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Fritz Rieger (Conductor) |
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Born: June 28, 1910 - Oberaltstadt, Karkonosze, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (now: Horní Staré Město, Czech Republic)
Died: September 29, 19781 - Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany |
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The German conductor, Friedrich Edmund "Fritz" Rieger, was educated at the Prague Academy of Music, taking courses in in piano with Langer, and conducting with George Szell. .
Fritz Rieger conducted at the German Opera Theater in Pragu (1931-1938), and the Bremen Opera (1939-1941). In August 1941 he became Director of the Bremen Opera, and in August 1944 he took up the position of Director of the Bremen Philharmonic Orchestra. Rieger was a member of the Nazi party. After World War II, he conducted at the Mannheim National Theater (1947-1949).
In 1949 Fritz Rieger was announced as the Chief Conductor/General Music Director of the Münchner Philharmoniker by the city government, replacing the modernist Hans Rosbaud who had been appointed by U.S. occupation authorities. According to author David Monod2, the decision to release Rosbaud and replace him with the "young and relatively unknown but suitably conservative" Rieger was caused by a desire to attract larger audiences with more traditional programs, a necessity in the wake of currency reform in the western part of Germany. In 1952, he announced that the orchestra would eliminate almost all modern music from its concerts. He continued to lead the Münchner Philharmoniker orchestra until 1966. He also conducted the Bavarian State Opera in Munich.
Fritz Rieger was Chief Conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra from 1971 to 1972. He also gave guest performance in Japan. In his programs, he gave considerable prominence to moden music1. |
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Sources:
1. Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians (1997)
2. Monod, David (2006). "Americanizing the Patron State? Government and Music under American Occupation, 1945-1953". In Riethmüller, Albrecht (ed.). Deutsche Leitkultur Musik?: Zur Musikgeschichte nach dem Holocaust. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner. pp. 47-60.
3. Wikipedia Website (August 2020)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (April 2021) |
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Fritz Rieger : Short Biography | Bach Discography: Recordings of Instrumental Works |
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Links to other Sites |
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Fritz Rieger (Wikipedia) |
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