Art greeting card "Cat Symphony" (Moritz von Schwind)
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- Wonderful greeting card with the art motif "Cat Symphony" (1868) by Moritz von Schwind (1804 - 1871)
- Printed in Switzerland
- Format: 12 x 17.5 cm
- Inside pages blank for your personal message
- Includes white envelope
Background information on Moritz von Schwind and his cat symphony
Moritz von Schwind was an Austrian painter and draftsman of the 19th century.
The Cat Symphony, one of his best-known hand drawings, is a humorous depiction of a melody for violins in which numerous cats move across the paper instead of notes.
The composition can be interpreted as a caricaturing swipe at the music of Richard Wagner, which the artist did not particularly appreciate. Schwind gave the sheet as a gift to one of his friends, the violinist Joseph Joachim. The reason for the gift was Joachim's appointment as director of the Berlin University of Music. Schwind sent a letter and a photo of the drawing to Eduard Mörike on January 19, 1869. It says:
“I became a musician, a future musician of the second highest degree. Away with the old, stiff, dry grading system! Outdated, overcome, dismissed stuff - I need a new, spiritual, lively means of expression for my new, unexpected thoughts - whether it's sounds, images or the devil knows what, that doesn't matter - I've achieved the incredible. Enclosed, Mr. The sonata dedicated to Joachim is a telling proof. He confesses that he is unable to play it - that warlock on the violin! By the way, it should be noted that Joachim and I belong to the famous Order of the Black Cat and it was this inconspicuous occasion that brought about this giant step in music."
Source: Kunsthalle Karlsruhe
