Eduard Künneke
Eduard Künneke was born on 27 January 1885 in Emmerich (Germany). He was fascinated by music from an early age. His father taught him how to read notes and on this basis Eduard Künneke learned to play the domestic piano mainly on his own. He later received piano lessons from his mother and at the age of 8 through a professional piano teacher. In addition the young Eduard Künneke studied scores and books on music theory to compose his own music. He had a soft spot for orchestral music and attended concerts of the military band in the neighbour village Kleve as often as possible. During his school days in the Gymnasium Eduard Künneke became the leader of the school orchestra, composed a complete opera "Snow White" on the libretto of a classmate at the age of 15 and wrote further music under the pseudonym "E. v. Rigdmar" (a pseudonym he never used again afterwards). For his own graduation ceremony he composed another complete opera - "Socrates" - in 1903. Both works remained unperformed due to certain circumstances, but already showed the musical career of Eduard Künneke.
After his school days Eduard Künneke moved to Berlin and studied piano, music theory and counterpoint at the Royal Academy of Art. In 1906 he was accepted for the master class of Max Bruch which he attended one year. In 1907 Eduard Künneke left the university without a graduation because he had to find work and make a living. He first worked as a kapellmeister at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm, in 1911 at the Deutsches Theater under Max Reinhardt. After World War I Eduard Künneke more and more focused on a career as a composer and produced mainly operettas. His international breakthrough came with the operetta "Der Vetter aus Dingsda" in 1921. In the following years Eduard Künneke tried to start a career in the USA as well, but this failed and he returned to Germany in 1926. In the early 1930s some of his operettas received some success but Eduard Künneke as a composer became more and more out-moded. With the rise of the Nazi regime things got worse because his wife was not "Arian". But the success and importance of "Der Vetter aus Dingsda" saved Eduard Künneke from major restrictions and he was even put on the Gottbegnadeten list in 1944. After World War II Eduard Künneke did not have the energy to revive his career and fell seriously ill in his last years. Eduard Künneke died on 27 October 1953 in Berlin (Germany).
In my possession are several autograph manuscripts of Eduard Künneke. All these compositions date from 1902 when Eduard Künneke was just 17 years old and still student at the Gymnasium in Emmerich. And all these works are signed with the pseudonym "E. v. Rigdmar". My archive contains the following works:
- Spielmannslied, for voice and piano (song No.1 from "8 Lieder" op. 11a)
- Und wüßtens die Blumen die kleinen..., for voice and piano (song No.2 from "8 Lieder" op. 11a)
- Schilflieder No.1, for voice and piano (song No.3 from "8 Lieder" op. 11a)
- Schilflieder No.2, for voice and piano (song No.4 from "8 Lieder" op. 11a)
- Deutscher Frühling, for voice and piano
- Abendglocken, for voice and piano
- Zerrissen habe ich meinen Freudenkranz, for voice and piano
- Dein Angesicht so lieb und schön, for voice and piano
- Das ist ein Brausen und Heulen, for voice and piano
- Hör ich das Liedchen klingen, for voice and piano
- Nacht liegt auf den stillen Wegen, for voice and piano
- Im Walde wandl' ich und weine, for voice and piano
- Wenn zwei voneinander scheiden, for voice and piano
- Vergiftet sind meine Lieder, for voice and piano
