Matthus was born in (now in
Ozyorsky District),
East Prussia. His father made sure that the son received piano lessons. Matthus attended secondary school in
Rheinsberg, followed by studies at the
Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin. After graduating, he continued his studies in composition with
Rudolf Wagner-Régeny and
Hanns Eisler, and was shortly thereafter made the youngest composer in residence in the history of the
Komische Oper Berlin by
Walter Felsenstein.
Stage works Matthus composed more than a dozen stage works. The opera
Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke (''Cornet Christoph Rilke's song of love and death
) after Rainer Maria Rilke was completed in 1983, first performed in Dresden in 1985, and performed also by the Glyndebourne Touring Opera in 1993. The opera Graf Mirabeau'' (1987–88) is set during the
French Revolution. The opera was recorded by the
Berlin State Opera. His works are featured on more than twenty recordings by several of Germany's leading symphony orchestras and chamber music ensembles. His 1975 Cello Concerto and his Second Symphony were recorded in 1978 by cellist Josef Schwab and the orchestra of the Komische Oper, conducted by the composer. A reviewer described the works as "deeply honest, uncompromising though highly communicative". For the occasion of his 70th birthday in 2004, a recording combined three concertos with orchestra recorded earlier with the
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Saarbrücken: the 1982 Concerto for Trumpet and Percussion, the 1994
Manhattan Concerto, and
Der Wald (The forest), a 1984 percussion concerto. On 25 January 2009,
Leon Botstein conducted
Responso at the
Avery Fisher Hall, New York City, with the
American Symphony Orchestra.
Festival In 1991, Matthus founded the
Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg festival. He was its artistic director until 2018. He was an honorary citizen of
Rheinsberg. Matthus died in his home on 27 August 2021 at the age of 87 after a protracted illness. == Compositions ==