Bronisław Huberman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bronisław Huberman | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | December 19, 1882 Częstochowa, Poland |
| Died | June 16, 1947 (aged 64) Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland |
| Genre(s) | Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Violinist, pedagogue |
| Instrument(s) | Violin |
| Notable instrument(s) | |
| Violin Gibson; ex-Huberman Stradivari 1713 ex-Huberman Guarneri del Gesù 1731 Huberman; Kreisler Stradivari 1733 Consolo Guarneri del Gesù 1733 |
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Bronisław Huberman (19 December 1882 – 16 June 1947) was a Polish violinist. He was known for his individualistic and personal interpretations. The Gibson ex-Huberman Stradivarius violin which bears his name, was stolen and recovered twice during the period in which he owned the instrument.
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[edit] Biography
Huberman was born in Częstochowa, Poland, a pupil of Mieczyslaw Michalowicz at the Warsaw Conservatory, and of Isidor Lotto in Paris. In 1892 he studied under Joseph Joachim in Berlin. Despite being only ten years old, he dazzled Joachim with performances of Ludwig Spohr (1784-1859), Henri Vieuxtemps, and the transcription of a Frederic Chopin nocturne. However the two did not get on well, and after his fourteenth birthday he took no more lessons. In 1893 he made a concert-tour as an esteemed virtuoso. Around this time Arthur Rubinstein, who was only five or six at the time, saw Huberman in concert. Rubinstein's parents invited Huberman back to their house and the two boys struck up what became a lifetime friendship. In 1894 Adelina Patti invited him to participate in her farewell gala in London, which he did, and in the following year actually eclipsed her in appearance in Vienna. In 1896 he performed the violin concerto of Johannes Brahms in the presence of the composer, who was initially incredulous, and finally overwhelmed, by what he heard.
In 1929 Huberman first visited Palestine, and developed the vision of establishing classical music in the Promised Land. He made his home in Vienna, where he was made a member of the Conservatoire, and where with Arthur Schnabel and Pau Casals he celebrated the Brahms Centenary of 1933 since both he and Schnabel were by then unwelcome in Berlin. He declined invitations from Wilhelm Furtwangler to return to preach a "musical peace", but wrote instead an open letter to German intellectuals inviting them to remember their essential values. In 1936 he founded the Palestine Orchestra, which gave its first performance on 26 Decembers with Arturo Toscanini conducting. This laid the foundations of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, which, however, was not established until 1948, a year after Huberman's death.
In 1937, a year before the Anschluss, he left Vienna and was given refuge in Switzerland, in the same year making a tour of Australia. In 1938 his career was nearly ended when he was involved in an aeroplane accident in Sumatra, in which his wrist and two fingers of his left hand were broken. After intensive and painful retraining he was able to resume performing. At the onset of the Second World War, Huberman was touring South Africa, and was unable to return to Switzerland until after the war. He died in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland in 1947.
Huberman was the teacher of Eric Rosenblith.
[edit] Recordings
Huberman made several commercial recordings of large-scale works, among which are:
- Beethoven: Violin Concerto (w. Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, cond. George Szell) (Columbia Records, LX 509-13) (18-20 June 1934).
- Beethoven: Kreutzer Sonata (no 9) (w. Ignaz Friedman, pno) (Columbia Records, C-67954/7D)
- Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole (omits 3rd movt.) (w. Vienna Philharmonic, cond. George Szell) (Columbia Records, C-68288/90D)
- Tchaikowsky: Violin Concerto (w. Berlin State Opera Orchestra, cond William Steinberg) (Columbia Records, C-67726/9D) (December 1928; originally for Odeon)
- Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto (2nd & 3rd movts) (w. Siegfried Schulze, pno) (Brunswick Records, PD-27242: acoustic)
- Also Bach Concerti 1 & 2, and Mozart Concerto 3.
- Several other large works exist in off-air broadcast recordings, including the Brahms concerto.
[edit] References
- Huberman, B, Aus der Werkstatt des Virtuosen (Heller, Leipzig 1912)
- R.T. Darrell, Encyclopedia of Recorded Music (Gramophone Shop, New York 1936).
- A. Eaglefield-Hull (Ed.), A Dictionary of Modern Music and Musicians (Dent, London 1924).
- A. Tubeuf, 'L'archet au coeur d'or', Sleevenote, EMI reissue of Beethoven Concerto (vinyl c1985) Cat EMI/Pathe-Marconi PM 322.
