»Echo des Unerhörten«

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of exil.arte and the 10th anniversary of the Exilarte Centre of the mdw – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Katharina Wincor, will perform works from the Exilarte music edition by Wilhelm Grosz and Hans Winterberg. Since 2006, what was originally a remembrance culture initiative has developed into an internationally recognised research and cultural centre that successfully combines academic work, archive practice and artistic performance. Through exhibitions, publications, recordings, symposia and concerts, expelled composers have been made accessible to a wide audience.
Today, Exilarte is regarded as a model of living cultural history through the preservation of musical estates, international co-operation and the accessibility of its collections. The years 2006–2026 do not represent an end, but rather a sustainable foundation – for a living archive that gives the music history of the 20th century a lasting new perspective.

Wilhelm Grosz
Vienna, 1894 – 1939, New York City

Grosz studied at the Academy of Music and Performing Arts (now the mdw) under Franz Schreker and musicology under Guido Adler. He turned to popular music early on, for example with his Jazzband Sonata (1922) and the jazz ballet Baby in der Bar (1928). Despite Julius Korngold's praise for his opera Sganarell, he began a career in Berlin as a producer, arranger and conductor with Ultraphon. In 1934 he fled to London and wrote numerous hits such as Red Sails in the Sunset. In 1939 he followed Erich W. Korngold's advice to move to New York, where he died shortly after his arrival.

Hans Winterberg
Prague, 1901 – 1991, Stepperg / Upper Bavaria

Winterberg, from a German-speaking Jewish family in Prague, studied with Finke, Zemlinsky and Hába. Initially protected by his marriage to the non-Jewish pianist Maria Maschat, he was divorced in 1944 and deported to Theresienstadt. After being liberated from the ghetto, he emigrated to Germany and never returned to Prague due to the political situation. In Bavaria, he fought for compensation and struggled to find work, including at Bayerischer Rundfunk. Despite individual performances, he was denied widespread recognition throughout his life.