Page 191 - Weiss, Jernej, ur./ed. 2026 Skladateljska društva nekoč in danes.../Composers’ Societies Past and Present...

Between Music and Politics: The Role of Composers in Musical Societies …
pressed by Rozina Palić-Jelavić, who argues that Lisinski, “not only through
his work as a composer but through his overall musical engagement, contrib-
uted to the modernisation of contemporary Croatia”. 91
From the 1860s onward, it is necessary to highlight the names of the
first conductors (so-called technical directors) of Croatian choral socie-
ties: Oton Hauska (1809–1868; “Zora“ Karlovac), Vilim Just/Wilhelm Justh
(1826–1883; Požega Singing Society), Slavoljub/Eduard František Lžičar
(1832–1901; “Kolo” Zagreb), Ivan Nepomuk Hummel (1820–1896; Osijek
Singing Society), Ivan Nepomuk Trischler (father) (1823–1897), later Dragu-
tin Trischler (son) (1857–1918), Hinko Hladaček (1837–1891) (“Sklad” Đak-
ovo), Ivan Laksar (1823–1881; “Zvono” Križevci), Joseph/Josip Břiza (1835–
1901; “Slavulj” Petrinja), Gjuro Eisenhuth (1841–1891; “Sloboda” Zagreb),
Antun Widhalm (“Dunav” Vukovar), Josip Zittenbaut (“Davor” Slavonski
Brod), Ivan Tropsch (1830–1913; “Sloga” Vinkovci), Josef Mazánek (1818–
1882; “Dvojnice” Bjelovar), Josip Vanjek (1844–1905; “Jeka” Samobor), and
Tomo Šestak (1852–1921; “Podravac” Koprivnica). These individuals were
mostly musicians who had come to Croatia from abroad, specifically from
other parts of the Habsburg Monarchy, and mostly from Bohemia (mod-
ern-day Czech Republic), such as Hauska, Lžičar, Laksar, Břiza, Tropsch,
Mazánek, Šestak, and Prohaska. Others arrived from Hungary (Hum-
mel) and Germany (Just). While their importance in founding and lead-
ing these singing societies is indisputable, as well as their broader contri-
butions to the musical life of their respective communities, the quality of
their compositional work varied. One notable exception is Gjuro Eisen-
huth (1841–1891), often referred to as the “Zagreb Strauss” of the pre-Za-
92
jc era. Trained in Zagreb and Vienna, Eisenhuth founded an orchestra
in Zagreb in 1861 with which he regularly organised concerts. From the
1860s on he occasionally played in the theatre orchestra, and from 1881 he
served as concertmaster, and later as conductor of operettas and operas. A
multi-talented figure, Eisenhuth also worked as a soloist, chamber musi-
93
cian, and music pedagogue. He founded the orchestra of the Zagreb Fire
91 Rozina Palić-Jelavić, “Društveni, politički i ideologijski kontekst stvaralaštva Va-
troslava Lisinskoga na području zborske glazbe. U povodu 190. obljetnice rođenja
Vatroslava Lisinskoga i 200. obljetnice rođenja Ljudevita Gaja,” Povijesni prilozi 39
(2010): 155.
92 For more on Eisenhuth, see Antun Goglia, “Gjuro Eisenhuth,” Sv. Cecilija 20, no. 2
(1926): 37–48; Ivona Ajanović-Malinar, “Eisenhuth, Gjuro,” in Hrvatski biografski
leksikon, online edition, 1998, https://hbl.lzmk.hr/clanak/eisenhuth-gjuro.
93 He performed in a trio with V. Lichtenegger (piano) and I. Oertl (cello); in a piano
quartet with I. Zajc (piano), E. Simm (viola), and I. Oertl (cello); and in string quar-

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