Joseph Rupert Rudolf Marx (May 11, 1882,
GrazThe more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
- September 3, 1964,
GrazThe more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
) was an
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n
composerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, teacher and critic.
Life and career
Marx pursued studies in philosophy, art history, German studies, and music at Graz University, earning several degrees including a doctorate in 1909. He began composing seriously in 1908 and over the next four years he produced around 120 songs. In 1914 he joined the faculty of the Vienna Music Academy, later becoming the institutions director in 1922. When the school was reorganized as the Hochschule für Musik in 1924 he was appointed to the position of
rectorThe word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
, holding that post for three years. Some of his notable students include
Johann Nepomuk DavidJohann Nepomuk David was an Austrian composer.He began his musical career in the monastery of Sankt Florian, and was a composition student of Joseph Marx....
and
Paul UlanowskyPaul Alexander Theodore Ulanowsky was an Austrian-American pianist, accompanist, vocal coach, and music educator of Austrian and Ukrainian decent. He began his career as the pianist for the Vienna Philharmonic from 1927-1935...
. From 1931 to 1938 he was music critic for the
Neues Wiener Journal and following
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he was critic for the
Wiener ZeitungWiener Zeitung is an Austrian newspaper. It is one of the most famous newspapers in Europe and one of the oldest, still published newspapers in the world. It is the official publication used by the Government of the Republic of Austria for its formal announcements. It was founded in 1703 under the...
.
A collection of Marx's criticisms and essays,
Betrachtungen eines romantischen Realisten was published in Vienna in 1947. Just before he died he published a book on acoustics, tonality, aesthetics and musical philosophy entitled
Weltsprache Musik (Vienna, 1964).
As a composer Marx is chiefly remembered for his vocal music contributions, particularly his more than 150 lieder. Although most of his songs used piano accompiament, about two dozen of them used symphonic accompaniment. His style is characterized by Slavonic and Italian elements, often with an impressionistic kind of lyricism. His output in the 1920s and early 1930s was focused on orchestral works, followed by a period devoted primarily to
chamber musicChamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
for the remainder of his career. In an interview given to Elyse Mach ("Great Contemporary Pianists Speak for Themselves"; Dover Books on Music),
Jorge BoletJorge Bolet was a Cuban-born but mostly American-resident pianist and teacher.-Life:Bolet was born in Havana, and studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he himself taught from 1939 to 1942...
said that the "Romantic Piano Concerto" by Joseph Marx was his favorite among the great virtuoso concertos because of the enormous show of strength required from the soloist.
Vocal works
Choral music:
- Ein Neujahrshymnus (A New Year's Hymn) for mixed chorus and orchestra (1914)
- Berghymne (Mountain Hymn) for mixed chorus and orchestra (1910)
- Herbstchor an Pan (Autumn Chorus to Pan) for mixed chorus, boys' chorus, organ and orchestra (1911)
- Morgengesang (Morning Chant) for male chorus and orchestra (1910)
- Abendweise (Evening Melody) for male chorus, brass orchestra, timpani and organ (1912)
- Gesang des Lebens (Song of Life) for male chorus and organ (1914)
Songs/Orchestral songs
- approx. 150 Lieder, two dozens of which are also available as orchestral songs
- Verklartes Jahr (Transfigured Year) for medium voice and orchestra (orchestral song cycle, 1932, also available as orchestral songs)
Instrumental works
Orchestral music:
- Eine Herbstsymphonie (Autumn Symphony, 1921)
- Eine symphonische Nachtmusik (Symphonic Night Music, 1922)
- Idylle - Concertino über die pastorale Quart (1925)
- Eine Frühlingsmusik (Spring Music, 1925)
- Nordland-Rhapsodie (Nordic Rhapsody, 1929)
- Alt-Wiener Serenaden (Old Vienna Serenades, 1941)
- Sinfonia in modo classico for string orchestra (1944)
- Partita in modo antico for string orchestra (1945)
- Feste im Herbst (Autumnal Revelries, 1946)
Concertos:
- "Romantic Piano Concerto" in E major (1919-20)
- "Castelli Romani" for piano and orchestra in E flat major (1929-30)
Other works
- Six piano pieces (1916)
- String quartet in A major (1936, rev. in 1948 as Quartetto Chromatico)
- Quartetto in modo antico (1938)
- Quartetto in modo classico (1941)
- Two violin sonatas
- Works for cello and piano
- "Trio-Phantasie"
- Three works for piano quartet
- Organ pieces
- Unpublished piano pieces
- Works for voice and chamber ensemble
External links