José Kessel

Dutch musician and composer

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José Kessels

Born|

Pieter Jozef Frans Kessels

(1856-10-31)October 31, 1856

Heerlen, Netherlands

Died| February 10, 1928(1928-02-10) (aged 71)

Santa Ana, El Salvador

Burial place| Cementerio Santa Isabel
Nationality| Dutch

José Kessels (31 October 1856 – 10 February 1928), born Pieter Jozef Frans Kessels, was a Dutch musician and composer who settled and worked in El Salvador. He is known for having been the teacher of various Salvadoran composers, notably David Granadino. A memorial and park in the central square of Santa Ana, El Salvador is dedicated to him.

## Life and career[edit]

Kessels was born on 31 October 1856 to Pieter Jozef Kessels and Maria Catharina Wetzels in Heerlen, Netherlands.[1] He emigrated to Central America and in the city of Santa Ana, El Salvador, he married Concepción Morán, a native of Chalchuapa, with whom he had several children.[2][3][4][5][6]

On 4 October 1913, the Sociedad Musical Kessels was founded in the town of Concepción de Ataco with the objective of promoting its members advancement in musical art through the establishment of studies under the direction of a competent teacher.[7] He would become the composition teacher to Salvadoran composers David Granadino and Ciriaco de Jesus Alas.[8][9] Also in the 1900s, Kessels was the director of the Banda Marcial of Santa Ana, which would often play in the city's parks.[10]

He died in Santa Ana on 10 October 1928; he is buried in the Cementerio General Santa Isabel.[11]

## Legacy[edit]

Salvadoran poet Alfonso Espino, father of poet Alfredo Espino, dedicated two poems (Monólogo de la música and Al artista José Kessels en la muerte de su hijo amado) in his 1919 anthology, Mármoles y bronces, to Kessels.[12][13]

In the 1960s, the Junta de Progreso Local made a monument with Kessels' bust in a park adjacent to the theater of Santa Ana and facing another monument with the bust of his student, David Granadino; this has become one of the emblematic monuments in the city of Santa Ana.[8][14][15]

## References[edit]

1. ^ Genealogie, Coret. "Geboorte Pieter Jozef Frans Kessels op 30 oktober 1856 te Heerlen". Open Archieven (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 May 2020.
2. ^ Libro de nacimientos de 1904 (in Spanish). Santa Ana, El Salvador: Alcaldía Municipal de Santa Ana. 1904. pp. 365–366.
3. ^ Libro de nacimientos de 1906 (in Spanish). Santa Ana, El Salvador: Alcaldía Municipal de Santa Ana. 1906. p. 198.
4. ^ Libro de nacimientos de 1908 (in Spanish). Santa Ana, El Salvador: Alcaldía Municipal de Santa Ana. 1908. p. 227.
5. ^ Libro de nacimientos de 1910 (in Spanish). Santa Ana, El Salvador: Alcaldía Municipal de Santa Ana. 1910. p. 269.
6. ^ Libro de nacimientos de 1912 (in Spanish). Santa Ana, El Salvador: Alcaldía Municipal de Santa Ana. 1912. p. 252.
7. ^ "Estatutos de la Sociedad Musical "Kessels," fundada en la Villa de Concepción de Ataco" (PDF). Diario Oficial. No. Tomo 76 Número 7. San Salvador. 9 January 1914. p. 73. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
8. ^ a b Cuéllar, Roberto; Avilés, Eder. "Fotoreportaje – EL NOMBRE DE LA LÁPIDA". Redacción periodística.
9. ^ Furman Schleifer, Martha; Galván, Gary (28 January 2016). Latin American Classical Composers: A Biographical Dictionary (3 ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. p. 12. Retrieved 20 May 2020. "Alas, Ciriaco Jesús, Salvadoran composer and conductor; b. 7 Apr 1866, Santa Tecla, El Salvador; d. 1952, Sonsonate, El Salvador. After taking music lessons at the Liceo de San Luis, El Salvador, under Juan Daniel Alas, he studied violin with Rafael Oledo, and composition with Juan Aberle and José Kessels."
10. ^ Barberena, Santiago Ignacio (1910). Monografías departamentales: Santa Ana (in Spanish). San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta La República. p. 23.
11. ^ Marroquín Gálvez, Ricardo Ernesto (2014). "Historia del Cementerio General Santa Isabel: personajes ilustres, infraestructura y sucesos trascendentales como valor patrimonial y cultural del municipio de Santa Ana" (PDF). Anuario de Investigación. El Salvador: Facultad de Ciencias y Humanidades, Universidad Católica de El Salvador: 32. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
12. ^ Espino, Alfonso (1919). "Marmoles y bronces" (in Spanish). San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional. `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
13. ^ Espino, Alfonso (1919). Mármoles y bronces (in Spanish). San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional. pp. 17, 122.
14. ^ "Los monumentos santanecos más emblemáticos". La Prensa Gráfica (in Spanish). 2016-06-24. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
15. ^ "Santa Ana se protege en caso de guerra : 18 de junio 2004". archivo.elsalvador.com (in Spanish). 2004-06-18. Retrieved 2023-03-21.