Elector of Bavaria Maximilian III Joseph

Maximilian III Joseph, Elector of Bavaria, was born and died in Munich, in 1727 and 1777 respectively. He belonged to the ruling House of Bavaria and is remembered above all for sustaining the musical life of the Munich court during his reign, which began in 1747.

He was the younger brother of Princess Maria Antonia Walpurgis, also a composer. He received lessons from Francesco Peli from about 1734 until about 1737, although the exact date on which they ended is not known with certainty. He played several instruments, including the violin, viola, cello and piano, but he excelled especially on the viola da gamba. From 1753 he studied composition with Andrea Bernasconi.

As a patron, he promoted both chamber music and opera. At court, comic carnival operas by Bernasconi, J. W. Michl, Sacchini, P. P. Sales and Traetta were premiered, and in 1775 Mozart's La finta giardiniera was given its premiere there.

His most highly regarded work, a Stabat mater, together with four concertos, was published in Verona in 1765–1766 at the instigation of J. C. dall'Abaco. Much of his manuscript output survives, although several pieces, such as a litany and some sonatas, were lost during the Second World War.