Vijftiende Niederrheinisches Musikfest onder leiding van Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy te Dusseldorf 1833

Editor: Here we have a bronze relief from 1833 by Gottfried Bernhard Loos, commemorating the Fifteenth Niederrheinisches Music Festival. The solemnity is striking, isn't it? The scene is so still, the figures so serene, as though they've been frozen in a moment of profound respect for music. How do you interpret this work? Curator: I feel the pull of classical allegories, spun from the threads of a nascent Neoclassicism. Note how Loos positions musical genius as almost a supplicant before divine inspiration – the figure with the laurel wreath – a common theme in commemorating great achievements. It makes me wonder, what was it about this particular festival, do you think, that demanded such grand treatment? Editor: The text around the edge indicates that the festival was led by Felix Mendelssohn. Perhaps they wanted to honor his role? Curator: Precisely! See the other side, with its circular inscription framed by a laurel wreath. I think it all boils down to the urge to elevate the contemporary—Mendelssohn, in this instance—by associating him with the enduring power and influence of the classical masters whose names also adorn the piece: Haydn, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven. Who, if anyone, from our time would make it on such a pantheon? Editor: Hmm, interesting question! This makes you think about who we consider great today, doesn't it? It highlights how reputations evolve and are shaped over time. I really learned a lot from you, thank you. Curator: And from you! Thinking aloud together like this always reframes my own seeing. That's the beauty of art, always reflecting back different perspectives.