Gideon Klein
Encyclopedia
Gideon Klein was a Czech
pianist and composer of classical music, organizer of cultural life in Theresienstadt concentration camp
.
and, showing musical talent early, studied piano with Růžena Kurzová and Vilém Kurz
, and composition with Alois Hába
(in 1939–1940). He was forced to discontinue his studies in 1940 at the university when the Nazis closed all institutions of higher learning following their occupation of Czechoslovakia in March 1939. Since compositions and performances by Jewish musicians were banned, his own works could not be played, though he managed to perform as a concert pianist under several aliases for a time, a.o. under the name of Karel Vranek. In 1940 he was offered a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music
in London, but by that time anti-Jewish legislation
prevented his emigration.
In December 1941 he was deported by the Nazis to Terezín
concentration camp, where along with Leoš Janáček
's pupil Pavel Haas
, Hans Krása
, and Schoenberg
's pupil Viktor Ullmann
he became one of the major composers in that camp, one of the few in which artistic activity occurred on any scale. His works from these years include music for string quartet
(similar in tone to Berg
's opus
3 work), a string trio
, and a piano sonata
among others. Klein performed also as solo pianist at least on 15 recitals, and he participated also in chamber music performances (member of piano trio, piano quartet).
He was deported to Auschwitz
and then to Fürstengrube in October 1944, less than two weeks after completing his string trio. He died under unclear circumstances during liquidation of the Fürstengrube camp in January 1945.
His work was influenced by Alois Hába, Alban Berg
, and particularly by Leoš Janáček. He used melody from Janáček's Zápisník zmizelého as a theme in his Divertimento (1940).
Recordings on Northeastern and on Koch International Classics, for example, have allowed modern listeners to evaluate the quality of his compositions of the 1940s.
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
pianist and composer of classical music, organizer of cultural life in Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
.
Life
Klein was born into a Moravian Jewish family in PřerovPrerov
Přerov is a town in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic where the Bečva river flows through. Přerov is a statute town . It has population of about 47,373 to January 2, 2008. Přerov is about 22 km south west of Olomouc. In the past it was a major crossroad in the heart of Moravia in the...
and, showing musical talent early, studied piano with Růžena Kurzová and Vilém Kurz
Vilém Kurz
Vilém Kurz was a Czech pianist and piano teacher, a professor at the State Conservatory in Lwów and Vienna, and Prague Conservatory...
, and composition with Alois Hába
Alois Hába
Alois Hába was a Czech composer, musical theorist and teacher. He is primarily known for his microtonal compositions, especially using the quarter tone scale, though he used others such as sixth-tones and twelfth-tones....
(in 1939–1940). He was forced to discontinue his studies in 1940 at the university when the Nazis closed all institutions of higher learning following their occupation of Czechoslovakia in March 1939. Since compositions and performances by Jewish musicians were banned, his own works could not be played, though he managed to perform as a concert pianist under several aliases for a time, a.o. under the name of Karel Vranek. In 1940 he was offered a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
in London, but by that time anti-Jewish legislation
Anti-Jewish legislation in prewar Nazi Germany
Antisemitism and the persecution of Jews represented a central tenet of Nazi ideology. In their 25-point Party Program, published in 1920, Nazi party members publicly declared their intention to segregate Jews from "Aryan" society and to abrogate Jews' political, legal, and civil rights. Nazi...
prevented his emigration.
In December 1941 he was deported by the Nazis to Terezín
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
concentration camp, where along with Leoš Janáček
Leoš Janácek
Leoš Janáček was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and all Slavic folk music to create an original, modern musical style. Until 1895 he devoted himself mainly to folkloristic research and his early musical output was influenced by...
's pupil Pavel Haas
Pavel Haas
Pavel Haas was a Czech composer who was murdered during the Holocaust. He was an exponent of Leoš Janáček's school of composition, and also utilized elements of folk music and jazz. Although his output was not large, he is notable particularly for his song cycles and string quartets.-Pre-war:Haas...
, Hans Krása
Hans Krása
Hans Krása was a Czech composer who was killed in the Holocaust at Auschwitz. He helped to organize cultural life in Theresienstadt concentration camp.-Life:...
, and Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
's pupil Viktor Ullmann
Viktor Ullmann
Viktor Ullmann was a Silesia-born Austrian, later Czech composer, conductor and pianist of Jewish origin.- Biography :...
he became one of the major composers in that camp, one of the few in which artistic activity occurred on any scale. His works from these years include music for string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
(similar in tone to Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
's opus
Opus number
An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
3 work), a string trio
String trio
A string trio is a group of three string instruments or a piece written for such a group. The term is generally used with reference to works of chamber music from the Classical period to the present.-History:...
, and a piano sonata
Piano sonata
A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement , two movements , five or even more movements...
among others. Klein performed also as solo pianist at least on 15 recitals, and he participated also in chamber music performances (member of piano trio, piano quartet).
He was deported to Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
and then to Fürstengrube in October 1944, less than two weeks after completing his string trio. He died under unclear circumstances during liquidation of the Fürstengrube camp in January 1945.
His work was influenced by Alois Hába, Alban Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
, and particularly by Leoš Janáček. He used melody from Janáček's Zápisník zmizelého as a theme in his Divertimento (1940).
Recordings on Northeastern and on Koch International Classics, for example, have allowed modern listeners to evaluate the quality of his compositions of the 1940s.
Selected works
- Four Movements for String Quartet (1936–1938), CHF
- Duo for Violin and Viola in the Quarter-Tone System (1940)
- Divertimento for Eight Wind Instruments (1940)
- Three Songs for High Voice and Piano, Opus 1 (1940)
- I. The Fountain (Johann KlajJohann KlajJohann Klaj , German poet, was born at Meissen in Saxony.After studying theology at Wittenberg he went to Nuremberg as a "candidate for holy orders," and there, in conjunction with Georg Philipp Harsdörffer, founded in 1644 the literary society known as the Pegnitz order.In 1647 he received an...
) - II. In the Midst of Life (Friederich Hölderlin)
- III. Darkness Descending (Johann Wolfgang Goethe), Czech translations Erich A. Saudek
- I. The Fountain (Johann Klaj
- String Quartet, Opus 2 (1941)
- Duo for Violin and Cello (1941) unfinished
- Madrigal for Two Sopranos, Alto, Tenor and Bass to words by Francois Villon, Czech translation by Otokar Fischer (1942) 2'
- The First Sin, for male voice choir on a Czech folk poem (1942) 4'
- Fantasy and Fugue for String Quartet (1942–1943) 8'
- Piano Sonata (1943), PA 9'
- Madrigal for Two Sopranos, Alto, Tenor and Bass to words by Franz Holderlin, Czech translation by Erich A Saudek (1943) 3'
- Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello (1944) 11'
- Partita (Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello in arrangement for chamber orchestra by Vojtěch Saudek)
External links
- Nadace Gideona Kleina - Gideon Klein Foundation
- Music and the Holocaust - Gideon Klein
- Gideon Klein - Czech Composer
- Page on Gideon Klein
- Comprehensive discography of Terezin Composers by Claude Torres
- Czech Jewish Museum
- Further reading and listening on Terezín: The Music 1941-44Terezín: The Music 1941-44Terezín: The Music 1941–44 is a 2-CD set with music written by inmates at the Terezín concentration camp during World War II.Volume 1 contains chamber music by Gideon Klein, Viktor Ullmann, and Hans Krása; Volume 2 features the children's opera Brundibár by Krása, and songs by Ullmann and Pavel Haas...