Rudolf Kelterborn

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Rudolf Kelterborn (2009)

Rudolf Kelterborn (born September 3, 1931 in Basel ; † March 24, 2021 there ) was a Swiss composer , conductor , educator and music journalist . As «Musicus universalis», he was one of the most influential figures on the international classical music scene , primarily in the field of new music .

Life

training

Rudolf Kelterborn was born on September 3, 1931 in Basel. His father was the architect Ernst Kelterborn (1892–1969), co-owner of the Eckenstein & Kelterborn office. The decision to pursue a career as a musician was made early on, and so Rudolf Kelterborn received piano, conducting and theory lessons during his school days and made his first attempts at composing. In 1950 he passed his Matura at the Humanist High School on Münsterplatz and then attended conducting courses with Igor Markevitch in Salzburg. From 1950 to 1953 he studied conducting with Alexander Krannhals , music theory with Gustav Güldenstein and Walter Müller von Kulm , piano with Eduard Henneberger and composition with Busoni master student Walther Geiser at the Music Academy of the City of Basel and musicology with Jacques Handschin at the University of Basel . Further composition studies followed in 1953 with Willy Burkhard (Zurich) and Boris Blacher (Salzburg) and in 1955 with Günter Bialas and Wolfgang Fortner at the Northwest German Music Academy in Detmold . In 1956 and 1960 he attended the Darmstadt summer courses .

Teaching

From 1956 to 1960 Kelterborn taught music theory at the Music Academy of the City of Basel. From 1960 to 1968 he taught music theory, music analysis and composition at the Northwest German Music Academy in Detmold. In 1963 he was appointed professor . From 1968 to 1975 and from 1980 to 1983 he taught at the Conservatory and the University of Music in Zurich . From 1980 to 1983 he also lectured at the Karlsruhe University of Music . In 1983 Kelterborn returned to Basel and was director of the Music Academy of the City of Basel until 1994, where he again taught music theory and composition from 1994 to 1996.

As a guest lecturer, Kelterborn held seminars and lectures in the USA (1970 and 1980), England (1981), Japan (Kunitachi Music College Tokyo, 1986 and 1990), South Korea (1986), China (Shanghai Conservatory of Music, 1993), Lithuania ( Music and Theater Academy of Lithuania , 1998), Russia ( Saint Petersburg Conservatory , 2001), Germany (Münster University of Music, 2007) and Switzerland. He was also a regular member of the jury at international composition competitions.

As a teacher, he has shaped generations of musicians. His students include: Hartmut Fladt , Anton Haefeli , Martin Jaggi , Lukas Langlotz, Christoph Neidhöfer, Andreas Pflüger , Martin Christoph Redel , Andrea Lorenzo Scartazzini , Martin Schlumpf , Bettina Skrzypczak, Peter Siegwart, Peter Wettstein and Alfons Karl Zwicker .

As the Swiss musicologist and Kelterborn student Anton Haefeli wrote in his article on the occasion of the composer's 70th birthday, Kelterborn's approach was to separate structure and form and to rewrite the “superordinate form” as the audible, not least of all to interested laymen and women also to all those who are still familiar with new music. In an act that is definitely to be understood as emancipatory, he encourages those willing to listen to impartiality, to an initially "statistical perception" as it were: in an unknown piece of music, as much acoustically prominent as possible, all form-forming factors should be recorded in several "listening steps" and recorded in an audio record . This is also possible for those who cannot carry out a structural analysis, and at the same time only this procedure leads to the correct recognition of a "superordinate form". Furthermore, Haefeli notes that Kelterborn always understood composition lessons as an understanding and careful accompaniment and development of the individual musical language instead of subordination to the aesthetic maxims of the teacher, more dialogue than teaching. He came to this attitude not least through his own positive experiences as a learner, as confirmed by the following statement:

«My teachers were very important to me - not just in music or in vocational training (my teachers for German and mathematics at grammar school, for example, gave me an infinite amount of things to teach me about my life). I owe you all a great deal. With the composition teachers, it was actually always the case that I myself never wanted to compose like the respective teacher - and the respective teacher, for his part, never had the wish that I should compose like himself; this experience has had a decisive influence on my own work as a composition teacher. And in this sense, my composition students also gave me a lot. "

miscellaneous

From 1969 to 1974 Kelterborn was editor-in-chief of the Schweizerische Musikzeitung and from 1974 to 1980 he headed the main music department of the Swiss radio DRS . In 1987, together with Heinz Holliger and Jürg Wyttenbach, he founded the unconventional Basler Musik Forum (BMF), for many years alongside the IGNM Basel the most important organizer of contemporary music in Basel, for whose programs he was jointly responsible as artistic director until 1997 . In 1992 he was composer in residence at the Cheltenham Festival.

Kelterborn's works are performed all over Europe, in the USA and in Japan. In addition, he worked as a (guest) conductor until 1996 , especially as an interpreter of his own works. Kelterborn published important analytical books as well as numerous essays on music-theoretical, compositional and cultural-political topics. His compositional work has been recognized in many essays and writings and has been awarded various prizes.

As Haefeli explains, Kelterborn always combined theory and practice in his many activities, but also “ratio” and “emotio”, “analysis and interpretation”, music and other arts, composing and performing, instrumental and vocal music, teaching and organizing , Research and implementation, writing and editing, programming and administration, professional and political engagement. Of course, he also reflected on the interdependencies between the particular positions, content and activities, sought dialogue with the musicians, worked as a conductor with both musical amateurs and professionals, taught compulsory and major subjects and was director of the Basel Music Academy equally interested in all branches subordinate to him (basic course education , music school, music academy and Schola Cantorum Basiliensis - i.e. music education for laypeople of all ages and professional training in old and new music and their instruments) and the people involved (pupils, students, teachers, administrative staff), present at their events and been there for them.

Private life

Rudolf Kelterborn mostly lived in his hometown of Basel. In 1957 he married the Basel violinist Erika Salathé, whom he had met while studying; their marriage gave birth to a daughter and a son. Kelterborn died on March 24, 2021 at the age of 89 in Basel.

The organist, conductor and composer Louis Kelterborn (1891–1933), who last worked in Neuchâtel , was his great cousin.

Honors and prizes

Works

Rudolf Kelterborn's oeuvre includes around 200 compositions of all genres, including five operas ( Die Errettung Thebes , Kaiser Jovian , An Engel comes to Babylon , Der Kirschgarten and Ophelia ), the chamber opera Julia , the ballet Relations , two oratorios ( Die Flut, Dies unus ) , numerous orchestral works (including symphonies I – V, some with solo instruments, voice (s), choir or electronics) and pieces for chamber orchestra, various solo works, ensemble and chamber music (including string quartets I – VII), pieces for keyboard instruments (Piano, organ and harpsichord) as well as various vocal works in mixed ensembles.

The earliest published compositions were made in the 1950s; he worked with unbroken creativity into old age. His works are published by Bärenreiter-Verlag (Basel / Kassel), by Boosey & Hawkes (London) and by Ricordi (Berlin) as well as occasionally by Breitkopf & Härtel (Wiesbaden), Editions Henn (Geneva), Hug & Co. Musikverlage (Zurich) ), Edizioni Pegasus (Basel), published by Gustav Bosse Verlag (Kassel), Carciofoli Verlag (Zurich) and Musica mundana Musikverlag (Ernen) and by Universal Edition (Vienna) or exist as a manuscript .

First internationally acclaimed at the 1956 IGNM Festival in Stockholm, Kelterborn has - as Anton Haefeli observes - undoubtedly been one of the most important and most performed Swiss composers of the present for many years. Its development has been continuous from the first to the most recent works. He dealt with neoclassical music , the Second Viennese School , serial music and aleatoric music, received suggestions from the music of Stravinsky's , Bartók's , Webern's , Berg's , Ligeti's , Boulez 's and others, but still kept an independent stance and found an unmistakable language who easily draw from different techniques and materials and oscillate between constancy and innovation. In addition, he advocates not asking first what a composition means, both in the case of works by others and his own, but rather as a sonic substrate than to perceive it yourself and to derive other aspects from music-immanent criteria.

Notes on (your own) music

«Various techniques play a role in my music, from serial processes to limited aleatorics. In some works the areas of expression are already indicated by the title: night pieces, phantasms, dream music, memories of Orpheus, Chiaroscuro. The spectrum ranges from meditative or lyrical demeanor to dramatic expressivity, from compositionally constructive detachment to elementary directness. The 'content' of my music is determined by the often almost unbearable tension between the beauties of this world, the unheard of possibilities of life on the one hand and the fears, horrors and needs of our time on the other. " (Rudolf Kelterborn)

In an interview with classicpoint.net (2013) Kelterborn explains that he develops his compositions according to his inner (hearing) ideas, from the overall architecture to the tonal details, before he begins to write them down. In doing so, he record individual aspects in verbal notes or sketches. In the case of compositions with texts or even musical theater pieces, the process is more complex. He doesn't use any digital aids. He goes on to explain that he has, so to speak, two categories of titles for his works. He calls many pieces “music for ...”, “concert”, “quartet”, “ensemble book”, “chamber sonata” etc. - these are quasi-neutral titles that say nothing about content, character, or atmosphere of expression. But then there are also headlines such as “Dream music”, “Phantasms”, “Night piece”, “Adagio con interventi”, “Fantasies + Flashes”, which want to steer the audience's imagination of association in a certain direction. Kelterborn also mentions that every time he inquires about a composition, he initially takes a few weeks to think about it. During this time he tests whether he can think of something convincing for the assignment, otherwise he refuses.

At an earlier point in time, Kelterborn said that he came up with new ideas and ideas by relentlessly challenging his imagination and checking everything very critically. He would therefore speak less of “inventing” than of “letting himself be imagined” - and this affects all levels: from the superordinate large form and its structure to spatial aspects and the compositional design of the internal structures. However, he could not explain any more details.

He made a telling statement to Swiss radio SRF in September 2020:

“In my opinion, art is 'abundance of life'. And I trust music to have the power to express this abundance without verbal and pictorial support and without literary and biographical programs and without explanations of composition. "

In the further course of the report, Florian Hauser reports that Kelterborn literally drifts from work to work, from discovery to discovery, with open ears, reinventing himself in every single work and that he has not forgotten curiosity and amazement to this day. That he believes in something and perseveres in pursuing it - not an easy path, but a worthwhile one! Kelterborn has always followed him, both when composing his own music and when listening to the music of colleagues.

In the SRF's official obituary dated April 8, 2021, Cécile Olshausen reported on the important Basel composer: “The older he got, the more carefree in his composing. Maybe just freed from the many responsibilities that he has taken on throughout his life. His critical eye, his clear judgments and his impressive skills as a networker - that was what made him stand out in his managerial positions. He was always accompanied by his huge commitment and passion for the cause of music. [...] Many young ensembles also enjoyed working with Rudolf Kelterborn. Numerous commissioned works were created especially in the later years of his life. These are compositions in which Kelterborn found a very personal tone - full of freshness and directness, but also depth. […] His straightforwardness and incorruptibility remain until the end. With good reason, Rudolf Kelterborn could have withdrawn from the public in old age. But again and again he impressed in cultural-political debates with his blunt and courageous statements. And so Rudolf Kelterborn is remembered as an enormously important source of inspiration - as a person in Swiss musical life that is respected by everyone. "

Fonts

  • The composer and his environment. In: Basler Stadtbuch . 1960, pp. 59-69. Digitalisat .
  • with Gustav Güldenstein: Etudes for the theory of harmony. Bärenreiter, Kassel 1967.
  • Symphonic epilogues. In: Swiss music newspaper .  1968, pp. 3-6.
  • "An angel comes to Babylon." Comments on my Dürrenmatt opera. In: Melos / New Magazine for Music.  1977, pp. 313-316.
  • For example Mozart. A contribution to musical analysis. (Two volumes: text part / music part). Bärenreiter, Basel 1981.
  • Music in focus. Positions - Analysis - Comments. (Collected Essays). Bärenreiter, Kassel 1988.
  • Is there a limit to the musical imagination? (= Music in Time. University Forum. 5). Helbing and Lichtenhahn, Basel / Frankfurt am Main 1990.
  • Analysis and interpretation. An introduction based on piano compositions. Amadeus, Winterthur 1993.
  • Musical theater music in our time. In: Music theater today. Schott, Mainz 2003, pp. 33-46.
  • Exquisite ideas and masterful routine. In: closeness from a distance. Bach reception in Switzerland. Amadeus, Winterthur 2005, pp. 307-319.
  • No music without a title - all the things that can go through a composer's head. In: Tages-Anzeiger . November 24, 2005, p. 4.
  • Current musical thinking in dealing with Mozart's music. In: Dissonance. 95, 2006, p. 28ff.
  • Subtle avant-garde in slow movements of Mozart's piano sonatas. In: Swiss music newspaper. 2/2008, p. 19 ff.
  • Here and now: reflections and discussions on compositional design. Ed .: Michael Kunkel. Pfau, Büdingen 2016, ISBN 3-89727-535-X .

literature

  • Ernst Mohr: About Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Swiss music newspaper. 100, 1960, pp. 8-12.
  • Ernst Mohr: On the composition technique of Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Musica. 14, 1960, pp. 281-285.
  • Dino Larese , Franzpeter Goebels : Rudolf Kelterborn - A sketch of life. Amriswiler Library, Amriswil 1970.
  • Dino Larese: meeting with Swiss composers. Amriswil 1974, pp. 43-48.
  • Rolf-Urs Ringger : Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Weltwoche. 1970, No. 30.
  • Wolf-Eberhard von Lewinski : Difficult music to understand. The composer Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Musica. 24, 1970, pp. 16-19.
  • Martin S. Weber: The orchestral works of Rudolf Kelterborn. Gustav Bosse Verlag, Regensburg 1981, ISBN 3-7649-2203-6 .
  • Martin S. Weber: Rudolf Kelterborn. A committed opera composer. In: Swiss Theater Yearbook. 45, 1983, pp. 124-138.
  • Kurt von Fischer : Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Dissonance. 4, 1985, pp. 16-18.
  • Wolf-Eberhard von Lewinsky: Clear and artistic - the composer Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Composers of the 20th Century. Paul Sacher Foundation, Basel 1986, pp. 401–406.
  • Roman Brotbeck: man about men about women. Opera premieres by Martin Derungs and Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Dissonance. 28, 1991, pp. 26-28.
  • Michael Töpel : Always there where something happens. Rudolf Kelterborn on his 60th birthday. In: bars. 1/91, Bärenreiter, pp. 7–8.
  • Andres Briner (Ed.): Rudolf Kelterborn. Composer, music thinker, mediator. Zytglogge Verlag and Pro Helvetia, Bern / Zurich 1993, ISBN 3-7296-0452-X .
  • Sigfried Schibli: A fighter for the interests of art. On the resignation of Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Basler Stadtbuch. 1994, pp. 118-119 digitized version .
  • Anton Haefeli : Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Contemporary Composers (KDG). Edition Text & Criticism, Munich 1996, ISBN 978-3-86916-164-8 .
  • Anton Haefeli: Continuity and Independence. Rudolf Kelterborn on his 65th birthday. In: bars. 1/96, Bärenreiter, pp. 11-12.
  • Anton Haefeli: Constancy and innovation. Rudolf Kelterborn's new works. In: bars. 2/97, Bärenreiter, p. 13.
  • Michael Töpel: “Always open new windows”. Conversation with Rudolf Kelterborn. In: bars. 1/2001, Bärenreiter, pp. 8–9.
  • Anton Haefeli: "Our nature is in motion." Rudolf Kelterborn on his 70th birthday. In: ZeitSchrift / Reformatio. 4/2001, pp. 229-236.
  • Sibylle Ehrismann : "I only look for my lyrics when the music is already there." A conversation with Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Swiss music newspaper. 9/2001, pp. 3-8.
  • Anton Haefeli: "Movement is the opposite of solidification." Rudolf Kelterborn on his 70th birthday. In: Dissonance. 70, 2001, pp. 24-33.
  • Anton Haefeli: «Vegghio, penso, ardo ...» on Kelterborn's work «nameless». In: Entre Denges et Denezy. Documents on Swiss music history 1900–2000. Schott, Mainz 2001.
  • Sabine Kappeler: An exchange of letters with Rudolf Kelterborn. In: lamed, magazine for church and Judaism. 5 / 6-2003 (special issue music), Zurich, pp. 18–20.
  • Gisela Sandner: Aspects of the dance of death in "The death and the virgin" by Rudolf Kelterborn (= communications from the Paul Sacher Foundation ). Basel 2005.
  • Hanspeter Renggli: Rudolf Kelterborn . In: Andreas Kotte (Ed.): Theater Lexikon der Schweiz . Volume 2, Chronos, Zurich 2005, ISBN 3-0340-0715-9 , p. 985 f.
  • Susanne Kübler: Frequenzen 2. Four Swiss composers. Rudolf Kelterborn, Ernst Pfiffner, Rolf Urs Ringger, Peter Wettstein. Rüffer + Rub, Zurich 2005.
  • Susanne Kübler: Thinking and glowing. For the 75th birthday of the Swiss composer Rudolf Kelterborn. In: bars. 1/2006, Bärenreiter, p. 12.
  • Hansruedi Lerch: Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  • Sara Imobersteg: Interview with Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Swiss music newspaper. 3/2007, pp. 15-16.
  • Christoph Neidhöfer: Energetics and Form. Analytical reflections on Rudolf Kelterborn's “Four Pieces for Four Players” (2005). In: Dissonance. 115, 2011, pp. 18-31.
  • Björn Gottstein: Swiss Piano (CD ZHdK). Piano Works by Emmanuel Nunes and Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Dissonance. 115, 2011, pp. 89-90.
  • Michael Kunkel: "Music is the fullness of life." Rudolf Kelterborn in conversation with Michael Kunkel (Basel, May 27, 2011). In: Dissonance. 115, 2011, pp. 4-17.
  • Thomas Meyer: Memories of a “green opera”. Rudolf Kelterborn: "The Cherry Orchard" (1979–81). In: Dissonance. 115, 2011, pp. 32-37.

Discography

  • GRAMMONT CTS-P 35-2 (1990): Five songs (based on poems by Herbert Meier / 1980-1981); Sonatas for Winds (1986 ); String V (1988 - 1989); Relations (ballet concert version / 1973–1974)
  • DIVOX CDX 29002 (1991): String Quartet IV (1969-1970)
  • JECKLIN 296-2 (1993): Duet (1989)
  • MUSICA HELVETICA SBC MH CD 84.2 (1994): Canto appassionato (1959)
  • COL LEGNO WWE 1CD 31878 (1995): Changements pour grand orchester (1972–1973); Escursioni (1989); Ensemble-Buch I for baritone and ensemble (with poems by Erika Burkart / 1990); Fantasia a tre (1967); Variations (1960)
  • MUSICAPHON BM 55706 (1995): Ensemble Book II (1992–1994)
  • MGB CD 6069 (1996): Symphony IV (1985–1986), Sonata for cello and piano (1985); Nuovi canti for flute and chamber orchestra (1973)
  • PAN CLASSICS 510 112 (1998): Four Fantasy Pieces (1992-1993); Visions sonores (1979); Music for 6 percussionists (1983–1984); Approaches (1998)
  • TUDOR 7052 (2000): Fantasies, Inventions and Chants (1996)
  • MGB CTS-M 69 (2000): Variations (1960)
  • MGB CD 6182 (2001): Concerto for cello and orchestra (1998–1999); Nameless (1996); Chamber concert for clarinet and 14 instruments (1999–2000)
  • CTS-M 87 (2003): Ensemble Book III (1997)
  • MGB CD 6254 (2007): Spectra (1993)
  • GMCD 7318 (2007): Piano Pieces 1–6 (2001–2004)
  • MGB CTS-M 107 (2007): Sonata (1955); Piano piece "Quinternio" (2005)
  • MGB CTS-M 108 (2007): Four pieces for clarinet in Bb and piano (1969)
  • GMCD 7322 (2008): 15 Moments musicaux (2006)
  • MGB CTS-M120 (2009): Chamber Symphony No. 3 (2007)
  • NEOS 11118 (2011): Hommage à FD (2010); Chamber Symphony 3 (2007); I hear myself (2006); Concerto for viola and orchestra (2009)
  • MGB CTS-M 135 (2012): The Ear of the Inside - Music with Japanese Haikus (2011)
  • GEN 14315 (2013): chamber sonata for saxophone, cello and accordion (2008)
  • MGB CTS-M 143 (2014): Piano Pieces 1–6 (2001–2004)
  • MGB CTS-M 142 (2014): Symphony No. 5 "La Notte" (2011–2012)
  • NEOS 11506 (2015): Four Pieces for Four Players (2005)
  • NEOS 11903 (2019): Ensemble Book I (1990); Music with 5 trios (2016–2017); Songs for the Night (1978)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Thomas Schacher: On the death of Rudolf Kelterborn: The emotion comes from the intellect. In: NZZ. April 8, 2021, accessed April 8, 2021 .
  2. ↑ Rudolf Kelterborn. Federal Office of Culture, 2020, accessed on April 8, 2021 .
  3. ↑ a b c Anton Haefeli: Movement is the opposite of solidification - Rudolf Kelterborn, a musicus universalis, is seventy years old. In: dissonance. 2001, accessed April 8, 2021 .
  4. ^ Rudolf Kelterborn: Entre Denges et Denezy . In: Ulrich Mosch (Ed.): Documents on Swiss Music History 1900–2000 . Basel 2000, p. 271 f .
  5. ^ Kelterborn Rudolf (list of works). In: Musinfo. Retrieved April 8, 2021 .
  6. ↑ Rudolf Kelterborn. In: baerenreiter.com. Retrieved April 8, 2021 .
  7. ↑ Florian Schär: Interview with Rudolf Kelterborn. In: Classicpoint.ch. July 8, 2013, accessed April 7, 2021 .
  8. ^ Marie Luise Maintz: Rudolf Kelterborn for his 80th birthday. In: [t] akte. 2010, accessed April 8, 2021 .
  9. ↑ a b Florian Hauser: Musicus universalis: Rudolf Kelterborn. SRF, September 16, 2020, accessed on April 9, 2021 .
  10. ↑ Cécile Olshausen: Only he couldn't stop. SRF, April 8, 2021, accessed April 9, 2021 .
personal data
SURNAME Kelterborn, Rudolf
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss composer and conductor
DATE OF BIRTH September 3, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Basel
DATE OF DEATH March 24, 2021
PLACE OF DEATH Basel