German composer and musical educator, who was known for his teaching of music with the aid of percussion instruments in group performances. He is the composer of one of the most frequently recorded and performed choral works of modern times, the dramatic and stunning “Carmina Burana.”
The son of a German army officer, Orff studied piano, organ and cello when he was only five. At 16 he was writing songs based on the lyrics of German poets. After formal study, he developed his own theories and founded a school for gymnastics, dance and music in Munich, 1924. His school sought to blend movement and music. His text, “Schulwerk fuer Kinder,” (Children’s School Composition) was published and revised from 1930 to 1935 and used in music schools around the world. He became a professor at the Bavarian Music College and later headed Munich’s Bach Society.
In 1936 he wrote what he claimed was his masterpiece, “Carmina Burana.” This and later works were based on 13th-Century writings and obscure German poets. “Catulli Carmina,” 1943, was based on the works of the Roman poet Catullus and “Die Kluge,” (The Clever One) after a Grimm fairy tale. “Antigonae,” a musical drama, “Trionfo di Afrodite,” “Oedipus the Tyrant,” and “Prometheus” were based on Latin and Greek texts. One of his last works, “Rota,” was written for the opening ceremonies of the 1972 Munich Olympics. Orff believed in music as an art that could communicate not only to kids, who, he thought, had innate musical gifts, but to adults in a fragmented modern society. He tried to rediscover the roots and ancient traditions that could have meaning today. In 1974 he won a prize from New York music critics for “Carmina Burana.”
He died of cancer in his hometown of Munich on 3/29/1982 at the age of 86.
Link to Wikipedia biography