Robert Kurka
Encyclopedia
Robert Frank Kurka was an American composer
, who also taught and conducted his own works.
Kurka was born in Cicero, Illinois
. He was mostly self-taught, though he studied for short periods under Darius Milhaud
and Otto Luening
, receiving his M.A. degree from Columbia University
in 1948. He held teaching positions at City College of New York
, Queens College and Dartmouth College
. He is probably best known for the instrumental suite The Good Soldier Schweik (based on Jaroslav Hašek
's novel The Good Soldier Schweik
), published in 1956, and the subsequent opera of the same name, written just before his death and first performed at the New York City Opera
on April 23, 1958. The opera's orchestration
was completed by Hershey Kay. The work, based on an antiwar novel
by Jaroslav Hasek
, drew comparisons to the compositions of Kurt Weill
, especially for its satirical, ironic bent and incorporation of popular styles. Kurka also wrote 2 symphonies, 5 string quartets, 6 violin sonatas, and other works for piano, voice, and chorus. He died of leukemia
on December 12, 1957, in New York
.
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...
, who also taught and conducted his own works.
Kurka was born in Cicero, Illinois
Cicero, Illinois
Cicero is an incorporated town in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 83,891 at the 2010 census. Cicero is named for the town of Cicero, New York, which in turn was named for Marcus Tullius Cicero, the Roman statesman and orator....
. He was mostly self-taught, though he studied for short periods under Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...
and Otto Luening
Otto Luening
Otto Clarence Luening was a German-American composer and conductor, and an early pioneer of tape music and electronic music....
, receiving his M.A. degree from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1948. He held teaching positions at City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
, Queens College and Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
. He is probably best known for the instrumental suite The Good Soldier Schweik (based on Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek was a Czech humorist, satirist, writer and socialist anarchist best known for his novel The Good Soldier Švejk, an unfinished collection of farcical incidents about a soldier in World War I and a satire on the ineptitude of authority figures, which has been translated into sixty...
's novel The Good Soldier Schweik
The Good Soldier Švejk
The Good Soldier Švejk , also spelled Schweik or Schwejk, is the abbreviated title of a unfinished satirical/dark comedy novel by Jaroslav Hašek. It was illustrated by Josef Lada and George Grosz after Hašek's death...
), published in 1956, and the subsequent opera of the same name, written just before his death and first performed at the New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
on April 23, 1958. The opera's orchestration
Orchestration
Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium...
was completed by Hershey Kay. The work, based on an antiwar novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Jaroslav Hasek
Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek was a Czech humorist, satirist, writer and socialist anarchist best known for his novel The Good Soldier Švejk, an unfinished collection of farcical incidents about a soldier in World War I and a satire on the ineptitude of authority figures, which has been translated into sixty...
, drew comparisons to the compositions of 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...
, especially for its satirical, ironic bent and incorporation of popular styles. Kurka also wrote 2 symphonies, 5 string quartets, 6 violin sonatas, and other works for piano, voice, and chorus. He died of leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
on December 12, 1957, in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.