Heinz Karl Gruber
Encyclopedia
Heinz Karl Gruber is an Austria
n composer, bass player and singer, born in Vienna
on 3 January 1943 and a leading figure of the so-called Third Viennese School.
, Erwin Ratz
and Hanns Jelinek
, and later Gottfried von Einem
, with whom he also studied privately. In 1961 Gruber joined the ensemble die reihe as a double bass player, and became principal bass of the Vienna Tonkünstler Orchestra in 1963. In 1968, with his composer friends Kurt Schwertsik
and Otto M. Zykan and the violinist Ernst Kovacic, he co-founded the 'MOB-art & tone-ART' ensemble, partly to perform their own repertoire (which included a short piece by Gruber, Bossa Nova, which rapidly became a hit tune) and partly that of Mauricio Kagel
. The ensemble may be regarded as the cradle of what has been called the 'Third Viennese School', of which Gruber is now the best-known representative.
Like Schwertsik, Gruber had been taught in the post-Schoenberg
ian style of the Second Viennese School
, but – also like Schwertsik – rapidly came to his own personal accommodation to tonality
and older Viennese traditions. The critic Paul Driver has written of Gruber: ‘Neo-romantic, neo-tonal, neo-expressionistic, neo-Viennese: he isn’t any of those things, so much as a sentient (and downright accomplished) composer who keeps responding to whatever musical stimulus, be it highbrow or lowbrow, 12-tone or 7-tone, bitter or sweet, that comes his way’.
Gruber had been composing – and also playing jazz
– from his student days, but achieved international fame in 1978 with Frankenstein!!, a 'pan-demonium' for chansonnier and orchestra (or large ensemble) on poems from allerleirausch, a collection of children's verse by his friend, the absurdist and Viennese-dialect
poet H.C. Artmann, which he performed as singer around the world in the following few years. He and Schwertsik shared a 'Composers' Portrait' feature at the 1979 Berlin
Festival, and Gruber has subsequently been ranked among Austria’s leading composers. As a performer (conductor, singer, bass player) he has been involved in music by Peter Maxwell Davies
, Hanns Eisler
, and Kurt Weill
, and made notable CD recordings of the latter two composers.
In September 2009 Gruber was appointed composer/conductor of the BBC Philharmonic
Orchestra in succession to James MacMillan
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n composer, bass player and singer, born in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
on 3 January 1943 and a leading figure of the so-called Third Viennese School.
Career
Gruber is said to be a descendant (though the descent remains obscure) of Franz Xaver Gruber, composer of the carol Stille Nacht (Silent Night). From 1953 to 1957 Gruber was a member of the Vienna Boys Choir. He studied at the Vienna Hochschule für Musik, his composition teachers being Alfred UhlAlfred Uhl
Alfred Uhl was an Austrian composer, violist, music teacher and conductor.-Biography:Uhl studied with Franz Schmidt at the Vienna Music Academy, receiving a diploma in composition with honours in 1932. He subsequently worked as Kapellmeister of the Swiss Festspielmusik in Zürich...
, Erwin Ratz
Erwin Ratz
Erwin Ratz was an Austrian musicologist and music theorist. He studied musicology with Guido Adler and composition with Arnold Schoenberg and was active in the Schoenberg circle. In the 1920s he worked at the Bauhaus. After World War II he was a professor of musical form and analysis in Vienna...
and Hanns Jelinek
Hanns Jelinek
Hanns Jelinek was an Austrian composer of Czech descent who is also known under the pseudonym Hanns Elin....
, and later Gottfried von Einem
Gottfried von Einem
Gottfried von Einem was an Austrian composer. He is known chiefly for his operas influenced by the music of Stravinsky and Prokofiev, as well as by jazz. He also composed pieces for piano, violin and organ.-Biography:...
, with whom he also studied privately. In 1961 Gruber joined the ensemble die reihe as a double bass player, and became principal bass of the Vienna Tonkünstler Orchestra in 1963. In 1968, with his composer friends Kurt Schwertsik
Kurt Schwertsik
Kurt Schwertsik is an Austrian contemporary composer. He is famous for creating the “Third Viennese School” and spreading contemporary classical music....
and Otto M. Zykan and the violinist Ernst Kovacic, he co-founded the 'MOB-art & tone-ART' ensemble, partly to perform their own repertoire (which included a short piece by Gruber, Bossa Nova, which rapidly became a hit tune) and partly that of Mauricio Kagel
Mauricio Kagel
Mauricio Kagel was a German-Argentine composer. He was notable for his interest in developing the theatrical side of musical performance .-Biography:...
. The ensemble may be regarded as the cradle of what has been called the 'Third Viennese School', of which Gruber is now the best-known representative.
Like Schwertsik, Gruber had been taught in the post-Schoenberg
Schoenberg
Schoenberg is the surname of several persons:* Arnold Schoenberg , Austrian-American composer* Claude-Michel Schoenberg , French record producer, actor, singer, popular songwriter, and musical theatre composer...
ian style of the Second Viennese School
Second Viennese School
The Second Viennese School is the group of composers that comprised Arnold Schoenberg and his pupils and close associates in early 20th century Vienna, where he lived and taught, sporadically, between 1903 and 1925...
, but – also like Schwertsik – rapidly came to his own personal accommodation to tonality
Tonality
Tonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
and older Viennese traditions. The critic Paul Driver has written of Gruber: ‘Neo-romantic, neo-tonal, neo-expressionistic, neo-Viennese: he isn’t any of those things, so much as a sentient (and downright accomplished) composer who keeps responding to whatever musical stimulus, be it highbrow or lowbrow, 12-tone or 7-tone, bitter or sweet, that comes his way’.
Gruber had been composing – and also playing jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
– from his student days, but achieved international fame in 1978 with Frankenstein!!, a 'pan-demonium' for chansonnier and orchestra (or large ensemble) on poems from allerleirausch, a collection of children's verse by his friend, the absurdist and Viennese-dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
poet H.C. Artmann, which he performed as singer around the world in the following few years. He and Schwertsik shared a 'Composers' Portrait' feature at the 1979 Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
Festival, and Gruber has subsequently been ranked among Austria’s leading composers. As a performer (conductor, singer, bass player) he has been involved in music by Peter Maxwell Davies
Peter Maxwell Davies
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, CBE is an English composer and conductor and is currently Master of the Queen's Music.-Biography:...
, Hanns Eisler
Hanns Eisler
Hanns Eisler was an Austrian composer.-Family background:Eisler was born in Leipzig where his Jewish father, Rudolf Eisler, was a professor of philosophy...
, and Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
, and made notable CD recordings of the latter two composers.
In September 2009 Gruber was appointed composer/conductor of the BBC Philharmonic
BBC Philharmonic
The BBC Philharmonic is a British broadcasting symphony orchestra based at Media City UK, Salford, England. It is one of five radio orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation. The orchestra's primary concert venue is the Bridgewater Hall....
Orchestra in succession to James MacMillan
Stage works
- Die Vertreibung aus dem Paradies, melodrama for speakers and instrumentalists (1966)
- Gomorra, opera to a libretto by Richard BletschacherRichard BletschacherRichard Max Josef Bletschacher is a German writer and dramatic advisor.Bletschacher studied law, philosophy and literature in Munich, Heidelberg, Paris and Vienna. From 1982 to 1996 he was chief dramatic advisor at Vienna State Opera...
(1970-96) - Gloria von Jaxtberg (Gloria, a Pigtale), 2-act music-theatre for 5 singers and 9 session musicians, plus harp (1992-4)
- Der Herr Nordwind, opera in 2 parts (2003-5)
Orchestral
- Concerto for Orchestra, op.3 (1960)
- Manhattan Broadcasts for light orchestra (1962-4)
- fürbass, Concerto for double bass and orchestra (1965)
- Revue for chamber orchestra, op.22 (1968; first movement recomposed as Vergrößerung for orchestra, 1971)
- Phantom-Bilder auf dem Spur eines verdächtigen Themas (Photo-fit Pictures on the trail of a suspected theme) for small orchestra (1977)
- Violin Concerto No.1 ‘... aus schatten duft gewebt ...’ (1978)
- Rough Music – Concerto for percussion and orchestra (1983)
- Charivari - An Austrian Journal for orchestra (1983)
- Violin Concerto No.2 Nebelsteinmusik for violin and strings (1988), premièred by Ernst Kovacic who was both soloist and director at the première with the Vienna Chamber OrchestraVienna Chamber OrchestraThe Vienna Chamber Orchestra is an Austrian chamber orchestra based at the Vienna Konzerthaus....
on 10th July 1988 at the St Florian Festival, Sankt FlorianSankt FlorianSankt Florian is a town in Upper Austria, Austria. It is 10 miles from Linz, with a population of 5,500 and an elevation of 296 meters above sea level.-St. Florian's Priory and basilica:...
, AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. - Cello Concerto (1989), written for Yo-Yo MaYo-Yo MaYo-Yo Ma is an American cellist, virtuoso, and orchestral composer. He has received multiple Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 2001 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011...
, who gave the world première with the Boston Musica VivaBoston Musica VivaBoston Musica Viva is a Boston, Massachusetts-based music ensemble founded by its Music Director, Richard Pittman, in 1969 and dedicated to contemporary music.-Composers and compositions:...
under Richard Pittman on 3rd August 1989 at TanglewoodTanglewoodTanglewood is an estate and music venue in Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. It is the home of the annual summer Tanglewood Music Festival and the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, and has been the Boston Symphony Orchestra's summer home since 1937. It was the venue of the Berkshire Festival.- History...
. - Aerial, concerto for trumpet and orchestra (1998-9), written for Håkan HardenbergerHåkan HardenbergerHåkan Hardenberger is a Swedish trumpeter. Taking up the trumpet at the age of eight under the guidance of hometown teacher Bo Nilsson, Hardenberger pursued further studies at the Paris Conservatoire, with Pierre Thibaud, and in Los Angeles with Thomas Stevens...
who premièred the piece with the BBC Symphony under Neeme JarviNeeme JärviNeeme Järvi is an Estonian-born conductor.-Early life:Järvi studied music first in Tallinn, and later in Leningrad at the Leningrad Conservatory under Yevgeny Mravinsky, and Nikolai Rabinovich, among others...
at the Royal Albert HallRoyal Albert HallThe Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 29th July 1999 as part of the BBC Proms. - Zeitfluren, Concerto for Chamber Orchestra (2001), premièred by the London SinfoniettaLondon SinfoniettaThe London Sinfonietta is an English chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble specialises in contemporary music and works across a wide range of genres, performing modern classics alongside world premieres, and includes music by electronica artists as well as folk and...
conducted by the composer at the Paul Sacher Halle, BaselBaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
on 9th November 2001. - Dancing in the Dark, orchestra (2002), premièred by the Wiener Philharmoniker under Sir Simon Rattle in the Musikverein, ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
on 11th January 2003. - Hidden Agenda for orchestra (2006), premièred by the BBC Symphony directed by the composer at KKL Konzertsaal, LucerneLucerneLucerne is a city in north-central Switzerland, in the German-speaking portion of that country. Lucerne is the capital of the Canton of Lucerne and the capital of the district of the same name. With a population of about 76,200 people, Lucerne is the most populous city in Central Switzerland, and...
on 20th August 2006 as part of the 2006 Lucerne FestivalLucerne Festival- History :The festival was founded in 1938 with a series of concerts in the gardens of Wagner's villa conducted by Arturo Toscanini, who had formed an orchestra with members of different orchestras and soloists for the concert...
. - Busking for trumpet solo, string orchestra and accordion & banjo duo (2007), written for Swedish virtuosoVirtuosoA virtuoso is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability in the fine arts, at singing or playing a musical instrument. The plural form is either virtuosi or the Anglicisation, virtuosos, and the feminine form sometimes used is virtuosa...
Håkan HardenbergerHåkan HardenbergerHåkan Hardenberger is a Swedish trumpeter. Taking up the trumpet at the age of eight under the guidance of hometown teacher Bo Nilsson, Hardenberger pursued further studies at the Paris Conservatoire, with Pierre Thibaud, and in Los Angeles with Thomas Stevens...
, who premièred by piece with the Amsterdam Sinfonietta conducted by the composer at the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJMuziekgebouw aan 't IJMuziekgebouw aan 't IJ is a concert hall for contemporary classical music on the IJ in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The building opened in 2005 and is located above the IJtunnel, a ten-minute walk from Amsterdam Centraal station.The building was designed by Danish architects 3XN...
, AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
on 17th May 2008. - Northwind Pictures (2003-2005/2010-11), orchestral suite drawn the opera der herr nordwind, premièred by the Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich under Gruber at the Grafenegg Music FestivalGrafenegg Music FestivalThe Grafenegg Music Festival is a new major international Austrian festival for classical music close to Vienna. The annual festival takes place on the grounds of Grafenegg Castle...
, near ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, on 4th September 2011. The U.K. première of the work is given by the BBC PhilharmonicBBC PhilharmonicThe BBC Philharmonic is a British broadcasting symphony orchestra based at Media City UK, Salford, England. It is one of five radio orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation. The orchestra's primary concert venue is the Bridgewater Hall....
under the composer at Bridgewater HallBridgewater HallThe Bridgewater Hall is an international concert venue in Manchester city centre, England. It cost around £42 million to build and currently hosts over 250 performances a year....
, ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
on 3rd February 2012.
Vocal and choral
- Mass for chorus and ensemble (1960)
- 3 Songs by Rabindranath TagoreRabindranath TagoreRabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...
for baritone, ensemble & text (1961) - Frankenstein!!, a pan-demonium for chansonnier and orchestra (or chamber orchestra) on verses of HC Artmann (1976-77; developed from voice-ensemble Frankenstein Suite, 1971)
- Zeitstimmung for chansonnier and orchestra (1996)
Chamber ensemble
- Suite for 2 pianos, wind instruments and percussion (1960)
- Trio gioco a tre for piano trio op.12 (1963)
- Bossa Nova op.21 (1968)
- An einen Haushalt
- Die wirkliche Wut über den verlorenen Groschen for 5 players (1972)
- Anagramm for 6 celli (1987)
- 3 Mob Stücke for 7 interchangeable instruments and percussion (1968; version for trumpet and orchestra arr. 1999)
Instrumental
- 4 Pieces for solo violin, op.11
- 6 Episoden (aus einer unterbrochenen Chronik) for piano, op.20 (1966-67)
- Bossa Nova for violin and piano, op.21e
- Luftschlösser (Castles in the Air) for piano (1981)
- Exposed Throat (solo trumpet)
Sources
- Tempo No.126 (September 1978) containing articles 'The Viennese MOB art & tone ART Group' by Josef Heinzelmann; 'HK Gruber: A formal introduction from Two Sides' by David Drew, '"Nali" Gruber: Private Impressions by a Friend' by Otto M. Zykan and HK Gruber, 'Music and Politics'.
- Bio at Boosey & Hawkes