Richard Rössler

Richard Rössler , also Roessler or Rößler (born November 14, 1880 in Riga , † June 23, 1962 in Berlin ) was a German-Baltic pianist , organist , composer and music teacher (university professor). In 1910 he married the pianist Dora Charlotte Mayer (1887–1951), a Wuerttemberg pastor's daughter who had studied with Ernst von Dohnányi and Max Bruch in Berlin . The couple had three children.

Richard Roessler

Life

Richard Rössler was a son of the Sudeten German Kapellmeister Roman Rössler (1853-1889) from Gablonz and the Baltic German Anna Gertrud geb. Schweinfurth (1853-1927). The family lived in Poland from 1886 to 1889. After returning to Riga, Rössler attended the city secondary school there until he graduated from high school in 1897. He received his musical training from 1892 at the "School of Music" in Riga, which he graduated in 1897 with a diploma. (His piano teacher was the Leschetitzky pupil Bror Möllersten.) From 1897 to 1901 he studied composition with Max Bruch (1838–1920) and piano with Heinrich Barth (1847–1922) and Ernst Rudorff at the Royal University of Music in Berlin (1840-1916).

In 1900 he received the Mendelssohn Prize for Composition from the Mendelssohn Society, whose chairman was Joseph Joachim (1831–1907). In the same year he was hired by Joachim to teach the piano at the Hochschule für Musik; In 1904 as a répétiteur and in 1907 as a theory teacher. From 1910 to 1953 Rössler was the main subject teacher for piano (from 1918 as professor and later for many years head of the piano classes). In 1929/30 he was the examiner at the Berggrünsch Conservatory in Cairo. In 1932 he was a juror for German representatives at the second, in 1937 (together with Wilhelm Backhaus and Alfred Hoehn) at the third International Chopin Competition in Warsaw.

As a pianist, Rössler was particularly known as a Bach interpreter. In the 1930s, he performed the entire Well-Tempered Clavier by JS Bach by heart on three piano recitals. In the Berlin press reviews of his Bach evenings in 1929 and 1930 he was characterized as an “elegant, serene personality who picked up on all superfluous externality”, and in addition to “extraordinary ability” and “perfect technique”, he was given “exemplary clarity and an incorruptible sense for that Measure of expression ”as well as“ exemplary simplicity and self-evidentness, which are the essence of great art ”.

In addition to his extensive solo activities covering a wide repertoire, Rössler also performed with well-known contemporary musicians. For decades he gave concerts with the violinist Karl Klingler, with whom he was also friendly and to whom he had dedicated several of his compositions. Together with his wife Dora, Rössler formed a piano duo, for which he had composed two extensive works (see “Printed Works”).

Later on, his piano students included well-known artists such as Andre Asriel, Max Baumann, Erwin Bodky, Henri Gagnebin, Peter Gellhorn, Beate Goldstein-Gumperts, Ludwig Hoffmann, Irma Hofmeister, Herrmann Hoppe, Jan Koetsier, Ferdinand Leitner, Boris Lysenko, Dr. Hans Joachim Moser, Helmut Roloff, Anneliese Schier-Tiessen, Siegfried Schubert-Weber, Ignaz Strasfogel, Volker Wangenheim, Kurt Weill, Gerhard Wilhelm, Ernestine Wolossowa and Ingeborg Wunder.

As a composer, Rössler wrote mainly works for piano (1 and 2 pianos), piano chamber music (duos, trios, 1 quintet, 1 sextet for violin, viola, cello, clarinet, horn and piano), songs and organ works; also 1 string quintet (2 violins, 2 violas, cello), 2 piano concertos, orchestral works (including 14 variations and fugue on an original theme for 40 voices; 1 serenade), 4 sacred choirs (“Lamentations of Jeremiah”). He also appeared as an editor (piano works by JN Hummel, "Collection Litolff") and arranger ("Perpetuum mobile" by Franz Ries for 2 pianos). Stylistically, he was committed to the music-aesthetic tradition of the Brahms-Joachim circle: "an excellent chamber music composer of the Brahmsian direction". But “there are also musical echoes of Slavic music, both Bohemian and Polish”.

His compositional work was mainly composed until 1920. “Later he composed almost only occasional works for the smaller circle.” Since 2012, new recordings have been made: “Trio A flat major for piano, violin and violoncello”, “Sonata G major for violin and Piano ”(op. 20),“ Romance in B flat major for violin and piano ”(op. 2),“ Romance in E flat major for violin and piano ”and“ Album leaves for little daughter, G major ”.

Richard Rössler died in Berlin in 1962 at the age of 81. His grave is in the Zehlendorf cemetery .

Works (selection)

• Two songs (The old song; lilac), op.7 (Berlin 1901, Tessaro-Verlag)
• Trio in A flat major for piano, violin and violoncello (Berlin 1905, Ries and Erler)
• Sonata in E major for flute and piano, op.15 (Leipzig / Berlin 1907, Verlag Julius Heinrich Zimmermann)
• Suite in D minor for flute and piano, op.16 (Leipzig / Berlin 1907, Julius Heinrich Zimmermann)
• Passacaglia in G minor for organ (Berlin 1908, Ries and Erler)
• Fantasy in D minor for organ (Leipzig 1908, Breitkopf und Härtel publishing house)
• Fantasia in E minor for organ (Berlin no year, Ries and Erler)
• Four songs for a voice with piano accompaniment, op.18 (Berlin 1908, Ries and Erler)
• Sonata in G major for violin and piano, op.20 (Berlin / New York 1910, publishers Albert Stahl, G. Schirmer)
• Sonata for two pianos for 4 hands, op.22 (Berlin / Leipzig 1912, Verlag N. Simrock)
• Four Little Piano Pieces, op.23 (Leipzig / Berlin 1912, Julius Heinrich Zimmermann)
• Waltz for the pianoforte (G major; E flat major), op.24 (Berlin 1912, Ries and Erler)
• Two Impromptus for the Pianoforte, op.27 (Berlin no year, Ries and Erler)
• Variations in A flat major on the folk song " Oh, how is it possible then " for two pianos, op. 29 (Berlin 1920, Ries and Erler)
• Four sacred choirs (Lamentations of Jeremiah) for mixed choir, op.26 (Berlin 1914, Edition Bote and Bock)
• Variations in A minor on a separate theme for the piano, op. 30 (Berlin 1919, Ries and Erler)
• Sonata in A major for violoncello and piano (Berlin 1943, Ries and Erler)

literature

• Siegfried Borris: University of Music. (= Berlin. Shape and Spirit. Volume 3). Stapp Verlag, Berlin 1964, DNB 450565661 .
• Wilhelm Kempff: Under the Zimbelstern. Becoming a musician. Engelhorn Verlag Adolf Spemann, Stuttgart 1951, pp. 51–53.
• Pianists in Berlin. Piano playing and piano training since the 19th century. With contributions by Linde Großmann and Heidrun Rodewald. Edited by Wolfgang Rathert and Dietmar Schenk, Berlin: University of the Arts 1999 (HdK archive, vol. 3)
• Helmut Scheunchen: Lexicon of German Baltic Music. Harro v. Hirschheydt, Wedemark-Elze 2002, ISBN 3-7777-0730-9 , pp. 214-216.
• Helmut Scheunchen: Richard Rössler. In: Supplement to CD Malincolia - Works for Violoncello and Piano (Helmut Scheunchen, violoncello; Günter Schmidt, piano), Cornetto-Verlag, Stuttgart 2002. (published by Haus der Heimat des Landes Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart)
• Anneliese Schier-Tiessen: About the true way of playing the piano. In memoriam Richard Rössler. In: New magazine for music. Volume 123, 1962, p. 402.
• In memoriam Richard Rössler. Working group for school music and general music education, Association of Teachers for Music at Higher Schools in Bavaria, 1962, p. 402.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Musical weekly paper. Volume 41, Verlag EW Fritzsch, 1910.
2. ^ Siegfried Borris: Hochschule für Musik (= Berlin. Shape and Spirit. Volume 3). Stapp Verlag, Berlin 1964.
3. ↑ Dietmar Schenk: From Joachim to Schreker. A look back at the Academic Music Academy on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of its foundation in 1869. In: Neue Berlinische Musikzeitung. 2/1994, pp. 3-12.
4. ^ Contributions to the history of Dortmund and the county of Mark. Volumes 62-63, 1965.
5. ↑ Dietmar Schenk: From Joachim to Schreker. A look back at the Academic Music Academy on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of its foundation in 1869. In: Neue Berlinische Musikzeitung. 2/1994, pp. 3-12.
6. ↑ Werner Schwarz, Franz Kessler , Helmut Scheunchen : Music history of Pomerania, West Prussia, East Prussia and the Baltic countries. In: The music of the Germans in Eastern Central Europe. Volume 3, Laumann-Verlag, 1990, ISBN 3-87466-120-2 .
7. ↑ Wilibald Gurlitt (Ed.): Riemann Music Lexicon. Volume 2: Person part LZ. 12th, completely revised edition. in three volumes. Schott's Sons, Mainz 1961, p. 527.
8. ^ Association of German Concert Artists eV, Berlin W 57, Blumenthalstr. 17 and all well-known concert directorates. Excerpts from some of the Berlin press reviews about Professor Richard Rössler as interpreter of Joh. Seb. Bach: "The well-tempered piano" [leaflet, 4 pages]
9. ↑ Music in the past and present. Volume 2, Bärenreiter Verlag, Kassel / Basel 1950, Sp. 9f.
10. ↑ Biography of Peter Gellhorn  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
11. ↑ Barbara von der Lühe: The emigration of German-speaking musicians to the British mandate of Palestine. Your contribution to the development of Israeli radio, opera and music education since 1933. P. Lang Verlag, 1999, ISBN 3-631-33510-5 , p. 135.
12. ^ Biography of Jan Koetsier
13. ↑ Lukas Näf, Matthias von Orelli (ed.): Carl Orff - Ferdinand Leitner. An exchange of letters. In: Publications of the Orff Center Munich. Volume 1, Verlag Schott Musikwissenschaft, Mainz 2008, ISBN 978-3-7957-0592-3 , p. 14.
14. ^ Kurt Weill: Letters to the Family (1914–1950). In: Lys Symonette, Elmar Juchem (Hrsg.): M & P series for science and research, publications of the Kurt-Weill-Gesellschaft Dessau. Volume 3, Verlag JB Metzler, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-476-45244-1 .
15. ↑ Hans Joachim Moser: The music of the German tribes. G. Wancura Verlag, Vienna / Stuttgart 1957, p. 303f.
16. ^ Helmut Scheunchen: Lexicon of German Baltic Music. Harro v. Hirschheydt, Wedemark-Elze 2002, ISBN 3-7777-0730-9 , p. 215. A criticism that characterizes Rössler's essence as a pianist and composer alike can be found by Hans Schmidt in the “Rigaschen Rundschau” after a concert on October 22nd 1908, in which Rössler appeared with foreign and own works: “Strong nature and bold spirit are related to strangely tart and fresh peculiarities. […] A more mentally fiery than sensually passionate temperament transforms a certain tendency towards the academic only into the main road, a slight inclination towards the instructive only into the masterful, so that the final overall result is only that of what is in the best sense of the word ideal and stylish. "
17. ^ Helmut Scheunchen: Lexicon of German Baltic Music. Harro v. Hirschheydt, Wedemark-Elze 2002, p. 215.
18. ↑ Master Works of Richard Rössler. Piano Chamber Music (Alexander Rössler, piano, Karin Adam, violin, Othmar Müller, violoncello). Camerata Tokyo, Inc., 2012.
19. ^ Hans-Jürgen Mende : Lexicon of Berlin burial places . Pharus-Plan, Berlin 2018, ISBN 978-3-86514-206-1 , p. 677.