Musicatlas
News for Cerha
- Inaugural meeting of the first Joseph Marx Society
(3 May 2006)On April 1st, 2006, the inaugural meeting of the first Joseph Marx Society in history took place in Vienna. Berkant Haydin, the author of the website (http://www.joseph.marx.org/) who had registered the society at the Austrian authorities in March, founded the Joseph Marx Society with Austria's leading composers and music officials: Friedrich Cerha — who has completed and orchestrated Alban Berg's opera "Lulu" — with his wife Gertraud, the celebrated composer Kurt Schwertsik, the influential Austrian music critic and Marx pupil Peter Vujica, Haide Tenner (President of the Vienna RSO), Eric Marinitsch (Promotion and Marketing Director of Universal Edition), Heinz Prammer (European Cultural Services) and Robert Hanzlik (a renowned music researcher).
Music
Life
There are very few composers who have contributed as much to modern music in Austria as has Friedrich Cerha. Since the post-war era he is regarded as the leader figure in a comprehensive renewal of Austrian composing styles.
His seven-part orchestral work "Spiegel", was first performed in Graz in 1972. His solo concerts and works for chamber orchestra as well as his chamber music and the finishing of Alban Berg’s opera "Lulu", have established Friedrich Cerha’s eminent position in the Austrian music scene.
In establishing "die reihe" (see HK Gruber) in 1958, Friedrich Cerha confronted audiences for the first time with performances of works by the "Zweite Wiener Schule".