Franz Reizenstein

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Franz Theodor Reizenstein (born June 7, 1911 in Nuremberg ; † October 15, 1968 in London ) was a German-British composer and pianist who, as a Jew, was forced to emigrate to England .

Life

Franz Reizenstein already showed great musical talent as a child and had already composed several works as a 17-year-old, including a string quartet. From 1930 he studied composition with Paul Hindemith and piano with Leonid Kreutzer at the Berlin University of Music . After the National Socialist seizure of power, he emigrated to England in 1934, where an uncle lived in Kingston, Surrey . There Reizenstein was able to continue his studies in London at the Royal College of Music . His composition teacher until 1936 was Ralph Vaughan Williams . Between 1938 and 1940 he studied piano with Solomon .

Reizenstein took on British citizenship and worked as a railroad clerk during World War II, but also went public as a pianist and interpreter of contemporary works. After the war, concert tours took him back to the European continent. In 1958 he received a piano professorship at the Royal College of Music, later at the Royal Manchester, now the Royal Northern College of Music . In 1966 he held a visiting professorship in composition at Boston University . Reizenstein, who was married and had a son, died unexpectedly in 1968 at the age of 57.

plant

Reizenstein's music clearly refers to his teacher Hindemith and remains committed to the framework of tonality. The twelve-tone music and avant-garde tendencies later he faced negative.

Reizenstein wrote chamber music (including a piano quintet and chamber music for wind instruments), piano compositions (including two sonatas) and several concertante works (including two piano concertos and a cello concerto). His important vocal works include the cantata Voices of Night and the oratorio Genesis . Among his film scores, the score for the horror film Die Rache der Pharaonen ( The Mummy , 1959) became known.

At the suggestion of Gerard Hope Reizenstein also contributed humoristic and parodistic to the "Hope Festival Concerts": 1956 the "Concerto Popolare" or "The Piano Concerto to end all Piano Concertos" and 1958 Let's Fake an Opera .

Filmography (selection)

literature

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personal data
SURNAME Reizenstein, Franz
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Reizenstein, Franz Theodor (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German-British composer and pianist
DATE OF BIRTH June 7, 1911
PLACE OF BIRTH Nuremberg , Bavaria, Germany
DATE OF DEATH 15th October 1968
Place of death London , England, UK