Clemens Krauss was born March 31, 1893 in Vienna. As a boy, he sang in the famous Vienna Boys Choir, as did Haydn, Schubert and Hans Richter. The founding of the choir, which he later was to conduct, goes back to the time of Maximilian I.

Krauss graduated from the Vienna Music Academy where he studied under Richard Heuberger and Hermann Graedener. A steep ascent as conductor led him over Brunn, Riga, Nuremberg, Stettin and Graz, where he was already opera director in 1921 and further, over the Vienna State Opera, to which he was brought in 1922 by Richard Strauss and Franz Schalk, and where he performed the duties of the principal music director. From 1924-1929, he was director of the opera and conductor of the museum concerts in Frankfurt am Main, while at the same time, conducting the Tonkunstler orchestra in Vienna and directing the conducting school at the Vienna Music Academy. Guest appearances brought him as concert conductor to North and South America in 1927 and 1928.

In 1929, he became the director of the Vienna State Opera, which he always called his artistic home. At that time Richard Strauss intervened with the Austrian officials on his behalf; throughout his entire life, it is of note that his uncompromising artistic nature seemed to often be in conflict with "officials" and that his great successes were earned. They were not just instances of good fortune.

During his five-and-one-half years of activity in Vienna, he regularly took part in the Salzburg Festival, where he had already conducted Ariadne auf Naxos in 1926 and was to conduct Rosenkavalier in 1953. Then followed two years as director of the Berlin State Opera and eight years of very fruitful activity in Munich. During those years, there were new productions of 49 operas, 37 of which Krauss conducted himself.

Before the end of the war, Krauss returned to Vienna where he conducted the last concert of the Philharmonic before the Russians entered the city and, three weeks later, the first concert after the liberation of Austria. Nine years as a traveling opera and concert conductor followed. In addition to Vienna, Salzburg and Bayreuth (1953), his duties brought him to Germany, England, France, Italy and South America.

Whoever was fortunate enough to hear Krauss in his last years as a conductor of the classical symphonies truly realized that each year brought with it more maturity. For this reason, as well as the fact that during these years he did not direct a large opera house, one is very saddened by his early death.

Adopted from the jacket notes of Electrola C-053-01 534, copyright EMI/Electrola, Germany; photo EMI/Electrola.