Alexander Sheikhet

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Alexander Sheikhet (1915)

Alexander Schaichet (* June 11 . Jul / 23. June  1887 greg. In Nikolaev , Russian Empire ; † August 19, 1964 in Zurich ) was a Swiss violinist , violist and conductor of Russian origin. In Switzerland he was a pioneer of the chamber orchestra and promoter of new music .

biography

Alexander Sheikhet was the older of two children of the Jewish couple Chaim and Berta Sheikhet. They ran a small grocery store in Nikolajew in what is now Ukraine . In 1899 the 12-year-old Alexander moved to Odessa , where in 1903 he entered the violin class of Alexander Fiedemann at the Music Academy . On the recommendation of his teacher, Schaichet moved to the Royal Conservatory in Leipzig in 1906 , where he graduated with honors in 1911.

In the same year, Schaichet was appointed to Jena . At the Conservatory of Music he took on a concert training class, he became first concertmaster of the academic concerts and vice conductor of the Collegium Musicum directed by Fritz Stein . He then achieved success with the "Jena String Quartet" composed of Alexander Schaichet, Joachim Bransky, Joachim Stutschewsky and Fritz Kramer. He also performed regularly with the “Meininger Trio” founded by Max Reger .

On a Swiss trip with Stutschewsky in August 1914, Schaichet was surprised by the outbreak of the First World War and stayed. He settled in Zurich , where he married the Hungarian pianist Irma Löwinger in 1919 , with whom he subsequently also worked closely as an artist. She had come to Zurich from Budapest to study with Ferruccio Busoni . The couple had three children. As a stateless Russian, Schaichet received the Nansen pass in 1921 , and the Swiss passport followed in 1927 at the third attempt. Schaichet died in Zurich in 1964 after a brief illness.

The politician and entrepreneur Nicola Forster is one of his great-grandchildren.

Musical work

As a versatile musician, he worked as a chamber musician, as founder and conductor of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra and as a teacher. In 1940 he took over the direction of the violin class at the Zurich Music Academy and trained professional musicians until his death in 1964. Sheikhet stood up for new music all his life.

Zurich Chamber Orchestra, 1920–1943

In 1920 Alexander Schaichet founded the Zurich Chamber Orchestra (not to be confused with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra ZKO , which was formed in 1945 ), which he directed until its dissolution in 1943. It became the model for the Basel Chamber Orchestra founded by Paul Sacher six years later . The Zurich Chamber Orchestra was the first chamber orchestra in Switzerland to specialize in discovering old and new music. A total of 51 world premieres and 215 premieres of works of old and new music shaped the concert programs. The orchestra played concerts mainly in Zurich, but also in other cities in Switzerland. With the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, Schaichet developed works of early music from Monteverdi to Karl Stamitz . With the ensemble, he offered the second generation of 20th century Swiss composers ( Robert Blum , Paul Müller-Zürich , Willy Burkhard , Albert Moeschinger ) an important opportunity to make their works known. Among the international composers of the time were names such as Paul Hindemith , Béla Bartók , Ernst Krenek and Max Reger, whose works he regularly performed.

Founder of IGNM, «Pro Musica» and «Omanut»

Sheikhet stood up for new music all his life. In 1923 he was a founding member and board member of the Swiss section of the IGNM (International Society for New Music) and in 1935 co-founder of “Pro Musica”, the Zurich branch of the IGNM. At their concerts, he appeared regularly as a chamber musician and as a conductor with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra. In 1941, together with the baritone Marko Rothmüller, he founded the “Omanut” association, which to this day aims to promote the understanding and promotion of Jewish art in Switzerland.

Awards

  • 1953: Honorary gift from the City of Zurich, together with the composer Arthur Honegger
  • 1962: Hans-Georg Nägeli Medal of the City of Zurich, for services to musical creativity

Remarks

For the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first chamber orchestra in Switzerland by Alexander Schaichet, a homage with various events and an anniversary publication was to take place from April 2020 to September 2020. It was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic .

literature

  • Esther Girsberger, Irene Forster (Ed.): Marital status musicians. Alexander Schaichet and the first chamber orchestra in Switzerland. Verlag Hier und Jetzt, Baden 2020, ISBN 978-3-03919-481-0 .
  • Christoph Gaiser: The chamber orchestra as a medium for “new” music. Diss. HU Berlin, 2004, pp. 225-233.
  • Jena City Archives: Jewish Paths of Life in Jena: Memories, Fragments, Traces. Building blocks for the history of Jena. Städtische Museen Jena, 2015, ISBN 3-94217-630-0 , pp. 434–437.
  • Verena Naegele: Irma and Alexander Schaichet - A life for music. Orell Füssli, Zurich 1995, ISBN 3-28002-312-2 .
  • Joseph Willimann: 50 years of Pro Musica local group Zurich of the International Society for New Music. Atlantis Musikbuch-Verlag, Zurich 1988, ISBN 3-254-00148-6 .
  • Walter Labhart: Jews and Judaism in the musical creation of Switzerland. In: Jewish life in Switzerland. Chronos Verlag, Zurich 2004, ISBN 3-0340-0679-9 , p. 193ff.
  • Karin Huser Bugmann: Schtetl on the Sihl. Chronos Verlag, Zurich 1998, ISBN 3-905312-58-1 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Otchet Odesskago Otdeleniya Imperatorskago Russkago Muzykal'nago Obshchestva za 1900-1906 god. Odessa (ru) - (Annual reports of the Odessa Music Academy from 1900 to 1906). The music academy was called in Russian Музыкáльное Учи́лище Имперáторскаго Рýсскаго Музыкáльнаго Óбщества ИРМО, Одéсское Отелел . It was the forerunner of the Odessa Conservatory founded in 1913. In contrast to the conservatory, the music academy offered children and adolescents not only musical subjects but also school lessons.
  2. ↑ Hans-Georg Nägeli Medal for services to musical creativity
  3. ↑ https://schaichet.ch/de/ Website in memoriam Alexander Schaichet
personal data
SURNAME Sheikhet, Alexander
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss violinist, violist and conductor
DATE OF BIRTH June 23, 1887
PLACE OF BIRTH Nikolayev , Russian Empire
DATE OF DEATH 19th August 1964
Place of death Zurich