Petr Eben, 78; prolific Czech composer wrote a wide variety of music

Petr Eben, 78, a Czech composer whose wide variety of music has been performed around the globe, died Wednesday at his home in Prague, said his son, Marek. He was battling an unspecified long-term illness.

Born Jan. 22, 1929, Eben showed a musical talent at an early age. He was able to play piano at age 6 and organ when he was 9. A year later, he composed his first musical pieces.

During World War II he was interned by the Nazis in the Buchenwald concentration camp. After the war he studied piano and composition at Prague’s Academy of Music, then taught at various universities.

Throughout his career, he composed some 200 pieces, including works for organ and piano, orchestral and chamber compositions, masses, cantatas and music for children. Among them: the organ cycle “Job,” the oratorio “Sacred Symbols” for the Salzburg Cathedral, “Windows” (four movements according to Marc Chagall for trumpet and organ), and “Prague Te Deum.”

He performed his music around the world, giving improvisational organ and piano concerts in such venues as Notre Dame in Paris, the Royal Festival Hall in London and the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove.