Keyper, Franz

In his history of the Danish Royal Orchestra 1648-1848, Carl Thrane writes that Franz Keyper was born in Neurode, County Glatz, Silesia, with no date of birth suggested, but in the Danish census of 1801 he is listed as being 45 years old, with the occupation ‘Hofviolon’ (Court Musician), and 1756 as a possible year of birth is probably correct.

Thrane includes little information about Keyper’s life before he arrived in Copenhagen but does state that he was intended to be a monk and that he received much of his musical education in a monastery. After dancing at his sister’s wedding he faced punishment and fled the monastery, entering the service of a unnamed Polish nobleman.

Apparently Keyper did not enjoy working for the nobleman and preferred to tour and arrived in Copenhagen in the spring of 1788. His playing was admired and he stayed on as part of the court orchestra, where he was promoted following the death of double bassist Gottfried Schreiber.

In 1788, Keyper became a touring musician and eventually arrived in Copenhagen. He settled there and joined the court orchestra, where he contributed significantly to the repertoire for double bass.

Keyper’s compositions for double bass include seven concertos. These concertos are notable for their unique virtuosity and their adherence to classical idiom and structure. Interestingly, Keyper had an advanced understanding of the geography of an instrument tuned in fourths, and he made imaginative use of harmonics1.