Artur Schnabel (April 17, 1882 – August 15, 1951) was an Austrian classical pianist, who also composed and taught. Events 69 - After the First Battle of Bedriacum, Vitellius becomes Roman Emperor. Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Classical music is a broad term that usually refers to mainstream music produced in or rooted in the traditions of Western liturgical and Secular music A pianist (/'piənɪst/ is a Musician who plays the Piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces play with an ensemble or Orchestra A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance Schnabel was renowned for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding anything resembling pure technical bravura. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, whose vitality, profundity and spiritual penetration in his playing of works by Beethoven and Schubert, in particular, have seldom if ever been surpassed. Ludwig van Beethoven ( English ˈlʊdvɪg væn ˈbeɪtoʊvən, 16 December 1770 &ndash 26 March 1827 was a German Composer and Pianist.
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Biography
The Early Years
Born in Kunzendorf, a small suburb of Bielitz, Galicia, in the Silesian part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today Lipnik, Bielsko-Biala, Poland),[1][2] Schnabel was the youngest of three children born to Isidor Schnabel, a textile merchant, and his wife Ernestine (née Labin). See also Bielsko County, and Bielsko Lublin Voivodeship. Bielsko (Bielitz Bílsko was until 1950 an independent town situated Galicia (Галичина ( Halychyna) Galicja is a historical region in East Central Europe, currently divided between Poland and Ukraine, Bielsko-Biała (Bielitz-Biala Bílsko-Bělá is a city in southern Poland with 176987 inhabitants (2006 Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland He had two sisters, Clara and Frieda. [2][3].
The family moved to Vienna in 1884, when Schnabel was two. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. He began learning the piano at the age of four, when he took a spontaneous interest in his eldest sister Clara's piano lessons and his prodigious talent quickly became evident. At the age of six he began piano lessons under Professor Hans Schmitt of the Vienna Conservatory (today the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna). The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna ( Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien) is an Austrian University located in At the age of nine, he was accepted as a pupil by the famous piano pedagogue Theodor Leschetizky. Teodor Leszetycki (mostly referred to by the germanised name used by himself Theodor Leschetizky, 22 June 1830 &ndash 14 November 1915 was a Polish [2][3]
The Leschetizky Years
Schnabel remained under Leschetizky's tutelage for seven years, between 1891-97. His co-students of Leschetizky during that period included Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Mark Hambourg and Ignaz Friedman. Ossip Gabrilowitsch (Осип Сaломонович Габрилович Osip Salomonovich Gabrilovich; he used the German transliteration Gabrilowitsch in the West Mark Hambourg (Марк Михайлович Гамбург 1 June 1879 &ndash 26 August 1960) was a distinguished Russian concert Ignaz Friedman (also spelled Ignace or Ignacy) ( February 14 1882 &ndash January 26 1948) was a Polish
Initially, for his first year under Leschetizky, he was given rigorous preparatory technical tuition from Madame Annette Essipoff (Leschetizky’s second wife and a famous pianist in her own right) and also from Madame Malwine Bree who was Leschetizky's assistant. Anna Yesipova (Анна Николаевна Есипова sometimes cited as Anna Esipova Anna Essipova Annette (or Annetta Essipoff Annette Essipova Annette von Essipow [3] From age ten, he participated in all Leschetizky's classes. [1]
Following a failed initial approach to Anton Bruckner, Schnabel studied music theory and composition under Eusebius Mandyczewski. Anton Bruckner (4 September 1824 &ndash 11 October 1896 was an Austrian composer known primarily for his symphonies, masses, and Motets Eusebius Mandyczewski (Мандичевський Євсебій ( August 18, 1857 - August 13, 1929) was a Mandyczewski was an assistant to Johannes Brahms. Johannes Brahms ( pronounced ˈbʁaːms (May 7 1833 &ndash April 3 1897 was a German Composer Thus through him Schnabel was introduced to Brahms’ circle and was often in the great composer’s presence. The young Schnabel once heard Brahms play in a performance of the composer's first piano quartet; for all the missed notes, said Schnabel, it "was in the true grand manner. "[1]
Schnabel made his official concert debut in 1897, at the Bösendorfer-Saal in Vienna. Year 1897 ( MDCCCXCVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Bösendorfer (L Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH) is an Austrian Piano manufacturer now a Wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha. Later that same year, he gave a series of concerts in Budapest, Prague and Brünn (today Brno, Czech Republic). Budapest ( also /ˈbʊ-/) is the capital city of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary it serves as the country's principal Political, Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. Brno ( IPA:; Brünn is the second-largest City in the Czech Republic. [2]
The Berlin Years
Schnabel moved to Berlin in 1898, making his debut there with a concert at the Bechstein-Saal. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Year 1898 ( MDCCCXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common C Bechstein Pianofortefabrik AG ( (also known as Bechstein) is a German manufacturer of Pianos highly regarded for their concert Grand pianos [2] Following World War I, Schnabel also toured widely, visiting the United States, Russia and England. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland
He gained initial fame thanks to orchestral concerts he gave under the conductor Artur Nikisch as well as playing in chamber music and accompanying his future wife, the contralto Therese Behr, in lieder. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Arthur Nikisch (Hungarian Nikisch Artúr) ( 12 October Chamber music is a form of Classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber Alto is a musical term derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" that has several possible interpretations de Lied (plural de Lieder) (liːt plural) is a German word meaning literally " Song " among English speakers however the word
In chamber music, he founded the Schnabel Trio with the violinist Alfred Wittenberg and the cellist Anton Hekking; they played together between 1902-04. Anton Hekking ( September 7, 1856 &ndash November 18, 1935) was a Dutch-born Cellist and teacher In 1905, he formed a second Schnabel Trio with Carl Flesch (with whom he also played violin sonatas) and the cellist Jean Gérardy. Carl Flesch ( October 9, 1873 – November 14, 1944) was a Violinist and Teacher. In 1914, with the outbreak of the First World War, Gérardy (a Belgian) left the trio as he could no longer remain in Germany. He was replaced by Hugo Becker and this became the third Schnabel Trio. Hugo Becker ( February 13 1864 &ndash July 30 1941) was a prominent German Cellist, Cello teacher and
Later, Schnabel also played as a quartet with violinist Bronislaw Huberman, composer/violist Paul Hindemith and the cellist Gregor Piatigorsky (with whom he also played and recorded cello sonatas). Bronisław Huberman ( 19 December 1882 &ndash 16 June 1947) was a Jewish Polish Violinist He was known Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 &ndash 28 December 1963 was a German Composer, Violist, violinist teacher music theorist and conductor. Gregor Piatigorsky (Ukrainian Григорий Павлович Пятигорский Grigoriy Pavlovich Pyatigorskiy; April 17, 1903 &ndash August Schnabel also played with a number of other famous musicians including the violinist Joseph Szigeti and the cellists Pablo Casals and Pierre Fournier. "Szigeti" redirects here For other uses see Szigeti (disambiguation. Pierre Fournier ( June 24, 1906 &ndash January 8, 1986) was a French cellist who was called the "aristocrat of cellists"
He was friends, and played, with the most distinguished conductors of the day, including Wilhelm Furtwängler, Bruno Walter, Otto Klemperer, George Szell, Willem Mengelberg, and Sir Adrian Boult. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Wilhelm Furtwängler (January 25 1886 &ndash November 30 1954 was a WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Bruno Walter ( September 15, 1876 &ndash February WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Otto Klemperer (born Breslau, May 14, 1885 WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> George Szell (ˈsɛl ( June 7, 1897 &ndash July Joseph Willem Mengelberg ( 28 March 1871 &ndash 21 March 1951) was a Dutch conductor. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Sir Adrian Cedric Boult CH ( 8 April 1889
From 1925 Schnabel taught at the Berlin State Academy where his masterclasses brought him great renown. Among Schnabel’s many piano pupils were Clifford Curzon, Rudolf Firkusny, Adrian Aeschbacher, Lili Kraus, Leon Fleisher, Carlo Zecchi, Claude Frank, Leonard Shure, Alan Bush, Nancy Weir, Jascha Spivakovsky, Eunice Norton and radio personality Karl Haas. Sir Clifford Michael Curzon ( 18 May 1907 &ndash 1 September 1982) was an English Pianist. Rudolf Firkusny ( Czech Rudolf Firkušný, ˈrʊdolf ˈfɪrkʊʃni ( 11 February 1912 - 19 July Lili Kraus ( April 3, 1903 - November 6, 1986) was a Hungarian Pianist. Leon Fleisher (born July 23, 1928) is an American pianist and conductor. Carlo Zecchi ( July 8, 1903 in Rome – August 31, 1984 in Salzburg) was an Italian Pianist, music Claude Frank is a German-born American Jewish Pianist whose career has included appearances with highly reputed orchestras at major festivals and in major recital halls around Alan Dudley Bush ( 22 December 1900 &ndash 31 October 1995) was a British Composer and Pianist. Nancy Mary Weir (born 13 July 1915, Melbourne, Australia) was an Australian pianist Eunice Norton ( June 30, 1908 &ndash Karl Haas ( December 6, 1913 – February 6, 2005) was a German-American classical music Radio show host whose distinctively
The Later Years
Schnabel, a Jew, left Berlin in 1933 after the Nazi Party took control. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 He lived in England for a time while giving masterclasses at Tremezzo on Lake Como in Italy, before moving to America in 1939. Tremezzo is a commune (or municipality of some 1300 people in the Province of Como, in the Italian region Lombardy. Lake Como ( Lago di Como in Italian, also known as Lario; Lach de Comm in Insubric; Latin: Larius Lacus) is a Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1944, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Naturalization is the acquisition of Citizenship or Nationality by somebody who was not a citizen or national of that country when he or she was born There he took a teaching post at the University of Michigan, returning to Europe at the end of World War II. The University of Michigan Ann Arbor ( U of M, U-M, UM or simply Michigan) is a top-ranked Coeducational public research World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including
He continued to give concerts on both sides of the Atlantic until the end of his life, as well as composing and continuing to make records, although he was never very fond of the whole studio process. He died in Axenstein, Switzerland and was buried in Schwyz, Switzerland. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The town of (Schwyz Svitto is the capital of the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland.
Family
Schnabel married Therese Behr in 1905. They had two sons, Karl Ulrich Schnabel (1909-2001) who also became a classical pianist and renowned piano teacher, and Stefan Schnabel (1912-99) who became a well regarded actor. Karl Ulrich Schnabel ( 6 August 1909 Berlin - 27 August 2001 Danbury CT) was an Austrian Pianist, and the son Stefan Schnabel (born February 2, 1912, Berlin, Germany; died March 11, 1999, Rogaro, Italy) was
Repertoire
Schnabel was best known for his devotion to the core German composers, especially the Viennese classics of Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert. Ludwig van Beethoven ( English ˈlʊdvɪg væn ˈbeɪtoʊvən, 16 December 1770 &ndash 26 March 1827 was a German Composer and Pianist. He was also renowned for his playing of works by Brahms and Schumann. Johannes Brahms ( pronounced ˈbʁaːms (May 7 1833 &ndash April 3 1897 was a German Composer Robert Schumann, sometimes given as Robert Alexander Schumann (June 8 1810 &ndash July 29 1856 was a German Composer, Aesthete and influential Music critic He also played and recorded works by Bach. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise"
However, his repertoire was wider than that. During his young virtuosic years in Berlin, he played works by other composers including Liszt, Chopin and Weber. Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber ( 18 December 1786 in Eutin, Holstein, Germany - 5 June 1826 in London On his early American tours, he programmed works such as the Chopin Preludes and the Schumann Fantasy in C. [4]. Among other works that he played, as recalled by those such as Claudio Arrau and Vladimir Horowitz who had heard Schnabel in the 1920s, were Chopin's E minor piano concerto and the B-flat minor piano sonata no. Claudio Arrau León ( February 6, 1903 &ndash June 9, 1991) was a Chilean Pianist of world fame for his deep interpretations Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (ולדימיר הורוביץ Владимир Самойлович Горовиц Vladimir Samojlovič Gorovits; Володимир Самійлович 2, and Weber's Konzertstück and piano sonata no. 2. [5][6] Schnabel himself mentioned that he had played the Liszt piano sonata in B minor "very often", as well as the Liszt E-flat piano concerto. [1]
It is not clear why Schnabel dropped those from his performing repertoire in the 1930s, after his final departure from Germany. He claimed that it was because he decided that he wanted to play only "music which is better than it could be performed". [1] However, it has been suggested by some that "Schnabel, uprooted from his native heritage, may have been clinging to the great German composers in an attempt to keep his cultural origins alive". [7]
Schnabel was known for championing the then-neglected sonatas of Schubert and, even more so, Beethoven, including his more challenging late works. While on a tour of Spain, Schnabel wrote to his wife saying that during a performance of Beethoven's Diabelli Variations he had begun to feel sorry for the audience. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Ludwig van Beethoven ( English ˈlʊdvɪg væn ˈbeɪtoʊvən, 16 December 1770 &ndash 26 March 1827 was a German Composer and Pianist. The 33 Variations on a waltz by Anton Diabelli Op 120 commonly known as the Diabelli Variations, is a set of variations for the Piano "I am the only person here who is enjoying this, and I get the money; they pay and have to suffer," he wrote. Schnabel did much to popularize Beethoven's music, making the first complete recording of the Sonatas, completing the set in 1935. Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. This set of recordings has never been out of print, and is considered by many to be the touchstone of Beethoven sonata interpretations, though shortcomings in finger technique mar many performances of fast movements (Rachmaninoff is supposed to have referred to him as "the great adagio pianist"). WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (Сергей Васильевич Рахманинов 2266-Tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl or TEMPO is the Chemical compound with the formula (CH23(CMe22NO He also recorded all the Beethoven piano concertos. A piano concerto is a work written for Piano and Orchestra.See also Harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano
Schnabel as composer
Despite his performing repertoire being concentrated largely on the works of Beethoven, Schubert, Mozart and Brahms, almost all of his own compositions (none of which are in the active repertoire) are atonal. Atonality in its broadest sense describes Music that lacks a tonal center, or key. (It is interesting, in this regard, to note that Schnabel was a close friend of Arnold Schoenberg, his Austrian-American compatriot, who was famous as a pioneering composer of atonal or twelve-tone music. Arnold Schoenberg ( pronounced ˈʃøːnbɛrk (13 September 1874 &ndash 13 July 1951 was an Austrian and later American Composer, associated with Twelve-tone technique (also dodecaphony, especially in British usage twelve-note composition) is a method of musical composition devised by Arnold )
They are "difficult", yet fascinating and complex works, and are marked by genuine originality of style. The composer, Ernst Krenek, has commented that they show signs of undoubted genius (see biography of Schnabel by Cesar Saerchinger). Ernst Krenek ( August 23 1900 &ndash December 22 1991) was an Austrian born (and from 1945 an American) Composer Schnabel's list of compositions eventually included three symphonies, a piano concerto and five string quartets amongst various smaller works. A symphony is a Musical composition, often extended and usually for Orchestra. A piano concerto is a work written for Piano and Orchestra.See also Harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano A string quartet is a Musical ensemble of four String instruments &mdash usually two Violins a Viola and Cello &mdash or a piece
In recent years, a number of his compositions (notably championed by the violinist, Paul Zukofsky) have been recorded and made available on CD, including three of his string quartets, the three symphonies, and piano sonata. Paul Zukofsky (b Brooklyn, New York, October 22, 1943) is an American violinist and conductor known for his work in the field of Contemporary
Further Reading
Schnabel's book My Life and Music (reprinted 1988; Mineola, NY: Dover Publications; ISBN 0-486-25571-9), is a mixture of autobiography and commentary on a variety of musical subjects.
Saerchinger,C. Artur Schnabel. London, 1957 (with disc. )
References
- ^ a b c d e Schnabel, Artur (1961, republished 1988). My Life And Music. New York & London: Dover/Smythe.
- ^ a b c d e (2001) Artur Schnabel: Musiker 1882-1951, Archives of the Akademie der Künste, Berlin. Berlin: Wolke-Verlag.
- ^ a b c Saerchinger, Cesar (1957). Arthur Schnabel: A Biography. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co. .
- ^ Schonberg, Harold C. (1963). The Great Pianists. New York: Simon & Schuster, 426.
- ^ Schonberg, Harold C. (1992). Horowitz: His Life and Music. New York: Simon & Schuster.
- ^ Arrau in conversation with Peter Warwick, 31 July 1976
- ^ Harris Goldsmith, Artur Schnabel: Paradigm or Paradox?, Keynote 3, March 1982
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