Bracha Eden and Alexander Tamir
Encyclopedia
Bracha Eden and Alexander Tamir (born 1931) were Israel
i duo pianists and teachers.
Bracha Eden was born on 15 July 1928, in Jerusalem. Alexander Tamir was born as Alexander Wolkovsky on 2 April 1931, in Vilnius
, Lithuania
. In 1942, as an eleven-year old boy, he composed a Yiddish song called "Shtilar, shtilar
" ("Ponar" in Hebrew; meaning "Quiet, quiet"), for a music competition in the Jewish ghetto
. The song was set as a lullaby in order to confuse the Nazi occupiers. Many of the intended singers were killed before they could compete. The story of this episode and Tamir's recent return to his birth place has been told in the Israeli film Ponar. He changed his name to Tamir after settling in Jerusalem after World War II. Some of the duo's earlier recordings, originally issued under names "Bracha Eden and Alexander Tamir" now appear under the names "Bracha Eden and Alexander Wolkovski".
They met while studying at the Rubin Academy
with Alexander Schroeder, a pupil of Artur Schnabel
. Schroeder encouraged them to play as a duo and they formed their piano duo team in 1952. They continued their studies with Vronsky & Babin
in the United States
. Their duo debut was in 1954 in Israel
. They won the 1957 Vercelli Competition
and toured regularly in many countries, appearing both in recital and as concerto performers with the great orchestras of the world. They later became senior professors at the Rubin Academy, and Tamir was at one time dean of the academy.
They founded the Max Targ Chamber Music Center in Ein Kerem
in 1968, and Tamir founded the Young Artists Competition and the Israel Chopin
Society. He is a member of the board of the International Federation of Chopin Societies.
During the 1990s they began to perform and teach regularly in China, Russia, and Poland, and in 1997 they became directors of the International Duo Piano Seminary.
Their students include Stanislava Varshavski and Diana Shapiro (Tamir being the one to first suggest they play as a duo).
Bracha Eden died on 23 May 2006.
, Mendelssohn
, Mozart
, Rachmaninoff
, Schubert
and Schumann
, and individual works by Bach
, Bartók
, Debussy
, Poulenc
, Ravel
and many others. They were awarded the Grand Prix du Disque
for their recording of Brahms Sonata in F minor for Two Pianos, Op. 34b.
They gave the American premiere of Lutosławski's Paganini Variations (1955) and, at the suggestion of Stravinsky
himself, were the first to perform and record the piano duet version of The Rite of Spring
. They also recorded the four Brahms symphonies in the composer's own transcription for two pianos. They have also presented neglected works for two pianos, including music by Clementi
, Dussek
and Hummel
.
Alexander Tamir has made several transcriptions for piano duo and duet and has written a few works for piano duo.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i duo pianists and teachers.
Bracha Eden was born on 15 July 1928, in Jerusalem. Alexander Tamir was born as Alexander Wolkovsky on 2 April 1931, in Vilnius
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
. In 1942, as an eleven-year old boy, he composed a Yiddish song called "Shtilar, shtilar
Songs of The Vilna Ghetto
Songs of the Vilna Ghetto is a now out-of-print album featuring Yiddish songs from the World War II era. The traditional songs are sung by Nechama Hendel, Chava Alberstein, and Shimon Israeli with accompaniment from the CBS Israel Orchestra and Choir, conducted by Gil Aldema...
" ("Ponar" in Hebrew; meaning "Quiet, quiet"), for a music competition in the Jewish ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
. The song was set as a lullaby in order to confuse the Nazi occupiers. Many of the intended singers were killed before they could compete. The story of this episode and Tamir's recent return to his birth place has been told in the Israeli film Ponar. He changed his name to Tamir after settling in Jerusalem after World War II. Some of the duo's earlier recordings, originally issued under names "Bracha Eden and Alexander Tamir" now appear under the names "Bracha Eden and Alexander Wolkovski".
They met while studying at the Rubin Academy
Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance , founded in 1958 as the Rubin Academy of Music, is located on the Givat Ram campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.-History:...
with Alexander Schroeder, a pupil of Artur Schnabel
Artur Schnabel
Artur Schnabel was an Austrian classical pianist, who also composed and taught. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura...
. Schroeder encouraged them to play as a duo and they formed their piano duo team in 1952. They continued their studies with Vronsky & Babin
Vronsky & Babin
Vronsky & Babin were regarded by many as one of the foremost duo-piano teams of the twentieth century. Vitya Vronsky was born in Yevpatoria . Victor Babin was born in Moscow, Russia...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Their duo debut was in 1954 in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. They won the 1957 Vercelli Competition
Viotti International Music Competition
The Viotti International Music Competition , named after the Italian composer and violinist Gian Battista Viotti , is held every year in Vercelli, Piedmont, Italy...
and toured regularly in many countries, appearing both in recital and as concerto performers with the great orchestras of the world. They later became senior professors at the Rubin Academy, and Tamir was at one time dean of the academy.
They founded the Max Targ Chamber Music Center in Ein Kerem
Ein Kerem
Ein Kerem , lit. “Spring of the Vineyard”, and - ‘Ein Kārem), is an ancient village of the Jerusalem District and now a neighbourhood in southwest of Jerusalem. According to Christian tradition, John the Baptist was born in Ein Kerem, leading to the establishment of many churches and monasteries....
in 1968, and Tamir founded the Young Artists Competition and the Israel Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
Society. He is a member of the board of the International Federation of Chopin Societies.
During the 1990s they began to perform and teach regularly in China, Russia, and Poland, and in 1997 they became directors of the International Duo Piano Seminary.
Their students include Stanislava Varshavski and Diana Shapiro (Tamir being the one to first suggest they play as a duo).
Bracha Eden died on 23 May 2006.
Repertoire
Unfortunately very little is recorded about the life of Bracha Eden. She was of course the elder partner and appears to have been very shy of publicity. In her professional life she was, perhaps, completely overshadowed by her partner. Their partnership, the music they produced, was truly amongst the most accomplished of all duet soloists. However it is known that Eden and Tamir recorded the complete works for two pianos and piano duet of BrahmsJohannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
, Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
, Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
, Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
, Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
and Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
, and individual works by Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
, Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
, Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, Poulenc
Francis Poulenc
Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and a member of the French group Les six. He composed solo piano music, chamber music, oratorio, choral music, opera, ballet music, and orchestral music...
, Ravel
Maurice Ravel
Joseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
and many others. They were awarded the Grand Prix du Disque
Grand Prix du Disque
The Grand Prix du Disque is the premier French award for musical recordings. The award was inaugurated by l'Académie Charles Cros in 1948 and offers prizes in various categories. The categories vary from year to year, and multiple awards are often made in any one category in the same year...
for their recording of Brahms Sonata in F minor for Two Pianos, Op. 34b.
They gave the American premiere of Lutosławski's Paganini Variations (1955) and, at the suggestion of Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
himself, were the first to perform and record the piano duet version of The Rite of Spring
The Rite of Spring
The Rite of Spring, original French title Le sacre du printemps , is a ballet with music by Igor Stravinsky; choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky; and concept, set design and costumes by Nicholas Roerich...
. They also recorded the four Brahms symphonies in the composer's own transcription for two pianos. They have also presented neglected works for two pianos, including music by Clementi
Muzio Clementi
Muzio Clementi was a celebrated composer, pianist, pedagogue, conductor, music publisher, editor, and piano manufacturer. Born in Italy, he spent most of his life in England. He is best known for his piano sonatas, and his collection of piano studies, Gradus ad Parnassum...
, Dussek
Jan Ladislav Dussek
Jan Ladislav Dussek was a Czech composer and pianist. He was an important representative of Czech music abroad in the second half of 18th century and the beginning of 19th century...
and Hummel
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Johann Nepomuk Hummel or Jan Nepomuk Hummel was an Austrian composer and virtuoso pianist. His music reflects the transition from the Classical to the Romantic musical era.- Life :...
.
Alexander Tamir has made several transcriptions for piano duo and duet and has written a few works for piano duo.