Wilfried Hiller

Wilfried Hiller (born March 15, 1941 in Weißenhorn ) is a German composer . He was best known for his stage works for families, children and young people.

life and work

Wilfried Hiller was born as the son of the teacher August Hiller and his wife Josepha Hiller, b. Hauser, born in the Swabian town of Weißenhorn near Ulm. In the war year 1944, his father died in Russia and Wilfried became a half-orphan when he was three years old. Wilfried Hiller himself described early childhood experiences in connection with his composition Alkor :

When my father was in Russia during the Second World War, every evening at 10 o'clock he looked up at the Alkor , the little rider who sits on the drawbar of the big wagon. At the same time my mother looked at the star in our Swabian village and although it shines many light years away from us, the two found a common home for minutes with this look into the past. Every day my father wrote a letter home.
My mother wanted to set an example: "We want peace and the child should be called Wilfried!" That Alkor in the Big Dipper is therefore my very personal story. My father did not come back from Russia. ( Lit .: Hiller)

education

After attending the humanistic grammar school with St. Stephan in Augsburg , he took up piano studies with Wilhelm Heckmann at the Augsburg Leopold Mozart Conservatory in 1956 . From 1958 to 1961 Wilfried Hiller wrote his first play with music (Die Räuber von Hiller) as well as piano compositions and chamber music and worked as an organist and ballet accompanist .

From 1962 he took part in the Darmstadt summer courses for new music and was an intern with Pierre Boulez , Bruno Maderna and Karlheinz Stockhausen . During this time he also made the acquaintance of his future publisher Peter Hanser-Strecker and the composer Karl Amadeus Hartmann . At Hartmann's suggestion, Hiller began studying music at the University of Music in Munich in 1963 . Here he studied composition with Günter Bialas , opera direction with Heinz Arnold , drums and timpani with Ludwig Porth and Hanns Hölzl, and music theory with Hermann Pfrogner .

As Hiller announced in 2013, he was repeatedly the victim of sexual abuse in the St. Joseph seminar at Stephan-Gymnasium.

Different places of work

From 1967 Wilfried Hiller worked as a percussionist in various orchestras, for example with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra , the Bavarian State Opera and the State Theater on Gärtnerplatz . In 1968 he founded the concert series “music of our time”.

In 1968 he met Carl Orff , who had a strong influence on him in the following years. Hiller worked closely with him until Orff's death in 1982 as his pupil and has been chairman of the Carl Orff Foundation since 2008.

Hiller's works for music theater have been decisively shaped since 1971 by the collaboration with his wife, the actress Elisabet Woska .

Cooperation with Michael Ende

The encounter with the writer Michael at the end of 1978 marked the beginning of a fruitful artistic partnership and close friendship that lasted until Ende's death in 1995 and led to a whole series of successful stage works such as Tranquilla Trampeltreu , Der Goggolori or Das Traumfresserchen .

Wilfried Hiller has a special relationship with compositions for children and young people. In an interview on the occasion of his 60th birthday, he answered the question of how he, as a composer, manages to address children and adults alike:

“By simply writing for the child that you have remained yourself ... The decisive factor for success is that you get to the point musically and how the children react, whether they are enthusiastic about it - or whether they are bored. Children can be merciless judges. " ( Lit .: GEMA-Nachrichten)

Hiller considers young listeners and viewers to be self-confident and intelligent and does not want to bore them with a reduced theme or tonal language - neither the multi-layered and dense, yet easily comprehensible libretti Michael Ende nor his music are "simple" in this sense.

One hundred percent understanding of the text and a clear statement are important, according to Hiller, when composing for children. The turtle Tranquilla Trampeltreu in the musical fable of the same name is, for example, despite its unpunctuality - it appears at the royal wedding of Leo XXVIII the lion. a whole generation too late - rewarded for their stubbornness, perseverance and self-discipline.

Hiller also thinks that in music theater works for children there should definitely be passages that can be singed through:

“ Earwig qualities can be quiet, although that is actually taboo and you are then looked at crookedly. But there is still something to the following sentence by Darius Milhaud : "If you cannot write a melody to sing, you cannot be called a composer". " ( Lit .: GEMA-Nachrichten)

According to Hiller and Ende's experience, the duration of a children's opera should not exceed 80 to 85 minutes.

After Ende's death, Wilfried Hiller initially worked with Herbert Asmodi (The Story of the Little Blue Mountain Lake and the Old Eagle), and since 1997 with Rudolf Herfurtner . He also made use of literary sources by Theodor Storm ( Der Schimmelreiter ), Christian Morgenstern (Heidenröslein) and Wilhelm Busch (Der Geigenseppel) . In addition to the numerous stage works, there is also a large number of chamber music works, solo concerts , choral and orchestral works.

Hiller claims to be the most performed living German stage composer. His works for children and young people in particular fill a gap in the repertoire, as musically complex and yet popular children's operas are rare, but are urgently needed by the increasing number of children's opera projects as part of the increased youth work of the opera houses. His works are therefore performed in numerous productions in German-speaking countries. A production of the little dream eater was shown in the children's opera tent on the roof of the Vienna State Opera for several seasons in front of a sold-out tent.

Hiller's church opera "Augustine - A Sounding Mosaic" about Saint Augustine premiered on March 19, 2005 in Munich.

From 2009 Wilfried Hiller took over as the new artistic director of the International Organ Week Nuremberg (ION) until 2012 . He is also the artistic director of the Diabelli Contest , an international composers competition.

Music editor and sound engineer

In addition to his work as a freelance composer, Hiller worked as a music editor and sound engineer for Bayerischer Rundfunk from November 1971 to March 2006 . First were upscale light music and in 1974 symphonic music on the program of his broadcasts, later, he was an editor for special broadcasts. Wilfried Hiller also composed music for the 30-part series Klangbaustelle Klimperton for the school radio and was the organizer of the Musica Viva studio concerts under Wolfgang Fortner . He also founded the music of our time series , from which the Munich Music Nights later emerged, and the Orff Festival in Andechs .

As editor of the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation, he was responsible for the following series, among others:

Munich music history in street names
Conductors at rehearsal
Music of my choice
Composers make a program
non-European music
music of our time
Night accents
Concerto bavarese
Traditional music festival

Wilfried Hiller is on the board of the Jean Sibelius Society and the Gasteig cultural group. In 1989 he became a member of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts , and in 1993 he was appointed as a composition teacher at the Richard Strauss Conservatory in Munich. Since November 2005 he has been President of the Bavarian Music Council . Wilfried Hiller is a member of the board of trustees of the international artist house Villa Concordia . Many of his students received scholarships there ( Nélida Béjar , Dieter Dolezel , Christoph Garbe , Eva Sindichakis , Markus Zahnhausen ).

Works

Stage works

Operas and other works for musical theater:

On this day (world premiere January 9, 1974 on ZDF ), monodrama for actress and percussion, libretto: Elisabet Woska based on letters from Maria Stuart
Niobe (1978), in ancient Greek
Ijob (first performance July 15, 1979, Theater im Marstall, Munich), monodrama for tenor, based on the biblical book Ijob , translated by Martin Buber ; 2nd version: World premiere February 22, 1984, French Church, Bern
Loyal to love and cruelty (1981), based on Wilhelm Busch
The Goggolori . A Bavarian fairy tale with music (first performance February 3, 1985, Theater am Gärtnerplatz, Munich), libretto in Bavarian language by Michael Ende
Completion of Chaplin-Ford-Trott from the wax museum of Karl Amadeus Hartmann (1988)
Die Jagd nach dem Schlarg (1988), Libretto: Michael Ende after Lewis Carroll
The Pied Piper (1993), Libretto: Michael Ende
The story of the little blue mountain lake and the old eagle (1996), libretto: Herbert Asmodi
Heidenröslein (1996), after Christian Morgenstern and Johannes Brahms
Der Schimmelreiter (1998), libretto by Andreas KW Meyer based on Theodor Storm
Eduard auf dem Seil (1998), libretto: Rudolf Herfurtner - Opera about Eduard Mörike
Der Geigenseppel (2000), melodrama for marionettes based on Wilhelm Busch's poem (text by Elisabet Woska), commissioned by the cultural program in the German pavilion at the Expo 2000 world exhibition in Hanover
Wolkenstein (world premiere March 6, 2004, Nuremberg Opera, director: Percy Adlon ) - Opera about Oswald von Wolkenstein
Augustine - A sounding mosaic (world premiere March 19, 2005, Lukaskirche , Munich) - Churchoperaabout St. Augustine, text: Winfried Böhm.
The carpenter's son (first performance March 16, 2010, Würzburg Cathedral , Würzburg) - church opera about Jesus, text: Winfried Böhm, dramaturgical collaboration: Elisabet Woska.

Music theater for children and young people:

Four musical fables based on texts by Michael Ende, staged or performed as a radio play

The Lindwurm and the Butterfly or The Strange Exchange (1980, world premiere 11 January 1981, Theater am Haidplatz of the Regensburg City Theater)

Tranquilla Trampeltreu , the persistent tortoise (first performance July 9, 1981, Munich City Museum)

The ballad by Norbert Nackendick or Das Nackte Nashorn (world premiere 23 September 1982, Rheinisches Marionettentheater, Düsseldorf)

The Fable of Filemon Wrinkles or The World Cup of Flies (World Premiere)

The scattered glasses snake (1981) for narrator, clarinet and drone , text: Michael Ende

Josa with the magic fiddle (1985)

Das Traumfresserchen (world premiere February 5, 1991, Theater Bremen), libretto: Michael Ende

Peter Pan (1997), after JM Barrie

Die Waldkinder (1997–1998), “Pocket Opera”, libretto: Rudolf Herfurtner

Pinocchio (world premiere on October 12, 2002, Stadttheater Trier ), based on the novel Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi

Momo (world premiere on December 16, 2018, Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz Munich), based on the novel of the same name by Michael Ende.

Incidental music and music for puppet theater:

Hiller's Robbers (1975)
Wish Punch (1990)
The juggler's tale (1998)
Momo (2002)

Vocal works

Der Leuchtturm (1962–1963) for baritone and dulcimer , revised 1997
Let Thy Song Be Love (1969) for soprano and piano
Schulamit (1977–1990) for solo singer, choir and orchestra
Muspilli (1978) for barion and instruments
A Frog once saw a bull (1979), for solo singer, choir and orchestra
Flea market of dreams (1984), song cycle
Klimperton sound construction site (1996), music for school radio broadcasts
Sappho-Fragmente (1997) for girls' choir, flute and cello
Merseburger Zaubersprüche (1997) for children's choir and brass, setting of Merseburger Zaubersprüche
Napkin Haiku (1997) for soprano and chamber ensemble
Aias (2001) for mezzo-soprano, baritone, speaker and orchestra
Holy Night (2001) for male sextet, speaker and instruments
Michael-Ende-Songbook (2002) for girls' choir, cello and percussion
Gilgamesh (2002) for baritone and instruments, based on the Gilgamesh epic

Orchestral works

Fanfare (1970) for trumpets, timpani and bass drum
Night Singing (1974)
Munich (1990), suite
Profound thoughts of the archbishop composer Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber while overhearing a bird concert (1991)
Chagall cycle (1993) for clarinet and chamber orchestra
Pegasus 51 (1995) for jazz drums and symphony orchestra
Fanfare (1996) for brass and timpani
Rätsel-Canon (2000), adapted from Johann Sebastian Bach
Via Dolorosa (2001)
Bavariations (2002)
Tarot XVI (2002) for strings and zither
Cappella Sistina (2009) Roman frescoes for orchestra, soprano and quartetto lontano

Chamber music

Movements for a Big Cat (1968) for oboe and bassoon
Pas de deux (1978) for two pianos
Natura morta con saltiero (1983), quintet
Lilith (1987) for four strings and piano
Sheet music for Tamino (1990) for eight flutes
Niobe (1995), piano trio
Teufels- Toccata (1995) for violin and four percussionists
Liocorno di Bomarzo (1997) for organ and alphorn
Book of Stars (from 1999) for one, two or three pianos
Duetti amorosi (2000/2001) for octet
Death is a beautiful woman (2000) for violin and piano

Solo works

Elegy (1966) for oboe
Rhythmizomenon (1966) for piano
Catalog for percussion IV (1966–1975)
Phantasie (1982) for piano based on a cycle of pictures by Wilhelm Busch
Toccata diabolica (1993) for organ
Scherzo (1994) for cello
Toccata cabbalistica sopra la-sol (1994) for organ
Tarot XVI (2002) for organ
Ophelia (2003) for violin

Awards

1968 Richard Strauss Prize of the City of Munich

1971 Music Prize from the City of Munich

1977 Brno Prize , recognition prize from the City of Salzburg for his work Niobe

1978 scholarship from the German Academy Rome Villa Massimo

1978 Schwabing Art Prize for Music

1988 Raiffeisen sponsorship award

1997 Werner Egk Prize , City of Donauwörth Art Prize

2000 Bayerischer Poetentaler , literary prize of the Munich tower writers

2008 Bavarian Order of Merit

2010 Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art

2013 Upper Bavarian Culture Prize

literature

Richard Braun et al. a .: Harenberg, composers lexicon. 760 composers and their work. Harenberg, Dortmund 2001 ISBN 3-611-00978-4 , page 426f.
Wilfried Hiller: Life. Opus and documents on pegasus51.de .
Gunter Reiß (Ed.): Theater and music for children. Contributions and sources on Herfurtner, Hiller, Ponsioen, Schwaen, on children's drama and puppet theater. (= Culture, literature and media for children and young people. Volume 12). Lang, Frankfurt am Main a. a. 2001, ISBN 3-631-34484-8 .
Tranquilla Trampeltreu (record cover). Deutsche Grammophon Junior Stereo 2546 058, 1981.
Gunter Reiß: At the “flea market of dreams”. The composer Wilfried Hiller. Schott, Mainz 2011, ISBN 978-3-7957-0753-8 .
Andrea Grandjean-Gremminger: Opera for children. On the genre and its history - With a case study on Wilfried Hiller (= children's and youth culture, literature and media. Volume 56). Lang, Frankfurt am Main a. a. 2008, ISBN 978-3-631-56969-6 .
Theresa Kalin, Franzpeter Messmer (ed.): Wilfried Hiller , monograph (= composers in Bavaria. Volume 56). Verlag Hans Schneider, Tutzing 2014, ISBN 978-3-86296-068-2 .

Interviews:

Bayern Alpha: Wilfried Hiller in conversation with Susanne Schmerda. Weblink (PDF; 47 kB)
GEMA-Nachrichten 163: Changing consciousness through imagination. Interview with Wilfried Hiller. Web link