Famous People with Name Karel

Karel Berman            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Karel Berman: was a Jewish Czech opera singer, composer and opera director.After extensive musical education, Karel Berman started his career as a bass singer of opera in Opava. In March, 1943, Berman was deported to Theresienstadt, where he took part in cultural life as a singer, composer and director. On 11 July 1944, for example, he and Rafael Schächter produced the "Four songs to words of Chinese poetry" by Pavel Haas for the first time. Later he was also imprisoned in Kaufering and Auschwitz. He survived the camps and later became famous as an opera singer. In 1953, he joined the Prague National Theatre opera. Berman is also remembered as an opera director, having directed more than 70 operas[1]. He also as taught at the Prague Conservatory from 1961-1971, and from 1964 at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague.

Karel Komzák II            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Karel Komzák II: was a greatly renowned Bohemian-born Viennese composer famous for his dances and marches.Karel Komzák II was born in Prague in 1850. After training under his father, Karel Komzák I, he studied violin, musical theory, and conducting at the Prague Conservatory between 1861 and 1867. In March 1869 he joined his father’s 11th Regiment band at Linz, playing violin and baritone.

Karel Blažej Kopriva            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Karel Blažej Kopriva: was a Czech organist and composer from a family of musicians.Kopriva studied first with his father, the composer Václav Jan Kopriva (1708–1789), and later with Josef Seger in Prague. Then he became organist at the St. Jacob's Church in Cítoliby. He is especially renowned for his numerous concertos and fairs.

Karel Reiner            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Karel Reiner: was a Czech composer and pianist, persecuted by Nazis as a Jew and by communists as a formalist. He was the only classical composer to survive the concentration camp in Theresienstadt.[1]Reiner's musical output was created during fifty years, since 1928/9 to 1979, and was firmly connected with the political situation in Czechoslovakia in the 20th century.[5] His first artistic period was influenced by his teachers and models (Alois Hába, Josef Suk, Emil František Burian, and Erwin Schulhoff), it was part of Czech artistic avant-garde, and it was later rejected by communists as formalism[6].

Karel Weis            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Karel Weis: was a Czech composer and folksong collector. He was born in Prague.Weis studied at the Prague Conservatory from 1873–1878, the Prague Organ School from 1878–1881, and privately with Zdenek Fibich. He was organist of St Štepán and choirmaster at the main synagogue of Prague (1881–1882), a teacher at the music school of the Moravan choral society in Kromeríž (1882–1883), a violinist in the National Theatre orchestra, Prague (1883–1886) and conductor of the Švanda Theatre Company in Prague and Brno (1886–1887)

Rudolf Karel            Origin/Culture/Country: Czech

Rudolf Karel: was a distinguished Czech composer.Rudolf Karel was son of a poor railway employee. He studied composition from 1899 to 1904 with Antonín Dvorák and organ with Josef Klicka in Prague.