Anton Karas

Anton Karas (* July 7, 1906 in Vienna, † 10 January 1985 in the 19th district of Vienna Dobling ) was an Austrian zither player, composer and innkeeper. His most successful composition was the Harry Lime Theme (English: The Third Man Theme ) to Carol Reed's film The Third Man.

Life

Karas was born as a typical child of the working class in the district between bridges and lived there until the age of 19 in the Leystraße 46, the portion of intermediate bridges, which had been removed in 1900 by the Leopoldstadt as Brigittenau (now the 20th district ). His parents were factory worker Karl (1883-1959) and his wife Theresa Karas ( 1884-1946 ). He had four siblings (Karl Friedrich, Hermione and Mary).

Karas ' musical talent was indeed already recognized in the elementary school, but his career aspirations Kapellmeister was cost-prohibitive. Instead, the father decided to let the son do an apprenticeship to the tool locksmith from 1920, however, financed him, as well as his other children, music lessons. In the environment, the five children playing music of some famous and popular.

Already addition to teaching Anton Karas attended evening classes at the private Pollux music school. After the final examination in 1924, although he had briefly employment with the Fross - Bussing KG in vehicle, but was already terminated in January 1925 " due to lack of work." But as he had begun in 1924 to study at the Vienna Academy of Music (which he held until 1928 further operation), seems to have little burdened him this problem: He started as a partner of the then most famous Adolf Schneer to play in Sieveringer Heurigenlokale zither, and his income was soon greater than his father's.

On December 14, 1930 less than three months before the birth of his daughter, he married Catherine Perger ( 1901-1986 ). From 1939 to 1945 he was drafted into the air defense of the Wehrmacht and temporarily used in Russia. He had a zither always there, as evidenced among other things by photographs in which he plays in front of officers. Several instruments he is said to have lost in the course of hostilities, but he understood always to procure replacement.

In 1948, he was discovered by the English film director Carol Reed, of The Third Man was looking for a music for his playing in Vienna film. With a well-endowed for this term contract - Karas received a weekly fee of £ 30 and £ 20 pocket money and all other expenses - he went in 1949 to London in the London film studios of the brothers Alexander and Zoltan Korda, the entire film music to create. It was the world famous Harry Lime theme, named after the movie character Harry Lime, which contributed significantly to the legendary success of this film. Other musical creations, which contributed Karas on this film, are usually hardly noticed. Karas ' workload is for the twelve weeks he was employed there, indicated by " up to 14 hours a day ." The suffering from homesickness Wiener often wanted to get out of the contract and return home, but always knew what Reed to prevent. Karas later put it, sometimes " like a slave to have been held ."

The haunting melody was a success, and the hitherto completely unknown outside Vienna performer and composer for the acclaimed star. Just three weeks after the film's release 100,000 records were sold; in English-speaking countries, the film was sometimes called simply The Zither film. In the U.S., Karas was the first Austrian, who led the hit parade. He went on several extended tours on which he. , Inter alia Princess Margaret, Queen Juliana, members of the Swedish royal family, Pope Pius XII and the Japanese Emperor Hirohito occurred and suffered claims to always homesick. After the first major tour through Europe and the U.S., he was welcomed by Chancellor Leopold Figl and other government officials at the airport in July 1950.

In Vienna he opened in 1954 in Sievering the Nobel Heurigenlokal Third Man, that was indeed a " mandatory " program point of international stars and international tourist attraction, but did not satisfy the artist Karas: On the occasion of his retirement in 1966, he gave it up. He wrote later that it would have preferred to appear in ordinary places before ordinary Viennese audience that, his language and his music understand him. After his death, Karas was buried in an honorary grave dedicated to the Sieveringer Cemetery (Group 28, number 9, number 9/10).

Honors

Trivia

• To the meeting of Reed and Karas to legends - historically secured until today nothing of it.
• In October 1955 Karas was allowed to play at the celebration of the restoration of Austrian independence. That his most famous piece not missing, of course.
• The film with Karas ' zither music is considered one of the most successful cultural exports of the post-war Vienna.
• Other claims to the authorship of "Toni" Karas to write his world famous book, there were, but they were never sued successfully. That of the few compositions that Karas ever created, had not one even remotely similar success, is known.