Spohr: Violin Concertos Nos. 7 & 12

The name of Louis Spohr remains well known to violinists, brought up to play some at least of his fifteen violin concertos. He was born in Brunswick in 1784 and established himself as a leading virtuoso violinist and as a composer. As a conductor he made use of a baton, a practice unusual at the time and one that alarmed orchestral players in London, who anticipated aggressive intentions. From 1822 until his death in 1859 he was director of music at Kassel, a position initially offered him on the suggestion of Weber. His compositions include a number of works with violin and harp, written for himself and his wife, the harpist Dorette Scheidler.