Julius Isserlis (26 October (OS) / 7 November 1888 – 23 July 1968) was a pianist and composer. He was born in Kishinev,

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

(now

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ), also known as Kishinev (russian: Кишинёв, r=Kishinjóv ), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Republic of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial center, and is located in the ...

Republic of Moldova A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

), to a Jewish family. His father was

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. In formal Jewish worship, a cantor is a person who sings solo verses or passages to which the choir or congregation responds. In Judaism, a cantor sings and lead ...

in a synagogue, and also worked as an itinerant dentist; his mother was a midwife. He started playing the piano at the age of four, and showed such precocity that he was entered into the

Kiev Conservatory Pyotr Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine ( uk, Національна музична академія України імені Петра Чайковського) or Kyiv Conservatory is a Ukrainian state institution of higher music e ...

when he was nine; but his professor there, Włodzimierz Puchalski, soon sent him to Moscow to study with

Vasily Safonov Vasily Ilyich Safonov (russian: Васи́лий Ильи́ч Сафо́нов, link=no, ; 6 February 185227 February 1918), also known as Wassily Safonoff, was a Russian pianist, teacher, conductor and composer. Biography Vasily Safonov, or S ...

at the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (russian: Московская государственная консерватория им. П. И. Чайковского, link=no) is a musical educational inst ...

. Here he also studied composition, under

Sergei Taneyev Sergey Ivanovich Taneyev (russian: Серге́й Ива́нович Тане́ев, ; – ) was a Russian composer, pianist, teacher of composition, music theorist and author. Life Taneyev was born in Vladimir, Vladimir Governorate, Russia ...

. He graduated at the age of sixteen, winning the gold medal of the Conservatory.Rachel Isserlis, Notes accompanying
''Julius Isserlis: Piano Music''
Sam Haywood (piano), Hyperion Records, CDA68025, 2014. In 1907 Isserlis travelled to Paris to take lessons from

Charles-Marie Widor Charles-Marie-Jean-Albert Widor (21 February 1844 – 12 March 1937) was a French organist, composer and teacher of the mid-Romantic era, most notable for his ten organ symphonies. His Toccata from the fifth organ symphony has become one of the ...

. He made a brief trip to the United States, playing a concert in the

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

, New York (having been recommended as a soloist by

Alexander Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin (; russian: Александр Николаевич Скрябин ; – ) was a Russian composer and virtuoso pianist. Before 1903, Scriabin was greatly influenced by the music of Frédéric Chopin and composed ...

). Returning to the Russian Empire, he was appointed as a professor at the College of the Imperial Philharmonic Society. In 1916 he met, and soon afterwards married, Rita Rauchwerger, a pianist from a wealthy family in

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

. Their son George was born in 1917, the year of the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...

. In 1919 they attempted, unsuccessfully, to escape from Odessa on a British ship. Submitting to the new Communist regime, Isserlis was put work playing the piano for workers in factories and other institutions, often in harsh conditions.Peter Aspden,
''Cellist Steven Isserlis on his pianist grandfather and his compositions''
Financial Times, 10 January 2014 In 1922 Isserlis was one of twelve musicians chosen by

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

, who would be permitted to travel abroad as musical ambassadors for the newly-formed

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

; none of the twelve returned to Russia.Steven Isserlis,
''What is it like to come from an intensely musical family?''
New Statesman, 6 February 2014 Isserlis arrived in Vienna in 1923 with his wife and son, never to return to the Soviet Union again. Vienna had a very active musical scene, and he was able to build a career there as pianist, composer and teacher. He was in touch with other Russian émigrés;

Nathan Milstein Nathan Mironovich Milstein ( – December 21, 1992) was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist. Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and ...

and

Josef Lhévinne Josef Lhévinne (13 December 18742 December 1944) was a Russian pianist and piano teacher. Lhévinne wrote a short book in 1924 that is considered a classic: ''Basic Principles in Pianoforte Playing''. Asked how to say his name, he told ''The Li ...

are among those known to have visited him during this time.Steven Isserlis,
''George Isserlis obituary''
The Guardian, 24 July 2012 At the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

in 1938, Isserlis, fortuitously, was on tour in Britain. He was granted British residency, and was soon joined there by his wife and son. Other Russian émigrés in London included Nicolai Medtner and

Benno Moiseiwitsch Benno Moiseiwitsch CBE (22 February 18909 April 1963) was a Russian-born British pianist. Biography Moiseiwitsch was born to Jewish parents in Odessa, Russian Empire (today part of Ukraine), and began his studies at age seven with Dmitry Klimo ...

, with both of whom Isserlis was on friendly terms.''Beyond the Score: A Conversation with Gerald Kingsley''
PianoMagazine.online, 22 October 2021 Now in his fifties, he worked hard to rebuild his career as a pianist once more; he frequently featured on the

BBC Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and quickly became one of the leading cultural and intellectual f ...

,Steven Isserlis
''How music saved the Isserlis family''
The Jewish Chronicle, January 9 2014 and he toured the country with the Wessex Philharmonic. In 1963 he developed

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

, and he died in 1968 in London, at the age of 79. He is buried in Bushey Jewish Cemetery.Grave of Julius Isserlis
/ref> Isserlis recorded very little; his one commercial recording, of Scriabin's 24 Preludes, Op. 11, was made after the effects of Parkinson's disease had started to affect his pianism. However, some recordings made in Poland before the War survive, as do several BBC tapes. His compositional output is small, and consists mainly of short piano pieces. One exception is the Ballade in A minor for cello and piano; this was dedicated to

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

, who corresponded with the composer suggesting various changes. Isserlis's most important influence was Chopin, and he was also inspired by

Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

and

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...

. A recording of his music, played by pianist

Sam Haywood Sam Haywood (born 16 April 1972) is a British pianist, based in London. Early life and education Haywood was born in Brisbane, Australia to British parents. He grew up in the English Lake District and began playing the piano at the age of fo ...

(joined by cellist

Steven Isserlis Steven Isserlis (born 19 December 1958) is a British cellist. He has led a distinguished career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author and broadcaster. Acclaimed for his profound musicianship, he is also noted for his diverse repert ...

, the composer's grandson, for the Ballade in A minor), has been issued by

Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...

. Isserlis's three grandchildren, Annette, Rachel and Steven, are all professional musicians. He is commemorated in Britain by the biennial award of the Julius Isserlis Scholarship by the

Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...

; the Scholarship was first awarded in 1980 following a bequest of Cecilia Helen Northcote.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isserlis, Julius 1968 deaths 1888 births Musicians from Chișinău People from Kishinyovsky Uyezd Moldovan Jews Musicians from the Russian Empire Soviet emigrants to Austria Jewish classical composers Austrian emigrants to the United Kingdom Male classical pianists Jewish classical pianists