27^e année, 30 mars 2026.

Felix Mendelssohn and posterity’ attached

13th-14th November 2026 Online (Leipzig / Dresden)

Submissions by 15th April, 2026.

If you are interested, please contact us at the email address.

Susanne Claus, Luca Galbiati, Michael Heinemann (Dresden University of Music), Keynotes: Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Helmut Loos, Leipzig University; Prof. Roberto Prosseda, Rivigo

The reception of Felix Mendelssohn's works during his lifetime was intense and extensive, even if it was not always positive. His compositions were considered to be an expression of melody-oriented Romanticism, characterised by an attitude to life that conveyed a sense of security and beautiful sound, which found less and less appeal in an era of heroic myths in music dramas and symphonic poetry. Although Mendelssohn himself created exemplary tone poems with his concert overtures ‘The Fair Melusine’ (Op. 32), ‘Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt’ (op. 27) and ‘A Midsummer Night's Dream’ (op. 21), these are not comparable to the compositions of Wagner and Liszt in terms of their sound experience. What distinguished him from other composers of the 19th century was the integration of numerous heterogeneous traditions into his oeuvre. This strong reference to intellectual impulses from other eras led to accusations that he was an epigone, even a plagiarist, which was accompanied early on by anti-Semitic stereotypes. This doubt about his style-defining work then led to breaks in the reception of his music in the second half of the 19th century.

On the other hand, Mendelssohn is firmly anchored in cultural memory and in the musical canon through a number of works, such as A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 61, the Octet, Op. 20, and the Violin Concerto, Op. 64.

His origins, his worldview and his religious commitment to Christianity polarised the acceptance of his music in Germany, not only between 1933 and 1945.

Whether Mendelssohn's conversion had an influence on the reception of his works, the acceptance and quantity of performances of his music, is of particular interest to the symposium. The University of Music in Leipzig (since 1972) and the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia (1874) bear his name. The Leipzig edition of Mendelssohn's works (LMA) was the catalyst for widespread reception and research. Although it is not yet complete, it has already made a significant contribution to making his works, letters, diaries, drawings, watercolours and other documents accessible and available for research.

Current editions of his compositions contain not only critical notes on the sources, but also notes on interpretation. In addition, there is an almost overwhelming number of recordings on vinyl, CD and the internet, as well as documentaries and reports on selected compositions and his work as a whole.

One desideratum of research is the different reception of Mendelssohn's music worldwide: for example, the first Mendelssohn monument was erected in London (in 1860) and not in Leipzig or Berlin, the main locations of his life and work. Even in America, Mendelssohn was already around the middle of the 19th century.

Even in America, Mendelssohn was no stranger in the mid-19th century, as his songs and oratorios had already been brought to a wide audience between 1850 and 1852 through Jenny Lind's tour of the United States.

The aim of the online symposium is to record the reception of Mendelssohn's works and to discuss the significance of his compositions for contemporary musical life.

Topics of the symposium:

Reception of Mendelssohn in Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Israel, Colombia, Latvia, the Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland and the USA

The complete edition of Mendelssohn's works at the Saxon Academy of Sciences in Leipzig

Publishing programmes/publications of Mendelssohn's compositions in the past and present at Breitkopf & Härtel

Mendelssohn in the correspondence of friends and family

Mendelssohn monuments in London, Leipzig and Düsseldorf

Mendelssohn's evergreens: melodies that became hits and, in some cases, were given new lyrics, such as the English Christmas hymn ‘Hark! The herald angels sing’ based on the chorale ‘Vaterland in Deinen Gauen’ from the cantata for the Gutenberg Festival in 1840

Mendelssohn as the initiator of the Leipzig Conservatory and a pioneer of higher education in Germany

In Mendelssohn's name: music institutes, societies and clubs named after him (from Leipzig/HMT to the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia...)

Mendelssohn museums in Leipzig and Berlin

Mendelssohn archive at the Berlin State Library

Mendelssohn collection in Oxford.

Musicologie.org, 56 rue de la Fédération, 93100 Montreuil. ☎ 06 06 61 73 41.

ISSN 2269-9910.

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Lundi 30 Mars, 2026