Pejacevic, Dora (1885–1923)
Pejacevic, Dora (1885–1923)
Croatian composer and violinist who is credited with founding modern Croatian chamber and orchestral music. Name variations: Countess Dora Pejacevic or Pejacsevich. Born in Bucharest, Rumania, on September 10, 1885; died in Munich, Germany, on March 5, 1923.
Dora Pejacevic's musical training was classical. In Zagreb, she studied violin with V. Huml, theory with C. Junek, and instrumentation with D. Kaiser. Later, she went to Dresden to study composition and violin with P. Sherwood and H. Petri and then to Munich where W. Courvoisier was her teacher. Most of her compositions, 49 of 58 completed works, are for the piano and were strongly influenced by Schumann, Brahms, Grieg, and Tchaikovsky. These include two Piano Sonatas, two Piano Quintets (the first one published in Dresden in 1909), two String Quartets, and Sonatas for both violin and cello. Pejacevic's orchestral works include an Overture, a Piano Concerto, a Concert Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra, and a Symphony (1916). Her compositions were performed more often abroad than in her own country, but she is now credited with founding modern Croatian chamber and concert music. Several of her compositions were recorded by the Jugoton recording company in Zagreb.
John Haag , Athens, Georgia