- George Draga
George Draga (
April 26 ,1935 - October 3, 2008) is aRomania ncomposer ofclassical music . He was born inAldeşti , Romania.Education
Draga attended the
Musical Military High School (1946-1954) under Hans Hoerath and Dumitru Văsescu (clarinet), Alexandru Teodorescu and George Manoliu (violin), Constantin A. Ionescu (theory and solfege), Anastasie Danu (harmony), Ion Totan (instrument theory and orchestration). He also attended theBucharest Conservatoire (1957-1963) under Victor Iuşceanu (theory and solfege), Ion Dumitrescu (harmony), Nicolae Buicliu (counterpoint), Anatol Vieru (composition and orchestration), Alexandru Paşcanu (instrument theory), Tudor Ciortea (musical forms), Zeno Vancea (music history), Tiberiu Alexandru and Emilia Comişel (folklore), Dumitru D.Botez (choir conducting), and Madeleine Cocorăscu (auxiliary piano).History
Between 1963 and 1993 Draga was editor of "
MUZICA ", the journal of the Union of Composers and Musicologists of Romania. In this capacity he published analyses of works by composersAurel Stroe ,Ştefan Niculescu ,Tiberiu Olah ,Wilhelm Berger ,Cornel Ţăranu ,Zeno Vancea , and others, and gave lectures on music in several cities in the country. Between 1993 and 1998 he was a museographer at theGeorge Enescu Museum inBucharest where, among other things, he filed descriptive cards of most of Enescu's works.In 1969 he was awarded the Union of Composers’ Prize for small-size works for Concert Overture No. 1.
Works
From Draga's works we quote: 14 symphonies; two rhapsodies; six cantatas; concertos for various instruments (including violin, flute, oboe and bassoon); folk dance suites from various regions of Romania; 12 marches for brass band; Concert Overtures No. 1, 2 and 3; "Sarmizegetusa" - a symphonic poem; "Heterophonies"; "Concert Mass"; "Prelude" for String Orchestra and Wind Quintet; "Concert Music";Serenada for Cor a orchestra, a rich variety of choral music, such as Songs from Năsăud, "Sunflower" – Twelve Choral Songs with Lyrics by Monica Pillat, Songs from Maramureş, Carols from Maramureş, "Dragu-mi la veselie…" ("Joy’s My Heart’s Delight…"), "Vino, bade, joi la noi…" ("This Thursday Come Love My Way …"), "Badea-i cu două drăguţe…" ("Two Girls My True Love Has …"); Sonata for Piano; Sonata for Clarinet and Piano; Toccatta for Piano; Scherzo for Violin and Piano; Variations for Piano; Quartet for Woodwinds (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon); Quintet and Octet for Brass Instruments; Variations for Flute and Piano; "Echo" for Bassoon Solo; New Year Cantata (June 2005); Sonatina for Violin and Piano (June 2005); Dances from Transylvania (August 2005); Dances from the Banat (August 2005); Symphony No. 6 (August 2005); "Christmas Cantata" II (August 2005); Divertimento in Classical Style (November 2005); Cocerto for String Orchestra (November 2005); String Quartet No. 3 (November 2005); Quartet for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon (2005); Dances from Arad County (1 Jan. 2006); Symphony No. 7 (16 Jan. 2006), 12 Concert Marches, for orchestra (Feb. 2006); Romanian Dances from Brasov County (Feb. 2006); "Rustic Cantata", for choir and orchestra (Feb. 2006); "Lyrical Cantata" (March 2006); Symphony No. 8 (May 2006); Dances from Bihor I, for orchestra (June 2006); Choral Songs for Men II (June 2006); Dances from Bihor, for orchestra (23 June 2006); Symphony No. 9 (29 July 2006); Symphony No. 10 (29 Oct. 2006); Concertino for Violin and Orchestra (Nov. 2006); Folk Songs for Voice and Orchestra (Nov. 2006); Dances from Bihor III, pentru orchestra (Nov. 2006); Concerto for Flute and Orchestra (Dec. 2006); Lieder with lyrics by Monica Pillat (Dec. 2006); Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra (27 Dec. 2006); Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra (6 Feb. 2007); Rhapsody for Horn and Orchestra (April 2007); Dances from Transylvania II, for orchestra (April 2007); Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra (May 2007), Dances from Transylvania, for orchestra (June 2007); Variations on a theme by Haendel, for orchestra (23 June 2007); Variations on a theme by Orlando di Lasso, for orchestra (4 July 2007), Variations on a theme by Palestrina, for orchestra (11 July 2007); Variations on a hymn by Sabin Dragoi (23 July 2007); Concert Overture No. 3, for orchestra (Sept. 2007); Variations on an Old Romanian Carol, for Orchestra (15 Dec. 2007); Symphony No. 11 (15 March 2008); Symphohy No.12 (23 April 2008); Sonata No. 2 for Piano (10 July 2008); Symphony No. 13 (20 July 2008); Symphony No. 14 (5 September 2008).
References
(Source: interview with the author)
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