Franz Konwitschny
Franz Konwitschny ( born August 14, 1901 in Fulnek, North Moravia, † July 28, 1962 in Belgrade ) was a German conductor.
Career
Konwitschny came from a Moravian family of musicians. From 1920 to 1923 he first took violin lessons at the Academy of Music Society in Brno, before he was from April 1923 to 1925 student of Hans Bassermann (* 1888) at the Conservatory of Music in Leipzig. During this time he was helping out as a violinist and violist busy at the Gewandhaus Orchestra. 1925 Konwitschny viola member of the company founded in 1894 Fitzner Quartet in Vienna; In 1927 he went to Stuttgart, first as a coach, starting in 1930 as Kapellmeister at the Staatstheater. With the beginning of season 1933/34, he was Music Director of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Freiburg in Freiburg im Breisgau, where he was in 1934 appointed General Music Director. In 1938 he took over the position of music director and musical director of the opera in Frankfurt am Main.
Career in the Nazi state
Konwitschny became effective July 1, 1923 in Fulnek, district Ostrava for the first time the NSDAP ( member number 2756 ). His former political conviction came in a Freiburg Fidelio performance from the 1934 term, where he wanted to take the occasion of Hitler's birthday SA men and SA flags on the stage, but this was forbidden by the directorship. On the other hand, he conducted in November of the same year in a subscription concert, the symphony Mathis der Maler of the outlawed composer Paul Hindemith. To August 1, 1937 Konwitschny re-entered the NSDAP (No. 5 508 995 ). On October 16, 1937 Konwitschny conducted at the final rally under the slogan " Race and Culture " 2 Badische Gaukulturwoche before the speech of Alfred Rosenberg the Germanic Bruckner. In December 1942 Konwitschny guest conductor in the Ghetto Łódź, where after the Litzmannstadt newspaper of 17 December 1942, the " vitality of the strongest musical style worn " fascinated.
He also worked at the Staatsoper in Hamburg and was in the war years 1943/44, chief conductor of the orchestra in Ludwigshafen, today's State Philharmonic of the Rhineland -Palatinate.
Career in Postwar Germany
Konwitschny continued his career after 1945 without prejudice continued in 1946 appointed him to the city of Hanover as musical Oberleiter of opera and concert ( until 1949 ). From 1949 to 1962 he served as Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig. At the same time he occupied from 1953 to 1955 the post of music director of the Dresden State Opera and from 1955 to 1962 the post of Music Director of the Deutsche Staatsoper in Berlin. In 1951, the title of professor, he was awarded. 1951, 1956 and 1960, he was awarded the National Prize of the GDR. On August 14, 1961, he was made an honorary member of the Gewandhaus Orchestra.
Franz Konwitschny died during a concert tour on July 28, 1962 in Belgrade. He was buried in a grave of honor at the Leipzig South Cemetery.
Especially famous was Konwitschny as conductor of the operas of Richard Wagner and concerts of works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Richard Strauss, Max Reger and Anton Bruckner.
His son Peter Konwitschny (* 1945) is a well-known opera director.