Kélér-Béla was born Albert von Keler in Bartfeld, Hungary, on February
13, 1820. He studied law and worked as a farmer before turning to music
in his twenty-fifth year. After studying in Vienna with Sechter and
Schlesinger he played the violin in the orchestra of the
Theater-an-der-Wien. In 1854 he went to Berlin where he became conductor
of Gungl’s Orchestra. He was soon back in Vienna to take over the
direction of the famous Joseph Lanner Orchestra. From 1856 to 1863 he
conducted an army band, and from 1863 to 1873 an orchestra in Wiesbaden.
He died in that city on November 20, 1882.
Kéler-Béla wrote about one hundred and thirty compositions in the light
Viennese style of Lanner and the two Johann Strausses. His works include
waltzes, galops, and marches, a representative example of each being the
waltz _Hoffnungssterne_, the _Hurrah-Sturm_ galop, and the
_Friedrich-Karl_ march.
His most popular work is the _Hungarian Comedy Overture_ (_Lustspiel
Ouverture_). It opens in a stately manner with forceful chords and a
sustained melody in the woodwind. But the comedy aspect of this overture
is soon made evident with two lilting tunes for the woodwind, separated
by a dramatic episode for full orchestra. These two tunes receive
extended enlargement. The overture ends with a succession of emphatic
chords.