Jakov Gotovac
Encyclopedia
Jakov Gotovac was a Croatia
n composer
and conductor
of classical music. He is the author of the most famous Croatian opera
, the comic Ero s onoga svijeta
("Ero the joker"), which first played in Zagreb
in 1935.
(then part of Austria-Hungary
) and initially had little if any formal education in music. Jakov was fortunate to be encouraged and supported by Josip Hatze
, Cyril Metoděj Hrazdira and Antun Dobranić who instilled him with a nationalistic orientation in music. He started as a law student in Zagreb
, but switched to writing music in 1920. In Vienna
, he studied in the class of Johan Marx.
Back home, in 1922 he founded the Philharmonia Society in Šibenik
. In 1923 he moved to Zagreb, where he kept working both as conductor and composer until his death. Between 1923 and 1958, he was opera conductor in the Croatian National Theatre
(Hrvatsko narodno kazalište), and leader of an academic musical society Mladost, and of the choir Vladimir Nazor
.
The best-known piece of work of Gotovac is no doubt Ero, which has been performed on all continents except Australia, and translated into nine languages, with its libretto
written by Milan Begović
. It has been performed in more than 80 theatres in Europe alone. He also wrote numerous other works for orchestra as well as vocal music, piano pieces, and others.
In his works, Gotovac represents the late national romanticism, with national folklore
being the main source of ideas and inspiration. Musically he prefers homophonic textures, and fairly simple harmonic structures in keeping with the folk idiom he admired.
Gotovac died at the age of 87 in Zagreb
(then SFR Yugoslavia).
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
of classical music. He is the author of the most famous Croatian opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, the comic Ero s onoga svijeta
Ero s onoga svijeta
Ero s onoga svijeta is a comic opera in three acts by Jakov Gotovac, with a libretto by Milan Begović based on a folk tale...
("Ero the joker"), which first played in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
in 1935.
Biography
Gotovac was born in SplitSplit (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
(then part of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
) and initially had little if any formal education in music. Jakov was fortunate to be encouraged and supported by Josip Hatze
Josip Hatze
Joseph Hatze was one of the first and most prominent Croatian composers in the Mediterranean style in the first half of last century....
, Cyril Metoděj Hrazdira and Antun Dobranić who instilled him with a nationalistic orientation in music. He started as a law student in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, but switched to writing music in 1920. 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...
, he studied in the class of Johan Marx.
Back home, in 1922 he founded the Philharmonia Society in Šibenik
Šibenik
Šibenik is a historic town in Croatia, with population of 51,553 . It is located in central Dalmatia where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea...
. In 1923 he moved to Zagreb, where he kept working both as conductor and composer until his death. Between 1923 and 1958, he was opera conductor in the Croatian National Theatre
Croatian National Theatre
The Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb , commonly referred to as HNK Zagreb, is a theatre located in Zagreb, owned and operated by the Ministry of Culture. The theatre evolved out of the first city theatre built in 1836 housed in the present-day Old City Hall...
(Hrvatsko narodno kazalište), and leader of an academic musical society Mladost, and of the choir Vladimir Nazor
Vladimir Nazor
Vladimir Nazor was the first head of state of modern Croatia. A member of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia , he led the Croatian World War II wartime assembly, the ZAVNOH, and later served as the President of the Presidium of the People's Assembly of PR Croatia - the head of state of the People's...
.
The best-known piece of work of Gotovac is no doubt Ero, which has been performed on all continents except Australia, and translated into nine languages, with its libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
written by Milan Begović
Milan Begovic
Milan Begović was a Croatian writer, born in Vrlika, in the territory of today's Croatia.He was educated in Split, Zagreb and Vienna and spent some time as high school professor in Split before going to Hamburg and Vienna to pursue career in theatre. He died in Zagreb...
. It has been performed in more than 80 theatres in Europe alone. He also wrote numerous other works for orchestra as well as vocal music, piano pieces, and others.
In his works, Gotovac represents the late national romanticism, with national folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
being the main source of ideas and inspiration. Musically he prefers homophonic textures, and fairly simple harmonic structures in keeping with the folk idiom he admired.
Gotovac died at the age of 87 in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
(then SFR Yugoslavia).
Orchestral works
- Simfonijsko kolo (SymphonicSymphonyA symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
kolo) op.12 1926 - Pjesma i ples s Balkana (Song and dance from the Balkans) op.16 1939
- Orači (Men and ploughs) op.18 1937
- Guslar (GusleGusleThe Gusle is a single-stringed musical instrument traditionally used in the Dinarides region of the Balkans ....
player) op.22 1940 - Dinarka (Lady from DinaraDinaraDinara is a mountain located on the border of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. One of its summits, also called Dinara, is the highest point in Croatia at 1,831 m and a prominence of 728 m.-Etymology:...
) 1945 - Plesovi od Bunjevaca (The dances from BunjevciBunjevciBunjevci are a South Slavic community and ethnic group living mostly in the Bačka region of Serbia and southern Hungary...
) 1960
Choral works
- 2 ScherzoScherzoA scherzo is a piece of music, often a movement from a larger piece such as a symphony or a sonata. The scherzo's precise definition has varied over the years, but it often refers to a movement which replaces the minuet as the third movement in a four-movement work, such as a symphony, sonata, or...
s 1916 - 2 pjesme za muški zbor (two songs for men's choir) 1918
- 2 pjesme čuda i smijeha (2 songs of wonder and joy) 1924
- Koleda 1925
- DubravkaDúbravka-People:* Dubravka , a feminine given name of Slavic origin* Doubravka of Bohemia, a princess of The Přemyslid dynasty* Martin Dúbravka, Slovak football goalkeeper-Places:* Dúbravka, Bratislava, a district of Bratislava, Slovakia...
. PastoralePastoraleFor Beethoven's Pastoral symphony, see Symphony No. 6 Pastorale refers to something of a pastoral nature in music, whether in form or in mood....
for ChoirChoirA choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
& OrchestraOrchestraAn orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
, text from Ivan GundulićIvan GundulicIvan Franov Gundulić is the most celebrated Croatian Baroque poet from the Republic of Ragusa. His work embodies central characteristics of Roman Catholic Counter-Reformation: religious fervor, insistence on "vanity of this world" and zeal in opposition to "infidels." Gundulić's major...
op. 13 (1927–28) - 3 momačka zbora (3 boy choirs) 1932
- Pjesme vječnog jada (Songs of eternal sorrow) (1939)
- Pjesme zanosa (Songs of excitement) 1955
Vocal solo works
- Djevojka i mjesec (A girl and the moon) for altoAltoAlto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
& orchestra 1917 - Erotski moment za glas i glasovir (erotic moments for voice & piano) 1929
- 2 Sonate za bariton i orkestar (2 sonatas for baritoneBaritoneBaritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
& orchestra) 1921 - Pjesme djevojčice za jedan glas i glasovir (Songs for girl's voice & piano) 1923
- Gradom za glas i glasovir (Through the town for voice & piano)
- Rizvan-aga za bariton i orkestar (Rizvan-aga for bariton & orchestra 1938
- Pjesme čežnje za glas i orkestar (Songs of passion for voice & orchestra) (1939)
Operatic works
- MoranaMorana* Moraña* Morana Dam* Morana slavic goddess of death...
op. 14 (1928–30) - Ero s onoga svijetaEro s onoga svijetaEro s onoga svijeta is a comic opera in three acts by Jakov Gotovac, with a libretto by Milan Begović based on a folk tale...
(Ero the joker) op. 17 (1933–35) - Kamenik op. 23 (1939–44; UA 1946)
- Mila Gojsalića op. 28 (1948–51; UA 1952)
- Đerdan op. 30 (1954–55)
- Dalmaro op. 32 (1958; UA 1964)
- Stanac op. 33 (1959)
- Petar SvačićPetar SvacicPetar Svačić was the last king of Croatia. It is assumed that he began as a ban serving under king Demetrius Zvonimir of Croatia and was then elected king by the Croatian feudal lords in 1093. Petar's seat of power was based in Knin. His rule was marked by a struggle for control of the country...
. Opera-Oratorij (opera oratorioOratorioAn oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
op. 35 (1969; 1971)