A pupil of the Vienna court Kapellmeister Fux, Wagenseil was given a court appointment as a composer. He played an important part in establishing the Classical style of the concerto and symphony. He wrote operas (a number of them setting libretti by Metastasio), oratorios, Masses and liturgical works. He also wrote a variety of keyboard works, himself a gifted player, but it is his orchestral and chamber music that has a greater claim on attention.

Orchestral and Chamber Music

Wagenseil composed a large number of symphonies and concertos, many of the latter being chamber works for keyboard (usually harpsichord, sometimes organ and occasionally piano). These works are, in many ways, typical of the period in their mastery of the so-called stile galant that preceded the mature Classical style of the later decades of the 18th century.