Iván Eröd, Composer
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Iván Eröd was born in 1936 in Budapest where he studied with Zoltan Kodály and later in Vienna with Karl Schiske. He served for many years as a Professor at the University of Music in Vienna and is regarded as one of Austria’s most distinguished and original contemporary composers. Unrestrained mirth and utmost seriousness mark the oeuvre of Iván Eröd and thus reflect two significant traits of the composer's character. Whereas the early works of his Hungarian phase stand especially under the influence of Bartók, Kodály and Hungarian folk music, Eröd's works written immediately before his emigration to Vienna in 1956, and right afterwards reflect – similarly to many of his comtemporaries – his experiences with dodecaphonism of the "Second Viennese School" and with its extension, serialism. Thus, works as the Wind Trio op. 4 (1957, rev. 1987) or the Ricercare ed Aria op. 11 for wind quartet (1965) are based on twelve-tone structures. Already during the work on his opera Die Seidenraupen ("The Silkworms", 1964 - 68), an initially strict serial structure gave way to a freer treatment. With his First Violin Sonata op. 14 (1969/70), Eröd finally returned to a new tonal orientation. Ever since, his aim is a thoroughly sophisticated tonal language that nevertheless can be understood by a wider audience. The main difference to conservative tonal composers of those times lies in the variety of the tonal material employed (for example modal scales, "gypsy" scales, etc.); and on the other hand in the integration of serial techniques. Far from being programmatic, many works contain references to autobiographical experiences or to historical events: the Violin Concerto op.15 (1973), for example, the Krokodilslieder ("Crocodile Songs", op. 28, 1979/80), the Viola Concerto op. 30 (1979/80), or the Second String Sextet op. 68 (1996) all point out the composer's intimate relationship to his wife and children; the experience of his family's racial persecution during his childhood is reflected in the song cycle Über der Asche zu singen op. 65 (1994). Another specific feature of Eröd's music is the use of Hungarian elements (Quintetto ungherese op. 58, 1990, and in the First Symphony "From the Old World" op. 67, 1995), but also the influence of Jazz and Blues, such as in the Piano Concerto op. 19 and in the Minnesota Sinfonietta op.51. Iván Eröd’s oeuvre encompasses more than 100 works, including 2 Symphonies and 5 operas. |
