- by Art Sulit, www.MuSeeks.com/ArthurSulit
Music Timeline Author
Young Erich Korngold, at the mere age of 13, composed operatic lieder, and then a couple years later, premiered his 'Sinfonietta', a monumentally huge work which established the sound of modern epic movies today. With his humbly-named 'Sinfonietta', he was proven to be a child prodigy far beyond Mozart, able to supersede his elders, Gustav Holst, Mahler, Richard Strauss before him even during their lifetimes, causing each to shudder with fear at this "young Eagle".
Born into a Jewish family in Austria, near Mozart's own home town of Salzburg, Korngold experienced widespread fame across Europe as the "boy wonder", achieving his first opera to rave reviews by age 19. With the rise of Naziism in the early 1930's, however, Korngold had to flee his native lands for Hollywood, USA, where he had to take a "step down" in prestige scoring for cinema.
This was no real step down for Korngold, however, since his film work in no way was diluted from his serious concert works. He has been wrongfully criticized that "His music sounds like movies," but really it's the other way around: "Movies sound like Korngold!" Everyone from John Williams / George Lucas, to Hanz Zimmer and Alfred Newman, Max Steiner, Danny Elfman and other film composers, owe a great debt to Korngold for expanding the highest limits of the orchestra to heavenly proportions, thus allowing a greater range for emotional expression, from soft to bombastic, required for film.
Korngold was perhaps the most effortless at modulating from key to key, and even his teenage works are extremely difficult for any pianist or orchestra to play. Indeed, many conductors find it necessary to record his 'Sinfonietta' in several takes, cut-and-pasting only the best parts, because his timings are so hard to follow. But that is partly what makes up the richness of his sound.
Erich went on to score such epic Errol Flynn movies as 'Robin Hood', 'Captain Blood', and Mendelssohn's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. He also did the huge 'Antony Adverse', drawing from themes of his youthful piano songs.
However, the dark tide of Avant Guarde and atonal music was taking over, with the rise of Naziism and cultural materialism. Rapidly vanishing were the days of the Romantics. Erich Korngold died in relative obscurity, in the late 60's when demonic rock 'n roll was now King, believing himself to be forgotten. Such is the consequence when evil philosophies take over our culture, to snuff out great talents such as this. Korngold, then, was perhaps the last of the great Romantics, after Rachmaninov.
BIO #2
The Primary founder of great Hollywood film music today. Responsible for that big "Hollywood" sound, with several blockbusters in the 1930's-40's such as most of the key Errol Flynn movies, 'Captain Blood', 'Robin Hood', and 'Anthony Adverse'. He was more of a boy genius than Mozart ever was or could hope to be, composing his huge breathtaking 20th century score, the 'Sinfonietta' at the mere age of 15. Don't let the name 'Sinfonietta' fool you--it is in fact a HUGE work, bigger than Gustav Holst's Planets. When Richard Strauss heard it, he winced in fear that here was a young boy who will put all composers in the dust. The elder Mahler and Saint-Saens, both of whom knew Korngold's father (the prominent music critic of Vienna at the time), said Erich was a "young Eagle".
It is unfortunate that Korngold the adult was never again able to compose anything near the grandeur and greatness of Korngold the child. His later 'Violin Concerto in F' is no match for the 'Sinfonietta', which is acknowledged as his finest. But then again the world was in turmoil as he fled Nazi Germany and had to take up a job composing in film to support his family. But until John Williams, who learned from Korngold above all, there was none greater than he ever to bring the magic of classical score to the silver screen.
- Art Sulit, www.MuSeeks.com/ArthurSulit
Music Timeline Author