Martin Erhard Fischer (10 November 1922 – 20 December 1996) was a German music and

theater director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

Career

Born in

Radeberg Radeberg is a small town in the district of Bautzen, Saxony, Germany. It is located approximately 20 kilometres north-east of Dresden. The town has an Evangelical and a Roman Catholic church, and an old castle. History Radeberg was mentioned ...

, Fischer studied with in Dresden. His directing debut took place in

Radebeul Radebeul ( hsb, Radobyle) is a town (''große Kreisstadt'') in the Elbe valley in the district of Meißen (district), Meißen in Saxony, Germany, a suburb of Dresden. It is well known for its viticulture, a museum dedicated to writer Karl May ...

with Mozart's ''

Die Entführung aus dem Serail ' () ( K. 384; ''The Abduction from the Seraglio''; also known as ') is a singspiel in three acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The German libretto is by Gottlieb Stephanie, based on Christoph Friedrich Bretzner's ''Belmont und Constanze, oder Die ...

''. From 1950 to 1960, Fischer worked as an assistant and director at the

Dresden State Opera The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the Th ...

. From 1960 to 1965 he worked under the opera director

Joachim Herz Joachim Herz (15 June 1924 – 18 October 2010) was a German Opera director and manager. He learned at the Komische Oper Berlin as an assistant to Walter Felsenstein. His major stations were the Leipzig Opera where he opened the new house with Wa ...

as chief conductor and artistic director of the Kleiner Haus an der

Oper Leipzig The Leipzig Opera (in German: ) is an opera house and opera company located at the Augustusplatz and the Inner City Ring Road at its east side in Leipzig's district Mitte, Germany. History Performances of opera in Leipzig trace back to Singspi ...

; here he set up productions of ''

Fidelio ''Fidelio'' (; ), originally titled ' (''Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love''), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with ...

'', ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 December ...

'', ''

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and 1 ...

'' and ''

Nabucco ''Nabucco'' (, short for Nabucodonosor ; en, " Nebuchadnezzar") is an Italian-language opera in four acts composed in 1841 by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Temistocle Solera. The libretto is based on the biblical books of 2 Kings, ...

''. In 1965 he changed as head director, from 1969 as "chief director" to the

Staatsoper Unter den Linden The (), also known as the Berlin State Opera (german: Staatsoper Berlin), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Prussian king Frederick the Great from ...

Berlin. Here he was also director of rarities like ''

The Golden Cockerel ''The Golden Cockerel'' ( rus, Золотой петушок, Zolotoy petushok ) is an opera in three acts, with short prologue and even shorter epilogue, composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, his last opera he completed before his death in 1908. ...

'', '' The Nose'', ''Katerina Ismaelova'' (Stalinist version of the '' Lady Macbeth von Mzensk''), ''

The Devils of Loudun ''The Devils of Loudun'' is a 1952 non-fiction novel by Aldous Huxley. Premise It is a historical narrative of supposed demonic possession, religious fanaticism, sexual repression, and mass hysteria that occurred in 17th-century France surroun ...

'', ''

Les vêpres siciliennes ''Les vêpres siciliennes'' (''The Sicilian Vespers'') is a grand opera in five acts by the Italian romantic composer Giuseppe Verdi set to a French libretto by Eugène Scribe and Charles Duveyrier from their work ''Le duc d'Albe'' of 1838. ' ...

'' and Hans Pfitzner's ''

Palestrina Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pren ...

'' (with

Peter Schreier Peter Schreier (29 July 1935 – 25 December 2019) was a German tenor in opera, concert and lied, and a conductor. He was regarded as one of the leading lyric tenors of the 20th century. Schreier was a member of the Dresdner Kreuzchor conduct ...

in the title role). Among the world premieres he staged were Alan Bush's '' Joe Hill'',

Günter Kochan Günter Kochan (2 October 1930 – 22 February 2009) was a German composer. He studied with Boris Blacher and was a master student for composition with Hanns Eisler. From 1967 until his retirement in 1991, he worked as professor for musical comp ...

's ' and

Joachim Werzlau Joachim Werzlau (5 August 1913 – 23 October 2001)Walk, InesJoachim Werzlau(in German) DEFA, retrieved 10 August 2021. was a German pianist, radio consultant and composer. He belonged to the first generation of composers in the GDR, where he was ...

's ''Meister Röckle''. Fischer's appointment as chief director of the Staatsoper by its chief, the harpsichordist

Hans Pischner Hans Pischner (20 February 1914 – 15 October 2016) was a German harpsichordist, musicologist, opera director, and politician active in the German Democratic Republic. He encouraged the creation of musical and artistic cultural institutions in Ea ...

, proved to be far-sighted, as Fischer represented a moderate opposite pole to the music theatre style of the

Komische Oper Berlin The Komische Oper Berlin is a German opera company based in Berlin. The company produces opera, operetta and musicals. The opera house is located on Behrenstraße, just a few steps from Unter den Linden. Since 2004, the Komische Oper Berlin, a ...

, which was influenced by

Walter Felsenstein Walter Felsenstein (30 May 1901 – 8 October 1975) was an Austrian theater and opera director. He was one of the most important exponents of textual accuracy, productions in which dramatic and musical values were exquisitely researched and ba ...

, and yet, as a former comrade-in-arms of directors such as Joachim Herz, he brought both classics and world premieres to success with his skilful directing. Fischer has also been invited as director in the

Grand Theatre, Warsaw The Grand Theatre in Warsaw ( pl, Teatr Wielki w Warszawie), known in full as the Grand Theatre–National Opera, is a theatre and opera complex situated on the historic Theatre Square in central Warsaw, Poland. The Warsaw Grand Theatre is home ...

, the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...

, Geneva and in various theatres in West Germany, Switzerland and Sweden. He was also (successively) a lecturer and later head of department at the music colleges of the

University of Music and Theatre Leipzig The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig) is a public university in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany). Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn ...

, the

Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber The Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber (Carl Maria von Weber College of Music; also/formerly known as Dresden Conservatory or Dresden Royal Conservatory) is a university of music in Dresden, Germany. History The Hochschule opened ...

in Dresden and the

Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler ' (, plural: ') is the generic term in German for institutions of higher education, corresponding to ''universities'' and ''colleges'' in English. The term ''Universität'' (plural: ''Universitäten'') is reserved for institutions with the right to ...

in Berlin. Fischer died in Berlin on 20 December 1996 aged 74.

Theatre

* 1960: Bertolt Brecht/Paul Dessau: ''

The Trial of Lucullus ''The Trial of Lucullus'' is a short didactic radio play by the German dramatist Bertolt Brecht written in verse. It was completed in 1940. In it, the great Roman general Lucullus appears after death before a judge and jury of the underworld, who ...

'' – Directed by

Ruth Berghaus Ruth Berghaus (2 July 1927 – 25 January 1996) was a German choreographer, opera and theatre director, and artistic director. Life and career Berghaus was born in Dresden and studied Expressionist dance and Dance direction with Gret Palucca ...

(

Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin The (), also known as the Berlin State Opera (german: Staatsoper Berlin), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Prussian king Frederick the Great from ...

) * 1966: Giuseppe Verdi's ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...

'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1967: Giacomo Puccini's ''

La Bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...

'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1968: Antonín Dvořák's ''

Rusalka In Slavic folklore, the rusalka (plural: rusalky/rusalki; ; pl, rusałka}) is a typically feminine entity, often malicious toward mankind and frequently associated with water, with counterparts in other parts of Europe, such as the French Melus ...

'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1970:

Alan Bush Alan Dudley Bush (22 December 1900 – 31 October 1995) was a British composer, pianist, conductor, teacher and political activist. A committed communist, his uncompromising political beliefs were often reflected in his music. He composed pro ...

: ''Joe Hill'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1971:

Erik Neutsch Erik Neutsch (21 June 193 – 20 August 2013) was one of the most successful writers in East Germany. Life Early years Erik Neutsch came from a working family. After successfully completing his high school career he joined, in 1949, the rulin ...

: ''Karin Lenz'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1973: Dmitri Shostakovich's '' Katarina Ismailowa'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin) * 1973: Richard Strauss' ''

Der Rosenkavalier (''The Knight of the Rose'' or ''The Rose-Bearer''), Op. 59, is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel ''Les amours du chevalier de Faublas'' ...

'' (Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin)

Awards

* Kunstpreis der DDR (1971) *

Nationalpreis der DDR The National Prize of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) (german: Nationalpreis der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik) was an award of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) given out in three different classes for scientific, artistic, ...

(1973) *

Vaterländischer Verdienstorden The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

in Silber (1976)

Bibliography

* Dieter Kranz: ''Berliner Theater. 100 Aufführungen aus drei Jahrzehnten'', Berlin 1990 – Gespräche mit Fischer und über ''

Ariadne auf Naxos (''Ariadne on Naxos''), Op. 60, is a 1912 opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. The opera's unusual combination of elements of low commedia dell'arte with those of high opera seria points up one of the work' ...

'' (), ''Die Nase'' (143-47), ''Die Teufel von Loudun'' (241-44), and Zimmermann's ''

Die wundersame Schustersfrau ''Die wundersame Schustersfrau'' (''The Wondrous Cobbler's Wife'') is an opera in two acts by Udo Zimmermann, with a libretto which he wrote with Eberhard Schmidt based on the 1930 Spanish play ''La zapatera prodigiosa'', a ''farsa violenta'' by F ...

'' (369-73) and a short biography (503).

External links

*
Siegfried Lorenz über Erhard Fischer und Ruth Berghaus
(YouTube) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Erhard 1922 births 1996 deaths People from Radeberg German theatre directors German opera directors Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in silver