Tibor Paul
Encyclopedia
Tibor Paul was a Hungarian
-Australia
n conductor.
He was born in Budapest
. He studied piano and woodwind under Zoltán Kodály
, Hermann Scherchen
and Felix Weingartner
. In 1930 he founded the Budapest Concert Orchestra. In 1939 he began conducting his own orchestra. He also conducted at the Budapest National Theatre and by 1945 he was principal conductor for the Hungarian Broadcasting Corporation.
In 1948, Paul left for Switzerland
. He conducted for the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation
and at the opera house in Berne
. He migrated to Australia in 1950. He soon became a conductor with the New South Wales National Opera and a guest conductor with the Australian Broadcasting Commission
(ABC). He taught orchestral and choral conducting at the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music
from 1954. He was also principal conductor for the Elizabethan Theatre Trust Opera Company in 1954-55. He became an Australian citizen in 1955.
Tibor Paul travelled widely throughout Australia and conducted in every capital city. He was the conductor of the Tasmania
n concert attended by the very young Stuart Challender
which caused Challender to set his sights on becoming a conductor himself. However, because the ABC was unable to offer Paul sufficient engagements, he made regular trips to Britain
, Italy
, Switzerland, the Netherlands
, Denmark
, France
, Portugal
and Austria
. He was a vigorous promoter of Australian composers, and he toured Europe and North America
in 1958 and included the work of Australians in his concerts.
In 1959 Paul left for Europe with his wife and younger son. He eventually settled in the Republic of Ireland
, where he was principal conductor (1961-67) with the Radio Eireann Symphony Orchestra
and director of music (1962-67) for Radio Telefís Éireann, Dublin. There he conducted such world premieres as Brian Boydell
’s cantata "A Terrible Beauty is Born" in 1966. He was a co-founder of the Limerick Choral Union, and conducted its first performance on 4 May 1964, Mozart
’s Requiem
, with soloists including Bernadette Greevy
. With this choir he also led the first performances in Ireland of Beethoven
’s Missa Solemnis
and Mass in D (1967) and Janáček
’s Glagolitic Mass
(1968).
He returned to Sydney in October 1968 to conduct the Elizabethan Theatre Trust Orchestra. Over the next six years he divided his time between Australia and Europe. He was chief conductor of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra
from 1971, his term, which was to have continued through 1974, being cut short by his death. In January 1973 he conducted the combined West Australian and South Australian
symphony orchestras in a performance to inaugurate the Perth Concert Hall
.
He died of a coronary occlusion on 11 November 1973 in his home at Wahroonga
, Sydney
, survived by his wife and sons.
He had a fiery temperament, a prodigious memory, and seldom conducted from a score. His controversial manner was a matter of discussion in the Irish Parliament in 1966.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
-Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n conductor.
He was born in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
. He studied piano and woodwind under Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is best known internationally as the creator of the Kodály Method.-Life:Born in Kecskemét, Kodály learned to play the violin as a child....
, Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen was a German conductor.-Life:Scherchen was originally a violist and played among the violas of the Bluthner Orchestra of Berlin while still in his teens...
and Felix Weingartner
Felix Weingartner
Paul Felix von Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist.-Biography:...
. In 1930 he founded the Budapest Concert Orchestra. In 1939 he began conducting his own orchestra. He also conducted at the Budapest National Theatre and by 1945 he was principal conductor for the Hungarian Broadcasting Corporation.
In 1948, Paul left for Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. He conducted for the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation
SRG SSR idée suisse
SRG SSR is the Swiss public broadcasting organisation, founded in 1931 as SRG-SSR. Headquartered in Bern, SRG SSR is a non-profit organisation, funded mainly through radio and television licence fees and making the remaining income from advertising and sponsorship.Switzerland's system of direct...
and at the opera house in Berne
Berne
The city of Bern or Berne is the Bundesstadt of Switzerland, and, with a population of , the fourth most populous city in Switzerland. The Bern agglomeration, which includes 43 municipalities, has a population of 349,000. The metropolitan area had a population of 660,000 in 2000...
. He migrated to Australia in 1950. He soon became a conductor with the New South Wales National Opera and a guest conductor with the Australian Broadcasting Commission
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
(ABC). He taught orchestral and choral conducting at the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music is one of the oldest and most prestigious music schools in Australia...
from 1954. He was also principal conductor for the Elizabethan Theatre Trust Opera Company in 1954-55. He became an Australian citizen in 1955.
Tibor Paul travelled widely throughout Australia and conducted in every capital city. He was the conductor of the Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
n concert attended by the very young Stuart Challender
Stuart Challender
Stuart David Challender, AO was an Australian conductor, known particularly for his work with Opera Australia and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.-Early life:...
which caused Challender to set his sights on becoming a conductor himself. However, because the ABC was unable to offer Paul sufficient engagements, he made regular trips to Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Switzerland, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. He was a vigorous promoter of Australian composers, and he toured Europe and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in 1958 and included the work of Australians in his concerts.
In 1959 Paul left for Europe with his wife and younger son. He eventually settled in the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, where he was principal conductor (1961-67) with the Radio Eireann Symphony Orchestra
RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra
The RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra is the concert music orchestra of Raidió Teilifís Éireann...
and director of music (1962-67) for Radio Telefís Éireann, Dublin. There he conducted such world premieres as Brian Boydell
Brian Boydell
Brian Boydell was an Irish composer whose works include orchestral pieces, chamber music, and songs. He was professor of music at Trinity College, Dublin for 20 years, founder of the Dowland Consort, conductor of the Dublin Orchestral Players, and a prolific broadcaster and writer on musical...
’s cantata "A Terrible Beauty is Born" in 1966. He was a co-founder of the Limerick Choral Union, and conducted its first performance on 4 May 1964, Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
’s Requiem
Requiem (Mozart)
The Requiem Mass in D minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was composed in Vienna in 1791 and left unfinished at the composer's death. A completion by Franz Xaver Süssmayr was delivered to Count Franz von Walsegg, who had anonymously commissioned the piece for a requiem Mass to commemorate the...
, with soloists including Bernadette Greevy
Bernadette Greevy
Bernadette Greevy was an Irish mezzo-soprano. She was founder and artistic director of the Anna Livia Dublin International Opera Festival. She was the first artist-in-residence at the Dublin Institute of Technology's Faculty of Applied Arts.-Biography:Bernadette Greevy was born in Clontarf, Dublin...
. With this choir he also led the first performances in Ireland of Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
’s Missa Solemnis
Missa Solemnis
Missa Solemnis is Latin for solemn mass, and is a name which has been applied to a number of musical settings of the mass, especially particularly serious or large-scale ones.The following are notable examples:...
and Mass in D (1967) and 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 Glagolitic Mass
Glagolitic Mass
The Glagolitic Mass is a composition for soloists , double chorus, organ and orchestra by Leoš Janáček. The work was completed on 15 October 1926...
(1968).
He returned to Sydney in October 1968 to conduct the Elizabethan Theatre Trust Orchestra. Over the next six years he divided his time between Australia and Europe. He was chief conductor of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
The West Australian Symphony Orchestra , often known as the "Orchestra of the West", is the premier professional orchestra of the state of Western Australia.-History:...
from 1971, his term, which was to have continued through 1974, being cut short by his death. In January 1973 he conducted the combined West Australian and South Australian
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra was founded as a 17 player radio ensemble in 1936, in Adelaide, South Australia. The orchestra reformed in 1949 as the 55 member South Australian Symphony Orchestra. It reverted to its original and present title, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, in late 1974, and...
symphony orchestras in a performance to inaugurate the Perth Concert Hall
Perth Concert Hall, Western Australia
The Perth Concert Hall is a concert hall in the centre of Perth, Western Australia. Situated between St Georges Terrace and Terrace Road, it is located near Government House, the Supreme Court Gardens and the Swan Bells, with a view to the Swan River....
.
He died of a coronary occlusion on 11 November 1973 in his home at Wahroonga
Wahroonga, New South Wales
Wahroonga is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Wahroonga is located 22 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire....
, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, survived by his wife and sons.
He had a fiery temperament, a prodigious memory, and seldom conducted from a score. His controversial manner was a matter of discussion in the Irish Parliament in 1966.