Anna Cramer facts for kids
Anna M. Cramer (born July 15, 1873 – died June 4, 1968) was a Dutch composer. She wrote many beautiful songs and two operas.
Life and Career
Anna Cramer was born in Amsterdam, a city in the Netherlands. She loved music and studied at the Conservatory of Music in Amsterdam. After finishing her studies in 1897, she went to Germany. There, she learned more about composing from famous teachers like Wilhelm Berger and Max von Schillings.
After her studies, Anna became a successful composer. Her music was performed in public in 1906 and 1907. She also published her first songs, called Op. 1–4, in Germany between 1907 and 1910.
From 1910 to 1925, Anna Cramer lived in the German cities of Munich and Berlin. Later, she moved to Vienna, the capital of Austria. In Vienna, she worked with a poet and composer named Walter Simlinger. He wrote the stories for her two operas, Der letzte Tanz (The Last Dance) and Dr. Pipalumbo. These operas were created between 1926 and 1927.
Around 1930, Anna Cramer faced some personal challenges. She withdrew from public life for a while. In 1931, she returned to the Netherlands. After this, no more of her songs were published during her lifetime. However, she continued to compose music privately. In 1958, she even stored a suitcase full of her handwritten music at a bank in Amsterdam.
Anna Cramer lived to be 94 years old. She passed away in Blaricum, Netherlands. After her death, the suitcase with her music was given to a museum. Today, her compositions are kept safe at the Nederlands Muziekinstituut in The Hague.
Works
Anna Cramer often used folk themes and cabaret styles in her music. She wrote many "lieder," which are German art songs for a singer and piano.
Here are some of her well-known compositions:
- Sechs Lieder, op. 4 (Six Songs, Op. 4) – This collection includes songs like Erwachen in den grellen Tag (Awakening into the Bright Day) and Ave Rosa (Hail Rose).
- Fünf Gedichte, op. 1 (Five Poems, Op. 1) – This set features songs such as Bispill and De Jäger (The Hunter).
- Zehn Gedichte (Ten Poems) – Some songs from this group are Souvenir de Malmaison and Meiner Mutter (To My Mother).
- Zwei Notturnos (Two Nocturnes) – These include Im Pavillon (In the Pavilion) and Am Meer (By the Sea).
- Wenn die Linde blüht (When the Linden Tree Blooms)
- Schlafliedchen für’s Peterle (Lullaby for Peterle)
- Wenn der Abend sinkt (When Evening Falls)
- Der letzte Tanz (The Last Dance), an opera
- Dr. Pipalumbo, another opera
Her music has also been recorded. You can find her songs on a CD called Anna Cramer Songs, released in 2011.
