1961 PÓSTER DE CONCIERTO DE PIANO Israel ARRAU hebreo HAYDN Brahms IRWIN HOFFMAN judío

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Vendedor: judaica-bookstore ✉️ (2.805) 100%, Ubicación del artículo: TEL AVIV, IL, Realiza envíos a: WORLDWIDE, Número de artículo: 276213507508 1961 PÓSTER DE CONCIERTO DE PIANO Israel ARRAU hebreo HAYDN Brahms IRWIN HOFFMAN judío.   DESCRIPTION : Up for auction is an extremely rare , Over 60 years old, CONCERT POSTER announcing and advertising the upcoming PIANO performance of the renowned CHILEAN pianist - CLAUDIO ARRAU. The PIANO CONCERT  took place in 1961 in the Fredric MANN auditorium , Heichal Hatarbut, In TEL AVIV ISRAEL.  ARRAU was a guest of the IPO. He played pieces by HAYDN , BRAHMS and RESPIGHI with the IPO under the baton of somewhat forgotten American JEWISH conductor IRWIN HOFFMAN . Size around  27 x 19 " . Hebrew & English.  Very good condition . ( Pls look at scan for accurate AS IS images )  Will be sent inside a protective rigid sealed tube  .   PAYMENTS : Payment method accepted : Paypal . SHIPPMENT :SHIPP worldwide via  registered airmail is $ 25  . Will be sent inside a protective rigid sealed tube   . Will be sent  around 5-10 days after payment .     Claudio Arrau León (Spanish: [ˈklawðjo aˈraw]; February 7, 1903 – June 9, 1991) was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Bach, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt and Brahms. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century.[1] Contents 1 Life 2 Tone and approach to music 3 Contributions 4 Critics 5 Quotes 6 Awards and recognitions 7 Album prizes 8 References 9 External links Life[edit] Arrau was born in Chillán, Chile, the son of Carlos Arrau, an ophthalmologist who died when Claudio was only a year old, and Lucrecia León Bravo de Villalba, a piano teacher. He belonged to an old, prominent family of Southern Chile. His ancestor Lorenzo de Arrau, a Spanish engineer, was sent to Chile by King Carlos III of Spain. Through his great-grandmother, María del Carmen Daroch del Solar, Arrau was a descendant of the Campbells of Glenorchy, a Scottish noble family.[2] Arrau was raised as a Catholic, but gave it up in his late teens.[3] Claudio Arrau, November 1929 Arrau was a child prodigy and he could read music before he could read words, but unlike many virtuosos, there had never been a professional musician in his family. His mother was an amateur pianist and introduced him to the instrument. At the age of 4 he was reading Beethoven sonatas, and he gave his first concert a year later.[4] When Arrau was 6 he auditioned in front of several congressmen and President Pedro Montt, who was so impressed that he began arrangements for Arrau's future education. At age 8, Arrau was sent on a ten-year-long grant from the Chilean government to study in Germany, travelling with his mother and sister Lucrecia. He was admitted to the Stern Conservatory of Berlin where he eventually became a pupil of Martin Krause, who had studied under Franz Liszt. At the age of 11 Arrau could play Liszt's Transcendental Etudes, one of the most difficult works for piano, as well as Brahms's Paganini Variations. Arrau's first recordings were made on Aeolian Duo-Art player piano music rolls. Krause died in his fifth year of teaching Arrau, leaving the 15-year-old student devastated by the loss of his mentor; Arrau did not continue formal study after that point.[4] In 1935, Arrau gave a celebrated rendition of the entire keyboard works of Johann Sebastian Bach over 12 recitals. In 1936, Arrau gave a complete Mozart keyboard works over 5 recitals, and followed with the complete Schubert and Weber cycles. In 1938, for the first time, Arrau gave the complete Beethoven piano sonatas and concertos in Mexico City. Arrau repeated this several times in his lifetime, including in New York and London. He became one of the leading authorities on Beethoven in the 20th century.[4][1] In 1937, Arrau married mezzo-soprano Ruth Schneider (1908–1989), a German national. They had three children: Carmen (1938–2006), Mario (1940–1988) and Christopher (1959). In 1941 the Arrau family emigrated from Germany to the United States, eventually settling in Douglaston, Queens, New York, where Arrau spent his remaining years. He became a dual U.S.-Chilean citizen in 1979.[5] Arrau died on June 9, 1991, at the age of 88, in Mürzzuschlag, Austria, from complications of emergency surgery performed on June 8 to correct an intestinal blockage.[6] His remains were interred in his native city of Chillán, Chile. Tone and approach to music[edit] Daniel Barenboim said that Claudio Arrau had a particular sound with two aspects: first a thickness, full-bodied and orchestral, and second an utterly disembodied timbre, quite spellbinding.[7] Sir Colin Davis said: "His sound is amazing, and it is entirely his own... no one else has it exactly that way. His devotion to Liszt is extraordinary. He ennobles that music in a way no one else in the world can."[7] According to American critic Harold C. Schonberg, Arrau always put "a decidedly romantic piano tone in his interpretations".[8] Arrau was an intellectual and a deeply reflective interpreter. He read widely while travelling, and he learned English, Italian, German, and French in addition to his native Spanish. He became familiar with Jung's psychology in his twenties.[9] Arrau's attitude toward music was very serious. He preached fidelity to the score, but also the use of imagination. Although he often played with slower and more deliberate tempi from his middle age onward, he had a reputation as a fabulous virtuoso earlier in his career, a reputation supported by recordings he made at this time, such as Balakirev's Islamey and Liszt's Paganini études. However, even late in his career, he often tended to play with less restraint in live concerts than in studio recordings. Arrau was a man of remarkable fortitude; even towards the end of his life he invariably programmed very large, demanding concerts, including works such as Beethoven's Emperor Concerto and Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1.[1] Contributions[edit] Numerous pianists studied with Arrau, including Karlrobert Kreiten, Garrick Ohlsson, Roberto Szidon, Stephen Drury and Roberto Eyzaguirre among others. He was a frequent recital performer: from age 40 to 60 he averaged 120 concerts a season, with a very large repertoire. At one time or another, he performed the complete keyboard works of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin; but also programmed such off-the-beaten-path composers as Alkan and Busoni and illuminated obscure corners of the Liszt repertoire. It has been estimated that Arrau's total repertoire would carry him through 76 recital evenings, not counting the 60-odd works with orchestra which he also knew.[4] Arrau recorded a considerable part of the piano music of Schumann, Chopin and Liszt. He edited the complete Beethoven piano sonatas for the Peters Urtext edition and recorded all of them on the Philips label in 1962–1966. He recorded almost all of them once again in 1984-1990 along with Mozart's complete piano sonatas. He is also famous for his recordings of Schubert, Brahms and Debussy. Notable recordings: Bach: Goldberg Variations (recorded in 1942), partitas 1,2,3 and 5 (recorded in 1991) Beethoven: complete piano concertos (he recorded them three times) and piano sonatas Brahms: complete piano concertos, piano sonatas 2 and 3 Chopin: complete Études, nocturnes, preludes and piano concertos Debussy: complete preludes & images, Suite Bergamasque Liszt: piano sonata in B minor, complete Transcendental Études Mozart: complete piano sonatas Schoenberg: piano pieces, Op. 11 Schubert: late piano sonatas, Impromptus, Klavierstücke, D. 946 Schumann: piano sonata in #F minor, Carnaval, Fantasia in C major, piano concerto in A minor (he recorded it four times) Weber: piano sonata in C major, Konzertstück, Op. 79 At the time of his death at age 88 in the midst of a European concert tour, Arrau was working on a recording of the complete works of Bach for keyboard, and was also preparing some pieces of Haydn, Mendelssohn, Reger and Busoni, and Boulez's third piano sonata. The Robert Schumann Society established the Arrau Medal in 1991. It has been awarded to András Schiff, Martha Argerich and Murray Perahia.[10] Critics[edit] Olin Downes, reviewing a recital of Mozart, Schumann, Ravel and Debussy works in The New York Times, described Claudio Arrau as "a pianist of most exceptional equipment, imagination and unfailing taste."[1] In 1963, according to various critics, he was a man with "no equal at the present time in point of technical stature and depth of musical imagination," "the No. 1 pianist of our time," a "pianistic titan," a "lion of the piano," or, if you like, a "neo-Liszt from the Tropic of Capricorn".[4] "Is it not Claudio Arrau who is the most musical and deeply serious piano phenomenon of our time?" – Karl Schumann, Germany's leading music critic, in the Süddeutsche Zeitung on June 2, 1986.[11] According to Joseph Horowitz: "His earliest recordings, extending into the forties, are his most mercurial, and are buffed with the glistening tonal refinements mentioned in his early New York reviews. His recorded performances of the following decade or so are more majestically placed; given room to maneuver, he is more likely to linger than to bolt. (...) Then, sometimes around 1960, the recordings document a different change. An emerging undercurrent of raw feeling note only dictates yet slower tempos and grander rubatos, but adds to the dignified architecture of Arrau's sound a steady projection of human frailty. (...) How did this change come about? (...) At the risk of resorting to cut-rate psychology, I am tempted to cite, as well, the event Arrau recalls as 'the greatest shock in my life": his mother's death in 1959. Perhaps mourning openend new emotional pathways. Perhaps the disappearance of a pervasive authority figure freed or emboldened him to make a more vulnerable statement in his art."[12] John von Rhein wrote in 1991 in the Chicago Tribune: "He was among the least flamboyant of pianists, avoiding virtuosic display as rigorously as some pianists seek it out; yet there was never any doubt of his virtuoso technique. He commanded a rich sonority, each chord superbly weighted, the fingerwork a model of finely chiseled clarity, the shape of each phrase deeply considered. Sometimes Mr. Arrau's penchant for slow tempos and emphasis on inner detail could seem fussy, depriving his performances of spontaneity and momentum. At his considerable best, however, he was among the most deeply satisfying interpreters of Mozart, Brahms, Schumann, Liszt, Chopin and particularly Beethoven, whose works held a position in his repertoire comparable to that of his great colleague, pianist Rudolf Serkin.[13] Quotes[edit] "All I wanted was music," Mr. Arrau once said of his early years. "I was even fed at the piano. Otherwise, it seems, I wouldn't eat. I used to play with my mouth open, and my mother put food in it."[1] Describing his work in a 1975 interview, Mr. Arrau said: "I try to play the way a cat jumps. It must be completely natural. I have promised myself that whenever I feel a kind of routine creeping into my playing, I will stop. Now when I play I am almost in ecstasy, a creative ecstasy, which I wouldn't miss for anything. This is what I live for."[1] Awards and recognitions[edit] 2012: Voted into the Gramophone Hall of Fame[14] 1990: Gold Medal of The Royal Philharmonic Society 1988: La Medalla Teresa Carreño of Venezuela; Honorary Member of The Royal Philharmonic Society 1984: The Highest Distinction Award from the Inter-American Music Council and the Organization of American States; Doctor Honoris Causa of Universidad de Concepción; Professor Honoris Causa of Universidad de Bío-Bío 1983: The International UNESCO Music Prize; National de la Légion d'honneur of France; National Prize of Art of Chile; First Honorary Member of The Robert Schumann Society; Doctor Honoris Causa of University of Oxford; Commandatore da Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia; Knighthood from the Order of Malta; Beethoven Medal of New York; Philadelphia Bowl of Philadelphia 1982: La Orden del Águila Azteca of Mexico 1980: Hans von Bülow Medal of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 1970: Großes Bundesverdienstkreuz of the Federal Republic of Germany 1965: Chevalier of Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France; Presented with 'The Mask of Chopin' & Chopin's manuscripts 1959: Santiago's Honorary Citizen; Concepción's Honorary Citizen and City Gold Medal; Hijo Benemérito de Chillán; Chillán's hitherto Lumaco Street was named after Claudio Arrau 1958: The Medal of The Royal Philharmonic Society 1949: Hijo Predilecto de México; Doctor Honoris Causa of University of Chile 1941: Hijo Ilustre de Chillán 1927: Winner of the Grand Prix of the Concours International des Pianistes Geneva. The jury was composed by Arthur Rubinstein, Joseph Pembauer, Ernest Schelling, Alfred Cortot and José Vianna da Motta.[15] Cortot exclaimed: "Cela c'est un pianiste. C'est merveilleux" 1925: Honour Prize of the Stern Conservatory, becoming Professor 1919 & 1920: Liszt Prize (after 45 years without a first-place winner) 1918: Schulhoff Prize; End of studies at the Stern Conservatory, receiving an "Exceptional Diploma" 1917: Sachsen-Gothaische Medaille 1916: Grant of the Stern Conservatory 1915: First Prize in the Rudolph Ibach Competition (he was the only participating boy) 1915: Gustav Holländer Medal for young artists 1911: Grant of the Chilean Congress for musical studies in Berlin Album prizes[edit] Deutscher Schallplattenpreis: Brahms 2 Piano Concertos with Carlo Maria Giulini and Philharmonia Orchestra [EMI Recorded in 1960 & 1962] Beethoven 5 Piano Concertos with Bernard Haitink and Concertgebouw Orchestra [Philips Recorded in 1964] Schumann Sonate Op.11, Fantasiestücke Op.111 [Philips Recorded in 1967 & 1968] Brahms 2 Piano Concertos with Bernard Haitink and Concertgebouw Orchestra [Philips Recorded in 1969] Liszt Record Grand Prix: Liszt Complete Concert Paraphrases on Operas by Verdi [Philips Recorded in 1971] Liszt 12 Etudes d'exécution Transcendente [Philips Recorded in 1974 & 1976] Liszt 2 Piano Concertos with Sir Colin Davis and London Symphony Orchestra [Philips Recorded in 1979] Diapason d'Or: Chopin Complete Nocturnes [Philips Recorded in 1977 & 1978] Chopin Complete Etudes [EMI Recorded in 1956, Remastered in 1987] Grand Prix du Disque: Chopin Complete Etudes [EMI Recorded in 1956, Remastered in 1987] Schumann Piano Concerto, Carnaval & Beethoven Sonata Op.111 [EMI Filmed in 1963, 1961 & 1970] Edison Award: Liszt Solo Piano Works: Ballade No.2, Jeux d'eaux à la villa d'Este, Vallée d'Obermann...... [Philips Recorded in 1969] Belgium Caecilia Award: Schumann Comprehensive Solo Piano Works [Philips Recorded from 1966 to 1976] Japan Record Academy Award: Beethoven 5 Piano Concertos with Sir Colin Davis and Staatskapelle Dresden [Philips Recorded in 1984 & 1987] FFFF de Télérama: Chopin Complete Etudes [EMI Recorded in 1956, Remastered in 1987] Warsaw Chopin Society's Grand Prix du Disque Frédéric Chopin: Chopin Complete Etudes [EMI Recorded in 1956, Remastered in 1987] ****** Claudio Arrau, Pianist, Is Dead at 88 By Allan Kozinn June 10, 1991 Credit... The New York Times Archives See the article in its original context from June 10, 1991, Section B, Page 11Buy Reprints New York Times subscribers* enjoy full access to TimesMachine—view over 150 years of New York Times journalism, as it originally appeared. SUBSCRIBE *Does not include Crossword-only or Cooking-only subscribers. About the Archive This is a digitized version of an article from The Times’s print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Claudio Arrau, one of the great pianists of the 20th century, died yesterday in Murzzuschlag, Austria. He was 88 years old and lived in Munich. Friede F. Rothe, Mr. Arrau's personal representative, said the Chilean-born pianist died after after emergency surgery to correct an intestinal blockage on Saturday. Mr. Arrau was in Austria for what was to have been his first performance in two years, a private recital to open a museum in Murzzuschlag, 60 miles south of Vienna. He had stopped performing in June 1989 after the death of his wife, Ruth Schneider, a German-born mezzo-soprano, whom he married in 1937. In addition to his scheduled concert in Austria, he was to have peformed a recital on Friday at the Schumann Festival in Dusseldorf, Germany, at which the baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau was to have given him the Gold Medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society of London. The Chilean Government designated today a national day of mourning for Mr. Arrau. A Model of Clarity In a career that spanned eight decades, Mr. Arrau was prized for an aristocratic approach to the great works of the 19th century. His specialties included the works of Liszt, to which he brought a rare combination of physical power and philosophical insight, and Beethoven, whose sonatas and concertos he played with an Apollonian breadth that many found both poetic and authoritative. His Chopin, Schumann and Debussy, too, were considered models of clarity throughout his long career. Thanks for reading The Times. Subscribe to The Times Mr. Arrau's stamina was also a matter of constant surprise in the musical world. Although in recent years he canceled performances frequently because of illness, when he did perform he invariably played large, demanding programs, and did so with the concentration and passion of a much younger musician. In 1983 he celebrated his 80th birthday with a tour that included six New York City concerts, as well as performances of the Beethoven "Emperor" and the Brahms Concerto No. 1 in Paris and Berlin. In the last year, he had also returned to the recording studio after a brief hiatus. In recent years, he recorded complete cycles of the Mozart and Beethoven sonatas and the Beethoven concertos, as well as works by Schubert, Liszt, Debussy and Bach. Describing his own work in a 1975 interview, Mr. Arrau said: "I try to play the way a cat jumps. It must be completely natural. I have promised myself that whenever I feel a kind of routine creeping into my playing, I will stop. Now when I play I am almost in ecstasy, a creative ecstasy, which I wouldn't miss for anything. This is what I live for." A Childhood at the Piano Born on February 6, 1903 in Chillan, in central Chile, Mr. Arrau showed his musical abilities early. His father, Carlos Arrau, had died before he was a year old, and his mother supported the family by giving piano lessons. When he was 4 years old, Mr. Arrau startled his mother by playing from memory some of the pieces her students played at their lessons. He could read music before he could read words, and he gave his first public performance in Santiago -- an ambitious program of Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann works -- when he was 5 years old. Editors’ Picks Why Did the Dean of the Most Diverse Law School in the Country Cancel Herself? Want to Go to Europe This Summer? Here Are Your Options Why Jessica Walter’s Pictures Said a Thousand Words Continue reading the main story "All I wanted was music," Mr. Arrau once said of his early years. "I was even fed at the piano. Otherwise, it seems, I wouldn't eat. I used to play with my mouth open, and my mother put food in it." In 1911, Mr. Arrau performed in Chile and Argentina, and in 1912 the Chilean Congress gave him a scholarship to study at the Stern Conservatory in Berlin. He worked with Martin Krause, who had been one of the last students of Franz Liszt, until Krause's death in 1918. In this period he won many awards, including the Ibach Prize and the Gustav Hollander Medal. He made his Berlin recital debut in 1914 and toured Europe in 1918, playing under the direction of Karl Muck, Arthur Nikisch, Willem Mengelberg and Wilhelm Furtwangler, among others. In 1927, he won the Grand Prix Internationale des Pianistes, in Geneva. In 1922, Mr. Arrau made his first London appearance, sharing the program with the violinist Bronislaw Hubermann and the soprano Nellie Melba. The following year, he unsuccessfully tried to introduce himself to the American concert world, and he ended up penniless in New York City. But his New York debut, on Oct.r 20, 1923, did not go badly. An unsigned review in The New York Times noted that his playing had some mannerisms but that "these serve the purpose of an individual style." His performances of music by Debussy were said to mark him as a player who "has something to say and both the technical and temperamental means to say it." The Berlin Years Mr. Arrau joined the faculty of the Stern Conservatory in 1924 and taught there until 1940. He enjoyed a rarefied atmosphere in Berlin: Among the musicians in his circle were the composers and pianists Ferrucio Busoni and Eugene d'Albert and the Venezuelan pianist Teresa Carreno. In 1935 he played the entire keyboard works of Bach in a series of 12 Berlin recitals. Shortly thereafter, he gave up playing Bach in public. In later years, he explained his abandonment of Bach by saying that did not believe that Bach's music could be realized satisfactorily on the piano. But this year he changed his mind again and recorded four of the six Partitas. After the success of his Bach series, Mr. Arrau turned to the complete Mozart keyboard works, which he played in Berlin in 1936. He played his first Beethoven cycle, which included not only the 32 sonatas but the five concertos, in a Mexico City series in 1938. He repeated the Beethoven cycle around the world several times over the next few decades. Mr. Arrau fled Berlin in 1940 and returned to Chile, where he founded a piano school in Santiago. A year later, he toured the United States again, this time with great success. Olin Downes, reviewing a recital of Mozart, Schumann, Ravel and Debussy works in The New York Times, described Mr. Arrau as "a pianist of most exceptional equipment, imagination and unfailing taste." That year, he settled in Douglaston, Queens, where he lived until he moved to Munich in November 1990. Mr. Arrau toured extensively. He visited India in 1956 and played in Japan for the first time in 1965. But he stopped performing in Chile after 1967, in protest first against the Socialist Government of President Salvador Allende Gossens, and later against the authoritarian rule of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, who overthrew Allende. In 1977, he played a highly publicized benefit concert for Amnesty International that raised $190,000. He ended his boycott in 1984, when he returned to Santiago for his first performance in Chile in 17 years. At that concert, which was broadcast throughout Chile, he received a 12-minute standing ovation. Mr. Arrau donated his earnings from the concert to a scholarship fund for Latin American musicians that he set up in 1967 in his name. Teacher and Scholar Mr. Arrau was an active teacher. Two of his best-known pupils were Philip Lorenz and Garrick Ohlsson. A musical scholar as well as a pianist, Mr. Arrau supervised a performers' Urtext edition of Beethoven's piano sonatas, completed in 1978, and published by Edition Peters. In a Stagebill article published soon after the edition was completed, Mr. Arrau described his aims and methods. "The Peters editors and I had arguments over every little staccato mark," he said. "I kept the dynamic markings very strict and added my own only where there were none or where it was necessary for interpretative or performance reasons." He added: "Sometimes when I play, I get a sudden flash of new insight into the music. It's a strange and mystical feeling. I think some of the greatest interpretive miracles have happened in this manner." His recordings of the Beethoven sonatas and concertos, remade several times (most recently in the late 1980's), are highly regarded for their thoughtful, reverent qualities. Indeed, Mr. Arrau has long been a favorite of record collectors. Some of his earliest recordings have recently been reissued on compact disk by small historical labels. And Philips , the company for which he has recorded for over the last few decades, has announced a 25-CD "Arrau Collection," for release this year. Mr. Arrau was a handsome, dapper man, small in stature but a commanding presence. In interviews, he could be shy at first, but when he warmed to his interviewer -- as he did in Joseph Horowitz's "Conversations With Arrau," published in 1982 -- he could be insightful, amusing, and at home in a variety of subjects that included contemporary music, early instruments, primitive art (which he collected) and popular music of various eras, from the Paul Whiteman Band to the Beatles and even disco music. He was also extremely fond of films and played Liszt in a biography of the composer, "Sueno de Amor," filmed in Mexico City in 1935. Surviving Mr. Arrau are two children, Christopher Arrau and Carmen Reintsema, both of Denver; six grandchildren, and a nephew, Agustin Arrau. *****  CLAUDIO ARRAU BIOGRAPHY Claudio Arrau, renowned throughout the world as one of the supreme keyboard masters of the century, stands today at the summit of his long and legendary career, for the one artistic goal he has pursued for a lifetime: the total fusion of virtuosity and meaning. Where other famous pianists play the piano for excitement, power or display, Arrau plays to probe, to divine, to interpret. Says Arrau, "An interpreter must give his blood to the work interpreted." The famed late doyen of London music critics, Sir Neville Cardus of the Guardian, explained Arrau vividly: "Arrau is the complete pianist. He can revel in the keyboard for its own pianistic sake, representing to us the instrument's range and power, but he can also go beyond piano playing as we are led by his art to the secret chambers of the creative imagination." In a tribute by the Berlin Philharmonic, which bestowed the Hans von Bulow Medal on Arrau in 1980, on the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of his debut with that great orchestra, it was put even better: "When Arrau bends over the keyboard, it is as if Music and only Music itself, is flowing out of his entire body. There is not a nuance of feeling or sound that he has not mastered. His pianissimo is more eloquent, more mysterious than that of others, and his fortissimo has more depth of dimension and is more limitless." But a London Sunday Times interview some years back explained the Arrau mystique best of all: "One regards him as a sort of miracle; the piano is the most machinelike of instruments except the organ - all those rods, levers, little felt pads, wires, no intimate subtle human connection with it by breath, tongueing, or the string player's direct engagement with speaking vibrations. But Arrau makes it live, like God teaching Adam on Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel roof; liquid, mysterious, profound, alive." At 86, Arrau today is a legend in his own lifetime, not only for the penetrating profundity of his interpretations, but for a still transcendent virtuosity completely at the service of his art. Explains Arrau: "Since in music we deal with notes, not words, with chords, with transitions, with color and expression, the musical meaning always based on those notes as written and nothing else - has to be divined. Therefore any musician, no matter how great an instrumentalist, who is not also an interpreter of a divinatory order, the way Furtwangler was, or Fischer-Dieskau is, is somehow onesided, somehow without spiritual grandeur." Arrau is definitely not onesided or without spiritual grandeur. Having won particular fame as a great Beethoven interpreter, he is no less celebrated for his Mozart, Schubert, Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms and Debussy. Among the famed peers of his generation, it is a range without equal. As a Beethoven interpreter, Arrau has played cycles of the sonata and concertos throughout the world. During the Beethoven Bicentennial Year, he played the five piano concertos in London for the fifth time around and the "Emperor" Concerto in New York, London, Berlin, at the Casals Festival, at the Bonn Festival and Beethoven recitals everywhere, including New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam and Zurich. He has played cycles of the complete 32 piano sonatas in New York, London, Buenos Aires, Berlin, Mexico City and most of the sonatas in Zurich, Paris and Hamburg. The Arrau discography is equally vast. His recordings include the 32 Beethoven Piano Sonatas, the five Beethoven Piano Concertos (thrice), the two Brahms Concertos (twice) and the complete works for piano and orchestra by Chopin - all on Philips Records and released throughout the world. He has also recorded a great many of the solo works of Chopin, Schumann, Brahms, Debussy, Schubert and Liszt, including the awesome 12 Transcendental Etudes, a feat which he pulled off in time for his 75th birthday celebrations. Since then, he has recorded the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Boston Symphony under Sir Colin Davis, the Liszt Concertos and (for the fourth time around) the Grieg and Schumann Concertos, also with the Boston Symphony under Sir Colin Davis. For his 80th birthday celebrations in 1983, Philips Records brought out The Arrau Edition, 59 records in 8 deluxe boxes, CBS brought out a 3-record Retrospective box as did EMI, and RCA later brought out a 2-CD set consisting of Bach's "Goldberg" Variations and the Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, recorded in 1941. Recently, he recorded the Beethoven Piano Concertos for the third time around, this time with the Dresden Staatskapelle under Sir Colin Davis, 12 new Beethoven Sonatas (which may form a new set of the 32), the Diabelli Variations and the complete Mozart Piano Sonatas. Without giving up Liszt, Arrau gravitated to Beethoven. Textual fidelity and freedom of expression became his two guiding principles. In starving Germany, he managed to keep himself and his family alive, and by the time he won the famed International Geneva Prize in 1927, when he was 24 (the judges were Cortot, de Motta and Arthur Rubinstein), the great composers - Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Schubert - had become his life. By the time Arrau was 32, he had not only played the 32 Beethoven Sonatas and all the Schubert and Mozart Sonatas as well as Weber in cycles of concerts, but also, all of the keyboard works of Bach in a series of 12 recitals which made him a legend in Berlin. During that time, he was also playing Schumann, Brahms, Chopin, Liszt, Debussy, Albeniz, Ravel and Schoenberg, leading the chief music critic of the London Times, William Mann to write years later after World War II, "There are pianists who rank as outstanding in Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt. Arrau is the only pianist alive who, at any rate while he is playing, can convince people that he is the outstanding interpreter of all these composers and a good many others too." By the time Arrau returned to play at Carnegie Hall again, in February 1941, he felt ready and mature, and this time, his name had preceded him and the house was packed. The New York Times, along with every other paper including Time Magazine, gave him rave reviews. The following season he played over 100 concerts across the United States and Canada and had the additional distinction of being invited back to play twice in that same season with both the Boston and Chicago Symphony Orchestras. Today, Arrau's schedule of concerts still covers two and three continents and sometimes even more, as it did in 1958 when his world tour included the Soviet Union, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, as well as Europe, Israel, the United States, Canada, Mexico and South America - a tour which he repeated for the most part in 1974-75. In fact, with the exception of Peking, there is probably not an important city, large or small, anywhere in the world where Arrau has not been heard. During the 1981-82 season, in addition to the United States, Canada, Europe and Brazil, he also made his fifth return to Japan, capping it with a sixth triumphant return to Japan and South Korea in May 1987. During 1982-83, the whole world of music joined in celebrating the Maestro's 80th birthday. His Avery Fisher Hall recital at Lincoln Center in February was the official birthday celebration and was televised as was the concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Riccardo Muti on the actual birthday, February 6th. There were also TV documentaries both in London and Germany. He also picked up a new batch of birthday honors and prizes, including the International UNESCO Music Prize for 1983, the National Arts Prize from Chile, the Aztec Eagle from Mexico, a Commandatore from the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome and a Commandeur de la l'Legion de Honneur, France's highest decoration. As part of the continuing 80th birthday celebrations, Arrau returned to his native Chile in May 1984 as a symbol of peace after an absence of 17 years, to play as he said, "For a whole new generation which has never heard me," and was given a reception probably without equal since the time of Paderewski's return to Poland after World War I and Liszt's return to Hungary under the Austrians in 1839. As the New York Times reported in a long story which was given an alert on the front page, Arrau dominated the local newspapers for weeks and his concerts in Santiago (six in eleven days) were seen and heard on TV by 80% of the nation. Until recently playing up to 100 concerts each season, Arrau has now reduced the number to around 50, leaving himself more time to record, study and read, a lifelong passion. His fervent wish: "Another hundred years just to read." His 85th birthday, on February 6, 1988, was another occasion for world celebration, winding up with a grand "Emperor" Concerto in London, under the direction of Sir Colin Davis, which was televised and will be brought out on video disc together with the Beethoven Concerto No. 4 under Riccardo Muti. Since 1941, Arrau and his late wife Ruth, made Douglaston, New York, their home base and also a summer home in Vermont, where he loves to retreat for rest and quiet, sometimes with his children and grandchildren and always with his beloved cats and dogs. Arrau became an American citizen in February 1979, but retains dual passports. In 1978, Arrau completed a new Urtext Edition of the Beethoven Piano Sonatas for the famous music publishing house of Peters in Frankfurt. A performing edition, the first by a famous Beethoven interpreter since Schnabel's in 1935, it includes all the Arrau fingerings, as well as tempi by Beethoven (where available), Czerny and Arrau and suggestions for dynamics, pedalings and performance practice. Claudio Arrau was born in Chillan Chile, on February 6, 1903 and like most of history's great pianists, was a child prodigy. His mother was an amateur pianist and his father an eye doctor, who died in a riding accident when Arrau was one-year old. In order to support herself and her three young children, Lucretia Leon de Arrau, an indomitable woman, began to give piano lessons. Claudio, her youngest, was allowed to sit in so she could keep an eye on him and the result was that he could read notes before he could read words. By five, the boy gave recitals both in Chillan and in Santiago and by seven, he and his entire family, including an aunt, were on their way to Berlin (the musical Mecca of that time) where the young piano genius was to study on a Government grant (by an act of the Chilean Congress) over the next ten years. In Berlin, after blundering around for two years with wrong teachers, Arrau, at ten, finally found the teacher he needed. He was Martin Krause, a pupil of Liszt's, a famous music critic and the friend of all the great musicians of his time. Between the young boy and the grand pedagogue, it was love at first sight. For Arrau, Krause became the father he never had and to Krause, Arrau was the pupil he had been searching for. "He will be my masterwork," said Krause, who also taught Edwin Fischer. In Berlin, the young boy heard all the great pianists of the day; Terese Carreno, d'Albert and later, Busoni, and they all became his idols, especially Carreno and Busoni. At 15, when Krause died from the great flu epidemic of1918, Arrau was 1eft without a teacher. But so much had been imparted to him that he preferred to go on by himself, winning the famed Liszt Prize twice in a row at ages 16 and 17. Thus, when Arrau, at 20, arrived for his Carnegie Hall debut on October 20, 1923, he was already a seasoned artist who had played throughout Europe since the age of 11, had appeared with Nikisch in Leipzig at 12, and at 17, had made smash debuts both in London (at the Royal Albert Hall) and in Berlin with the Berlin Philharmonic under Karl Muck. Arrau had come to the United States for a promised tour of 30 dates and found himself with only five (in those days things like that happened even to veterans like Carreno and Busoni): three concerts in New York and appearances with the Boston and Chicago Symphonies. Boston under Monteux and Chicago under Stock were splendid. Carnegie Hall, with the house mostly empty, was far less so. Arrau, thinking himself a failure, returned home to Berlin no richer than he had come, and that, he says today, was probably the best thing that could have happened to him at the time, artistically-wise. Berlin, after World War I, was boiling over with new ideas. The time of the salon pianists was about over, musicology was a new discipline and great Beethoven interpreters were coming to the fore who were to transform the art of piano playing in our time. The spirit of Busoni, d'Albert and Ansorge were still everywhere, Schnabel and Edwin Fischer were on the rise, and both freedom of expression and fidelity to the text were the order of the day. ***** Claudio Arrau Chilean pianist Print  Cite  Share  More WRITTEN BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Last Updated: Feb 2, 2021 See Article History RELATED TOPICS Latvia | History - Geography Brunei | History, People, Religion, & Tourism Netherlands | History, Flag, Population, Languages, Map, & Facts Guinea | History, Map, Flag, Language, People, & Facts Claudio Arrau, (born February 6, 1903, Chillán, Chile—died June 9, 1991, Mürzzuschlag, Austria), Chilean pianist who was one of the most-renowned performers of the 20th century. Arrau’s father, an eye doctor, died when Arrau—the youngest of three children—was one year old. His mother supported the family by giving piano lessons and must have been gratified when her own son proved to be a child prodigy at the piano. Claudio studied privately in Santiago for two years and then traveled at the expense of the Chilean government to Berlin, where he studied from 1912 to 1918 with Martin Krause, once a student of Franz Liszt. Arrau’s serious career began with a recital in Berlin in 1914, and during the next decade he toured extensively in Europe, South America, and the United States. Between 1924 and 1940 he taught at Julius Stern’s Conservatory in Berlin, and in 1941 he moved permanently to the United States, becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen only in 1979, after the rise of Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Arrau continued his frequent touring past his 80th birthday. Arrau focused his considerable powers on the music of Liszt, Johannes Brahms, Frédéric Chopin, Robert Schumann, Claude Debussy, and, above all, Ludwig van Beethoven. In 1935 he played all the keyboard works of J.S. Bach in a series of 12 concerts. His performances of the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven (there are 32) were broadcast by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Arrau’s awards are too numerous to mention, and his library of recorded works is enormous. Regarded as one of the least ostentatious of the century’s virtuoso pianists, he developed a classical approach that exhibited an extreme concentration on detail without sacrificing feeling.  ****  Remembering Claudio Arrau on the tenth anniversary of his passing "He is a high priest of absolute textual interpretation coupled with virtuosity," wrote the noted German critic Joachim Kaiser in an attempt to capture the mystery of Arrau's playing. Claudio Arrau, the legendary Chilean-American pianist who passed away on June 9, 1991, was an artist without any spectacular mannerisms or interpretative excesses. An earnest, reserved man, he kept the lid on his emotional depths, only subtly granting insights into their richness during his performances. In an obituary that appeared in "The Times" of June 10, 1991, Richard Morrison wrote that "he made his technique and his character subservient to music, not vice versa." Claudio Arrau was born in Chillán, Chile, on February 6, 1903, and gave his first recital in Santiago at the age of five. Two years later, he and his entire family left for Berlin on a government grant. From 1913 to 1918 he studied with Martin Krause, one of the great teachers of his time and one of Liszt's last pupils. Arrau made his formal debut at 11, played under the direction of the famed Arthur Nikisch at 12 and made his Berlin Philharmonic and London debuts at 17. At 16 and 17, he also pulled off the incredible feat of winning the Liszt Prize twice in a row, a feat made all the more remarkable considering that it hadn't been awarded in 45 years. Arrau's international career began when, at the age of 20, he came to the United States for the first time. In 1927 he won First Prize at the International Geneva Competition, judged by a jury that included Cortot and Rubinstein. In 1935 he was the first pianist ever to play the complete keyboard works of J.S. Bach in 12 recitals, and in subsequent seasons, all of the Beethoven sonatas and Mozart sonatas, as well as the works of Schubert and Weber. In 1941 Arrau returned to the United States, giving a sensational Carnegie Hall recital which added the final jewel to the crown of his international fame. An indefatigable performer, Arrau undertook countless tours, sometimes playing over 100 concerts a year. While his vast repertoire ranged from Bach to contemporary composers, it clearly centered around the composers of the Romantic era. He was celebrated above all for his performances of Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Chopin, Liszt and Debussy. Arrau was hailed as one of the last representatives of the pianistic tradition of creative liberty that had been passed on directly from Liszt. Yet in spite of his astounding technique, he preferred to appear as an "anti-virtuoso", whose rigor and precision never flagged. "Despite its apparently rhetorical sweep and its boldness of conception," wrote Jeremy Siepmann in "The Guardian" on June 11, 1991, "Arrau's playing was essentially that of a seeker, an asker of questions on an epic scope." In 1967 Arrau renounced his Chilean citizenship to protest the political situation in his country. He became a U.S. citizen and did not return to Chile until 1984, whereupon he was greeted as a national hero. During the years of Chile's right-wing dictatorship, Arrau actively expressed his opposition to the regime by giving benefit concerts. Amnesty International, for example, was one such beneficiary in a concert given in Munich in 1976 and recorded by Unitel. Leonard Bernstein conducted the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in an all-Beethoven program consisting of the Leonore Overture No. 3, the Symphony No. 5 and, with Arrau as soloist, the Piano Concerto No. 4. Incidentally, Bernstein had met Arrau 30 years previously, when he led a concert of the New York City Symphony in which Arrau played the Brahms D minor Concerto. At a party following the concert, Bernstein met a compatriot of the Chilean pianist, the beautiful young actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn, who soon became Bernstein's wife. Claudio Arrau, "one of the greatest and most delightful pianists of our time" (Sir Colin Davis in "The Times", June 10, 1991), passed away in Mürzzuschlag, Austria on June 9, 1991 after having thrilled audiences world-wide with his subtle understanding of music and his restrained virtuosity.  *** Irwin Hoffman (November 26, 1924 – March 19, 2018) was an American conductor active in North America and Latin America. Hoffman studied at the Juilliard School and was a protégé of Serge Koussevitsky, and he made his conducting debut at the age of seventeen with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Robin Hood Dell (now the Mann Center for the Performing Arts). He was music director of the Vancouver Symphony from 1952 to 1964, and served the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as assistant conductor (1964–65), associate conductor (1965–68), acting music director (1968–69), and conductor (1969–70). Hoffman became the first music director of the Florida Orchestra (then the Florida Gulf Coast Symphony) in 1968. He was music director of the Bogotá Philharmonic, Colombia for one year, the Chile Symphony Orchestra for three seasons (from 1995 to 1997) and Costa Rica's National Symphony Orchestra from 1987 to 2001, but he also conducted some concerts with the same orchestra in 2016. Hoffman died in Costa Rica on March 19, 2018, aged 93.[1]  *** Biography IRWIN HOFFMAN, Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia assumed the post in 2000. During the period 1987 to 2001 he was the Artistic Director of the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, group that he took on tour to the Far East, North America and Europe in several occasions. IRWIN HOFFMAN was also Artistic Director and Conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of Santiago, Chile; the Flagstaff Festival for the Arts and the Florida Orchestra that he conducted for several years since its founding in 1968. Prior to his position in Florida, IRWIN HOFFMAN was Acting Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra following a period as Associate Conductor. He went to Chicago following a position as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra in Canada which he held for twelve seasons. For four seasons IRWIN HOFFMAN served as Music Director of the Belgium Radio and TV Symphony Orchestra. He toured Poland with the orchestra including performances during the Warsaw’s Autumn Festival of Contemporary Music. He has guest conducted some of the world’s finest orchestras including the BBC Symphony Orchestras of England, Scotland and Wales, London Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, Radio Symphony of Strasbourg, Poznan Philharmonic, Orchestre de Liege, CBC Toronto, Winnipeg and Kitchener orchestras and the Israel Philharmonic, among many others. In Central and South America IRWIN HOFFMAN has conducted the Orquestra Sinfónica Brasileira, Sodre Orchestra (Uruguay), National Orchestras of Peru and El Salvador, National Symphony of Argentina, the UNAM of Mexico city and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Caracas, Venezuela. In the United States IRWIN HOFFMAN has conducted the orchestras of St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Dallas, Denver, Phoenix, Honolulu, Buffalo, Ravinia Festival and Grant Park, among others. Born in New York City, IRWIN HOFFMAN began playing the violin and piano at the age of six. A graduate of Juilliard School of Music, he spent summers studying with Serge Koussevitzki at the Berkshire Music Festival.   ******  Happy 90th birthday, Maestro Irwin Hoffman! November 25, 2014 in Uncategorized | Tags: Bogotá Philharmonic, Costa Rican National Symphony Orchestrta, Esther Glazer, Florida Gulf Coast Symphony, Florida Orchestra, Grant Park Music Festival, Irwin Hoffman, Jean Martinon, Juilliard School, Louis Sudler, Martha Graham, Martha Graham Dance Company, Merrill Shepard, Santiago Philharmonic Orchestra, Serge Koussevitzky, Sir Georg Solti, Tanglewood Music Festival, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Victor Aitay On November 26, 2014, we celebrate the ninetieth birthday of Irwin Hoffman, a titled conductor with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1964 until 1970. On August 13, 1964, Merrill Shepard, then-president of The Orchestral Association, announced that Hoffman had been engaged as the CSO’s new assistant conductor, beginning with the 1964-65 season. Hoffman was to serve the Orchestra and assist music director Jean Martinon in a variety of capacities, including conducting rehearsals and concerts (including youth concerts), leading the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, as well as new score review. Hoffman’s debut program with the Orchestra was as follows: December 17 & 18, 1964 VILLA-LOBOS Uirapurú BARTÓK Violin Concerto No. 1 Victor Aitay, violin MAHLER Symphony No. 1 in D Major Program book announcement from January 1968 Martinon promoted Hoffman to associate conductor the following year. He would serve in that capacity for three seasons, and in January 1968, Association president Louis Sudler announced that Hoffman would be acting music director for the 1968-69 season. (On December 17, 1968, the Association announced that Georg Solti would become the Orchestra’s eighth music director, beginning with the 1969-70 season.) For the 1969-70 season, Hoffman’s title was conductor and he led several weeks of subscription and popular concerts. In subsequent seasons, he returned as a guest conductor and most recently led the Orchestra in January 1977 with the following program: January 12, 13, 14 & 15, 1977 January 17, 1977 (Uihlein Hall, Milwaukee) KAY Of New Horizons SIBELIUS Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47 Esther Glazer, violin PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, Op. 100 Hoffman made his conducting debut at the age of seventeen with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Robin Hood Dell. He also studied at the Juilliard School and later with Serge Koussevitzky at the Tanglewood Music Festival. Hoffman has held titled positions with several orchestras, including the Grant Park Music Festival; Vancouver Symphony Orchestra; Martha Graham Dance Company; Florida Gulf Coast Symphony, later the Florida Orchestra; Bogotá Philharmonic in Colombia; Costa Rican National Symphony Orchestra; and the Santiago Philharmonic Orchestra in Chile. Happy birthday, maestro! ****  Demanding, respected Irwin Hoffman, first conductor of Florida Orchestra, dies at 93 More than a thousand people turned out at historical Whitcomb Bayou in Tarpon Springs Sunday to watch Irwin Hoffman direct the Florida Orchestra in 1984. Times files. By Andrew Meacham Published Mar. 23, 2018 Orchestra musicians respected and feared Irwin Hoffman, the founding conductor of what is now the Florida Orchestra. They describe him as old- school, unsparing in criticism, even dictatorial. The same musicians credit Mr. Hoffman with establishing the high standards that kept the orchestra afloat during its first 20 years. Mr. Hoffman, who turned two merged civic orchestras into a regional player, with aspirations to become a major symphony orchestra, died Monday in Costa Rica. He was 93. He enjoyed shaping orchestras more than simply leading the ones that didn't need it, although he did that too, serving as a titled conductor with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1964 to 1970. He memorized his symphonies, conducting without a score or a baton, keeping musicians on track with hand gestures and facial expressions. He was a border collie of notes, nipping at the shape of a piece while interpreting its sound. "At the age of 19, when I first joined the orchestra as second clarinet, I quickly learned the terror of excellence that he insisted upon," said Brian Moorhead, 65, the orchestra's former principal clarinet. "The terror came from how I felt. The excellence was very well led and inspired by him." Mr. Hoffman was known for singling out musicians he thought were playing incorrectly in rehearsals. "To some, he may have been very, very cruel," Moorhead said, "because if he saw a droplet of blood of vulnerability, there were some who said he may go for the draw and quarter and decimate someone, whether they were a principal or a section player." John Bannon, the orchestra's principal timpanist, considers Mr. Hoffman one of his life's biggest influences. "Boy, was he tough, and scary," Bannon said. "But if you knew what you were doing and could come through in the clutch, while the pressure was never off you were okay. Not that he ever acknowledged it." Mr. Hoffman first impressed locals as a guest conductor of the Tampa Philharmonic, one of two civic orchestras. That performance, coupled with his resume as a Juilliard School graduate and protege of famed conductor Serge Koussevitzky, led the boards of the Tampa Philharmonic and the St. Petersburg Symphony to approach Mr. Hoffman in 1967. At the time, he was serving as acting music director of the Chicago Symphony. After meeting with him, the board named Mr. Hoffman, then 43, the first music director of the Florida Gulf Coast Symphony, beating out 200 applicants. The new orchestra gave its first concert Nov. 14, 1968. The program featured pieces by Hector Berlioz and Ottorino Respighi, and culminated in Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5. The orchestra grew, thanks in part to Mr. Hoffman's lobbying efforts. "He was not afraid to get his hands dirty," said Don Owen, 80, the merged orchestra's founding principal trumpet. "He would go to the Rotary Club and the Lions Club and passionately explain that this area had to have an orchestra just as much as they had to have libraries and schools and hospitals." In concerts, he sometimes brought in an accomplished solo violinist — his wife, Esther Glazer Hoffman. All four children were required to study an instrument. The family lived on Snell Isle and often gave chamber music performances in the area. They had been taken to rehearsals, concerts and parties with musicians since their childhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, where Mr. Hoffman served as music director from 1952 to 1964. All four went on to become professional classical musicians. "If any of us had shown a complete indifference to music as a thing to spend a lot of time on, I think we would have been allowed to just leave it alone," said Joel Hoffman, 64, a composer and concert pianist. "I don't think we would have been allowed to not spend at least a year or two practicing an instrument." Mr. Hoffman was born Nov. 26, 1924, in New York. When he was 6, his father, a violinist, placed a violin under his chin. He began studying the piano around the same time. "Music was not natural for me," Mr. Hoffman told the Argentine newspaper La Nacion. "As a child I was doing things others were not doing. When they left school, others played baseball but I had to practice." He discovered a talent for conducting early, debuting at 17 before the Philadelphia Orchestra. He served in the Army during World War II. In a tank riding through Belgium, he always had his violin with him and a score of Bach's Mass in B minor. In Vancouver, he built what had been a fledging orchestra to a much higher level before being cut loose, his son said. He used a variety of reinforcements to prod Florida Gulf Coast Symphony musicians to play at their best, from an approving glance to public reproach. At a rehearsal in the '70s, after Moorhead disagreed with his tempo of a clarinet solo, Mr. Hoffman responded with a 30-minute lecture, telling him that "the man on the podium has a bigger picture to paint, and I'm just one of the colors." Moorhead to this day regards the talk as an important lesson about allowing conductors to shape the music, one that might have saved his career. Other musicians did not feel the same way. Musicians were becoming more organized, twice going on strike in the 1980s. Increasingly, the authoritarian style modeled by Arturo Toscanini fell out of favor. Dissension increased, until in 1987 the orchestra's board eased Mr. Hoffman out. Joel Hoffman, a professor emeritus at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, thinks it was inevitable. "There is a natural cycle," Joel Hoffman said. "It happens elsewhere and it happened here. It doesn't really make any difference what you were able to accomplish. At a certain point in that cycle, the things that were a part of what made you an invaluable resource there are the things that eventually turn on you." After 19 years, being forced out of the job was tough, particularly as it came around the same time as his marriage broke up. "He wasn't really good at understanding that and accepting it and moving on," Joel Hoffman said. Mr. Hoffman went on to conduct orchestras in Colombia, Costa Rica and Arizona. He married violinist Lourdes Lobo, and conducted Costa Rica's National Symphony Orchestra from 1981 to 2001. In the last year of his life, he remained active in the Youth Symphony Orchestra, which he had helped found. Before a recent illness, Mr. Hoffman was planning to fulfill conducting bookings into September. Moorhead, who retired last year after more than 40 years with the orchestra, remembers Mr. Hoffman fondly. "To me, it was undisputed why he should be the dictator or the unquestioned master, at least in my view," he said. "That set a standard for me that influenced however I performed anywhere else in the country or other places." The gold standard in any musical endeavor, he said, is, "Would this be deserving of a faint smile from the podium from him?" **** The maestro who set TFO’s high standards dies at age 93 Post author: Kurt Loft Post published: March 21, 2018 Post category: ALL POSTS / General Information / TFO Musicians Post comments: 0 Comments In the summer of 1981, I had the privilege of an invitation for lunch at the St. Petersburg home of Irwin Hoffman and Esther Glazer. It was a hot day, and soon after greeting me at the door, the couple offered a pitcher of lemonade and sandwiches ─ and a genuine curiosity about the 25-year-old journalist sitting in their living room. Hoffman was gracious. He answered my questions with eloquence, and paused while I scribbled notes in my reporter’s pad. Glazer, his violinist wife, talked about their talented musical children: composer and pianist Joel, cellist Gary, violist Toby, and harpist Deborah. The couple also was proud of their spacious house off the water, and eager to share its most prized possession: an original score by Georg Philipp Telemann, protected under glass like a museum relic. As we strolled and chatted, I realized Hoffman wasn’t the imposing maestro who would tower over The Florida Orchestra for two decades, bringing Beethoven or Tchaikovsky to life with a sweep of his hand ─ always without a baton. Could this be the same man who made his conducting debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 17? Was this the prodigy of the famed conductor Serge Koussevitzky, and who later became music director of orchestras in Canada, the United States, and South and Central America? Adding a poignant moment to TFO’s 50th anniversary season, news of Hoffman’s death on Monday (March 19) at age 93 gave way to memories of the years I knew him, mostly through dozens of interviews during my time at the Tampa Tribune. Those conversations tapered off in 1988, when Hoffman stepped down as music director and Jahja Ling stepped in. The orchestra has seen three music directors since Hoffman left, and audiences, musicians, and critics all had their opinions about who was best or a favorite. Most seem to agree that Hoffman was a dead-serious musician who helped shape the orchestra into what is today. “This orchestra owes everything to him,’’ said Don Owen, former principal trumpet who played with the group for nearly 45 years, when it was the Florida Gulf Coast Symphony and before that, the Tampa Philharmonic. “He put us on the road to success.’’ Toula Mahalas Bonie, a violinist who played many years under Hoffman’s leadership, said he raised the musical bar for anyone willing to accept him: “Hoffman motivated every person to play his best. To this day, I remember every moment that molded me into a better musician and person.’’ Another orchestra veteran who played as a percussionist from 1973-78 called Hoffman one of the biggest influences in his life. He was a musical titan, said John Bannon, who returned to TFO in 1988 as principal timpanist. “Irwin had command as a conductor that I’ve never seen surpassed, both in terms of his craft and in general musicality,’’ he said. “I have always believed there is a culture of performance excellence in The Florida Orchestra, and it is Irwin who established that culture. I have great respect and appreciation for every one of his successors here, but they have built on the strong foundation laid by Irwin.’’ Brian Moorhead, who recently retired from his chair as principal clarinet, once said Hoffman’s ear for the 4/4 beat in a Strauss waltz was nothing short of magical. Over the years, other musicians praised Hoffman’s economy of movement at the podium ─ one hand guiding the music, the other holding onto his lapel ─ as well as his remarkable memory, which allowed him to work without a score in concert. As a programmer of music, Hoffman mixed up each season, playing traditional and not-so traditional works. In retrospect, he gave considerable weight to 20th-century and contemporary composers ─ often stoking the ire of listeners. He scoffed when a group of patrons signed a petition to ban Stravinsky and Prokofiev from orchestra programs. When he conducted one of the Bartok violin concertos in the mid-1980s, with Esther as soloist, some listeners walked out of the hall. The performance, however, received national attention from critics who flew to Tampa for the occasion. Like many brilliant conductors, Hoffman could be a difficult personality, especially in rehearsal. Bannon remembers him as “tough and scary,’’ but motivated by the discomfort of those moments. It was a small price to pay for what the man gave back to the orchestra, said Owen. “He was a completely irascible dude,’’ he said. “None of us got along with him, but we weren’t there to love him, or for him to love us.’’ The orchestra will dedicate this weekend’s concerts of A Little Night Music to Maestro Hoffman. ‘He brought out the best in us’ More TFO musicians past and present remembered the colorful maestro: Bill Mickelsen, principal tuba: It was 1979, my first season in the orchestra. I was a complete newbie, and eager to show the Maestro how beautifully I could play the tuba. We were rehearsing Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, a tone poem by Richard Strauss depicting a folk hero of the German Middle Ages who allegedly played many tricks making fun of those in authority. There are numerous “mini-solos” for the tuba sprinkled throughout this marvelous work, and one near the outset involves a soft and expressive passage, concluding in a flippant little arpeggio ending on a high note. I had worked very hard to play this particular passage smoothly and with great finesse, and it came out flawlessly at rehearsal. Immediately Maestro Hoffman stopped the rehearsal with a cut-off gesture. There was complete silence as he looked over at me and said, quite sternly, “Mr. Mickelsen, that was very tastefully played. However, Till Eulenspiegel was an unsavory character, so please, just play that passage in a more rustic manner.” Then Don Owen, our beloved but outspoken principal trumpet, says “Yeah, Bill, just poop it out.” The entire orchestra cracked up, and I was a bit embarrassed, but from then on I always tried to play in a style appropriate to the story line. Teri Denton, TFO musician 1977-1984: I had the distinct privilege of sitting as acting principal cellist under Maestro Hoffman. He had a unique manner in which he related to us as orchestra members. He was a very serious and gifted conductor — that was clear to all — however, as my position was literally under his arms as he conducted, I saw on more than one occasion a warmth and mischievous side to him. I really don’t know if any of the other musicians ever observed that side of him. I did. He brought out the best in us as players. He knew what he wanted the music to sound and feel like. He was relentless in pursuit of the standard he desired. I am forever grateful for his adherence to strict professionalism as he took to the podium. He made me a better musician and the orchestra benefited greatly under his leadership. **** The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (abbreviation IPO; Hebrew: התזמורת הפילהרמונית הישראלית, ha-Tizmoret ha-Filharmonit ha-Yisra'elit) is an Israeli symphony orchestra based in Tel Aviv. Its principal concert venue is Heichal HaTarbut. Contents 1 History 2 Awards and recognition 3 Music advisors 4 Music directors 5 Boycott controversies 6 American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra 7 See also 8 References 9 External links History[edit] The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra was founded as the Palestine Symphony Orchestra by violinist Bronisław Huberman in 1936, at a time of the dismissal of many Jewish musicians from European orchestras.[1] Its inaugural concert took place in Tel Aviv on December 26, 1936, conducted by Arturo Toscanini. Its first principal conductor was William Steinberg. Its general manager between 1938 and 1945 was Leo Kestenberg, who, like many of the orchestra members, was a German Jew forced out by the rise of Nazism and the persecution of Jews. During the Second World War, the orchestra performed 140 times before Allied soldiers, including a 1942 performance for soldiers of the Jewish Brigade at El Alamein. At the end of the war, it performed in recently liberated Belgium. In 1948, after the creation of the State of Israel, the orchestra was renamed as the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Particular conductors notable in the history of the orchestra have included Leonard Bernstein and Zubin Mehta. Bernstein maintained close ties with the orchestra from 1947, and in 1988, the IPO bestowed on him the title of Laureate Conductor, which he retained until his death in 1990. Mehta became as the IPO's Music Advisor since 1968. The IPO did not have a formal music director, but instead "music advisors", until 1977, when Mehta was appointed the IPO's first Music Director. In 1981, his title was elevated to Music Director for Life.[2] In December 2016, the Israel Philharmonic announced that Mehta is to conclude his tenure as music director as of October 2019.[3] Principal guest conductors of the orchestra have included Yoel Levi and Gianandrea Noseda. With Mehta, the IPO has made a number of recordings for Decca. With Bernstein, the IPO recorded his own works and works of Igor Stravinsky, for Deutsche Grammophon. The IPO has also collaborated with Japanese composer Yoko Kanno in the soundtrack of the anime Macross Plus. The initial concerts of the Palestine Orchestra in December 1936, conducted by Toscanini, featured the music of Richard Wagner.[4] However, after the Kristallnacht pogroms in November 1938, the orchestra has maintained a de facto ban on Wagner's work, due to that composer's antisemitism and the association of his music with Nazi Germany.[5] The Secretary-General of the orchestra is Avi Shoshani. The IPO has a subscriber base numbering 26,000.[6] Commentators have noted the musically conservative tastes of the subscriber base,[7] although the IPO is dedicated to performing new works by Israeli composers, such as Avner Dorman. Among the orchestra's education initiatives are the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, a partnership between the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Tel Aviv University. Created by Zubin Mehta and philanthropist Josef Buchmann to educate orchestral musicians to supply the artistic future of the IPO and other orchestras,[8] the school is located on the university's campus in Tel Aviv and works very closely with the IPO, including orchestral training programs, master classes with IPO guest artists and special concerts at the IPO's halls. Several members of the IPO are BMSM alumni, while various IPO musicians serve as BMSM faculty members. In 2007, Lahav Shani first appeared with the IPO as guest soloist. Starting in October 2013, he appeared as guest conductor with the orchestra each year. In January 2018, the IPO announced the appointment of Shani as its next music director, effective with the 2020-2021 season. He is to hold the title of music director designate for the 2019-2020 season.[9][10] Awards and recognition[edit] In 1958, the IPO was awarded the Israel Prize, in music, the first time that an organisation received the Prize.[11] Music advisors[edit] William Steinberg (1936–1938) Leonard Bernstein (1947–1949; Laureate Conductor, 1988–1990) Paul Paray (1949–1951) Bernardino Molinari Jean Martinon (1957–1959) Zubin Mehta (1969–1977) Music directors[edit] Zubin Mehta (1977–2019) Lahav Shani (2020–) Boycott controversies[edit] The orchestra's performance in London at The Proms on September 1, 2011 was disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters. The radio broadcast was interrupted, but the concert was broadcast again a few days later.[12] The orchestra's secretary-general Avi Shoshani declared to London's The Times newspaper that the orchestra was unlikely to ever perform in the UK again.[13] Nobody was prosecuted for the disruptions, partly because the management of the Royal Albert Hall, where the concert took place, declined to cooperate with a group of Israel-supporting lawyers.[14] American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra[edit] American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (AFIPO) is a non-profit organization dedicated to sustaining the financial future of the Israel Philharmonic. Necessitated by the lack of substantial Israeli government subsidy or endowment for the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, AFIPO's purpose was crystallized in 1980 through the joint vision of Fredric R. Mann and Zubin Mehta, who created an endowment fund in the United States to ensure the IPO's future. AFIPO seeks to broaden the reach of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and bring its message through music throughout the world. The monies raised by AFIPO are directed towards a fund which assists with the operational support of the orchestra and its musical education programs throughout Israel. Based in New York, the organization cultivates support for the Orchestra by hosting events and encouraging supporters all over North America to contribute to the Israel Philharmonic, a cultural ambassador of the state of Israel. See also[edit] Buchmann-Mehta School of Music Young Israel Philharmonic Orchestra Culture in Israel Israel Philharmonic Orchestra Foundation List of Israel Prize recipients Music in Israel Hellmut Stern Marc Lavry    ebay5348
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