Page 121 - Weiss, Jernej, ur./ed. 2023. Glasbena društva v dolgem 19. stoletju: med ljubiteljsko in profesionalno kulturo ▪︎ Music societies in the long 19th century: Between amateur and professional culture. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 6
P. 121
ical associations and their place in the musical life of br atislava in the 19th century
and Missa coronationalis written by Franz Liszt; in 1844, the latest was con-
ducted by Franz Liszt himself there. One of the unique features of Bratisla-
va’s musical life at that time was that, unlike in Vienna, there was no rival-
ry between adherents of program and absolute music. Within this context,
compositions such as The Prelude and Isolde’s death scene from the Richard
Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde and overtures by Hector Berlioz’s Ben
venuto Cellini, Roman Carnival, The Flight into Egypt, and Harold in Italy
were played on the one hand. At the same time, there were performed Sere
nade in A major and choral work The Schicksalslied composed by Johannes
Brahms, Robert Schumann’s Symphonies No. 3 and No. 4, Anton Bruckner’s
Symphony No. 7 with the author present. As for ancient music, overtures
from the Georg Friedrich Handel’s oratory Esther and Johann Sebastian
Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor were given place. During Thi-
ard-Laforest’s term in office, his Mass in D major was in the repertoire too.
In the last years of the 19th century (1897–1901), the association was
led by Ludwig Burger (1850–1936) who was also including in the concert
programmes new pieces of a high artistic value such as the extract from
Die Walküre, an opera written by Richard Wagner, or Pyotr Ilyich Tchai-
kovsky’s Symphony No. 6. After the Burger’s resignation, Anton Strehlen
(1840–1922) became his successor (1901–1905); however, the activities of the
latter are associated with the first years of the 20th century.
From the very beginning, the association was cooperating with the
Ödenburger Musikverein/Soproni Zeneegyesület. It is important to note
that its founder and leader was Eugen Kossow (1860–1921), who after spend-
ing 25 years in Sopron moved in Bratislava where in 1906 become a new
Kapellmeister of the Church Music Association. At the turn of the centu-
ry, the association was also in contact with Wiener Männergesang-Verein
managed by Viktor Keldorf, with the Udel-Quartett association, Philhar-
monischen Konzert-Unternehmung as well as Sängerbund Dreizehnlin-
den, and Wiener Akademischer Wagner-Verein. However, the association
had the most extensive contacts with Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, espe-
cially through Eduard Kremser, a conductor of Wiener Mannergesanverein
being in contact with Karl Mayrberger.9 A mutual feature of both associa-
tions is their attention given to the work of Johann Nepomuk Hummel who
was born in Bratislava as well as to the personality of Franz Liszt having
9 Alexandra Tauberová, “Kontakty bratislavských hudobných spolkov a hudobných
spolkov a inštitúcií viedenského okruhu,” in Úloha spolkov, spoločností a združení
v hudobných dejinách Európy, ed. Edita Bugalová (Trnava: Západoslovenské múze-
um v Trnave, 2001), 160–1.
119
and Missa coronationalis written by Franz Liszt; in 1844, the latest was con-
ducted by Franz Liszt himself there. One of the unique features of Bratisla-
va’s musical life at that time was that, unlike in Vienna, there was no rival-
ry between adherents of program and absolute music. Within this context,
compositions such as The Prelude and Isolde’s death scene from the Richard
Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde and overtures by Hector Berlioz’s Ben
venuto Cellini, Roman Carnival, The Flight into Egypt, and Harold in Italy
were played on the one hand. At the same time, there were performed Sere
nade in A major and choral work The Schicksalslied composed by Johannes
Brahms, Robert Schumann’s Symphonies No. 3 and No. 4, Anton Bruckner’s
Symphony No. 7 with the author present. As for ancient music, overtures
from the Georg Friedrich Handel’s oratory Esther and Johann Sebastian
Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor were given place. During Thi-
ard-Laforest’s term in office, his Mass in D major was in the repertoire too.
In the last years of the 19th century (1897–1901), the association was
led by Ludwig Burger (1850–1936) who was also including in the concert
programmes new pieces of a high artistic value such as the extract from
Die Walküre, an opera written by Richard Wagner, or Pyotr Ilyich Tchai-
kovsky’s Symphony No. 6. After the Burger’s resignation, Anton Strehlen
(1840–1922) became his successor (1901–1905); however, the activities of the
latter are associated with the first years of the 20th century.
From the very beginning, the association was cooperating with the
Ödenburger Musikverein/Soproni Zeneegyesület. It is important to note
that its founder and leader was Eugen Kossow (1860–1921), who after spend-
ing 25 years in Sopron moved in Bratislava where in 1906 become a new
Kapellmeister of the Church Music Association. At the turn of the centu-
ry, the association was also in contact with Wiener Männergesang-Verein
managed by Viktor Keldorf, with the Udel-Quartett association, Philhar-
monischen Konzert-Unternehmung as well as Sängerbund Dreizehnlin-
den, and Wiener Akademischer Wagner-Verein. However, the association
had the most extensive contacts with Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, espe-
cially through Eduard Kremser, a conductor of Wiener Mannergesanverein
being in contact with Karl Mayrberger.9 A mutual feature of both associa-
tions is their attention given to the work of Johann Nepomuk Hummel who
was born in Bratislava as well as to the personality of Franz Liszt having
9 Alexandra Tauberová, “Kontakty bratislavských hudobných spolkov a hudobných
spolkov a inštitúcií viedenského okruhu,” in Úloha spolkov, spoločností a združení
v hudobných dejinách Európy, ed. Edita Bugalová (Trnava: Západoslovenské múze-
um v Trnave, 2001), 160–1.
119
