Jože Humer (24 June 1936 – 13 June 2012) was a

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, choirmaster,

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

, translator, and cultural organiser. He was born in

Maribor Maribor ( , , , ; also known by other #Name, historical names) is the second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is also the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor, th ...

, attended a local

classical gymnasium ''Gymnasium'' (and variations of the word) is a term in various European languages for a secondary school that prepares students for higher education at a university. It is comparable to the US English term '' preparatory high school''. Bef ...

, and then studied and graduated from law. He established the Ljubljana Madrigalists Chamber Choir and led the Tone Tomšič Academic Choir and the Gallus Octet in Ljubljana. He was president of the Ljubljana Musical Youth, the renovator of the Ljubljana Musical Society, and president of the Association of Cultural Organisations of Slovenia. He wrote and translated hundreds of

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

s and other lyrics for children, choirs, and soloists. In 1999, he received the Golden Medal of the Slovenian Public Fund of Cultural Activities for his work. He was also a judge, a secretary of the

Supreme Court of Slovenia The Supreme Court of the Republic of Slovenia (''Vrhovno sodišče Republike Slovenije'') is, according to Article 127 of the Constitution, the highest court in Slovenia. Its seat is in Ljubljana. The court's current president is Damijan Florjanč ...

, and involved in the legal and organisational arrangements in the field of culture in the 1980s and during Slovenian secession from Yugoslavia. Later, he collaborated as an expert with the Slovenian Constitutional Court. In March 2012, he was decorated by Slovenian President Danilo Türk with the Order for Merits of Slovenia, with a rationale that described him as an "above-average deserving personality of the Slovenian cultural life."

References

1936 births 2012 deaths Slovenian classical composers Slovenian male musicians Male classical composers Slovenian conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Slovenian translators Slovenian lyricists 20th-century Slovenian judges 21st-century Slovenian judges Musicians from Maribor Deaths from cancer in Slovenia 20th-century translators {{Slovenia-musician-stub