his important work includes the publication of Chopin's posthumous works (Opp. 66–77, published 1855–59) by Schlesinger in Paris. In addition, for approximately 80 of Chopin's works, Fontana undertook the effort of mediating with publishers and preparing fair copies (the handwriting of both men is remarkably similar). Chopin expressed his friendship and gratitude to Fontana by dedicating his Two Polonaises, Op. 40 (1840), to him.

As a writer, Fontana contributed articles on Polish orthography, folk astronomy, and political topics to magazines.

References

• Anonyme, « Nouvelles », Gazette musicale de Paris, 2e année, 7 juin, no 22, p. 187.
• New Grove Online