Leopold Jansa was a Bohemia

Bohemia

Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...

n violin

Violin

The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....

ist, composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

, and teacher

Teacher

A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...

.

He was born in Wildenschwert

Ústí nad Orlicí

Ústí nad Orlicí is a city in the Ústí nad Orlicí District, Pardubice Region in Eastern Bohemia in the Czech Republic. The town is in the Orlické Mountains where the Tichá Orlice and the Třebovka rivers meet....

, Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...

 (present day Ústí nad Orlicí, Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

) and died in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

. He took violin lessons as a child in his home town. He completed his education in Brünn

Brunn

Brunn or Brünn may refer to:Places* Brünn, the German form of the Czech city Brno* Brunn, Upper Palatinate, a town in Bavaria, Germany* Brunn, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, a municipality in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany...

. In 1817 he came to Vienna to study law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

. However, he soon took up composition lessons with Jan Václav Voříšek

Jan Václav Voríšek

Jan Václav Hugo Voříšek , was a Czech composer of classical music, pianist, and organist.-Life:...

 and Emanuel Förster.

He was a member of the Braunschweig orchestra

Staatsorchester Braunschweig

The Staatsorchester Braunschweig is a German orchestra. It was founded in 1587 by Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel as his court orchestra. It worked with Franz Liszt and Richard Strauss. It lost its independence as a court orchestra in 1918 and became the orchestra of the Braunschweiger...

 in 1823, while in 1824 he joined the Vienna Court Orchestra

Vienna State Opera

The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...

. In 1834, he became music director and professor at University of Vienna

University of Vienna

The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...

. From 1834 to 1850, he participated in various String quartet

String quartet

A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...

s. He took over from Ignaz Schuppanzigh

Ignaz Schuppanzigh

Ignaz Schuppanzigh November 20, 1776 – March 2, 1830, was a violinist, friend and teacher of Beethoven, and leader of Count Razumovsky's private string quartet. Schuppanzigh and his quartet premiered many of Beethoven's string quartets, and in particular, the late string quartets. The Razumovsky...

, with Karl Holz (second violin), and Joseph Linke (cello), adding Karl Traugott Queisser

Karl Traugott Queisser

Karl Traugott Queisser played trombone and viola in Germany as a member of the Gewandhaus Orchestra under Felix Mendelssohn.He was Principal Viola of the Gewandhaus Orchestra from 1820 until 1843 where he also appeared as soloist on 27 occasions...

 (viola). From 1845 to 1848 he directed quartet soirées at the hall of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde

Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde

The Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien , was founded in 1812 by Joseph von Sonnleithner, general secretary of the Court Theatre, Vienna, Austria. Its official charter, drafted in 1814, states that the purpose of the Society was to promote music in all its facets...

. In 1847-48 he taught violin at the Vienna Conservatory.

He lost his positions in Vienna as a result of his participation in a London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 concert in favour of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848

Hungarian Revolution of 1848

The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was one of many of the European Revolutions of 1848 and closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas...

. He stayed in London as a music teacher, until 1868 when he was amnestied and returned to Vienna. He resumed his previous duties in 1871.

Among his students was Wilma Neruda

Wilma Neruda

Wilma Neruda, Lady Hallé, originally Wilhelmine Maria Franziska Neruda was a Moravian violinist.-Biography:...

, later known as Lady Hallé, and Karl Goldmark

Karl Goldmark

Karl Goldmark, also known originally as Károly Goldmark and later sometimes as Carl Goldmark; May 18, 1830, Keszthely – January 2, 1915, Vienna) was a Hungarian composer.- Life and career :...

.

He composed chamber music

Chamber music

Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...

 and violin works.

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