Mischa Elman

Mischa Elman

Mischa Elman (January 20, 1891 – April 5, 1967) was a Ukrainian-born violinist, famed for his passionate style and beautiful tone.

He was born in the small town of Talnoye near Kiev. His grandfather was a klezmer, a Jewish folk musician, who also played the violin. It became apparent when Mischa was very young that he had perfect pitch, but his father hesitated about a career as a musician, since musicians were not very high on the social scale. He finally gave in, and gave Mischa a miniature violin, on which he soon learned several tunes by himself. Soon thereafter, he was taken to Odessa, where he studied at the Imperial Academy of Music. Pablo de Sarasate gave him a recommendation, stating that he could become one of the great talents of Europe. He auditioned for Leopold Auer at the age of 11, playing the Wieniawski Concerto No. 2 and 24th Caprice by Paganini. Auer was so impressed that he had Elman admitted to the St. Petersburg Conservatory.

In 1903, Elman began to play concerts in the homes of wealthy patrons of the arts, and he made his Berlin debut in 1904, creating a great sensation. His London debut in 1905 included the British premiere of Alexander Glazunov's concerto. He played in Carnegie Hall in 1908, making a great impression on his American audience.

Mischa Elman

The headstone of Mischa Elman in Westchester Hills Cemetery

The Elman family moved to the United States, and Mischa became a citizen in 1923. He sometimes performed in as many as 107 concerts in a 29-week season. In 1943, he gave the premiere of Bohuslav Martinů's second concerto, which was written for him. Sales of his records exceeded two million, and they have often been reissued on CD.

His most frequent accompanist in chamber works was Emmanuel Bay, who was born on exactly the same day as he was, 20 January 1891. Elman died on April 5, 1967 in New York City. He is buried in the Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

Elman's recorded legacy spanned more than 50 years, with recordings made during the 78rpm era appearing under the HMV and Victor (later RCA/Victor) labels. During the LP era, Elman signed with Decca/London and later with the Vanguard recording group. Unlike his contemporary, Jascha Heifetz, Elman's work has never been re-issued in a systematic manner. Highlights of his recording career are listed below.

78 rpm / Mono era

• Bach - Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV 1042 - with John Barbirolli
• Bach - Prelude from the Partita for Solo Violin, BWV 1006
• Beethoven - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 - with Georg Solti and the London Philharmonic Orchestra
• Beethoven - Romance in F major for Violin and Orchestra (HMV DB 1847)
• Massenet - Elegie Melodie, with Enrico Caruso (HMV DK 103)
• Mendelssohn - Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 - with Desire Defauw and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
• Raff - Cavatina with Josef Bonime (HMV DB 1354)
• Sarasate - Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20, No. 1.
• Schubert - Valse Sentimentale, with Carroll Hollister (HMV DA 1144)
• Schumann - Traumerei, with Marcel Van Gool (HMV DA 1144)
• Tchaikovsky - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 - with John Barbirolli and the London Symphony Orchestra
• Tchaikovsky - Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 - with Sir Adrian Boult and the London Philharmonic Orchestra
• Vivaldi - Concerto in G Minor, RV 317 - with Lawrence Collingwood and the New Philharmonia Orchestra
• Wieniawski - Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 22 - with the "Robin Hood Dell" (aka Philadelphia) Orchestra
• Wieniawski - Legend, Op. 17

Stereo era

• Bach - Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV 1042 - with Vladimir Golschmann, and the Vienna State Opera Orchestra
• Dvorak - Slavonic Fantasy in B Minor
• Kreisler - La Précieuse
• Nardini - Violin Concerto in E Minor - with Vladimir Golschmann, and the Vienna State Opera Orchestra
• Smetana - Ma Vlast, No. 2.
• Vivaldi - Violin Concerto in G Minor, RV 317 - with Vladimir Golschmann, and the Vienna State Opera Orchestra

Elman's interpretations are in stark contrast with contemporary performance practice. Tempi are taken quite slowly; with significant use of both rubato and portamento. The most striking performances are those of the baroque repertoire. The Vivaldi G minor concerto, particularly in the collaboration with Collingwood, has a soulful, almost klezmer, feel to it. For example, simple arpeggio and scale passagework in the outer movements are performed with a remarkable lyrical quality; the 'motor driven' tempo characteristic of a Vivaldi allegro is completely absent. The adagio of the Vivaldi concerto becomes reminiscent of the Kreisler performance of the Bruch concerto. Though Elman may have been an anachronism in his day (his active period overlaps with the early recordings of Harnoncourt), his interpretations are still worthy of attention and admiration.

External links

• Bio & video clip on public Channel 13 website.
• [1] an admirer's tribute to Mischa Elman

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