The pre-mortem bequest of Friedrich Cerha, which was handed over to the Archives of Contemporary Arts, is made accessible on a theme-related, interactive online portal. In this way the archived materials - supplemented by expert knowledge - are available to researchers and music enthusiasts.
The pre-mortem bequest of Friedrich Cerha contains highly influential compositions and went to the Archive of Contemporaries already in 2010. Affiliated with the Faculty of Education, Art and Architecture at Danube University Krems this institution of Lower Austria specializes in the bequests and estates of contemporary artists. Through the personal contact and cooperation with the artists the sources are given special authenticity and trustworthiness. Apart from Cerha's work, the collection includes materials by Peter Patzak, Wolf D. Prix, Julian Schutting, Kurt Schwertsik and Peter Turrini. One of the core tasks of Archives of Contemporary Arts is to mediate in a cultural science-based context, whereby the impact of the artists' personalities on the cultural heritage is in focus.
Friedrich Cerha Online as a first model project
Holding this mediation work high Friedrich Cerha Online, the research-based portal will offer researchers, students, teachers and musicians innovative access to archival materials in German and English. Additionally interesting facts about the composer's life and work are published ready for the interested visitors.
Against usual practice, the presentation of Cerha's complete oeuvre is not chronologically, but follows a classification index based on a thematically-oriented system of cultural studies. Cerha researcher Prof. Dr. Matthias Henke from the University of Siegen is the scientific lead. Ten different access points of online presentation introduce the work. It deals with themes such as "Art of Nature", and with impulses from non-European cultures, playful approaches, the aftermath of Western music history or the interplay between the individual and society, naming further examples. All these facets individually examined intend to convey a comprehensive overall picture of Friedrich Cerha's cosmos. The research project sees itself as a first model project for further one’s to follow in the area of digitization projects devoted to artistic pre-mortem bequests.
Friedrich Cerha Online
Duration: 1 April 2019 - 31 March 2021
Funding: NFB Science Call Digitalisierung 2017
Department: Arts and Cultural Studies / Archive of Contemporaries
Project Lead: Mag. Dr. Christine Rigler
Project Head: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Henke
Academic Staff: Marco Hoffmann, MMag. Gundula Maria Wilscher, Simon Wimmer, BA
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