Friedrich Cerha | |
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 Cerha in 2006 | |
| Born | (1926-02-17)17 February 1926 Vienna, Austria |
| Died | 14 February 2023(2023-02-14) (aged 96) Vienna, Austria |
| Education | |
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| Organizations | |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | |
Friedrich Cerha (German:[ˈfʁiːdʁɪçˈt͜sɛʁha]; 17 February 1926 – 14 February 2023) was an Austrian composer, conductor, and academic teacher. His ensembleDie Reihe [de] in Vienna was instrumental in spreading contemporary music in Austria. He composed several operas, beginning withBaal, based onBrecht's play. He is best known for completingAlban Berg's operaLulu by orchestrating its unfinished third act, which premiered in Paris in 1979.
Cerha was born in Vienna on 17 February 1926, the son of an electrical engineer.[1][2] He played the violin at age six, instructed by Anton Pejhovsky, and began composing two years later.[1][3]
At 17, Cerha was drafted as aLuftwaffenhelfer in 1943,[1][3] and initially served inAchau, near Vienna.[1] During this time, he participated in a number of acts of resistance against the fascist regime. After a semester at the University of Vienna, he was sent to an officer's school in occupied Denmark. While there, he obtained a number of blank, but signed, marching order papers and deserted. These papers allowed him to remain within German territory for some time as he could use them as proof that he was supposed to be there. However, after a period, he was forced to rejoin a military unit during an advance by the Soviet forces nearPomerania. He deserted a second time and made his way to the west of Austria, where he lived in the mountains for several months to avoid capture by theAllied forces, until he was eventually able to return to Vienna[4] in November 1945.[1]
At theVienna Music Academy, Cerha studied violin withVáša Příhoda, composition withAlfred Uhl, and music pedagogy.[1][3] Simultaneously, he studied musicology, German culture and language, and philosophy at theUniversity of Vienna[1][5] His dissertation there, on the Turandot topic in music, was completed in 1954.[6]
In 1958 Cerha founded the ensembleDie Reihe [de] together withKurt Schwertsik, which was instrumental in spreading contemporary music in Austria. In addition to composing, Cerha earned a reputation as an interpreter of the works ofAlban Berg,Arnold Schoenberg, andAnton Webern.[2] This work included the completion of Berg's unfinished three-act operaLulu.[2] Cerha orchestrated sections of the third act using Berg's notes as a reference, beginning studies of the subject in 1962.[1] The complete three-act opera was premiered byPierre Boulez in Paris Opéra on 24 February 1979,[3][7] and directed byPatrice Chéreau.[8]
Alongside his career as a composer and conductor, Cerha taught at theUniversity of Music and Performing Arts Vienna from 1959, where he was professor of composition, notation, and interpretation of new music from 1976 to 1988.[1][3]
Cerha composed both orchestral works and operas. His first opera wasBaal, based on Brecht'splay of the same name, and influenced by Berg'sWozzeck.[8] It was premiered at the Salzburg Festival in 1981, with performances at theVienna State Opera and a production at theStaatsoper Berlin in 1982.[1] It was followed byDer Rattenfänger andDer Riese vom Steinfeld, the latter commissioned by the Vienna State Opera, with alibretto byPeter Turrini,[3] and premiered in 2002.[1]
Cerha and his wife Gertraud, a music historian, were founding members of theJoseph Marx Society in April 2006.[9]
Cerha died in Vienna on 14 February 2023, at age 96.[3][8][10][11]
Cerha's compositions were published byUniversal Edition,[16] including:[17]
