Václav Neumann

Václav Neumann ( born September 29, 1920 in Prague, † September 2, 1995 in Vienna) was a Czech conductor, violin and viola player.

Life

Neumann studied at the Prague Conservatory. He was co-founder and first violinist of the Smetana Quartet, before accepting his first post as conductor in Karlovy Vary and Brno. In 1956 he became conductor at the Komische Oper in Berlin. In 1964 he became conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig. In this capacity he remained until 1968, when he resigned his offices in protest against the invasion of the Warsaw Pact countries in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in Leipzig and first conductor of the Czech Philharmonic was. This he remained until 1990.

At the end of his career, he not only experienced the Velvet Revolution in Prague, but was also the artistic figurehead. In collaboration with the Civil Forum Real OF ( Občanské fórum ) a gala concert with the 9th Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven was organized to celebrate the revolution, the conducted Neumann himself. He was also from 1970 to 1972 music director of the Stuttgart Opera. Neumann was honored with the National Prize of the GDR.

He was considered an outstanding interpreter of the works of Leoš Janáček, Antonín Dvořák and Mahler, as well as the newer Czech music (Josef Suk, Bohuslav Martinů, etc.). Neumann was known internationally as a specialist in classical Czech music and took, among others, Janáček's opera The Excursions of Mr. Broucek first time in 1962 on.

Teaching

Neumann taught conducting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague ( Academy múzických umění v Praze ), where his students have included Oliver von Dohnányi and Vítězslav Podrazil.