Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, mit besonderer Rücksicht auf den österreichischen Kaiserstaat

One of the first nineteenth-century Viennese music periodicals, the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, mit besonderer Rüksicht auf den österreichischen Kaiserstadt [AMO] was the successor to the Wiener allgemeine musikalische Zeitung (1813). The AMO contributed to developing great interest in music and musical life, and fostered the creation of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde. Three writers are identified as editors-in-chief of the journal: the brothers Joseph (a dramatist and librettist) and Ignaz (a pupil of Mozart and friend of Beethoven) von Seyfried, and Friedrich August Kanne (a music teacher and composer).

A major portion of each issue is devoted to reviews of contemporary operatic performances and concerts. The most extensively discussed composers are Beethoven and Rossini. Reviews of new compositions often contained analyses of works both by established composers such as Beethoven and by lesser-known Viennese musicians. Contributors included the composer and conductor Ignaz von Mosel, the theorist Gottfried Weber, and Christian Friedrich Michaelis, a professor of metaphysics and aesthetics at the university in Leipzig. Regular correspondents report from Italian cities (Venice, Milan and Bologna), Munich and Paris.

Eduard Hanslick had high regard for the journal and its predecessor, and, François-Joseph Fétis stated that the journal’s articles were written with both knowledge and talent.