Media, migration and the music aesthetic : Julius Burger's radio potpourri (1933-1945).

Abstract

In 1933, the Nazi Regime seized the reins of power in Germany. Their subsequent invocation of anti-Semitic legislation caused a rupture in the lives and careers of countless artists, actors, authors, composers, musicians, and performers. Many from this ‘Lost Generation’ emigrated to the safety of neighbouring countries (i.e. Belgium, France, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, etc.) while others travelled further abroad to nations such as Canada, the United States and Australia. Within Great Britain, talented émigré figures such as Walter Goehr (1903-1960), Leo Wurmser (1905-?), Berthold Goldschmidt (1903-1996), and Mátyás Seiber (1905-1960) found employment in the British Broadcasting Corporation and made valuable contributions to shaping British radio programming. However, one émigré’s lasting and influential contributions to this central British institution have been overlooked in musicological and media studies research to date. This thesis records the research undertaken on the pioneering radio genre, the ‘Radio Potpourri’, by Viennese émigré composer Julius Burger (1897-1995) and their influence on the BBC’s Variety department between 1933 – 1945. The research involved utilises recently rediscovered autograph manuscripts of these radio compositions in tracing their origins. These developed from earlier classical music forms, such as the opera pasticcio and its employ as an accompaniment technique in early silent cinemas and were then remediated specifically for radio at the Funkstunde AG Berlin. In 1934, the Radio Potpourri was then transferred to the BBC Variety department where it became an influential mainstay in British light music programming into the 1950s. Evidence suggests Burger’s nomadic existence as an exile during this period directly affected his compositional style. This project has examined the Radio Potpourri through the lenses of nationalism/imperialism, migration, and anti-Semitism to trace their potential effects on his compositional aesthetic between 1934 and 1945. Through musicological and textual analysis of archival documentation and autograph manuscripts, I propose new insights into the process of remediation for the medium of radio while highlighting the influential implementation of the Radio Potpourri genre in British radio programming in the early 20th century. Equally, this investigation into the wider effects of exile and migration on Julius Burger’s musical compositions contributes to established musicology research on the connections between music and exile.

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