Hermann Ambrosius (25 July 1897 – 25 October 1983) was a German composer and music educator.

Life

Born in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, Ambrosius came via

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

, Berlin and

Chemnitz Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt (); ; ) is the third-largest city in the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden, and the fourth-largest city in the area of former East Germany after (East Be ...

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, where he received his musical education. He was a master student of

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 ...

at the

Prussian Academy of Arts The Prussian Academy of Arts () was a state arts academy first established in 1694 by prince-elector Frederick III of Electorate of Brandenburg, Brandenburg in Berlin, in personal union Duke Frederick I of Prussia, and later king in Kingdom of ...

. From 1925 to 1942, Ambrosius was

Tonmeister ''Tonmeister'' is a job description in the music and recording industries that describes a so-called "sound master" (a literal translation of the German ''Tonmeister''): a person who creates recordings or broadcasts of music who is also both music ...

at the and since 1926 teacher at the

University of Music and Theatre Leipzig The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig () is a public university in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn as the Conservatorium der Musik (Conservatory of Music), it is the oldest univ ...

. After the

Machtergreifung The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...

by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

s, Ambrosius became a member of the

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor, the German Workers ...

on 4 March 1933 under the party number 2,994,125. Fred K. Prieberg: ''Handbuch Deutsche Musiker 1933-1945'', CD-Rom-Lexikon, Kiel 2004, . Since 1936 he was also active as Gauobmann Mitte of the

Reichsmusikkammer The Reich Chamber of Music (''Reichsmusikkammer'', abbreviated as RMK) was a government agency which operated as a statutory corporation controlled by the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda that regulated the music industry in Nazi G ...

. From 1943 to 1945 he was a teacher at the "Städtische Musikschule für Jugend und Volk" in Leipzig. After he had been drafted into the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

for the first time in 1939, he was exempted from military service in 1940, but had to do military service again in 1944 until the end of the Second World War. During the

National Socialism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was frequ ...

period he wrote various

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...

s and songs for male choir in conformity with the system in addition to symphonic and concertante music and the ''Deutschen Landschaftsbildern'' (1939). From 1945 Ambrosius worked as a private music teacher, choir leader and freelance artist. After his death, the city of

Engen Engen (延元) was a Japanese era of the Southern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Kenmu and before Kōkoku, lasting from February 1336 to April 1340.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Engen''" i ''Japan encyclop ...

honoured the composer and named a street after him. Ambrosius left an extensive compositional legacy of over 500 works. Especially his compositions for are of importance. They had already been the focus of attention of soloists and

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

ensembles since the 1930s and have enjoyed ever increasing popularity ever since. The "" expressly promoted his work for this field and made him an honorary member. Ambrosius died in Enden at the age of 86.

Work

* Symphonies No. 1-12 * 3 piano concertos * Duo for flute and accordion * Eggersberger Trio for 3 guitars * Danza ritmica, 1957 * German Minnesongs and Duets with Orchestra, 1952 * Off hours, four little pieces, 1939 * Party music for string quartet * Three fugues for wind quintet * Jesus' suffering and death, 1927 * Balder's death on texts by Edda, op. 61 * Cantata for solos, choir and orchestra, 1953 * Small concert in old style for two guitars, published , 1953 * Concerto in D minor for soprano, alto, bass recorder and plucked string orchestra, published by Bruno Henze 1951 * Concerto for guitar and orchestra, 1953 * Concerto for violoncello and orchestra * Concertante Suite IV (A minor) for guitar (1952), published by Bruno Henze 1952 * Mandolin Suite G major for 3 mandolins and guitar * Passacaglia and Fugue (E minor) for guitar (1952), published by Bruno Henze 1952 * Polifonia vivida, 1957 * Prelude and Molto vivace for guitar, published by Bruno Henze 1963 * Sonata for trombone and piano * Sonata in F major for horn and piano * Sonatine G major for violin and guitar, published by Bruno Henze 1964 * Suite I (A major) for guitar (1937), published by Bruno Henze in 1952, recorded in 1952 by

Luise Walker Luise Walker (9 September 1910 – 30 January 1998) was an Austrian classical guitarist and guitar composer – one of the most prominent female guitarists of her time. Life and career Walker was born in Vienna and began studying guitar at the age ...

on the LP "Guitar-Recital" (Philips N 00640 R) * Suite II (A major) for guitar (1949), published by Bruno Henze 1952 * Suite III (g minor) for guitar (1951), published by Bruno Henze 1952 * Suite in B minor for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon op. 57, published in 1995 * Suite G major for three guitars, published by Bruno Henze 1954 * Suite G major for soprano, baritone and folk instrument orchestra, published by Bruno Henze 1951 * ''Our Father'' for

mixed choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

, 1947

Music for radio plays

* ''Der Schicksalsweg der Grete Minde'' by

Peter Huchel Peter Huchel (April 3, 1903 – April 30, 1981), born Hellmut Huchel, was a German poet and editor. Life Huchel was born in Lichterfelde (now part of Berlin). From 1923 to 1926, Huchel studied literature and philosophy in Berlin, Freiburg and ...

, director: Hans-Peter Schmiedel, Reichssender Leipzig, 22 June 1939

Discography

* Duo Imbesi Zangarà,'' Hermann Ambrosius, Complete music for two guitars and concerto,'' players Carmelo Imbesi and Carmen Zangarà ,

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 ...

Naxos Records Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records, which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about ...

, 2024

Literature

* Franz Hirtler: ''Ambrosius, Hermann'', in ''

Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'' (''MGG''; "Music in the Past and Present") is a German music encyclopedia. It is among the world's most comprehensive encyclopedias of music history and musicology, on account of its scope, content, wealth ...

'' vol. 15 1973, * Reinhard Froese: ''Archiv Hermann Ambrosius.'' Joachim Trekel Musikverlag. Hamburg 1997 – Bundesakademie für musikalische Jugendbildung

References

External links

*
Hermann Ambrosius
bei Klassika * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ambrosius, Hermann 20th-century German classical composers Nazi Party members 1897 births 1983 deaths Composers from Hamburg