Kurt Noack (13 February 1893 – 1 January 1945) was a German composer of
light music
Light music is a less-serious form of Western classical music, which originated in the 18th and 19th centuries and continues today. Its heyday was in the mid‑20th century. The style is through-composed, usually shorter orchestral pieces and ...
.
His first hit was ''Heinzelmännchens Wachtparade'' ("The Brownies' Guard Parade", op. 5 in D major, 1912), which soon appeared in dozens of different arrangements. The original version for two-handed piano was published by Baltischer Musikverlag in
Szczecin
Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...
.
The first edition bears an illustration of three white-bearded
dwarfs, in green clothing and red caps, walking from left to right along a path lined with seven toadstools in front of a cloudy blue sky. Each dwarf has his right leg aloft, and holds in his left hand a rather bulky looking gun which is largely concealed from the viewer.
The rather negative assessment of the piece by critics ("trivial, shallow") in no way harmed its popularity. There are numerous recordings.
Very little is known about this composer, but he was for many years the bandmaster at the luxurious Hotel Preussenhof in Szczecin.
[Eckhard Wendt: "„Hôtel de Prusse“ in Stettin." In: ''Pommern. Zeitschrift für Kultur und Geschichte.'' Heft 1/2002.]
Works
*''Heinzelmännchens Wachtparade'', op. 5. There are numerous arrangements (some by the composer himself?) for piano two hands, for piano four hands, for salon orchestra, for orchestra, for string quartet, for bassoon quartet, etc.
*''Valse Scandinave'' ("Scandinavian Waltz"), op. 10
*''Goldelschens Hochzeitstag'' ("Little Gold Elsie's Wedding Day"), op. 40
*''Marionetten um Mitternacht'' ("Marionettes at Midnight"), op. 54
*Arrangements of other composers' works, e.g.
Carl Teike
Carl Albert Hermann Teike (5 February 1864 – 28 May 1922) was a German composer who wrote over 100 military marches and twenty concert works.
Biography
Born the son of a blacksmith in Stettin-Altdamm, Pomerania, Teike was the fourth of 14 ...
's march ''In Treue Fest'' arranged for salon orchestra and published in Szczecin in 1925.
External links
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Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noack, Kurt
1893 births
1945 deaths
20th-century German composers