Lav Mirski (born Leo Fritz; 21 June 189329 April 1968) was a Croatian-Jewish conductor. Mirski was born in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

to a Jewish family. He completed his cello studies at the conservatory of University of Zagreb. In 1913, Mirski moved to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, where he worked until 1917 when he returned to Croatia,

Osijek Osijek () is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja ...

. Mirski participated in the founding of the "Society for the advancement of science and arts" in Osijek, which in 1921 became the "City music school", and "Municipal conservatory". Since coming to Osijek, Mirski advocated the establishment of a permanent philharmonic, which he succeeded in 1924. With Mirski at head, Osijek philharmonic performed the most complex pieces of domestic and foreign composers. In 1923 Mirski became the director of the opera at the

Croatian National Theatre in Osijek The Croatian National Theatre ( hr, Hrvatsko narodno kazalište u Osijeku) is a theatre building in Osijek, capital of the Croatian region of Slavonia. Opened in 1866, and the building was expanded and fully completed in 1907 according to the p ...

. At that time, among other things, Mirski recognized the potential of a young tambura player Julije Njikoš - Đule, then still a boy, who would later become the founder of the important Croatian tambura institutions. Mirski also worked in other Croatian cities, mostly in his hometown Zagreb, where he collaborated with the Croatian National Theatre, but also in

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

, Sušak and

Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

. He also worked in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

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 ...

and many other European cities. In April 1941, with the

NDH The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. It was established in p ...

regime in power, Mirski was fired from the Croatian National Theatre in Osijek. At first he was deported to Zagreb, and then he was taken to the camp

Ferramonti di Tarsia Ferramonti di Tarsia, also known as Ferramonti, was an Italian internment camp used to intern political dissidents and ethnic minorities. It was located in the municipality of Tarsia, near Cosenza, in Calabria. It was the largest of the fifteen in ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. In camp, Mirski led inmates choir. In 1944, Mirski was liberated after the capitulation of Italy and joined the Partisans. Later in Bari, Mirski conducted the symphony orchestras for the allied forces. In 1944 he moved to

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...

. From 1944 to 1947, Mirski was opera, symphony and radio orchestra conductor in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

and

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. In 1947, Mirski returned to Osijek to become, again, the director of the opera at the Croatian National Theatre. In 1956, Mirski became intendant at the Croatian National Theatre in Osijek. Mirski retired in 1961. Mirski died in Osijek on April 29, 1968 and was buried at the Saint Ana Cemetery, with other Osijek's prominent citizens. In Mirski honour, square in Osijek is named after him. In 2007, city government renewed the Lav Mirski burial site.

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mirski, Lav 1893 births 1968 deaths Musicians from Zagreb Croatian Jews Jews from Austria-Hungary Croatian Austro-Hungarians Croatian conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Yugoslav Partisans members Croatian people of World War II 20th-century conductors (music) 20th-century male musicians Burials at Saint Anne Cemetery