The brother of Johann Gottlieb, Carl was the Kappelmeister of the Berlin Opera in direct service to the King of Prussia, Frederick the Great. Like his brother he also trained at the Kreuzschule in Dresden but was enrolled simultaneoulsy at the University of Leipzig. Graun studied voice with Grundig and Benisch and keyboard with Pezold. Learning from the building of the serious opera in Dresden, Graun saw the work of Heinichen and Lotti. The Italianization of the operatic form in Germany became the rage, and though Graun may not have wanted to he had to succumb to the demands of his King who continued the adaptation of the Italian opera despite its unpopularity with some of the people. Graun was criticized, unfairly, for being a great servant to the King. His major compositions were, accordingly, operatic and he had no flair for instrumental works like Johann: with the exception of overtures. The only form Graun participated in well were operas and sacred vocal music. His "Te Deum" and "Der Tod Jesu" up until the late ninettenth century were as popular and heralded there as is Handel's "Messiah" in England. The shortcomings of his operas were the librettos with which he worked. Bottarelli, Villati and Tagliazucchi have been described as average at best in their work and Zeno and Metastasio closely follow. All of the work, regardless, had to go by the King, which was Graun's second shortcoming. If the King did not like a piece or an aria in a given opera he would have it removed. Though Graun is an idellible page in the history of opera, Berlin's operas during this time suffered from an excessive use of convention and formula. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi