Lothar Knessl

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Lothar Knessl (born April 15, 1927 in Brno ) is an Austrian music journalist , composer and champion of new and experimental music .

life and work

Knessl first studied piano in his hometown , then music and theater studies in Vienna, as well as composition with Ernst Krenek and Karl Schiske . He then worked as a lecturer, proofreader and culture editor. In 1971 he took over the management of the press office of the Austrian Federal Theaters and from 1986 until his retirement in 1991 he was press officer of the Vienna State Opera .

Knessl was a founding member of the Music Information Center Austria , which he also served as President from 1994 to 2001, was an obstetrician and for many years curator of the Vienna Modern Festival . From 1968 he designed the Ö1 broadcasting series Studio Neuer Musik , the forerunner of today's Zeit-Ton, and taught at the University of Vienna . From 1992 to 2000 Knessl acted as President of the Austrian Section of the International Society for New Music (IGNM). From 1993 to 1996 he was, together with Christian Scheib , music curator of the Federal Ministry for Education and the Arts . In his various functions, but also in his radio broadcasts, he campaigned for numerous contemporary composers, including Friedrich Cerha , Aldo Clementi , Luigi Dallapiccola , Roman Haubenstock-Ramati , Günter Kahowez , György Ligeti , Witold Lutosławski , Luigi Nono , Kryztof Penderecki , Kurt Schwertsik , Edgar Varèse and Otto M. Zykan .

The moderator is highly respected by the colleagues and has been invited to broadcasts several times. A long night of new music was dedicated to him on the night of December 30th to 31st, 2016 , designed by Christian Scheib, Ursula Strubinsky and Elke Tschaikner. The title of the 7-hour program was Knesslmania .

reception

"[Knessl is the] engine of contemporary Austrian music [...] Without its unifying power, contemporary music in Austria would be a worthless, even torn sieve."

- Christoph Becher

“Much of this prehistory from the first few decades has disappeared from the consciousness of today's listeners, but not the story since the late 1960s. Because Lothar Knessl, who with his characteristic art of formulation and - we're talking about radio - with his unmistakable voice since then has familiarized several generations of radio listeners with aspects of contemporary music, is still there. "

- Christian Scheib

literature

  • Juri Giannini, Andreas Holzer, Stefan Jena, Jürgen Pollak (Eds.): Lothar Knessl. Mediator of new music, author, composer, curator . Hollitzer, Vienna 2018, ISBN 978-3-99012-548-9

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ ORF : Knesslmania , accessed on 31 December 2016
personal data
SURNAME Knessl, Lothar
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian composer, music editor and music official
DATE OF BIRTH April 15, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Brno