Austrian composer. He studied composition, organ, piano, and conducting at the Munich Academy of Music. During this period, he spent five months in London, working as a pianist and composer for the Leslie Burrows Dance Studio, which sparked his interest in ballet and other performing arts. After graduation, he worked in the youth music department of Bavarian Radio before being invited to teach composition at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. In the year he moved to Salzburg, he founded a music academy for young people there. He served in the military towards the end of World War II. After the war, he worked as an organist and choirmaster. In Mittersee, where he held this position, he met Webern and composed his Requiem after Webern's death. He soon returned to Salzburg and participated in Hindemith's composition seminar. Bresgen himself stated that he was influenced by Stravinsky, Hindemith, and Bartók. He also received numerous awards, including the Felix Mottl Prize, the Munich City Music Prize, the Salzburg Culture Prize, and the Austrian State Prize.