Jascha Spivakovsky (18 August 1896 – 23 March 1970) was a 20th-century Russian-born Australian pianist.Professor George Kehler, The Piano in Concert, Scarecrow Press, 1982 He was born near Kiev, later moving to Odessa, where he and his family were nearly murdered by Imperial Guards during the 1905 pogrom."The stage", The Queenslander, 27 May 1922, p 9 He fled to Berlin and was declared the heir to Anton Rubinstein,Die Leipziger Zeitung, Oct 1910 a 19th-century Russian pianist, while being likened to Ignacy Paderewski and Teresa Carreñoe.g. The Standard, 1913 before he was imprisoned as an enemy alien of Imperial Russia during World War I."Spivakovsky. Russian Pianist Arrives," Sydney Morning Herald, 1 March 1922, p 9 In the interwar period, he became internationally recognized as one of the greatest pianists in the worlde.g. The Daily Telegraph, 1920 and was regarded in Europe as one of the finest living interpreters of Brahms.The Advertiser, 1929
He also formed a trio that toured Europe with success across the continent.e.g. Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant, 1930; Berliner Lokal-Anzeiger, 1932 He fled to Australia a few days before the Nazi seizure of power and put his musical career on hold to help people escape the Third Reich.Catherine J. Stevens, "Spivakovsky, Jascha (1896–1970)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, 2002 After World War II, he returned to the stage. Critics after the war commented on the power, depth and maturity of his interpretations.e.g. Sir Neville Cardus, Sydney Morning Herald, 1947 Although his fame dimmed after he ceased touring due to his lack of commercial studio recordings, a collection of his live recordings was released in 2015.Jascha Spivakovsky's recordings released 45 years after death" by Matthew Westwood, The Australian, 5 September 2015
Musical biography
Early life Jascha Spivakovsky was born in 1896 in a small village near Kiev, Russian Empire, into a 400-year-old line of musicians."Jascha Spivakovsky. Talented Russian pianist," The Register, 22 April 1922 He began playing the piano unprompted at three years old; it is said that upon hearing a busker in the street below his family's apartment, he reproduced the melody on the family piano and added a left-hand accompaniment. He was taught by his father until the age of six when the family moved to Odessa so he could receive expert instruction."Russian Pianist: Spivakovsky's Career," Sunday Times, 12 May 1929 The following year, he was discovered by Josef HofmannConcert program from performance by Jascha Spivakovsky in Union Hall, Odessa on 16 February 1910 who arranged an audition with the director of the Moscow Conservatory, Vasily Safonov. Safonov offered to cover his personal tuition at the Conservatory. However, restrictions on Jewish people entering Moscow would have prevented his family from accompanying him, and at seven years old, he was too young to take up this opportunity alone. Instead, he began giving concerts in Odessa and was widely celebrated as a child prodigy. After one sold-out concert, he was presented with a grand piano by the wife of the Governor of Odessa."Jascha Spivakovsky, the pianist. An interview," The Mercury, 17 May 1922, p 9
The following year, a mob massacred the Odessa Jewish community in the 1905 pogrom, storming Spivakovsky's apartment block and murdering the ground-floor tenant. The Spivakovsky family climbed onto the roof where they could see Cossack Imperial Guards approaching on horseback. Instead of quelling the violence, the guards opened fire on them, narrowly missing Spivakovsky's head. The family hid under straw in the basement of their Polish Catholic landlord for five days. When they emerged, they found all their belongings had been looted, and the grand piano thrown from their fifth-floor balcony and smashed to pieces.
Spivakovsky gave concerts to support his now-penniless family and to save money for them to move to a safer country. In 1907, he played to a full house at the Odessa City Theatre, garnering recognition from Odessa News Section.A. A. Tsenovsky, Odessa News Section, 10 February 1907
He was awarded pupillage at the Klindworth-Scharwenka Conservatory in Berlin, where the faculty included direct students of Franz Liszt and Anton Rubinstein, such as Karl Klindworth and Alberto Jonás. Spivakovsky's development there was overseen by the renowned pedagogue,Dr. F. Prelinger, Schlesische Zeitung, 17 December 1916 pianistDr. Leopold Schmidt, Berliner Tageblatt, 1915 and ensemble performer Professor Moritz Mayer-Mahr, who later authored the tome Technique of Pianoforte Playing with the official endorsement of Artur Nikisch, Eugen d'Albert, Ferruccio Busoni, Otto Neitzel, Moriz Rosenthal, and Emil von Sauer.First supplement to Technique of Pianoforte Playing, N.Simrock G.m.b.H., Berlin, May 1918
Mayer-Mahr determined that Spivakovsky was now ready to debut as a professional and selected Leipzig as the location for this debut, due to its reputation for having the toughest critics in Europe. Spivakovsky astounded these critics and was hailed as "The New Anton Rubinstein."El Castellano, 1927 He then proceeded to tour Europe and performed with leading conductors, including Willem Mengelberg. He also played for the royal families of Germany, Romania, Denmark, Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro, and performed a recital in Odessa during a fearsome blizzard. By age fifteen, Spivakovsky was renowned as one of the top young pianists in Europe, with a deep appreciation of the Romantics.Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, 1914
In 1913, he made his London debut at Bechstein Hall and was pronounced "King of the Keyboard" and "reminiscent of Paderewski and Carreño." He was engaged to return to London for concerts at the Queen's Hall and the Royal Albert Hall and a royal performance for Queen Alexandra,"Jascha Spivakovsky, the Pianist. An interview," The Mercury, 17 May 1922, p 9 but his career froze when World War I broke out and he was imprisoned as a Russian enemy alien in Ruhleben internment camp. All the Klindworth-Scharwenka professors petitioned for his release, and eventually he was paroled on the orders of Kaiser Wilhelm II. He remained under strict military supervision but was allowed to resume performing towards the end of the war."Spivakovsky. Russian Pianist Arrives," Sydney Morning Herald, 1 March 1922
In late 1918, he commenced an epic series of concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra illustrating the historical development of the concerto from Bach to Brahms. This tour de force stamped his reputation as a leading exponent of the great composers."Musical Notes: Jascha Spivakovsky," The Mail, 15 April 1922, p 9 He was engaged for another 40 concerts across Germany and sought by Europe's leading conductors. He then toured Europe with his twelve-year-old brother Tossy, who had debuted as a violin prodigy in Berlin a few years earlier. They were greatly celebrated everywhere and received "rather overwhelming" attention from the public in the streets of Copenhagen after performing for the Danish royal family."Spivakovsky: Russian Pianist Arrives, Sydney Morning Herald, 1 Mar 1922" The brothers went on to perform as a duo for many years and recorded for Parlophone, becoming renowned for artistic virtuosity, warm expression and perfect unison. One of their chief admirers was the great scientist and amateur violinist Albert Einstein.
1920s In 1920, Spivakovsky returned to BritainThe Daily Telegraph, 1920The Westminster Gazette, 1920 He remained there until 1921, when he performed a series of concerts with Sir Henry Wood and the New Queen's Hall Orchestra including his first appearance at the Proms.BBC Proms Performance Archive, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3SsklRvCSPvfHr13wgz6HCJ/proms-performance-archive
In 1922, he made his first tour of Australia, where entire audiences rushed the stage, stormed backstage, chased him through the stage door and surrounded his motor car."Music of the week," The Sydney Mail, 22 March 1922, p 13 He was presented with a laurel wreath by Dame Nellie MelbaThe Press, 28 July 1922 and he gave the first radio broadcast of a live concert to the Australian public.The Argus, 1922 His tour was much extended until he had given 75 concerts over seven months. At his farewell concert the audience insisted on a record 11 encores.
He then proceeded to New ZealandThe Dominion, 1922Timaru Herald, 1922 As in Britain and Australia, his playing aroused scenes of wild enthusiasm.The Sun (New Zealand), 1922 In 1923-24, he appeared again twice at the Proms with Sir Henry Wood and toured across Britain. In 1926, he eloped to Bodenbach with Leonore Krantz, an Australian girl he had met during his tour there in 1922. Their honeymoon on the French Riviera was cut short when a message from Richard Strauss arrived, requesting that Spivakovsky perform his Burleske under his baton with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in just a few weeks' time.
He remained in Vienna and gave a series of recitals there. He was engaged by Hans Knappertsbusch to perform Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1.Nueue Freie Presse, 1927 They proceeded to perform the work in Munich and in Magdeburg.Magdeburger Generalanzeiger, 31 January 1928 He then went on to tour Italy and Spain, and sparked more scenes of enthusiasm. For instance, in Salerno, the entire audience cheered him through the streets from the Opera House to his hotel and would not leave until he gave a final curtain call from the balcony.People magazine (Australian edition), Vol. 1 No. 20, 6 December 1950, p 15 In 1928, he performed with Furtwangler and Strauss at the Schubert Centennial celebrations in Vienna."Music and musicians," The Mercury, 17 February 1936, p 3 In 1929, Spivakovsky boarded a steamer bound for Australia and (perhaps due to his performances at the Schubert Centennial) Australian newspapers heralded that he was now "recognised in Europe as the finest living interpreter of Brahms."e.g. The Register, 1929
1930s In 1930, the Spivakovsky Trio was born when the brothers were joined by Edmund Kurtz, the personal cellist of Russian prima ballerina Anna Pavlova, who had studied with Pablo Casals. After five months of practising up to 14 hours a day together, Spivakovsky determined they were ready to give their debut and chose The Hague. Algemeen Handelsblad, 1930 They then toured Europe and were declared "the best chamber music combination of its kind,"Berliner Lokal-Anzeiger, 1932 "the finest ensemble we have ever heard"Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant, 1930 and "above the highest praise."La Voce del Mattino, 1932
Upon their return to Berlin, Spivakovsky learned that his leading reputation for interpreting Brahms and other German composers had infuriated the Nazis, who began attacking him in their press. When they began disrupting his concerts, he was warned to flee Germany by Richard Strauss in a musically coded message (a few bars of the William Tell Overture, which signify an impending storm, followed by an exclamation mark). He hurriedly arranged an Australasian tour of 70 concerts for the Trio and they boarded the ship a few days before the Nazi seizure of power in 1933.