Fritz Behrend

Gustav Fritz Behrend was born on 3 March 1889 in Berlin (Germany). He studied composition privately with Heinrich van Eycken, Philipp Rüfer and Engelbert Humperdinck from 1907 to 1911 and took piano lessons with Rudolf Maria Brauthaupt. After his studies he worked as a repetiteur at the Brunswick Hoftheater. Fritz Behrend enlisted to military service in 1913 and faught in World War I. After the war he taught at the Ochs-Eichelberg conservatory from 1918 to 1942 and then from 1942 to 1949 at the Klindworth-Scharwenka conservatory in Berlin.
As a composer Fritz Behrend composed more than 120 works for all genres. His catalogue contains 9 operas, 7 symphonies and other orchestral music, 8 string quartets, a violin sonata, a cello sonata, 2 piano trios, other chamber music and over 100 songs.
Fritz Behrend died on 29 December 1972 in Berlin (Germany).

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of the "Adagio for string orchestra" by Fritz Behrend. The Adagio is originally a movement from the Sinfonietta for string orchestra op.124 and was composed in 1962. It seems that Fritz Behrend arranged this movement in a way that it could stand as an individual work.