Ivana Lang was a Croatian

Croats

Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...

 composer, pianist and piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 teacher. She was born 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...

, Croatia, Kingdom of Hungary

Kingdom of Hungary

The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...

, Austro-Hungarian Empire). She completed piano studies in 1937 at the Music Academy in Zagreb. Ivana Lang composed orchestral works (concert for piano and orchestra), chamber music, an 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 Captain of Kastav

Kastav

Kastav is a historical town located about 10 km northwest of Rijeka and about 5 km northeast of Opatija in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County in Croatia.-Demographics:The total population of Kastav is 10,472 ....

") and two ballets, "False Knight" and "Dance of the Ghosts" .

Ivana Lang-Beck was born into a respectable family from Zagreb. Her father, Dr Arthur Lang was a prominent physician. He was the doctor at the Croatian National Theatre. Her mother Margaretha (born Leitgebel) was an academic painter, specialising in ceramics.

In 1937 Ivana acquired a degree in classical piano at the Zagreb Academy of Music. In addition to piano studies, she attended classes and composition

Musical composition

Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...

 studies with Prof. Milo Cipra

Milo Cipra

Milo Cipra was a Croatian composer, member of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts , dean of the Zagreb Music Academy .-Major works:*Sonatina u D-molu, with piano, 1930...

.

Upon completion of studies at the Music Academy in 1937 she left her hometown of Zagreb in order to broaden and refine her study of composition with Joseph Marx

Joseph Marx

Joseph Rupert Rudolf Marx was an Austrian composer, teacher and critic.-Life and career:Marx pursued studies in philosophy, art history, German studies, and music at Graz University, earning several degrees including a doctorate in 1909. He began composing seriously in 1908 and over the next four...

 at the Mozarteum in Salzburg

Salzburg

-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...

. During her training with Joseph Marx she had the opportunity to explore Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an musical traditions and contemporary trends.

Among her famous work was composing music to poems

Poetry

Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...

 written by Dragutin Domjanić

Dragutin Domjanic

Dragutin Domjanić was a Croatian Kajkavian poet.Domjanić was born in Zelina. He became the first writer in Croatian literature to achieve complete and artistically mature melodiousness and rhythmicity of the Croatian Kajkavian expression. Having graduated law, he served as a judge in Zagreb and...

 and Antun Gustav Matoš

Antun Gustav Matoš

Antun Gustav Matoš was a Croatian poet, short story writer, journalist, essayist and travelogue writer. He is considered the champion of Croatian modernist literature, opening Croatia to the currents of European modernism, and one of the greatest Croatian literary figures of all time.-Life:Matoš...

.

Ivana Lang had married at the age of 37 to Marjan Beck with whom she had one child.