Kleiber, Erich (1890-1956)

Austrian conductor. He was appointed music director of the Berlin Staatsoper, Germany, in 1923, and gave several important premieres, in particular that of Wozzeck (1925), of which he also conducted the first British stage performance in 1952. Differences with the Nazis obliged him to resign his Berlin post, and in 1937 he left Germany for Argentina, but returned to Europe in 1948. His son Carlos Kleiber was also a conductor.

After apprentice years in Darmstadt and Düsseldorf, he became music director of the Staatsoper, Berlin, in 1923, making his debut with Fidelio. He made his London concert debut in 1935, with the London Symphony Orchestra, and in 1938 conducted Der Rosenkavalier at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. He made his New York debut in 1930. Differences with the Nazis over artistic policy obliged him to resign his Berlin post, and from 1937 to 1949 he was active in Buenos Aires, becoming an Argentine citizen in 1938. He returned to Europe in 1948, conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and in Florence, Italy, in 1951 gave the first known performance of Haydn's last opera, Orfeo ed Euridice, with Maria Callas.