Joseph Beer (; 7 May 1908 â 23 November 1987) was a composer who worked mainly in the genres of operettas, singspiele, and operas.
Beer started composing music as a young man in Vienna in the 1930s. His operettas ' and ' premiered at the Zürich Opera House in 1934 and 1937, respectively.
Beer, ethnically Jewish, fled Austria in 1938 for France. His family stayed in Poland and subsequently perished in the Nazi extermination camps. Beer continued composing new works until the end of his life, and left a large number of composition for the stage.
Beer was born in 1908 in Chodorow, Galicia, today Khodoriv near Lviv, the second child of Uri Isidore Beer, a wealthy banker, and Amelie Esther Malka Beer nee Silver; he had an older brother and a younger sister. Beer started composing in his early teens and attended the Lviv Conservatory at the time called Lwów Conservatory, during his high school years.
To please his father, he first completed a year of law studies at Lviv University, succeeding in the final exam on the question of Lex Salica, and was then applied with his father's backing at the Staatsakademie und Hochschule für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna. He was admitted, allowed to skip the first four years, and immediately joined the master classes of Joseph Marx. Following this success, his father set Joseph up in a two-bedroom apartment in central Vienna with his own baby-grand piano. In 1930, he graduated with highest honors.
Beer joined a Viennese ballet company as conductor and toured with the company extensively in Austria and throughout the Middle East. While on tour, he played some of his compositions for the librettist Fritz Löhner-Beda who was so impressed that he became very instrumental in Beer's budding career. Their first collaboration, ', which also included the librettist Ludwig Herzer, premiered on 31 March 1934 at the Zürich Opera House and then toured extensively in Europe and South America.
Joseph Marx wrote a congratulatory letter to his former pupil, enthusiastically stating that in his first work, Beer had displayed a knowledge and mastery that "few established operetta composers possess."
Beer's second work, Polnische Hochzeit to a libretto by Fritz Löhner-Beda and Alfred Grünwald, premiered in Zürich in 1937. It had tremendous success and within a few years was performed throughout Europe on some 40 stages (including the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, the Teatr Wielki in Warsaw, and the Teatro Fontalba in Madrid) and translated into eight languages.
Following the Anschluss in 1938, Beer had to flee Austria. He was granted a visa by the French government and settled in a hotel room in Paris. He adapted instrumental works for orchestras and received a commission from a conductor at the Zürich Opera House for a work to be performed under the latter's name. He completed this work, including all the orchestral and voice parts, in just three weeks, without the benefit of a piano.
After the German's captured Paris in 1940, Beer, who was enrolled in the Polish army-in-exile, tried to join up with his military unit in England, but failed to find passage from Bordeaux before the port closed. He escaped to Nice in the south of France and remained there until the end of the war.
While continuing to arrange works for orchestra, he also composed his third major work, Stradella in Venedig based on Alessandro Stradella's adventures in Venice. When the Nazis occupied all of France in 1942, Beer went into hiding, using the name "Jean Joseph Bérard". During this time, his father, his mother and his sister, who had remained in Lviv, were caught in the Lwów Ghetto. Postcards written under false names suggest they survived the Lviv pogroms of 1941, but communication ceased in 1942, when they were likely sent to concentration camps, perhaps after the "Great Aktion" (GroÃÂaktion) of August 1942 when between 40,000 and 50,000 Jews were deported from the Lemberg Ghetto to Belzec. Beer thought his parents had been murdered in Auschwitz and his younger sister Suzanne in Buchenwald. His librettist Fritz Löhner-Beda was murdered in Monowitz (Auschwitz III) on 4 December 1942.
Following the war, Beer became increasingly withdrawn and refused performance rights to his previous works. Still, Polnische Hochzeit was performed in Scandinavia without his co-operation or consentâÂÂeven posthumously up until 2005âÂÂoften under the title Masurkka. In 1946 his oratorio Ave Maria premiered at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Nice with tenor Enzo Seri and soprano Lotte Schöne.
Stradella in Venedig, composed during his years in hiding, premiered in 1949 at the Zürich Opera House. The music critic Kurt Pahlen called it "a comic opera of the highest sort" and the member of the Académie Française André Roussin adapted the libretto for the French stage.
ÃÂà1945: Although bereft of worldly possessions and career, Joseph Beer survives the Holocaust. His father, mother, and younger sister perished in the Nazi extermination camps. The great Viennese librettist Dr. Fritz Löhner-Beda, BeerâÂÂs main associate, supporter and friend, has also been murdered in the camps.
ÃÂàPermanently scarred, Beer recoils from success. He refuses offers from such houses as the Theater an der Wien and the Opéra de Monte-Carlo. He characterizes many of his former colleagues in the music business as having been Nazi collaboratorsâ¦
ÃÂÃÂ 1950s: Takes on the French nationality, having been stripped of his Polish nationality during the Holocaust.
ÃÂà1949: BeerâÂÂs next stage work, Stradella in Venedig, a comic opera in seven tableaux with interlude, premieres at the Zurich Opera House on February 26, 1949, starring famed Max Lichtegg, tenor & Heinz Rehfuss, bass among others. The opera is critically acclaimed - mentioned by the late Kurt Pahlen in his World Music History (München, Südwest Verlag) as "â¦a comic opera of the highest sort."
ÃÂÃÂ With time, Beer becomes increasingly withdrawn. He severs his ties with the artistic community, yet he continues to compose daily in isolation, writing to his friend and admirer the famous musicologist Kurt Pahlen:
âÂÂI no longer write operettas. Besides, the last two [Prinz von Schiras & Polnische Hochzeit] really were not operettas.âÂÂ
ÃÂà1966: Beer earns a Doctorate in Musicology with Mention Très Honorable et Félicitations du Jury from the Sorbonne under the direction of famed French musicologist Vladimir Jankélévitch. His thesis topic: "The Evolution of Harmonic Style in ScriabinâÂÂs Oeuvre."
ÃÂàJuly 1972: Jankelevitch deems the doctorate to be âÂÂthe best study [â¦] the most complete and the most rigorous, on Scriabinâ and offers to preface a popularized version for the general public to help boost exposure of this outstanding work. But BeerâÂÂs sole passion was composition.
ÃÂà1949-1981: Beer composes La Polonaise, a singspiel opera in three acts, five tableaux and a prologue. Set in Russia-occupied Poland against the epic background of NapoleonâÂÂs reign and his affair with Maria Walewska, this masterpiece awaits a world premiere.
ÃÂÃÂ 1961-1987: Beer composes Mitternachtssonne, a singspiel opera, in five tableaux, with two interludes and a prologue. A magical romance populated by lumberjacks and elf-like creatures called Nissen set in rural Norway of the 1930's, this work of genius of colossal proportions is also awaiting a world premiere.
ÃÂÃÂ November 23, 1987: Joseph Beer passes in Nice, France. Thus ends a life spent in pursuit of one passion: composition.
ÃÂà1988: BeerâÂÂs late wife, Hanna Beer, along with their two daughters Suzanne and Béatrice Beer, start to actively promote the works of this brilliant composer posthumously.
ÃÂà2007: Emerging Soprano Béatrice Beer, a graduate from the Manhattan School of Music with graduate studies at the Juilliard School, starts to perform her fatherâÂÂs music in concert internationally, in Austria (under the auspices of Orpheus Trust), Germany (Musica Reanimata), in Washington, D.C. (USHMM), New York City, and in the United States at large -- at times in duet with internationally acclaimed Dramatic Baritone Robert McFarland.
ÃÂà2008: Robert McFarland starts to act as Joseph BeerâÂÂs agent and actively promotes him to his colleagues at the top echelon of the classical music world.
ÃÂàJanuary 2010: Joseph BeerâÂÂs music experiences the start of a major renaissance, included among others in a sold out concert at the Théâtre du Châtelet featuring the famed Orchestre Pasdeloup under the baton of Maestro David Charles Abell (who has since recorded a CD with Diana Damrau among others.)
ÃÂÃÂ March 2010: The concert was broadcast by France's major classical radio channel France Musique.
ÃÂàJuly 2010: Joseph BeerâÂÂs music is featured in a special In Memoriam performance during the French Festival Musiques Interdites at the Opéra de Marseille.
ÃÂàDecember 2010: the Viennese publisher Musikverlag Doblinger includes a couple of Joseph BeerâÂÂs compositions on its roster.
ÃÂÃÂ July 2012: Polnische Hochzeit sees a small Viennese Revival by the Wiener Operettensommer under the baton of Maestro Charles Prince.
ÃÂà2013: Major members of the international classical music scene start to show interest and to get involved, among others, Roberto Alagna, Maestro à Âukasz Borowicz, Maestro Alain Altinoglu, and the late stage director Harold Prince, while major premieres are in the works as well as recordings.
ÃÂàNovember 2015: The world-renowned Munich Radio Orchestra (Münchner Rundfunkorchester) performs and records Joseph BeerâÂÂs pre-war âÂÂblockbusterâ Polnische Hochzeit under the baton of its chief conductor, Leipzig Opera Director Maestro Ulf Schirmer with Chorus from the famed Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz.
ÃÂÃÂ Broadcast live on German National Radio (Bayerischer Rundfunk) and recorded live by the major German label CPO.
ÃÂÃÂ Fall 2016: CPO release of the November 2015 Polnische Hochzeit live recording performance featuring the Munich Radio Orchestra, distributed by the Naxos label in the United States.
ÃÂÃÂ March 2017: The CD is awarded three Gold Medals at the prestigious Global Music Awards (US.)
ÃÂàApril 2017: Joseph Beer is featured by PhiladelphiaâÂÂs Classical Music Radio WRTI-FM in a week-long broadcast and story, including an interview with his daughter, Soprano Béatrice Beer.
ÃÂàMay 2017: Joseph Beer is included in the international âÂÂWann ich komponiere, bin ich wieder in Wienâ (âÂÂI Return To Vienna When I ComposeâÂÂ) permanent exhibit dedicated to Suppressed Musicians at the Exil.Arte Center. University of Vienna, Michael Haas, Curator, Gerold Gruber, Founder.
ÃÂÃÂ November 2016-May 2018: The Polnische Hochzeit CPO CD is extensively reviewed at the international level, including by Opera News, Fanfare, Luister (Netherlands) Diapason (France) etc.
ÃÂàWinter 2018/Spring 2019: Joseph BeerâÂÂs great youth success Polnische Hochzeit is booked by the prestigious Oper Graz (AustriaâÂÂs second largest opera house) for a 3-months run starting December 2018. Opening night and all subsequent 11 performances were practically sold out and garnered a slew of rave reviews along with a live stream on Fidelio and a TV broadcast.
ÃÂàMarchâÂÂApril, 2019: The Landestheater Linz features Polnische Hochzeit in a series of sold-out, acclaimed performances.
ÃÂàSummer 2019: Both the Graz Oper and Landestheater Linz productions are nominated for the prestigious Austrian award âÂÂFroschâ Beer and Linz actually wins an award.
ÃÂàJanuary 10, 2019: Béatrice Beer is featured in a solo Recital-Lecture of BeerâÂÂs music by Leeds University (UK) including an interview by the BBC.
ÃÂàJanuary 18, 2019: Polnische Hochzeit is streamed live by AustriaâÂÂs major classical music streaming platform Fidelio -- a first for both Oper Graz and Polnische Hochzeit.
ÃÂÃÂ March 2019: Polnische Hochzeit is telecast live from Oper Graz on national Austrian television.
ÃÂàJune 2019: BeerâÂÂs Triptych, âÂÂA very interesting, very important pieceâ is premiered in Austria under the baton of Maestro Johannes Wildner.
ÃÂàOctober 18, 2019: Joseph BeerâÂÂs unique work Triptych is premiered in Poland by the Poznaà  Philharmonic under the baton of star conductor Maestro à Âukasz Borowicz in a concert including ProkofievâÂÂs violin sonata performed by Midori.
ÃÂàNovember 29, 2020: Critically acclaimed Polish premiere of Polnische Hochzeit in concert version at the prestigious Kraków Congress Center, organized by the Kraków Culture Forum (Izabela Biniek/Andrzej Kosowski). Soloists: Edyta Piasecka, Anna Bernacka, Wojciech Gierlach, Jacek Ozimkowski, Pavlo Tolstoy, Tomasz Rak; with the Polish Radio Choir and the Beethoven Academy Orchestra under the baton of international conductor Maestro à Âukasz Borowicz who is championing BeerâÂÂs music.
ÃÂÃÂ Fall 2021: Creation of a page dedicated to Joseph Beer on the website of the University of Southern California Polish Music Center, the largest repository of Polish music outside of Poland: <nowiki>https://polishmusic.usc.edu/research/composers/joseph-jozef-beer/</nowiki>
ÃÂàApril 22, 2023âÂÂJuly 2023: Major, critically acclaimed German premiere of Polnische Hochzeit by the Staatsoperette Dresden.
ÃÂàFall 2023: BeerâÂÂs Sorbonne groundbreaking study, LâÂÂÃÂvolution du style harmonique dans lâÂÂà Âuvre de Scriàbine (The Evolution of Harmonic Style in ScriabinâÂÂs Oeuvre) is selected for publication by premiere Paris-based French publisher LâÂÂHarmattan in commemoration of Alexander ScriabinâÂÂs 150th birth anniversary.
ÃÂàFall 2024: Concert of BeerâÂÂs compositions at the POLIN Museum of the History of the Polish Jews (Warsaw, Poland) featuring BeerâÂÂs great advocate Maestro à Âukasz Borowicz who among others made his Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra debut in April 2023.
ÃÂÃÂ Upcoming: Joseph Beer is slated for an entry in the prestigious online Grove Dictionary.
ÃÂàUpcoming: Various labels express interest in an all Joseph Beer CD spanning the entire Beer oeuvre, featuring among others International Dramatic Baritone Robert McFarland and the composerâÂÂs own daughter, emerging Soprano Béatrice Beer.
ÃÂÃÂ For more information, please visit <nowiki>http://www.JosephBeerComposer.com</nowiki> or <nowiki>http://www.facebook.com/JosephBeerComposer</nowiki>.