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Joachim - Part 1
"Highly honored sir, you call Joachim only the leading German violinist? I find him to be the leading performing musician altogether — an ideal of perfection. With his incomparable mastery he has terrified me and laid me low — but the feeling of artistic elevation that I owe to him won out in the end."
Hans von Bülow to Franz Wüllner, 1 December, 1866 (qtd. in josephjoachim.com)
```
Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 2. Performed by Joseph Joachim (1903)
```
From a translation from the German language Jewish Chronicle and Hebrew Observer, excerpted from Beth-El by Ignaz Reich:
"His sisters receiving instruction in music, the sounds seemed to have had a magical effect upon the boy, and he listened to them with intense and unwearied attention. Soon he begged his father to be permitted to take lessons in music like his sisters. The violin was the instrument chosen for him. The progress which he made in the first month disclosed at once his extraordinary talent. More and more skilful masters had to be engaged for him, and a ray of intellectual satisfaction was often seen to light up his countenance, when, after conquering some extraordinary difficulty, a smile or an applauding nod of his teachers, to whom he clung with filial attachment, rewarded his perseverance, and encouraged him to further efforts. At the age of six, after a study of about one year, he executed in public, before the gentry and nobility of Pest, the variations of Pechatsek; the applause was immense. At the age of eight he was sent to Vienna, where he for three years continued his studies under the greatest musicians. During this period he but rarely played in public; but when he did he excelled all other competitors. The leading papers of the day, in speaking of his performance on January 31, 1842, said, “The palm of the evening is due to a boy of ten years old, Joachim, a pupil of Professor Böhm, who played the variations of Ernst with astonishing excellence. On hearing the playing of this boy, the marvellous skill, the depth of feeling, the plaintive notes, as it were the sorrow of the instrument, and the musically expressed grief, one is led to believe that the whole is a delusion — some charming dream. In this boy we see the ripest fruit of bloom; in him we perceive the accomplished deep-feeling artist"
```
Ernst: Variations on the Last Rose of Summer. Performed by Moné Hattori (2016).
```
From the same biographical sketch:
"Towards the end of 1842, at the age of eleven, he went to Leipsic, in order to enter the musical academy. There he played at a private concert, in the house of Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The greatest masters of the art listened in deep emotion to the boy; for a long time the enrapturing sounds of his instrument alone were heard. When he had finished, Mendelssohn solemnly walked up to the violinist, and impressing a kiss on his forehead, enthusiastically called out, “I, myself, was once such a child.” More was not requisite. Joachim’s artistic position was now marked out. Henceforth Mendelssohn proved his most faithful patron, his warmest friend. House and heart of the great master were now alike open to the child. It was Mendelssohn who opposed his entering the musical academy, declaring that he had outgrown this institution, and that he would find there no equal. Mendelssohn himself, as well as David and Hauptmann, gave him private instruction."
```
Mendelssohn, Felix: Violin Concerto in E Minor. Performed by Hilary Hahn with Hugh Wolf and the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (2002).
```
From the same source, quoting a letter of introduction written by Mendelssohn.
"Dear Friend — By these lines I present to you a boy who, during the nine months that I have known him, has become truly dear to me, has entwined himself round my heart, and of whom I have conceived such a high opinion /(hochachtung)/, as I entertain but for few with whom I have latterly been in contact. It is Joachim, of Pest, in Hungary, a boy 13 years old, who intends to pay a visit to his uncle residing in London. I cannot sufficiently describe to you his extraordinary marvellous talent in handling the violin. You must hear him yourself to be able to judge of the manner in which he plays all existing solos, and of the ease with which he deciphers everything in notes, how he discerns and knows music..."
```
Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 1. Performed by Joseph Joachim (1903).
```
From the same sketch, now quoting young Joseph who wrote from London to his parents with these words:
"I hope in the course of this winter to make considerable progress in music and other branches of study. I rise every day at six o’clock in the morning, when I study Latin, classics, or some other useful work, until breakfast. The whole forenoon afterwards I devote exclusively to music, the violin in particular, composition, and the necessary practice in thorough bass. At half-past two in the afternoon I recommence working, writing till four o’clock: from then till eight I play pianoforte; then, having taken a walk and supped, I again study music until nine o’clock. Sometimes I commit to memory passages from our splendid Schiller, whilst also composing a concert and diligently practicing music.”
```
Bach, J.S.: Adagio in G Minor. Performed by Joachim (1904).
```
From the same source, in Leipzig in 1847, after the death of Mendelssohn, quoting a letter to his parents.
"Dearest and Good Parents — Prepare yourself to hear from me something unspeakingly sad and terrible. God Almighty yesterday visited me with a great calamity. All my joy, all my hopes, all, all was blighted — yesterday, at nine o’clock in the evening — Mendelssohn is dead! A world of grief lies in these three words. Alas, it is but too true — dead, dead, dead! It is impossible for me to think of anything else, or to listen to a sound of music. Mendelssohn had been unwell for some time; yesterday a week he got worse, and a fit of apoplexy supervened. There was, nevertheless, hope until the day before yesterday, when at two o’clock he had a renewed severe fit, and he became worse. Last evening a rattling in the throat commenced, gradually his strength failed him, and at a few minutes after nine o’clock he passed over into a better world, calm like an angel."
```
Joachim, Joseph: Notturno for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 12. Performed by Daniel Hope with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic (2011).
```
Our biographer notes:
"This melancholy occurrence had indeed produced a deep and lasting impression upon Joachim’s mind. The sounds which he henceforth elicited from his instrument became more solemn, more august; a profound melancholy pervaded them. It is as though we heard in them the whispers of blissful departed spirits. Henceforth his youthfulness quickly matured into manly earnest, and composing now became his favourite occupation."
```
Joachim, Joseph: Romanze in C. Performed by the composer (1903?).
---
Additional Intrigues:
```
A eulogy given by Joachim on the deathbed of Schuman (found on josephjoachim.com):
"But here we wish especially to remember the noble man, the “lofty” man, as his favorite poet, Jean Paul, called those rare mortals who steadfastly lead a spiritual life, fostering the divine spark in themselves; whose thoughts remain apart from the daily cares of the world, which lies far behind them in insubstantial illusion. And yet, how kindly, how lovingly, this lofty man walked among his fellows; how his supportive nature strove to kindle every spark of genuine, true striving into pure flame. How pure and without envy he was in his admiration of other masters — how he loved Mendelssohn, Brahms — how willingly he acknowledged others, even lesser talents!
...
Schumann and Clara visited Hanover, and I hoped to give them pleasure with a musical performance. We played quartets for the master, and it was natural that I should choose, among others, a favorite of mine: the F minor quartet by Beethoven. When I thereafter put one of his own magnificent quartets on the stand, seeing this, he gave me his hand in his true-hearted way, and with a typically beautiful expression in his marvelously mild eyes, he said: “No, not this, after what we have just heard!” I shall never forget his cordial tone, and the truth that it conveyed."
```
Great gratitude is given to josephjoachim.com, the open and ongoing research project of Professor Robert W. Eschbach of the University of New Hampshire, from which most all of the material here quoted was found. The show image is by Philip de László - http://www.delaszloarchivetrust.com/index.php?cid=galery&id=138, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3872937.
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By WYBC / Kincaid"Highly honored sir, you call Joachim only the leading German violinist? I find him to be the leading performing musician altogether — an ideal of perfection. With his incomparable mastery he has terrified me and laid me low — but the feeling of artistic elevation that I owe to him won out in the end."
Hans von Bülow to Franz Wüllner, 1 December, 1866 (qtd. in josephjoachim.com)
```
Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 2. Performed by Joseph Joachim (1903)
```
From a translation from the German language Jewish Chronicle and Hebrew Observer, excerpted from Beth-El by Ignaz Reich:
"His sisters receiving instruction in music, the sounds seemed to have had a magical effect upon the boy, and he listened to them with intense and unwearied attention. Soon he begged his father to be permitted to take lessons in music like his sisters. The violin was the instrument chosen for him. The progress which he made in the first month disclosed at once his extraordinary talent. More and more skilful masters had to be engaged for him, and a ray of intellectual satisfaction was often seen to light up his countenance, when, after conquering some extraordinary difficulty, a smile or an applauding nod of his teachers, to whom he clung with filial attachment, rewarded his perseverance, and encouraged him to further efforts. At the age of six, after a study of about one year, he executed in public, before the gentry and nobility of Pest, the variations of Pechatsek; the applause was immense. At the age of eight he was sent to Vienna, where he for three years continued his studies under the greatest musicians. During this period he but rarely played in public; but when he did he excelled all other competitors. The leading papers of the day, in speaking of his performance on January 31, 1842, said, “The palm of the evening is due to a boy of ten years old, Joachim, a pupil of Professor Böhm, who played the variations of Ernst with astonishing excellence. On hearing the playing of this boy, the marvellous skill, the depth of feeling, the plaintive notes, as it were the sorrow of the instrument, and the musically expressed grief, one is led to believe that the whole is a delusion — some charming dream. In this boy we see the ripest fruit of bloom; in him we perceive the accomplished deep-feeling artist"
```
Ernst: Variations on the Last Rose of Summer. Performed by Moné Hattori (2016).
```
From the same biographical sketch:
"Towards the end of 1842, at the age of eleven, he went to Leipsic, in order to enter the musical academy. There he played at a private concert, in the house of Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The greatest masters of the art listened in deep emotion to the boy; for a long time the enrapturing sounds of his instrument alone were heard. When he had finished, Mendelssohn solemnly walked up to the violinist, and impressing a kiss on his forehead, enthusiastically called out, “I, myself, was once such a child.” More was not requisite. Joachim’s artistic position was now marked out. Henceforth Mendelssohn proved his most faithful patron, his warmest friend. House and heart of the great master were now alike open to the child. It was Mendelssohn who opposed his entering the musical academy, declaring that he had outgrown this institution, and that he would find there no equal. Mendelssohn himself, as well as David and Hauptmann, gave him private instruction."
```
Mendelssohn, Felix: Violin Concerto in E Minor. Performed by Hilary Hahn with Hugh Wolf and the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (2002).
```
From the same source, quoting a letter of introduction written by Mendelssohn.
"Dear Friend — By these lines I present to you a boy who, during the nine months that I have known him, has become truly dear to me, has entwined himself round my heart, and of whom I have conceived such a high opinion /(hochachtung)/, as I entertain but for few with whom I have latterly been in contact. It is Joachim, of Pest, in Hungary, a boy 13 years old, who intends to pay a visit to his uncle residing in London. I cannot sufficiently describe to you his extraordinary marvellous talent in handling the violin. You must hear him yourself to be able to judge of the manner in which he plays all existing solos, and of the ease with which he deciphers everything in notes, how he discerns and knows music..."
```
Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 1. Performed by Joseph Joachim (1903).
```
From the same sketch, now quoting young Joseph who wrote from London to his parents with these words:
"I hope in the course of this winter to make considerable progress in music and other branches of study. I rise every day at six o’clock in the morning, when I study Latin, classics, or some other useful work, until breakfast. The whole forenoon afterwards I devote exclusively to music, the violin in particular, composition, and the necessary practice in thorough bass. At half-past two in the afternoon I recommence working, writing till four o’clock: from then till eight I play pianoforte; then, having taken a walk and supped, I again study music until nine o’clock. Sometimes I commit to memory passages from our splendid Schiller, whilst also composing a concert and diligently practicing music.”
```
Bach, J.S.: Adagio in G Minor. Performed by Joachim (1904).
```
From the same source, in Leipzig in 1847, after the death of Mendelssohn, quoting a letter to his parents.
"Dearest and Good Parents — Prepare yourself to hear from me something unspeakingly sad and terrible. God Almighty yesterday visited me with a great calamity. All my joy, all my hopes, all, all was blighted — yesterday, at nine o’clock in the evening — Mendelssohn is dead! A world of grief lies in these three words. Alas, it is but too true — dead, dead, dead! It is impossible for me to think of anything else, or to listen to a sound of music. Mendelssohn had been unwell for some time; yesterday a week he got worse, and a fit of apoplexy supervened. There was, nevertheless, hope until the day before yesterday, when at two o’clock he had a renewed severe fit, and he became worse. Last evening a rattling in the throat commenced, gradually his strength failed him, and at a few minutes after nine o’clock he passed over into a better world, calm like an angel."
```
Joachim, Joseph: Notturno for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 12. Performed by Daniel Hope with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic (2011).
```
Our biographer notes:
"This melancholy occurrence had indeed produced a deep and lasting impression upon Joachim’s mind. The sounds which he henceforth elicited from his instrument became more solemn, more august; a profound melancholy pervaded them. It is as though we heard in them the whispers of blissful departed spirits. Henceforth his youthfulness quickly matured into manly earnest, and composing now became his favourite occupation."
```
Joachim, Joseph: Romanze in C. Performed by the composer (1903?).
---
Additional Intrigues:
```
A eulogy given by Joachim on the deathbed of Schuman (found on josephjoachim.com):
"But here we wish especially to remember the noble man, the “lofty” man, as his favorite poet, Jean Paul, called those rare mortals who steadfastly lead a spiritual life, fostering the divine spark in themselves; whose thoughts remain apart from the daily cares of the world, which lies far behind them in insubstantial illusion. And yet, how kindly, how lovingly, this lofty man walked among his fellows; how his supportive nature strove to kindle every spark of genuine, true striving into pure flame. How pure and without envy he was in his admiration of other masters — how he loved Mendelssohn, Brahms — how willingly he acknowledged others, even lesser talents!
...
Schumann and Clara visited Hanover, and I hoped to give them pleasure with a musical performance. We played quartets for the master, and it was natural that I should choose, among others, a favorite of mine: the F minor quartet by Beethoven. When I thereafter put one of his own magnificent quartets on the stand, seeing this, he gave me his hand in his true-hearted way, and with a typically beautiful expression in his marvelously mild eyes, he said: “No, not this, after what we have just heard!” I shall never forget his cordial tone, and the truth that it conveyed."
```
Great gratitude is given to josephjoachim.com, the open and ongoing research project of Professor Robert W. Eschbach of the University of New Hampshire, from which most all of the material here quoted was found. The show image is by Philip de László - http://www.delaszloarchivetrust.com/index.php?cid=galery&id=138, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3872937.