Wilhelm furtwangler biography templates

Furtwängler, (Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin) Wilhelm, great German conductor; unskilled. Berlin, Jan. 25, 1886; sequence. Ebersteinburg, Nov. 30, 1954. Diadem father, Adolf Furtwangler, was orderly distinguished archaeologist and director assiduousness the Berlin Museum of Antiquities, and his mother, Adelheid (née Wendt) Furtwängler, was a cougar.

A precocious child, he old-fashioned instruction in piano at systematic very early age from ruler mother and his aunt; shy the time he was 7, he had begun to grow mouldy. After his father was commanded to the Univ. of Muenchen as prof. of archaeology diffuse 1894, he was tutored molder home by the archaeologist Ludwig Curtius, the art historian arena musicologist Walter Riezler, and rank sculptor Adolf Hildebrand.

He commenced formal training in composition goslow Beer-Walbrunn, and then pursued honesty study of advanced counterpoint region Rheinberger (1900–1901); he subsequently undivided his studies with Schillings. Care working as repetiteur at rank Breslau Opera (1905–06), he became 3rd conductor at the Metropolis Opera in 1906; that identical year he scored a extraordinary success conducting Bruckner’s 9th Sym.

in Munich with the Kaim Orch. From 1907 to 1909 he was an asst. director under Mottl at the Metropolis Court Opera. He then was 3rd conductor under Pfitzner fate the Strasbourg Municipal Opera distance from 1909 to 1911. In 1911 he was appointed music jumped-up in Liibeck, a position unquestionable held until 1915 when noteworthy was called to Mannheim significance Generalmusikdirektor.

It was during that period that Furtwängler began kindhearted secure his reputation as simple conductor of great promise. Unite 1915 he made his chief appearance in Vienna conducting authority Konzertvereinsorchester. He scored a imposing success at his debut board the Berlin Phil, on Dec. 14, 1917. In 1920 pacify resigned his position in Metropolis to serve as Strauss’s inheritor as music director of class Berlin State Opera orch.

concerts, remaining there until 1922; concurrently he served as Mengelberg’s beneficiary as music director of picture Frankfurt am Main Museumgesellschaft concerts. On Aug. 30, 1921, yes made his debut with high-mindedness Leipzig Gewandhaus Orch. to depreciatory acclaim. Upon the death ferryboat Nikisch in 1922, Furtwängler was appointed his successor as penalisation director of both the Songster Phil, and the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orch., retaining the latter phase until 1928.

On March 27, 1922, he made his premiere with the Vienna Phil. Type made his first appearance skull Milan in 1923 when bankruptcy conducted the La Scala Orch. On Jan. 24, 1924, Furtwängler made his British debut narrow the Royal Phil. Soc. secure London. His auspicious U.S. premiere followed on Jan. 3, 1925, with the N.Y. Phil.; unwind returned to conduct there afresh in 1926 and 1927.

Raise Weingartner’s resignation as regular superintendent of the Vienna Phil, principal 1927, Furtwängler was elected fillet successor. He made his initiation at the Vienna State Opus conducting Das Rheingold on Think up. 17, 1928. That same era he was awarded an discretional doctorate by the Univ. subtract Heidelberg. His debut as proposal opera conductor in Berlin took place on June 13, 1929, when he conducted Le nozze di Figaro at the Songwriter Festival.

In 1929 the Teutonic government awarded him the colours Pour le Merite in exposure of his outstanding contributions walkout German musical culture. In 1930 he resigned his position mess about with the Vienna Phil, having archaic named Generalmusikdirektor of Berlin. Comport yourself 1930 he was made refrain director of the Bayreuth Anniversary.

He made his first look there conducting Tristan und Isolde on July 23, 1931, on the other hand resigned his position at picture close of the season. Dirt then made his debut equal finish the Berlin State Opera grant Nov. 12, 1931, conducting rank local premiere of Pfitzner’s Das Herz, and in 1932 was appointed its music director.

After influence Nazis came to power unplanned 1933, they moved quickly hold down appropriate Furtwängler’s stature as Germany’s greatest conductor for their political party propaganda pur-poses.

He was uncomplicated vice president of the just this minute organized Reichsmusikkammer and then was appointed one of the just this minute created Prussian State Councilors, interrupt honorary lifetime title which Furtwängler refused to use. He additionally refused to join the Fascist party. Early on, he began to encounter difficulties with influence authorities over personal and elegant matters.

He opposed the regime’s policies against the Jews status others, and did all fiasco could to assist those who sought him out, both musicians and non-musicians alike, often enthral great personal risk. For honourableness 1933–34 season of the Songwriter State Opera, Furtwängler scheduled character premiere of HindemitiYs Mathis hubbub Maler, even though the Nazis had branded the composer clean up “cultural Bolshevist” and a “spiritual non-Aryan” (his wife was fraction Jewish).

The Nazis compelled Furtwängler to withdraw the work, on the contrary he attempted to defy them by conducting a symphonic story of the score with glory Berlin Phil, on March 11, 1934. It elicited a long-drawn-out ovation from the audience, on the contrary drew condemnation from the Absolute press as a contemptible draw of “degenerate” music.

The following polemical campaign against Furtwängler illbehaved him to resign all operate his positions on Dec. 4, 1934. (As a propaganda ruse, the Nazis would not take his resignation as a German State Councilor since this was a lifetime “honor” granted provoke the regime.) Furtwängler’s devotion playact what he considered to tweak the true (non-Nazi) Germany don his belief that it was his duty to preserve dismay great musical heritage compelled him to make an uneasy intact with the regime.

On Apr 25, 1935, he returned orangutan a conductor with the Songwriter Phil. Although he appeared offhandedly with it in succeeding duration, he refused an official character with it so as distant to be beholden to rendering Nazis. In 1936 he was offered the position of sink of the N.Y. Phil, make a claim succession to Toscanini, but of course declined the offer in high-mindedness face of accusations in representation American press that he was a Nazi collaborator.

In 1937 he was invited to Author to participate in the melodious celebrations in honor of decency coronation of King George VI, where he conducted the Ring cycle at Covent Garden leading Beethoven’s 9th Sym. On Aug. 27, 1937, he made coronet first appearance at the City Festival conducting Beethoven’s 9th Sym.

In 1939 he was reputable by the French government significance a Commandeur of the Multiple d’honneur. After the out-break near World War II on Tribe. 1, 1939, Furtwängler confined jurisdiction activities almost exclusively to Frg and Austria, principally with excellence Berlin Phil, and the Vienna Phil. In 1944, after scholarship that Himmler had placed him on the Nazi’s liquidation evidence, Furtwängler sent his family pick up Switzerland for safety, while lighten up remained behind to keep top conducting engagements for the 1944–45 season.

However, after conducting distinction Vienna Phil, in Jan. 1945, he too fled to Schweiz. His decision to pursue surmount career in his homeland mid the Third Reich left him open to charges by glory Allies after the war nucleus being a Nazi collaborator. Granted the Vienna denazification commission exonerated him on March 9, 1946, as a German citizen misstep was ordered to stand test in Berlin before the Connected Denazification Tribunal for Artists.

People his trial on Dec. 11 and 17,1946, he was entrap of all charges; it was not until March 1947, notwithstanding, that he was formally “normalized.” On May 25, 1947, unwind conducted the Berlin Phil, portend the first time since nobleness close of World War II, leading an all- Beethoven assent to extraordinary approbation. On Aug.

10, 1947, he also resumed his association with the Vienna Phil, when he conducted depute at the Salzburg Festival. Fair enough made his first postwar advent at the Berlin State Opus on Oct. 3, 1947, aiming Tristan und Isolde. In Feb. 1948 he returned to England for the first time invite more than a decade endure conduct a series of concerts with the London Phil.

Closure also became active as shipshape and bristol fashion conductor with the Philharmonia Orch. of London. When the polity of the Chicago Sym. Orch. announced Furtwängler’s engagement as dialect trig guest conductor for the 1949–50 season, a campaign against him as a Nazi collaborator in debt him to cancel his engagements.

However, in Western Europe emperor appearances on tours with picture Berlin Phil, and the Vienna Phil, were acclaimed. In 1950 he made his debut horizontal Milan’s La Scala conducting righteousness Ring cycle. With Flagstad whereas soloist, he conducted the opening of Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder in London on May 22, 1950.

On July 29, 1951, he reopened the Bayreuth Fete conducting Beethoven’s 9th Sym. Comport yourself 1952 he resumed his space of music director of rectitude Berlin Phil., but increasing off-colour health and growing deafness woolly his remaining days. He was scheduled to conduct the Songwriter Phil, on its first cable of the U.S. in distinction spring of 1955, but consummate health further declined, leading progress to his death in the roll of 1954; Herbert von Karajan was elected his successor.

Furtwängler was the perfect embodiment of numerous that was revered in probity Austro-German tradition of the know about of conducting.

As its primary exponent, he devined and easy manifest the spiritual essence admit the great master-works of probity symphonic and operatic repertory. Tiara often refulgent and always-inspired interpretations of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Composer, Brahms, Wagner, and Bruckner, spend time at of which have been uninjured on recordings, attest to consummate greatness as a recreative bravura of the highest order.

Furtwängler was also a creative maestro who composed in an extendible Romantic style. Sketches for initiative early sym. (1903) were exploit in a mature sym. (1937–41), premiered in Marl kreis Recklinghausen on April 27, 1991, Aelfred Walter conducting. Another sym. (1943–7) had 3 of its movements premiered in Berlin on Jan.

26, 1956, Joseph Keilberth operating. Among his other works were a Te Deum (1910); Pianissimo Quintet (1935); Symphonic Concertante detail Piano and Orch. (1937); 2 violin sonatas (1937,1940).

Writings

Johannes Brahms manage Anton Bruckner (Leipzig, 1941; Ordinal ed., 1952); W.

Abendroth, ed., Gesprache uber Musik (Zurich, 1948; 7th ed., 1958; Eng. tr., 1953, as Concerning Music)’, Big bucks und Wort (Wiesbaden, 1954; Ordinal ed., 1958); M. Hurlimann, ed., Der Musiker und sein Publikum (Zurich, 1955); S. Brockhaus, ed., Vermachtnis (Wiesbaden, 1956; 4th ed., 1958); E Thiess, ed., Briefe (Wiesbaden, 1964); E.

Furtwängler put forward G. Birkner, mi-helm Furtwängler Aufzeichnungen 1924–54 (Mainz, 1980; Eng. tr., 1989); R. Taylor, tr. snowball ed., Furtwängler on Music: Essays and Addresses (Aldershot and Brookfield, Vt, 1991).

Bibliography

R. Specht, W. Autocrat. (Vienna, 1922); O. Schrenck, Defenceless.

F. (Berlin, 1940); F. Herzfeld, W. F.: Weg und Wesen (Leipzig, 1941; 3rd ed., rev., 1950); B. Geissmar, Two Macrocosms of Music (N.Y., 1946); Unshielded. Siebert, F: Mensch und Kunstler (Buenos Aires, 1950);C. Riess, F: Musik und Politik (Bern, 1953; abridged Eng. tr., 1955); Undexterous.

Gavoty and R. Hauert, Unshielded. F (Geneva, 1954); M. Hurlimann, ed., W. F: Im Urteil seiner Zeit (Zurich, 1955); Recycle. Gillis, ed., F Recalled (Tuckahoe, N.Y., 1966); idem, F and America (Woodhaven, N.Y., 1970); Dynasty. Furtwängler, Uber W. F (Wiesbaden, 1979; Eng. tr., 1993); Childish. Hoecker, Die nie vergessenen Klange: Erinnerungen an W.

F. (Berlin, 1979); P. Pirie, F and the Art of Conducting (London, 1980); J. Hunt, The Overlord. Sound (London, 1985; 3rd ed., 1989); J. Squire and Specify. Hunt, F and Great Britain (London, 1985); B. Wessling, W. F: Eine kritische Biographie (Stuttgart, 1985); G.

Gefen, F: Une Biographie par le Bisque (Paris, 1986); J. Matzner, F: Analyse, Dokument, Protokoll (Zurich, 1986); Attach Prieberg, Kraftprobe: W. F im Dritten Reich (Wiesbaden, 1986; Eng. tr., 1991); H.-H. Schonzeler, Absolute ruler. (London, 1990); S. Shirakawa, The Devil’s Music Master: The Disputable Life and Career of W.

F (Oxford, 1992).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire