Karel Hoffmann (12 December 1872, in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

– 30 March 1936, in Prague) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places *Czech, ...

violinist The following lists of violinists are available: * List of classical violinists, notable violinists from the baroque era onwards * List of contemporary classical violinists, notable contemporary classical violinists * List of violinist/composers, ...

and music

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...

, a founding member and first violinist of the Bohemian Quartet. In 1926–1927, he was appointed the

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory or Prague Conservatoire ( cs, Pražská konzervatoř) is a music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, Prague Conservatory offers four or six year study courses, which can be compared to the level ...

. Benešová (2009), p. 50

Biography

Hoffmann was born in Prague-

Smíchov Smíchov () is (since 1909) a district of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, and is part of Prague 5. It is on the west bank of the Vltava river. History Between 1945 and 1989, the district contained a monument dedicated to Soviet tan ...

, as the ninth child of weaver Karel Hoffmann. He was a weak child, and one of his older brothers chose for him to learn the violin as a "lighter work". In 1885, he began his studies at the Prague Conservatory, as a pupil in the class of Antonín Bennewitz. The first important event of his career was his entry to the chamber music class of

Hanuš Wihan Hanuš Wihan (5 June 1855 – 1 May 1920) was a renowned Czech cellist, considered the greatest of his time. He was strongly associated with the works of Antonín Dvořák, whose Cello Concerto in B minor, Rondo in G minor, and the short pie ...

. There he met Josef Suk,

Oskar Nedbal Oskar Nedbal (26 March 1874 – 24 December 1930) was a Czech violist, composer, and conductor of classical music. Early life Nedbal was born in Tábor, in southern Bohemia. He studied the violin at the Prague Conservatory under Antonín Benne ...

, and Otto Berger – his future colleagues and collaborators from the Bohemian Quartet. They founded the quartet officially in 1892, and the activity of the ensemble lasted 42 years. Hoffmann was the only permanent member of the ensemble throughout its 1892–1934 existence. Černušák (1963), p. 450 In 1934, after the death of violist Jiří Herold, Hoffmann founded the Bohemian Trio with Ladislav Zelenka and Jan Heřman. Hoffmann began to assert himself also as a soloist at the end of the 19th century, in addition to his chamber music activities. He played the solo violin part in the first Prague performance of the Double Concerto in A minor 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 ...

. He also performed the Violin Sonata No. 3 in C minor, Op.45 in

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together with composer

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

, and the Czech composer Josef Suk dedicated some of his works to him. In 1901, he performed together with

Czech Philharmonic The Česká filharmonie (Czech Philharmonic) is a symphony orchestra based in Prague. The orchestra's principal concert venue is the Rudolfinum. History The name "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" appeared for the first time in 1894, as the title ...

the Violin Concerto in A minor, Op. 53 by

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...

in Vienna. In the ''"Spolek pro moderní hudbu"'' (''Society for Modern Music'') Hoffmann collaborated with renowned Czech and foreign artists –

Ilona Štěpánová-Kurzová Ilona Štěpánová-Kurzová (19 November 1899 in Lviv – 25 September 1975 in Prague) was a Czechoslovak concert pianist and piano teacher, a professor at the Prague Academy of Arts. Her students included Ivan Moravec. Ilona Štěpánová-Kurz ...

Rudolf Karel Rudolf Karel (9 November 1880 in Plzeň – 6 March 1945 in Theresienstadt) was a distinguished Czech people, Czech composer. Biography Rudolf Karel was a son of a railway employee. He studied law at Charles University and then composition from ...

Jaroslav Křička Jaroslav Křička (; 27 August 1882 in Kelč, Moravia – 23 January 1969 in Prague) was a Czech people, Czech composer, Conducting, conductor, and Music education, music teacher. He was the brother of poet Petr Křička:de:Petr_Křička, e...

, Josef Bohuslav Förster,

Ladislav Vycpálek Ladislav Vycpálek (Vršovice, Prague, 23 February 1882 – Prague, 9 January 1969) was a Czech Republic, Czech composer and Viola, violist. Vycpálek studied composition under Vítězslav Novák. However, he very soon found his own expressive st ...

, Jan Kunc,

Arthur Honegger Arthur Honegger (; 10 March 1892 – 27 November 1955) was a Swiss composer who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. A member of Les Six, his best known work is probably ''Antigone'', composed between 1924 and 1927 to ...

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

Ottorino Respighi Ottorino Respighi ( , , ; 9 July 187918 April 1936) was an Italian composer, violinist, teacher, and musicologist and one of the leading Italian composers of the early 20th century. List of compositions by Ottorino Respighi, His compositions r ...

and

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ''Ne ...

among others. In 1932, he developed

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

and was forced to undergo surgery. He recovered for a short time and resumed his activities. However, a second surgery in 1934 was unsuccessful and Karel Hoffmann passed away in 1936.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffmann, Karel Czech classical violinists Male classical violinists 1872 births 1936 deaths Musicians from Prague Czech music educators Violin pedagogues Deaths from cancer in Czechoslovakia