Notturno II

About the Composer

Karl Borromäus von Miltitz (* November 9, 1781 in Dresden, † January 19, 1845 ibid.) was a German poet, composer and music author. His father was the royal Saxon court marshal Friedrich Siegmund von Miltitz (1735–1810) and his mother Maria Theresa, b. from and to Daun (1752–1818).

In 1797 he entered the service of the Saxon army, from 1802 in the Swiss bodyguard (1803 First Lieutenant, 1804 Capitain). In 1810 he took his leave from military service. During his military service, he dealt intensively with music and literature and studied from 1802 on composition in Dresden with Christian Ehregott Weinlig and Joseph Schuster.

On May 7, 1810, he married Auguste (Friederike) von Watzdorf (1787–1842). The couple initially lived on Gut Neukirchen at Wilsdruff (sale of the goods Neukirchen and Steinbach 1812), from 1812 on Castle Scharfenberg in Meissen.

From 1811 he had close contact with Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué, Johann August Apel and the Dresden painter Moritz Retzsch and belonged to the so-called Scharfenberger Romantikerkreis until about 1818/19. In 1822 he moved to Dresden, where his wife was the chief stewardess of the princess Amalie Auguste and from 1824 he became the chief steward of Prince Johann. Most recently, he was royally Saxon real Privy Councilor and Chamberlain. His musical oeuvre is extensive, but the least of it appeared in print. He composed operas, drama music (primarily for the Berliner Hoftheater), oratorios, church music, songs, wrote opera libretti, plays, poems and contributions to periodicals such as the Abend- Zeitung, the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung and the Caecilia. Part of his estate is stored in the Saxon State Library – State and University Library Dresden.