Felix Mendelssohn was a German composer and piano player, born on 3^rd February in 1809.  He performed in a concert for the first time when he was 9.  He wrote his first music when he was 10.  He had become very famous by the time he was a teen-ager.  Mendelssohn also conducted orchestras and demanded that they play the music perfectly.  He wanted people to know about and enjoy earlier composers, such as Bach, Beethoven and Mozart.  He believed their work could only be enjoyed if it was played perfectly.

    His music had clear melody lines, many could be sung.  It had a lot of feeling and painted pictures, just like an artist who uses paints.  He wrote more than 200 stories in music – some of the better ones being called Songs Without Words.

    Mendelssohn’s life story is one of the happier stories in music.  He played and wrote beautiful music from childhood until he died (1847).  He was appreciated through all his life.

Last modified: April 13, 2009