Henry Jolles (born Heinz-Frederic Jolles; 28 November 1902 – 16 July 1965), was a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
and
composer. Uprooted from his native
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
by the rise of
Nazism
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...
, he spent his last quarter-century in
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.
[Claims Resolution Tribunal, ''In re Holocaust Victim Assets Litigation'', Case No. CV96-4849, Certified Award]
19 November 2003; accessed 28 September 2008.
Life
Jolles was born in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
to Dr Oscar Jolles and his wife, Gertrude (née Sternberg). His mother was Jewish but it is unclear if his father was, as well.
[ Oscar, who had received a degree of ]Doctor of Philosophy
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
at Jena University
The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany.
The un ...
in 1886, was president and majority owner of the large printing and publishing company H. Berthold AG,[Oscar Jolles profile]
MyFonts.com; accessed 28 September 2008. and near the end of World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
the Kingdom of Württemberg
The Kingdom of Württemberg (german: Königreich Württemberg ) was a German state that existed from 1805 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which existe ...
would honor him with the Wilhelmkreuz, a recently created civilian decoration for merit in the war effort,[Decorations of the Kingdom of Württemberg]
accessed 28 September 2008. for his management of that company's metals business.[ At age six, Jolles played for the celebrated virtuoso and composer ]Eugen d'Albert
Eugen (originally Eugène) Francis Charles d'Albert (10 April 1864 – 3 March 1932) was a Scottish-born pianist and composer.
Educated in Britain, d'Albert showed early musical talent and, at the age of seventeen, he won a scholarship to stud ...
, who subsequently greatly influenced the boy's musical development.
After studying piano with Artur Schnabel
Artur Schnabel (17 April 1882 – 15 August 1951) was an Austrian-American classical pianist, composer and pedagogue. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura. Among the 20th centur ...
and Edwin Fischer
Edwin Fischer (6 October 1886 – 24 January 1960) was a Swiss classical pianist and conductor. He is regarded as one of the great interpreters of J.S. Bach and Mozart in the twentieth century.
Biography
Fischer was born in Basel and studied ...
and composition with Paul Juon
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
*Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
* Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
and, privately, with Kurt Weill, Jolles began to develop a successful performing career in the 1920s. His academic career also flourished, bringing appointment as professor at the Cologne Music Academy in 1928, at which point he moved from Berlin-Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg () is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Established as a town in 1705 and named after Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen consort of Prussia, it is best known for Charlottenburg Palace, the ...
to Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
. The ascendency of the Nazis brought an abrupt halt to this progress and several years of disruptions. In 1933, the regime directed Jolles's dismissal from his Academy position, and, by 1934, Jolles had moved to Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
to escape persecution. There, he had some success in re-establishing his performing career and, in 1940 or 1941, married Elisabeth Henriette Sauty de Chalon, but with the fall of France in 1940, Jolles came back into danger from the German occupation. Luck was with him, however, as he received assistance from American philanthropist Varian Fry
Varian Mackey Fry (October 15, 1907 – September 13, 1967) was an American journalist. Fry ran a rescue network in Vichy France that helped approximately 2,000 to 4,000 anti-Nazi and Jewish refugees to escape Nazi Germany and the Holocaust ...
.[Weber, Nicholas Fox]
"A Rescuer of Intellectuals from Vichy France"
''New York Times'', 16 November 1997; accessed 28 September 2008. Jolles secured an entry permit into Brazil and able to flee France aboard a freighter from Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
in 1942.[
Once in Brazil, he settled in ]São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...
and changed his name from "Heinz" to "Henry". His mother and sister were murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1943.[ He and his wife would remain residents of Brazil for the rest of their lives. Their sole child, a son named Olivier de Chalon Jolles, was born there in 1945.][ Olivier was a childhood friend of famous Brazilian composer ]Chico Buarque
Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, economic, ...
. They were both protagonists in a well-known episode in 1961 when, at ages 16 and 17 respectively, they were briefly arrested after a car theft.
In 1952, Hans-Joachim Koellreutter
Hans-Joachim Koellreutter (2 September 1915 – 13 September 2005) was a Brazilian composer, teacher and musicologist.
Koellreutter was born in Freiburg, Germany and lived in Brazil from 1937 onward, where he became one of the country's most i ...
invited Jolles to accept a teaching position at the Escola Livre de Música in São Paulo. His students there included composer Henrique de Curitiba
Zbigniew Henrique Morozowicz, known as Henrique de Curitiba (August 29, 1934 in Curitiba, Paraná – February 18, 200, is a Brazilian composer of Polish descent. He chose the pseudonym "Henrique de Curitiba" to become known in Brazil and ab ...
.[Cantus Quercus Press, biographical sketch of Henrique de Curitiba]
; accessed 28 September 2008.
Death
Jolles died in São Paulo in 1965, aged 63. His wife died there three years later, on 26 March 1968.[
]
Career
Jolles launched a successful career as a performer in the 1920s, earning a reputation as an accomplished performer of both classical and contemporary literature. In 1928 he performed the complete piano works of Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...
in a series of recitals at the University of Heidelberg
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
.[
Upon fleeing Germany for France after 1933, Jolles met with some success in re-establishing his career, from 1935-39 leading the concert society "La Sonata", but the German invasion forced him to start yet again in Brazil. That disruption proved one too many; while he returned to touring in Europe in 1946 and in Germany in 1950, and around that time made long playing recordings for the American ]Haydn Society
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...
label,[ he was unable to recapture his earlier success. His sole surviving composition predating 1933 is a fragment of a work he wrote jointly with Weill for four pianos. Among his works after arriving in Brazil are piano pieces, a ballet based on ''Carmen'', a sonata for violin and piano, and the song "Ultimo poema de Stefan Zweig,"; the last based on Stefan Zweig's "Letzte Gedicht", which the poet wrote on the occasion of his 60th birthday in November 1941.][Biographical sketch of Stefan Zweig at Casa Stefan Zweig]
accessed 28 September 2008.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jolles, Henry
1902 births
1965 deaths
Brazilian male composers
German classical pianists
Male classical pianists
Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to Brazil
German male composers
Musicians from Berlin
Musicians from São Paulo
Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln faculty
Pupils of Paul Juon
Pupils of Artur Schnabel
20th-century classical pianists
20th-century classical musicians
20th-century German composers
German male pianists
20th-century German male musicians