Hindemith: Piano Music with Orchestra Op. 29 Study Score, 80 Pages, Schott Music

Paul Hindemith (1895-1963) composed the Klaviermusik (Klavier: linke Hand) mit Orchester Op. 29 during a time overflowing with musical activities which also brought long-term changes into his life. He had achieved a spectacular breakthrough as a composer in 1921 with the premieres of the one-act operas Morder Hoffnung der Frauen Op. 12 and Das Nusch-Nuschi Op. 20 in Stuttgart as well as the Third String Quartet Op. 16 in Donaueschingen. Works such as the one-act opera Sancta Susanna Op. 21 the Kammermusik Nr. 1 Op. 24/1 and the Suite 1922 Op. 26 for piano show him to be a radical avant-gardist. He was now considered the leading German composer of his generation a reputation that he was able to consolidate over the long term with a plethora of new works in nearly all genres including ballet film and entertainment music as well as parody pieces. Moreover Hindemith founded the Amar Quartet (in which he played the viola) for the premiere of his Third String Quartet. With his ensemble he was responsible for the premieres of numerous works by composers such as Pfitzner Webern Haba Krenek Jarnach and Weill. In 1922 he was elected to the programming committee of the Donaueschingen chamber music performances and was thus able to exercise a lasting influence on the development of music during those years there as the driving force behind the programming. Moreover the renowned publishing house of Schott in Mainz settled an exclusive contract for the publication of Hindemith's works enabling him to leave his position as concertmaster in the Frankfurt Opera Orchestra on 23 April 1923 in order to work as a free-lance composer and interpreter. Hindemith's reputation and newly acquired fame were crowned by the first composition commission he received during this time: Paul Wittgenstein's (1887-1961) well remunerated commission for a concertante work for piano left-hand and orchestra. It was not only a well-paid commission but also most importantly at this peak time of inflation in hard currency ($). The pianist Paul Wittgenstein who came from one of the wealthiest families in Austria and had lost his right arm during the First World War wished to be provided with a repertoire written especially for him and achieved this with such commissions which also went to Korngold Strauss Franz Schmidt Britten Prokofiev and Ravel. For his part Hindemith had come to the fundamental conclusion during these years that a composer should only write works "if he knows for what requirements he is writing it. The times of composing for its own sake are over perhaps forever." In June and July 1922 Hindemith had embarked upon the composition of the song cycle Das Marienleben to poems of Rainer Maria Rilke but then wrote the ballet Der Damon Op. 28 during the autumn of that year. He apparently wanted to continue working on Das Marienleben in November Piano music with Orchestra Op. 29 Composer: Paul Hindemith Publisher: Schott Music Format: Study Score Pages: 80