Adalbert Michna

Adalbert Michna was born on 25 December 1847 in Brünn, then part of the Austrian Empire and today known as Brno in the Czech Republic. He studied violin at the Konservatorium der Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna from 1871 to 1873. Following the completion of his studies, he was appointed violist in the orchestra of the Vienna Court Opera in 1874, a position he held continuously throughout his professional career until his retirement in 1902.
Little information survives regarding his activities beyond his orchestral work. In 1875, newspapers reported that Michna had composed an opera titled “Der Hauptmann von der Schaarwache,” which was subsequently performed a year later by the Deutsches Landes-Theater in Prague. A second opera, “Der Alkalde,” followed in 1878 and was staged at the Graz Provincial Theatre.
Around 1885, Adalbert Michna was in contact with the author Arthur Schnitzler and assisted him in notating some of his musical ideas, as evidenced by references in Schnitzler’s correspondence.
In 1919, Michna was elected chairman of the pensioners’ association of the Vienna Court Opera orchestra.
No documented record exists of Michna’s date of death, but it appears likely that he died around 1925.

Concerto for double bass

In my possession are several autograph manuscripts of Adalbert Michna’s “Concerto for Double Bass.” The work was composed in 1896 and dedicated to the distinguished double bassist Franz Simandl, a colleague and friend of the composer during their time in the orchestra of the Vienna Court Opera. Franz Simandl is known to have performed the concerto at least twice in the same year: once in the Ehrbar-Saal in Vienna and again at a benefit concert in Frain (today: Vranov nad Dyji).
The surviving material includes an autograph piano reduction of the concerto, which is unfortunately incomplete. The first two movements are preserved in full, while the final pages of the third movement are missing. In addition, the complete solo double bass part has been preserved, along with the orchestral parts for violin I, violin II, and viola. The collection also contains two handwritten piano reductions of the second movement, copied by the double bassist Eduard Madensky.