Franz Benda

A German composer who was born in Potsdam but ran away as a young man to Dresden where he began singing. As a chorister Franz Benda sang well and performed until his voice changed. After this he ardently studied the violin. This time in his life also brought him to composition. Nevertheless, Franz was a fine performer and instructor. It was said that his violin strains could easily be sung by the human voice and that he played with such eloquence that he could make the instrument sing. He was employed in the court of Frederick and may have in fact been a personnal friend. Franz Benda's compositions consisted of 80 violin canatas, 15 concertos and approximately 17 symphonies. The number of compositions attributed to any member of the Benda family is not exact because of a conflation of credits. ~ Keith Johnson, All Music Guide