Leopold Lichtenberg (November 22, 1861 – May 16, 1935) was an American
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
ist.
Biography
Lichtenberg was born in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
to Jewish parents. Lichtenberg studied under Beaujardin, and made his first appearance in concert when eight years of age. In his twelfth year, he was asked by
Henryk Wieniawski
Henryk Wieniawski (; 10 July 183531 March 1880) was a Polish virtuoso violinist, composer and pedagogue who is regarded amongst the greatest violinists in history. His younger brother Józef Wieniawski and nephew Adam Tadeusz Wieniawski were al ...
, then on a visit to California, to become his pupil. He accompanied Wieniawski on a tour through America. Some time afterward he spent six months in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
under Lambert, and then rejoined Wieniawski at
Brussels Conservatory
The Royal Conservatory of Brussels (french: Conservatoire royal de Bruxelles, nl, Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel) is a historic conservatory in Brussels, Belgium. Starting its activities in 1813, it received its official name in 1832. Provid ...
, where he studied unremittingly for three years. After winning a prize at a national competition held in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, he made a successful tour through the
Netherlands
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.
Upon his return to America he played with
Theodore Thomas' orchestra in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, and gave a number of recitals in other cities. After spending three years more in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, Lichtenberg gave another series of concerts in America, after which he settled for some time in
Boston, Massachusetts, as a member of the
Boston Symphony Orchestra
The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...
. He next went to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
to take charge of the department of violin at the
National Conservatory. His fine technique and beautiful tone entitled him to high rank among violinists.
With pianist Adèle Margulies and cellist
Leo Schulz
Leo Schulz (March 28, 1865 – August 12, 1944) was a Kingdom of Prussia-born American cellist.
Biography
Schulz was born in Poznań, the then Kingdom of Prussia, currently Poland. As a child he toured Germany as a pianist along with his sister ...
, he formed the Margulies Trio, which became one of the foremost chamber music organizations of the United States. Lichtenberg died in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, New York City, in 1935.
References
* Baker, Biographical Dictionary of Musicians
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Further reading
* Claghorn, Charles Eugene. ''Biographical dictionary of American music'', Parker Pub. Co., 1974.
* Roth, Henry. ''Great violinists in performance. Critical evaluations of over 100 Twentieth-Century virtuosi'', Panjamdrum Books, 1987.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lichtenberg, Leopold
Jewish American musicians
Sportspeople from San Francisco
American violinists
American male violinists
1861 births
1935 deaths