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Carl Ignaz Anton Demmer, also known as Karl, (baptised 11 February 1766 – after 1824) was an operatic tenor at the Vienna court opera, and possibly Florestan in the first version of Beethoven's opera Fidelio on 20 November 1805, then titled Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe.Other names connected to this role and performance are Friedrich Demmer (Großes Sängerlexikon) and Joseph Demmer.
At Pentecost 1790, he moved to the troupe of J. A. Dietrich, which played mainly in the Netherlands. He met Karl Friedrich Krüger and his sister Caroline Demmer, whom he soon married.Satori-Neumann (1922), The troupe also played at the just opened .Franz Carl Weidmann: Carl Krüger. In Archiv für Geschichte, Statistik, Literatur und Kunst, No 14/15, 2/4 February 1824, , here
On 4 February 1791 Demmer and his wife came to the Weimar court theatre,Christian August Vulpius: Eine Korrespondenz zur Kulturgeschichte der Goethezeit, edited by Andreas Meier. Berlin 2003, volume 2, where both were supported by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. At Pentecost 1794, the couple appeared in Frankfurt. On 5 May Goethe's mother wrote to her son in Weimar:
On 20 December 1799, Demmer gave a concert in Frankfurt to which he invited all his patrons.Maria Belli-Gontard: Leben in Frankfurt am Main. Auszüge der Frag- und Anzeigungs-Nachrichten (des Intelligenz-Blattes). Frankfurt 1830, At the beginning of 1804, he signed a contract with the Vienna court opera, which was regretted in Frankfurt. Ueber den Zustand der Musik in Frankfurt am Mayn. In: Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung, Jg. 5, No 24, 14 March 1804, , here A review noted his "strong steady voice with a high range". On 27 February 1804, Demmer gave his farewell performance in Frankfurt in the title role of Mozart's La clemenza di Tito. A few days later he travelled via Regensburg to Vienna where he arrived with his family on 7 March.Dieter Haberl: Das Regensburgische Diarium (Intelligenzblatt) als musikhistorische Quelle. Regensburg 2012, Demmer made his debut there on 20 June 1804 at the court opera as Edwinsky in the Vienna premiere of François-Adrien Boieldieu's Die Verwiesenen auf Kamtschatka.Vienna, Theatermuseum, Zettelsammlung; cf. also Voll (1807), The Vienna correspondent of the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung gave an essentially positive review of Demmer's performance:
The Vienna correspondent of the Berlinische musikalische Zeitung edited by Johann Friedrich Reichardt wrote somewhat more sceptically:
The notice for the premiere of Beethoven's opera Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe (later revised as Fidelio), which took place on 20 November 1805 at the Theater an der Wien, then mentioned "Herr Demmer" in the role of Florestan. His partner was Anna Milder as Leonore, or Fidelio. The performance was a great failure for Beethoven, as even the protagonists were not given a good testimony: "Milder, despite her beautiful voice, had far too little affect and life for the role of Fidelio, and Demmer almost always intoned flat." The opera was performed only three times. Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, Jg. 8, No 15, 8 January 1806, Beethoven was also dissatisfied with Demmer's interpretation and replaced him with Joseph August Röckel at the premiere of the second version on 26 March 1806.H. P. Clive: Demmer in: Beethoven and His World: A Biographical Dictionary, Oxford University Press, 2001, p. 87–88,
Among Demmer's great successes was the role of Ober-Seneschall in the Boildieu's singspiel Jean de Paris, which was first performed at the Theater an der Wien on 29 August 1812. The popular Cathinka Buchwieser appeared as the Princess of Navarre, and Demmer's daughter Josefine portrayed Lorezza. Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung, Jg. 14, No 39, 23 September 1812, Curiously, his brother Christian Demmer played the same role at the same time in a production of the court theatre. Ignaz Franz Castelli writes in his memoirs:
On 14 April 1813, Demmer was registered as a court actor, living at Laimgrube No. 26. Wiener Zeitung, No. 51, 29 April 1813, Amtsblatt, On 12 April 1815, he married (at the age of 65) the 24-year-old Franziska Hofmann in .Vienna, Pfarre St. Josef zu Margareten On 1 July 1822, he retired. Catalogue of the portrait collection of the k. u. k. General-Intendanz of the K-k. Court theatre. Published at the same time with a biographical auxiliary book in the field of theatre and music, 2nd department, Gruppe IV. Vienna 1892, There is no record of him after 1824.
Demmer was the brother of the singers and actors Joseph and Christian Demmer. His nephew was the opera singer Friedrich Demmer.
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