Budapest Quartet
Encyclopedia
The Budapest String Quartet was a string quartet
in existence from 1917 to 1967. It originally consisted of three Hungarians and a Dutchman; at the end, the quartet consisted of four Russians. A number of recordings were made for HMV/Victor through 1938; from 1940 through 1967 it recorded for Columbia Records
. Additionally, several of the Quartet's live performances were recorded, at the Library of Congress
and other venues.
:
2nd Violin
:
Viola
:
Cello
:
The members were all protégés of Jenő Hubay
(violin), a Hungarian
pupil of Joseph Joachim
and David Popper
(cello), a Bohemia
n. Hubay and Popper had helped to make Budapest
a major centre for musical education, attracting famous students such as Josef Szigeti
. Hubay and Popper had supported Sándor Végh
and Feri Roth in the formation of quartets, and were themselves part of an earlier Budapest Quartet
, the new quartet being named partly in honour of that. The debut recital of the new Budapest String Quartet (in Hungarian: Budapesti Vónosnégyes), took place in December 1917 in Kolozsvár, then in Hungary, now called Cluj-Napoca
, in present-day Romania
.
The quartet was established with quite forward-looking rules:
No previous quartet had attempted to live entirely on the proceeds from its concerts. This was a brave decision for the time. The original members were Emil Hauser, aged 24, from Budapest; Alfred Indig, from Hungary; István Ipolyi, aged 31, from Újvidék in Hungary; and Harry Son from Rotterdam
, in the Netherlands
.
In 1920 Indig resigned in the hope of advancement; he was replaced by Imre Pogany. Pogany came from Budapest and had studied under Hubay and Kodály
. After resigning, Indig became a soloist with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam
. In 1931 he became Concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic. When the Nazis came to power, Indig fled to Paris where he led a quartet for a while. Nothing more is known about him.
. There they developed a large repertoire. The quartet received mixed reviews, however. In 1925 they played in London
and signed a recording contract with His Master’s Voice
, making recordings at Abbey Road Studios
.
In May 1927, without telling the others, Pogany traveled to Cincinnati to see his friend Fritz Reiner
about a job in the symphony orchestra there. He was offered Principal Second Violin but refused it. The other members of the quartet were furious because if he had left, they would have found it very difficult to find and rehearse a replacement player in time for the new season. In the ensuing row Pogany resigned. He emigrated to America and joined the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and also taught at the local Conservatory of Music. In 1929 he joined the New York Philharmonic Orchestra under Arturo Toscanini
as principal second violin. He remained there until his retirement in 1958.
. He started on the violin at the age of six with Pyotr Stolyarsky, who was also the first teacher of David Oistrakh
and Nathan Milstein
. After the tragic early death of Josef’s father, a wealthy Odessa woman made it possible for Josef, his sister and mother to relocate to Berlin so that Josef could study with Alexander Fiedemann. There Josef befriended Boris Kroyt, another Odessan studying with Fiedemann. At the outbreak of World War I the family returned to Odessa where Josef continued his studies with Naoam Blinder, another Odessa player who had just returned from England.
After the Russian Revolution, Roisman was co-opted to play at farms and factories. He managed to escape in 1923 while working near Poland. He traveled to Prague, then to Berlin. In Berlin, Roisman met up with Kroyt, who found work for him in a film orchestra. It was during this time that the quartet offer came. Roisman was comfortable and secure in the orchestra but his first love was chamber music. In the end his wife Polo persuaded him to take the financial risk and sacrifice involved.
Immediately he began to regret it. Hauser and Son were constantly in dispute and soliciting his vote. Moreover, Roisman had his own issues—in particular Hauser and Ipolyi, who could not play Spiccato (German Springbogen), so that the quartet was forced not to use it. The rest of the quartet had had to become expert in using another technique (German Spitzen) to get around Hauser and Ipolyi's inability to play spiccato. Roisman found it hard work to catch up. He had to spend many hours practicing and he was unhappy with the result. In Germany, the quartet was called das Spitzenquartett (not a compliment) because it substituted Spitzen for Springbogen.
Finally in 1930/31 Son could stand the rows no longer and resigned. He emigrated to Palestine
and played in concerts there and abroad. Shortly before World War II
he made the unfortunate decision to return to Rotterdam
. When the Germans invaded Holland, he and his wife were arrested and never heard of again.
(now Vilnius
, Lithuania
), Schneider had a difficult upbringing. The family had little money and his father was a tyrant. Mischa often found himself defending his younger brother Sasha against their father. In 1920, at the age of 16, Mischa left home to study in Leipzig
under Julius Klengel
, his teacher’s teacher. Fellow students included Emanuel Feuermann
, Gregor Piatigorsky
and Benar Heifetz. After graduating he moved to Frankfurt
, where he taught at the Hoch Conservatory
. He found that he suffered from stage fright when playing solo, a problem that did not exist when playing in a quartet. He joined the Prisca Quartet but resigned after a while due to a personality clash with two of the other members. The Prisca had often played in Cologne
and there he got to know the Reifenbergs, whose daughter Eva had married Emanuel Feuermann
. It was Frau Reifenberg who introduced Schneider to the Budapest Quartet.
tour. Reviews were fairly good but financially the tour was unrewarding. Arguments about Spitzen and other matters continued and relations became difficult. Then in 1932, Hauser wanted to play some concerts with Alice Ehlers. The quartet refused to allow this deviation from the rules and Hauser resigned. He emigrated to Jerusalem, formed a quartet and founded the Palestine Music Conservatory. Hauser helped violinist Bronisław Huberman rescue many Jews from Austria, Czechoslovakia and Germany and was instrumental in founding the Palestine Symphony Orchestra. In 1940 he moved to the U.S., teaching first at Bard College
in upper New York State
, and later at the Juilliard School of Music. Hauser returned to Israel
in 1960.
The new Second was Mischa Schneider’s younger brother Alexander
(Sasha), born Abram Sznejder. At 13, Abram almost died of tetanus after cutting his knee in an accident. The tetanus distorted his joints and recovery was long and painful. Sascha left Vilna in 1924 and joined his brother in Frankfurt
, securing a scholarship to study violin with Adolf Rebner
, the principal violin tutor at the Hoch Conservatory
. In 1927, Alexander became leader (concertmaster) of an orchestra in Saarbrücken
. In 1929 he was appointed leader of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk
Orchestra in Hamburg
. In 1932, he lost his job as a result of the ongoing Nazi campaign against Jews. It was time to leave Germany and the Budapest vacancy happened at just the right moment.
After Sascha's arrival, the Quartet's level of performance improved immediately and the group began attracting larger audiences. Successful tours of the U.S., Dutch East Indies
, Australia
and New Zealand
ensued, and in exchange for relocating to Australia, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
guaranteed the quartet six months of work a year. Still, personal relations within the Quartet were poor. Sasha was often outvoted; he hated this but Ipolyi was usually able to pacify him. Ipolyi himself had mental 'issues'. Mischa had divorced his wife and remarried. The group was still not profitable.
By 1934, Jews had been expelled from all German orchestras but the Quartet, as 'Hungarian' visitors, had been spared. However, one night they received threats from a Nazi group. Overnight, they switched headquarters from Berlin to Paris
, never to return to Germany. They toured Europe and the U.S. but always lived in inexpensive hotels and ate cheaply.
, but during the German occupation was arrested. He was freed thanks to the intervention of Count Bernadotte, head of the International Red Cross
. He fled to Sweden
but returned to Norway after the war. Ipolyi became a Norwegian citizen, taught a quartet in Bergen
and became a professor. Mischa Schneider made sure that Ipolyi received the royalties due to him. He died in 1955.
, whom he had known when they were both children in Odessa and then again in Berlin in 1926. However Ortenberg’s wife wanted him to stick to the violin. Roisman then tried to locate his teenage friend Boris Kroyt in Berlin. Until the Nazis had become all powerful Boris Kroyt had lived well but the Nazis had stopped all Jews from working except in Jewish groups. He had a wife and children to support and they were all in danger. The offer of the Budapest job came at the ideal moment and he was an outstanding natural player. He was such a natural player that he could get away without spending much time practising. They took time to get used to one another but they reached a very high standard.
In November 1936 they reached New York and critics were impressed as never before, comparing them with Toscanini and Schnabel
. Concerts were well attended. After the US they went on to Australia, New Zealand and Dutch East Indies with equally good results. After playing in France and Britain they reached New York again in March 1938. After a difficulty with the Immigration Service their first US concert was very much praised.
All the US concerts were negotiated by Annie Friedberg from New York. This continued throughout their time in the US, beginning with very little money and ending with excellent returns for them and her. On April 25, 1938 they recorded the Mozart Clarinet Quintet with Benny Goodman
for the Victor label.
In 1939 they again had good results in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Norway and Britain but not in Spain and Italy where people were more concerned with political issues. From the US they received a request to play five Stradivarii
string instruments which needed regular use at the Washington
Library of Congress
. These instruments had been purchased and donated by Gertrude Clarke Whittall who had a continuing influence. The recital hall in the grounds of the Library had just been built with money donated by Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge
, a major benefactor of chamber music and of several music festivals. At that time they felt it would keep them away from existing relationships in Europe.
in Oakland California
, a place where they could relax. The Pro Arte Quartet
normally did this but this year they preferred to be in Belgium
. They never returned and the Budapest went to Mills for the next fifteen years. That first year at Mills they learned that World War II
had started in Europe and their European contracts were now void. The Library of Congress offer now sounded more attractive and they accepted it. Their concerts at the library continued for many years and created an important relationship for them.
Since 1925 they had been making recordings for His Master's Voice
, first at the Beethoven Saal in Berlin, then at Abbey Road Studio in London and from 1938 at Camden, New Jersey for RCA Victor, the US subsidiary of HMV. The HMV contract was valid until June 1940. It was not paying well and RCA had a good stock of recordings not yet published. They were not keen to make any more recordings in 1939. The quartet found it difficult to persuade RCA to give them as much work as they wanted or to pay them as their new reputation might justify. RCA were also in no hurry to extend the existing contract. The quartet felt that with their increasing reputation in the US they could do better with Columbia Recording Company
. Columbia were delighted to sign a deal and make as many recordings as the quartet wished as they had no existing stock. The deal was made and kept secret as long as possible. When they finally learned about it RCA wrote, “We are astonished…close to a definite breach of faith”. They should have realised that that they had no right to be the only negotiators in a deal. Over 35 years the quartet recorded 89 pieces, some of them several times. For many years it was Columbia’s leading classical music seller, quite a loss to RCA.
, the man who had nearly been the violist.
Like Joe and Boris, Edgar had grown up in Odessa
. Until the Russian Revolution his father had been the director of a bank. Afterwards they were very short of money. In 1921 he won the gold medal at the Odessa Conservatory and was immediately hired to teach there. In 1924 he moved to Berlin to do better, just as Joe, the Schneiders, and Boris had done. After reaching Berlin he immediately got a scholarship at the Hochschule für Musik. He changed his name from Eleazer to Edgar. He started a quartet and they toured Europe until 1933 when the Nazis sacked them all and he quickly moved to Paris. There the Russian Conservatory formed a quartet and they had some success in Europe. When war was threatened he joined the French Army. In April 1940 he left because of illness. He and his wife left Paris just before the Germans got there. They went to Portugal
and caught the very last Spanish ship to travel from there to the US. After struggling in New York for some time he received a second offer from the Budapest Quartet in December 1943 and this time accepted it.
Edgar was generally considered a fine replacement for Sasha. However, some critics and all the players felt that he should play more forcibly. On the other hand he felt their playing was a bit rough. He also wanted to spend more time rehearsing since he needed to get used to their methods and accustomed to their large repertory. The others, especially Boris, were not so keen to rehearse. It took Edgar two years to feel fully at home. However, the others felt Edgar should do more private practice and he was becoming audibly nervous. Critics still felt the quartet was wonderful but not quite as good as before. Ortenberg was exhausted by the constant traveling. Late in 1948 the others told him they wanted a different second violinist. As soon as it was made public, Ortenberg was swamped by other offers. Ortenberg made his last performance with the quartet on March 10, 1949 at Cornell University. He joined the Settlement Music School
in Philadelphia and stayed there until he retired in 1984. He also taught at Temple University
from 1953 to 1978.
In 1950 the quartet went to Europe for the first time after the war. They agreed not to go to Germany, especially because Schneider had lost his mother and sister at Auschwitz
. This tour, together with the continual demand in the US put heavy stress on Gorodetzky. He developed stage fright, sometimes demanding extra rehearsals of works they had already played.
Then in September 1952 they played in Japan. There were the first quartet to arrive there after the war. The whole season was sold out in two hours. 3000 people were present at the first concert. There were staff to attend to their every need and cars to take them everywhere. One night they felt the need to get some exercise in Okayama. They were walking on a narrow road. Joe fell into a nine foot ditch and broke his left wrist. They had it set at the US Military Hospital in Tokyo
. On return to the US they were told the wrist had been improperly set and it had to be broken and reset. Concerts were switched to trios and piano quartets. After months of hard work Joe resumed duties in Portland
, Oregon
on January 12, 1953.
In 1954 they had another Japanese tour with even greater success but Jac was getting more uncomfortable. In February he told the others he wanted to leave. They hoped to talk him out of it. No one realised how unwell he was. Finally in November 1955 he killed himself in a small hotel in Washington. The others felt awful. They played benefit concerts at the Settlement Music School. Later Mischa left them most of his music and on his death Joe left them most of his money.
In the ten years he was away Sasha had been very busy. He rejected offers to lead the Pro Arte and Paganini Quartet
s. He toured with Ralph Kirkpatrick
. He played unaccompanied Bach. He played trios. He studied with Pablo Casals
in Prades
and persuaded Casals to start festivals in Prades, Puerto Rico
, Israel and Marlboro
in Vermont
. He started a quartet to record all the 83 Haydn quartets for the Haydn Society although they ran out of money before it was finished. He persuaded Mrs Coolidge to finance the provision of free outdoor concerts in Greenwich Village
. He played with the Budapest when Ortenberg or Gorodetzky was not well.
apparently owing to a mild heart attack at the end of 1960. Only then did he tell the others that, as early as 1939 he had been told that his blood pressure was high. Occasionally he had had intonation problems but in 1960 it got worse.
In March 1962 they played their final concert in the Library of Congress. There had been a number of issues of which Joe’s intonation had been the worst. Critics and listeners had complained and Mrs Coolidge herself had complained. They were replaced by the young Juilliard Quartet. Then in the autumn they were in Europe when suddenly Joe suffered a slipped disc. He restarted playing in early 1963 and they returned to Australia after twenty six years away. Joe’s energy was declining and they cut down the number of concerts year by year.
at Marlboro College
in southern Vermont. It was a School, a Music Festival and a Summer Retreat. He was a whirlwind. He pushed the young players to stretch their talents. In time he brought the other Budapest players and they made the place a breeding ground for a generation of chamber musicians. The school had been founded in 1950 by the violinist Adolf Busch
and flautist Marcel Moyse
and their families. Busch died before Sasha arrived but his son-in-law Rudolf Serkin
was still very active and the two men became staunch friends. Sasha spent the next twenty summers there.
In 1962 Sasha persuaded Mischa to come too and the next year the whole quartet came. Many experienced musicians came. Many talented younger players came and reached high standards. Students found Sasha assertive and his manner was a bit hard on those who were nervous or not reaching for the highest standards. For the best however he was perfect. Mischa and Boris were gentler. They were very willing to try new ideas from their students and each side was inspired by the enthusiasm of the other.
Sasha persuaded Michael Tree
, Arnold Steinhardt
, John Dalley
and David Soyer
to form a quartet – a daunting challenge for any player – and Boris suggested the name Guarneri. They spent a lot of time together at Marlboro and the Guarneri Quartet
may be regarded as the musical heirs of the Budapest Quartet.
In later years the Budapest played fewer concerts and saw each other only for concerts. Audiences filled the halls and they were admired but they did not practice very often either individually or together. There were errors of detail but the general effect was still good. Sasha felt he wanted to share what he was still learning but Joe wanted to stay as he was.
’s “American” Quartet and Smetana
’s Quartet “From My Life”. Joe had major intonation problems and Mischa had trouble with his back. A recording of the Dvořák was spliced together from multiple takes and published but the players refused to accept a similar splice of the Smetana. Then Mischa and Boris and the Guarneri performed and recorded Tchaikovsky's “Souvenir de Florence” with success. Immediately Mischa had to have an operation on his back, which had troubled him since 1930. The operation failed, and a second attempt also failed. Misha never played again but he did teach extensively.
In 1977 Sasha abruptly left Marlboro. He never explained why but he and Serkin remained fast friends. In 1969 Boris died of cancer. In 1974 Joe had a heart attack and died. In 1993 Sasha had heart failure and died having played almost to the end.
The Budapest String Quartet had a huge influence on chamber music
in the United States and internationally. When they began in the late 1930s it was hard to get big audiences. The concerts in Washington and New York, the radio broadcasts and the many records gradually raised audience numbers, made them famous and wealthy and set a high standard which was influential on many later players.
Jascha Heifetz
was once quoted as saying: "One Russian is an anarchist. Two Russians are a chess game. Three Russians are a revolution. Four Russians are the Budapest String Quartet."
This history section is based on the book by Nat Brandt, listed as a source. However the book contains much more information than this.
Square brackets indicate the initials of the violist, or of the second violinist; e.g., [Va=II] indicates István Ipolyi as violist. Several recording dates are either unspecified or unknown. All of the earlier recordings were first issued as shellac 78 rpm records, many later reissued as vinyl LPs, and subsequently in CD format. First issue of the late recordings was directly to LP format.
Recordings for Columbia
1st Violin: Josef Roisman; 2nd Violin: Alexander Schneider, Edgar Ortenberg, or Jac Gorodetzky; Viola: Boris Kroyt;
Cello: Mischa Schneider
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...
in existence from 1917 to 1967. It originally consisted of three Hungarians and a Dutchman; at the end, the quartet consisted of four Russians. A number of recordings were made for HMV/Victor through 1938; from 1940 through 1967 it recorded for 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...
. Additionally, several of the Quartet's live performances were recorded, at the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
and other venues.
Members
1st ViolinViolin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
:
- Emil Hauser (1893–1978) (from 1917 to 1932)
- Josef Roisman (Joe) (1900–1974) (from 1932 to 1967)
2nd Violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
:
- Alfred Indig (from 1917 to 1920)
- Imre Pogany (1893–1975) (from 1920 to 1927)
- Josef Roisman (Joe) (1900–1974) (from 1927 to 1932)
- Alexander SchneiderAlexander SchneiderAlexander Schneider was a violinist, conductor, and educator. Born in Vilna, Lithuania, he later moved to the United States as a member of the Budapest Quartet.- Biography :...
(Sasha) (1908–1993) (from 1932 to 1944 and from 1955 to 1967) - Edgar OrtenbergEdgar OrtenbergEdgar Ortenberg was a violinist in the Budapest String Quartet and taught violin at the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
(1900–1996) (from 1944 to 1949) - Jac Gorodetzky (1913–1955) (from 1949 to 1955)
Viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
:
- István Ipolyi (1886–1955) (from 1917 to 1936)
- Boris Kroyt (1897–1969) (from 1936 to 1967)
Cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
:
- Harry Son (1880- ca.1940) (from 1917 to 1930)
- Mischa Schneider (1904–1985) (from 1930 to 1967)
Foundation
The Budapest String Quartet was formed in 1917 by four friends, all members of opera orchestras that had ceased playing owing to World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
The members were all protégés of Jenő Hubay
Jeno Hubay
Eugen Huber , better known by his Hungarian name Jenő Hubay , was a Hungarian violinist, composer and music teacher.-Early life:Eugen Huber was born into a German family of musicians in Pest, Hungary...
(violin), a Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
pupil of Joseph Joachim
Joseph Joachim
Joseph Joachim was a Hungarian violinist, conductor, composer and teacher. A close collaborator of Johannes Brahms, he is widely regarded as one of the most significant violinists of the 19th century.-Origins:...
and David Popper
David Popper
David Popper was a Bohemian cellist and composer.-Life:He was born in Prague, and studied music at the Prague Conservatory. He studied the cello under Julius Goltermann , and soon attracted attention...
(cello), a Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
n. Hubay and Popper had helped to make Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
a major centre for musical education, attracting famous students such as Josef Szigeti
Joseph Szigeti
Joseph Szigeti was a Hungarian violinist.Born into a musical family, he spent his early childhood in a small town in Transylvania. He quickly proved himself to be a child prodigy on the violin, and moved to Budapest with his father to study with the renowned pedagogue Jenő Hubay...
. Hubay and Popper had supported Sándor Végh
Sándor Végh
Sándor Végh was a Hungarian, later French, violinist and conductor. He was best known as one of the great chamber music violinists of the twentieth century.- Education :...
and Feri Roth in the formation of quartets, and were themselves part of an earlier Budapest Quartet
Budapest Quartet (1886)
The Budapest Quartet was a string quartet established in Budapest, Hungary in 1886 by Jenő Hubay and David Popper.Johannes Brahms performed with the quartet and thought it was the best he had heard....
, the new quartet being named partly in honour of that. The debut recital of the new Budapest String Quartet (in Hungarian: Budapesti Vónosnégyes), took place in December 1917 in Kolozsvár, then in Hungary, now called Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, in present-day Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
The quartet was established with quite forward-looking rules:
- All disputes, musical or business, were to be resolved by a vote. In case of a tie—no change.
- Players were not allowed to take engagements outside the quartet.
- Players were paid equally—no preference was given for the leader (first violin).
- No wives or girlfriends were permitted at rehearsals or discussions.
No previous quartet had attempted to live entirely on the proceeds from its concerts. This was a brave decision for the time. The original members were Emil Hauser, aged 24, from Budapest; Alfred Indig, from Hungary; István Ipolyi, aged 31, from Újvidék in Hungary; and Harry Son from Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
, in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
In 1920 Indig resigned in the hope of advancement; he was replaced by Imre Pogany. Pogany came from Budapest and had studied under Hubay and Kodály
Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is best known internationally as the creator of the Kodály Method.-Life:Born in Kecskemét, Kodály learned to play the violin as a child....
. After resigning, Indig became a soloist with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is a symphony orchestra of the Netherlands, based at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. In 1988, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands conferred the "Royal" title upon the orchestra...
. In 1931 he became Concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic. When the Nazis came to power, Indig fled to Paris where he led a quartet for a while. Nothing more is known about him.
A Move to Berlin
In 1921 or 1922, owing to unrest in Budapest, the quartet moved to BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. There they developed a large repertoire. The quartet received mixed reviews, however. In 1925 they played in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and signed a recording contract with His Master’s Voice
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
, making recordings at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
.
In May 1927, without telling the others, Pogany traveled to Cincinnati to see his friend Fritz Reiner
Fritz Reiner
Frederick Martin “Fritz” Reiner was a prominent conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century.-Biography:...
about a job in the symphony orchestra there. He was offered Principal Second Violin but refused it. The other members of the quartet were furious because if he had left, they would have found it very difficult to find and rehearse a replacement player in time for the new season. In the ensuing row Pogany resigned. He emigrated to America and joined the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and also taught at the local Conservatory of Music. In 1929 he joined the New York Philharmonic Orchestra under Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
as principal second violin. He remained there until his retirement in 1958.
Josef Roisman – Second Violin
The man recommended to replace Pogany was Josef Roisman (Joe). Roisman was born on 25 July 1900 in OdessaOdessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
. He started on the violin at the age of six with Pyotr Stolyarsky, who was also the first teacher of David Oistrakh
David Oistrakh
David Fyodorovich Oistrakh , , David Fiodorović Ojstrakh, ; – October 24, 1974, was a Soviet violinist....
and Nathan Milstein
Nathan Milstein
Nathan Mironovich Milstein was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist.Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and for works from the Romantic period...
. After the tragic early death of Josef’s father, a wealthy Odessa woman made it possible for Josef, his sister and mother to relocate to Berlin so that Josef could study with Alexander Fiedemann. There Josef befriended Boris Kroyt, another Odessan studying with Fiedemann. At the outbreak of World War I the family returned to Odessa where Josef continued his studies with Naoam Blinder, another Odessa player who had just returned from England.
After the Russian Revolution, Roisman was co-opted to play at farms and factories. He managed to escape in 1923 while working near Poland. He traveled to Prague, then to Berlin. In Berlin, Roisman met up with Kroyt, who found work for him in a film orchestra. It was during this time that the quartet offer came. Roisman was comfortable and secure in the orchestra but his first love was chamber music. In the end his wife Polo persuaded him to take the financial risk and sacrifice involved.
Immediately he began to regret it. Hauser and Son were constantly in dispute and soliciting his vote. Moreover, Roisman had his own issues—in particular Hauser and Ipolyi, who could not play Spiccato (German Springbogen), so that the quartet was forced not to use it. The rest of the quartet had had to become expert in using another technique (German Spitzen) to get around Hauser and Ipolyi's inability to play spiccato. Roisman found it hard work to catch up. He had to spend many hours practicing and he was unhappy with the result. In Germany, the quartet was called das Spitzenquartett (not a compliment) because it substituted Spitzen for Springbogen.
Finally in 1930/31 Son could stand the rows no longer and resigned. He emigrated to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and played in concerts there and abroad. Shortly before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he made the unfortunate decision to return to Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. When the Germans invaded Holland, he and his wife were arrested and never heard of again.
Mischa Schneider – Cellist
The new cellist was originally named Mojzesz Sznejder, later rendered in German as 'Mischa Schneider'. Born in 1904 in Vilna, RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(now 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...
), Schneider had a difficult upbringing. The family had little money and his father was a tyrant. Mischa often found himself defending his younger brother Sasha against their father. In 1920, at the age of 16, Mischa left home to study in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
under Julius Klengel
Julius Klengel
Julius Klengel was a German cellist who is most famous for his etudes and solo pieces written for the instrument. He was the brother of Paul Klengel....
, his teacher’s teacher. Fellow students included Emanuel Feuermann
Emanuel Feuermann
Emanuel Feuermann was an internationally celebrated cellist in the first half of the 20th century.-Biography:...
, Gregor Piatigorsky
Gregor Piatigorsky
Gregor Piatigorsky was a Russian-born American cellist.-Early life:...
and Benar Heifetz. After graduating he moved to Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, where he taught at the Hoch Conservatory
Hoch Conservatory
Dr. Hoch’s Konservatorium - Musikakademie was founded in Frankfurt am Main on September 22, 1878. Through the generosity of Frankfurter Joseph Hoch, who bequeathed the Conservatory one million German gold marks in his testament, a school for music and the arts was established for all age groups. ...
. He found that he suffered from stage fright when playing solo, a problem that did not exist when playing in a quartet. He joined the Prisca Quartet but resigned after a while due to a personality clash with two of the other members. The Prisca had often played in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and there he got to know the Reifenbergs, whose daughter Eva had married Emanuel Feuermann
Emanuel Feuermann
Emanuel Feuermann was an internationally celebrated cellist in the first half of the 20th century.-Biography:...
. It was Frau Reifenberg who introduced Schneider to the Budapest Quartet.
American Debut
In January and February 1931, the quartet made its first United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
tour. Reviews were fairly good but financially the tour was unrewarding. Arguments about Spitzen and other matters continued and relations became difficult. Then in 1932, Hauser wanted to play some concerts with Alice Ehlers. The quartet refused to allow this deviation from the rules and Hauser resigned. He emigrated to Jerusalem, formed a quartet and founded the Palestine Music Conservatory. Hauser helped violinist Bronisław Huberman rescue many Jews from Austria, Czechoslovakia and Germany and was instrumental in founding the Palestine Symphony Orchestra. In 1940 he moved to the U.S., teaching first at Bard College
Bard College
Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:...
in upper New York State
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and later at the Juilliard School of Music. Hauser returned to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in 1960.
Roisman becomes the Leader and Alexander Schneider the Second Violinist
Having lost Hauser, the quartet needed a new leader. Introducing an unknown person as leader is a risky step for a quartet. Owing to the established relationships and 'comfort level', a transition from Second Violin to First is safer. For this reason, Roisman was persuaded to make the switch from Second to First.The new Second was Mischa Schneider’s younger brother Alexander
Alexander Schneider
Alexander Schneider was a violinist, conductor, and educator. Born in Vilna, Lithuania, he later moved to the United States as a member of the Budapest Quartet.- Biography :...
(Sasha), born Abram Sznejder. At 13, Abram almost died of tetanus after cutting his knee in an accident. The tetanus distorted his joints and recovery was long and painful. Sascha left Vilna in 1924 and joined his brother in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, securing a scholarship to study violin with Adolf Rebner
Adolf Rebner
Adolf Franklin Rebner was an Austrian violinist and violist....
, the principal violin tutor at the Hoch Conservatory
Hoch Conservatory
Dr. Hoch’s Konservatorium - Musikakademie was founded in Frankfurt am Main on September 22, 1878. Through the generosity of Frankfurter Joseph Hoch, who bequeathed the Conservatory one million German gold marks in his testament, a school for music and the arts was established for all age groups. ...
. In 1927, Alexander became leader (concertmaster) of an orchestra in Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken is the capital of the state of Saarland in Germany. The city is situated at the heart of a metropolitan area that borders on the west on Dillingen and to the north-east on Neunkirchen, where most of the people of the Saarland live....
. In 1929 he was appointed leader of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk
Norddeutscher Rundfunk
Norddeutscher Rundfunk is a public radio and television broadcaster, based in Hamburg. In addition to the city-state of Hamburg, NDR transmits for the German states of Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schleswig-Holstein...
Orchestra in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. In 1932, he lost his job as a result of the ongoing Nazi campaign against Jews. It was time to leave Germany and the Budapest vacancy happened at just the right moment.
After Sascha's arrival, the Quartet's level of performance improved immediately and the group began attracting larger audiences. Successful tours of the U.S., Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
ensued, and in exchange for relocating to Australia, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
guaranteed the quartet six months of work a year. Still, personal relations within the Quartet were poor. Sasha was often outvoted; he hated this but Ipolyi was usually able to pacify him. Ipolyi himself had mental 'issues'. Mischa had divorced his wife and remarried. The group was still not profitable.
By 1934, Jews had been expelled from all German orchestras but the Quartet, as 'Hungarian' visitors, had been spared. However, one night they received threats from a Nazi group. Overnight, they switched headquarters from Berlin to 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...
, never to return to Germany. They toured Europe and the U.S. but always lived in inexpensive hotels and ate cheaply.
The Last Founding Member Leaves
Ipolyi became an isolated member of the quartet, the only Hungarian among three Russians. He was also the only Spitzen player left, old-fashioned in style and undergoing a nervous breakdown as well. In 1936 the others persuaded him to resign. He settled in NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, but during the German occupation was arrested. He was freed thanks to the intervention of Count Bernadotte, head of the International Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross is a private humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland. States parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, have given the ICRC a mandate to protect the victims of international and...
. He fled to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
but returned to Norway after the war. Ipolyi became a Norwegian citizen, taught a quartet in Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
and became a professor. Mischa Schneider made sure that Ipolyi received the royalties due to him. He died in 1955.
Boris Kroyt becomes Violist
It was urgent to replace the viola player Ipolyi. The Australian Broadcast Corporation had engaged the Quartet for a twenty-week tour to start in May 1937 with four performances a week and the option of another ten weeks in New Zealand. They needed the money. They also had regular engagements in Europe and America. Roisman nearly engaged Edgar OrtenbergEdgar Ortenberg
Edgar Ortenberg was a violinist in the Budapest String Quartet and taught violin at the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, whom he had known when they were both children in Odessa and then again in Berlin in 1926. However Ortenberg’s wife wanted him to stick to the violin. Roisman then tried to locate his teenage friend Boris Kroyt in Berlin. Until the Nazis had become all powerful Boris Kroyt had lived well but the Nazis had stopped all Jews from working except in Jewish groups. He had a wife and children to support and they were all in danger. The offer of the Budapest job came at the ideal moment and he was an outstanding natural player. He was such a natural player that he could get away without spending much time practising. They took time to get used to one another but they reached a very high standard.
In November 1936 they reached New York and critics were impressed as never before, comparing them with Toscanini and 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...
. Concerts were well attended. After the US they went on to Australia, New Zealand and Dutch East Indies with equally good results. After playing in France and Britain they reached New York again in March 1938. After a difficulty with the Immigration Service their first US concert was very much praised.
All the US concerts were negotiated by Annie Friedberg from New York. This continued throughout their time in the US, beginning with very little money and ending with excellent returns for them and her. On April 25, 1938 they recorded the Mozart Clarinet Quintet with Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
for the Victor label.
In 1939 they again had good results in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Norway and Britain but not in Spain and Italy where people were more concerned with political issues. From the US they received a request to play five Stradivarii
Stradivarius
The name Stradivarius is associated with violins built by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari. According to their reputation, the quality of their sound has defied attempts to explain or reproduce, though this belief is controversial...
string instruments which needed regular use at the Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
. These instruments had been purchased and donated by Gertrude Clarke Whittall who had a continuing influence. The recital hall in the grounds of the Library had just been built with money donated by Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge
Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge
Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge aka Liz Coolidge , born Elizabeth Penn Sprague, was an American pianist and patron of music, especially of chamber music....
, a major benefactor of chamber music and of several music festivals. At that time they felt it would keep them away from existing relationships in Europe.
U.S. becomes the home base
In the summer they were back spending three months in the US at Mills CollegeMills College
Mills College is an independent liberal arts women's college founded in 1852 that offers bachelor's degrees to women and graduate degrees and certificates to women and men. Located in Oakland, California, Mills was the first women's college west of the Rockies. The institution was initially founded...
in Oakland California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, a place where they could relax. The Pro Arte Quartet
Pro Arte Quartet
The Pro Arte String Quartet was founded in Belgium in 1912, and transferred permanently to Madison, Wisconsin in 1941. After becoming the Court Quartet to Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, the Pro Arte began the first of many international tours in 1919. Bartok, Milhaud and Honegger entrusted the...
normally did this but this year they preferred to be in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. They never returned and the Budapest went to Mills for the next fifteen years. That first year at Mills they learned that World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
had started in Europe and their European contracts were now void. The Library of Congress offer now sounded more attractive and they accepted it. Their concerts at the library continued for many years and created an important relationship for them.
Since 1925 they had been making recordings for His Master's Voice
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
, first at the Beethoven Saal in Berlin, then at Abbey Road Studio in London and from 1938 at Camden, New Jersey for RCA Victor, the US subsidiary of HMV. The HMV contract was valid until June 1940. It was not paying well and RCA had a good stock of recordings not yet published. They were not keen to make any more recordings in 1939. The quartet found it difficult to persuade RCA to give them as much work as they wanted or to pay them as their new reputation might justify. RCA were also in no hurry to extend the existing contract. The quartet felt that with their increasing reputation in the US they could do better with Columbia Recording Company
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...
. Columbia were delighted to sign a deal and make as many recordings as the quartet wished as they had no existing stock. The deal was made and kept secret as long as possible. When they finally learned about it RCA wrote, “We are astonished…close to a definite breach of faith”. They should have realised that that they had no right to be the only negotiators in a deal. Over 35 years the quartet recorded 89 pieces, some of them several times. For many years it was Columbia’s leading classical music seller, quite a loss to RCA.
Alexander Schneider replaced by Edgar Ortenberg
Sasha felt he could and needed to work outside the quartet. As second violin he did not get the same challenges as the leader. After thinking about this a lot, he finally reached his decision and told the others on November 26, 1943. He was still only thirty-five years old, having spent eleven years in the quartet and needed to expand his range. On January 1, 1944 the quartet selected the new second violin. He was Edgar OrtenbergEdgar Ortenberg
Edgar Ortenberg was a violinist in the Budapest String Quartet and taught violin at the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, the man who had nearly been the violist.
Like Joe and Boris, Edgar had grown up in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
. Until the Russian Revolution his father had been the director of a bank. Afterwards they were very short of money. In 1921 he won the gold medal at the Odessa Conservatory and was immediately hired to teach there. In 1924 he moved to Berlin to do better, just as Joe, the Schneiders, and Boris had done. After reaching Berlin he immediately got a scholarship at the Hochschule für Musik. He changed his name from Eleazer to Edgar. He started a quartet and they toured Europe until 1933 when the Nazis sacked them all and he quickly moved to Paris. There the Russian Conservatory formed a quartet and they had some success in Europe. When war was threatened he joined the French Army. In April 1940 he left because of illness. He and his wife left Paris just before the Germans got there. They went to Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and caught the very last Spanish ship to travel from there to the US. After struggling in New York for some time he received a second offer from the Budapest Quartet in December 1943 and this time accepted it.
Edgar was generally considered a fine replacement for Sasha. However, some critics and all the players felt that he should play more forcibly. On the other hand he felt their playing was a bit rough. He also wanted to spend more time rehearsing since he needed to get used to their methods and accustomed to their large repertory. The others, especially Boris, were not so keen to rehearse. It took Edgar two years to feel fully at home. However, the others felt Edgar should do more private practice and he was becoming audibly nervous. Critics still felt the quartet was wonderful but not quite as good as before. Ortenberg was exhausted by the constant traveling. Late in 1948 the others told him they wanted a different second violinist. As soon as it was made public, Ortenberg was swamped by other offers. Ortenberg made his last performance with the quartet on March 10, 1949 at Cornell University. He joined the Settlement Music School
Settlement Music School (Philadelphia)
Settlement Music School is a community music education organization with branches in and around Philadelphia. Founded in 1908, it is the largest community school of the arts in the United States serving 15,000 students each year, regardless of age, race, or financial means through outreach and at...
in Philadelphia and stayed there until he retired in 1984. He also taught at Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
from 1953 to 1978.
Jac Gorodetzky
The new second violin was Jac Gorodetzky. He was born in Odessa but the family moved to London when he was only one, to avoid a pogrom. They moved to the US before the war, settling in Philadelphia. He was well thought of as a student and secured good positions in orchestras and quartets. However his playing, like Ortenberg’s, was a little quiet. He was well thought of at the Budapest auditions and was in his mid-thirties.In 1950 the quartet went to Europe for the first time after the war. They agreed not to go to Germany, especially because Schneider had lost his mother and sister at Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
. This tour, together with the continual demand in the US put heavy stress on Gorodetzky. He developed stage fright, sometimes demanding extra rehearsals of works they had already played.
Then in September 1952 they played in Japan. There were the first quartet to arrive there after the war. The whole season was sold out in two hours. 3000 people were present at the first concert. There were staff to attend to their every need and cars to take them everywhere. One night they felt the need to get some exercise in Okayama. They were walking on a narrow road. Joe fell into a nine foot ditch and broke his left wrist. They had it set at the US Military Hospital in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. On return to the US they were told the wrist had been improperly set and it had to be broken and reset. Concerts were switched to trios and piano quartets. After months of hard work Joe resumed duties in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
on January 12, 1953.
In 1954 they had another Japanese tour with even greater success but Jac was getting more uncomfortable. In February he told the others he wanted to leave. They hoped to talk him out of it. No one realised how unwell he was. Finally in November 1955 he killed himself in a small hotel in Washington. The others felt awful. They played benefit concerts at the Settlement Music School. Later Mischa left them most of his music and on his death Joe left them most of his money.
Alexander Schneider Returns
Joe refused to accept another new second violinist but fortunately they managed to persuade Sasha to return. Against their previous rule they allowed him to spend some time working independently because they needed him and they did not want to take as many engagements as before. As soon as he returned they all felt happier than for many years and the critics were fulsome in their praise.In the ten years he was away Sasha had been very busy. He rejected offers to lead the Pro Arte and Paganini Quartet
Paganini Quartet
The Paganini Quartet was a virtuoso string quartet founded by its first violinist, Henri Temianka, in 1946. The quartet drew its name from the fact that all four of its instruments, made by Antonio Stradivari , had once been owned by the great Italian violinist and composer Niccolo Paganini...
s. He toured with Ralph Kirkpatrick
Ralph Kirkpatrick
Ralph Kirkpatrick was an American musician, musicologist and harpsichordist. He is most famous for his chronological catalog of Domenico Scarlatti's keyboard sonatas.-Life and work:...
. He played unaccompanied Bach. He played trios. He studied with Pablo Casals
Pablo Casals
Pau Casals i Defilló , known during his professional career as Pablo Casals, was a Spanish Catalan cellist and conductor. He is generally regarded as the pre-eminent cellist of the first half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest cellists of all time...
in Prades
Prades, Pyrénées-Orientales
Prades is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. It is the capital of the historical Conflent comarca. Its inhabitants are called Pradéens.-Geography:...
and persuaded Casals to start festivals in Prades, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, Israel and Marlboro
Marlboro College
Marlboro College is a small, coeducational, alternative liberal-arts college in Marlboro, Vermont, USA.-History:Marlboro College was founded in 1946 by Walter Hendricks for returning World War II veterans on Potash Hill in Marlboro, Vermont. The school's operation was initially financed using money...
in Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. He started a quartet to record all the 83 Haydn quartets for the Haydn Society although they ran out of money before it was finished. He persuaded Mrs Coolidge to finance the provision of free outdoor concerts in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
. He played with the Budapest when Ortenberg or Gorodetzky was not well.
Decline
As the 1960s approached the quartet was very happy. It was the most popular and famous quartet, with 55 record albums published by Columbia and two million copies sold and playing in many famous venues and festivals. However in 1960 Joe started to have periods of poor intonationIntonation (music)
Intonation, in music, is a musician's realization of pitch accuracy, or the pitch accuracy of a musical instrument. Intonation may be flat, sharp, or both, successively or simultaneously.-Interval, melody, and harmony:...
apparently owing to a mild heart attack at the end of 1960. Only then did he tell the others that, as early as 1939 he had been told that his blood pressure was high. Occasionally he had had intonation problems but in 1960 it got worse.
In March 1962 they played their final concert in the Library of Congress. There had been a number of issues of which Joe’s intonation had been the worst. Critics and listeners had complained and Mrs Coolidge herself had complained. They were replaced by the young Juilliard Quartet. Then in the autumn they were in Europe when suddenly Joe suffered a slipped disc. He restarted playing in early 1963 and they returned to Australia after twenty six years away. Joe’s energy was declining and they cut down the number of concerts year by year.
Marlboro College
In 1955 Sasha had joined the Marlboro Music School and FestivalMarlboro Music School and Festival
The Marlboro Music School and Festival is a retreat for advanced classical training and musicianship held for seven weeks each summer in Marlboro, Vermont...
at Marlboro College
Marlboro College
Marlboro College is a small, coeducational, alternative liberal-arts college in Marlboro, Vermont, USA.-History:Marlboro College was founded in 1946 by Walter Hendricks for returning World War II veterans on Potash Hill in Marlboro, Vermont. The school's operation was initially financed using money...
in southern Vermont. It was a School, a Music Festival and a Summer Retreat. He was a whirlwind. He pushed the young players to stretch their talents. In time he brought the other Budapest players and they made the place a breeding ground for a generation of chamber musicians. The school had been founded in 1950 by the violinist Adolf Busch
Adolf Busch
Adolf Georg Wilhelm Busch was a German-born violinist and composer.Busch was born in Siegen in Westphalia. He studied at the Cologne Conservatory with Willy Hess and Bram Eldering...
and flautist Marcel Moyse
Marcel Moyse
Marcel Moyse was a famous French flutist. Many works were composed for Moyse including the 1934 Flute Concerto by Jacques Ibert...
and their families. Busch died before Sasha arrived but his son-in-law Rudolf Serkin
Rudolf Serkin
Rudolf Serkin , was a Bohemian-born pianist.-Life and early career:Serkin was born in Eger, Bohemia, Austro-Hungarian Empire to a Russian-Jewish family....
was still very active and the two men became staunch friends. Sasha spent the next twenty summers there.
In 1962 Sasha persuaded Mischa to come too and the next year the whole quartet came. Many experienced musicians came. Many talented younger players came and reached high standards. Students found Sasha assertive and his manner was a bit hard on those who were nervous or not reaching for the highest standards. For the best however he was perfect. Mischa and Boris were gentler. They were very willing to try new ideas from their students and each side was inspired by the enthusiasm of the other.
Sasha persuaded Michael Tree
Michael Tree
Michael Tree is an American violist, born in Newark, New Jersey.-Biography:Michael Tree's principal studies were with Efrem Zimbalist on violin and viola at the Curtis Institute of Music...
, Arnold Steinhardt
Arnold Steinhardt
Arnold Steinhardt , is an American violinist, best known as the first violinist of the Guarneri String Quartet....
, John Dalley
John Dalley
John Dalley is second violinist of the Guarneri String Quartet was born in Madison, Wisconsin, United States and studied with Efrem Zimbalist....
and David Soyer
David Soyer
David Soyer was an American cellist.He was born in Philadelphia and began playing the piano at the age of nine. At 11, he started the cello. One of his first teachers was Diran Alexanian. Later on he studied with Emanuel Feuermann and Pablo Casals...
to form a quartet – a daunting challenge for any player – and Boris suggested the name Guarneri. They spent a lot of time together at Marlboro and the Guarneri Quartet
Guarneri Quartet
The Guarneri Quartet was an American string quartet founded in 1964 at the Marlboro Music School and Festival. During the quartet's early years the members were in residence at Harpur College in upstate New York....
may be regarded as the musical heirs of the Budapest Quartet.
In later years the Budapest played fewer concerts and saw each other only for concerts. Audiences filled the halls and they were admired but they did not practice very often either individually or together. There were errors of detail but the general effect was still good. Sasha felt he wanted to share what he was still learning but Joe wanted to stay as he was.
Conclusion
In January 1965 the group spent twelve days recording DvořákAntonín Dvorák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
’s “American” Quartet and Smetana
Bedrich Smetana
Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...
’s Quartet “From My Life”. Joe had major intonation problems and Mischa had trouble with his back. A recording of the Dvořák was spliced together from multiple takes and published but the players refused to accept a similar splice of the Smetana. Then Mischa and Boris and the Guarneri performed and recorded Tchaikovsky's “Souvenir de Florence” with success. Immediately Mischa had to have an operation on his back, which had troubled him since 1930. The operation failed, and a second attempt also failed. Misha never played again but he did teach extensively.
In 1977 Sasha abruptly left Marlboro. He never explained why but he and Serkin remained fast friends. In 1969 Boris died of cancer. In 1974 Joe had a heart attack and died. In 1993 Sasha had heart failure and died having played almost to the end.
The Budapest String Quartet had a huge influence on chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
in the United States and internationally. When they began in the late 1930s it was hard to get big audiences. The concerts in Washington and New York, the radio broadcasts and the many records gradually raised audience numbers, made them famous and wealthy and set a high standard which was influential on many later players.
Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz was a violinist, born in Vilnius, then Russian Empire, now Lithuania. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time.- Early life :...
was once quoted as saying: "One Russian is an anarchist. Two Russians are a chess game. Three Russians are a revolution. Four Russians are the Budapest String Quartet."
This history section is based on the book by Nat Brandt, listed as a source. However the book contains much more information than this.
Recordings
Although most entries in the following lists are taken either from actual LPs and CDs and their liner notes or from trustworthy print or online sources, the lists are supplemented by a discography prepared by Sony Classical, apparently for their own use in identifying stock numbers. However this Sony discography contains a number of errors in identifying recording dates, personnel, and in some instances even compositions and composers. All information from this Sony discography as shown below that could not be verified from another source is preceded by an asterisk [*] as being possibly questionable.Square brackets indicate the initials of the violist, or of the second violinist; e.g., [Va=II] indicates István Ipolyi as violist. Several recording dates are either unspecified or unknown. All of the earlier recordings were first issued as shellac 78 rpm records, many later reissued as vinyl LPs, and subsequently in CD format. First issue of the late recordings was directly to LP format.
Recordings for HMV/Victor through 1938 include
1st Violin: Josef Roisman; 2nd Violin: Alexander Schneider; Viola: István Ipolyi or Boris Kroyt; Cello: Mischa Schneider- Bartok: Quartet no 2 in A minor, op 17 (*[Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 2 in G major, op 18 no 2 (*rec 1938 [*Va=BK]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-35240).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 3 in D major, op 18 no 3 (V 8860-2) (*rec 1935 [*Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-35240).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 7 in F major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 1 (HMV D 1660-3) [*Va=BK]; CD reissue *Sony SBK-47665, *Portrait SBK-46545).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 8 in E minor, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 2 (rec 1935 [Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643, CD reissue *Sony SBK-47665, *Portrait SBK-46545, Biddulph 80222).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 13 in B flat major, op 130 (V 8576-80/DB 2239-43) (rec 1933-4 [Va=II]; CD reissue Biddulph 80222).
- Beethoven: Grosse Fuge in B flat major, op 133 (DB 1559-60).
- BorodinAlexander BorodinAlexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian–Russian parentage. He was a member of the group of composers called The Five , who were dedicated to producing a specifically Russian kind of art music...
: Quartet no 2 in D major (Notturno only) (D 1441). - Brahms: Quartet no 2 in A minor, op 51 no 2 (V 8798-801/DB 2507-10) (rec 1935 [Va=II]; CD reissue Biddulph LAB-120/1).
- Brahms: Quartet no 3 in B flat major op 67 (V 11545-8/DB 1859-62) (rec 1933 [Va=II]; CD reissue *Portrait MPK-45553, Biddulph LAB-120/1).
- Brahms: String Quintet no 1 in F major, op 88, with Alfred HobdayAlfred Charles HobdayAlfred Charles Hobday was an English viola player who made his career in England. He was the elder brother of the double-bass player Claude Hobday....
(rec 1936 [Va=II?BK?]; CD reissue Biddulph LAB-120/1). - Brahms: String Quintet no 2 in G major, op 111, with Hans Mahlke (V 11553-5/DB 1866-8) (rec 1933 [Va=II]; CD reissue Biddulph LAB-120/1).
- Brahms: String Sextet in G major, op 36, with Alfred Hobday & Anthony Pini (rec 1936 [Va=II?BK?]; CD reissue Biddulph LAB-120/1).
- Haydn: Quartet in G major, op 76 no 1 (D 1075-7).
- MendelssohnFelix MendelssohnJakob 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...
: Quartet no 1 in E flat major, op 12 (V 14000-2) ([*Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643). - Mozart: Quartet no 17 in B flat major, K 458 'Hunting' (D 1387-9).
- Mozart: Quartet no 19 in C major, K 465 'Dissonance' (V 8836-8/DB 1863-5) (rec 1932 [Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-33324, *Odyssey Y3-35240, CD reissue EMI CDH-63697).
- Mozart: Quartet no 20 in D major, K 499 'Hoffmeister' (V 11700-2/DB 2228-30) (rec 1934 [Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643, CD reissue EMI CDH-63697).
- Mozart: Quartet no 23 in F major, K 590 (DB 2514-6) (*rec 1935 [*Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-35240).
- Mozart: Clarinet Quintet in A major, K 581 with Benny GoodmanBenny GoodmanBenjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
(rec 1938 [Va=BK]; CD reissue EMI CDH-63697; Naxos Hist 8.111238). - SchubertFranz SchubertFranz 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...
: Quartettsatz in C minor, D 703 (2 versions: (a) V 9273/D1421, (b) DB 2221) ([*Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643: version unspecified). - Schubert: Quartet in A minor, op 29 no 1, D 804 (V 11716-9/DB 2224-7).
- Schubert: Quartet in D minor, D 810 'Death and the Maiden' (V 9241-5/D 1422-6).
- Sibelius: Quartet in D minor, op 56 'Voces Intimae' (Sibelius Society Volume 3).
- Tchaikovsky: Quartet no 2 in F major, op 22 (V 11330-4/D 1655-9).
- WolfHugo WolfHugo Wolf was an Austrian composer of Slovene origin, particularly noted for his art songs, or lieder. He brought to this form a concentrated expressive intensity which was unique in late Romantic music, somewhat related to that of the Second Viennese School in concision but utterly unrelated in...
: Italian SerenadeItalian SerenadeThe Italian Serenade is a piece of music written by Hugo Wolf in 1887. It was written originally for string quartet and named simply Serenade in G major. By April 1890, he was referring to it in his letters as "Italian Serenade". In 1892, he arranged it for string orchestra. It is one of his...
in G major (1887) ([*Va=II]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y4-34643).
Recordings for ColumbiaColumbia RecordsColumbia 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...
from 1940 include
1st Violin: Josef Roisman; 2nd Violin: Alexander Schneider, Edgar Ortenberg, or Jac Gorodetzky; Viola: Boris Kroyt; Cello: Mischa Schneider
- Beethoven: Quartet no 1 in F major, op 18 no 1 (rec 1940 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 1 in F major, op 18 no 1 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 1 in F major, op 18 no 1 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- [Beethoven: Quartet no 2 in G major, op 18 no 2 (rec 1938: see HMV/Victor, above)].
- Beethoven: Quartet no 2 in G major, op 18 no 2 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 2 in G major, op 18 no 2 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- [Beethoven: Quartet no 3 in D major, op 18 no 3 (rec 1935: see HMV/Victor, above)].
- Beethoven: Quartet no 3 in D major, op 18 no 3 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 3 in D major, op 18 no 3 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 4 in C minor, op 18 no 4 (rec 1941 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 4 in C minor, op 18 no 4 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 4 in C minor, op 18 no 4 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 5 in A major, op 18 no 5 (Minuet only) (rec 1941 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62873).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 5 in A major, op 18 no 5 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 5 in A major, op 18 no 5 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 6 in B flat major, op 18 no 6 (rec 1945 [2V=EO]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 6 in B flat major, op 18 no 6 (rec 1951 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MP2K-52531).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 6 in B flat major, op 18 no 6 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M3S-606).
- [Beethoven: Quartet no 7 in F major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 1 (rec 1930s: see HMV/Victor, above)].
- Beethoven: Quartet no 7 in F major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 1 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-3316, CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 7 in F major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 1 (rec 1959 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-46545).
- [Beethoven: Quartet no 8 in E minor, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 2 (rec 1935: see HMV/Victor, above)].
- Beethoven: Quartet no 8 in E minor, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 2 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-3316, CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 8 in E minor, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 2 (rec 1959 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-46545).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 9 in C major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 3 (rec 1941 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870, *Sony SBK-47665).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 9 in C major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 3 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-3316, CD reissue *Sony MPK-45551, United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 9 in C major, op 59 'Rasumovsky' no 3 (rec 1960 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-47665).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 10 in E flat major, op 74 'Harp' (*rec betw 1940-44 [*2V=AS]; CD reissue *Sony SBK-47665).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 10 in E flat major, op 74 'Harp' (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-3316, *Odyssey Y3-35240, CD reissue *Sony MPK-45551, United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 10 in E flat major, op 74 'Harp' (rec 1960 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-47665, CBS MPK-45551).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 11 in F minor, op 95 'Serioso' (rec 1941 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 11 in F minor, op 95 'Serioso' (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; *LP reissue Odyssey Y3-3316, CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 11 in F minor, op 95 'Serioso' (rec 1960 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-46545, CBS MPK-45551).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 12 in E flat major, op 127 (rec 1942 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62873).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 12 in E flat major, op 127 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 12 in E flat major, op 127 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M5S-677).
- [Beethoven: Quartet no 13 in B flat major, op 130 (rec 1933-34: see HMV/Victor, above)].
- Beethoven: Quartet no 13 in B flat major, op 130 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 13 in B flat major, op 130 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M5S-677).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 14 in C sharp minor, op 131 (rec 1940 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62873).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 14 in C sharp minor, op 131 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 14 in C sharp minor, op 131 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M5S-677).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 15 in A minor, op 132 (rec 1942 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62873).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 15 in A minor, op 132 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 15 in A minor, op 132 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M5S-677).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 16 in F major, op 135 (rec 1940 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62873).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 16 in F major, op 135 (rec 1951 or '52 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170019).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 16 in F major, op 135 (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col M5S-677).
- Beethoven: Grosse Fuge in B flat major, op 133 (rec 1961 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SBK-47665, CBS MPK-45551).
- Beethoven: String Quintet in C major, op 29, with Milton KatimsMilton KatimsMilton Katims was an American violist and conductor. He was music director of the Seattle Symphony for 22 years . In that time he added more than 75 works, made recordings, premiered new pieces and led the orchestra on several tours. He expanded the orchestra's series of family and suburban...
(rec 1945 [2V=EO]; CD reissue Sony MH2K-62870). - Beethoven: Quintet in E flat major for piano and winds, op 16 (version for piano and string trio), with Mieczysław Horszowski (LP Col MS-6473).
- Brahms: Quartet no 1 in C minor, op 51 no 1 (rec 1963 [2V=AS]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45686).
- Brahms: Quartet no 2 in A minor, op 51 no 2 (LP Col M2S-734).
- Brahms: Quartet no 3 in B flat major, op 67 (rec 1963 [2V=AS]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45553).
- Brahms: Piano Quartet no 2 in A major, op 26, with Clifford CurzonClifford CurzonSir Clifford Michael Curzon, CBE was an English pianist.-Early life:Clifford Michael Siegenberg was born in London to Michael and Constance Mary Siegenberg...
(rec 1952 [2V=JG]; LP Col ML-4630, CD reissue Naxos Hist 8.110306). - Brahms: Piano Quintet in F minor, op 34, with Clifford Curzon (rec 1950 [2V=JG]; LP Col ML-4336, CD reissue Naxos Hist 8.110307).
- Brahms: Piano Quintet in F minor, op 34, with Rudolf SerkinRudolf SerkinRudolf Serkin , was a Bohemian-born pianist.-Life and early career:Serkin was born in Eger, Bohemia, Austro-Hungarian Empire to a Russian-Jewish family....
(rec 1963 [2V=AS]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45686). - Brahms: Clarinet Quintet in B minor, op 115, with David OppenheimDavid OppenheimDavid Oppenheim is an American professional poker player. Duringthe second season of the World Poker Tour, he placed third in the No-Limit Hold 'em Championship at the Borgata Poker Open in Atlantic City, earning $117,500 and third at the 2010 World Series of Poker in the $50,000 The Players...
(rec 1959 [2V=AS]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45553). - Debussy: Quartet in G minor, op 10 (CD reissue CBS MPK-44843).
- DvořákAntonín DvorákAntonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
: Quartet no 12 in F major, op 96 'American' (rec 1965 [2V=AS]; LP Col M-32792). - Dvořák: String Quintet no 3 in E flat major, op 97, with Walter TramplerWalter TramplerWalter Trampler was a German musician and teacher of the viola and viola d'amore.Born at Munich, he began to study music at the age of 6, learning from his father, a violinist. In his youth, he toured Europe performing as the violist of the Strub String Quartet...
(LP Col M-32792). - Dvořák: Piano Quintet in A major, op 81, with Clifford Curzon (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; LP Col ML-4825, CD reissue Naxos Hist 8.110307).
- Haydn: Quartet in G major, op 76 no 1 (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Haydn: Quartet in D minor, op 76 no 2 'Quinten' (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Haydn: Quartet in C major, op 76 no 3 'Emperor' (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Haydn: Quartet in B flat major, op 76 no 4 'Sunrise' (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Haydn: Quartet in D major, op 76 no 5 (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Haydn: Quartet in E flat major, op 76 no 6 (rec 1954 [2V=JG]; CD reissue United Archives UAR-003).
- Mozart: Quartet no 14 in G major, K 387 (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: Quartet no 15 in D minor, K 421 (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: Quartet no 16 in E flat major, K 428 (rec 1950 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: Quartet no 17 in B flat major, K 458 'Hunting' (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: Quartet no 18 in A major, K 464 (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: Quartet no 19 in C major, K 465 'Dissonant' (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM2K-47219).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 1 in B flat major, K 174, with Walter TramplerWalter TramplerWalter Trampler was a German musician and teacher of the viola and viola d'amore.Born at Munich, he began to study music at the age of 6, learning from his father, a violinist. In his youth, he toured Europe performing as the violist of the Strub String Quartet...
(rec 1956 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527). - Mozart: String Quintet no 2 in C minor, K 406, with Milton KatimsMilton KatimsMilton Katims was an American violist and conductor. He was music director of the Seattle Symphony for 22 years . In that time he added more than 75 works, made recordings, premiered new pieces and led the orchestra on several tours. He expanded the orchestra's series of family and suburban...
(rec 1946 [2V=EO]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527). - Mozart: String Quintet no 2 in C minor, K 406, with Walter Trampler (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col D3S-747).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 3 in C major, K 515, with Milton Katims (rec 1945 [2V=EO]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 3 in C major, K 515, with Walter Trampler (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col D3S-747).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 4 in G minor, K 516, with Milton Katims (rec 1941 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 4 in G minor, K 516, with Walter Trampler (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col D3S-747).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 5 in D major, K 593, with Milton Katims (rec 1946 [2V=EO]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 5 in D major, K 593, with Walter Trampler (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col D3S-747).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 6 in E flat major, K 614, with Milton Katims (rec 1949 [2V=JG]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Mozart: String Quintet no 6 in E flat major, K 614, with Walter Trampler (stereo [2V=AS]; LP Col D3S-747).
- Mozart: Piano Quartet in G minor, K 478, with George SzellGeorge SzellGeorge Szell , originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
(rec 1946 [2V=EO]; CD reissue CBS MPK-47685, Naxos Hist 8.111238). - Mozart: Piano Quartet in G minor, K 478, with Mieczysław Horszowski (rec 1963 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Mozart: Piano Quartet in E flat major, K 493, with George Szell (rec 1946 [2V=EO]; CD reissue CBS MPK-47685, Naxos Hist 8.111238).
- Mozart: Piano Quartet in E flat major, K 493, with Mieczysław Horszowski (rec 1963 [2V=AS]; LP Col MS-6683).
- Mozart: Clarinet Quintet in A major, K 581 'Stadler', with David OppenheimDavid OppenheimDavid Oppenheim is an American professional poker player. Duringthe second season of the World Poker Tour, he placed third in the No-Limit Hold 'em Championship at the Borgata Poker Open in Atlantic City, earning $117,500 and third at the 2010 World Series of Poker in the $50,000 The Players...
(rec 1959 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527). - Mozart: Serenade in G major, K 525 'Eine kleine Nachtmusik' [string quintet version, with Julius Levine, double bass] (rec 1959 [2V=AS]; CD reissue Sony SM3K-46527).
- Ravel: Quartet in F major (1902–03) (CD reissue CBS MPK-44843).
- Schubert: Quartet in A minor, D 804 'Rosamunde' (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45696).
- Schubert: Quartet in D minor, D 810 'Death and the Maiden' (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; CD reissue CBS MPK-45696).
- Schubert: Quartet in G Major, D 887 (rec 1953 [2V=JG]; LP reissue Odyssey Y3-33320).
- Schubert: String Quintet in C major, D 956, with Benar Heifetz, cello (CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170262).
- Schubert: Piano Quintet in A major, D 667 'The Trout', with Mieczysław Horszowski and Julius Levine (CD reissue Sony SBK-46343).
- Schubert: Piano Quintet in A major, D 667 'The Trout', with Mieczysław Horszowski and Georges E. Moleux (CD reissue United Archives UPC 3760138170262).
- SchumannRobert SchumannRobert 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....
: Piano Quintet in E flat major, op 44, with Clifford CurzonClifford CurzonSir Clifford Michael Curzon, CBE was an English pianist.-Early life:Clifford Michael Siegenberg was born in London to Michael and Constance Mary Siegenberg...
(rec 1951 [2V=JG]; LP Col ML-4426, CD reissue Naxos Hist 8.110306). - Schumann: Piano Quintet in E flat major, op 44, with Rudolf SerkinRudolf SerkinRudolf Serkin , was a Bohemian-born pianist.-Life and early career:Serkin was born in Eger, Bohemia, Austro-Hungarian Empire to a Russian-Jewish family....
(rec 1963 [2V=AS]; CD reissue CBS MYK-37256).
Miscellaneous live recordings include
1st Violin: Josef Roisman; 2nd Violin: Alexander Schneider or Edgar Ortenberg; Viola: Boris Kroyt; Cello: Mischa Schneider- Beethoven: Quartet no 12 in E flat major, op 127 (rec live March 15, 1941 [2V=AS] at Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C). - Beethoven: Quartet no 13 in B flat major, op 130 (rec live April 7, 1960 [2V=AS] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 14 in C sharp minor, op 131 (rec live May 7, 1943 [2V=AS] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 15 in A minor, op 132 (rec live December 20, 1945 [2V=EO] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C).
- Beethoven: Quartet no 16 in F major, op 135 (rec live March 16, 1943 [2V=AS] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C).
- Beethoven: Grosse Fuge in B flat major, op 133 (rec live April 7, 1960 [2V=AS] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Bridge 9072 A/C).
- Beethoven: Piano Trio no 9 in G major, op 121a 'Kakadu Variations', with George SzellGeorge SzellGeorge Szell , originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
(rec live May 16, 1946 [2V=EO] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Intaglio INCD 7191). - DvořákAntonín DvorákAntonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
: Piano Quintet in A major, op 81, with Artur Balsam (rec live 1959 [2V=AS] at New York; CD reissue Documents LV 931/32). - Mozart: Quartet no 16 in E flat major, K 428 (rec live 1959 [2V=AS] at New York; CD reissue Documents LV 931/32).
- Schubert: Quartet in D minor, D 810 'Death and the Maiden' (rec live 1959 [2V=AS] at New York; CD reissue Documents LV 931/32).
- Schubert: Piano Quintet in A major, D 667 'The Trout', with George Szell (rec live May 16, 1946 [2V=EO] at Library of Congress; CD reissue Intaglio INCD 7191).
Sources
- R.D. Darrell, The Gramophone Shop Encyclopedia of Recorded Music (New York 1936).
- E. Sackville-West and D. Shawe-Taylor, The Record Year 2 (Collins, London 1953).
- Photograph in R. Stowell (Ed), Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet (2003).