Pavel Haas (21 June 189917 October 1944) was a Czech

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...

who was murdered during

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europ ...

. He was an exponent of

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including Eastern European f ...

's school of composition, and also utilized elements of

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

. Although his output was not large, he is notable particularly for his

song cycle A song cycle (german: Liederkreis or Liederzyklus) is a group, or cycle, of individually complete songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rare ...

s and

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinist ...

Pre-war

Haas was born in

Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...

, into a Moravian-

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family. His father, Zikmund, a

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as ''cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen an ...

by trade, was from the

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The ...

n region, while his mother, Olga (née Epstein), was born in

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

. After studying piano privately, Haas began his more formal musical education at the age of 14 and studied composition at the Brno Conservatory from 1919 to 1921 under Jan Kunc and

Vilém Petrželka Petrželka in 1931 Vilém Petrželka (10 September 1889, Brno, Moravia – 10 January 1967, Brno) was a prominent Czech composer and conductor. Petrželka was a pupil of Leoš Janáček, Vítězslav Novák and Karel Hoffmeister. From 1914 he ...

. This was followed by two years of study in the master class of the noted Czech composer

. Janáček was far and away Haas's most influential teacher, and Haas, in turn, proved to be Janáček's best student. In 1935 he married Soňa Jakobson, the former wife of Russian

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Lingu ...

Roman Jakobson Roman Osipovich Jakobson (russian: Рома́н О́сипович Якобсо́н; October 11, 1896Kucera, Henry. 1983. "Roman Jakobson." ''Language: Journal of the Linguistic Society of America'' 59(4): 871–883. – July 18,symphonic and

choral 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 s ...

works,

lied In Western classical music tradition, (, plural ; , plural , ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music to create a piece of polyphonic music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German, but among English and French s ...

er,

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small nu ...

, and scores for

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ...

and

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...

. His

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

, ''

Šarlatán ''Šarlatán'' (English: ''The Charlatan''), Op. 14, is a tragicomic opera in three acts (seven scenes) by Pavel Haas to his own Czech libretto, after a 1929 German-language novel, ''Doktor Eisenbart'', by Josef Winckler (1881–1966), which w ...

'' (The Charlatan), was first performed in Brno to sincere acclaim in April 1938. He received the Smetana Foundation award for the opera (sharing the award with

Vítězslava Kaprálová Vítězslava Kaprálová (; 24 January 191516 June 1940) was a Czech composer and conductor of 20th-century classical music. Life and career Vítězslava Kaprálová was born in Brno, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Czech Republic), a daughter ...

who received it for her ''Military Sinfonietta'').

The war

In 1941, Haas was deported to the

Theresienstadt concentration camp Theresienstadt Ghetto was established by the SS during World War II in the fortress town of Terezín, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia ( German-occupied Czechoslovakia). Theresienstadt served as a waystation to the extermination ca ...

(Terezín). He was one of several Moravian-Jewish composers there, including

Viktor Ullmann Viktor Ullmann (1 January 1898, in Teschen – 18 October 1944, in KZ Auschwitz-Birkenau) was a Silesia-born Austrian composer, conductor and pianist. Biography Viktor Ullmann was born on 1 January 1898 in Těšín (Teschen), which belonged ...

Gideon Klein Gideon Klein (6 December 1919 – c. January 1945) was a Czechoslovakian pianist, classical music composer, educator and organizer of cultural life at Theresienstadt concentration camp. Life Klein was born into a Moravian Jewish family in Přer ...

and

Hans Krása Hans Krása (30 November 1899 – 17 October 1944) was a Czech composer, murdered during the Holocaust at Auschwitz. He helped to organize cultural life in Theresienstadt concentration camp. Life Hans Krása was born in Prague, the son of Anna ...

. Prior to his arrest, he had officially divorced his wife Soňa in order that she and their young daughter, Olga, would not suffer a similar fate. In 1938, in desperation, he wrote to relatives of his wife in New Jersey, and also to Frank Rybka in New York, who was a former student of Janáček. An attempt was launched by these Americans to help Haas secure passage, but this came too late to help. On his arrival at Theresienstadt, he became very depressed and had to be coaxed into composition by

. Haas wrote at least eight compositions in the camp, only a few of which have survived. They include a set of ''Four Songs on Chinese Poetry'' for baritone and piano, a work for men's choir titled "Al s'fod" (his first and only work in Hebrew), and the ''Study for String Orchestra'' which was premiered in Theresienstadt under the Czech conductor Karel Ančerl and is probably Haas's best-known work today. The orchestral parts were found by Ančerl after the liberation of Theresienstadt and the score was reconstructed. In 1944 the Nazis remodeled Theresienstadt just before a visit from the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

, and a propaganda film, ''Der Führer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt'' (The Führer Gives the Jews a City), was made by director

Kurt Gerron Kurt Gerron (11 May 1897 – 28 October 1944) was a German Jewish actor and film director. He and his wife, Olga were murdered in the Holocaust. Life Born Kurt Gerson into a well-off merchant family in Berlin, he studied medicine before being ca ...

, under the coercion of the camp commandant,

Karl Rahm Karl Rahm (2 April 1907 – 30 April 1947) was a Sturmbannführer (major) in the German '' Schutzstaffel'' who, from February 1944 to May 1945, served as the commandant of the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Rahm was the third and final comma ...

. In the film, ''

Theresienstadt Theresienstadt Ghetto was established by the SS during World War II in the fortress town of Terezín, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia ( German-occupied Czechoslovakia). Theresienstadt served as a waystation to the extermination ca ...

'', children are seen singing

's opera, ''

Brundibár ''Brundibár'' is a children's opera by Jewish Czech composer Hans Krása with a libretto by Adolf Hoffmeister, made most famous by performances by the children of Theresienstadt concentration camp (Terezín) in occupied Czechoslovakia. The na ...

,'' and Haas can be seen taking a bow after a performance, conducted by Karel Ančerl, of his ''Study for Strings''. When the propaganda project was over, the Nazis transferred 18,000 prisoners, including Haas and the children who had sung in ''Brundibár'', to

Auschwitz-Birkenau Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed int ...

, where they were murdered in the

gas chamber A gas chamber is an apparatus for killing humans or other animals with gas, consisting of a sealed chamber into which a poisonous or asphyxiant gas is introduced. Poisonous agents used include hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide. History ...

s. According to the testimony of Karel Ančerl, Haas stood next to him after their arrival at Auschwitz. Doctor Mengele was about to send Ančerl to the gas chamber first, but the weakened Haas began to cough, so the death sentence was chosen for him instead. After the war Ančerl met with Haas's brother Hugo and told him the story.Matějková, p. 137

Post-war

Haas's large-scale symphony, which he began prior to his deportation to

, remained unfinished, but the extant material was orchestrated by Zdeněk Zouhar in 1994. Haas's music, stemming from

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

n and

n roots, is sometimes tinted by

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

melody. Haas has been described as "a reserved but eloquent student of Janáček" by

Alex Ross Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which he collaborated wit ...

in his history of classical music in the 20th century, ''The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century''. His brother

Hugo Haas Hugo Haas (19 February 1901 – 1 December 1968) was a Czech film actor, director and writer. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1926 and 1962, as well as directing 20 films between 1933 and 1962. Life and career Haas was born in B ...

(1901–1968) was a popular actor in pre-war

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

Works

Principal publishers:

Boosey & Hawkes Boosey & Hawkes is a British music publisher purported to be the largest specialist classical music publisher in the world. Until 2003, it was also a major manufacturer of brass, string and woodwind musical instruments. Formed in 1930 thro ...

Bote & Bock Bote & Bock is a German publishing house founded in Berlin in 1838 by Eduard Bote and Gustav Bock (1813-1863). The first Gustav Bock was a musically gifted publisher with an eye for opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a f ...

, Sádlo, Tempo

Recordings

* Šarlatán (complete opera) – Prague Philharmonic Choir,

Prague State Opera The State Opera (Czech: Státní opera) is an opera house in Prague, Czech Republic. It is part of the National Theatre of the Czech Republic, founded by Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic in 1992. The theatre itself originally opened in ...

Orchestra, Israel Yinon (conductor); Decca Record Company 460 042-2 (1998) * Pavel Haas: Orchestral Music – Staatsphilharmonie Brünn, Israel Yinon (conductor); Koch Schwann (1996) :: Scherzo triste, Op. 5 :: Charlatan (opera suite), Op. 14 :: Symphonie (unfinished; orchestration ) * Janáček/Haas/Szymanowski: String Quartets Arranged for String Orchestra – Australian Chamber Orchestra, Richard Tognetti (conductor); Chandos CD 10016 :: String Quartet No. 2 "Z opičích hor", Op. 7 * Pavel Haas: String Quartets 1-3 (Czech Degenerate Music, Volume 2) – Kocian Quartet; Praga Productions 250 118 (1998) * Haas and Janáček String Quartets –

Pavel Haas Quartet The Pavel Haas Quartet is a Czech string quartet which was founded in 2002. Their first album with the second quartets of Haas and Janáček won the 2007 ''Gramophone'' Award for Chamber music.Supraphon Supraphon Music Publishing is a Czech record label, oriented mainly towards publishing classical music and popular music, with an emphasis on Czech and Slovak composers. History The Supraphon name was first registered as a trademark in 1932. ...

SU 3922-2 :: String Quartet No. 1 in C-sharp minor, Op. 3 :: String Quartet No. 3, Op. 15 * Haas/Korngold/Haydn string quartets: String quartet No. 2. Adamas Quartett; Gramola 2013. * Pavel Haas: Bläserquintett, Suiten Op. 13 • Op. 17, Vyvolená – Jörg Dürmüller (tenor), Dennis Russell Davies (piano), Stuttgarter Bläserquintet; Orfeo International Music C 386 961 A (1996) :: Wind Quintet, Op. 10 :: Suite for Piano, Op. 13 :: Suite for Oboe and Piano, Op. 17 :: Vyvolená, Op. 8 * Chamber Music of Pavel Haas – Ensemble Villa Musica; MD&G 304 1524-2 :: Wind Quintet, Op. 10 :: Suite for Oboe and Piano, Op. 17 :: String Quartet No. 3, Op. 15 * Risonanza – Vilém Veverka (oboe), Ivo Kahánek (piano); Supraphon SU 3993-2 :: Suite for Oboe and Piano * Music from Theresienstadt –

Wolfgang Holzmair Wolfgang Holzmair (born 1952 in Vöcklabruck) is an Austrian baritone. Holzmair studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He won 2nd prize in the baritone class of the 's-Hertogenbosch International Vocal Competition in 1981, and ...

(baritone), Russell Ryan (piano); Bridge Records 9280 :: 4 Songs after Words of Chinese Poetry * ''4 Songs on Chinese Poetry'', sung by

Christian Gerhaher Christian Gerhaher (born 24 July 1969, in Straubing) is a German baritone and bass singer in opera and concert, particularly known as a Lieder singer. Career Christian Gerhaher studied with Paul Kuën and Raimund Grumbach at the Hochschule ...

, appear on a CD ''Terezín/Theresienstadt'' initiated by

Anne Sofie von Otter Anne Sofie von Otter (born 9 May 1955) is a Swedish mezzo-soprano. Her repertoire encompasses lieder, operas, oratorios and also rock and pop songs. Early life Von Otter was born in Stockholm, Sweden. Her father was Göran von Otter, a Swedis ...

, Deutsche Grammophon, 2007. * KZ Musik: Encyclopedia of Music Composed in Concentration Camps, Volume 4 – Petr Matsuszek (baritone), Francesco Lotoro (piano); KZ Music 231787 :: Four Chinese Songs The whole music written in Concentration Camps (including P. Haas's Study for Orchestra, 4 Chinese Songs and Al s'fod) are contained in the CD-Encyclopedia KZ MUSIK created by Francesco Lotoro (Musikstrasse Roma- Membran Hamburg), 2007 * The Bohemian Album - Dvořák, Haas, Schulhoff – Amsterdam Sinfonietta,

Candida Thompson Candida Thompson is a British violinist. Biography Thompson was born in Glasgow, Scotland. She has been living in Amsterdam since 1992. She studied with David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where she received he ...

;

Channel Classics Channel Classics Records is a record label from the Netherlands, specializing in classical music. The managing director and producer is C. Jared Sacks, who grew up in Boston. Sacks was schooled as a professional horn player at the Oberlin Conser ...

24409, 2009. :: String Quartet No. 2 "Z opičích hor", Op. 7

Haas in literature

Haas is a central character in

David Herter David Herter is an American author. His first novel was '' Ceres Storm'' (2000), which was chosen as one of the top 10 science fiction books of 2000 by Amazon.com, followed by '' Evening's Empire'' in 2002.Sallis, James. "BOOKS." Fantasy & Science ...

's ''First Republic'' trilogy, comprising the novels ''On the Overgrown Path'', ''The Luminous Depths'' and ''One Who Disappeared''. Haas is mentioned in Simon Mawer's ''

The Glass Room ''The Glass Room'', by British author Simon Mawer, was published in 2009 by Other Press in the United States and Little Brown in the United Kingdom. It was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2009. Summary The Landauers, a recently marri ...

''.

Notes

Sources

* Sadie, S. (ed.) (1980) ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians'', ol. # 8 * Ross, A. (2007) ''The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century'' (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York * Matějková, J. ''Hugo Haas. Život je pes'' Prague: Nakladatelství XYZ, 2005.