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MUSIC

Reopening soon…

    “Music will be back soon.” This single poster illustrates best the disastrous impact of the pandemic on all cultural branches.

    PROJEKTE – PROJECTS

    LIFE CLASS
    “Hearing Compassion in Debussy, Bernstein and Poulenc.” 

    Marietta Dean, Mezzo Soprano
    Eric Ginsberg, Clarinet
    Anna Wagner, Piano

    September 30, 2022
    First Presbyterian Church, Macomb, IL

    TRANSFORMED IV

    Berthold Cvach, Roman Mihaljevic, Anna Wagner

    Amtshaus Margareten, Schönbrunner Str. 54, 1050 Wien
    19:00

    5.April 2022 !!
    ___________________________

     

    TRANSFORMED III

    Berthold Cvach, Anna Wagner
    12.11.2019, 19 Uhr

    Music: J.S.Bach, S.Prokofiev (piano)
    J.Pachelbel, O.Messiaen, G.Bales (organ)

    Discovering Macomb / the Photographs of Anna Wagner

    September 15 2019 – October 19 2019

    WCI Arts Center

    Initiated and organized by

    NANCY JONES

    FRED JONES

    Transformed 2

    22.5. 2019, 19 Uhr

    Berthold Cvach : Bild – Musik – Bild

    Anna Wagner : J.S. Bach und S.Prokofiev

    Kunstraum in den Ringstrassen Galerien
    Kärntnerring 9-13/144 (Obergeschoss)

    TRANSFORMED.VERWANDELT.

    Ein Projekt im Rahmen von „Dialog Kunst und Medizin.”

    Berthold Cvach, Roman Mihaljevic, Anna Wagner

    24.5. 2018, 19 Uhr
    Galerie Wohlleb, Seidlgasse 23, 1030 Wien

    The back wall of a one story building in Macomb. It must have been painted a long time ago, as its white color has already come off on several spots.
    I had passed this wall many times and hardly noticed it.
    When passing it on a wintry afternoon the setting sun had turned this unattractive wall into a golden beauty. It was breathtaking.
    The structures of the bricks, usually hardly perceived in broad daylight had now been transformed into ornaments, woven into the golden surface of the wall.
    The structure of the wall had not changed at all, it was only the light which had transformed the ugly wall into a stunning beauty.

    Symbols in music, like dots and lines, also need a “light” to shine on them to transform them into something magical.

    The third part of the show – after intermission – will begin with my photographs of the wall and its transformation, followed by music from Debussy and Satie.

    First part:
    Berthold Cvach : From one tone to a melody and to chords.

    Second part:
    Roman Mihaljevic : The brain of professional musicians and the way parts of it work together.

     LIFE CLASS Macomb 2018

    Wednesdays, Feb. 7, 14 and 21

    From “light and color” to a clean and textured style.
    Music from Debussy, Faure and Satie

    Marietta Dean, Anna Wagner

     

    Schubert – who?

    Marietta Dean, Anna Wagner

    Oskar Kokoschka and Ruth Schonthal

    Keith Holz, Anna Wagner

    Giving matters

    Linda Andrews, Anna Wagner

    Vienna: Musical Crossroads

    Marietta Dean, Anna Wagner

    Franz Schubert, a name familiar to most people.

    Music, beautiful touching music in so many ways. Schubert without Vienna – a no go. Definitely.

    Playing his music at the piano throughout my entire life and teaching Schubert songs at the University for so many years were some of the best experiences in my life ever. And yet, after all these years the mystery of his music is as untouchable as ever.

    Yehudi Menuhin, the wonderful violinist, once said, “Music lifts the edge of the veil, which covers hidden mysteries.” Another musician, responding to this many years ago, said, “And after this short moment the veil will sink back and cover again what is meant to be hidden anyway.” A truly intelligent answer.

    The program will be split into 3 parts.

    2 Impromptus
    Photos, I took at the most relevant Schubert-related places in Vienna
    2 Impromptus

    Schubert – a genius. His music – a light, far away in the dark. But it shines and one can only try to come closer. Not more.

     

    SCHUBERT – WHO ?

    Saturday, June 18 at 7 p.m
    Quo Vadis, Stephansplatz 6, 1010 Wien

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             Musical background                                                                                                  

    My first piano teacher was the organist of the church in the little village. She taught me how to explore the wonders of music. Music was magic and an adventure.
    From 10 to 18 I had the best piano teacher I ever had. He was a quiet man with a huge background, which I was not aware back then of course. He let things grow slowly and taught me to musically feel the difference of various styles and how to bring this feeling to life at the piano. He did that in a way nobody else was ever able to do.
    At the University I met some wonderful musicians from whom I learned everything which is necessary for making music in a professional way. To them music was the center of everything, which is the best a student can experience when learning.

    For many years I worked with Hilde Langer Ruehl, a fabulous teacher. She taught me that musical knowledge is not only an advantage, but a must for a professional musician. And I learned to handle criticism. She was very outspoken, when she did not like what she heard, but always told me why and providing options for correcting which was wrong in her opinion.

    The best ever was though: She was never personal, which was the reason for me to work with her for such a long time.

    Musical activities:

    Teaching at the University of Music (Lied) was the best job I could imagine. Working with students was a pleasure. Of course the musical adventure did not end with my retirement in 2015. The good thing about music is, that it is there for everybody and is not owned by anybody.

    Recording for Radio and TV.

    Concerts in various countries in Europe ( recitals and CD recording of Mendelssohn songs with W. Holzmair)
    “Kuckucksruf” due to the end of WWII in Vienna and Berlin: A project including dance,song,reading and Solo Piano.
    Masterclass “German Lied” as well as concerts (Lied, Solo Piano) in Japan.
    Masterclasses and concerts at WIU, Macomb, USA in 2007-2010
    Chamber music with members of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
    CD recording (Gramola) with Wilfried Gottwald, clarinet ( Vienna Symphony Orchestra): Poulenc Sonata and Jazz Variations by M. Garson

    “Fleeing Hitler” – a L.I.F.E class – project with Marietta Dean ( mezzo soprano) in Macomb, 2012
    Masterclass “German Lied” in September 2013 at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

    In 2023, I decided to quit playing concerts after 50 years on stage. I was lucky to perform with outstanding musicians throughout my entire career, and these wonderful memories made my decision an easy one.
    The joy of making music won’t fade away, but the resources needed for playing concerts can be used for new fields to explore.

     

    Photography

    My professional photographical career started in my mid-fifties. After 4 semesters at a private photo school I earned a diploma and very soon got connected with a gallery in Vienna.

    The gallery is located at the former house of Frederic Morton, a Jewish Austrian citizen, who had to flee the Nazi regime in 1939. He then moved to the United States, where he lived ’til his death in 2015. He was the author of many books and came back to Austria every year not only for lectures, but also to visit the gallery at his former home, in which  his father’s metal factory was located as well.

    After exhibiting my early photographical works, ordinary dolls telling stories about human life, I worked together with the gallery on several multimedia projects, combining photos, beamed on a wall with live piano music.

    For the Project “Fleeing Hitler” I was allowed to photograph metal remnants from the former Morton factory.  I combined these photos with photographs my dad had brought home from WWII in Russia, where he had served in the “German Wehrmacht” ( the German Army).
    The musical component of this show was piano music by Ruth Schonthal, a composer, who – after having been forced out of Europe as well – lived in the United States till her death in 2006.

    During Frederic Morton’s visit in 2010 the gallery organized a private show for him.
    “Fleeing Hitler” was also the program of a LIFE class with Marietta Dean a few years later.

    It soon turned out that Documentary Photography was the photographical genre which interested me the most.

    Projects shown at the gallery:
    “Facets of Vienna” 
    “Women. Fantasies”, with live music from R. Schumann and Ruth Schonthal
     “Digital Life”.

    With “Danielmuehle”, a cultural center north of Vienna,I collaborated on a photographical project with piano playing.
    In 2016 the “Quo Vadis”, a gallery in Vienna, presented my “Schubert- who?” project, which later became part of a LIFE class with Marietta Dean as well.

    On the side, I also photographed the staff of a data company and provided photos for the online presence of a Bed &Breakfast in Austria.

    Projects with “Kunst und Medizin” in Vienna
                                      ————————-

    In the US the “Inselhaus” in Macomb was the first to show some of my photos.
    Exhibition “Discovering Macomb” at the Art Center in Macomb 2019