Karl Norbert Schmid (16 December 1926 – 13 February 1995) was a German organist, composer, choir director and music educator.Karl Norbert Schmid
(in German) Chor der Stiftskirche in Bonn, retrieved 29 August 2021

Life and career

Schmid was born in Ochsenhausen. Already at the age of ten, he substituted for his teacher, the organist at the Gabler organ at in Ochsenhausen.Stein, Franz A.: Nachruf Karl Norbert Schmid (in German) ''Oberpfälzer Kulturbund'', retrieved 9 June 2016Stein, Franz A.: Nachruf (in German) ''Mittelbayerische Zeitung'', Regensburg, 14 February 1995 This influenced his career decision: After the

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

, he studied Catholic church music at the Kirchenmusikschule (today ) in Regensburg from 1943 to 1948, making him one of the first graduates after World War II. He then studied until 1952 at the Musikhochschule Stuttgart with

Anton Nowakowski Anton Nowakowski (10 February 1897 – 3 January 1969) was a German organist, conductor and composer. Biography Born in Langenau near Danzig, Nowakowski was a pupil of Alexander von Zemlinsky and Fidelio F. Finke in Prague (composition), Max ...

(organ), Karl Marx (composition), Hermann Keller (

music theory Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...

), Gustav Koslik (orchestra conducting) and Hans Grischkat (choral conducting). Grab Schmid Regensburg

From 1952 to 1954 he was choirmaster at the in Schwäbisch Gmünd. In 1954, Ferdinand Haberl brought him to the Regensburg Kirchenmusikschule as

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

for organ playing and choir direction, and also entrusted him with the direction of the school's choir. He formed a choir with a specific sound, which became the school's flagship (''Aushängeschild''). It became known through concert tours, radio and recordings. In 1985, Schmid had to give it up for health reasons, but he continued to work as a lecturer. He worked in Regensburg as composer and teacher for more than thirty years. Among his students was Roland Büchner, who later became one of his successors and in Regensburg. In 1972, Schmid was awarded the Silver Pontifical Medal from Pope Paul VI in Rome for the achievements of the Kirchenmusischulchor. In 1975, he was awarded the culture prize of Eastern Bavaria, and in 1977 he was appointed Episcopal

Kirchenmusikdirektor Kirchenmusikdirektor (KMD, director of church music) is a German title for professional church musicians (' who have responsibility for not only a parish but a larger region, in both Protestant and Catholic church music. The title is also sometimes ...

. He became a member of the church music commission of the Diocese of Regensburg in 1984. He was an (organ expert), designed the

disposition A disposition is a quality of character, a habit, a preparation, a state of readiness, or a tendency to act in a specified way. The terms dispositional belief and occurrent belief refer, in the former case, to a belief that is held in the mind bu ...

of several instrument, and advised restorations of organs, finding pragmatic solutions. He was the holder of the of the Allgemeiner Cäcilien-Verband für Deutschland.Notice of Death, ''Mittelbayerische Zeitung'', Regensburg, 14 February 1995 Schmid was married twice, to Elisabeth née Hebele, and later to Hildegard née Hauser. Both wives died of illness, and had no children. Schmid died after a short illness at the age of 68 and was buried on 16 February 1995 in a family grave at the Lower Catholic Cemetery in Regensburg.

Work

After the Second Vatican Council, the vernacular language was also used in the liturgy instead of the historic Latin. Schmid filled the shortage in suitable church music in German by composing settings of hymns from the '' Gotteslob'', often with ''Überchor'' (a choir in higher range than congregational singing), chorale cantatas, psalms settings, masses and proprium hymns. His works are accessible to lay performers. They became widely used throughout German-speaking countries. Schmid dedicated his Te Deum for soloists, choir and orchestra, Op. 100, to Bishop Manfred Müller. He is known for his setting with Überchor of " Großer Gott, wir loben dich", which is often performed at the end of festive masses, sometimes augmented with brass or orchestra. It ended an open-air Papal mass in Regensburg when Pope Benedict XVI , leading to more popularity. Schmid's compositional estate is held by Proskesche Musikabteilung der Bischöflichen Zentralbibliothek (Proske's music department of the episcopal central library) in Regensburg.

References

External links

Schmid, Karl Norbert
on BMLO * * *
Karl Norbert Schmid
Carus-Verlag {{DEFAULTSORT:Schmid, Karl Norbert 20th-century hymnwriters German classical organists German choral conductors 1926 births 1995 deaths People from Ochsenhausen