Alois Melichar (18 April 1896, in Vienna – 9 April 1976, in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

) was an Austrian composer, conductor, arranger, and music critic. He was a student of Joseph Marx at the Vienna Academy of Music, then of Franz Schreker at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin, but later became increasingly culturally conservative. From 1923 to 1926 Melichar was in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, where he collected materials on Caucasian folk songs. He then lived in Berlin and Vienna. As a composer, he followed the safe footpath of

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University Chu ...

Hans Pfitzner Hans Erich Pfitzner (5 May 1869 – 22 May 1949) was a German composer, conductor and polemicist who was a self-described anti-modernist. His best known work is the post-Romantic opera ''Palestrina'' (1917), loosely based on the life of the ...

, and Paul Graener; he wrote a symphonic poem, ''Der Dom'' (1934); ''Rhapsodie über ein schwedisches Volkslied'' (1939); ''Lustspiel-Ouvertüre'' (1942); lieder; and film music. Under contract to UFA he composed music for many films during the National Socialist period. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Melichar became increasingly polemic in his attacks on modernist music. His pamphlets include ''Die unteilbare Musik'' ("Indivisible music" 1952), ''Musik in der Zwangsjacke'' ("Music in the Straitjacket" 1958), and ''Schönberg und die Folgen'' ("Schoenberg and his Consequences" 1960).E. Michael Jones ''Dionysos rising: the birth of cultural revolution out of the ... '' 1994 Page 153 "Alois Melichar describes the publicity campaign waged against those who objected to the first performance of ''Moses und Aaron'', three years after the composer's death. Those who objected were stigmatized as anti-Semites."

Selected filmography

* '' Court Waltzes'' (1933) * ''

Night in May ''Night in May'' () is a 1934 French-German comedy film directed by Henri Chomette, Gustav Ucicky and Raoul Ploquin. It starred Käthe von Nagy, Fernand Gravey and Annie Ducaux. It is the French-language version of UFA's ''The Young Baron N ...

'' (1934) * '' Song of Farewell'' (1934) * '' Farewell Waltz'' (1934) * ''

The Young Baron Neuhaus ''The Young Baron Neuhaus'' (German: ''Der junge Baron Neuhaus'') is a 1934 German historical drama film directed and co-written by Gustav Ucicky and starring Viktor de Kowa, Käthe von Nagy and Christl Mardayn. Produced and distributed by UF ...

'' (1934) * '' Forget Me Not'' (1935) * '' The Private Life of Louis XIV'' (1935) * ''

Stradivarius A Stradivarius is one of the string instruments, such as violins, violas, cellos, and guitars, crafted by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), in Cremona, Italy, during the late 17th ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Gypsy Baron ''The Gypsy Baron'' () is an operetta in three acts by Johann Strauss II which premiered at the Theater an der Wien on 24 October 1885. Its German libretto by Ignaz Schnitzer is based on the unpublished 1883 story ''Saffi'' by Mór Jókai. Jokai ...

'' (1935) * ''

If It Were Not for Music ''Wenn die Musik nicht wär'' (English: ''If It Were Not for Music'') is a 1935 German drama film directed by Carmine Gallone and starring Paul Hörbiger, Willi Schaeffers and Ida Wüst. The film was shot at the Grunewald Studios in Berlin. I ...

'' (1935) * '' Stradivari'' (1935) * '' The Girl Irene'' (1936) * '' Love's Awakening'' (1936) * '' The Beggar Student'' (1936) * '' Land of Love'' (1937) * '' Mother Song'' (1937) * '' Nanon'' (1938) * '' Capriccio'' (1938) * '' Maria Ilona'' (1939) * '' Immortal Waltz'' (1939) * '' Falstaff in Vienna'' (1940) * '' The Girl from Barnhelm'' (1940) * '' My Life for Ireland'' (1941) * '' The Girl from Fano'' (1941) * '' Riding for Germany'' (1941) * ''

Attack on Baku ''Attack on Baku'' () is a 1942 German thriller film directed by Fritz Kirchhoff and starring Willy Fritsch, René Deltgen, and Fritz Kampers. The film was intended as anti-British propaganda during the Second World War. It is noted for its s ...

'' (1942) * ''

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

'' (1942) * '' Music in Salzburg'' (1944) * ''

Die Fledermaus ' (, ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874. Background The original literary source for ' was ...

'' (1946) * '' The Immortal Face'' (1947) * '' Anni'' (1948) * '' Ulli and Marei'' (1948) * '' The Heavenly Waltz'' (1948) * '' The Blue Straw Hat'' (1949) * '' Kissing Is No Sin'' (1950) * '' Two Times Lotte'' (1950) * '' The Secret of a Marriage'' (1951) * ''

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

'' (1951) * '' Don't Forget Love '' (1953) * '' Dreaming Lips'' (1953) * '' Diary of a Married Woman'' (1953) * '' Love is Forever'' (1954) * '' Dunja'' (1955) * '' Son Without a Home'' (1955)

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Melichar, Alois 1896 births 1976 deaths Austrian male composers Austrian composers Musicians from Vienna Pupils of Joseph Marx 20th-century Austrian composers 20th-century Austrian male musicians Austrian expatriates in the Soviet Union Austrian film score composers