Herbert Rosendorfer, 2009 Herbert Rosendorfer (19 February 1934, in

Bolzano Bolzano ( or ; german: Bozen, (formerly ); bar, Bozn; lld, Balsan or ) is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third la ...

– 20 September 2012, in Eppan,

South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...

) was a German jurist, writer, historian, and composer.

Biography

Herbert Rosendorfer was born in the village of Gries (currently in the province of Bolzano) in the South Tyrol. From 1939 to 1943, he lived in Munich. In 1943, he was evacuated to

Kitzbühel Kitzbühel (, also: ; ) is a medieval town situated in the Kitzbühel Alps along the river Kitzbüheler Ache in Tyrol, Austria, about east of the state capital Innsbruck and is the administrative centre of the Kitzbühel district (). Kitzbühel ...

, returning to Munich five years later. After finishing school, Rosendorfer spent a year studying painting at the

Academy of Fine Arts, Munich The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (german: Akademie der Bildenden Künste München, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, ...

but then entered the Faculty of Law at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

. Between 1967 and 1993, Rosendorfer served as a judge in Munich, after which he was a Justice at the High Court of Appeal in

Naumburg Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNES ...

. Also, from 1990, he was an honorary professor of the history of Bavarian literature at the University of Munich. Following his retirement, he lived in Eppan, in the South Tyrol, till his death on 20 September 2012.

Awards and distinctions

Rosendorfer was a member of the

Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts Bavarian is the adjective form of the German state of Bavaria, and refers to people of ancestry from Bavaria. Bavarian may also refer to: * Bavarii, a Germanic tribe * Bavarians, a nation and ethnographic group of Germans * Bavarian, Iran, a villag ...

, as well as the

Academy of Sciences and Literature The Academy of Sciences and Literature (german: Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur Mainz, AdW Mainz) is a scientific academy in Mainz, Germany. It was established in 1949 on an initiative of Alfred Döblin. The academy's goal is to su ...

''(Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur)'' in

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

. He received the 1977

Toucan Prize The Toucan Prize (german: Tukan-Preis) is a literary prize given by the city of Munich to the best new publication by a Munich author. It has been awarded since 1965 and is endowed with 6,000 Euros. Recipients *1965 Paul Mommertz, Georg Schwarz ...

, the 1991 Ernst Hoferichter Award, the 1992 Upper Bavarian Cultural Prize, the 1999

Jean-Paul Prize Jean-Paul-Preis is a Bavarian literary prize, awarded bi-annually by the Free State of Bavaria. It is named in honour of the German Romanticism, German Romantic writer Jean Paul. The prize money is €15,000. Recipients *1983 Hans Egon Holthuse ...

, and the 2010

Corine Literature Prize The Corine – International Book Prize, as it is officially called, is a German literature prize created by the Bavarian chapter of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels, first awarded in 2001. It is awarded to German and international "aut ...

for his lifetime achievements. He was honoured with the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by K ...

, First Class (1996), the

Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, 1st class The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art (german: Österreichisches Ehrenzeichen für Wissenschaft und Kunst) is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian D ...

and the

Bavarian Order of Merit The Bavarian Order of Merit (german: Bayerischer Verdienstorden) is the Order of Merit of the Free State of Bavaria. It is awarded by the Minister-President of Bavaria as a "recognition of outstanding contributions to the Free State of Bavaria ...

in 2004.

Works

Rosendorfer penned numerous novels and short stories, as well as plays, TV scripts, historical research, and treatises and guides on music. Some of his works belong in the genre of fantasy; even in his works of realism and history, he often used elements of satire and the grotesque. He was a painter and composer, and combined his passion for literature and music in several librettos for the opera.

Books

The following books are available in English translation from

Dedalus Books Dedalus Books is a British publishing company specialising in European literature. As stated on their website, Dedalus specialises in "its own distinctive genre, which we term distorted reality, where the bizarre, the unusual and the grotesque ...

. * (Original title - ''Der Ruinenbaumeister'' (1969)) * (Original title - ''Stephanie und das vorige Leben'' (1977)) * (Original title - ''Briefe in die chinesische Vergangenheit'' (1983)) * (Original title - ''Großes Solo für Anton'' (1976)) Another title was published in English translation by Martin Secker & Warburg in 1991. *''The Night of the Amazons''. Trans, Ian Mitchell (original title - '' Nacht der Amazonen'' (1989))

Music

* ''Two Marches, opus 7 for piano with four hands'', Munich, 1999 * ''Musical Moments, opus 8a for flute and piano'', Munich, 2000 * ''Musical Moments, opus 8b for oboe and piano'', Munich, 2000 * ''Glory and Honour to the city of Passau, opus 9 for oboe (flute), clarinet and bassoon'', Munich, 2000 * ''Two songs, opus 10 No. 1 and 2 for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra'', Munich, 2000 * ''The Twelve Apostles of Rohrdorf''; first performed December 1, 2005 at the Benedictine school in Ettal * ''Concerto in D major for oboe and chamber orchestra, opus 14'', 2008.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rosendorfer, Herbert 1934 births 2012 deaths Writers from Bolzano Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, 1st class German male novelists 20th-century German novelists 20th-century German male writers German television writers Musicians from Bolzano Deutscher Fantasy Preis winners