Fritz Kreisler
Violinist Fritz Kreisler was one of the most beloved and best known of early recording-era musicians. His burnished tone and patrician phrasing were quintessentially Viennese, and the warmth of his playing won him devoted followers wherever he appeared. So great was his fame and the affection in which he was held that he survived a blaze of controversy when he revealed in 1935 that many of the short pieces he had performed as transcriptions of such composers as Couperin, Vivaldi, and Pugnani were, in fact, his own work. While the critics fumed, the public expressed little concern and continued to pack his concert appearances.
Kreisler was the son of a famous surgeon, a good amateur musician who gave young Fritz his first violin lessons. Kreisler made his public debut at seven in a collection of short works. Shortly thereafter, he was permitted to enter the Vienna Conservatory despite a policy that no one younger than 14 be accepted. After three years of study with Joseph Hellmesberger, he was awarded a gold medal. Kreisler was sent to Paris for further studies with Delibes and Massart. At the age of 12, he won the Premier Grand Prix de Rome gold medal, competing against 40 other players, all of whom were at least 20 years old.
In 1888, Kreisler sailed to the United States for a concert tour with pianist Moriz Rosenthal, earning many complimentary reviews. When he returned to Vienna, he applied to the Vienna Philharmonic for a position but was turned down. Feeling discouraged, he resolved to abandon music and chose to pursue a career in medicine. After several years, he rejected that course and began the study of painting. First in Paris, then in Rome, he worked toward mastering his technique, but soon this, too, became tiresome. He returned to Vienna and enlisted in the army.
A full year as a soldier was sufficient to cause yet more rethinking, and Kreisler resigned his commission and returned to the study of violin. He spent eight weeks in country solitude, readying himself for his return to the concert stage. His "second debut" in Berlin was successful, but widespread acclaim came during several American tours between 1901 and 1903. In the U.S., he was hailed as one of the foremost violinists of his time, and, soon after, Europe followed suit in recognizing his extraordinary artistry.
In 1910 in London, Kreisler gave the premiere performance of Elgar's Violin Concerto, a work dedicated to the composer. While vacationing in Switzerland in 1914, Kreisler received the news that Austria was at war. Returning to his native country, he rejoined his former division, now stationed in Galicia. An attack by the Russians resulted in an injury and his discharge with high honors. Wishing to help his country, Kreisler embarked on a lengthy concert tour of America. U.S. entry into the war, however, put him in the awkward position of being an ex-Austrian officer aiding what was now an enemy nation. Negative reaction obliged him to withdraw from concertizing and retire to Maine to pass the remaining period of hostilities.
At his return to the New York concert stage in 1919, however, he was given a tumultuous reception. He took up residence in Berlin for ten years, beginning in 1924. With the Anschluss in 1938, he moved to France but returned to the U.S. before the Nazi invasion and lived his remaining years in America, where he gave his final public concert in 1947. He continued to perform on broadcasts until 1950.
© Erik Eriksson /TiVo
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The Art of Fritz Kreisler
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 30-01-2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
J.S. Bach, Beethoven, Kreisler & Others: Works
Clásica - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 11-11-1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Henryk Szeryng Plays Kreisler, Gluck, Leclair & Locatelli
Música de cámara - Editado por ISIS el 07-07-2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Early Victor Recordings, Vol. 2
Clásica - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 30-10-1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The 10 Violin Sonatas
Fritz Kreisler, Bruno Walter, Franz Rupp
Música de cámara - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 28-11-2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Poème, Op. 25 (Live)
Fritz Kreisler, The Bell Telephone Hour Orchestra, Donald Voorhees
Clásica - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 30-10-2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Kreisler Collection: The Complete Acoustic HMV Recordings
Música de cámara - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 14-07-1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BEETHOVEN / SCHUBERT / GRIEG: Violin Sonatas (Kreisler / Rachmaninov) (1928)
Fritz Kreisler, Serge Rachmaninoff
Música de cámara - Editado por Naxos el 31-03-2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kreisler: The Complete Recordings, Vol. 10
Música de cámara - Editado por Naxos el 29-01-2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Complete Recordings, Vol. 8 (1926-1927)
Fritz Kreisler, Carl Lamson, Michael Raucheisen, Arpad Sandor
Clásica - Editado por Naxos el 08-02-2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kreisler: The Complete Recordings, Vol. 7 (1921-1925)
Fritz Kreisler, Hugo Kreisler, Carl Lamson, Charlton Keith
Música de cámara - Editado por Naxos el 14-07-2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BEETHOVEN: Violin Sonatas (Complete) (Kreisler) (1935-1936)
Música de cámara - Editado por Naxos el 17-02-2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kreisler Plays Kreisler
Clásica - Editado por Hallmark el 01-01-2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kreisler: Slavonic Fantasy in B Minor (Arr. for flute and piano by Sarah Rumer)
Música de cámara - Editado por Prospero Classical el 04-08-2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms, Grieg & Others: Works
Fritz Kreisler, John Mccormack, Carl Lamson, Edwin Schneider
Música de cámara - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 28-09-1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Intégrale des enregistrements (Volume 4)
Clásica - Editado por Naxos el 06-03-2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schön Rosmarin
Jazz - Editado por Black Sheep Music el 28-03-2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos. 4 & 6
Fritz Kreisler, Jacques Thibaud, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent, Unknown Artist
Música de cámara - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 23-03-1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Bell Telephone Hour Recordings, Vol. 3: Works by Kreisler, Haydn & Others (Live) [Remastered 2023]
Fritz Kreisler, Donald Voorhees, Bell Telephone Orchestra
Clásica - Editado por Biddulph Recordings el 06-01-2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Intégrale des enregistrements (Volume 3)
Clásica - Editado por Naxos el 26-05-2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BRUCH / BRAHMS: Violin Concertos (Kreisler) (1925, 1936)
Fritz Kreisler, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Eugène Goossens, Sir John Barbirolli
Conciertos para violín - Editado por Naxos el 09-03-2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo