Ulrich Stranz (10 May 1946 – 27 April 2004) was a German teacher and composer.

Life

GraveUlrichStranz-FlunternCemeteryZurich RomanDeckert17122023

Born in

Neumarkt-Sankt Veit Neumarkt-Sankt Veit (until 1934 Neumarkt an der Rott) is a town in the district of Mühldorf, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located on the river Rott, 10 kilometers north of Mühldorf, and 33 kilometers southeast of Landshut. Mayor Since 2002 Erwi ...

Upper Bavaria Upper Bavaria (, ; ) is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany. Geography Upper Bavaria is located in the southern portion of Bavaria, and is centered on the city of Munich, both state capital and seat of the district gove ...

, Stranz grew up in Munich, obtaining 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 ...

at the Musisches Gymnasium in 1966. He studied composition with

Fritz Büchtger Fritz Büchtger (14 February 1903 – 26 December 1978) was a German composer. Life Born in Munich, Büchtger studied at the Music Academie of Munich with , Hermann Wolfgang von Waltershausen and Anton Beer-Walbrunn. In March 1927, together wi ...

from 1965 to 1968, who taught him music theory, forming of melodies (''Melodiebildung''), counterpoint, and a twelve tone system with esoteric and anthroposophical background. He studied at the

Musikhochschule München The University of Music and Theatre Munich (), also known as the Munich Conservatory, is a performing arts conservatory in Munich, Germany. The main building it currently occupies is the former ''Führerbau'' of the NSDAP, located at Arcisstr ...

from 1968 to 1972, violin with Heinz Endres, and

Günter Bialas Günter Bialas (19 July 1907 – 8 July 1995) was a German composer. Life Bialas was born in Bielschowitz (today Bielszowice, a subdivision of Ruda Śląska) in Prussian Silesia. His father was the business manager of a German theatre, and his ...

. Bialas initiated a series ''Musik der Zeit'' (Contemporary music), which gave Stranz the opportunity of public performances. Stranz spent two years at the electronic studio in Utrecht, by the

German Academic Exchange Service The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD; ), founded in 1925, is a joint organization of German universities and student bodies to foster their international relations. Since 1 January 2020, the president has been Joybrato Mukherjee. Organisa ...

. In 1974, he settled in

Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

, where he worked as a teacher and composer. In 1980/81, he spent half a year on a scholarship at the

Villa Massimo Villa Massimo, short for Deutsche Akademie Rom Villa Massimo (), is a German cultural institution in Rome, established in 1910 and located in the Villa Massimo. The fellowship of the German Academy in Rome, often referred to as the German Rome P ...

in Rome. Stranz died in Zürich shortly before his 58th birthday of cancer. He was buried at the

Fluntern Cemetery Also known as Friedhof Fluntern, the Fluntern Cemetery is located in the Zürichberg district of Zürich. Notable interments * Emil Abderhalden (1877–1950), Swiss biochemist and physiologist * Johann Ludwig Aberli (1723–1786), Swiss artist ...

Work

Compositions by Stranz include orchestral, ensemble 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 ...

. His four

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

s became especially famous. His works were published by

Bärenreiter Verlag Bärenreiter (Bärenreiter-Verlag) is a German classical music publishing house based in Kassel. The firm was founded by Karl Vötterle (1903–1975) in Augsburg in 1923, and moved to Kassel in 1927, where it still has its headquarters; it al ...

, and recorded by Wergo and telos. Stranz developed his own musical style during his studies with Bialas. His compositions focus on single tones and single phrases, aiming for a combination of inspiration and construction. He used this intimate approach (''Innigkeit dieses Ansatzes'') in the orchestral works ''Tachys'' (1974), ''Zeitbiegung'' (1977), ''Szenen Nr. 1–3'' (three scenes, 1980/82), in his first symphony subtitled ''Grande Ballade'' for saxophone quartet and large orchestra, and in two works for piano and orchestra (1978/82 and 1992). ''Musik für Klavier und Orchester Nr. 1'' was premiered by pianist

Margarita Höhenrieder Margarita Höhenrieder (born 1956) is a German classical pianist and a professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München. She has performed internationally and recorded, with a focus on chamber music. She premiered compositions which Har ...

, the symphony orchestra of the

Bayerischer Rundfunk (; "Bavarian Broadcasting"), shortened to BR (), is a public broadcasting, public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Bavaria, Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD (b ...

, conducted by

Cristóbal Halffter Cristóbal Halffter Jiménez-Encina (24 March 1930 – 23 May 2021) was a Spanish classical composer. He was the nephew of two other composers, Rodolfo and Ernesto Halffter, and is regarded as the most important Spanish composer of the gen ...

, on 25 February 1983 in Munich in the series

musica viva Musica Viva, also known as Musica Viva Australia, is a national organisation in Australia dedicated to chamber music. History Music Viva was founded in Sydney in 1945 by Romanian-born Vienna-educated violinist Richard Goldner, who had fled Naz ...

Awards

* 1974 Composition Prize of the City of Stuttgart (for ''Tachys''; Musik für zwei Violoncelli und Orchester (1999/2000) together with Horst Lohse,

Wolfgang Rihm Wolfgang Rihm (; 13 March 1952 – 27 July 2024) was a German composer of contemporary classical music and an academic teacher based in Karlsruhe. He was an influential post-war European composer, as "one of the most original and independent mus ...

and

Manfred Trojahn Manfred Trojahn (born 22 October 1949) is a German composer, flutist, conductor, writer and academic teacher. Career Trojahn was born Cremlingen in Lower Saxony and began his musical studies in 1966 in orchestra music at the music school of Brau ...

) * 1976 in the category composition * 1980

* 1992

Schneider-Schott Music Prize The Schneider-Schott Music Prize is a cash award bestowed to an outstanding composer, performing artist, or music ensemble in classical music—with emphasis, but not mandatory, on contemporary music. From 1986 to 2006, the prize was awarded annua ...

* 2000

References

External links

* *
Stranz, Ulrich
on the Swiss Nationalphonothek
Ulrich Stranz
Bayerisches Musiker-Lexikon Online
Ulrich Stranz
dream.cs.bath.ac.uk p. 16 {{DEFAULTSORT:Stranz, Ulrich German male composers 20th-century German classical composers 1946 births 2004 deaths People from Upper Bavaria 20th-century German male musicians

Life

Work

Awards

References

Further reading

External links