Pavel Haas

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Pavel Haas

Pavel Haas , also Paul Haas (born June 21, 1899 in Brno , Austria-Hungary ; died October 17 or 18, 1944 in Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp ) was a Czech and German-speaking composer .

Life

Pavel / Paul Haas, a son of the Jewish shoemaker Zikmund and his Odessa- born wife Olga, b. Epstein, grew up with Czech as a family language, but attended a German-language primary school in Brno in Moravia . Before graduating from school, he switched to the music school of the "Beseda Brněnská" in Brno in 1913, where he was taught by Anna Holubová ( piano ) and Jan Kunc ( music theory ) until 1916 . During this time his first compositions were written . In 1917 he was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army as a soldier . In 1919 he was able to continue his education at the Brno Conservatory in Czechoslovakia, newly founded by Leoš Janáček , with Kunc and Vilém Petrželka (piano, harmony , music theory). From 1920 to 1922 he studied composition in the master class of Leoš Janáček, whose most important pupil he is.

Haas initially worked in his father's shoe shop and for a short time as a répétiteur in Brno and Saarbrücken . His brother Hugo Haas , at the beginning of a successful career as an actor , gave Pavel / Paul Haas access to the Brno theater, for which he composed incidental music in the 1920s . In the 1930s, Haas created music for films in which his brother starred. After Janáček's death in 1929, Haas succeeded him as chairman of the Moravian Composers' Union.

From 1935 he was a private teacher for music theory and finally music teacher at the University of Brno and a freelance composer. He has composed commissioned works for renowned ensembles such as the Moravian String Quartet and the Moravian Wind Quintet as well as for the radio. Of his total of more than fifty works, Haas gave only 18 works an opus number .

On October 17, 1935, he married the doctor Soňa Jakobson, the former wife of the linguist Roman Ossipowitsch Jakobson . In 1937 the couple's daughter was born.

On April 2, 1938, the three-act opera Der Scharlatan (Šarlatán) by Pavel Haas was premiered with great success in the Old Theater am Wall in Brno . Whose libretto was based on the novel by Haas Josef Winckler The Miracle Doctor Johann Andreas Eisenbarth , popularly known as a quack or charlatan called even written. Directed by Rudolf Walter with the equipment by František Muzika; The conductor was Quido Arnoldi (1896–1958). This premiere was followed by five more performances in the spring of 1938.

After the Munich Agreement in October 1938 and the occupation of the Sudetenland by German troops, the opera Der Scharlatan was removed from the program. On January 28, 1939, the Czech radio broadcast several more folk songs by Haas from the cycle Od večera do rána (From evening to morning) . On March 15, 1939, German troops marched into the rest of Czechoslovakia and Adolf Hitler declared the annexed country a protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia . Soon afterwards, Haas' music was banned because of his Jewish descent and he, who also worked as a music journalist for the newspaper Národní noviny , and his non-Jewish wife, who had worked as a doctor, were banned from any gainful activity. His brother, the actor Hugo Haas, and his wife managed to escape to the USA via France in 1939; However, they left their son, who had recently been born, with Pavel Haas and his wife Sonia, who was registered as their son. On April 13, 1940, Pavel Haas divorced his wife in order to protect their life and that of their daughter from further persecution. As a result, since she was considered a “non-Jew”, his wife was able to work as a doctor again and secured the family's livelihood.

On December 2, 1941, Pavel Haas was deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp on Transport G-731 , where he later met other composers and musicians such as Hans Krása and Victor Ullmann . When he had overcome his initial depression, he fitted himself into the rich musical life of the camp and composed for the Theresienstadt artists and amateur choirs. He was encouraged to do so a. by Gideon Klein . His first composition in the camp was Al S'fod , a choral work for four male voices based on a poem written by the Jewish-Russian writer David Shimoni between 1936 and 1939 during the Arab uprisings against the Jewish settlement of Palestine . Of his at least eight compositions from this period, only three have survived : the Study for String Orchestra, the Four Songs on Words of Chinese Poetry and Al S'fod .

After the National Socialists had initially only tolerated cultural activities in the Theresienstadt camp, in early 1942 they began to exempt artists from general labor so that they could continue to follow their calling. In this way they should give the camp cultural splendor. The intention was to turn Theresienstadt into a showcase ghetto in order to be able to use it for propaganda purposes as "counter-evidence" in view of the rumors of the mass murder of the Jews. The first work by Haas performed in the camp was Four Songs on Words of Chinese Poetry on June 22, 1944. On June 23, 1944, the camp was visited by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). On the occasion of this visit to the showcase ghetto, Haas' Study for String Orchestra by Karel Ančerl was premiered. The conductor was able to save the sheet music for the strings, from which he later reconstructed the score. Then Kurt Gerron's film Theresienstadt was made , in which Pavel Haas can also be seen briefly. After the end of these propaganda campaigns, in October 1944, shortly before the end of the Second World War , the National Socialists ordered the suspension of all artistic activities and on October 16 deported many artists, including Haas and his friend, the pianist Bernhard Kaff, to the Auschwitz extermination camp , where he was was murdered on one of the following days.

His music was initially forgotten. It was not until about half a century later that it was rediscovered. His musical legacy is in the music department of the Moravian Museum in his native Brno .

The Pavel Haas Quartet , founded in 2002, is dedicated to performing his musical works.

Stumbling block

Stumbling block for Pavel Haas in Brno

On September 17, 2014, a stumbling block was laid for him in front of the house at ul. Smetanova 630/28 in Brno, where Pavel Haas last lived . The stumbling block bears the following text (here with a translation):

ZDE ŽIL
PAVEL HAAS
NAR. 1899
DEPORTOVÁN 1941
DO TEREZÍNA
ZAVRAŽDĚN 1944
V OSVĚTIMI

HERE LIVED
PAVEL HAAS
GEB. 1899
DEPORTED
TO THERESIENSTADT 1941
MURDERED
IN AUSCHWITZ in 1944

Awards

  • Prize of the Smetana Foundation for his opera Šarlatán
  • Naming of a street in Brno-Žabovřesky
  • Honorary Citizenship of the City of Brno (2000)

plant

Today, Pavel Haas is generally considered to be Janáček's most important student, whose influence is unmistakable, especially in early works such as the Scherzo triste for orchestra (1921). Later elements of the neoclassical style were added which were influenced by Igor Stravinsky . In addition, Haas occasionally melts jazz elements, Bohemian-Moravian folk and church songs, as well as synagogal sacred chants and Jewish folk tunes into his style of composition. This is polytonal and polyrhythmic and is characterized by strong expressiveness and musical vitality.

The complete directory of his works can be viewed under the web links. His work is also published by the publishers Boosey & Hawkes, Tempo / Bote & Bock (Prague / Berlin) and the “Ceský hudebni fond” (Culture Fund for Music of the Czech Republic).

Compositions

  • Orchestral works
    • Scherzo triste (Zesmutnělé scherzo) op. 5, for large orchestra (1921); Premiere: November 12, 1926 in Brno
    • Radio Overture (Předehra pro rozhlas) op. 11, for small orchestra, male quartet and recitation (1930/31); First broadcast: June 2, 1932, Brno radio
    • Suite from the opera Der Scharlatan op. 14 (1936); First broadcast: June 14, 1937, Brno Radio
    • Symphony for large orchestra , 3 movements, unfinished (1940/41)
      2nd and 3rd movements, orchestrated by Zdeněk Zouhar in 1994
    • Study for String Orchestra (1943); UA: June 23, 1944 during the visit of the ICRC in the Theresienstadt concentration camp ; Conductor: Karel Ančerl
  • Chamber music
    • Piano quartet in F major (1914; 3 movements; end lost)
    • Sonata for violin and piano (1916).
    • String quartet No. 1 op.3 (1920).
    • String quartet No. 2 op. 7 (“Aus den Affenbergen” / “Z opičích hor”), 4th movement with percussion ad libitum (1925).
    • Wind quintet op.10 (1929).
    • String Quartet No. 3 op.15 (1937/38)
    • Suite for oboe and piano op.17 (1939).
  • Piano music
    • Three piano pieces (1919).
    • Suite op. 13 (1935); Premiere: February 10, 1936 in Vienna
    • Whispers (Šeptem) , piano piece (1936); Premiere: November 30, 1936 in Brno
    • Allegro moderato (1938).
    • Variations for piano and string orchestra (Theresienstadt 1944; lost)
  • Vocal works
    • Six songs in folk tone (Šest písní v lidovém tónu) op. 1, for soprano and piano (1918/19) or orchestra; Premiere: May 29, 1922 in Brno
  1. Pada dišč
  2. Lietala, gálala
  3. V mikulášské kompanii
  4. Ty falešná falešnica
  5. Zapadá slniečko
  6. Bodaj by vás ...
    • Three songs (Tři písně) op. 2, for soprano and piano based on words by Josef Svatopluk Machar (1919/20); Premiere: March 25, 1922 in Brno
  1. Sentimentalita večera
  2. duma
  3. Zimni komická píseň
    • Three Chinese songs (Tři čínské písně), op. 4, based on the words of Chinese poets: Kao Shi, Tsui Hao, Thu Fu ; 1921; Premiere: April 24, 1922 in Brno
  1. Smutek
  2. Well řece Jo-Yeh
  3. Jarní déšť
    • Fata Morgana op. 6, for tenor and piano quintet based on a text by Rabindranath Tagore (German by Michael Epstein; 1923); Premiere: November 10, 1924 in Brno
    • Die Auserkorene (Vyvolená) op. 8, three songs based on words by Jiři Wolker for tenor, flute, violin, horn and piano (1927).
  1. The distant lover (Vzdalena mila)
  2. On the name day of my beloved (K svatku milé)
  3. The grave (Haj)
    • Carnival (Carnival) . Op 9, for male chorus for words of Dalibor Chalupa (1928-29); Premiere: October 17th, 1931 in Kopřivnice
    • Song from the play The Sister Jaeko by Oldrich Zemek for voice and guitar (1932).
    • Psalm 29 (Žalm 29) op. 12, for baritone, female choir, organ and small orchestra (1931/32); Premiere: March 13, 1933 in Brno
    • Von Abend zum Morgen (Od večera do rána) op.16 , arrangement of Slovak folk songs for voice and orchestra (1938)
      (This work was Haas' last publicly performed composition during his lifetime: it was broadcast on Czech Radio on January 28, 1939 .)
    • Seven songs in folk tone (Sedm písní v lidovém tónu) op. 18, for high voice and piano based on words by František Čelakovský (1939/40); Premiere: January 23, 1946 in Brno
  1. Retaliation (Což je víc!)
  2. Love gift (Dárek z lásky)
  3. Lovebirds (Krotká holubička)
  4. Broken Promise (Zrušení slibu)
  5. Commitment (Přípověď)
  6. Tears and sighs (Slzy a vzdychání?)
  7. Brave lad (Statečný jonák)
    • Al S'fod ( no complaint ; in Hebrew), male choir based on words by David Shimoni (1942).
    • Four songs based on the words of Chinese poetry (Čtyři písně na slova čínské poezie), for baritone and piano based on the words of Chinese poets: Wei Jing Wu, Wang Wei , Tchang Tiou Ling and Han I in the translation of Bohumil Mathesius for bass and piano (Theresienstadt 1944 ); Premiere: June 22nd, 1944 in Theresienstadt with Karel Berman and Rafael Schächter
  1. I heard wild geese (Zaslech jsem divoké husy)
  2. In the bamboo grove (V bambusovém háji)
  3. Far away is the moon from home (Daleko měsíc je domova)
  4. Night awake (Probděná noc)
    • Three songs with wind quintet and choirs (Theresienstadt 1944, lost).
  • Drama music for the Brno State Theater
    • RUR by Karel Čapek (1921); WP: April 9, 1921
    • The end of the Petrovskys by GM Vyskočil ( Konec Petrovských ; 1923); Premiere: January 31, 1923.
    • Woyzeck by Georg Büchner (1923) missing
    • The happy death of Nikolaj Jevrejnov ( Veselá smrt ; 1925); Premiere: November 6th 1925, missing
    • Pulcinelovo vítezství by Zavadil (1925/26); Premiere: January 22nd, 1926, missing
    • The Black Troubadour ( Černý troubadúr , theatrical adaptation of the film The Jazz Singer, based on the story The Day of Atonement by Samson Raphaelson; 1928); Premiere: August 18, 1928
  • Film music
    • Such a dog's life ( Život je pes ; 1932/33; in the French adaptation: Le mari rêvé ; 1936)
    • The Favorite Child ( Mazlíček ; 1934)
    • The Mother hen ( Kvočna ; 1937; with his brother Hugo as the actor)

Fonts

  • On Modern Music (October 23, 1933)
  • A New Czech Opera for the First Time in Brno (March 26, 1938)

Discography

A comprehensive discography is available under the web links.
  • Study for string orchestra . CD Forbidden Not Forgotten. Suppressed Music from 1938-1945. Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto and others; Hommage GmbH music production Hamburg 1995.
  • Wind quintet op. 10, piano suite op. 13, suite for oboe and piano op. 17, Vyvolená (The Chosen One) op. 8. Jörg Dürmüller, Dennis Russell Davies , Monika Hölszky-Wiedermann, Stuttgart wind quintet; Orfeo 1996 (Musica Rediviva series).
  • Orchestral works (Scherzo triste, suite from the opera Šarlatán, symphony) . Philharmonic Orchestra Brno, Israel Yinon; Koch 1996 and 2005 (new edition by Koch / Universal).
  • String quartets No. 1–3 . Kocian Quartet; Praga 1999.
  • Sarlatan . Prague State Opera Orchestra and the Prague Philharmonic Choir under Israel Yinon. With Vladimir Chmelo (Dr. Pustrpalk), Anda-Louise Bogza (Rozinda), Miroslav Svenda (Bakalar), Leo Marian Vodicka (Kyska), Ladislav Mlejnek (Pavucina), Jitka Svobodová (Amaranta), Jiri Kubik (Jochimus). Decca 460 042-2 (live recording June 1–6, 1997; 1998 and new edition 2002).
  • String Quartet No. 2 . Petersen Quartet ; EDA 2002.
  • String Quartet No. 2 . Pavel Haas Quartet; Supraphon 2006.
  • String quartets No. 1 and 3 . Pavel Haas Quartet; Supraphon 2007.
  • String Quartet No. 2. Adamas Quartet; Gramola 2013.
  • Four songs based on the words of Chinese poetry . CD Terezín / Theresienstadt. Anne Sofie von Otter and Christian Gerhaher (vocals), Bengt Forsberg and Gerold Huber (piano). Deutsche Grammophon 2007.
  • Four songs based on the words of Chinese poetry . Concentration camp music CD 4. Mario Muccitto, Laura Aprile, Petr Matuszek, Francesco Lotoro. harmonia mundi 2008.
  • Four songs based on the words of Chinese poetry . CD Theresienstadt: Music 1941–44, Karel Průša and Jiří Pokorný. Romantic Robot 1991.

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : Pavel Haas  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Lubomír Peduzzi: Pavel Haas. Life and work of the composer. Translated from the Czech by Thomas Mandl. Hamburg 1996, ISBN 3-928770-28-4 , passim .
  2. ^ Brněnský filharmonický sbor Beseda brněnská - famous Brno monastery choir, founded in 1860 by Pavel Křížkovský
  3. ↑ Clara-Marie Jantos: Brundibár in Terezín - On the importance of musical life in the Theresienstadt concentration camp , Diplomica Verlag, Hamburg, 2014, page VII of the appendix
  4. ↑ Timothy Cheek: Singing in Czech - A Guide to Czech Lyric Diction and Vocal Repertoire. Rowman & Littlefield, 2015, p. 321.
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Pavel Haas , Musicological Institute of the University of Hamburg
  6. ^ F. James Rybka: Bohuslav Martinu - The Compulsion to Compose. Scarecrow Press, 2011, p. 102.
  7. ^ Lubomír Peduzzi: Pavel Haas: Life and Work of the Composer (= Displaced Music. Volume IX). Verlag von Bockel, 1996, p. 151.
  8. ^ Livia Rothkirchen: The Jews of Bohemia and Moravia - Facing the Holocaust. University of Nebraska Press / Yad Vashem, Lincoln / Jerusalem 2005, p. 277.
  9. ^ Livia Rothkirchen: The Jews of Bohemia and Moravia - Facing the Holocaust. University of Nebraska Press / Yad Vashem, Lincoln / Jerusalem, 2005, p. 278.
  10. ↑ Alex Ross: The Rest Is Noise - Listening to the Twentieth Century. Picador, New York 2007, p. 363.
  11. ^ Brno , keyword "Pavel Haas" in section V. záznam (report V. of September 17, 2014), portal vizit-sezem, online at: vizit-sezem.webnode.cz / ... ; Photo of the stumbling block that was created together with a stumbling block for his father Zikmund Haas, née. 1871, was placed online at: vizit-sezem7.webnode.cz / ...
  12. ↑ Pavel Haas on encyklopedie.brna (Czech)
  13. ↑ For the first time on CD: Pavel Haas' Šarlatán
personal data
SURNAME Haas, Pavel
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Haas, Paul (different spelling)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Czech and German-speaking composer
DATE OF BIRTH June 21, 1899
PLACE OF BIRTH Brno , Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH October 17, 1944 or October 18, 1944
Place of death Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp