Herbert von Karajan, whose birth name was Heribert Ritter von Karajan, was born on April 5th, 1908, in Salzburg, Austria. As a child, Karajan showed exceptional musical talent and began piano lessons at the age of four. He demonstrated remarkable progress, and by the age of six, he was already performing in public concerts. His talent and passion for music were evident, and his parents nurtured his musical development by providing him with the necessary resources and support.
At the age of eight, Karajan enrolled at the Mozarteum Conservatory in Salzburg, where he studied piano, composition, and conducting. He studied under several notable teachers, including Bernhard Paumgartner, who recognized his exceptional talent and encouraged him to pursue a career as a conductor. He was encouraged to concentrate on conducting by Paumgartner, who detected his exceptional promise in that regard. In 1926 Karajan graduated from the conservatory and continued his studies at the Vienna Academy, studying piano with Josef Hofmann (a teacher with the same name as the pianist) and conducting with Alexander Wunderer and Franz Schalk.
He made his professional conducting debut in 1929 at Salzburg, and he was appointed to a conducting position in Ulm, Ger., later that year. He remained in Ulm until 1934 when he was appointed Kapellmeister at Aachen. Karajan was in Aachen until 1941, also occasionally conducting the Berlin State Opera during that period. He fled to Italy in 1944. He helped found the London Philharmonia in 1948, and in 1955 he became music director of the Berlin Philharmonic.
The Nazi Era
During the Nazi era, Herbert von Karajan’s association with the regime and his activities have been a subject of debate and controversy. Karajan joined the Nazi Party in 1933, shortly after Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany. It is important to note that his membership was not uncommon among artists and musicians at the time, as joining the party was often seen as a professional necessity.
Karajan’s rise to prominence during the Nazi era was facilitated by his connections and support from Nazi officials. In 1933, he became the conductor of the Berlin State Opera and the director of the Aachen Opera House. These positions provided him with significant opportunities to further his career and gain recognition. His success as a conductor continued during World War II, and he conducted numerous performances for the German military and high-ranking Nazi officials. His relationship with the regime was facilitated by Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s propaganda minister, who recognized Karajan’s talent and saw his artistic prowess as a valuable tool for promoting Nazi cultural policies.
After the war, Karajan faced scrutiny and underwent a de-Nazification process. He was initially banned from conducting in 1945, but the ban was lifted in 1947, and he resumed his career. Karajan maintained that his involvement with the Nazi Party was primarily for professional reasons, and he distanced himself from any political affiliation.
However, the extent of Karajan’s true beliefs and motivations during the Nazi era remains a matter of speculation and controversy. Some critics argue that his involvement with the regime was more extensive than he admitted, while others suggest that he was primarily focused on advancing his career and took advantage of the political climate.
Postwar years
In 1946, Karajan gave his first postwar concert in Vienna with the Vienna Philharmonic but was banned from further conducting by the Soviet occupation authorities because of his Nazi party membership. That summer he participated anonymously in the Salzburg Festival. On 28 October 1947, Karajan gave his first public concert following the lifting of the conducting ban. With the Vienna Philharmonic and the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, he performed Johannes Brahms’s A German Requiem for a gramophone production in Vienna. In 1949, Karajan became the artistic director of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Vienna. He also conducted at La Scala in Milan. His most prominent activity at this time was recording with the newly formed Philharmonia Orchestra in London, helping to build them into one of the world’s finest.
Conducting style
One of Karajan’s signature skills as a conductor was his ability to extract exquisite sounds from orchestras. His biographer Roger Vaughan observed this phenomenon while listening to the Berlin Philharmonic play in 1986, after nearly 30 years under Karajan’s direction, noting that “what rivets one’s attention is the beauty and perfection of the sounds. The softest of pianissimos commands rapt attention. The smooth crescendos peak exactly when they should. The breaks are sliced clean, without the slightest ragged edge.” Herbert von Karajan’s conducting style was characterized by precision, technical brilliance, and a strong emphasis on sound quality and orchestral balance. He was known for his meticulous attention to detail and his ability to shape the sound of an orchestra according to his interpretation. His gestures on the podium were clear and expressive, enabling him to communicate his musical intentions to the musicians. He had a distinctive and controlled conducting technique that involved precise movements of his hands and baton, conveying the desired dynamics, phrasing, and articulation. One of Karajan’s trademarks was his pursuit of technical perfection. He demanded a high level of precision and discipline from the musicians under his direction, and his intense rehearsals were focused on achieving a polished and unified performance. He would often work on refining the nuances of a musical passage, aiming for the utmost clarity and accuracy.He was particularly attentive to the balance and blend of the orchestral sound. He paid meticulous attention to the individual instrumental sections and their interaction, seeking a cohesive and blended sound that showcased the unique qualities of each instrument while creating a unified musical whole.
Furthermore, Karajan was known for his ability to shape the overall architecture and structure of a musical piece. He had a keen sense of pacing and phrasing, highlighting the musical structure and narrative. His interpretations were often characterized by a sense of grandeur, with expansive and sweeping interpretations of symphonies and orchestral works. In addition to his conducting technique, Karajan was an advocate of utilizing recording technology to capture the best possible sound quality. He embraced innovations in audio engineering, working closely with recording engineers to create recordings that were technically impeccable and sonically captivating.
Karajan’s concerts came to be considered major cultural events. In a 1982 tour of the United States, musical stars from Zubin Mehta and Seiji Ozawa to Frank Sinatra attended his Carnegie Hall concerts. Karajan was less interested in publicity or legacy than in building the cultural institution of music. “When I am on the podium, I forget all about the public,” he said. “I am not interested in publicity. I can only hope there is an advantage to my being known in the world, that through the interest people take in me, they will then move on to an interest in music.”
Personal life
Karajan was married three times. His first marriage was to Elmy Holgerloef, an operetta singer, in 1938, but they divorced in 1942. In the same year, he married his second wife, Anna Maria Sauest, but they divorced in 1958. On October 6th, 1958, Karajan married his third wife, Eliette Mouret, a French model. They had their first daughter, Isabel, in 1960, and the second one, Arabel, in 1964. After Karajan’s death, Eliette continued his musical legacy by founding of the Herbert von Karajan Centre in Vienna, now in Salzburg and known as the Eliette and Herbert von Karajan Institute. Her numerous projects focus particularly on the development of young people, and she is a patron of the Salzburg Easter Festival.
Outside of music, Karajan had a passion for cars and driving. He won several regattas aboard his racing yachts christened Helisara. He piloted his Learjet, and was a great sailing and car enthusiast, particularly fond of Porsches. He ordered a specially configured Type 930 with Martini & Rossi livery and his name on the back of the Porsche 911 Turbo.
Karajan experienced health issues in the later years of his life, including heart problems. Despite his declining health, he continued to conduct and perform until shortly before his passing. He passed away on July 16th, 1989, in Anif, near Salzburg, Austria. He was 81 years old at the time of his death.