Franz Konwitschny
Franz Konwitschny was born to a family consisting of several members who were professional musicians. He studied at Brno's German Musical Society and later at Leipzig Conservatory. While still a student, he was exposed to great conducting as a member of the viola section of the famous Gewandhausorchester Leipzig when he played under the direction of Wilhelm Furtwängler. In 1925, he moved to Vienna with the Fitzner Quartet and began teaching at the Vienna Volkskonservatorium. Within two years, he had decided to become a conductor. In 1927, he joined the Stuttgart Opera, first as an assistant conductor then winning promotion to chief conductor in 1930. Engagements at Freiburg, Frankfort, and Hanover occupied him until 1949 when he was awarded the helm of the venerable Gewandhausorchester Leipzig. From 1949 until his death on tour in 1962, he held that position even as opera house appointments (Dresden 1953 to 1955, and the Berliner Staatsoper from 1955 onward) occupied increasing amounts of time. His dual positions made him one of the Eastern bloc's most authoritative and celebrated musicians. In the years shortly before his death, Konwitschny appeared abroad in such venues as Salzburg and London and toured elsewhere in Austria, West Germany, Poland, Soviet Russia, and Japan. As an interpreter, he eschewed the precise attacks expected of Western conductors in favor of deeper tone coloring and a spontaneous search for meaning. For EMI, his recordings of Der fliegende Holländer and Tannhäuser are compelling, despite casting deficiencies in both title roles.
Franz Konwitschny was a yeoman conductor. Not a stellar podium personality, but a musician who respected the need for craftsmanship and still managed to probe deeply into the scores that held greatest meaning to him. While the music of his own time appealed to him less than the masterworks of the Classical and Romantic ages, he still made time for the works of such composers as Dessau and Eisler. Konwitschny's early death came as a blow to an art form that needed individuals of such gifts and such devotion to high purpose. The majority of Konwitschny's recordings were made for the East German branch of Philips, and the company's successor, Berlin Classics, honored his memory with the release of an 11-CD box set of his performances in 2001.
© TiVo
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Wagner: Tannhäuser (Stereo Version, Dresden Version)
Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Franz Konwitschny, Hans Hopf, Elisabeth Grümmer
Klassik - Erschienen bei BNF Collection am 01.01.1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sinfonie No. 6, "Pastorale"
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1964
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
SCHUMANN, R.: Symphonies Nos. 1-4 / Concertstuck in F major, Op. 86 / Overtures (Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Konwitschny)
Franz Konwitschny, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra
Symphonien - Erschienen bei Berlin Classics am 24.07.2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BEETHOVEN, L. van: Choral Music (Grosser Chor des Berliner Rundfunks)
Rundfunkchor Leipzig, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Franz Konwitschny, Helmut Koch
Vokalmusik (weltlich und geistlich) - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Der Fliegende Holländer
Staatskapelle Berlin, Franz Konwitschny, Chor der Deutschen Staatsoper Berlin, Martin Görgen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Brilliant Classics am 31.05.1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Reger: Hiller-Variationen
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 05.01.1962
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Orchestral Works
Munich State Opera Orchestra, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 05.01.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
David Oistrach - Violin Concertos
David Oïstrakh, Eugène Goossens, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Deutsche Grammophon (DG) am 20.02.1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto Op.35 / Wieniawski: Etude-Caprices Nos.2, 4 & 5 / Sarasate: Navarra, Op.33
David Oïstrakh, Igor Oïstrakh, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Staatskapelle Dresden, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Deutsche Grammophon (DG) am 01.01.2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Violin Masterpieces: Bach, Vivaldi, Vitali & Mozart
Igor Oïstrakh, David Oïstrakh, Abram Makarov, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Jube Classic am 11.03.2022
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Sinfonie No. 3, "Schottische"
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1962
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sinfonie No. 5
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 14.05.2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Violinkonzert D-Moll & Vivaldi: Concerto grosso
David Oïstrakh, Igor Oïstrakh, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1971
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss: Eine Alpensinfonie - Wagner: Götterdämmerung
Klassik - Erschienen bei Urania am 06.05.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sinfonie No. 3, "Eroica"
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1964
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bruckner: Sinfonie No. 5
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1962
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Klavierkonzert No. 4
Amadeus Webersinke, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1963
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sinfonie No. 2 & 9
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Franz Konwitschny
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Eterna am 01.01.1964
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Ouvertures, Preludes & Orchestral Works
Franz Konwitschny, The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Jube Classic am 13.08.2021
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Anton Bruckner Symphonies 8 & 9 conducted by Franz Konwitschny
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 08.09.2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Oistrakh and Tchaikovsky
David Oïstrakh, Staatskapelle Dresden, Lev Oborin, Franz Konwitschny, Sviatoslav Knushevitsky
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 29.04.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo