Pavel Haas

Pavel Haas
Memorial plaque to Pavel and Hugo Haas at the house where they grew up in Brno

Pavel Haas (21 June 1899 – 17 October 1944) was a Czech composer who was murdered during the Holocaust. He was an exponent of Leoš Janáček's school of composition, and also utilized elements of folk music and jazz. Although his output was not large, he is notable particularly for his song cycles and string quartets.[1]

Pre-war

Haas was born in Brno, into a Jewish family. His father, Zikmund, a shoemaker by trade, was from the Moravian region, while his mother, Olga (née Epstein), was born in Odessa. After studying piano privately, Haas began his more formal musical education at the age of 14 and he studied composition at the Brno Conservatory from 1919 to 1921 under Jan Kunc and Vilém Petrželka. This was followed by two years of study in the master class of the noted Czech composer Leoš Janáček. Janáček was far and away Haas's most influential teacher, and Haas, in turn, proved to be Janáček's best student. In 1935 he married Soňa Jakobson, the former wife of Russian linguist Roman Jakobson.[2]

Of the more than 50 works Haas wrote during the next two decades, only 18 were given opus numbers by the self-critical composer. While still working in his father's business, he wrote musical works of all kinds, including symphonic and choral works, lieder, chamber music, and scores for cinema and theatre. His opera, Šarlatán (The Charlatan), was first performed in Brno to sincere acclaim in April 1938. He received the Smetana Foundation award for the opera (sharing the award with Vítězslava Kaprálová who received it for her Military Sinfonietta).

The war

In 1941, Haas was deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp (Terezín). He was one of several Czech-Jewish composers there, including Viktor Ullmann, Gideon Klein and Hans Krása. Prior to his arrest, he had officially divorced his wife Soňa in order that she and their young daughter would not suffer a similar fate. On his arrival, he became very depressed and had to be coaxed into composition by Gideon Klein. Haas wrote at least eight compositions in the camp, only a few of which have survived. They include a set of Four Songs on Chinese Poetry for baritone and piano, a work for men's choir titled "Al s'fod" (his first and only work in Hebrew), and the Study for String Orchestra which was premiered in Theresienstadt under the Czech conductor Karel Ančerl and is probably Haas's best-known work today. The orchestral parts were found by Ančerl after the liberation of Theresienstadt and the score was reconstructed.

In 1944 the Nazis remodeled Theresienstadt just before a visit from the Red Cross, and a propaganda film, Der Führer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt (The Führer Gives the Jews a City), was made by director Kurt Gerron, under the coercion of the camp commandant, Karl Rahm. In the film, Theresienstadt, children are seen singing Hans Krása's opera, Brundibár, and Haas can be seen taking a bow after a performance, conducted by Karel Ančerl, of his Study for Strings. When the propaganda project was over, the Nazis transferred 18,000 prisoners, including Haas and the children who had sung in Brundibár, to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where they were murdered in the gas chambers. According to the testimony of Karel Ančerl, Haas stood next to him after their arrival at Auschwitz. Doctor Mengele was about to send Ančerl to the gas chamber first, but the weakened Haas began to cough, so the death sentence was therefore chosen for him, instead. After the war Ančerl met with Haas's brother Hugo and told him the story.[3]

Post-war

Haas's large-scale symphony, which he began prior to his deportation to Theresienstadt, remained unfinished, but the surviving torso was orchestrated by Zdeněk Zouhar in 1994. Haas's music, stemming from Bohemian and Moravian roots, is sometimes tinted by Hebrew melody.

Haas has been described as "a reserved but eloquent student of Janáček" by Alex Ross in his history of classical music in the 20th century, The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century.

His brother Hugo Haas (1901–1968) was a popular actor in pre-war Czechoslovakia.

Works

Principal publishers: Boosey & Hawkes, Bote & Bock, Sádlo, Tempo

Genre Opus Date composed Czech title English title Scoring Notes
Vocal 01 1918–1919 Sest pisniŠest písní v lidovém tónu Songs 66 Songs in Folk Tone for soprano and piano orchestrated 1938
Vocal 02 1919–1920 Tri pisneTři písně Songs 33 Songs for soprano and piano words by Josef Svatopluk Machar
Chamber music 03 1920 Smyčcový kvartet č. 1 String Quartet No. 1 in C♯ minor for violins 22 violins, viola and cello
Vocal 04 1919 Cinske pisneČínské písně Chinese Songs for medium voice and piano words by Kao Shi, Tsui Hao, Thu Fu
Orchestral 05 1921 Zesmutnělé scherzo Scherzo triste for orchestra
Vocal 06 1923 Fata morgana"Fata morgana" Klavírní kvintet
se sólovým zpěvákem tenorového hlasu 		Fata morganaFata morgana for tenor, 2 violins, viola, cello and piano words by Rabindranath Tagore
Chamber music 07 1925 Smyčcový kvartet č. 2 "Z opičích hor" String Quartet No. 2 From the Monkey Mountains for violins 22 violins, viola, cello and percussion 'ad libitum'
Vocal 08 1927 Vyvolená Chosen One, TheThe Chosen One for tenor, flute, horn, violin and piano poems by Jiří Wolker
Choral 09 1928–1929 Karneval Carnival for male chorus words by Dalibor Chalupa
Chamber music 10 1929 Dechový kvintet Wind Quintet for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon
Orchestral 11 1931 Předehra pro rozhlas Overture for Radio for small orchestra and male voices words by Hugo Haas
Choral 12 1932 Zalm 29Žalm 29 Psalm XXIX for baritone, female chorus and chamber orchestra with organ
Film score – 1933 Zivot je pesŽivot je pes Life Is a Dog for orchestra music for the film
Film score – 1934 Mazlíček Little Pet, TheThe Little Pet for orchestra music for the film
Piano 13 1935 Suita pro klavír Suite for piano
Opera 14 1936 SarlatanŠarlatán Charlatan, TheThe Charlatan for soloists, chorus and orchestra opera in 3 acts; libretto by the composer
Film score – 1937 Kvočna Mother-Hen for orchestra music for the film
Piano – 1937 Allegro moderato Allegro moderato for piano
Chamber music 15 1937–1938 Smyčcový kvartet č. 3 String Quartet No. 3 for violins 22 violins, viola and cello
16
Chamber music 17 1939 Suita pro hoboj a klavír Suite for oboe and piano
Vocal 18 1940 Sedm písní v lidovém tónu Songs 77 Songs in Folk Style for high voice and piano words by František Čelakovský
Orchestral – 1940–1941 Symfonie Symphony for orchestra unfinished; orchestration completed by Zdeněk Zouhar
Choral – 1942 Al s'fod Do Not Lament for male chorus words by David Shimoni
Orchestral – 1943 Studie pro smyčcový orchestr Study for string orchestra
Vocal – 1944 Ctyri pisneČtyři písně na slova čínské poezie
  1. Zaslech jsem divoké husy
  2. V bambusovém háji
  3. Daleko měsíc je domova
  4. Probděná noc
 Songs 44 Songs on Chinese Poetry
  1. I Heard the Wild Geese
  2. In the Bamboo Grove
  3. The Moon Is Far from Home
  4. A Sleepless Night
 for bass (or baritone) and piano poems by Wei Jing-wu, Wang-wei, Tchang Tiou-ling, Han I
Vocal – Advent, TheThe Advent for mezzo-soprano, tenor and quintet
– Fantasy on a Jewish Melody
Piano – Partita in Olden Style for piano lost
Vocal – Terezín Songs
Vocal – Tri skladbyTři skladby Pieces 33 Pieces for mezzo-soprano, tenor, flute, clarinet, 2 violins, viola and cello lost
Concertante – Variace pro klavír a smyčcový orchestr Variations for piano and string orchestra

Recordings

Scherzo triste, Op. 5
Charlatan (opera suite), Op. 14
Symphonie (unfinished; orchestration Zdeněk Zouhar)
String Quartet No. 2 "Z opičích hor", Op. 7
String Quartet No. 1 in C-sharp minor, Op. 3
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 15
Wind Quintet, Op. 10
Suite for Piano, Op. 13
Suite for Oboe and Piano, Op. 17
Vyvolená, Op. 8
Wind Quintet, Op. 10
Suite for Oboe and Piano, Op. 17
String Quartet No. 3, Op. 15
Suite for Oboe and Piano
4 Songs after Words of Chinese Poetry
Four Chinese Songs

The whole music written in Concentration Camps (including P. Haas's Study for Orchestra, 4 Chinese Songs and Al s'fod) are contained in the CD-Encyclopedia KZ MUSIK created by Francesco Lotoro (Musikstrasse Roma- Membran Hamburg), 2007

Haas in literature

Haas is a central character in David Herter's First Republic trilogy, comprising the novels On the Overgrown Path, The Luminous Depths and One Who Disappeared.

Haas is mentioned in Simon Mawer's The Glass Room.

Notes

  1. ↑ Vysloužil, Jiří (2001). Hudební slovník pro každého II (in Czech). Vizovice: Lípa. p. 168. ISBN 80-86093-23-9.
  2. ↑ Matějková, p. 129
  3. ↑ Matějková, p. 137

Sources

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