Fritz Jellinek (singer)

Friedrich "Fritz" Jellinek (born September 1, 1895 in Vienna ; † March 7, 1971 there ) was an Austrian folk singer who had devoted himself primarily to the Wienerlied . In addition, he also appeared as a humorist , parodist and actor .

Life

Fritz Jellinek was born on September 1, 1895 in Vienna. As a child he was a member of the Vienna Boys' Choir and had a love for music even after his youth. Although he actually wanted to be a singer, he gave in to pressure from his parents and learned to be a metalworker . During his apprenticeship he took singing lessons from Professor Eduard Unger , who had already been active at the Leipzig Opera and who worked at the Academy for Music and Performing Arts in Vienna from 1909 to 1924 . The vocal studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the First World War. While he was doing his military service, Jellinek appeared as a singer and sang Viennese songs to his comrades from the trenches over the field telephone . Only after the end of the war in 1918 did Jellinek return to his hometown from the Russian captivity in which he was captured in 1916. After returning home, he actually wanted to resume his singing studies, but rather by chance got an engagement as a singer in Switzerland . He then toured across Europe and performed in many large cities.

As early as 1924, when the first Austrian broadcasting company, Radio Verkehrs AG , or RAVAG for short, was founded, he sang in their studio, which at that time was still provisionally housed in the building of the former War Ministry on Stubenring . During this live broadcast of operettas and Viennese songs, Jellinek was musically accompanied by Bert Silving and his orchestra. Since then, Jellinek has been known as the “first radio singer in Austria”. At the beginning of his career, Jellinek performed more and more operetta songs, but soon concentrated on his main work: the Wienerlied. In addition to his musical career, Jellinek has also appeared as a humorist , parodist and actor over the years .

On the occasion of his 50th birthday on September 4, 1945, an old Viennese evening took place in the Great Hall of the Wiener Konzerthaus with the participation of Fritz Imhoff , Emmerich Arleth , Franz de Cato , Leopoldine Lauth , Wondra & Zwickl (consisting of Ferry Wondra and Ludwig Zwickl ) and the Wiener Meisterterzett . This evening was also represented by the Eduard Macku Orchestra and the Schrammel Quartet Strauss . The composer Karl Breyer acted at the Blüthner ; the announcement came from Felix von Dombrowski . Two years earlier, his son, who was also named Fritz, died in combat during the Second World War in Stalingrad . In the summer of 1948 Jellinek celebrated a double anniversary; He celebrated his 30th stage anniversary and his 100th live appearance for Radio Wien . His other anniversaries were also celebrated at public events. In the course of his decades-long career as an interpreter of the Wienerlied, Jellinek sang over 300 records. For his artistic work and his services to the Wienerlied he was awarded the “ Silver Badge of Honor of the City of Vienna ” in 1967 by the City of Vienna .

In 1965 Jellinek was involved in a car accident in which he was only slightly injured. This incident was also reported in the Austrian media at the time.

tomb

On March 7, 1971, Jellinek died unexpectedly at the age of 75 after a long illness. He was buried on March 15, 1971 at the Vienna Central Cemetery in an honorary grave (group 40 (Ehrenhain), No. 27). The soul mass took place on March 22, 1971 in the parish church of St. Josef ob der Laimgrube in the 6th district of Mariahilf in Vienna .

Web links

• Elisabeth Theresia Hilscher: Fritz Jellinek. In: Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon . Online edition, Vienna 2002 ff., ISBN 3-7001-3077-5 ; Print edition: Volume 2, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 2003, ISBN 3-7001-3044-9 . (Partly with incorrect information; this is largely how the composer and musician born in 1909 of the same name is described)
• Fritz Jellinek on musik-austria.at

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} The first "radio singer". In:  Das Kleine Blatt , May 13, 1943, p. 5 (online at ANNO ).
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Alt-Wiener Abend. In:  Neues Österreich , August 26, 1945, p. 4 (online at ANNO ).
3. ^ Double anniversary of Fritz Jellinek. In:  Die Weltpresse , June 14, 1948, p. 5 (online at ANNO ).
4. ↑ Fritz Jellinek's grave on viennatouristguide.at, accessed on November 1, 2019