Maksas Lauriškus

Maksas Lauriškus (1879–1929) was the Prussian Lithuanian-German composer born in Insterburg, also known as Įsrutis (present-day Chernyakhovsk), in what was then East Prussia (also known as Lithuania Minor). The composer had a relatively short life. He was forgotten and underappreciated for almost a century. Little is known about the life of M. Lauriškus in East Prussia. It is known that he began learning music at the age of six, encouraged by his family. After graduating from Įsrutis Gymnasium, he was sent to study in Germany. After entering the Higher Academy of Music in Berlin he continued his music studies, and in 1897, after graduating with a master’s degree in music composition, he worked as a teacher of music theory, composition, and piano at the same Higher Academy of Music in Berlin. M. Lauriškus studied the subtleties of composition with the famous teachers of that time Woldemar Bargiel and Heinrich von Herzogenberg. They influenced the formation of his musical style as a composer. The German music school style, which he consistently mastered, and the long years of life in the cultural environment of Berlin, undoubtedly make him a German composer. However in his work the Lithuanian national nature of Prussia is constantly evident and clearly felt. It is revealed in various aspects. Not only the language of music, but also the theme, using Lithuanian names, shows M. Lauriškus’ connections with Lithuanian roots, and his relationship with his native land. One such work is from 1910, a suite for the woodwind quintet Aus Litauen, Op. 23. In this suite, all five sections entitled ‘Von Land und Leuten’ (‘About the country and its people’), ‘Abendstimmung’ (‘Evening atmosphere’), ‘Daina’ (‘Song’), ‘Dorfserenade’ (‘A village serenade’) and ‘Metturgis” refer to the Lithuanian landscape or an attempt to depict the people of that region.