Page 289 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2020. Konservatoriji: profesionalizacija in specializacija glasbenega dela ▪︎ The conservatories: professionalisation and specialisation of musical activity. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 4
P. 289
jan šlais’s contr ibution to ljubljana’s violin school
Music Society in Ljubljana, and later at the Ljubljana Conservatory. He was
a member of the Slovenian National Theater Orchestra and the Ljubljana
Quartet. He wrote several violin method books, and believed that the ideal
time to start learning an instrument is the preschool period. His influence
meant that the average age of pupils in music schools was gradually low-
ered, which improved their success. He taught two of the best Slovenian vi-
olinists of the time during their childhood years: Dejan Bravničar and his
own daughter, Jelka Stanič.67 She became a successful concert violinist and
gave concerts around the world. She was concertmaster of the Opera Or-
chestra in Ljubljana, from 1957 a member of the Zagreb Soloists (Zagrebački
solisti), and later an orchestra member of the Radio-Saarland Orchestra in
Saarbrücken, where she died in 2011.68
Even though Šlais was the most important violin pedagogue during
his time in Slovenia, he was not the only one. At the establishment of the
Ljubljana Conservatory in 1919, one of its first violin teachers there was
Karel Jeraj. He was already a renowned violinist and previous concertmas-
ter of the Court Opera Orchestra in Vienna, where he was born to a Slove-
nian father from Smlednik and a Czech mother. With enthusiasm and ide-
alism, he left Vienna and moved to his fatherland to help with building a
new Slovenian musical milieu. One of his first violin pupils at the Ljubljana
Conservatory was Taras Anton Poljanec (1908–1964), who studied with Jer-
aj between 1919 and 1926. After completing his studies at the Prague Con-
servatory with Rudolf Reissig (1874–1939), he taught violin, v iola, chamber
music, and orchestral music at the Music Society in Maribor. After 1945
he taught at the Maribor Conservatory and was the violinist of the Mari-
bor Trio (Mariborski trio; Poljanec–Klasinc–Bajde). His best pupils were the
above-mentioned Ciril Veronek and Ivan Pal.69
During the same period the violinist Fanika Brandl had a private
music school in Maribor. She began her violin studies with Alfred Kliet-
mann (1884–1931), who was a pupil of Otakar Ševčík, and Joseph Joachim
67 Martin Jevnikar, “Stanič, Fran,” in Primorski slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 14,
ed. Martin Jevnikar (Gorizia: Goriška Mohorjeva družba, 1988), 442.
68 Rafael Ajlec, “Stanič, Jelka,” in Slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 3, ed. Alfonz Gspan
(Ljubljana: Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, 1960–1971), 438; Personal
communication with Tomaž Faganel in Ljubljana in 2011. He told me the year of Jel-
ka Stanič’s death.
69 Personal communication with his son Taras Poljanec, Jr. on August 6th, 2011 in
Maribor; Death certificate (Maribor Administrative Unit/Upravna enota Maribor);
Drago Hrovatin, “Taras Poljanec,” in Slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 2, ed. France
Kidrič (Ljubljana: Zadružna gospodarska banka, 1933–1952), 437.
287
Music Society in Ljubljana, and later at the Ljubljana Conservatory. He was
a member of the Slovenian National Theater Orchestra and the Ljubljana
Quartet. He wrote several violin method books, and believed that the ideal
time to start learning an instrument is the preschool period. His influence
meant that the average age of pupils in music schools was gradually low-
ered, which improved their success. He taught two of the best Slovenian vi-
olinists of the time during their childhood years: Dejan Bravničar and his
own daughter, Jelka Stanič.67 She became a successful concert violinist and
gave concerts around the world. She was concertmaster of the Opera Or-
chestra in Ljubljana, from 1957 a member of the Zagreb Soloists (Zagrebački
solisti), and later an orchestra member of the Radio-Saarland Orchestra in
Saarbrücken, where she died in 2011.68
Even though Šlais was the most important violin pedagogue during
his time in Slovenia, he was not the only one. At the establishment of the
Ljubljana Conservatory in 1919, one of its first violin teachers there was
Karel Jeraj. He was already a renowned violinist and previous concertmas-
ter of the Court Opera Orchestra in Vienna, where he was born to a Slove-
nian father from Smlednik and a Czech mother. With enthusiasm and ide-
alism, he left Vienna and moved to his fatherland to help with building a
new Slovenian musical milieu. One of his first violin pupils at the Ljubljana
Conservatory was Taras Anton Poljanec (1908–1964), who studied with Jer-
aj between 1919 and 1926. After completing his studies at the Prague Con-
servatory with Rudolf Reissig (1874–1939), he taught violin, v iola, chamber
music, and orchestral music at the Music Society in Maribor. After 1945
he taught at the Maribor Conservatory and was the violinist of the Mari-
bor Trio (Mariborski trio; Poljanec–Klasinc–Bajde). His best pupils were the
above-mentioned Ciril Veronek and Ivan Pal.69
During the same period the violinist Fanika Brandl had a private
music school in Maribor. She began her violin studies with Alfred Kliet-
mann (1884–1931), who was a pupil of Otakar Ševčík, and Joseph Joachim
67 Martin Jevnikar, “Stanič, Fran,” in Primorski slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 14,
ed. Martin Jevnikar (Gorizia: Goriška Mohorjeva družba, 1988), 442.
68 Rafael Ajlec, “Stanič, Jelka,” in Slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 3, ed. Alfonz Gspan
(Ljubljana: Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, 1960–1971), 438; Personal
communication with Tomaž Faganel in Ljubljana in 2011. He told me the year of Jel-
ka Stanič’s death.
69 Personal communication with his son Taras Poljanec, Jr. on August 6th, 2011 in
Maribor; Death certificate (Maribor Administrative Unit/Upravna enota Maribor);
Drago Hrovatin, “Taras Poljanec,” in Slovenski biografski leksikon, vol. 2, ed. France
Kidrič (Ljubljana: Zadružna gospodarska banka, 1933–1952), 437.
287
