Egon Kemény

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Egon Kemény (born October 13, 1905 in Vienna , † July 23, 1969 in Budapest ) was a Hungarian composer and winner of the Erkel Prize (he was awarded this prize twice - in 1953 and 1955).

Life

Egon Kemény was born on October 13, 1905 as the son of a surgeon in Vienna , where he grew up until his family moved to Košice . There he attended high school and was tutored by Dezső Rétháti Kövér, the director of the city music school.

According to his parents' wishes, he studied four semesters at the medical faculty of the University of Vienna from 1923 .

At the same time, he took an entrance examination with Franz Schmidt - the director of the University of Music in Vienna ; he immediately accepted him into the last semester and was his teacher until the end of his studies. After completing his studies, Kemény turned down the job offer as a répétiteur at the Vienna State Opera and went to Budapest in 1926 where he was hired as a répétiteur and second conductor at the capital's operetta theater ( Fővárosi Operettszínház ). This is where the world premiere of his first operetta Kikelet ucca 3 ( Kikeletgasse 3 ) took place.

From 1930 he lived and worked in Berlin as the main arranger and secretary of Paul Abraham .

In 1933, after his return to Budapest, he worked again as a composer and was able to increase his popularity.

Kemény lived with his family in Budapest until his death, where he died on July 23, 1969.

Musical work

With its preserved in Vienna classical training, Egon Kemény who turned from 1926 as a composer light music to. In 1927 he achieved his first successes in Budapest. His modern dance hits (Charleston, Tango, Foxtrot, Blues) were sung, recorded and published in the form of sheet music by the famous artists of his time. Egon Kemény introduced himself as a stage composer with a so-called Pest operetta under the title Kikelet ucca 3 (German: Kikeletgasse 3 ). The first performance took place on April 27, 1929 with Paul Abraham as conductor in the capital's operetta theater. The main female roles were played and sung by Erzsi Somogyi and Marta Eggerth .

Egon Kemény, Paul Ábrahám, Sándor Marton and Oskar Dénes in 1930 in Leipzig (theater newspaper Színházi Élet ).

From 1927 to 1933, Egon Kemény was also known in artistic circles as Paul Abraham's best friend . Their musical work together and their friendship began in Budapest, in the Capital Operetta Theater. The first pieces of music orchestrated by Kemény were parts of Abraham's jazz operetta Zenebona in 1928 , the later world-famous march I'm not a captain, I'm not a big beast from the operetta Az utolsó Verebély-lány ( The Fraulein's Husband ) and the operetta Victoria and Her Hussar . In 1930 Kemény signed a contract with Abraham and went to Berlin with him. During this time he wrote the operettas Die Blume von Hawaii and Ball im Savoy , at whose rehearsals Kemény also worked as Kapellmeister. In addition, he worked as a musical assistant in sound films such as Die Privatsekretärin or the first film adaptation of Viktoria und ihr Husar . Overall, Kemény was Abraham's collaborator in Budapest, Leipzig and Berlin for six and a half years.

“The friendship that bound him with Paul Abraham lasted a lifetime; he orchestrated Abraham's works, was his counselor, his friend, to say without exaggeration: he was his secretary. For this he was predestined by his diverse musical talent, the great musical knowledge, the unerring taste, the thorough knowledge of the musical color, by his modesty and congeniality. Working with Abraham - almost all of Abraham's operettas written abroad were orchestrated by Egon Kemény - pushed his personality, creative passion and independent productions into the background. "

- Gal / Somogyi: Operettek Koenyve Zeneműkiadó, Budapest 1976

During the years in Berlin, Egon Kemény did not appear as a composer. In 1933 he moved back to Budapest as musical director of the Hungarian sound film Rakoczy March .

Among his symphonic works, the four-movement Magyar szvit ( Hungarian Suite ) from 1934 and the symphonic poem under the title Tisza ( The Tisza ) should be emphasized (this is also where his patriotism was shown). The potpourri of Hungarian folk songs, composed on behalf of the music publisher under the title Délibáb (“Fata Morgana”) for a large orchestra, has since been played worldwide. Kemény established symphonic light music in the style of Gershwin in Hungary. The most successful works of the time were the settings of more than 30 poems by classical English and Hungarian poets such as Robert Burns , William Shakespeare , Gyula Reviczky and Attila József , written in 1937 and 1938 . His songs about school life, which were sung by almost every children's choir in the elementary schools of that time, also became famous.

Egon Kemény's collaboration with the Hungarian Radio (Rádió Budapest I) began in 1934. For decades, this institution was one of the most important venues for the performance of his works. His music was broadcast frequently for nearly forty years. The first Funk-Singspiel ( Schönbrunni orgonák , Schönbrunner Flieder , 1937) and the first Funkoperetta ( Májusfa , Maibaum , May 1, 1949) in Hungary were innovations in radio history . He also composed the music for numerous radio plays on the Hungarian Radio.

His commitment to music and his colleagues was also evident in other areas. In addition to Dr. Jenő Huszka in the first half of the 20th century also focused on strengthening copyrights, so he was a co-founder of the Association of Hungarian Music Artists (Magyar Zeneművészek Szövetsége).

 

Works

Stage works

  • Dörmögő Dömötör ( Humming Dömötör ), pompous operetta revue in 3 acts for children. Premiere: November 17th, 1928
  • A három jómadár ( The three villains ), children's operetta ( compilation of music and composition of individual numbers). Premiere: December 3rd, 1929
  • Kikelet ucca 3 ( Kikeletgasse 3 ). Pest operetta in 3 acts. Libretto: István Bródy and Imre Harmath. Premiere: Metropolitan Operetta Theater (Fővárosi Operettszínház, today Budapest Operetta Theater (Budapesti Operettszínház)) on April 27, 1929. Conductor: Paul Abraham.
  • Éva és férfiak ( Eva and men ). Short operetta. Libretto: László Nádassy. WP: Royal Revue Varieté with the participation of Chappy's 15-piece Symphonic Jazz Orchestra on December 22, 1945.
  • Kiigényelt szerelem ( love on request ). Short operetta. Libretto: Iván Szenes. Premiere: Royal Revü Varieté on February 1st, 1946.
  • Fekete liliom ( The Black Lily ). Romantic operetta in 3 acts. Libretto: Károly Nóti, Imre Földes and Rudolf Halász. Premiere: Capital Operetta Theater on December 20, 1946.
  • Mandragora or The Game of Deadly nightshade . Comedy in 3 acts. Arrangement of Machiavelli's original piece by Egon Kemény and Miklós Vidor. Premiere: Budapest 1947.
  • Valahol Délen ( Somewhere in the South ). Operetta in 3 acts. Libretto: László Tabi and János Erdődy Premiere: Metropolitan Operetta Theater on March 30, 1956.
  • Krisztina kisasszony ( Miss Christine , stage version of the funk operetta ). Operetta in 3 acts. Libretto: György Kardos and János Erdődy. Premiere: Miskolc National Theater (Miskolci Nemzeti Színház) on April 7, 1961.
  • Párizsiak New Yorkban ( Parisians in New York ). Comedy with music. Libretto: Victorien Sardou and István Békés. Premiere: Miskolc National Theater on January 22nd, 1960.

Radio operettas and radio singing games (selection)

  • Májusfa ( maypole ) operetta for the radio. Libretto: Lajos Mesterházi, Péter Szász and József Romhányi. Premiere: May 1st, 1949
  • Talán a csillagok ( Maybe the stars ). Radio operetta. Libretto: Péter Szász and József Romhányi. Premiere: December 31, 1949
  • Szerencsés utazás ( Happy Journey ). Radio operetta. Libretto: István Raics. WP: 1950
  • Hatvani diákjai ( The students of Hatvani ). Singspiel for the radio. Libretto: Rózsa Ignácz, László Soós and Ágoston Ambrózy. WP: 1955
  • Komáromi farsang ( Mardi Gras in Komarom ). Singspiel in 2 parts. Libretto: György Sándor Gál and János Erdődy. WP: 1957
  • Krisztina kisasszony ( Miss Christine ). Funk operetta in 2 parts. Libretto: János Erdődy. WP: 1959
  • Szabad szívek ( Free Hearts ) Romantic Singspiel in 2 parts. Libretto: István Békés. WP: 1960

Orchestral works (selection)

  • Fantázia a 'Hullámzó Balaton' c. népdalból ( Fantasy about the folk song 'On the undulating Lake Balaton' ) (1934)
  • A Tisza ( Die Tisza ) symphonic poem (1935)
  • Délibáb ( Fata Morgana ) Potpourri of Hungarian Folk Songs for large orchestra (1935)
  • Mesél az erdő hangulatkép ( The forest tells a story ) Atmospheric image for large orchestra (1939)
  • Táncoló tavasz ( Dancing Spring ) Pas de six, small ballet suite (1941)
  • Színes ritmusok ( Colorful Rhythms ) Jazz-Foxtrot-Persiflage (1941)
  • Állatkerti séta ( Walk in the Zoo ), Suite for large orchestra and 4 voices (1949)
  • Keringő-rapszódia ( Waltz Rhapsody ), Concert Waltz (1952)
  • Könnyűzene szvit ( Light Music Suite ), in three movements for orchestra (1954)
  • A tavaszhoz ( To Spring ), Rhapsody for piano and orchestra (1957)
  • Eső és napsütés ( Rain and Sunshine ), mood picture for orchestra (1958)
  • Gyermekjátékok ( Children's Games ), Suite for orchestra with children's choir (1961)
  • Különös dallam ( Strange Melody ) (1965)

In addition, song cycles for children's choir with orchestra, music for over 40 radio plays and numerous chansons

literature

  • Egon Kemény Memorial Week, Dankó Rádió, Túl az Óperencián from July 22nd to 28th 2013, radio newspaper RTV részletes from 2013, week 30.
  • A Fővárosi Operettszínház műsora (Program of the Metropolitan Operetta Theater) 1923–1973 Compiled by: Lajos Koch. Magyar Színházi Intézet (Hungarian Institute for Theater), Budapest 1973.
  • György Sándor Gál, Vilmos Somogyi: Operettek Könyve. Az operett regényes története (book of operettas, novel-like history of operetta). Fourth, expanded edition. Zeneműkiadó (music publisher), Budapest 1976. ISBN 963-330-137-8
  • Béla Lévai: A rádió és a televízió krónikája 1945–1978 (radio and television chronicle 1945–1978). Tömegkommunikációs Kutatóközpont (Research Center for Mass Communication), Budapest 1980. ISBN 963-031-001-5
  • Dr. Imre Molnár: A magyar muzsika zityve (The book of Hungarian music). Budapest 1936
  • Association of Hungarian Musicians: Contemporary Hungarian Composers. Editio Musica, Budapest 1967
  • Robert Rátonyi: Operett I.–II. Zeneműkiadó (music publisher), Budapest 1984
  • József Simándy: Bánk bán elmondja… Krónikás: Dalos László (Ban Bánk tells ... Chronicler: László Dalos). Aduprint, Budapest 2001
  • Eszter B. Élthes: Férjem, a komédiás Bessenyeiről a feleség (My husband, the comedian - The wife of Bessenyei), Eszter B. Élthes. Bessenyei Kft., Budapest 2004
  • László Hovanyecz: Értékteremtők 2012
  • Ágnes Alpár: A fővárosi kabarék műsora 1901–1944 (programs of the capital's variety shows 1901–1944). Magyar Színházi Intézet (Hungarian Theater Institute), Budapest 1979
  • Tamás Gajdó, Nóra Magyar, Zsolt Péter: Ne kérdezd ki voltam ... Karády Katalin a díva emlékére (“Don't ask who I was ...” in memory of the diva Katalin Karády). Athenaeum Kiadó (Atheneum Publishing House), Budapest 2016
  • Ünnepek, ünnepélyek az óvodában I.–II. (Holidays, celebrations in kindergarten I.–II.) Országos pedagógiai Intézet (State Pedagogical Institute), Vikárné Forrai Katalin (Mrs. Katalin Vikár Forrai). Tankönyvkiadó (textbook publisher), Budapest 1963.
  • Katalin Forrai: Ének az óvodában (singing in kindergarten). Móra Kiadó (Móra Publishing House), Budapest 2016

Web links
personal data
SURNAME Kemény, Egon
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian composer
DATE OF BIRTH October 13, 1905
PLACE OF BIRTH Vienna
DATE OF DEATH July 23, 1969
Place of death Budapest