Joseph Marx
Austrian composer, teacher and critic (1882-1964)
Joseph Rupert Rudolf Marx (11 May 1882 – 3 September 1964) was an Austrian composer, teacher and critic. He is best known for his 150 lieder, most accompanied by piano, with some scored for orchestra.
Life and career
Marx was born in Graz and pursued studies in philosophy, art history, German studies, and music at Graz University, earning several degrees including a doctorate in 1909. His thesis was an expansion of a 1907 scholarly study of tonality in which he had coined the term "atonality". He began composing seriously in 1908 and over the next four years he produced around 120 songs. In 1914 he joined the faculty of the Vienna Music Academy, later becoming the institution's director in 1922. When the school was reorganized as the Hochschule für Musik in 1924 he was appointed to the position of rector, holding that post for three years. Some of his notable students include Johann Nepomuk David, Richard Flury, Ivana Lang, Alois Melichar, Hisatada Otaka, Florica Racovitză-Flondor, Lucijan Marija Škerjanc, Paul Ulanowsky, Ludovit Rajter, Georg Tintner, Jenő Takács, Kurt Schwertsik, and Clara Wildschut. From 1931 to 1938 he was music critic for the Neues Wiener Journal and following World War II he was critic for the Wiener Zeitung.
A collection of Marx's criticisms and essays, Betrachtungen eines romantischen Realisten was published in Vienna in 1947.
The public source identifies “Joseph Marx” as austrian composer, teacher and critic (1882-1964). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Joseph, Marx and Austrian.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Joseph Marx”, the useful work is to connect “austrian composer, teacher and critic (1882-1964)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q506561. VIAF identifies the subject as 44485761. The Library of Congress control number is n82040716. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1882, 1964, 1909 and 1907.
Later biographies can compress uncertainty and repeat inherited reputations, so apparently settled claims may still require comparison. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Joseph Marx”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Joseph Marx primary sources, Joseph Marx archive and Joseph research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Joseph Marx”?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
- Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Joseph Marx” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.