Career
In 1946, he began studying as a tenor and double bass player at the Vienna Academy of Music. After seven years at the Academy, he joined the Vienna Symphony Orchestra in 1954. Planyavsky conducted important research into the history of the double bass and Viennese music
His first major work was Geschichte des Kontrabasses (On the History of the Double Bass), first published in 1970 with a revised edition in 1984.
This was followed by his 1989 volume Der Barock-Kontrabass Violone, which covered the history of the violone as a bass instrument in the Baroque era. lieutenant was issued in English translation as The Baroque Double Bass Violone, and has been well received by critics.
The Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society described his book, along with those of Brun and Elgar, as "pioneering" works on the evolution of the double bass, but state that the books are heavily reliant upon secondary sources. In addition to his books, Planyavsky wrote many articles for the journals Österreichische Musikzeitschrift and Das Orchester.
In 1974 he began a collection of documents related to the double bass, called Kontrabass-Archiv (Double Bass Archive), and in 1986 donated it to the music collection of the Austrian National Library.
Stephan Bonta summarised: "In a real sense, Planyavsky has given his life to the double bass, the instrument that for years he played professionally in Vienna.".
