Francesc Andreví
Who was Francesc Andreví?
Spanish composer
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Francesc Andreví (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Francesc Andreví i Castellar (7 November 1786 – 23 November 1853) was a Catalan composer with Italian roots, born in Sanaüja. He was active in Spain, France, and the Iberian religious music scene during a particularly turbulent era in European history. He is mainly remembered for his extensive church compositions and was a highly regarded chapelmaster, working at some of the top religious institutions of his time. His works, which include masses, motets, lamentations, and other sacred music, are part of the late Classical and early Romantic music traditions in the Iberian Peninsula.
Andreví started learning music at eight in La Seu d'Urgell. By fifteen, he moved to Barcelona to study organ with P. Quintana at the Convent of Carmen and composition with Reverend Francisco Queralt, chapelmaster of the cathedral. He later became an organist at the Convent of the Teresians and then at the Convent of the Magdalene. In 1806, he won the chapelmaster position at Tarifa Cathedral, but the Napoleonic Wars stopped him from taking the job. At twenty-one, he became the chapelmaster at Segorbe Cathedral, took holy orders there, and stayed for about five years.
From 1814 to 1819, Andreví was the chapelmaster at Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona, one of the city's most famous Gothic churches. He later held similar roles at the cathedrals of Sogorb, Valencia, and Seville. In 1831, he won a contest against Francisco José Olivares and Hilarión Eslava for the prestigious chapelmaster role at the Royal Chapel in Madrid. He stayed until 1836, resigning due to disputes with some musicians. Mariano Rodríguez de Ledesma took over after he left.
After Madrid, Andreví moved to France, becoming the chapelmaster at the Cathedral of Saint-André in Bordeaux starting in 1836. By 1845, he was temporarily living in Paris. He returned to Barcelona in 1850 to become chapelmaster at the Església de la Mercè, a role he held until his death on 23 November 1853. In his later years, he also taught future Catalan musicians like Josep Reventós i Truch and Esteve Tusquets i Maignon, who both went on to have successful careers. He died in Barcelona.
Before Fame
Andreví was born in 1786 in the small town of Sanaüja, Catalonia. At that time, the Catholic Church was a major supporter of music in Spain. In Catalonia, churches had a long history of choral and organ music, offering boys from modest backgrounds the chance to receive musical training through cathedral schools and convents. Andreví joined this environment at eight years old when he started his studies in La Seu d'Urgell, a city known for its musical tradition.
When he moved to Barcelona at fifteen, he connected with some of Catalonia's top church musicians, including Francisco Queralt, who helped him develop his composing skills. Spanish cathedrals used a competitive exam system called oposiciones to choose chapelmasters, which was the main way to gain recognition. Andreví successfully navigated this system, earning his first major appointment at Tarifa in 1806. His repeated success in these tough competitions helped him build his reputation across the Iberian Peninsula.
Key Achievements
- Appointed chapelmaster at the Royal Chapel in Madrid in 1831 after winning a competitive examination against Francisco José Olivares and Hilarión Eslava
- Served as chapelmaster at multiple major Iberian cathedrals, including Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona, Segorbe, Valencia, and Seville
- Held the post of chapelmaster at the Cathedral of Saint-André in Bordeaux, establishing a rare Spanish presence in a major French religious institution
- Composed an extensive body of sacred music including six masses, three Stabat Mater settings, fifteen motets, and nine Lamentations
- Trained a subsequent generation of Catalan composers, including Josep Reventós i Truch and Esteve Tusquets i Maignon
Did You Know?
- 01.Andreví won the chapelmaster post at the Madrid Royal Chapel in 1831 by defeating two other notable composers in open competition, including the young Hilarión Eslava, who would later become one of Spain's most celebrated nineteenth-century musicians.
- 02.He was appointed chapelmaster at Tarifa Cathedral in 1806 through competitive examination but was never able to take up the position because the Peninsular War with France disrupted normal institutional life throughout Spain.
- 03.After leaving Madrid in 1836 following a dispute with chapel musicians, Andreví spent nearly fourteen years in France, serving the Cathedral of Saint-André in Bordeaux before residing in Paris, making him one of the few Spanish chapelmasters of his era to hold a major French cathedral post.
- 04.A significant portion of what is believed to be Andreví's personal musical archive is preserved at the Local Historical Registry of Cervera, suggesting he maintained strong ties to his Catalan homeland throughout his life.
- 05.His known surviving compositions include six masses, one Requiem mass, three settings of the Stabat Mater, fifteen motets, nine Lamentations, and at least one Tantum Ergo, many of which survive in manuscript at the Església de la Mercè in Barcelona.