Franz Xaver Biebl (1 September 1906 – 2 October 2001) was a German composer of
classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...
. Most of his compositions were for
choral
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...
ensembles.
Biebl was born in
Pursruck, now part of
Freudenberg, Bavaria, in 1906. He studied composition at the Musikhochschule in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
. Biebl served as choir director at the
Catholic church of St Maria in München-Thalkirchen from 1932 until 1939, and as an assistant professor of choral music at the
Mozarteum
Mozarteum University Salzburg ( German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the “Mozarteum” moniker in Salzburg municipality; the International Mo ...
, an academy of music in
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous c ...
, beginning in 1939, where he taught voice and
music theory
Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the " rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (k ...
.
Biebl was drafted into the military beginning in 1943 during
World War II. He was a prisoner of war from 1944 to 1946, being detained at
Fort Custer in
Battle Creek, Michigan
Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which enco ...
. After the war, he moved from Austria to
Fürstenfeldbruck
Fürstenfeldbruck () is a town in Bavaria, Germany, located 32 kilometres west of Munich. It is the capital of the district of Fürstenfeldbruck. it has a population of 35,494. Since the 1930s, Fürstenfeldbruck has had an air force base.
...
, Germany, where he served as director of the town chorus.
''Ave Maria''
Biebl's best-known work is his ''Ave Maria'', which sets portions of the ''
Angelus
The Angelus (; Latin for "angel") is a Catholic devotion commemorating the Incarnation of Christ. As with many Catholic prayers, the name ''Angelus'' is derived from its incipit—the first few words of the text: ("The Angel of the Lord de ...
'' as well as the ''
Ave Maria
The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's s ...
''. The piece was composed sometime before 1 May 1959.
The original composition was in the key of D major, but changed to C major when it was published by Wildt’s Musikverlag in 1964.
The piece was brought to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
by the
Cornell University Glee Club
The Cornell University Glee Club (CUGC) is the oldest student organization at Cornell University, having been organized shortly after the first students arrived on campus in 1868. The CUGC is a thirty-nine member chorus for tenor and bass voices, ...
in 1970. The ensemble met Biebl while on tour in Germany, during a recording session at a radio network where Biebl was music director. Conductor
Thomas A. Sokol was given a number of Biebl's works, premiering them after returning home.
[Michael Slon, ''Songs from the Hill – A History of the Cornell University Glee Club''.] The ''Ave Maria'' quickly gained popularity, most notably after becoming part of the repertoire of
Chanticleer. Although the ''Ave Maria'' was originally scored for male voices (TTB/TTBB), in 1985 Biebl prepared additional arrangements for SAT/
SATB
SATB is an initialism that describes the scoring of compositions for choirs, and also choirs (or consorts) of instruments. The initials are for the voice types: S for soprano, A for alto, T for tenor and B for bass.
Choral music
Four-part harm ...
and SAA/TTBB choirs.
In 1998, Biebl prepared a fourth arrangement for SSA/SSAA choir.
As part of the Hinshaw Music, Inc. sheet music catalog, the four versions have sold over 670,000 copies between 1992 and 2016.
References
External links
* Matthew Oltman,
The Iconic One-Hit Wonder: The History and Reception of Franz Biebl's Ave Maria', University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2017 (visited 2 August 2017)
*
(Archive from 16 July 2011)
Recording of Biebl's ''Ave Maria'' by Chanticleer (click PLAY button on "Sample Clip")
{{DEFAULTSORT:Biebl, Franz
1906 births
2001 deaths
20th-century classical composers
German classical composers
German military personnel of World War II
People from the Kingdom of Bavaria
German male classical composers
20th-century German composers
20th-century German male musicians