Heinz Unger (14 December 1895 – 25 February 1965Heinz Unger
''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', accessed 11 Nov 2014.) was a German conductor, known particularly for conducting the works of

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

. In later life, he lived in Britain and Canada.

Early career

Unger was born in Berlin, the son of a lawyer, and at first he studied law. In 1915, in Munich where he was studying, he heard Mahler's '' Das Lied von der Erde'', conducted by

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a Germany, German-born Conducting, conductor, pianist, and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French people, French cit ...

, which was influential in his decision to become a conductor. From 1916 to 1919 he studied at the Berlin Conservatory and was taught by, among others,

Wilhelm Klatte Wilhelm Klatte (13 February 1870 – 25 July 1930) was a German Music theory, music theoretician, pedagogue, journalist and Conducting, conductor. Life Born in Bremen, after studying music in Leipzig, Klatte began his professional career as a ...

and

Fritz Stiedry Fritz Stiedry (11 October 18838 August 1968) was an Austrian conductor and composer. Biography Fritz Stiedry was born in Vienna in 1883. While still a law student at the University of Vienna, Stiedry's talent for music was noticed by Gustav Mahl ...

.Unger, Heinz, Dirigent
''

Deutsche Biographische Enzyklopädie The ''Deutsche Biographische Enzyklopädie'' (''DBE'') is a biographical dictionary published by Walther Killy and Rudolf Vierhaus (from the third to fourth volume), the first edition of which was published from 1995 to 2003 in 13 volumes by K. ...

10: Thies - Zykan, vol. 10'', edited by Rudolf Vierhaus, accessed 11 Nov 2014. In 1919 he conducted his first professional concert, with the

Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra The Berlin Philharmonic () is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. Throughout the 20th century, the orchestra was led by conductors Wilhelm Furtwängler (1922� ...

; it was the first of several concerts with this orchestra, which included Mahler's Symphony No. 1 and ''Das Lied von der Erde''. In 1921 he founded and conducted the Choir of St Cecilia of Berlin. In 1923 he conducted the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and the Berlin Symphony Orchestra together in a performance of Mahler's Symphony No. 8. He was guest conductor in several German cities, and in Vienna and Oslo. During the 1920s he made several tours of the Soviet Union; from 1934 to 1936 he was conductor of the

Leningrad Radio Orchestra The Saint Petersburg Academic Symphony Orchestra (in ), founded in 1931, is one of the two symphony orchestras belonging to the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia society, the other being the more famous Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, founded ...

for annual six-month seasons.

In Britain

In 1933 Unger emigrated to Britain. He conducted the Northern Philharmonia Orchestra until 1947, and was a guest of other British orchestras, including the

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is a British orchestra based in London. One of five permanent symphony orchestras in London, the LPO was founded by the conductors Thomas Beecham, Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a riv ...

with which he made many appearances. On 21 October 1945 he conducted this orchestra in the first complete performance in Britain of Mahler's Symphony No. 5.

In Canada

Having made his debut in North America with the

Toronto Symphony Orchestra The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toron ...

in Canada in 1937, and returning there in 1938, Unger settled in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 1948. He was a guest conductor of the Promenade Symphony Orchestra, which gave concerts at the

Varsity Arena Varsity Arenaretrieved from http://rrs.osm.utoronto.ca 2007-10-22 is an indoor arena located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at the "Varsity Centre & Arena", a sports complex at the University of Toronto's St. George Campus, and open ...

in Toronto. He also conducted the CBC Symphony Orchestra, and was guest conductor for other orchestras in Canada. In 1953 the York Concert Society was formed: an orchestra made up of members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the CBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Unger, gave an annual series of four spring concerts. These continued until Unger's death in 1965. He also appeared as conductor in Spain, Latin America, Switzerland, Germany and Britain. In 1956 he conducted two concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic; this was his first return to Berlin since 1933. He gave the premieres of works by several Canadian composers. His repertoire was large, but was primarily of composers of Germany and Austria. In 1958 he became an honorary director of the Gustav Mahler Society of America. Unger died in Toronto in 1965.

Heinz Unger Award

The Heinz Unger Award, given to young professional conductors in Canada, was established in 1968 by the York Concert Society.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unger, Heinz 1895 births 1965 deaths 20th-century Canadian conductors (music) German male conductors (music) Musicians from Berlin German emigrants to Canada 20th-century Canadian male musicians

Early career

In Britain

In Canada

Heinz Unger Award

See also

Archives

References