Ferenc Fricsay

Ferenc Fricsay (1941)

Ferenc Karl Fricsay [ ˈfɛrɛnt͡s ˈfrit͡ʃɒi ] (born August 9, 1914 in Budapest , Austria-Hungary ; † February 20, 1963 in Basel ) was an Austrian conductor of Hungarian origin who worked mainly in Hungary, Austria and Germany.

biography

Childhood and youth

He comes from a musical family and is the son of the Hungarian military bandmaster Richard Fricsay and Berta Lengyel. His father gave him his first music lessons. At the age of six, Fricsay entered the Budapest Academy of Music, the famous Franz Liszt Academy of Music . a. Béla Bartók (piano), Zoltán Kodály (composition) and Ernst von Dohnányi (piano) taught. He learned almost all orchestral instruments and also studied composition. At the age of fifteen he stood in for his father and made his conducting debut.

Kapellmeister in Hungary

In 1933, after successfully passing his final exams at the academy, he turned down a job as a répétiteur at the Budapest Opera and got his first permanent position as Kapellmeister of the military band in the university and garrison town of Szeged . In 1934 he also became the conductor of the local city philharmonic orchestra. That year he married for the first time. From this marriage there were three children. In 1939 he made his first guest appearance at the Budapest Opera . The following year he conducted for the first time in the Szegedin Opera ("Rigoletto" by Verdi). In 1942 a military court case was opened against Fricsay because he wanted to hire Jewish artists. In mid-March 1944, German troops occupied Hungary in " Operation Margarethe " . In the summer of that year he warned friends and acquaintances of the imminent arrest by the Gestapo , putting himself in danger of being arrested. Because of this and also because of his Jewish origins (his mother was Jewish, he himself was a Roman Catholic) he had to flee Szeged with his wife and three children and go into hiding in Budapest .

In January 1945 he was offered the post of first conductor at the Budapest State Opera. In this position he later met Otto Klemperer . He also shared the chief conductor of the Budapest Metropolitan Orchestra, today's Hungarian National Philharmonic , with László Somogyi , and conducted a concert with this orchestra at the end of January 1945. He left military service as a captain . The State Opera reopened in March 1945, the same month Fricsay's father died. In April 1945 Fricsay conducted a performance of Verdi's La traviata .

The international breakthrough

At the end of 1946 he accepted an invitation to the Vienna State Opera and then the offer to take on Otto Klemperer's assistant at the Salzburg Festival . In the summer of 1947 Fricsay gave a concert with the Budapest Metropolitan Orchestra in Vienna , of which Herbert von Karajan was one of the guests .

His international breakthrough came in August 1947 when he took over the world premiere of Danton's death by Gottfried von Eine at the Salzburg Festival for Otto Klemperer, who had a brain tumor . The invitation to this came at the suggestion of Herbert von Karajan, who vouched for the young Hungarian's talent to the composer. Invitations followed from everywhere, including those for the Salzburg Festival in 1948 and 1949.

Worked at the Vienna State Opera and at the Salzburg Festival

From 1947 he was a guest conductor at the State Opera in Vienna . Above all, he had to conduct repertoire operas. After his experiences there, Fricsay made it a principle to only conduct productions that he had rehearsed himself.

In the period that followed, Fricsay placed particular emphasis on the ensemble concept, i. That is, the development of a work and its performance with a solid core of like-minded performers. These included u. a. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau , Rita Streich , Maria Stader , Ernst Haefliger , Josef Greindl and, up to his accidental death in 1954, Peter Anders . Favorite instrumental soloists of Fricsay were Yehudi Menuhin , Géza Anda , Clara Haskil and Annie Fischer . He worked with these artists again and again until the end of his conducting career. In 1948 he conducted the staged world premiere of Frank Martin's Le vin herbé ( The Magic Potion ) at the Salzburg Festival and in 1949 that of Carl Orff's Antigonae . Both performances received great international acclaim. As early as 1948 he was invited to an opera and concert guest performance in Berlin.

Career in Berlin

Berlin memorial plaque on the house, Pücklerstrasse 22, in Berlin-Dahlem

He made his debut in November 1948 at the Städtische Oper Berlin with Verdi's "Don Carlos", in the same month with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and in December 1948 with the Berliner Philharmoniker and the RIAS-Symphonie-Orchester (from 1956 to 1993 Radio-Symphonie -Orchester) Orchestra Berlin , since 1993 German Symphony Orchestra Berlin ). After the success achieved through this, Fricsay was appointed with a double contract at the end of December 1948 with effect from September 1949 as general music director of the Städtische Oper Berlin and chief conductor of the only two-year-old RIAS symphony orchestra. At the latter he had his official inaugural concert as chief conductor in June 1949. Fricsay reformed the orchestra and brought it to international renown within a few years. In 1949 he brought almost thirty of the best musicians from the famous Unter den Linden State Opera to the RIAS Symphony Orchestra, which became famous in the following years for its brass section. From then on, Fricsay played a central role in the rebuilding of musical life in post-war Germany, especially in Berlin.

Exclusive contract with the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft

At the end of December 1948 he signed an exclusive contract with the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft , for which he recorded his first long-playing record in September 1949 ( Tchaikovsky's 5th Symphony with the Berliner Philharmoniker ). This also heralded the end of the shellac record era. Since the RIAS broadcast archive had to be completely rebuilt and the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft redeveloped its recording repertoire, a productive phase of making recordings began.

Guest performances and solution of the contract in Berlin

In 1948, instead of Otto Klemperer , who was ill, he conducted the world premiere of Gottfried von Einem's opera “Dantons Tod” at the Salzburg Festival. In 1950 he conducted "Le nozze di Figaro" (Mozart) at the Edinburgh Festival and made his debut in Buenos Aires with "Carmina Burana" (Orff). He married his second wife Silvia, nee Valeanu, (born January 1, 1913 in Budapest ; † January 21, 2003 in Switzerland), the divorced sister-in-law of the skier Horst Scheeser , who brought a son into the marriage. In April 1951 he conducted the Italian premiere of "Duke Bluebeard's Castle" (Bartók) at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples . In November 1951 he gave his first concert with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and in spring 1952 with the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam.

In May 1952 he asked, probably because of the exhausting burden of the double obligation, for the termination of his contract with the Städtische Oper Berlin , which was complied with in June. That year he took over the concerts of the sick Wilhelm Furtwängler at the Salzburg Festival. He headed the RIAS Symphony Orchestra until 1954. In the following years, however, he remained closely connected to the orchestra through numerous guest appearances, tours and record engagements.

In 1952, Fricsay and his family moved into the Westerfeld house in Ermatingen ( Switzerland / Canton Thurgau ) on Lake Constance as their permanent residence. Since that time he has been a permanent guest at the Lucerne Music Festival , where he also took over the concerts of the sick Wilhelm Furtwängler in 1952 . In the same year he gave a guest concert with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra and performed with the Vienna Philharmonic at the Salzburg Festival .

Travel management activity

In 1953 he began an extensive tour conductor activity (including Paris , Milan / Scala, Lucerne ), which also took him to the USA ( Boston , Houston and San Francisco ) in November of that year . Due to the very successful concert in Houston, he was hired there for the next season 1954/55 as music director and principal conductor. In June 1954 he made his Israel debut with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra . The work he performed there with great success was Verdi's Requiem. At the end of October 1954, Fricsay came to Houston to take over the Houston Symphony Orchestra there, but this ultimately failed. The orchestra did not keep promises made, so that he dissolved the contract already in January 1955.

At the State Opera in Munich

After a second concert tour through Israel , Fricsay became General Music Director of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich from 1956 to 1958 . The resounding success did not materialize, however, which was probably mainly due to the fact that he did not give the music of Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner a more prominent position, as is usual there. In addition, Fricsay insisted on having an important say in casting questions. Instead of focusing on Wagner or Strauss, his main goal in Munich was to rebuild the Italian subject and to set new accents in the repertoire, among other things. a. with performances of “Otello” (Verdi), “Chowanschtschina” (Mussorgsky), “Lucia di Lammermoor” (Donizetti), “Wozzeck” (Berg), “Le Roi David” (Honegger), “Un ballo in maschera” (Verdi ), "Oedipus Rex" (Stravinsky) and "Duke Bluebeard's Castle" (Bartók).

In 1957 he recorded "Fidelio" (Beethoven) for the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft in Munich , the first ever stereo recording by the German record industry. In 1958 he conducted a charity concert in aid of the reconstruction of the National Theater in Munich . On this occasion, the first Eurovision live broadcast of a public concert from Germany took place. In June of the same year he conducted the performance of “Le Nozze di Figaro” (Mozart) for the reopening of the Cuvilliés Theater in Munich (today: Altes Residenztheater ). Then he converted the general music director contract into a guest performance contract. In 1958 Fricsay began a series of recordings of all Beethoven symphonies , which however remained unfinished because of his untimely death.

First outbreak of disease and temporary recovery

At the end of November 1958, Fricsay was diagnosed with a stomach ulcer, he was operated on in Zurich that same month , and a second operation followed in January. A recovery phase lasting several months until September 1959 was the result.

Again chief conductor in Berlin

From 1959 until his death, Fricsay was again chief conductor of the RIAS Symphony Orchestra , which was renamed the Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin in 1956 after its collaboration with Sender Free Berlin (and is now called the German Symphony Orchestra Berlin ). Fricsay conducted the orchestra in September 1959 in the first concert after his illness break and then in the reopening concert for the large broadcasting hall of Sender Free Berlin , which was also the post-war start of German radio in stereophony .

In 1960 Fricsay was granted Austrian citizenship after the failed Hungarian uprising in October 1956 finally denied him any access to his homeland. In April he was again engaged as general music director in Berlin from the 1961/1962 season. In the spring of 1961, the Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin undertook a European tour under the direction of Fricsay together with Yehudi Menuhin as a soloist. It led through Germany, to Copenhagen , London and Paris . At the Salzburg Festival in 1961, Fricsay conducted Mozart's "Idomeneo" three times in the Großer Festspielhaus in Salzburg, which was intended as the beginning of a new Mozart cycle under his musical direction.

Opening of the Deutsche Oper in Berlin

A few days after the Berlin Wall was built , on September 24, 1961, he opened the newly built Deutsche Oper Berlin in Bismarckstrasse with a new production of “Don Giovanni” (Mozart). It was also here that an opera was broadcast live on television for the first time. In October 1961, Fricsay received the Great Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and his last record was made with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra . In November 1961 Fricsay gave his last concert with this orchestra in Bonn . The latest concert recording that has been preserved was also recorded in this month.

New outbreak of disease and death

After several guest concerts in London, Fricsay fell seriously ill again in December 1961, which resulted in further operations. On December 7, 1961, Fricsay gave his last concert ever. He canceled all further obligations. In the summer of 1962, this phase of the illness seemed to be over, but it turned out to be wrong. In that year he published a book entitled “ About Mozart and Bartók ”, in which he presented his fundamental views on classical music in general and on the music of the composers named in the title in particular. Fricsay died at the age of only 48 in February 1963 in Basel from the consequences of a gall bladder perforation that was not recognized in time and was buried in the cemetery in Ermatingen .

Rehearsal conductor and orchestra teacher

Fricsay was a rehearsal conductor and orchestra teacher who rehearsed extensively and often strictly, which sometimes made it difficult for the orchestra musicians to deal with him. However, this produced positive technical results and undoubtedly led to excellent artistic performance. He also benefited from the fact that he supposedly mastered all orchestral instruments (except the harp ). He was able to exploit this knowledge in the context of his always intensive rehearsal work.

The TV recording of the rehearsal for “ Moldau ” illustrates another special feature of Fricsay's rehearsal work, namely that he portrayed the musical events vividly, vividly and vividly to the orchestra and, if necessary, sang passages to clarify his musical ideas and that of him to achieve the desired sonic result. This underlines that his rehearsals were always based on a comprehensive concept of the respective work and that he knew exactly what he wanted.

Fricsay preferred a clear, transparent orchestral sound that was tight, elastic, and precise. At the same time he had an excellent sense of rhythm . His recordings from a young age, in particular, show great strength, energy and vitality. However, this was also a subject of criticism, as some of its early performances were considered to be too emotionally cold and a certain rigidity. Too much external brilliance and sheer effect were criticized as well as too little relaxation and serenity. An accusation that was never raised in later years.

Since the beginning of 1959, Fricsay was increasingly marked by serious illness, which is often associated with a different, new conducting gesture from Fricsay. His recordings from this time seem more "spiritualized", in any case they are almost always slower than those from the time before the outbreak of the disease. Although this is often seen as a direct consequence of the illness, it is also likely to be seen as a maturation process of the artist and the person Fricsay as a whole, which only now had its full effect.

Repertoire and recordings

His repertoire was extensive, from Georg Friedrich Händel to Bernd Alois Zimmermann . The work of Mozart took a special focus. From the beginning he also included the music of Joseph Haydn and music of the 20th century , which had hitherto been neglected in the concert hall . Despite his untimely death, he managed to record interpretations of more than 200 classical works for posterity and to bring the RIAS Symphony Orchestra to a standard comparable to that of the Berlin Philharmonic . From the abundance of his recordings, in addition to his Bartók, Kodály and Mozart recordings, those of the Tchaikovsky symphonies and those of the Strauss waltzes should be emphasized. His recordings of the three piano concertos by Béla Bartók with Géza Anda as the soloist became famous.

Awards

Among the awards Fricsay received for his recordings are the German Critics' Prize , the Grand Prix du Disque , the Mozart Medal from the Mozart Community in Vienna and the German Record Prize . In 1977 and 1978 the Deutsche Grammophon Society published a Ferenc Fricsay edition with 40 records containing 94 individual compositions. All of these recordings received the Grand Prix of the German Record Critics in 1979 .

Media artist of European standing

Fricsay is considered to be the “first media artist of European standing” (Ulrich Schreiber) and decisively promoted both radio broadcasting and record recording technology. In contrast to many other conductors, he was very interested in recording technology . Fricsay carried out an uncompromising quality control of his recordings and only released it when the sound reproduction fully met his expectations. Otherwise he insisted on follow-ups. He advocated stereophony early on , both on the record and on the radio .

Fricsay became known to a broader public primarily through a television documentary showing him rehearsing for the " Moldau " by Smetana with the Südfunk-Sinfonieorchester in 1960 . This was also the first attempt on European television to bring classical music to a broad audience through a workshop experience.

However, Fricsay's work left no adequate aftermath. In addition to the fact that he died early, this is mainly due to the fact that, following Fricsay's death, Deutsche Grammophon immediately promoted another conductor to the figurehead who was a “media professional” and who knew the art of self-staging very well: Herbert von Karajan . The person of Fricsay and his merits faded into the background.

The Ferenc Fricsay Society was founded in November 1974 and constituted on the occasion of the 1975 Berliner Festwochen. It is committed to preserving the conductor's memory and promotes the publication of his recordings.

various

• The rehearsal hall of the German Symphony Orchestra in the television center of Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg and the concert hall of the Faculty of Music at the University of Szeged (Hungary), as well as a series of symphonic concerts by the Szeged Symphony Orchestra, bear the name of Ferenc Fricsay.
• He is the father of three children: the eldest son Ferenc, the theater director András Fricsay , who staged Peter Maffay's musical “ Tabaluga ”, and his daughter Marta Dobay-Fricsay.

Discography

• Ferenc Fricsay: a Life in Music, in it: Haydn: The Seasons + Beethoven: Symphony No. 1 + Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 “From the New World” + Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream + Prokofieff: Symphony No. 1 “Classical” + Mahler: Rückert-Lieder + Tschaikowsky: Symphony No. 6 + Respighi: La Boutique fantastique (after Rossini) + Rimsky-Korssakoff: Scheherazade op. 35 + J. Strauss II: On the beautiful blue Danube; Viennese blood; Perpetual motion machine; Pizzicato polka; Bat overture; Gypsy Baron Overture; Voices of Spring; Roses from the South; Morning leaves; Annen polka; Tritsch-gossip polka; Radetzky March + de Falla: Nights in Spanish Gardens + Francaix: Concertino for piano & orchestra + Franck: Variations symphonique + Rachmaninoff: Paganini Rhapsody + One: Quick march from Danton's death + Hindemith: Symphonic Dances + Hartmann: Symphony No. 6 + Martin: Petite Symphonie Concertante + “Narrated Life” - Interview in German from 1962 with numerous music examples. Contributors: Streich, Stader, Haefliger, Töpper, Forrester, St. Hedwigs Chor, RIAS SO & Chor, Berlin PO, Vienna SO
• Ferenc Fricsay: Great Conductors of the Century, therein: The Sorcerer's Apprentice; Dances from Galántha u. a.
• Bartók: Piano Concertos No. 1–3 (The Originals) with Anda, RSO Berlin
• Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2 + Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 Sandor, Vienna SO
• Bartók: Duke Bluebeard's Castle + Cantata profana Töpper, Fischer-Dieskau, Krebs, RSO Berlin, RIAS SO & choir
• Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (The Originals) + Music f. String instruments, drums, celesta, RSO Berlin
• Beethoven: Symphonies No. 3, 5, 7, 8
• Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 + Egmont Overture op.84 with Seefried, Forrester, Haefliger, Fischer-Dieskau, Berlin Philharmonic
• Beethoven: Triple Concerto op.56 (The Originals) + Brahms: Concerto for Violin, Cello & Orchestra op.102, with: Géza Anda, Wolfgang Schneiderhan, Pierre Fournier, Janos Starker, RSO Berlin
• Beethoven: Fidelio with Rysanek, Seefried, Haefliger, Fischer-Dieskau, Frick, Bavarian State Orchestra
• Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83 (Resonance) with: Anda, Berliner Philharmoniker
• Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 (The Originals) + Smetana: Die Moldau, + Liszt: Les Preludes, Berliner Philharmoniker, RSO Berlin
• Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 + Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsodies No. 1 & 2, RIAS SO Berlin
• Dvořák: Violin Concerto op. 53 (The Originals) + Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 + Glasunow: Violin Concerto op. 82, with: Martzy, RIAS SO Berlin, RSO Berlin
• Hartmann: Symphony No. 6 + Finale from Symphony No. 4 for string orchestra + Fortner: Finale from Symphony No. 4 + Blacher: Paganini Variations op. 26, RIAS SO Berlin
• Haydn: Symphonies No. 44, 95, 98, RIAS SO Berlin
• Kodály: Orchestral works (The Originals), including: Hary Janos Suite, Psalmus Hungaricus, Dances from Galanta , Marosszeker Dances, with: Haefliger, RSO Berlin, RIAS SO
• Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto op. 64 + A Midsummer Night's Dream (Ausz.), With Schneiderhan, RSO Berlin, Berliner Philharmoniker
• Mozart - The 1956 Jubilee Edition / Symphonies: Symphonies No. 29, 35, 39-41; Adagio & Fuge KV 546; Serenade No. 13 “A Little Night Music”; Masonic funeral music KV 477 RIAS SO, RSO Berlin, Berlin PO, Vienna SO
• Mozart: Symphony No. 41 “Jupiter” + The Magic Flute Overture; Clarinet Concerto KV 622 Wiener SO, RIAS SO, RSO Berlin
• Mozart: Piano Concertos No. 19 & 27 (The Originals) + Piano Sonata No. 2, with Haskil, Berliner Philharmoniker, Bayr. State Orchestra
• Mozart: Mass KV 427 in C minor "Great Mass" + Haydn: Te Deum, with: Stader, Toepper, Haefliger, Sardi, RIAS SO & chamber choir
• Mozart: Don Giovanni (The Originals) with: Fischer-Dieskau, Jurinac, Stader, Haefliger, Seefried, Sardi, RSO Berlin
• Mozart: The Abduction from the Seraglio (The Originals) + Exsultate, jubilate KV 165 with: Stader, Streich, Haefliger, Vantin, Greindl, RIAS SO Berlin
• Mozart: The Abduction from the Seraglio: Sari Barabas, Rita Streich, Anton Dermota, Helmut Krebs, Josef Greindl, RIAS Chamber Choir, RIAS Symphony Orchestra (audite music production)
• Mozart: The Magic Flute with Rita Streich, Stader, Fischer-Dieskau, Haefliger, RSO Berlin
• Rossini: Overtures (The Originals), therein: La Scala di seta; Semiramide; Il Signor Bruschino; L'Italiana in Algeri; Tancredi; La Gazza ladra; Barber; Il Viaggio a Reims + Bizet: Carmen Suite No. 1; Ballet music from Carmen, RIAS SO Berlin, Berlin PO
• J. Strauss: Kaiserwalzer, RSO Berlin
• J. Strauss: Die Fledermaus, with: Anders, Schlemm, Streich, Krebs, Wocke, RIAS SO Berlin
• Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps + Petruschka (Version 1947), RSO Berlin
• Tschaikovski: Symphony No. 4 + Swan Lake Suite op.20; Waltz from the Sleeping Beauty Suite op. 66; Waltz of Flowers from Nutcracker Suite op. 71a; Waltz from Eugen Onegin, RIAS SO Berlin, RSO Berlin
• Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 / Violin Concerto with Menuhin, Berliner Philharmoniker
• Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 + Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 with A. Fischer, SOBR
• Verdi: Requiem (The Originals) with Stader, Radev, Krebs, Borg, RIAS SO
• Wagner: The Flying Dutchman with Metternich , Greindl , Kupper , Windgassen , Wagner , Haefliger , RIAS SO and Kammerchor, 1952

literature

• Lutz von Pufendorf (Ed.): Ferenc Fricsay. Retrospective - perspective. Bote & Bock, Berlin 1988, ISBN 3-7931-1575-5 .
• Friedrich Herzfeld (Ed.): Ferenc Fricsay. A memorial book. Rembrandt, Berlin 1964.
• Silvia Göhner-Fricsay, Wolfram Dufner : Fragments of a panorama of being human; lived, loved, suffered. Published by Markus Kündig , Zug 2002 [private print, memoirs of the widow Fricsay].

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Danube Monarchy on Lake Zug , accessed on March 22, 2019
2. ^ Inscription Deutschordenshof, Singerstraße: Ferenc Fricsay 1963 (accessed June 10, 2014)

Web links

Commons : Ferenc Fricsay  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Website about Ferenc Fricsay
• Literature by and about Ferenc Fricsay in the catalog of the German National Library
• Ferenc Fricsay in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Appreciation and Fricsay's late years in Switzerland
• Ferenc Fricsay archive in the archive of the Akademie der Künste, Berlin