Louis Moreau Gottschalk (LOO-ee mor-OH   GOTT-shalk)

Born May 8, 1829 in New Orleans, Louisiana

Died December 18, 1869

Nationality: Creole American

Period/Style: Romantic period, but totally unique style!

About the composer:

Gottschalk created a musical style all his own, a style that was way ahead of its time. He was the first American composer to combine classical and popular music in a style that used Afro-Cuban and Creole rhythms and melodies. This music paved the way for ragtime (fifty years later), and (later still) jazz. He was the first American musician to be accepted by European audiences, the first American piano virtuoso to be praised by Chopin and other great composers of his day, the first Pan-American artist in any field, and the first American artist to champion political and social causes like abolitionism and public education. His father was a Jewish businessman from London and his mother was a white Creole woman whose family had fled from Haiti during the French Revolution. In the 1860’s Gottschalk was treated almost like a rock star: people couldn’t get enough of him and his music! (He was once described as the Elvis Presley of the Victorian era!)

About the music:

Gottschalk’s piano pieces vary widely in mood and style, but each one is an absolute masterpiece.  They are very complex and difficult to play, but when played well, they are extremely colorful and beautiful. Most have very descriptive titles that tell you what he was thinking about when he wrote them.  See what things come to mind as you listen.

Suggested activities:

Learn more about historic and present-day New Orleans.

Find out when the French Revolution occurred and how Haiti was involved.

Look up the words “Creole” and “abolitionism.”