Mendelssohn Scholarship
Encyclopedia
The Mendelssohn Scholarship refers to two scholarships awarded in Germany and in the United Kingdom. Both commemorate the composer, Felix Mendelssohn
, and are awarded to promising young musicians to enable them to continue their development.
's death in 1847, a group of his friends and admirers formed a committee in London to establish a scholarship to enable musicians to study at the Leipzig Conservatoire, which Mendelssohn had founded in 1843. Their fundraising included a performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah
in 1848, featuring Jenny Lind
. The link between London and Leipzig fell through, resulting in two Mendelssohn Scholarships.
n state as part of an arrangement under which the Mendelssohn family
donated the composer's manuscripts to the state. The first recipient was the composer, Engelbert Humperdinck
, who used it to travel to Italy in 1879.
The scholarship in honour of a Jewish composer was discontinued by the Nazis in 1934. It was revived by the Ministry of Culture of the former East Germany in 1963, in the form of two annual prizes for composition and for performance. It is now awarded by the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
.
and the composer Kurt Weill
.
The following is an incomplete chronological list of recipients of the German Mendelssohn Scholarship.
was elected as the first scholar. Since then it has been awarded from time to time, administered by the Mendelssohn Scholarship Foundation, which is linked to the Royal Academy of Music
. The foundation was created by a trust deed in 1871. Its trustees include the composers Anthony Payne
and Justin Connolly
, and the principal of the Royal Academy of Music
, Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
; and its charitable objects are "For the education of musical students of both sexes in pursuance of the intentions of the founders".
, George Dyson
and Kenneth Leighton
.
The following is an incomplete chronological list of recipients of the British Mendelssohn Scholarship.
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
, and are awarded to promising young musicians to enable them to continue their development.
History
Shortly after MendelssohnFelix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
's death in 1847, a group of his friends and admirers formed a committee in London to establish a scholarship to enable musicians to study at the Leipzig Conservatoire, which Mendelssohn had founded in 1843. Their fundraising included a performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah
Elijah (oratorio)
Elijah, in German: Elias, is an oratorio written by Felix Mendelssohn in 1846 for the Birmingham Festival. It depicts various events in the life of the Biblical prophet Elijah, taken from the books 1 Kings and 2 Kings in the Old Testament....
in 1848, featuring Jenny Lind
Jenny Lind
Johanna Maria Lind , better known as Jenny Lind, was a Swedish opera singer, often known as the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she is known for her performances in soprano roles in opera in Sweden and across Europe, and for an extraordinarily...
. The link between London and Leipzig fell through, resulting in two Mendelssohn Scholarships.
Mendelssohn Scholarship in Germany
In Germany, the Mendelssohn Scholarship was established in the 1870s as a scholarship for foreign students to attend the Leipzig Conservatoire, and was funded by the PrussiaPrussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n state as part of an arrangement under which the Mendelssohn family
Mendelssohn family
The Mendelssohn family are the descendants of the German Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, and include his grandson, the composer Felix Mendelssohn....
donated the composer's manuscripts to the state. The first recipient was the composer, Engelbert Humperdinck
Engelbert Humperdinck
Engelbert Humperdinck was a German composer, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born at Siegburg in the Rhine Province; at the age of 67 he died in Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.-Life:After receiving piano lessons, Humperdinck produced his first composition...
, who used it to travel to Italy in 1879.
The scholarship in honour of a Jewish composer was discontinued by the Nazis in 1934. It was revived by the Ministry of Culture of the former East Germany in 1963, in the form of two annual prizes for composition and for performance. It is now awarded by the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
The Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation , headquartered in Berlin, Germany, is one of the largest cultural institutions in the world. It was founded by a West German federal law passed on 25 July 1957, with the mission to acquire and protect the cultural legacy of the former state of Prussia...
.
Recipients
As well as Humperdinck, recipients include the pianist Wilhelm KempffWilhelm Kempff
Wilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempff was a German pianist and composer. Although his repertory included Bach, Liszt, Chopin, Schumann, and Brahms, Kempff was particularly well-known for his interpretations of the music of Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, both of whose complete sonatas he also...
and the composer Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
.
The following is an incomplete chronological list of recipients of the German Mendelssohn Scholarship.
1879 to 1935
- 1879 - Engelbert HumperdinckEngelbert HumperdinckEngelbert Humperdinck was a German composer, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born at Siegburg in the Rhine Province; at the age of 67 he died in Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.-Life:After receiving piano lessons, Humperdinck produced his first composition...
- 1880 - Marie Soldat
- 1881 - Bernhard Stavenhagen, Philipp Wolfrum
- 1882 - Iacob Muresianu
- 1887 - Waldemar von Baußnern
- between 1887 and 1896 - Karol Gregorowicz
- 1890 - Bram Eldering
- 1893 - Carl Thiel
- 1895 - Elsie Stanley Hall
- 1896 - Paul JuonPaul JuonPaul Juon was a Germanised Russian composerHe was born in Moscow, where his father was an insurance official. His mother was German, and he went to a German school in Moscow. He entered the Moscow Conservatory in 1889, where he studied violin with Jan Hřímalý and composition with Anton Arensky...
- 1900 - Karl Klingler
- 1901 - Elly NeyElly NeyElly Ney was a German romantic pianist who specialized in Beethoven, and was especially popular in Germany....
- 1902 - Alfred Sittard
- 1902 - Ignatz WaghalterIgnatz WaghalterIgnatz Waghalter was a Polish-German composer and conductor.-Early years:Waghalter was born into a poor but musically-accomplished Jewish family in Warsaw. His eldest brother, Henryk Waghalter , became a renowned cellist at the Warsaw Conservatory. Wladyslaw , the youngest Waghalter brother,...
- 1906 - Sara Gurowitsch
- 1910 & 1913 - Ernst TochErnst TochErnst Toch was a composer of classical music and film scores.- Biography :Toch, born in Leopoldstadt, Vienna, into the family of a humble Jewish leather dealer when the city was at its 19th-century cultural zenith, sought throughout his life to introduce new approaches to music...
- 1912 - Licco Amar
- 1913 - Hans Bassermann, Mischa LevitzkiMischa LevitzkiMischa Levitzki was a Russian-born American concert pianist.Levitzki was born in Kremenchuk, Ukraine , to Jewish parents who were naturalised American citizens on a return trip to Ukraine...
- 1915 - Hans Bullerian
- 1917 - Wilhelm KempffWilhelm KempffWilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempff was a German pianist and composer. Although his repertory included Bach, Liszt, Chopin, Schumann, and Brahms, Kempff was particularly well-known for his interpretations of the music of Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, both of whose complete sonatas he also...
, Emil Peeters - 1918 - Pancho VladigerovPancho VladigerovPancho Haralanov Vladigerov was a Bulgarian composer, pedagogue, and pianist....
, Erwin SchulhoffErwin SchulhoffErwin Schulhoff was a Czech composer and pianist.-Life:Born in Prague of Jewish-German origin, Schulhoff was one of the brightest figures in a generation of European musicians whose successful careers were prematurely terminated by the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany... - 1919 - Kurt WeillKurt WeillKurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
- 1920 - Pancho VladigerovPancho VladigerovPancho Haralanov Vladigerov was a Bulgarian composer, pedagogue, and pianist....
- 1925 - Berthold GoldschmidtBerthold GoldschmidtBerthold Goldschmidt was a German Jewish composer who spent most of his life in England...
, Max RostalMax RostalMax Rostal was a violinist and a viola player. He was Austrian-born, but later took British citizenship.-Biography:Max Rostal was born in Cieszyn and studied with Carl Flesch. He won the Mendelssohn Scholarship in 1925... - 1926 - Ignace Strasfogel, Ernst PeppingErnst PeppingErnst Pepping was a German composer of classical music.-Professional career:Pepping studied composition at the Berliner Hochschule für Musik with Walter Gmeindl between 1922 and 1926...
- 1928 - Hans Humpert
- 1928 - Grete von Zieritz
- 1928 - Wilhelm Stross
- 1929 - Herbert Marx
- 1930 - Ludwig Hölscher
- 1931 - Kurt Fiebig, Roman TotenbergRoman TotenbergRoman Totenberg is a Polish-American violinist and educator.He is the father of National Public Radio journalist Nina Totenberg...
- 1932 - Norbert von HannenheimNorbert von HannenheimNorbert Hann von Hannenheim was an Austro-Hungarian-born German and Romanian composer. He is seen as one of the most brilliant later pupils of Arnold Schoenberg....
, Harald GenzmerHarald GenzmerHarald Genzmer was a German composer of contemporary classical music.-Biography:Born in Blumenthal, near Bremen, Germany, he studied composition with Paul Hindemith at the Berlin Hochschule für Music beginning in 1928.From 1938 he taught at the Volksmusikschule Berlin-Neukölln... - 1933 - Werner Trenkner, Bernhard HeidenBernhard HeidenBernhard Heiden was a German and American composer and music teacher, who studied under and was heavily influenced by Paul Hindemith...
- 1935 - Fritz WernerFritz WernerFritz Werner was a German choral conductor, church music director, conductor, organist and composer...
, Johannes Schneider-Marfels
Since 1963
- 1969 - Peter Herrmann
- 1966 - Walter Steffens
- 1974/75 - Gabriele Kupfernagel
- 1976/77 - Reinhard Wolschina
- 1978/80 - Walter Thomas Heyn
- 1981 - Bernd Franke
- 1985 - Rolf Fischer
- 1987 - Olaf Henzold
- 1988 - Steffen SchleiermacherSteffen SchleiermacherSteffen Schleiermacher is a German composer, pianist, and conductor.After studying at the Leipzig Music School with Siegfried Thiele, he continued working there as a music theory and ear training assistant...
- 1988/89 - Caspar René Hirschfeld
- Carola Nasdala
- Michael Schönheit
- Michael StöckigtMichael StöckigtMichael Stöckigt is a German composer and pianist. His father is the famous East German pianist Siegfried Stöckigt. In 1973 Michael Stöckigt became a master student in composition of Günter Kochan at the Berlin College of Music "Hanns Eisler". He was awarded in Australia, Austria and Italy...
- Matthias Henneberg
Mendelssohn Scholarship in the United Kingdom
The funds raised at the 1848 concert were invested and allowed to accumulate until 1856, when Arthur SullivanArthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
was elected as the first scholar. Since then it has been awarded from time to time, administered by the Mendelssohn Scholarship Foundation, which is linked to the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
. The foundation was created by a trust deed in 1871. Its trustees include the composers Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne is an English composer, most famous for the work published as Edward Elgar: The Sketches for Symphony No. 3 Elaborated by Anthony Payne...
and Justin Connolly
Justin Connolly
Justin Connolly is a British composer and teacher.He was educated at Westminster School, and then briefly studied law at the Middle Temple before deciding on a career in music...
, and the principal of the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
, Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
Professor Jonathan Freeman-Attwood BMus, MPhil, Hon RAM is the Principal of the Royal Academy of Music in the United Kingdom.He studied at Milton Abbey School, then University of Toronto and Christ Church, Oxford...
; and its charitable objects are "For the education of musical students of both sexes in pursuance of the intentions of the founders".
Recipients
Recipients include the composers Frederick CorderFrederick Corder
Frederick Corder was an English composer and music teacher.-Biography:Corder was born in Hackney, the son of Micah Corder and his wife Charlotte Hill. He was educated at Blackheath Proprietary School and started music lessons, particularly piano, early. Later he studied with Henry Gadsby...
, George Dyson
George Dyson (composer)
Sir George Dyson KCVO was a well-known English musician and composer. His son is the physicist and mathematician Freeman Dyson and among his grandchildren are the science historian George Dyson and Esther Dyson...
and Kenneth Leighton
Kenneth Leighton
Kenneth Leighton was a British composer and pianist. His compositions include much Anglican church music, and many pieces for choir and for piano as well as concertos, symphonies, much chamber music and an opera. He wrote a well-known setting of the Coventry Carol...
.
The following is an incomplete chronological list of recipients of the British Mendelssohn Scholarship.
- 1856 - Arthur SullivanArthur SullivanSir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
- 1865 - Charles Swinnerton Heap
- 1871 - William ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare (tenor)William Shakespeare was an English tenor, pedagogue, and composer.William Shakespeare was born in England on 16 June 1849. He studied in London, at the Royal Academy of Music with William Sterndale Bennett...
- 1873 - Eaton FaningEaton FaningJoseph Eaton Faning , known as Eaton Faning, was an English composer and teacher. The son of a music teacher, he became the organist of a church at the age of twelve. He attended the Royal Academy of Music, where his teachers included Arthur Sullivan. He was an outstanding student, winning many...
- 1875 - Frederick CorderFrederick CorderFrederick Corder was an English composer and music teacher.-Biography:Corder was born in Hackney, the son of Micah Corder and his wife Charlotte Hill. He was educated at Blackheath Proprietary School and started music lessons, particularly piano, early. Later he studied with Henry Gadsby...
- 1879 - Maude Valerie WhiteMaude Valerie WhiteMaude Valérie White was a French-born English composer who became one of the most successful songwriters of the Victorian period.-Early years:...
- 1881 - Eugen d'AlbertEugen d'AlbertEugen Francis Charles d'Albert was a Scottish-born German pianist and composer.Educated in Britain, d'Albert showed early musical talent and, at the age of seventeen, he won a scholarship to study in Austria...
- 1884 - Marie Wurm
- 1890 - S P Waddington
- 1905 - George DysonGeorge Dyson (composer)Sir George Dyson KCVO was a well-known English musician and composer. His son is the physicist and mathematician Freeman Dyson and among his grandchildren are the science historian George Dyson and Esther Dyson...
- 1935 - Daniel JonesDaniel Jones (composer)Daniel Jenkyn Jones OBE was a composer of classical music, who worked in Britain. He used both serial and tonal techniques...
- 1948 - Malcolm ArnoldMalcolm ArnoldSir Malcolm Henry Arnold, CBE was an English composer and symphonist.Malcolm Arnold began his career playing trumpet professionally, but by age thirty his life was devoted to composition. He was ranked with Benjamin Britten as one of the most sought-after composers in Britain...
- 1951 - Kenneth LeightonKenneth LeightonKenneth Leighton was a British composer and pianist. His compositions include much Anglican church music, and many pieces for choir and for piano as well as concertos, symphonies, much chamber music and an opera. He wrote a well-known setting of the Coventry Carol...
- 1954 - Francis Burt
- 1960 - David BlakeDavid Blake (composer)David Blake is a British composer born in London in 1936. Following National Service Blake learnt Mandarin Chinese and spent one year in Hong Kong. He went on to read music at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where his teachers were Patrick Hadley, Peter Tranchell and Raymond Leppard...
- 1962 - Richard StokerRichard StokerRichard Stoker is a British composer and writer.He started playing the piano at six; at seven he was composing. After initial encouragement from Arthur Benjamin and Benjamin Britten, he studied under Lennox Berkeley at the Royal Academy of Music. After winning the Mendelssohn Scholarship in 1962,...
- 1968 - Brian FerneyhoughBrian FerneyhoughBrian John Peter Ferneyhough is an English composer. His music is characterized by the extensive use of complex rhythmic tuplet notation which features in all his works...
- 1969 - Jonathan Lloyd
- 1972 - Nicola LeFanuNicola LeFanuNicola LeFanu is a British composer, academic, lecturer and director.-Life:Nicola LeFanu was born in England to William LeFanu and Elizabeth Maconchy . She studied at St Hilda's College, Oxford, before taking up a Harkness Fellowship at Harvard. In 1972 she won the Mendelssohn Scholarship...
- 1974 - Richard BlackfordRichard BlackfordRichard Blackford is an English composer.- Biography :Richard Blackford studied composition with John Lambert at the Royal College of Music and conducting with Norman del Mar. He spent a number of years as Henze’s assistant in Italy, where he received his first commissions while immersed in the...
- - Javier Álvarez
- 1985 - James Harley
- 1988 - Martin ButlerMartin Butler (composer)Martin Butler is a musician and composer of classical music. He studied at the University of Manchester and the Royal Northern College of Music...
- 1997 - Richard Causton
- 2000 - Luke BedfordLuke BedfordLuke Bedford is a British composer.He was educated at St Crispin's School in Wokingham. He studied composition with Edwin Roxburgh and Simon Bainbridge at the Royal College of Music, and won the Mendelssohn Scholarship in 2000. This was followed by post-graduate study with Simon Bainbridge at the...
- 2002 - Cheryl Frances-HoadCheryl Frances-HoadCheryl Frances-Hoad is a British composer. She graduated from Gonville and Caius College with a triple 1st in 2001 and an Mphil in Composition, also at Cambridge....