Karas' zither music flavours Austrian Dinner in Heart of Greeneland

At the Graham Greene International Festival on the evening of Saturday 3rd October 2009 the guests at the Austrian Dinner in Old Hall at Berkhamsted School (Hertfordshire, England, UK) were treated to Wiener Schnitzel, Sachertorte and a selection of Austrian wines. Dinner was followed by a selection of Anton Karas' music for the film of The Third Man (directed by Carol Reed, UK, 1949) played on the zither by Cornelia Mayer (above) and introduced by the film historian Dr. Brigitte Timmermann.

The Festival director, Dermot Gilvary, welcomed the Deputy Mayor of Dacorum, Cllr. Roger Taylor, the Mayor of Berkhamsted, Cllr. David Collins, and the Lady Mayoress, Elaine Collins (who is a trustee of the Graham Greene Birthplace Trust), the President of the Old Berkhamstedians, Natasha Charlton.

He gave thanks to Mark Steed (Principal, Berkhamsted School) for his generous hospitality, to the members of the local council and other organisations for their help and cooperation, to the Festival secretary Colin Garrett for his immense organisation, to Peter Gieler (general secretary of the Anglo-Austrian Society) for his society's generous sponsorship of Cornelia Mayer's appearances, to the Trustees for their unswerving support, to the many guest speakers whose quality so enriched the four-day event and to the public who come from near and far to support the Festival and to make it such an exciting and thriving event.

Cornelia Mayer plays Karas

At the Civic Centre, Berkhamsted (UK), on the evening of Friday 2nd October 2009 at the Graham Greene International Festival, the celebrated Viennese zither teacher and player Cornelia Mayer entertained a large and appreciative audience, as she played a selection of compositions and arrangements by Anton Karas and other famous composers of zither music.

In the Hemel Hempstead Gazette the journalist Rita Knowles reviewed Cornelia’s performance with these words: “Throw away the impression that the zither is the instrument of choice for wine bars and parties. Cornelia showed us undreamed of nuances of sound, as she gave her recital of classical pieces, proving the zither truly an instrument of the salon or soirée.”

Peter Gieler, general secretary of the Anglo-Austrian Society, introduced the classical section of Cornelia’s concert. When the virtuoso musician progressed to the score of The Third Man, the historian and author, Dr. Brigitte Timmermann, (Vienna Walks and Talks) explained the development and variations of leitmotifs such as "The Harry Lime Theme" and "Anna Schmidt’s Music".

Though Anton Karas composed his film score without the aid of written music, playing as he watched the rushes of film, Cornelia has meticulously transcribed the notes to paper, and she hopes at some stage to record and to publish a complete musical score.

The Festival director Dermot Gilvary thanked the Anglo-Austrian Society for its generous sponsorship of Cornelia’s appearances.