Friedrich Siegfried Buxbaum (23 September 1869, Vienna 2 October 1948, London) was an Austrian cellist and long-serving member (and principal cello) of the

Vienna Philharmonic The Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; german: Wiener Philharmoniker, links=no) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. It ...

and Vienna State Opera, and member of the Rosé Quartet. His

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

father Max Buxbaum was from

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

, and mother Rosa Wilharditz was a member of the IKG Wien. Buxbaum studied at the Vienna Conservatory from 1883–87, under the tutelage of Ferdinand Hellmesberger He played briefly in the Glasgow Symphony Orchestra in Scotland, was active as a soloist and a member of the Fitzner Quartet from 1893-1900, and then, on 1 October 1900, was accepted as a member of the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera, and also became a member of the Rosé Quartet. He later headed his own quartet. He was to participate in premieres of works by

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

, Erich Wolfgang Korngold,

Alexander Zemlinsky Alexander Zemlinsky or Alexander von Zemlinsky (14 October 1871 – 15 March 1942) was an Austrian composer, conductor, and teacher. Biography Early life Zemlinsky was born in Vienna to a highly diverse family. Zemlinsky's grandfather, Anton ...

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and Anton Webern. He was to serve as principal and solo cellist of the Vienna Philharmonic until 13 March 1938, when he and other Jewish members of the orchestra were dismissed. He and his family escaped Vienna for the UK in September 1938; he was granted permanent residency in December. In October 1946, the Vienna Philharmonic invited him to return to his seat as cello principal, from which, its correspondence said, "you were unlawfully driven away a few years ago," asking Buxbaum, to "give us the opportunity to set right at least a small portion of the wrongs that were done to you." His response began, "Dear friends, you can probably imagine what a joy it was for me to read your friendly and honoring invitation…. To work with this orchestra as long as humanly possible is a tempting task indeed, although it would be easier for me to make a decision if I had knowledge of the factual conditions concerning my position…." Buxbaum, was never to return, but the orchestra awarded him its highest honor, the Nicolai Silver Medal in 1947 when it was touring in Edinburgh.

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References

* Hans Morgenstern, ''"Jüdisches biographisches Lexikon. Eine Sammlung von bedeutenden Persönlichkeiten jüdischer Herkunft ab 1800"'', , Wien; p. 132 {{DEFAULTSORT:Buxbaum, Friedrich 1869 births 1948 deaths 19th-century Austrian people Austrian classical cellists Jewish emigrants from Austria to the United Kingdom after the Anschluss Austrian people of Czech-Jewish descent Jewish classical musicians Players of the Vienna Philharmonic British cellists