
Karl Markovics: UANSCHLIAFFA
A concert to mark twenty years since the deaths of Friedrich Gulda and H. C. Artmann
* abgespielt
Part of the G’mischter Satz (a blended vintage) cycle
This musical reading honours two artists who were not only genuine Viennese originals, but also citizens of the world. As H. C. Artmann would have said, this promises to be “wos bsundas” (something special). His unique writing is read here by Karl Markovics. These texts are placed alongside Gulda’s early big band compositions from the 1950s and 60s, and his well-known Concerto for Cello and Wind Band, performed here by soloist Matthias Bartolomey with the Vereinigten Bühnen Wien Orchestra.
This cello concerto is one of Gulda’s most-performed pieces. Its premiere took place in 1981, with the composer conducting the Vienna Wind Ensemble. In this piece Gulda fused folk music from the Salzkammergut region with elements of jazz and rock. The concerto also reflects his love of the Attersee.
“Uanschliaffa” (forficula auricularia, the common earworm) is a neologism minted by H. C. Artmann. It comes from the “dictionary” in his volume of poetry “med ana schwoazzn dintn”. Artmann explains: “The following dictionary is dedicated to those Viennese who are somewhat isolated by a counter-productive dexterity in their mother tongue, and would otherwise have to struggle on without the required understanding”.
Programme:
Music by Friedrich Gulda:
Concerto for Cello and Wind Band (1980)
The Air From Other Planets (1954)
The Veiled Old Land (Fantasy for Four Soloists and Band, 1964)
Music For Four Soloists And Band N° 1 (Concerto a Quattro, 1964)
Prose and lyrics by H. C. Artmann (selected by Ursula De Santis-Gerstenberg)
Tickets: Band A €38/ B €33/ C €28; box seats €48; MuTh Club Students, children and young people: A €20 / B €15 / C €9; School groups €7
Team and cast
- Recitation: Karl Markovics
- Cello: Matthias Bartolomey
- Orchestra: Vereinigten Bühnen Wien Orchestra
- Conductor: Herbert Pichler