Ursula Görsch
Ursula Schmidt was born on 4 March 1932 in Bremen (Germany). She received piano lessons from the age of 6 and attended the Kippenberg Gymnasium (the same school where I received my Abitur). She then studied teaching profession with an emphasis on music at the university in Bremen.
After her studies Ursula Schmidt worked as a teacher and freelance collaborator for the local broadcasting station Radio Bremen. In 1964 she got the opportunity to work at a German school in Istanbul (Turkey). During her five year stay she founded the first Turkish youth chamber orchestra and initiated many concerts in collaboration with the Goethe Institute. In 1969 she returned to Germany and studied traverse flute in Karlsruhe. After completion Ursula Schmidt moved back to Bremen where she taught at the gymnasium "Am Barkhof". It must have been at that time around 1975 that she married and assumed the name Ursula Görsch. Since the early 1970s Ursula Görsch intensively composed music especially compositions for young listeners or student performers. For more than 10 years Ursula Görsch was head of the "Jugend musiziert" (youth making music) series in Bremen, a music competition for children and teenager. From 1985 to 1995 she fulfilled a teaching position at the university of Bremen and from 1997 to 2005 at the Valley View University in Accra (Ghana).
Ursula Görsch died on 4 February 2023 in Bremen (Germany).
Ursula Görsch's work catalogue contains compositions of nearly all genres. But she had a special interest in music for students and young listeners. For her work as a composer she received the Gerhard-Maasz-Award in 1989 and the Johann-Wenzel-Stamitz-Award in 2017. Among her compositions are Transformationen for orchestra, the cantata "Sie kamen durch die Wüste", chamber music like the Piano latinero or Diarium for traverse flute quintet or the Cantata curiosa.
In my possession are autograph manuscripts to three compositions by Ursula Görsch. These manuscripts include:
- Anatolische Suite, for small ensemble (1974)
- Tierkantate, for choir, flute, guitar, accordion, keyboard percussion instruments, cello and percussion (1973)
- Jonathan und der Drachen, a children's opera (1966)
Anatolische Suite
The Anatolische Suite is scored for flute, accordion, guitar, several mallet instruments and a large set of percussion. The work is written for the use in schools with students. The world premiere took place on 12 December 1974 at the Gymnasium Am Barkhof in Bremen. Therefore it is likely that the composition was written the same year. The manuscript is signed with "Ursula Schmidt", so comes from a time when Ursula Görsch was not yet married.
