Kolisch Quartet
Encyclopedia
The Kolisch Quartet was a string quartet
musical ensemble
founded in Vienna
, originally (early 1920s) as the New Vienna String Quartet for the performance of Schoenberg
's works, and (by 1927) settling to the form in which it was later known. It had a worldwide reputation and made several recordings. The quartet disbanded in the United States
during the early 1940s.
violin 2:
viola:
violoncello:
began to study composition with Arnold Schoenberg
, who also put Kolisch to work in the composer's "Society for Private Musical Performances" (Verein fuer musikalische Privatauffuehrungen). This led to the creation of a string quartet ("Neue Wiener Streichquartett") dedicated to performing Schoenberg's music, but also to performing the classical string quartet repertoire in a manner which would take into account the principles of Schoenberg's teaching. The quartet consisted initially of Kolisch and Fritz Rothschild (alternating first and second violins), Marcel Dick (viola) and Joachim Stutschewsky (cello). This ensemble began to concertize and tour in central Europe.
By 1927 the membership of the ensemble had settled: Kolisch played first violin, Felix Khuner played second violin, Eugene Lehner
played viola and Benar Heifetz played cello; this group became known as the Kolisch Quartet. Numerous works were written for them by composers including Alban Berg
, Anton Webern
, Arnold Schoenberg, and Béla Bartók
. The Quartet's tours extended eventually to include all European countries including Scandinavia, and also (by the mid-1930s) North and South America.
One notable aspect of the Quartet was that they generally performed from memory, including difficult modern works such as the Lyric Suite of Berg. This was not intended as a demonstration of any special powers of memorization, but rather of an approach which involved such careful rehearsal that by the time a piece was ready for performance, the musicians no longer required the score. The quartet used eye contact and were more able to respond musically to one another without music stands interfering.
The Quartet was on tour in Paris
in 1938 when Nazi Germany annexed Austria
. Because of their association with Schoenberg (whose music had been banned by the Nazis) and because most of the members of the Quartet were considered Jewish according to the Nazi legal definition, they did not return to Vienna. They set up their headquarters in Paris and toured from there.
They were on tour in the United States when that country entered the war and civilian transport across the ocean suddenly became unavailable. Rather than continue with the Quartet in the face of great uncertainty about the future, the cellist and violist soon took jobs with major U.S. orchestras (Philadelphia and Boston
, respectively). The Quartet continued to play concerts with replacement players for some time, but when the second violinist left to join an orchestra in San Francisco, the Quartet finally disbanded.
and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
on 78s for the Columbia Records
and RCA
record labels. In 1937 they recorded the four string quartets
of Arnold Schoenberg privately under the composer's supervision; these were re-issued several years later as LP recordings on the "Alco" label. All the commercial recordings of the Kolisch Quartet are currently available on compact discs.
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
musical ensemble
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
founded in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, originally (early 1920s) as the New Vienna String Quartet for the performance of Schoenberg
Schoenberg
Schoenberg is the surname of several persons:* Arnold Schoenberg , Austrian-American composer* Claude-Michel Schoenberg , French record producer, actor, singer, popular songwriter, and musical theatre composer...
's works, and (by 1927) settling to the form in which it was later known. It had a worldwide reputation and made several recordings. The quartet disbanded in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
during the early 1940s.
Personnel
violin 1:- Rudolf KolischRudolf KolischRudolf Kolisch was a Viennese violinist and leader of string quartets, including the Kolisch Quartet and the Pro Arte Quartet. He played a right-handed violin left-handed—an extremely rare occurrence in classical music settings....
violin 2:
- Fritz Rothschild
- Felix KhunerFelix KhunerFelix Khuner was the second violinist of the Kolisch Quartet. He joined the quartet, then the Wien Quartet, in 1927 when the quartet needed a new second violinist. Khuner was reluctant, but when he visited Rudolf Kolisch, he was in conversation with Arnold Schoenberg. "Does the quartet rehearse...
(by 1927)
viola:
- Marcel Dick
- Eugene LehnerEugene LehnerEugene Lehner was a violist and music educator.Mr. Lehner, as he preferred to be addressed, was born in Hungary in 1906. Originally named Jenö Léner, he performed as a self-taught violinist from the time he was 7. When he was 13, the composer Bela Bartok heard him play, and arranged for him to...
(1926-1939)
violoncello:
- Joachim StutschewskyJoachim StutschewskyJoachim-Yehoyachin Stutschewsky, was a Ukraine-born Austrian and Israeli cellist, composer, musicologist.His father, Kalmen-Leyb Stutschewsky was a clarinetist.His was married twice...
- Benar Heifetz (by 1927)
Origins
In the early 1920s the Viennese violinist Rudolf KolischRudolf Kolisch
Rudolf Kolisch was a Viennese violinist and leader of string quartets, including the Kolisch Quartet and the Pro Arte Quartet. He played a right-handed violin left-handed—an extremely rare occurrence in classical music settings....
began to study composition with Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
, who also put Kolisch to work in the composer's "Society for Private Musical Performances" (Verein fuer musikalische Privatauffuehrungen). This led to the creation of a string quartet ("Neue Wiener Streichquartett") dedicated to performing Schoenberg's music, but also to performing the classical string quartet repertoire in a manner which would take into account the principles of Schoenberg's teaching. The quartet consisted initially of Kolisch and Fritz Rothschild (alternating first and second violins), Marcel Dick (viola) and Joachim Stutschewsky (cello). This ensemble began to concertize and tour in central Europe.
By 1927 the membership of the ensemble had settled: Kolisch played first violin, Felix Khuner played second violin, Eugene Lehner
Eugene Lehner
Eugene Lehner was a violist and music educator.Mr. Lehner, as he preferred to be addressed, was born in Hungary in 1906. Originally named Jenö Léner, he performed as a self-taught violinist from the time he was 7. When he was 13, the composer Bela Bartok heard him play, and arranged for him to...
played viola and Benar Heifetz played cello; this group became known as the Kolisch Quartet. Numerous works were written for them by composers including Alban Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
, Anton Webern
Anton Webern
Anton Webern was an Austrian composer and conductor. He was a member of the Second Viennese School. As a student and significant follower of Arnold Schoenberg, he became one of the best-known exponents of the twelve-tone technique; in addition, his innovations regarding schematic organization of...
, Arnold Schoenberg, and Béla 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...
. The Quartet's tours extended eventually to include all European countries including Scandinavia, and also (by the mid-1930s) North and South America.
One notable aspect of the Quartet was that they generally performed from memory, including difficult modern works such as the Lyric Suite of Berg. This was not intended as a demonstration of any special powers of memorization, but rather of an approach which involved such careful rehearsal that by the time a piece was ready for performance, the musicians no longer required the score. The quartet used eye contact and were more able to respond musically to one another without music stands interfering.
The Quartet was on tour in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1938 when Nazi Germany annexed Austria
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
. Because of their association with Schoenberg (whose music had been banned by the Nazis) and because most of the members of the Quartet were considered Jewish according to the Nazi legal definition, they did not return to Vienna. They set up their headquarters in Paris and toured from there.
They were on tour in the United States when that country entered the war and civilian transport across the ocean suddenly became unavailable. Rather than continue with the Quartet in the face of great uncertainty about the future, the cellist and violist soon took jobs with major U.S. orchestras (Philadelphia and Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, respectively). The Quartet continued to play concerts with replacement players for some time, but when the second violinist left to join an orchestra in San Francisco, the Quartet finally disbanded.
Recordings
The Kolisch Quartet recorded several albums of string quartets of Franz SchubertFranz 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 Wolfgang Amadeus 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...
on 78s for the Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
and RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
record labels. In 1937 they recorded the four string quartets
String quartets (Schoenberg)
The Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg published four string quartets, distributed over his lifetime. These were the String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 7 , String Quartet No. 2 in F sharp minor, Op. 10 , String Quartet No. 3, Op. 30 , and the String Quartet No. 4, Op...
of Arnold Schoenberg privately under the composer's supervision; these were re-issued several years later as LP recordings on the "Alco" label. All the commercial recordings of the Kolisch Quartet are currently available on compact discs.
- Mozart: Quartet in C major, K 465; Jascha Veissi, viola; Stefan Auber, cello (Columbia M439)
- Mozart: Quartet in D major, K 575 'Cello' or 'Solo' (Columbia LX 337-8).
- Schubert: Quartet in A minor, Op. 29 (Columbia LX 286-9).
- Schubert: Quartettsatz in C minor (Columbia LX 289).
- Schubert: Quartet in G major, Op. 161 (Columbia LX 357-60).