Joseph Rubinstein

Joseph Rubinstein (born February 8, 1847 in Starokonstantinow , Russian Empire , today Ukraine ; † August 22, 1884 in Tribschen near Lucerne, Switzerland ) was a Russian-Jewish pianist and a follower and collaborator of Richard Wagner .

A life for Wagner

Joseph Rubinstein was born to a wealthy Jewish family in the Ukrainian part of the Russian Empire. In his hometown he received his first piano lessons from the German-speaking pianist Josef Schadek. Rubinstein had lived in Vienna since he was eleven, where he became a student of Josef Dachs at the Conservatory of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna . In 1865 he performed as a piano virtuoso in Vienna and in his home country. In autumn 1869 he was appointed chamber pianist by Grand Duchess Helene of Russia to Salzburg, where she was residing at the time. During a concert tour to Saint Petersburg , he got to know the works of Richard Wagner for the first time from the music critic and composer Alexander Serow . For Rubinstein, this was tantamount to a revival experience, about which he later wrote:

“The result of this immersion in a new world was a formal conversion to the principles of the Master of Bayreuth, but at the same time an indomitable longing to be able to approach the man, whose works I am so enthusiastic about, personally and to him to use as much as possible for his cause, which is so badly hostile ”.

On March 7, 1872 Wagner finally received a letter from Rubinstein in Tribschen, which began with a confession:

“I am a Jew - everything is said for you. I also possessed all those qualities which are noticeable in the Jew of the present: I dragged myself through life in complete discouragement and almost shameful weakness. Then it happened that the circumstances made me aware of your works. Serov in Petersburg spurred me on to study them. (...) But the time that was the happiest of my life, the time of studying in those works is now over.
I only have death left! - I've already tried to give it to myself: but I still decided to write to you. Maybe you could help me. Of course, I don't mean help out of mere pity. (...) No! But could I not help you with the performance of the Nibelungs? I think I understand this work, if not completely. - I expect help and help from you that is urgent. My parents are rich. I should have the means to go to you at once. I expect an answer as soon as possible. "

Wagner answered Rubinstein in a friendly tone and invited him to Tribschen. Cosima reported about it to Friedrich Nietzsche : "You should see a strange letter here from someone who seeks redemption through participation in Bayreuth". Even before Rubinstein's arrival in Tribschen, Wagner received a letter from his doctor Maximilian Leidesdorf , chief physician in the insane department at the Vienna General Hospital :

“You will excuse me if I would like to preface the visit that Mr. Joseph Rubinstein will visit with you, so that you can really and truly benefit this young artist, which, given your generous disposition, is certainly your wish. The young man not only has the natural admiration and enthusiasm for you, which your creative genius must generate in true artistic natures, he also has the most unconditional trust in you. A mental illness that has barely survived and is still lingering requires great caution and protection - and according to my opinion, the young artist has to be protected from any excitement for 8-12 weeks and undergo a spa treatment in the greatest calm (mental and physical). In this sense I ask you to want to act on him most benevolently.

Rubinstein arrived in Tribschen on April 21, 1872, but Wagner left Switzerland the next day and moved to Bayreuth . In July 1872 Rubinstein appeared in Bayreuth and became a constant companion and collaborator of Wagner. He was commissioned to copy the " Götterdämmerung ". He spent Christmas 1874 in the Villa Wahnfried and was allowed to decorate the Christmas tree with Cosima, after which he went on a concert tour. In the summer of 1875 Rubinstein returned to Bayreuth to take part as a solo répétiteur in the preliminary rehearsals for the " Ring ". One month before the opening of the Bayreuth Festival , however, he left after a dispute with Wagner during the rehearsal. With Cosima it said succinctly: “The piano rehearsals ended with the complete dismissal of Mr. Rubinstein, who again proved the saddest characteristics of his tribe here.” The young conductor Felix Mottl was a witness of the incident : “11. July: After one of the last piano rehearsals, Wagner wants to thank Anton [sic] Rubinstein for his work. He starts very friendly and then says roughly: If we haven't got much closer in human terms since then, it's not because of me, but because of you. They are of a strange race that is not closer to us. (Judaism.) Becomes very passionate at the end, so that the planned thanks degenerates into a bad mood. (...) July 14th: Wagner says Rubinstein has disappeared, seems shot or poisoned. "

In May 1878 Rubinstein returned to Bayreuth again after apologizing to Wagner for his "behavior". From November 1878 Rubinstein worked again for Wagner in the preparation of the Parsifal premiere, became his house pianist and always stayed by his side. In August 1879, an article by Rubinstein about Schumann's music appeared in Wagner's magazine Bayreuther Blätter , in which he regretted Schumann's popularity and declared his influence to be “damaging and educating on taste and feeling”. Cosima Wagner noted in her diary: "Mr. Rubinstein brings his essay on Schumann, which R [ichard] finds excellent and which he sends to print straight away."

In 1880 Rubinstein went to Berlin to give concerts for the benefit of the festival. He played the entire “ Well-Tempered Clavier ” by Johann Sebastian Bach on six evenings and transferred his fee to the Festival Fund. In 1882 he followed Wagner to Italy, lived with Cosima and the children in Venice and regularly played the piano, mostly parts from Wagner's operas, to entertain the family and guests. On October 22, 1882, Rubinstein left Venice completely by surprise and went to see his parents in Kharkov . When he heard of Wagner's death there in February 1883, he sent Wagner's widow Cosima a condolence telegram.

In the spring of 1883 Rubinstein went on a concert tour again, with arrangements and fantasies based on Richard Wagner. In August 1884 he drove to Tribschen and shot himself at the age of 36 on Lake Lucerne . At the instigation of Cosima Wagner, his body was transferred to Bayreuth and buried in the Israelite cemetery . His father had a black obelisk set up on his grave .

Web links

• biography
• Sheet music and audio files by Joseph Rubinstein in the International Music Score Library Project

Individual evidence

1. ^ Felix Mottl: Diary entries from the years 1873–1876 . Legacies of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek , pp. 31–32 ( digitized version of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek).
2. ^ Joseph Rubinstein: About Schumann's Music . In: Bayreuth leaves. Monthly publication of the Bayreuth Patronage Association , published by Hans von Wolhaben , vol. 2 (1879), pp. 217–229, quoted on p. 229 ( digitized version ).
3. ^ Cosima Wagner: The diaries in three volumes , edited by Karl-Maria Guth. Volume 3: 1879–1883 . Contumax Hofenberg, Berlin 2015, p. 88 ( online ).