Composers & Works
Carmina Burana von Carl Orff Genesis – Reception – Text Edited by Franz Willnauer 320 pages – paperback 40 illustrations 12,0 x 19,0 cm € 14.95 ISBN 978-3-254-08220-6 · SEM 8220 What music it must be, that it was always played when Henry Maske entered the boxing ring, music played at Michael Jackson’s stage shows, music still used for charity events and commercials? Understood and tolerated as a work of coded subversive character at the time of creation, misunderstood and met with hostility as musical evidence of the composer’s concurring beliefs seventy years later – nothing can prove the topicality of this seemingly ahistorical piece better than the unique phenomenon of its history of reception. Although the Latin texts make it difficult to understand Carmina Burana, they are among the most frequently played works in the world of music. Taking account of documentation by the composer, this book traces the genesis and reception of the work and discusses the growing popularity of Carmina Burana. Franz Willnauer, born in Enns/Austria in 1933, studied psychology, theatre studies and German studies before working in the publishing business and at several German theatres. From 1999 to 2003 he was director of the International Beethoven Festival in Bonn; before he held comparable positions at the Salzburg Festival (1985–1991) and at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival (1995–1998).
All Rights Available Scandalously popular! Target group: People generally interested in music, musicologists, students, choir masters and singers
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Composers & Works
Arnold Werner-Jensen
Helmut Perl
Oper intern
Der Fall Zauberflöte
Work routines before and behind the scenes
Mozart und die Illuminaten
The Case of The Magic Flute
224 pages – paperbound Numerous illustrations 12 x 19 cm € 12.95 ISBN 978-3-254-08210-7 · SEM 8210
Mozart and the Illuminati 200 pages – hardback 15,0 x 22,5 cm € 19.95 ISBN 978-3-254-00271-6 · ATL 6271
The opera, probably the most spectacular and demanding of all art forms, undoubtedly holds its very own fascination for the operagoer, and many of them may ask how the often magnificent performances come about. This book reveals the secrets of the ‘stage’ and takes a look behind the scenes. It grants an insight into the complex work processes and the interplay of the different forces and factors that characterize the daily routine of the music theatre: from the business, artistic and literary directors via the artistic and technical staff, all sections and departments of an opera house are introduced to the reader. The description of the development of a new production shows the number of personnel as well as the expense and organisational and technical efforts that are required to ensure a successful opera performance. An informative guide to the work at an opera-house – not only for fans of the opera.
For the first time, the libretto of the ‘Magic Flute’ is interpreted within the intellectual and historical context of the late 18th century. In Perl’s study, Mozart and his librettist Schikaneder are revealed to be committed representatives of a radical late-Enlightenment movement, the ideology of the Illuminati, a secret society with the Viennese organisations of which Mozart maintained a close relationship. Because of rigorous censure, the authors had to disguise the work’s message: The ‘Magic Flute’ became a piece of allegorical theatre in which the acting characters impersonate the two irreconcilable forces of the clergy and the Illuminati. The original stage sets even showed a meeting place of the Society in Salzburg. Thus, this opera, when viewed with a new perspective, holds a mirror to the political events in the Austria of Emperor Francis Joseph.
Arnold Werner-Jensen, born in Innsbruck in 1941, studied school music, German language and literature as well as art history and did a PhD in musicology. Trained as a conductor, then grammar school teacher and music critic. Professor of music and music didactics in Heidelberg and Weingarten. Works as a pianist and harpsichordist with concert performances and radio recordings. Numerous musicoeducational and musicological publications.
Ernst Helmut Perl (1927–2004) studied church and school music. Wrote a thesis on performance problems in 18th century music. Has performed in concerts as an organist and cembalist.
All Rights Available The ‘Magic Flute’ interpreted in a new context
All Rights Available The fascinating thing about the opera is that a new work of art takes shape every evening. Knut Sommer
Target group: Mozart lovers, music and theatre lovers; music, theatre, literary and cultural historians
A look behind the scenes of an opera-house A concise description of all sections and activities Recommended by the Association of German Theatres Target group: Opera and theatre lovers, graduates and students who want to work at a theatre
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Composers & Works
Philippe Olivier
Enrico Nawrath, Katharina Wagner
‘Der Ring des Nibelungen’ in Bayreuth.
Bayreuth backstage Interior views of the Green Hill
Von den Anfängen bis heute
ca. 120 pages – hardbound with dust jacket Numerous illustrations 24 x 30 cm € 29.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0196-3 · ED 20485
‘The Nibelung’s Ring’ in Bayreuth From the beginning to the present 272 pages – hardback with dust jacket 350 illustrations 27,0 x 33,0 cm € 49.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0594-7 · ED 20142
Every summer for five weeks, the Eastern Franconian town of Bayreuth turns into the metropolis of festival music. Music lovers from all over the world pilgrimage to the Green Hill to enjoy performances of the works of Richard Wagner. But a visitor hardly thinks about the huge amount of time and effort involved. The highly praised ‘Bayreuth Workshop’ has always been a real workshop – including a carpenter, locksmith, dyer and festival smith. For Katharina Wagner, the composer’s great-granddaughter, this magic world was the playground of her childhood. Today, the ‘artistic cooperative’ forms the basis of her own productions. In this illustrated book, she and the photographer Enrico Nawrath take the opera lover on a journey behind the scenes of the festival theatre.
With the production of the ‘Ring’ by Tankred Dorst last year, the ‘Ring’ productions looked back on a history of 130 years. 14 productions by 12 directors (the brothers Wieland and Wolfgang Wagner staged two productions each) are proof of the inexhaustability of Richard Wagner’s opera tetralogy. Again and again, great opera directors (after the Wagner family itself) have taken on the colossal challenge of a production: from Patrice Chéreau and Peter Hall to Harry Kupfer and Jürgen Flimm. Unlike anywhere else in the world, Bayreuth is the place to study the context of its history and theatre aesthetics. Hence, a look into the history of the ‘Ring’ in Bayreuth is a look not only into the unique chronicle of the performance history of Richard Wagner’s greatest masterpiece but also into the history of the Bayreuth Festival, thus making this illustrated volume a unique document of opera history and a must-have for every Wagner fan.
Enrico Nawrath attended the Dresden Palucca School and the Berlin State Ballet School from 1988–1993 where he trained as a stage dancer. Since 1994 he has also worked as a photographer. 2006–2008 production photographer of the Berlin State Ballet. In 2008 photographer of the Bayreuth Festival. Katharina Wagner, born in Bayreuth in 1978, studied theatre arts in Berlin. From 1996 assistant director to Harry Kupfer and at the Bayreuth Festival. In 2002 debut as director, in 2007 first Bayreuth production under her direction (The Mastersingers).
Philippe Olivier, Alsatian writer, TV author and musicologist, was born in 1952. From 1975–1993 he worked as a producer with the broadcasting company France Musiques, from 1994–1998 as a marketing director with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, and since April 2007 has been guest professor at the Rostock Hochschule für Musik und Theater. He has published numerous books and produced various films, especially about Richard Wagner and his descendants.
All Rights Available A look into the wonderworld of the ‘Bayreuth Workshop’
All Rights Available Edited and containing an essay by Wagner’s great-granddaughter Katharina Wagner With unpublished photos of the 2008 Bayreuth Festival The perfect gift for all Bayreuth fans
12 productions from the 130-year history of the ‘Ring’ in Bayreuth in a richly illustrated de luxe edition Target group: Wagner fans, Bayreuth visitors, opera lovers, people interested in cultural and contemporary history
Target group: Wagner fans, opera lovers, musicians
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Composers & Works
Herbert Haffner
Ralf Stabel
Die Berliner Philharmoniker
IM Tänzer
Eine Biographie
The dance and the State Security Service
The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
240 pages – hardbound with dust jacket 30 illustrations 13,5 x 21,5 € 24.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0165-9 · ED 20278
A biography 320 pages – hardback with dust jacket 30 illustrations 13,5 x 21,5 cm € 24.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0590-9 · ED 20104
The ballet was an excellent export of the GDR. Classical dance and new artistic dance were in great demand all over the world due to excellent training centres and state funding. Embodying youth and innocence, they lent the system a human countenance. But like all spheres of life in the GDR, the dance theatre too was eyed by the Ministry of State Security, and the large number of IM [unofficial collaborator] files gives rise to the question as to whether the State Security Service had a particularly easy job here, at a place of artistic deception, play-acting and intrigue. With the help of documents from the Birthler Authority, the actions of persons involved and persons concerned are for the first time described in a comprehensible, yet oppressive way, without wanting to provoke any understanding for the actions of the responsible persons.
The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra has not only seen and carried its share of the eventful history of its home town. Being one of the world’s most important concert orchestras, it has, in addition, become an excellent ambassador of culture. Herbert Haffner tells the story of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra – from its formation in 1882 out of the Bilsesche Kapelle (Bilse’s Band) via the period of inflation, two World Wars, the Berlin Airlift and the German reunification until the present day. Haffner does not conceal economic and personal crises, showing that the development of the orchestra mirrors the social and political circumstances of the time. The history of the Philharmonic Orchestra is marked, almost as strongly, by the continuous reorientation towards its principal conductors, from Hans von Bülow via Arthur Nikisch, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Herbert von Karajan, Claudio Abbado to Sir Simon Rattle. This is not just a book on music, but also an entertaining account of the cultural history of Germany and of the ever-changing city of Berlin!
Ralf Stabel studied theatre arts and choreography in Leipzig and did his PhD in Bremen on dance and politics. Professor of dance dramaturgy and dance history at the Dresden Palucca School and at the Berlin ‘Ernst Busch’ Academy of Dramatic Art. Today, he is director of the Berlin State Ballet School. His widely acclaimed Palucca biography was published by the Henschel Verlag in 2001.
Herbert Haffner lives in Freiburg/Breisgau and works as a freelance cultural journalist for numerous national and foreign newspapers, magazines and radio stations. He has published articles, books and broadcasts on the musical life of today and on the theatre from the 18th century to the modern age. 2003 saw the publication of his highly acclaimed biography on Furtwängler.
All Rights Available A different kind of dance history of the GDR An exciting historic document New findings from documents of the Birthler Authority The first account of this topic
Sold to Japan ‘The Berlin Philharmonic is an exceptional orchestra.’ FAZ
Target group: Readers interested in contemporary and dance history, dancers
Target group: Lovers of classical music, musicians, readers interested in cultural history
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Composers & Works
Manuel Negwer
Villa-Lobos The dawn of Brazilian music 240 pages with CD – hardback 30 illustrations 13,5 x 21,5 cm € 22.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0168-0 · ED 20316 Heitor Villa-Lobos is regarded as one of the most important and internationally most successful composers of Latin America. His comprehensive oeuvre combines traditional Brazilian with European art music in a many-faceted way. Despite all this, his music has more or less been ignored in German-language literature until today. This gap is now closed by the present monograph which is at the same time a comprehensive study of cultural trends in Brazil of the first half of the 20th century. For the first time, the national traditions that influenced Villa-Lobos are documented in great detail and related to his compositional oeuvre. A monograph that combines biographical facts with information on the cultural and contemporary history of VillaLobos’ home country in a fascinating way. Manuel Negwer, born in Berlin in 1952, grew up in Argentina, Angola and Italy. Studied musicology and Romance languages and literature in Berlin and Würzburg. PhD in 1982. Freelancer of SFB, RIAS, Deutsche Welle and the Berlin Festival, at the same time working as a guitarist. From 1985 lecturer at various Goethe Institutes, such as in Brazil. Since 2008 head of the department ‘Amateur music-making and encouragement of upand-coming musicians’. Main focus: Latin American music and literature.
Sold to Brazil ‘A piece of Brazil’s cultural and contemporary history’ The only available biography of the most important composer of Latin America A musical bridge between Brazil and Europe Including CD with recordings under the direction of Villa-Lobos Target group: Lovers of classical music, readers of biographies, musicologists, fans of Brazil, people interested in cultural history
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Composers & Works
Spitzen-Variationen
Inside Das Staatsballett Berlin und Vladimir Malakhov
The Berlin State Ballet and Vladimir Malakhov The company book Vol. I Edited by Christiane Theobald Photos by Sandra Hastenteufel
Inside – The Berlin State Ballet and Vladimir Malakhov The company book Vol. II Edited by Christiane Theobald Photos by Enrico Nawrath
176 pages – hardback 350 4-colour images 24,0 x 27,0 cm € 49.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0576-3 · ED 20022
128 pages – hardback 309 4-colour images 24,0 x 27,0 cm € 24.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0195-6 · ED 20480
The first chapter of a new era in German dance history has been written: In ‘Spitzen-Variationen’, both the director and the ensemble of the Berlin State Ballet take a first look back. The director Vladimir Malakhov, one of the most renowned and prominent artists in ballet, responded to a call to Berlin to make the newly founded Berlin State Ballet, the largest dance company of Germany, one of the top ensembles of the international dance scene. This edition helps to relive the eight great premieres and twelve repertoire pieces of the past two seasons. Complemented by portraits of all dancers, backstage pictures and rehearsal photos, this illustrated book is a real visual delight.
In this illustrated book, the Berlin State Ballet, Germany’s largest dance company, and its director Vladimir Malakhov, one of the most renowned and prominent representatives of the international ballet scene, again give the readers a fascinating insight into their joint work: Inside not only provides impressions of the rehearsals, but especially brings the ten premieres as well as the two revivals of the last two seasons back to life. In addition, the illustrated book contains individual portraits of all ensemble members. The company book Vol. II – a visual delight for all lovers of the ballet.
Sandra Hastenteufel is professor of fine arts at the Cornell University in Rome. Since her studies at the Stuttgart State Academy of Fine Arts, she has worked on several exhibitions and projects. From 2004–2006, the former winner of a Villa Massimo scholarship was the official photographer of the Berlin State Ballet. Christiane Theobald is the company manager and assistant artistic director of the Berlin State Ballet.
Christiane Theobald is the company manager and assistant artistic director of the Berlin State Ballet. Enrico Nawrath attended the Dresden Palucca School and the Berlin State Ballet School from 1988–1993 where he trained as a stage dancer. From 1993 he performed engagements at the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden, the Dresden Semperoper and the Berlin Deutsche Oper; since 1994 he has also worked as a photographer. 2006–2008 he was production photographer of the Berlin State Ballet and in 2008 photographer of the Bayreuth Festival.
All Rights Available This illustrated book is a real visual delight
All Rights Available
Target group: Ballet and dance lovers, ballet dancers, fans of Vladimir Malakhov
This illustrated book is a real visual delight Target group: Ballet and dance lovers, ballet dancers, fans of Vladimir Malakhov
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Composers & Works
Malakhovs Dornröschen Seitensprünge mit dem Staatsballett Berlin
Malakhov’s Sleeping Beauty Escapades with the Berlin State Ballet Edited by Frank Sistenich and Christiane Theobald Photographies by Monika Rittershaus 160 pages – hardback 130 b/w and 160 4-colour images 24,5 x 33,5 cm € 39.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0544-2 · ED 9965 Nureyev used to call ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ the ‘ballet of the ballets’. In autumn 2005, Vladimir Malakhov choreographed a sumptuous new production of this work for his ensemble, the Berlin State Ballet. Together, with the dancer of the century as director, the greatest and most important ballet ensemble of Germany have realized a production that will go down in dance history. In this unique illustrated book, the photographer Monika Rittershaus allows us to share in the creation of this production. She documents the work of the whole company, alternating between personal impressions and glamourous ballet photography. She shows us a new modern interpretation of one of the major repertoire pieces of classical ballet in compelling pictures. This photo essay is complemented by annotations by Christiane Theobald and Frank Sistenich. Monika Rittershaus is one of the most renowned stage photographers of Germany. Frank Sistenich works as a freelance journalist and publicist, teacher of International Marketing, Leisure and Tourism Studies and Economic Communication. Christiane Theobald is the company manager and assistant artistic director of the Berlin State Ballet.
All Rights Available Personal impressions combined with glamourous ballet photography Target group: Ballet and dance lovers, fans of Vladimir Malakhov
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Composers & Works
Siegfried Tesche
»Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang« The history of the James Bond film themes 176 pages with CD – paperback 17,7 x 17,7 cm € 19.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0567-1 · ED 20007 The songs accompanying the adventures of the most famous agent of Her Majesty’s Secret Service have received Golden Globes and Academy Award nominations, and the list of performers reads like the Who Is Who of the international music scene – Louis Armstrong, Paul McCartney, Tina Turner, Madonna and many more. In addition, the original versions were followed by a large number of cover versions, re-recordings and arrangements by other famous performers and orchestras. In an entertaining and well-informed manner, Germany’s foremost expert on James Bond, Siegfried Tesche, recounts the exciting and sometimes odd story of the James Bond music themes, their performers as well as numerous anecdotes. Bond co-producer Harry Saltzman, for example, hated ‘Goldfinger’ by Shirley Bassey which was the reason why the song was almost not featured in the film. The fact that this song, of all soundtracks sold millions of copies probably greatly annoyed him. Siegfried Tesche, born in 1957, graduated in film studies and works as a freelance journalist for newspapers, radio and television companies. Out of enthusiasm for the British gentleman agent, he has amassed one of the largest Bond collections in the world and published several books on Bond.
All Rights Available The exciting and sometimes odd story of the James Bond musics Target group: James Bond fans, lovers of film music, fan and film clubs
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Composers & Works
Barbara Distler-Harth
Werner Pfister
Hugo Distler
Fritz Wunderlich Biography
390 pages – paperback 14 x 22 cm € 22.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0182-6 · ED 20399
460 pages with CD – hardback 17,0 x 24,5 cm € 29.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0536-7 · ED 9910
Hugo Distler was one of the most important German composers of sacred and secular choral music in the first half of the 20th century. Born in 1908 and raised as an orphan, he created a vast oeuvre of choral and instrumental music within a few years. His ‘Mörike-Chorliederbuch’ forms part of the standard repertoire of major choirs throughout the world. The meteoric rise of Hugo Distler came to an end in 1942 when the 34-year-old committed suicide. Soon after, legends grew up around him: Some stylized him as a martyr to Nazi tyranny, others alleged that he had been involved in the Nazi movement as an accomplice. But what had actually happened then? Hugo Distler’s daughter Barbara has portrayed the story of his life in an authentic, yet very captivating way. With an introduction by Karl Corino.
When the conductor Paul Edmund Wunderlich notified the registrar of Kusel of the birth of his son Friedrich Otto in early October 1930, no one would have guessed that one of the greatest singing talents of the post-war period had been born. Within a few years, Wunderlich had conquered the opera houses and concert halls of Europe and was the most important German-speaking lyric tenor of his time. The biography by Werner Pfister was published again in a special edition to mark the 75th birthday of Fritz Wunderlich. Complemented by a CD which presents the most important stages of Wunderlich’s musical career, the publisher now offers this book as a special gift in honour of this great singer who died too soon.
Barbara Distler-Harth studied philosophy, political science and developmental psychology in Braunschweig and Munich. She published articles on issues of child development and the building of a human, democratic society. Barbara Distler-Harth has three grown-up children and lives in Munich as a freelance author.
Werner Pfister works as a music journalist.
Sold to China A special gift in honour of a great singer Target group: Fans of Fritz Wunderlich, voice lovers, biography readers
All Rights Available Target group: Biography readers
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Composers & Works
Alexander Werner
Jürgen Hocker
Carlos Kleiber
Begegnungen mit Conlon Nancarrow
Biography
Biography
550 pages – hardback with dust jacket 30 illustrations 17,0 x 24,5 cm € 29.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0598-5 · ED 20225
Paperback with CD 16,9 x 26,3 cm € 39.90 ISBN 978-3-7957-0476-6 · NZ 5003 ‘Nancarrow’s music is the greatest discovery since Webern and Ives.’ György Ligeti
For many people, Carlos Kleiber (1930–2004) is the most important conductor of the late 20th century. He was certainly the most problematic one. Having grown up with the burden of his dominant father Erich Kleiber, he struggled with his demand for perfection throughout his whole life. Being one of the most sought-after conductors, Carlos Kleiber did not accept any permanent appointment for years. His number of appearances was small and his official discography minimal, however, his charisma was legendary and he has a large number of fans. The guarantor of magic musical moments remained a mystery, though. His biographer Alexander Werner has tried to approach Kleiber, the man and artist, by finding out about the stages and stations of his life and questioning many of his contemporaries about the ‘secret of Kleiber’.
The American composer Conlon Nancarrow became famous for his complex compositions for player piano. In his Mexican exile he wrote an extremely original and at the same time emotional music which contributed to the further development of 20th-century music, beyond twelve-note technique and serialism. Jürgen Hocker accompanied Nancarrow in the last two decades of his life and now tells about Nancarrow’s stages as a composer and about his personality. The CD accompanying the book contains recordings of music by Nancarrow, some of them previously unreleased, as well as musico-historical recordings for mechanical pianos. With its combination of musicological work and biography, the present publication is aimed at both academics and a wide public interested in modern music. Press reviews:
Alexander Werner, born in Karlsruhe in 1961, studied literature and history. From 1991–1995 he worked as a trainee and editor with the Badische Neueste Nachrichten, from 1995 with Standpunkte, since 2000 as editor-in-chief with the Baden magazine Standpunkte with Chrismon plus. He has written numerous articles on classical music, interviews and CD reviews. The result of many years of research, taking numerous original interviews and unpublished documents into account.
‘… an impressive amount of biographical facts and authentic documents (…) which form a detailed picture… and not forgetting the accompanying CD which not only provides an excellent overview of Nancarrow’s oeuvre for player piano but also contains a few gems from the pioneer years of the self-playing piano.’ Peter Niklas Wilson in: Neue Zürcher Zeitung ‘… With his tricky pieces for mechanical piano, the composer and eccentric Conlon Nancarrow has made a significant contribution to the music history of the 20th century. It is due to a new book … that he is now discovered for the second time. … You can read Jürgen Hocker’s book while strolling, meeting scouts like René Block or Monika FürstHeidtmann in side streets, György Ligeti who praises him tirelessly and unselfishly in Europe (…) Charles Amirkhanian … or James Tenney …’ Konrad Heidtkamp in: DIE ZEIT/Musik
Sold to Japan ‘World conductor, exceptional maestro, carrier of the celestial flame’ Target group: Kleiber fans, lovers of classical music, concert-goers, people interested in cultural history
All Rights Available Target group: Biography readers
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Composers & Works
Willi Kollo
‘Als ich jung war in Berlin…’ Musical and literary memories 250 pages with CD – hardback with dust jacket 40 b&w illustrations 13,5 x 21,5 cm € 22.95 ISBN 978-3-7957-0194-9 · ED 20484 They were some of the brightest and the darkest years in the history of the musical metropolis of Berlin: from the founding years via the roaring twenties to the Third Reich. And right at the heart of it were the composers Walter and Willi Kollo. Willi Kollo’s notes on the musical career of his father, one of the masters of the Berlin operetta, and on his own work as an author, composer, revue performer and director are a treasure of German cultural history. With much humour and thoughtfulness, Kollo looks back on the Berlin of the period 1890–1946 and recalls prominent artists such as Claire Waldoff, Fritzi Massary, Carl Zuckmayer and others. A family chronicle and a great musical and literary biography. Walter Kollo (1878–1940) studied at the conservatoires of Sondershausen and Königsberg. In 1907 he came to Berlin where he composed more than 50 operettas until the end of the 1930s. Willi Kollo (1904–1988) collaborated with his father as a librettist from 1923. From 1928 he was a successful author of cabaret revues and screenplays as well as a composer of hit songs and film music. Marguerite Kollo administers the comprehensive family archive and edited and compiled the notes of her father, Willi Kollo, in this book. She is a music publisher and artists’ agent and represented her brother René Kollo for many years.
All Rights Available The story of a family of musicians from Berlin An undiscovered treasure of German cultural history. A family chronicle with a shot of syrup – from the founding years to the Third Reich Including a CD with historic recordings Target group: People interested in Berlin and cultural history, lovers of the operetta, readers of biographies, Kollo fans
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Composers & Works
Christoph Schwandt
Leoš Janácˇek Biography 240 pages – paperback 12 x 19 cm € 14.95 ISBN 978-3-254-08412-5 · SEM 8412 No other composer stands for the lively blend of traditional and modern music as does Leoš Janácˇek. His œuvre is a fusion of national identity and universal humanism. Born in Moravia in 1854, Janácˇek did not become known beyond the borders of his small native country until the age of 60; but then he gained worldwide fame very quickly, particularly thanks to his operas Jenufa and Katya Kabanova, the Sinfonietta as well as chamber music works. His unique tonal language, close to the text, is immediately accessible to the listener but challenges him nevertheless. Today, Janácˇek’s compositions rank among the classics of modern music. With this book, Christoph Schwandt presents the first ‘handy’, yet comprehensive biography of the Czech composer in a lively and well-informed manner, which also takes a look at the historical and cultural background of that time and grants interested music lovers wide-ranging access to the life and work of Janácˇek. Christoph Schwandt, born in Bad Homburg in 1956, was employed at the theatres of Oldenburg, Bonn and Essen as well as at the Salzburg Festival in a managerial capacity. Since 2002 he has been literary director of the Opera of Cologne. As an author, he has published biographies of Georges Bizet and Giuseppe Verdi, among others.
All Rights Available Target group: Lovers of Music, fans of Janá ek, musicians, students, readers of biographies
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