Martin Scherber

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(16 January 1907–10 January 1974) was a German music teacher and composer.

Scherber in Aussig (Ústí nad Labem) - about 1932
Scherber in Aussig (Ústí nad Labem) - about 1932

[edit] Biography and music

Martin Scherber was born as the third child of Marie and Richard Scherber in Nuremberg, where his father was First Bassist in the orchestra of the State Opera House. Already early, at about five years of age, he began to play everything by heart on the piano. Later his strength lay in improvising. He seemed to be immediately at home in music. At the age of thirteen he made his first compositions.

Since September 1925 he attended the State Academy of Music in Munich for which he received a stipendium. Four years later he took a position as répétiteur in Aussig on the River Elbe and after a short time he became conductor and choir leader.

He withdrew from the public scene in May 1933. From then on he lived as free-lance composer and music teacher again in the city of his birth. There he created the Symphony No.1 in d minor (written in 1938). Years of experience as a soldier (1940-46) in World War II stirred him for a long time. So one can see the 2. Symphony in f minor (1951-1952) and the 3. Symphony in b minor (1952-1955) which followed this directly, as a more important continuation of his musical path which began with the d minor Symphony. The composer called them 'Metamorphosis-Symphonies'. He also composed instrumental music, works for the choir, songs and pieces for the piano. To this belonged the "ABC", a piano cycle in which he attempts to catch the mood of German sounds of speech. Those who knew his great orchestral works noticed how something timeless and universal lived in them.

The composer had intended to publish his symphonies only after his death. But in 1969 the idea was brought to Scherber to do it sooner. In this way the symphonies appeared in Nuremberg as immediate contributions to Albrecht-Dürer-Year 1971 (500th Anniversary of birth).

At the end of May 1970, during a walk, he was struck by a drunken driver. He was robbed of his physical faculties to continue with his musical work and confined over years to a wheel-chair. At the beginning of 1974 he died from the consequences of the accident.

[edit] Selected works

  • "Das ABC - Stücke für Klavier"; ABC - 31 Pieces for Piano (1938-63).
  • "Hymne an die Nacht"; Hymn to the Night (1937) (Novalis; song with piano).
  • Cycles of Children's Songs (1930/1937) (Clemens Brentano, Martin Scherber)
  • Symphony No. 1 in d-minor (1938)
  • Symphony No. 2 in f-minor (1951-52)
  • Symphony No. 3 in b-minor (1952-55)
  • Lieder mit Klavier (1930-1950); Songs for piano (Wilhelm Busch, J. W. von Goethe, Eduard Mörike, Christian Morgenstern)
  • Choirs a capella and choirs with piano or orchestra (1937/38)

[edit] Discography

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