Jan Št'astný

Jan (František) Št'astný was a Czech composer and cellist born in Prague around 1764, whose date of death is unknown, although it is known that he remained active after 1826. Like his elder brother Bernard, he belonged to the orchestra of the Prague theatre, and his profile is recognised above all for his skill on the cello and for his work as a teacher.

His itinerant career took him first to Mainz, where he worked as a cellist between 1789 and 1797, and then to Frankfurt, by the second decade of the nineteenth century. He later became musical director in Nuremberg, from where he moved to Mannheim in 1826. It seems he may also have visited Paris and London, although this is not known with certainty, as it is a possibility without documentation to confirm it.

His catalogue includes duets for two cellos, sonatas, divertimentos and collections of pedagogical pieces, published in cities such as Offenbach, Bonn, Leipzig and London. Some of his works are dedicated to pupils of the Paris Conservatoire and to English dedicatees. His importance lies in this pedagogical output and in his repertoire for the cello, which circulated among amateurs and students across Europe in his time.