Peter Kreuder

When the name Peter Kreuder is spoken of these days, it awakes above all memories of Peter Kreuder the composer.

Many of his "Evergreen" ideas such as "Goodbye Johnny", "Ich brauche keine Millionen", "Sag'beim Abschied leise Servus" or "Wenn die Sonne hinter den Daechern versinkt" are still being played, and so when the name Peter Kreuder is mentioned in connection with these titles, our memory mostly guides us to the gifted composer and inventor of the highest quality.

This is hardly surprising, as more than twentyfive years after his death the majority of many "Kreuder CDs" one can find in music stores predominantly of the man as composer.

During his lifetime, he was naturally the successful composer who, in addition to one opera, numerous operettas, revues, ballet music and musicals, also wrote the music to 188 feature films. Peter Kreuder, however was above all a world-renown pianist.

Time and again-until shortly before his death-he presented himself as a PIANIST to enthusiastic audiences: over 4000 concerts on four continents (e.g. Royal Albert Hall, London, Orchestra Hall, Chicago) and over 1000 LPs as PIANIST.

Peter Kreuder's piano playing is unmistakable, and every Peter Kreuder fan knows at the first touch of the key-it's HIM. Before every note he plays tow additional ones: this "three-note-image" of the pianist Peter Kreuder, the so-called sluring" at the striking of the notes, and the distance between his right and left hands was characteristic. Equally as unmistakable remained his closing note, which found itself in the deepest octaves of the keyboard.

Along with the "typical Kreuder" there was also the "transformed Kreuder", who wasn't as recognizable. For the recording of his 'Poem fuer Klavier und Orchester in 3 Saetzen" - "Ein Wiener in New York", produced with the RSO Hilversum/Netherlands under the direction of Benedict Silverman, Peter Kreuder strikes up the tune personally and presents himself here as a first-class "Jazz-pianist". Here the so-called 'Kreuder Trick', a casual attempt as describing his very unique style, is missing entirely: the many faces of the pianist Peter Kreuder.

In the beginning of the sixties in the last century, Peter Kreuder recorded 2two long-playing records with the 'Reg Owen' orchestra in London/England, which he dedicated to Franz Liszt and Peter I. Tschaikowsky.

Both are made accessible to the public again for the first time in 40 years-on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of his death.

For these productions Peter Kreuder reworked some of the most well known creations of the classical composers. Out of this work came a Liszt and a Tschaikowsky LP in the "easy listening sound" which was just becoming modern at the time, with the unmistakable Peter Kreuder touch, even without the significant closing note.