Josep Anselm Clavé

Biography

Josep Anselm Clavé i Camps (21 April 1824 – 24 February 1874) also known as José Anselmo Clavé, was a Catalan politician, composer and writer, founder of the choral movement in Catalonia and a promoter of the associative movement.

He was the initiator of choral singing in Catalonia. His first experiences in the musical field were marked by the plight of his family. Clavé was forced to earn a living by singing for coffee in taverns accompanied by a guitar, when he was 17 years old. The contact with the workers, gathering in those places, led him to take them out from the taverns and meet them in choral societies. He acquired notions of violin, flute and music theory, which allowed him to compose lyrics and music for songs. In 1845 he organized Aurora, a choral society that would later become La Fraternitat (The Fraternity), a society of mutual help and the first Iberian chorale. In 1857, Clavé renamed it Euterpe. The Euterpenses societies, spread throughout Catalonia and the Valencian Country were the origin of the Cors de Clavé.

As a politician, he was an early supporter of Abdó Terrades and Narcís Monturiol. In 1843 he took part in a revolt against General Espartero and in 1845 was detained in the Citadel of Barcelona. During the Progressive biennium (1854–1856) he was involved in politics, but the repression of 1856 confined him to prison in Mahón and Palma. He was elected President of the Provincial Council of Barcelona during the reign of Amadeu I in 1873. In the same year he became a Member of the Cortes Constituentes and civil governor of Castelló de la Plana and Tarragona. He retired from public life after the coup of General Pavía.

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