Steeped in the great traditions of Austro-German classical music, Karl Böhm was revered as a master of Wagner, Strauss and Mozart's operas and was known as a precise, disciplined conductor full of spritely energy and focused efficiency.

Born in Graz, Austria (August 14, 1981) he followed his father's wishes and studied for a law degree but at the same time also enrolled at the Vienna Music Conservatory and made his conducting debut at his hometown opera in 1917, leading a performance of Viktor Nessler's 'Der Trompeter von Sakkingen'. Spotted and then mentored by controversial German composer Karl Muck, he cut his teeth with the Bavarian State and Hamburg Operas and then became head of the Dresden Opera in 1934, where he befriended Richard Strauss and led performances of his works Die Schweigsame Frau and Daphne, which Strauss dedicated to Böhm. He also helped to rejuvenate the Vienna State Opera in the 1940s and 1950s and earned a stellar reputation in America where he made a stunning debut at the The Metropolitan Opera with Mozart's Don Giovanni and later conducted the New York Philharmonic on memorable performances of Mozart, Brahms and Hindemith.

His recording of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde at the Bayreuth Festival in 1966 was another important landmark and he was regarded by some critics as one of the finest conductors of the 20th century, whose work spread to include diligent, masterful interpretations of Bruckner, Haydn and Schubert. Always a popular fixture at the prestigious Salzburg Festival, he gave his final performance when recording a filmed version of Strauss's Elektra, before suffering a stroke. He died in 1981 at the age of 86.

Karl Böhm

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