Tilo Medek, originally Müller-Medek (22 January 1940 – 3 February 2006), was a German classical composer, musicologist and music publisher. He grew up in East Germany, but was inspired by the Darmstädter Ferienkurse. He composed radio plays and incidental music. His setting of Lenin's '' Decree on Peace'' led to restrictions, and after he showed solidarity with the expatriated

Wolf Biermann Karl Wolf Biermann (; born 15 November 1936) is a German singer-songwriter, poet, and former East German dissident. He is perhaps best known for the 1968 song " Ermutigung" and his expatriation from East Germany in 1976. Early life Biermann was ...

, he also had to move to the West, where he composed an opera ''Katharina Blum'' based on

Heinrich Böll Heinrich Theodor Böll (; 21 December 1917 – 16 July 1985) was a German writer. Considered one of Germany's foremost post-World War II writers, Böll is a recipient of the Georg Büchner Prize (1967) and the Nobel Prize for Literature (1972). ...

's novel, and worked in education. He received international awards from 1967 onwards.

Career

Müller-Medek was born in

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

, the son of the composer and musician Willy Müller-Medek (1897–1965) and his wife Rosa (1902–1976). He received musical training at the Jenaer Musikschule in violin, piano, improvisation and music theory. In 1957 he attended the 12th Darmstädter Ferienkurse in the western part of Germany where he took classes with Alexander Jemnitz,

Luigi Nono Luigi Nono (; 29 January 1924 – 8 May 1990) was an Italian avant-garde composer of classical music. Biography Early years Nono, born in Venice, was a member of a wealthy artistic family; his grandfather was a notable painter. Nono beg ...

Hermann Scherchen Hermann Scherchen (21 June 1891 – 12 June 1966) was a German conductor. Life Scherchen was born in Berlin. Originally a violist, he played among the violas of the Bluthner Orchestra of Berlin while still in his teens. He conducted in Riga ...

and

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groundb ...

. From 1959 to 1962, he studied piano with Kurt Johnen in

Quedlinburg Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg became a center of in ...

. He received his

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen ye ...

in 1959, and studied then at the

Humboldt University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

, musicology with Walther Vetter,

Ernst Hermann Meyer Ernst Hermann Ludimar Meyer (8 December 1905 – 8 October 1988) was a German composer and musicologist, noted for his expertise on seventeenth-century English chamber music. Life Meyer was born in Berlin. He received his first piano lesson ...

and Georg Knepler. He also took courses in psychology with , in art history with Karl-Heinz Clasen, in theology with Lieselotte Richter and in garden architecture with Willy Kurth. He studied at the same time composition with

Rudolf Wagner-Régeny Rudolf Wagner-Régeny (28 August 1903, Szászrégen, Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Reghin, Romania) – 18 September 1969, Berlin) was a composer, conductor, and pianist. Born in Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, ...

at the Deutsche Hochschule für Musik in East Berlin. From 1962, Medek worked as a répétiteur for the ensemble of the Berliner Arbeiterjugend, and as a composer of radio plays and incidental music. In 1964 he wrote his thesis in musicology: ''Die Vertonungen von Goethes Prometheus-Gedicht''. In 1968, his work was first restricted, because of his compositions ''Das Dekret über den Frieden'' after Lenin's '' Decree on Peace'', and "Battaglia alla turca" (later No. 1 from ''Lesarten an zwei Klavieren''). Lenin's text, slightly shortened, is set for speaker and percussion (Schlag-

Idiophone An idiophone is any musical instrument that creates sound primarily by the vibration of the instrument itself, without the use of air flow (as with aerophones), strings ( chordophones), membranes ( membranophones) or electricity ( electroph ...

, Schlagtrommeln), with the speaker in the middle of the audience, while the percussionists are positioned in the back of the audience in four corners, playing with growing intensity which in the end drowns the voice. In 1977, Medek criticized the

Darmstadt School Darmstadt School refers to a group of composers who were associated with the Darmstadt International Summer Courses for New Music (Darmstädter Ferienkurse) from the early 1950s to the early 1960s in Darmstadt, Germany, and who shared some aesthe ...

and its influence in the GDR. When

had to leave the country on 15 July 1977, Medek protested and then also moved to the West. From 1982, he ran the music publishing house Musikverlag Edition Tilo Medek. In 1984 he composed the opera ''Katharina Blum'' to a libretto by his wife, Dorothea Medek, based on Heinrich Böll's novel ''Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum'' (''

The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum ''The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum, or: how violence develops and where it can lead'' (original German title: , ) is a 1974 novel by Heinrich Böll. The story deals with the sensationalism of tabloid news and the political climate of panic ove ...

''). Revised in 1986, it premiered at the

Theater Bielefeld The Bielefeld Opera is the venue of Städtische Bühnen Bielefeld (Municipal stages Bielefeld) in Bielefeld, Germany. It is a ''Dreisparten Haus'' (three-department house), offering plays, music (opera, musical theatre), and ballet. The main pe ...

on 20 April 1991. Medek died in

Duderstadt Duderstadt () is a city in southern Lower Saxony, Germany, located in the district of Göttingen. It is the center and capital of the northern part of the Eichsfeld ("Untereichsfeld"). In earlier times it was the private wealth of the Roman Cat ...

in 2006.

Work

Medek's works included chamber music and piano pieces, and settings of poetry by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

which were performed by singers such as Sonja Kehler. He composed many works for choir and orchestra, receiving international recognition for ''Die Todesfuge'' after

Paul Celan Paul Celan (; ; 23 November 1920 – c. 20 April 1970) was a Romanian-born German-language poet and translator. He was born as Paul Antschel to a Jewish family in Cernăuți (German: Czernowitz), in the then Kingdom of Romania (now Chernivtsi, ...

's poem "

Todesfuge "" (Deathfugue) is a German language poem written by the Romanian-born poet Paul Celan probably around 1945 and first published in 1948. It is one of his best-known and often-anthologized poems. Despite critics claiming that the lyrical finesse an ...

". Medek composed two radio plays broadcast by

Radio DDR 1 Radio DDR 1 ( en, Radio GDR 1) was a radio channel produced and transmitted by Rundfunk der DDR, the radio broadcasting organization of East Germany (GDR). It had a mixed schedule of news and light entertainment, with the emphasis on events in the ...

. He wrote extended stage works, such as the opera ''Katharina Blum''. He composed three symphonies: ''Die Eisenblätter'', ''Die Rheinische'', ''Die Sorbische'', and several concertos for solo instrument and orchestra. He wrote many works for organ. He received awards for his ''Die betrunkene Sonne'' (The drunk sun) for speaker and orchestra, a melodrama for children on a text by Sarah Kirsch, and for ''Kindermesse'' (Children's Mass), written in memory of the children murdered by the Nazis.

Awards

* 1967: Internationaler Kompositionswettbewerb der Stiftung Gaudeamus, Niederlande (for ''Todesfuge'') * 1968:

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by ...

(for ''Das Dekret über den Frieden'') * 1969: Opernwettbewerb DDR (for the opera ''Einzug'') * 1970: Friedrich-Kuhlau-Wettbewerb der Stadt Uelzen (for ''Kühl, nicht lau'', No. 2 of the ''Lesarten an zwei Klavieren'') * 1975: 22 Tribune internationale des Composits of the UNESCO Paris (for the ''Kindermesse'') * 1975: Prix Folklorique de Radio Bratislava (for ''Der schwere Traum'') * 1977: in Bratislava for the KRO-Niederlande recording of the ''Kindermesse'' * 1982:

Ernst Reuter Prize The Ernst Reuter Prize (''Ernst-Reuter-Preis'') is a German national prize for audio plays (''Hörspiel'') and radio documentation about the divided Germany, named after Ernst Reuter. It was awarded from 1959 to 1991 by the Bundesministerium für ...

, with Dorothea Medek for their feature ''Westöstliche Wechsel, ausgestellt in der Ankunftszeit''

Selected recordings

* ''Die betrunkene Sonne. Ein Melodram für Kinder für Sprecher und Orchester.'' **

Nova A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramat ...

8 85 019, 1971 (A-Seite) ** LP:

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

DG-Junior 2546054, 1981 ** MC: Deutsche Grammophon DG-Junior, 3346054, 1981 ** CD: 26–27 June 1996 Schwerte SonArte, P 1997 2987610002, 1997 * CD: Musik für Kinder (3-CD set) Deutsche Grammophon, 459 606, 1998 * CD: ''El sol borracho'', AgrupArte (Spain) (with illustrated booklet) 2000 * CD: ''Musik in Deutschland 1950–2000'' (Box 3: Angewandte Musik, Disk 9)

Deutscher Musikrat The Deutscher Musikrat (DMR, ''German Music Council''; ) is an umbrella organization for music associations and the 16 music councils of the German federal states.musikrat.deÜberblick über Organisationsstruktur des DMR(retrieved on 10 May 2019) ...

RCA RedSeal, 74321 73527 2 2001 * ''Tilo Medek: Orgelwerke''. (''Wandlungs-Passacaglia'' (2001), ''B-A-C-H, Vier Töne für Orgel'' (1973), ''Verschüttete Bauernflöte'' (1969), ''Quatemberfeste'' (1989), ''Gebrochene Flügel'' (1975), ''Rückläufige Passacaglia'' (1979)).

Cybele Records Cybele Records is a German record label based in Düsseldorf, specializing in classical music, namely contemporary music. Founded in 1994, their motto is "Klassik der Zukunft" (Classics of the future), focused on contemporary composers and advance ...

, SACD 060.801 (2008) * ''Triops-Botschaft – Das Gitarrenwerk von Tilo Medek.'' (A: ''Rosenlied – Pergola – Rautenkranz'' (1967/69), ''Albumblatt mit Randbemerkungen'' (1967/68), ''Venezianisches Naxos'' (1981); B: ''Erdrauch'' (1979), ''Triops - Botschaft'' (1985)). Ricophon LP 01030 ETM * ''Tilo Medek: Cello Concerto''. (''Cello Concerto No. 1'' (1978/82), ''Eine Stele für Bernd Alois Zimmermann'' (1976), ''Schattenspiele''(1973). classic production osnabrück, cpo 777 520-2, 2010 * ''Kindermesse'' (Zum Gedenken der im Dritten Reich ermordeten Kinder) (1974) for

children's choir 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 ...

** TV version: 4 May 1979, Niederländisches Fernsehen, II. Programm, KRO Hilversum ** LP: ''Kindermesse und Struwwelpeter'' - Mannheimer Kinderchor, Edition Tilo Medek, 01012 1986 * CD: ''Musik in Deutschland 1950-2000'' (Box 16: Musik für Chöre, Disk 1)

, RCA RedSeal, 74321 73660 2 1998 * ''So ein Struwwelpeter / Musikalischer Bilderbogen für Sopransolo, Kinderchor und Solostimmen, Flöte, Fagott, Marimbaphon und andere Schlaginstrumente'' (1975), text: * CD: Landesmusikakademie NRW, audite!nova, LC 18939 2010

Music for radio plays

* 1969:

''Der Ozeanflug'' (radio play), also direction, with Kurt Veht,

* 1972:

Agnieszka Osiecka Agnieszka Osiecka (Polish pronunciation: ; 9 October 1936 – 7 March 1997) was a Polish poet, writer, author of theatre and television screenplays, film director and journalist. She was a prominent Polish songwriter, having authored the lyrics to ...

: ''Appetit auf Frühkirschen'' (radio play) – direction: Albrecht Surkau, Radio DDR 1) * 1973: Jiri Kafka: ''Vom Wasser, das zu singen aufhörte'' (radio play for children) – direction: Albrecht Surkau, Berliner Rundfunk

Literature

* Fred K. Prieberg: ''Musik im anderen Deutschland''. Cologne 1968 (Müller-Medek), * Konrad Böhmer: ''Zwischen Reihe und Pop''. Vienna 1970 * ''Komponistenwerkstatt'' in ''Arbeitshefte der

Akademie der Künste der DDR The Akademie der Künste der DDR was the central art academy of the German Democratic Republic (DDR). It existed under different names from 1950 to 1993. Then it merged with the "Akademie der Künste Berlin (West)" to become the Academy of Arts, ...

''. vol. 13. Berlin 1973 * A. Olivier: ''Musik ist Intimverkehr ohne Intimitäten – ein Interview''. In: ''Status, Unabhängige Zeitschrift für Ärzte'', 1978, No. 6, S. 96 * Hartmut Lück: ''Ein Marsch, der die Massen beunruhigen soll''. In: NMZ, 1978, Nr.3, S.7 * Wolfgang Schreiber: ''Warum nicht mit Schumann vergleichen?- Portrait des Komponisten Tilo Medek'', in: Musik und Medizin, 1978, Heft 11, S. 56 - 69 * Wolfgang Horn: ''Gegen die Musik der Abkapselung''. In: Düsseldorfer Hefte, 1979, Heft 14. S.11 ff * Wolfgang Horn: ''Einer, der auszog, vom Komponieren zu leben''. In: Tilo Medek-Dokumentation Düsseldorf, Stadtbücherei * Hartmut Lück: ''Musik über Musik oder wie man die Tradition beerbt, ohne traditionell zu komponieren''. In: ''Tilo Medek-Dokumentation''. Düsseldorf, Stadtbücherei * H. Herbort: ''Muß ein Künstler sich sicher fühlen? – Ein Gespräch mit Tilo Medek und ein Uraufführungsberich über das Violinkonzert''. In: ''

Die Zeit ''Die Zeit'' (, "The Time") is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History Th ...

'', 12 August 1980, p. 51 *

Oskar Gottlieb Blarr Oskar Gottlieb Blarr (born 6 May 1934) is a German composer, organist, church musician and academic teacher. Career Blarr was born in Sandlack near Bartenstein (East Prussia). The Gothic church with its Baroque organ fascinated him early on; he ...

: ''Kennen Sie Medek? Über die Orgelfalte eines vielfältigen Komponisten''. In: ''Ars Organi'', year 29, book 1, March * H. Herbort: ''Deutsche Weihnachtslieder'' by Tilo Medek. In: ''

'', 23 December 1983 * ''Tilo Medek - Ein Komponistenportrait''. Fahmüller, Bonn 1984. - 29 Bl. Stadtbücherei Düsseldorf * Ernst Klaus Schneider: ''Original und Bearbeitung - Tilo Medeks „Battaglia alla turca“''. In: ''Kursmodelle Musik, Sekundarstufe II'', Verlag Moritz Diesterweg * H. Daschner: ''Tilo Medek "Die betrunkene Sonne"''. In: ''Musikwissenschaft'', Universität Freiburg, 1985 * Gunter Duvenbeck: ''Absage an "Fortschrittsglauben" in der Musik – Anmerkungen zu einer Diskussion mit dem Komponisten Tilo Medek''. In: Gunter Duvenbeck (ed.): ''Bonner Musikkalender'', 15/1987, Bonn * Gunter Duvenbeck: ''"Ich fühle mich immer unterwegs" – Ein Gespräch mit Tilo Medek''. In: ''Generalanzeiger'' Köln/Bonn, 18/19 July 1987 * Carl Friedrich Schröer: ''Das neue Gretchen ist nicht pflegeleicht – Der Komponist Tilo Medek und seine Oper "Katharina Blum"''. In: ''Rheinischer Merkur / Christ und Welt'', 18 September 1987 * Michaele Kinzelmann: ''Die Betrunkene Sonne von Tilo Medek''. Wissenschaftliche Hausarbeit an der Pädagogischen Hochschule Freiburg, Februar 1988 * Gerd Brill im Gespräch mit Tilo Medek: ''Die Triopsbotschaft setzt sich durch …''. In: ''musiblatt'', 3/88, including reviews of ''Wurzelwerk'' and ''Triopsbotschaft'' * Hans Gerd Brill: ''Das Gitarrenwerk Tilo Medeks''. In: ''Zupfmusik magazin'', 1/89 * Irmgard Jüsten: ''Ein Komponist zwischen Ost und West – Zum Schaffen Tilo Medeks vor und nach seiner Ausbürgerung aus der ehemaligen DDR''. Universität Münster, Fachbereich Musikpädagogik, Stadtbücherei Düsseldorf * Sabine Rabe: ''Studie zum Wort-Ton-Verhältnis der Brechtschen Liebeslieder in der Vertonung für Singstimme und Gitarre von Paul Dessau und Tilo Medek''. Theoretische Arbeit zum Diplom, Hochschule "Hanns Eisler", Berlin 1994 * Daniel Höhr: ''Verweigerung durch Ausstieg – Tilo Medeks Komposition "König Johann oder der Ausstieg§"''. Seminararbeit, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Bonn, Englisches Seminar * Brigitte Köchlin: ''Alla Turca - Bearbeitungen von Mozarts KV 331, 3. Satz unter dem Blickwinkel unterschiedlich funktionaler Zuordnungen''. Studienseminar für das Lehramt, Neuss * Katharina Kunze: ''Untersuchung zum Kantatenschaffen Tilo Medeks''. Johann Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Musikwissenschaftliches Institut, 1999 * Christof Götz: ''Norm oder Normverstoß – zum sozialistischen Realismus in der Musik der DDR – Dargelegt an ausgewählten Beispielen aus dem Musikleben der Stadt Jena, in den Uraufführungen seines städtischen Orchester in den Jahren 1969-1998''. Hochschule Franz Liszt, Weimar * Florian Scharmer: ''Das Bläserquintett bei Tilo Medek''. thesis. Innsbrucker Musikpädagogikinstitut der Universität Mozarteum Salzburg, Oktober 1999 * Maike Neubert: ''Kompositionen für Kinder am Beispiel von Musikalischen Erzählungen''. thesis. Ludwig-Maximilian-Universität München * Alexander von Nell: ''Trauerkompositionen & Requien in der DDR''. thesis. Humboldt-Universität Berlin, 24 June 2004 (pp. 56–61: Todesfuge) * Peter Gnoss: ''Ein unangepasster Komponist, zum Gedenken an den Komponisten Tilo Medek''. In: ''fermate'', Year 25. No. 2 2006 * ''Gedenkheft für Tilo Medek'', with essays by Andreas Eckardt, Alfons Kontarsky,

Andreas Dorschel Andreas Dorschel (born 1962) is a German philosopher. Since 2002, he has been professor of aesthetics and head of the Institute for Music Aesthetics at the University of the Arts Graz (Austria). Background Andreas Dorschel was born in 1962 ...

Peter Gülke Peter Ludwig Gülke (born 29 April 1934) is a German conductor and musicologist. Biography Born in Weimar, Gülke studied cello and musicology at the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar. He completed his doctorate in philosophy in Leip ...

, Hartmut Lück, Volker Tarnow, Achim Hofer and Hans Pölkow, among others ETM 215 * Ute Jung-Kaiser: ''Wir schaufeln ein Grab in den Lüften''. In: ''Polyästhetik im 21. Jahrhundert''. Peter Lang, Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften, Frankfurt / Berlin / Bern / Bruxelles / New York, Oxford / Wien 2007, Tilo Medeks Todesfuge (1966), * Oliver Alt: ''Tilo Medeks Lieder mit Gitarrenbegleitung''. In: ''Gitarre aktuell'', Year 29, Gak No. 101-II/08, Gak No. 102- III/08III,Gak No.103- IV/08, Year 30. Gak No. 105-II/09 * Roland Hafen: ''Wassermusik – zwei zeitgenössische Komponisten''. In: ''musik impulse journal'', 21/08, Helbling Verlag, Esslingen / Innsbruck 2008 (Sinfonie Nr. 2, Rheinische) *

Ulrike Liedtke Ulrike Liedtke (''née'' Nehrdich,''Musikakademie Rheinsberg Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, Rheinsberg''. In ''Handelsregister-Bekanntmachungen'' dated 4 February 1995. 17 November 1958) is a German musicologist and politician (Social De ...

: ''über die "kleinen Unterwanderungen" ostdeutscher Komponisten in der Zeit der DDR, Musik im stillen Widerstand''. In: ''Musikforum'', 4/2009 (editorial) * Hans Pölkow
''Musik aus der Kraft der verdichteten Sprache. Zum Tod des Komponisten Tilo Medek''.
In: ''

Berliner Zeitung The ''Berliner Zeitung'' (, ''Berlin Newspaper'') is a daily newspaper based in Berlin, Germany. Founded in East Germany in 1945, it is the only East German paper to achieve national prominence since reunification. It is published by Berliner ...

'', 9 February 2006

References

External links

* * Andreas Eckhardt
Gedenkheft "Tilo Medek: homo musicus et doctus"
(in German) medek.net
Komponist Tilo Medek gestorben
(in German) '' neue musikzeitung''
Medek, Tilo
(in German) Komponistenlexikon
Tilo Medek
musicsalesclassical.com
In der Wohnung des Komponisten Tilo Medek
Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek 1977 {{DEFAULTSORT:Medek, Tilo German opera composers Male opera composers Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin alumni 1940 births 2006 deaths People from Duderstadt 20th-century German composers 20th-century classical composers 21st-century German composers 21st-century classical composers German male classical composers 20th-century German male musicians 21st-century German male musicians Musicians from Jena