Józef Koffler (28 November 18961944) was a Polish

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 ...

, music teacher, musicologist and musical

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (newspaper), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the fo ...

. He was the first Polish composer living before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

to apply the twelve-tone composition technique (dodecaphony).

Biography

Koffler was born on 28 November 1896 in Stryj,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. He studied from 1914 to 1916 in

Lwów Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

and from 1918 to 1924 he studied music at the Academy of Music and the Performing Arts in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. His teachers were

Paul Graener Paul Graener (11 January 1872 – 13 November 1944) was a German composer and conductor. He composed numerous operas and orchestral works in the Romanticism style. Biography Graener was born in Berlin and orphaned as a young child. A boy s ...

and

Felix Weingartner Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist. Life and career Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. T ...

. From 1928 till 1941 Koffler was professionally active as music teacher in Lwów, teaching at the Lwów Conservatory. Polish exile composer

Roman Haubenstock-Ramati Roman Haubenstock-Ramati ( he, רוֹמן האובּנשׁטוֹק-רָמָתִי; 27 February 1919 – 3 March 1994) was a composer and music editor who worked in Kraków, Tel Aviv and Vienna. Life Haubenstock-Ramati was born in Kraków. He stud ...

studied in 1920–1923 composition together with Koffler in Lwów. Koffler was a composer of 20th-century avant-garde Polish music and the first Polish twelve-tone technique composer. He must have come into contact with Edward Clark, the British conductor, BBC music producer and former student of

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

, as his "Variations on a Waltz by Johann Strauss", Op. 23 (1935) were dedicated "À mon ami Edward Clark". When German troops entered the town Koffler was captured with his wife and son and forcibly relocated to the

ghetto A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...

Wieliczka Wieliczka (German: ''Groß Salze'', Latin: ''Magnum Sal'') is a historic town in southern Poland, situated within the Kraków metropolitan area in Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999. The town was initially founded in 1290 by Premislaus II of P ...

(

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

). His further fate, including the date, location and manner of his death are unknown. At the beginning of 1944 he and his family were probably killed by one of the German ''

Einsatzgruppen (, ; also ' task forces') were (SS) paramilitary death squads of Nazi Germany that were responsible for mass murder, primarily by shooting, during World War II (1939–1945) in German-occupied Europe. The had an integral role in the im ...

'' near

Krosno Krosno (in full ''The Royal Free City of Krosno'', pl, Królewskie Wolne Miasto Krosno) is a historical town and Krosno County, county in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in southeastern Poland. The estimated population of the town is 47,140 inha ...

(in southern Poland) where he was hiding after the liquidation of the ghetto in Wieliczka. Most of Koffler's unpublished scores vanished in the turmoil of the

, when he was murdered in the Holocaust. Only two works amongst his numerous compositions were published after the war. They were released by the Polish editing house PWM and are available today. They are: String Trio, Op. 10 and Cantata ''Love'', Op. 14. Several of his works have been released on records. Koffler's 1938 arrangement of J. S. Bach's '' Goldberg Variations'' for small orchestra was given its UK premier, on 11 June 2019, at Wigmore Hall, with London's Royal Academy of Music Soloists Ensemble and Toronto's

Glenn Gould School Glenn may refer to: Name or surname * Glenn (name) * John Glenn, U.S. astronaut Cultivars * Glenn (mango) * a 6-row barley variety Places In the United States: * Glenn, California * Glenn County, California * Glenn, Georgia, a settlement i ...

, conducted by Trevor Pinnock.

List of compositions by date and opus number

*''Slavic song'' (''Chanson Slave'') (before 1918) *''Two songs''(''Zwei Lieder'') – for soprano and piano op.1 (1917) *''Ouverture "Hanifa"'' op.2 (vanished) *''Oriental Suite '' op.3 (vanished) *''Sielanka'' („Idyl”) for chamber orchestra op.4 (vanished) *''String quartet” op.5 (vanished) *''40 Polish folk songs'' op.6 (1925) *''Musique de ballet'' op.7 (1926) *''Musique. Quasi una sonata'' op.8, to

Karol Szymanowski Karol Maciej Szymanowski (; 6 October 188229 March 1937) was a Polish composer and pianist. He was a member of the modernist Young Poland movement that flourished in the late 19th and early 20th century. Szymanowski's early works show the inf ...

(1927) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' (''15 variations d'après une suite de douze tons'') op.9 (1927) *''String trio'' op.10 (1928) *''I Symphony'' op.11 (1930) *''Sonatina'' op.12 (1930) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' op.9a, string orchestration of the opus 9 (1931) *''Piano concerto'' op.13 (1932) *Cantata ''Love'' (''Die Liebe'') for voice, viola, cello and clarinet op.14 with text of Corinthian 1. Letter Ode to Love and St. Paul (1931) *Ballet-Oratorium''Alles durch M.O.W.'' (''Institute of Daily Correspondence'') for dancers, soprano and baritone solo, choir and orchestra op.15 (1932) *''Divertimento'' (''Little serenade'') for oboe, clarinet and bassoon op.16 (1931, vanished) *''II Symphony'' op.17 (1933) *''Capriccio'' for violin and piano op.18 (1936) *''Piano sonata'' op.19 (1935, vanished) *''String quartet'' op. 20 (1934, vanished) *''III Symphony'' op.21 (1935) *''Quatre poèmes'' for violin and piano op.22 (1935) *''Variations sur une valse de

Johann Strauss Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ove ...

'' op.23 (1935); dedicated to Edward Clark *Elaboration of Polish Christmas carols for choir (1934–1936) *''Polish suite'' for chamber orchestra op.24 (1936) *''Little suite'' according to ''Klavierbüchlein für Anna Magdalena Bach'' of

J.S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suite ...

(approximately 1937, vanished) *Orchestration of the '' Goldberg variations'' of J.S. Bach for small orchestra (1938) *''Händeliana'', 30 variations on the theme of Passacaglia of Händel (before 1940, vanished) *''Joyful ouverture'' op.25 (1940, vanished) *''IV Symphony'' op.26 (1940) *''Four pieces for children'' (''Cztery utwory dziecięce'') for piano (before 1940) *''Ukrainian sketches'' (''Szkice ukraińskie'') op.27 for string quartet (before 1941) *Music for scene dramas (vanished)

Complete list of compositions

Works fully preserved

*''Slave song'' (before 1918) *''Zwei Lieder'' – ''Two songs'' for soprano and piano op.1 (1917) *''40 Polish folk songs'' op.6 (1925) *''Musique de ballet'' op.7 (1926) *''Musique. Quasi una sonata'' op.8, to

(1927) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' (''15 variations d'après une suite de douze tons'') op.9 (1927) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' op.9a, orchestration of the opus 9 for string orchestra (1931) *''String trio'' op.10 (1928) *''I Symphony'' op.11 (1930) *''Sonatina'' op.12 (1930) *''Piano concerto'' op.13 (1932) * ''Love'' (''Die Liebe'') cantata for voice, viola, cello and clarinet op.14 (1931) * Ballet-Oratorium'' “Alles durch M.O.W.'' (''Institute of Daily Correspondence'') for dancers, soprano and baritone solo, choir and orchestra op.15 (1932) *''II Symphony'' op.17 (1933) *''Capriccio'' for violin and piano op.18 (1936) *''III Symphony'' op.21 (1935) *''Quatre poèmes'' for violin and piano op.22 (1935) *''Variations sur une valse de Johann Strauss'' op.23 (1935); dedicated to Edward Clark * Elaboration of Polish Christmas carols for choir (1934–1936) * Orchestration of the ''Goldberg variations'' of J.S. Bach for small orchestra (1938) *''IV Symphony'' op.26 (1940) *''Four pieces for children'' (''Cztery utwory dziecięce'') for piano; before 1940 *''Ukrainian sketches'' (''Szkice ukraińskie'') op.27 for string quartet (before 1941)

Lost works

*''Ouverture "Hanifa"'' op.2 (vanished) *''Oriental suite'' op.3 (vanished) *''Sielanka'' („Idyl”) for chamber orchestra op.4 (vanished)) *''String quartet'' op.5 (vanished) *''Divertimento'' (''Little serenade'') for oboe, clarinet and bassoon op.16 (vanished) *''Piano sonata'' op.19 (1935) *''String quartet'' op. 20 (1934) *''Polish suite'' for chamber orchestra op.24 (1936) *''Little suite'' according to ''Klavierbüchlein für Anna Magdalena Bach'' of J.S. Bach (approximately 1937, vanished) *''Joyful overture'' op.25 (1940, vanished) *''Händeliana'', 30 variations on the theme of Passacaglia of Händel (before 1940, vanished)

List of compositions by instrument

Piano music

*''Slave song'' (before 1918) *''40 Polish folk songs'' op.6 (1925) (the songs can be performed without the solo voice) *''Musique de ballet'' op.7 (1926) *''Musique. Quasi una sonata'' op.8, to

(1927) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' (''15 variations d'après une suite de douze tons'') op.9 (1927) *''Sonatina'' op.12 (1930) *''Piano sonata'' op.19 (1935, vanished) *''Variations sur une valse de

'' op.23 (1935) *''Four pieces for children'' (''Cztery utwory dziecięce'') for piano; before 1940)

Chamber music

*''String quartet'' op.5 (vanished) *''String trio'' op.10 (1928) *''Divertimento'' (''Little serenade'') for oboe, clarinet and bassoon op.16 (1931, vanished) *''Capriccio'' for violin and piano op.18 (1936) *''String quartet'' op. 20 (1934, vanished) *''Quatre poèmes'' for violin and piano op.22 (1935) *''Ukrainian sketches'' (''Szkice ukraińskie'') op.27 for string quartet (before 1941)

Orchestral music

*''Uverture "Hanifa"'' op.2 (vanished) *''Oriental suite'' op.3 (vanished) *''Sielanka'' („Idyl”) for chamber orchestra op.4 (vanished) *''15 variations on a 12 tone series'' (''15 variations d'après une suite de douze tons'') op.9 (1927) *''I Symphony'' op.11 (1930) *''Piano concerto'' op.13 (1932) *''II Symphony'' op.17 (1933) *''III Symphony'' op.21 (1935) *''Polish suite'' for chamber orchestra op.24 (1936, vanished) *''IV Symphony'' op.26 (1940) *''Joyful ouverture'' op.25 (1940, vanished) *''Händeliana'', 30 variations on the theme of Passacaglia of Händel , before 1940, vanished) *''Little suite'' according to ''Klavierbüchlein für Anna Magdalena Bach'' of J.S. Bach (approximately 1937, vanished) * Orchestration of the ''Goldberg variations'' of J.S. Bach for small orchestra (1938) *Music for scene dramas (vanished)

Vocal music

*''Zwei Lieder'' – ''Two Songs'' for soprano and piano op.1 (1917) *''40 Polish folk songs'' op.6 (1925) (see also under piano works) * ''Love'' (''Die Liebe'') cantata for voice, viola, cello and clarinet op.14 (1931) *Ballet-Oratorium''Alles durch M.O.W.'' (''Institute of Daily Correspondence'') for dancers, soprano and baritone solo, choir and orchestra op.15 (1932) *Elaboration of Polish Christmas carols for choir (1934–1936)

Discography

*Józef Koffler, Musique de ballet, Op. 7, Steffen Schleiermacher – piano, MDG MDG6131433, 1996, The Viennese School – Teachers and Followers *Józef Koffler, Sonatine for piano op.12, Joseph Holt, piano, Darkness & Light, Vol. 2, JDT 3086, 1182819, Music Performed in Concert from The Chamber Music Series at the Holocaust Memorial Museum, 1997 *Józef Koffler, Piano Works I, Sternlicht Elzbieta, piano, Acte Préalable, AP0123, 2005, booklet: prof. Boguslaw Schaeffer (Polish, English French), Total Time: 52'11" *Józef Koffler, Piano Works II, Sternlicht Elzbieta, piano, Acte Préalable, AP0122, 2005, booklet: prof. Boguslaw Schaeffer (Polish, English French),Total Time: 40'32"

References

* "Displaced Music" ("Odrzucona muzyka"), Editor Pfau, Saargebiet, 1998, vol. 18: "Persecution and Re-discovery". Lecture-concerts of "musica reanimata" about the composers Max Brand, Alfred Goodman, Józef Koffler and

Ursula Mamlok Ursula Mamlok (February 1, 1923 – May 4, 2016) was a German-born American composer and teacher. Education and influences Mamlok was born as Ursula Meyer in Berlin, Germany, into a Jewish family, and studied piano and composition with Professor G ...

. * Folga, Zygmunt. "Józef Koffler's Twelve-Tone Serialism" (Dodekafonia Józefa Kofflera). ''Muzyka'' 4 (1972): 65–83. * Freiheiter, Jerzy. "Józef Koffler." ''Muzyka'' 7–8 (1936): 85–86. * Gołąb, Maciej, "Creativity of Józef Koffler – Problems with style organization" (Das Schaff des Józef Kofflers) – Probleme einer Stilgestaltung. Verfemte Musik. ''Komponisten in den Diktaturen unseres Jahrhunderts.'' Ed. J. Braun, V. Karbusicky, H.T. Hoffmann. Frankfurt am Main, 1995, pp. 205–217. * Gołąb, Maciej, "Twelve-Tone Serialism. Studies of the Theory and Composition of the First Half of the Twentieth Century" (Dodekafonia. Studia nod teorią i kompozycją I polowy XX wieku). Bydgoszcz, 1987. * Gołąb, Maciej. "Józef Koffler and the Viennese School" (Józef Koffler i Szkoła Wiedeńska). ''Muzyka'' 2 (1996): 3–16. * Gołąb, Maciej. "Twelve-Tone serialism of Józef Koffler" (Zwolftontechnik bei Józef Koffler. Ein polnisher Beitrag zur Geschichte der Dodekaphonie in der ersten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts), ''Musik des Ostens.'' 10 (1986): 167–179. * Gołąb, Maciej. ''Józef Koffler.'' Kraków: Musica Iagellonica, 1995. English translation b
Maksymilian Kapelański
Marek Żebrowski and Linda Schubert, Los Angeles: Polish Music Center, 2004. * Koffler, Józef Koffler. Score of "Love Cantata" for solo voice, clarinet, viola and violoncello Op. 14, publisher: PWM, Cat. no: 8719, 1995, language versions: Polish, German. * Linstedt, Iwona. "Instrumentation and Form in the Symphonies of Józef Koffler" (Instrumentacja a forma w symfoniach Józefa Kofflera). ''Muzyka'' 2 (1996): 75–130. * Linstedt, Iwona. "Twelve-Tone serialism in the symphonies of Józef Koffler (Dodekafonia w symfoniach Jozefa Kofflera), ''Muzyka'' 2 (1996): 17–74. * Mazepa, Leszek. "The Press of Lvov on the Performances of Józef Koffler's Compositions" (Relacje prasy lwowskiej o wykonaniach utworow Józefa Kofflera). ''Muzyka'' 2 (1996): 139–158. * Mazepa, Leszek. "The Soviet Period in the Life and Works of Józef Koffler" (Okres radziecki w życiu i twórczości Józefa Kofflera). ''Muzyka'' 1 (1983): 67–100. * ''Muzyka'' 2 (1996). Special 100-year's anniversary issue tributed to J. Koffler. * Zduniak, Maria. "Music and Activity of Józef Koffler in the Interwar Period" (Twórczość i działalność Józefa Kofflera w okresie 20-lecia międzywojennego). ''Zeszyty naukowe Akademii Muzycznej we Wrocławiu'' (Wrocław, 1983): 37–59.

External links

Józef Koffler – Biography and list of worksJózef Koffler – Biography

Scores by Józef Koffler
in digital library Polona {{DEFAULTSORT:Koffler, Jozef 1896 births 1944 deaths 20th-century classical composers Twelve-tone and serial composers Polish classical musicians Jewish classical composers Polish classical composers Polish male classical composers Polish music educators Jews from Galicia (Eastern Europe) Austro-Hungarian Jews People from Stryi Nazi-era ghetto inmates Polish columnists Polish musicologists Pupils of Arnold Schoenberg Academic staff of Lviv Conservatory 20th-century musicologists 20th-century male musicians Polish Jews who died in the Holocaust Polish civilians killed in World War II