Wilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski

Born on June 17, 1822, in Großleesen near Danzig, Wilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski studied at the Leipzig Conservatory after being taught first by his father. At Leipzig he learned in the circle of Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Moritz Hauptmann, and Ferdinand David, and in 1846 he joined the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra as a violinist.

In 1850, Robert Schumann brought him to Düsseldorf as concertmaster of the Städtischer Musikverein. He later worked in Bonn as a choral conductor and chamber musician, and eventually became a leading musical figure in Sondershausen, where he spent an important part of his later career as a conductor.

Wasielewski is remembered not only as a performer but also as a musicologist and author. His books include studies of Robert Schumann, Beethoven, instrumental music history, and especially the violin, with Die Violine und ihre Meister becoming one of his best-known works. He died in Sondershausen on December 13, 1896.