The Swiss composer Othmar Schoeck, son of the painter Alfred Schoeck, contributed extensively to vocal and choral repertoire. Briefly a pupil of Max Reger, he became one of the leading composers of his generation in Switzerland, writing music that is melodic and, in vocal settings, shows a marked understanding of and respect for the text.

Operas
Operas by Schoeck include Massimilla Doni, based on Balzac, and Penthesilea, based on Kleist.

Orchestral Music
Schoeck’s orchestral music includes a Cello Concerto, a Concerto quasi una fantasia for violin and orchestra, and a Concerto for French horn.

Vocal and Choral Music
Schoeck’s contribution to vocal and choral repertoire is considerable and ranges from a perceptive setting of Walt Whitman in Trommelschläge for chorus and orchestra to song cycles such as Der Wandsbecker Liederbuch (a setting of 17 poems by the Wandsbeck poet Matthias Claudius) and Das holde Bescheiden (settings of Eduard Mörike).