Albert Moeschinger (10 January 1897 – 25 September 1985) was a Swiss composer.

Life

Born in Basel, Moeschinger, son of a merchant, completed his musical studies in Bern, Leipzig (composition with

Paul Graener Paul Graener (11 January 1872 – 13 November 1944) was a German composer and conductor. He composed numerous operas and orchestral works in the Romanticism style. Biography Graener was born in Berlin and orphaned as a young child. A boy s ...

, piano with Robert Teichmüller) and Munich (composition with Walter Courvoisier). After several seasons as an ensemble pianist in café houses, Moeschinger settled in Bern, where he taught privately as a piano and theory teacher, and from 1937 also at the

University of the Arts Bern __NOTOC__ The Bern Academy of Arts () is an art school with locations in Bern and Biel/Bienne. It was created in 2003 from the merger of the University of Music and Theatre and the School of Design, Art and Conservation. The educational institution ...

, and resumed his compositional activities. In 1943, health problems led him to settle in the Valais mountain village of

Saas Fee Saas-Fee () is the main village in the Saastal, or the Saas Valley, and is a municipality in the district of Visp in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. The village is situated on a high mountain plateau at 1,800 meters (5,900 feet), surrounded ...

. From this time on, he devoted himself exclusively to composition. Reading Thomas Mann's musical novel '' Dr. Faustus'' and the subsequent correspondence with the writer in 1948 encouraged him to integrate the

twelve-tone technique The twelve-tone technique—also known as dodecaphony, twelve-tone serialism, and (in British usage) twelve-note composition—is a method of musical composition. The technique is a means of ensuring that all 12 notes of the chromatic scale ...

into his work. After 1956, Moeschinger lived mainly in

Ascona 300px, Ascona Ascona ( ) is a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. It is located on the shore of Lake Maggiore. The town is a popular tourist destination and holds the yearly Ascona Jazz Festival. ...

. He spent the rest of his life in Thun, where he died on 25 September 1985 at the age of 88. Moeschinger's oeuvre, which includes all genres except opera, comprises over 400 titles. He received the following awards: in 1952 the , in 1957 the composition prize of the "Schweizerischer Tonkünstlerverein" and in 1981 the music prize of the Canton of Bern. His estate is housed in the

Basel University Library Basel University Library, officially the Public Library of the University of Basel (, abbreviated UB), is the central library of the University of Basel. It also serves as the Cantonal Public Library () for the city of Basel. With over 3 million ...

. Traces of Moeschinger's

church music Church music is a genre of Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian musi ...

can be found in the hymnal of the Protestant Reformed Churches of Switzerland: 215 ''Herr wir warten arm und hungrig'' (same melody also 318, 553 and 717) and 256 ''Es ist ein Wort ergangen''.Albert Moeschinger-Website, with Werkdatenbank
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Compositions

* Vocal work: ** ''Der Herbst des Einsamen'' (ein Gedenkmal for Georg Trakl) für Frauenchor a cappella ** ''Miracles de l'enfance'' for mezzo-soprano and small orchestra ** ''Dialogue'' for tenor, baritone and orchestra ** ''Le Chansonnier pour Mariette'' for voice and piano * Pieces for piano: ** ''9 kleine Klavierstücke'' ** ''D'un cahier valaisan'' ** 3 Toccatas * Chamber music: ** ''Klaviertrio'' ** ''Quintett über Schweizerische Volkslieder'' for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon ** ''Quatuor anthérin'' for saxophone quartet ** ''Consort for strings'' **''Introduzione e scherzo'' for 2 violins and viola (1933) **''Portrait of Emmy'', Trio for 2 violins and viola (1967) * Concertante pieces: ** 5 Klavierkonzerte ** Violinkonzert ** Trompetenkonzert ** ''Concert pour une ballerine, saxophone et orchestre'' * Orchestral work: ** 5 symphonies ** ''Extra muros'' for woodwinds and brass, harp, piano, celesta, vibraphone and percussion ** ''Fantasia 1944'', for string orchestra ** ''Erratique'' for large orchestra ** ''On ne traverse pas la nuit'' for large orchestra

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moeschinger, Albert 20th-century Swiss classical composers 1897 births 1985 deaths Musicians from Basel-Stadt

Life

Compositions

Further reading

References

External links