The musician from Eisenstadt
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The musician from Eisenstadt |
| Country of production | Austria |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 1933 |
| length | approx. 91 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Alfred German-German |
| script | Carl Lafite |
| production | Alfred German-German |
| music | Joseph Haydn , Carl Lafite |
| camera | Hans Theyer |
| occupation | |
| |
The Musikant von Eisenstadt is an Austrian film biography about the life and work of the important baroque composer Joseph Haydn . Produced with modest means (around 222,000 Austrian Schillings) in 1932/33 by the silent film pioneer Alfred Deutsch-German , this was his last cinema production. Kurt von Lessen took over the title role .
action
The young Burgenland composer Joseph Haydn leads a simple and uneventful life as a music teacher for well-to-do grandchildren. When he met Luise Keller one day, the daughter of a wig maker, he immediately fell in love with her and plans to marry the young woman. The old cellar doesn't like this at all, because he doesn't want his daughter to be hungry like Haydn, but rather a good match like the soap maker Pichler. In order to be able to offer her a good life, Haydn accepted the position of second conductor at the court of Prince Esterhazy from Eisenstadt. So that Luise does not forget him during his absence, Joseph Haydn quickly composes a love song with the title “Dear girl, listen to me”. During his work in the Burgenland capital, Haydn met and fell in love with the princely niece and young countess Agatha Eszterhazy, which, as expected, displeased his noble superior. Meanwhile, at home, Luise is being urged more and more by her father to finally marry the unloved soap boiler. In order to get clarity, she therefore travels to Eisenstadt after Haydn, but does not find him in his accommodation. She learns that Joseph has left for Rust, where a party is taking place. A Csardas composed especially by him is to be presented here.
Luise sees Haydn at Countess Esterhazy's side and, in a fit of jealousy, assumes that he must have long since forgotten her. In the Eisenstadt mountain church she hears excerpts from the Theresa Mass and then decides to renounce everything earthly and go to the Ursuline convent. Prince Esterhazy asked Haydn to get his niece Agathe out of his mind and to marry soon. Shortly afterwards, Countess Esterhazy was called to the imperial court in Vienna, where she was supposed to serve as lady-in-waiting for Empress Maria Theresa. And so Haydn decides to go back home and propose to Luise. But she became Sister Crescentia through her entry into the monastery. Now completely unmoved, Haydn agrees to marry Luise's quarrelsome and nagging sister, Maria. This urges him to accept unpopular, albeit well-endowed, composition commissions. This is how, for example, the ox menu was composed for a farmer, with a cattle as a bonus for the payment of five ducats.
Joseph Haydn slowly gains national fame with his musical creations; his imperial hymn is premiered in the Carl Theater, and Haydn receives the ovation at the side of his monarch, Emperor Franz. Countess Agathe was not happy at court, but got sick and never married. She also goes to the monastery and meets Sister Crescentia there. When she takes the sounds of the composition written especially for Luise from a music box by Haydn, she realizes that both once loved one and the same man. Both women speak out. Haydn has grown old over the years, and when he sees death before his eyes, he has his servant ask the Ursuline Sisters for a nun to stand by him in the last few hours. With the last of his strength he agrees on his musical dedication in the presence of Crescentia, who takes care of him. When she continues singing the melody, Haydn recognizes in her his old love Luise and confesses to her that he has never forgotten her and that only she has always loved. His last words are “Let there be light”, then at the moment of his death the imperial anthem sounds again.
Production notes
This film was made on the occasion of the 200th birthday of Joseph Haydn (1732–1809). It was filmed in Eisenstadt, Vienna and Rust. The shooting of Der Musikant von Eisenstadt began in April 1932 and largely ended in the summer of the same year. In December 1932 the studio recordings began in the studios of Vienna-Sievering. The film premiered on April 2, 1933 in Haydn's home town of Eisenstadt. Since they were not completely satisfied with the result, there were several follow-ups in 1933. The Vienna premiere was on February 23, 1934. The film was not shown in Hitler's Germany due to the Jewish faith of its director and producer.
Karl von Pauspertl took over the musical direction. Hans Heinz Theyer assisted his father, the cameraman Hans Theyer . The sound mix was done by engineer Hans Bucek. Joseph Stätter was production manager, Harald Brunner assistant director.
Reviews
In contemporary Austrian reviews, the “patriotic” element and explicitly the “national character” of the Haydn film were often referred to, in honor of Austria's cultural nation. The movie poster advertised with the phrase “The film of the Austrian homeland”.
Friedrich Porges said in Der Wiener Tag : “The authors and the director have brought this honor into an appealing, good and effective form, which at the same time brings the most beautiful melodies of Haydn's tone poem closer to the cinema audience. (...) The episodes that the film turns into action are taken from Haydn's life story. (...) You can feel a personality. "
The Wiener Zeitung stated: “In order for such a film ... to be effective for the public beyond the artistic idea, it is necessary that there are moments in the life of the main character that give rise to dramatic conflicts. In Haydn's life, however, there were no great dramatic tensions (...) But the episodes that are told about him can be accessories, but hardly the main ones. This film, which Alfred Deutsch-German has staged with great taste and appreciable sense of style, suffers from the fact that the too amiable plot makes the musician Haydn ... appear in an incorrect light. (...) If this film is not the crowning glory of Austrian cinematic art, we gladly agree that it can be called a good and strong foundation stone for the work of the future. "
The Österreichische Film-Zeitung wrote: "In the Austrian film ... you can see Haydn's life rolling on the screen in pretty pictures ..."
The Illustrierte Kronen-Zeitung wrote: “The plot of this Haydn film… is simple and straight. (...) Many cheerful episodes are embedded in the biographical descriptions. (...) Deutsch-German carefully structured the plot in such a way that no detail could be lost. He also let himself be guided by musical necessities with modest wisdom. (...) Kurt Lessen plays Haydn, simply, heartfelt, without glossing over or heroic pose. "
Individual evidence
- ↑ "The Musician of Eisenstadt". Critique in Der Wiener Tag of April 4, 1933
- ↑ "The Musician of Eisenstadt". In: Wiener Zeitung , February 28, 1934, p. 9 (online at ANNO ).
- ↑ "The Musician of Eisenstadt". In: Österreichische Film-Zeitung , March 3, 1934, p. 2 (online at ANNO ).
- ↑ "The Musician of Eisenstadt". Critique in the Illustrierte Kronen-Zeitung of February 24, 1934
Web links
- Eisenstadt's musician on academia.edu
- The musician from Eisenstadt in the Internet Movie Database (English)