Jamach, Philipp

German composer and pedagogue of Spanish descent; b. Noisy, France, July 26, 1892; d. Bornsen, near Bergedorf, Dec. 17, 1982. Jarnach was a son of a Spanish sculptor and a Flemish mother. He studied with piano and theory at the Paris Conservatory from 1912 to 1914.

At the outbreak of World War I, Jarnach went to Zurich to teach at the Conservatory. There, he met the Italian futurist composer FERRUCCIO BUSONI. This meeting was a decisive influence on his development, and he became an ardent follower of Busoni. After Busoni's death he completed his last opera, Doktor Faust, which was premiered in Jarnach's version in Dresden in 1925.

From 1922 to 1927 Jarnach wrote music criticism for the Berliner Börsencourier. In 1931 he became a German citizen. From 1927 to 1949 he was professor of composition at the Cologne Conservatory, and from 1949 to 1970 at the Hamburg Conservatory.

Jarnach's music is distinguished by impeccable craftsmanship, but it lacks individuality. He participated in the modern movement in Germany between the two world wars, and many of his works were performed at music festivals during that period. He wrote PROLOG ZU EINEM RITTER-SPIEL for orchestra (1917), Sinfonia brevis (1923), Musik mit Mozart for orchestra (1935), String Quintet (1920), String Quartet (1924), Musik zum Gedächtnis des Einsamen for string quartet (1952; also for orchestra), piano pieces, and songs.