Franz Ignaz Beck (20 February 1734 – 31 December 1809) was a German violinist, composer, conductor and music teacher who spent the greater part of his life in France, where he became director of the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux.

[1] Possibly the most talented pupil of Johann Stamitz, Beck is an important representative of the second generation of the so-called Mannheim school.

He was one of the first composers to introduce the regular use of wind instruments in slow movements and put an increasing emphasis on thematic development.

His taut, dramatic style is also remarkable for its employment of bold harmonic progressions, flexible rhythms and highly independent part writing.

His time in Mannheim came to an abrupt end when he - seemingly fatally - wounded an opponent in a duel (allegedly because of jealousy), an act that forced him to leave Germany.

The only source for this tale is Beck's pupil Henri Blanchard who published this account in a biography of his former teacher in the Revue et Gazette musicale de Paris (1845).

3, were published in Paris several years later in 1762 the edition bore this title: From this it is sometimes inferred that the story of Beck fighting a duel was probably a hoax.

Whatever the circumstances of his departure, from Mannheim Beck made his way to Venice, where he appeared as a violinist and studied composition with Baldassare Galuppi.

It seems that Beck's career as a composer started largely during his years in Italy; this may also explain why in many traits he shows himself to be quite his own man and rather independent of the typical Mannheim style.

3 in November 1762, he introduced Beck with these words: Actualmente Primo Violino del Concerto di Marsilia.

As did many other composers,[9] Beck wrote patriotic and revolutionary music during the Revolution, including a Hymne á l'Être Suprême.

In 1806 he sent the score of his Stabat Mater with a personal dedication to Napoleon – whether out of genuine admiration or in an attempt to ingratiate himself with the great Corsican is hard to decide.