Genzmer, Harald

Harald Genzmer – Bremer Sinfonie (1942-43)

(b. Blumenthal, 9. February 1909 – d. Munich, 16. December 2007)

1 Mäßig bewegt – lebhaft (moderately moving – lively)
2 Sehr lebhaft und schwungvoll – ruhig fliessend – Tempo 1
(very lively and swinging – quietly flowing – tempo 1)
3 Langsam – lebhaft (Slow – lively)

Preface
The composer Harald Genzmer was born in Blumenthal, a town that later became a suburb within the north German city of Bremen. Bremen itself casts its boundaries 67 kilometres along the landmark river Weser to include the North Sea port of Bremerhaven.

Before the Second World War, Genzmer, a pupil of Hindemith in Berlin, worked at Breslau (1934-1937) after which he moved back to Berlin. Following the Second World War he was based in Fribourg-en-Brisgau in the late 1940s and in Munich from the 1950s. The British composer John McCabe (1939-2015) was among his pupils.

Genzmer’s output was prolific and a significant portion of this (although not the Bremer Sinfonie) is accessible on the Thorofon recording label. In addition to a veritable treasury of concertos he composed much chamber music, keyboard works and many pieces that have found their way into the realm of didactic praxis and music competitions, not to forget a smallish number of works for voice. Genzmer will be remembered for his loyalty to the electronic instrument, the Trautonium. This instrument had been invented in 1930 by Friedrich Trautwein and Oskar Sala and was later developed in collaboration with Telefunken. The trautonium was also favoured by Hindemith and Richard Strauss. Genzmer wrote two trautonium concertos (1939, 1952), as well as other pieces, for the instrument. …

Full preface / Komplettes Vorwort > HERE