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A symposium investigated the continuities and discontinuities in music policymaking in Linz and Upper Austria before and after 1945.

Linz was the first major Austrian city to confront its Nazi past in a comprehensive, unsparing, exemplary way. But what was largely missing was an assessment of matters related to music. To remedy this, scholars examined documents held by the Bruckner Conservatory, stored in municipal and provincial archives and owned by private individuals to determine whether the end of World War II really did mark a new beginning with a “clean slate” for cultural life in Upper Austria. Particular emphasis was placed on the restitution of cultural assets, the agenda of Allied cultural policymaking after the Third Reich’s “collapse” and personnel continuities in the Nazi and postwar eras. Critical scrutiny was also focused on the history of the Anton Bruckner Private University. Two concerts featuring works by composers the Nazis classified as “degenerate” and “racially inferior” highlighted the accompanying program of this symposium held under the aegis of the University of Linz’s Department of Contemporary History and in cooperation with “THE FÜHRER’S CAPITAL OF CULTURE” exhibition at the Schlossmuseum.


WHAT // SYMPOSIUM AND CONCERTS
WHEN // March 20 & 21, 2009
WHERE // Castle Museum Linz, Anton Bruckner Private University

IDEA / CONCEPT // Regina Thumser, Anton Voigt
PARTICIPANTS // Concerts: Merlin Ensemble Vienna, Ensemble Linz – Brass and woodwinds of Anton Bruckner Privae University; Speakers: Christa Brüstle, Klaus Petermayr, Oliver Rathkolb, Regina Thumser, Karin Wagner