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Friedrich Cerha

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Friedrich Cerha was an Austrian composer, conductor and teacher. He was born on 17 February 1926 in Vienna and died there on 14 February 2023. He played violin at the age of six and began composing two years later. In 1943 he was called up for the army, and he deserted twice. After the war he studied at the Vienna music academy and in 1950 took a doctorate in German studies. From 1950 to 1962 he was a teacher of music and German, and he continued to perform as a violinist.

Music and breakthrough

From 1956 Cerha attended the Darmstadt Summer Courses, where he felt that a new era was beginning. In 1958, with Kurt Schwertsik, he founded the ensemble die reihe, which played a large part in spreading new music in Austria. His work Relazioni fragili was heard in 1958 in Darmstadt and in 1961 at the ISCM festival in Vienna. He was also known as an interpreter of Alban Berg, Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern. In 1962 he began work on the unfinished third act of Berg's opera Lulu. Pierre Boulez conducted the complete opera in Paris in 1979.

Influence

Cerha's own operas include Baal after Brecht, performed in Salzburg in 1981, Der Rattenfänger and Der Riese vom Steinfeld, in Vienna in 2002. His cycle Spiegel, begun in 1960, is regarded as one of his core works. From 1976 to 1988 he was professor of composition in Vienna, with students such as Georg Friedrich Haas and Karlheinz Essl. He received the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize in 2012, among other honours. His importance lies in the Viennese tradition of Berg, which he kept alive thanks to his completion of Lulu.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to an excerpt from Spiegel and notice how the music develops. Do you hear a melody, or rather a sound that slowly changes?

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists