She was born in
Zell im Wiesental, in present-day
Baden-Württemberg, Germany, the daughter of Fridolin Weber and
Cäcilia Weber (née Stamm). She had three younger sisters (in descending order of age):
Aloysia, who was an early love interest of Mozart and sang in his later operas;
Constanze, who married Mozart in 1782; and
Sophie. The composer
Carl Maria von Weber was the son of her father's half-brother. Josepha grew up mostly in
Mannheim, and moved with her family first to
Munich then to
Vienna, following the singing career of her sister Aloysia. By 1789 she was the
prima donna in the theatrical troupe run by
Johann Friedel at the suburban
Theater auf der Wieden. Following Friedel's death in that year, the theater was taken over by
Emanuel Schikaneder, who retained her in the new company he formed. She appears to have been an important member of the troupe: the collaborative opera
Der Stein der Weisen, a sort of ancestor to
The Magic Flute, includes no arias for coloratura soprano because at the time it was written Hofer was on maternity leave. At the (highly successful) premiere of
The Magic Flute in 1791, Hofer took the role of the Queen of the Night, a famously demanding coloratura part. She continued to perform this role until 1801, when she relinquished it at age 43. Hofer also premiered other roles. She was again the Queen of the Night in Schikaneder and
Winter's sequel to
The Magic Flute,
Das Labyrinth oder der Kampf mit den Elementen (1798). She was also the first to perform the role of Oberon in
Paul Wranitzky’s opera (1789). She married twice. Her first husband (married 21 July 1788 in
St. Stephen's Cathedral) was the musician
Franz de Paula Hofer (1755–96). Hofer was employed as a violinist at the Imperial court. Her second husband (1797) was the singer
Sebastian Meier (1773–1835). Meier was the first to perform the role of Pizarro in
Beethoven's opera
Fidelio. Josepha Meier retired from singing in 1805, and died in Vienna on 29 December 1819. ==Assessment==