In Munich, Reger was seen as a champion of absolute music and was, at that time, hostile to program music and the legacies of Wagner and Liszt.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Despite being Catholic, Max Reger drew inspiration for his organ works, including chorale preludes and fantasias, from the Lutheran tradition and its rich store of chorales.
Composer Biography
Max Reger's early interest in music was fostered by his father, a schoolmaster and amateur musician, and his training by Adalbert Lindner, the town organist of Weiden.
Composer Biography
Reger became a pupil of Hugo Riemann, a prominent music theorist and teacher, first in Sondershausen and then as Riemann's assistant in Wiesbaden.
Composer Biography
Reger held the position of conductor for the court orchestra of the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, an ensemble previously led by Hans von Bülow and Richard Strauss.
Composition History
Reger dedicated his first significant organ work, the Suite in E minor, Op. 16, to the spirit of J.S. Bach, inspired by an article by Hugo Riemann on Bach's importance in organ music.
Critical Reception
The high regard for Reger's organ compositions during his lifetime was significantly due to the advocacy of Karl Straube, an organist at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig.
