Josef Reiter

Josef Reiter was born on 19 January 1862 in Braunau (Austria). His father Franz Reiter was organist and composer himself, but had to work a lot to earn a living for the family. And so Josef Reiter indeed grew up in a musical family, but was mainly self taught in piano or organ. In 1872 the family moved to Linz and there Josef Reiter completed his school at the Staatsgymnasium. He could not afford university studies in music and so attended teacher courses.

He finished in 1881 and in the following years started to work as a teacher in different towns in Austria. Beside his professional activities Josef Reiter continued his self-studies in organ, piano and singing in his leisure time. In 1884 he successfully passed the state examination for these instruments in Vienna without ever attending a conservatory. In 1886 Josef Reiter managed to get a position in Greater Vienna. From 1886 to 1889 he taught singing at school in Hernals and from 1886 to 1908 Josef Reiter was music teacher at a gymnasium in Margareten (both districts of Vienna). His new place of residence allowed him also to lecture piano, organ and singing at the Horak music school.
In 1896 the Wiener Schubertbund asked Josef Reiter to compose a work for them. The compositon "In der Frühe" became a success and for that reason the Wiener Männergesang-Verein had a similar request a year later. Josef Reiter wrote "Sündflut" and after the triumphant premiere he was the sought-after choral composer of the time. Admirers founded a Josef-Reiter-Society in 1899 and his opera "Der Bundschuh" was premiered at the Vienna State Opera under Gustav Mahler in 1900. Later operas of Josef Reiter did not become very successful, but Josef Reiter could confirm his position as one of the leading choral composers in the following years.
From 1908 to 1911 Josef Reiter was director of the Mozarteum in Salzburg. He returned to Vienna in 1912 but kept his main residence in Großgmain near Salzburg. Over the years he founded and directed many choral societies and became kapellmeister of the Burgtheater from 1917 to 1918.

In the late 1920s the career and life of Josef Reiter took a sharp political turn. He sympathised with the ideas of the NSDAP of Adolf Hitler and was a candidate for them in the election in 1929. The federal state of Salzburg expatriated Josef Reiter for these political activities in 1933. He moved to Bayerisch Gmain, the town next to Großgmain just over the boarder in Germany. In his last years Josef Reiter focused on composing works for and in the idiom of the Nazi regime. In 1937 - on his 75th birthday - he received the Goethe Price presented by Josef Goebbels and in return composed the "Goethe symphony" dedicated to Adolf Hitler.
Josef Reiter died on 2 June 1939 in Bayerisch Gmain (Germany).

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of the song "Ostmärkerlied" for 4-part men's choir and horn quartet ad lib. The work was composed in 1928 and sets a poem by Alwis Egger to music.

My manuscript has also a personal inscription by Josef Reiter to Josef Jaksch, an official of the Wiener Männergesang-Verein. It says: "Dem ostmärkischen Sängerbunde und seinem Ehrenvorstande meinem lieben, alten Freunde Hofrat Josef Jaksch in Erinnerung an das herrliche 10. Deutsche Sängerbundfest gewidmet."