Ferenc Fricsay

Conductor Ferenc Fricsay was born in Budapest, Austria-Hungary on August 9, 1914. The son of a bandleader, he became interested in music at a young age – especially conducting - and enrolled at the Franz Liszt Academy to study piano, violin, clarinet, trombone, percussion, and composition. He studied under artists such as pianist / composter Béla Bartók, composer Zoltán Kodály, pianist / composer Ernst Von Dohnányi, and composer Leó Weiner. Ferenc Fricsay made his debut as a guest conductor for his father’s Young Musician’s Orchestra of Budapest before taking over as full-time conductor a year later. He graduated in 1933 and became a répétiteur of the chorus for the Budapest Opera as well as assuming the role of musical director for the Szeged Philharmonic Orchestra from 1933 until 1943. When the Nazi regime occupied Hungary in 1944, Ferenc Fricsay and his family went into hiding. However, he became co-director of the Orchestra of Budapest and principal conductor of the Budapest Opera in 1945. He then conducted the Vienna Opera (1946-1948 ) and conducted at the Salzburg Festival 1947, where he replaced Otto Klemperer for the debut of Gottried von Einem’s opera Danton's Tod. His popularity led to Ferenc Fricsay’s appointment as Chief Conductor of the Berlin RIAS Symphony Orchestra and General Music Director of the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Between his two stints with the Berlin RIAS (1948-1954 and 1959-1963), Ferenc Fricsay led the Houston Symphony Orchestra in the US (1954), and then the Munich Opera (1956-1958 ) while also collaborating with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Over the course of his career, he was recognized for his clarity and attention to detail, making him one of the most modern post-war conductors. He worked with many acclaimed artists including Ernst Haefliger, Maria Stader, Rita Streich, Leonie Rysanek, Irmgard Seefried, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Géza Anda, Johanna Martzy, Yehudi Menuhin, Erica Morini, Annie Fischer, Wolfgang Schneiderhan, and Monique Haas. Ferenc Fricsay suffered from stomach cancer and died of a perforation of the gallbladder on February 20, 1963, at the age of 48. While known for his interpretations of works by Mozart and Beethoven, his recorded output includes a varied repertoire including Mendelssohn: Ein Sommernachtstraum, Op. 61 (1950), Rossini: Overtures (1953), Verdi: Ouverturen (1955), Hartmann: 6. Symphonie für Großes Orchester (1956), Johann-Strauss-Klänge (1958), Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 ‘From the New World’ (1961), and Fricsay Conducts Rachmaninov, Tcherepnin & Weber (1961). Over the years, there have been many compilations released but none more complete than the box set The Complete Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon, which includes 86 CDs and a DVD.

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