Joseph
Joachim
(
b1831;
d1907)
, Hungarian
, Violinist
Born at Kittsee, near
Presburg, June 28, 1831 ; the
greatest interpreter of classical violin
music of this or any other time. At a
very early age he showed a remarkable
disposition for music, and his father, who
was engaged in commercial pursuits,
anxious to encourage and develop his
young son's musical genius, bought him a
small violins and at the age of five, placed
him under Szervaczinski, conzertmeister
of the opera at Buda-Pesth. After about
two years' study with that excellent
teacher the young prodigy made his first
appearance before the public, on which
occasion he played duets with his master
with great success. In 1838 he went to
Vienna and studied under Böhm, and in
1843, when only twelve years of age,
played at a concert of Madame Viardot's
in Leipzig, and in November of the same
year he appeared at one of the famous
Gewandhaus concerts in that city. In
the lollowing February, 1844, he came to
England and made his debut on March
28,(Joachim celebrated the jubilee of his first appearance) at Drury Lane, for the benefit of
Mr. Bunn, and on May 27th of that year
appeared at the fifth Philharmonic Concert
at the Hanover Square Rooms. The
following November he again played at
one of the Gewandhaus concerts at Leipzig.
About this time his parents expressed
a wish that their son should not
then enter upon the career of a virtuose,
and acting on the advise of David
and of Mendelssohn, Joachim continued
his studies at Leipzig. This
course was quite in accordance with the
views of the young musician in that
he himself desired to be perfected in
musical culture rather than in technique,
and for several years he studied under
David the great classical works for the
violin, especially the music of Bach,
Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Spohr.
in London on March 28 of this year
(1894) with unbounded enthusiasm.
Joachim remained in Leipzig until
October 1850, at a time when Mendelssohn
and Schumann were at the zenith of their
fame ; he received great encouragement
from the former, as also from David, his
master, with whom he occasionally played
at the Gewandhaus concerts with increasing
success. His next visit to
England was in 1847 and again in 1849,
then successively in 1852, 1858, 1859, and
1862, since which time his visit to London
has been an annual event. In 1849 he was
leader of the band at Weimar, where
Liszt was conducting operas and concerts.
Joachim, however, did not long occupy
this post ; his views of music being
diametrically opposed to those of the great
pianist, and he accordingly quitted
Weimar in 1854, and accepted the post of
conductor of concerts, and solo violinist,
at the Court of Hanover. In 1863, during
his stay at Hanover, he married Amalie
Weiss, a notable contralto singer, who
had made a name as an interpreter of
Schumann's songs. In 1868, the two
artists went to Berlin, and Joachim was
appointed head of the Hochschule für
Ausübende Tonkunst (High School for
Musical Execution), which, under his
rule, soon rose to a high position as a
teaching institution. In 1877 the University
of Cambridge bestowed upon him
the degree of Doctor of Music, and he
has been awarded man}' other honours
and degrees in his own country, besides
various orders from the reigning princes.
As an executant, Joachim stands at the
head of living violinists, but it is as a
quartet player that his intellectual
superiority is so apparent ; indeed, in this
respect he has no rival. For many years
during the concert season Joachim has
been the chief attraction at the Popular
Concerts ; he has also performed on
various occasions at the Philharmonic
Concerts, also at the Crystal
Palace. As a composer Joachim has
produced but few works for the violin ; the
most important is the Hungarian Concerto
in D minor, Op. 11. His other compositions
are : Overture to " Hamlet " Op. 4 ;
do. to Schiller's " Demetrius " (MS.), Op.
6 ; do. to " Henry IV." (MS.), Op. 7 ; do.
to a play of Gozzi's (MS.), Op. 8 ; do. in
commemoration of Kleist, the poet, Op.
13 ; Two marches in C and D respectively,
with trios ; "Andantino and Allegro," for
violin and orchestra ; 3 Stücke (Romanze,
Fantasiestück, Frühlingsfantasie), Violin
and pianoforte concerto in one movement,
in G minor, with orchestra, Op.
3 ; 3 Stücke (Lindenrauschen, Abendglocken,
Ballade), violin and pianoforte,
Op. 5 ; Hebrew Melodies, viola and
pianoforte, Op. 9 ; Variations on an
original theme, viola and pianoforte, Op.
10 ; Notturno, viola and pianoforte, Op.
12 ; 3 Cadenzas to Beethoven's violin
concerto, songs, &c. (biographical data comes from the "Biographical Dictionary of Fiddlers"
(1895) by Mason A. Clarke.