Composers Datebook for January 3, 2010

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Sunday, January 3 Play today's show | How to listen HK Gruber In Austrian culture there is a rich theatrical tradition that pokes fun at all things pretentious, whether social, political or artistic. Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" taps into this tradition in the person of Papageno, and in the 19th century the Austrian actor and playwright Johann Nestroy deflated pomposity in dozens of devastating satires, including one hilarious sendup of Wagner's opera "Tannhäuser." In our own time, this tradition is alive and well -- and even Mozart is not immune. How else do you explain a film produced in 1991 entitled: "Bring Me the Head of Amadeus!" -- a work ostensibly written in honor of the 200th anniversary of the composer's death! That film's soundtrack was written by a musical jack-of-all-trades named H.K. Gruber, who was born in Vienna on today's date in 1943. Gruber has performed as a double-bassist with Viennese orchestras and ensembles and has written what might be called "normal" concertos for violinist Ernst Kovacic and cellist Yo-Yo Ma, but is best known for his decidedly "abnormal" works, including a piece he describes as a "pandemonium" for voice and chamber ensemble entitled "Frankenstein!" "Frankenstein!" is setting of some very macabre poems by a fellow Austrian named H.C. Artmann. Oddly enough, its bizarre Viennese humor translates fairly well with audiences worldwide. As Gruber put is: "The poems evokes in each culture a unique set of metaphors and associations. The gloomy Russian temperament, for example, seems to find our 'Frankenstein!' particularly amusing!"		Music Played on Today's Program: HK Gruber (b. 1943): Three Mob Pieces London Mob Ensemble; HK Gruber & Frankenstein! HK Gruber, singer (?); Salzburg Camerata; Franz Welser-Most, cond. Additional Information: On HK Gruber About the Program Composers Datebook is a daily program about composers of the past and present, hosted by John Zech. Support Composers Datebook Purchase music from Composers Datebook from Amazon. Or shop Public Radio Market. Your purchases help support the American Composers Forum and public radio. Your support makes our online services possible. Contribute Now. Fostering artistic and professional development
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