Einem, Gottfried von

outstanding Austrian composer; b. Bern, Switzerland (where his father was attached to the Austrian embassy), Jan. 24, 1918; d. Obern, Durenbach, Austria, July 12, 1996. Einem went to Germany as a child, where he studied music. He then was OPERA coach at the Berlin State Opera. In 1938 he was arrested by the Gestapo and spent four months in prison.

After his release, Einem studied composition in Berlin from 1941 to 1943. In 1944 he was in Dresden, where he became resident composer and music advisor at the Dresden State Opera. He then was active in Salzburg. In 1953 he visited the U.S. He finally settled in Vienna, where in 1965 he was appointed professor at the Hochschule für Musik.

Einem produced a number of successful short operas and BALLETS. In his music he emphasized the dramatic element by dynamic and rhythmic effects. His harmonies are terse and strident; his vocal line often borders on ATONALITY but remains singable. Einem's best-known works are operas: Dantons Tod, after Büchner (Salzburg, 1947); Der Prozess, after Kafka (Salzburg, 1953); Der Zerrissene, after Nestroy (Hamburg, 1964); Der Besuch der alten Dame, LIBRETTO by Dürrenmatt (Vienna, 1971); Kabale und Liebe, after Schiller (Vienna, 1976); and Jesu Hochzeit (Vienna, 1980), which caused a scandal for depicting Christ as having taken a wife.