Becher, Alfred Julius
Becher, Alfred Julius
Becher, Alfred Julius, German music critic and composer; b. Manchester, April 27, 1803; d. (executed) Vienna, Nov. 23, 1848. He was the son of a Hanau merchant and was taken to Germany as a child. He studied law in Jena, Berlin, Heidelberg, and Leiden before becoming a confirmed revolutionary. After working as a newspaper ed. and music critic, he taught at the Royal Music School in The Hague (1837–40) and at the Royal Academy of Music in London (1840–41). In 1841 he went to Vienna, where he became a well known music critic. During the Revolution of 1848, he founded the extremist journal Der Radikale but was forced into hiding. He was eventually tracked down, court-martialed for treason, and shot. Among his writings was a biography of Jenny Lind (Vienna, 1846; 2nd ed., 1847). He composed a Sym., a Fantaisie élégiaque for Violin or Cello and Orch., chamber music, piano pieces, and songs.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire