Born in Berggießhübel, Mannstein attended the Dresden Kreuzschule and the St. Thomas School, Leipzig as Gymnasiast.
After some arguments at home, but also due to the general circumstances of his time, he finally joined the singing choir of the court theatre in Dresden in 1829.
Soon after Johann Aloys Miksch took over and completed Mannstein's training as a singer, he left the stage for good to work as a singing teacher and writer.
As one of the first Gabelsberger students he was also a stenographer in the civil service of the royal Saxon chamber since 1839.
His daughter[4] was the Primadonna Elisabeth Mannstein,[5] wife of Adolph Kohut.