Revising Perspectives on Nineteenth-Century Jewish Composers: A Case Study Comparison of Ignaz Brüll and Salomon Jadassohn by Adana Whitter B.A., Universit y of British Columbia, 2009 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in The Faculty of Graduate Studies (Music) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) March 2013 © Adana Whitter, 2013 i Abstract The influence of anti-Semitism on the lives and careers of Jewish musicians within the social climate of nineteenth-century Europe is well known. Pamela Potter, Sander Gilman, Philip Bohlman, and K. M. Knittel have thoroughly explored the anti-Semitic treatment of Jewish composers during this period. Definitions of the experience of Jewish composers have been crystallized on the basis of prominent cases, such as Gustav Mahler or Alexander Zemlinsky, who were actively discussed in the press or other publications. The goal of this study is to examine whether the general view of anti-Semitism, as shown in those studies, applies to other Jewish composers. To this aim, this thesis will introduce two lesser known Jewish composers, Ignaz Brüll (1846-1907) and Salomon Jadassohn (1831-1902) as case studies, consider closely their particular situations at the end of the nineteenth century, and assess their positions vis-à-vis the general views of how musician Jews were treated in these societies. Chapter One outlines the historical and political context in Germany and Austria, where these two composers resided, in order to understand where they fit into that context. Chapter Two focuses on Jewishness in music, the difficulties involved in defining Jewish music, along with the contributions of other Jewish composers to the wider European culture, and makes clear the important part anti- Semitism played in the process of identification during this period. Chapters Three and Four examine Brüll and Jadassohn’s biographical details, musical careers, and the musical genres and stylistic characteristics of these two composers within a broader milieu. The available evidence surrounding Brüll and Jadassohn ultimately demonstrates that at least on the surface they did not face the explicit public anti-Semitic treatment that other, more prominent, Jewish composers encountered, according to whose reception anti-Semitism during that period is typically defined. A more fine-tuned view of the musical and cultural scene in Vienna and Leipzig at the end of the nineteenth century illuminates the musical contribution of lesser known Jewish composers during that time and highlights the need for further individual case studies of other Jewish composers in order to revise current perspectives. ii Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... ii List of Examples ............................................................................................................................ v List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... vii Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Dual Existence, Adaptation, Identity, and Acceptance ............................................................... 2 Chapter One: The Political and Social Context of Nineteenth Century Germany and Austria ............................................................................................................................................ 6 Chapter Two: Jewishness and Music ........................................................................................ 20 Jews in Society .......................................................................................................................... 20 What is Jewish Music? .............................................................................................................. 28 Synagogue Music ...................................................................................................................... 30 Folk Song .................................................................................................................................. 37 Jewish Theater and Broadsides ................................................................................................. 43 Jewish Composers and Musicians: Contributions to Art Music and its Sphere ....................... 46 The Critics ................................................................................................................................. 59 Chapter Three: Ignaz Brüll ....................................................................................................... 66 Ignaz Brüll ................................................................................................................................. 66 Brüll in Leipzig ......................................................................................................................... 74 Brahms’ Circle .......................................................................................................................... 79 Brahms and Brüll ...................................................................................................................... 80 Mahler, Brüll, and Opera........................................................................................................... 82 Jewish Issues ............................................................................................................................. 87 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................... 94 Chapter Four: Salomon Jadassohn ........................................................................................... 96 Salomon Jadassohn ................................................................................................................... 96 Jadassohn’s Participation in Leipzig’s Musical Life............................................................... 101 Jadassohn as Pedagogue .......................................................................................................... 110 L. Lubenau and Musical Treatises .......................................................................................... 112 Jewish Issues ........................................................................................................................... 116 iii Conclusions ............................................................................................................................. 119 Chapter Five: Conclusions ....................................................................................................... 121 Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 132 Appendix I – List of Brüll’s Complete Works........................................................................ 140 Appendix II – List of Jadassohn’s Complete Works ............................................................. 144 Appendix III – C.D. Recordings .............................................................................................. 149 iv List of Examples Ex. 2.1.1 Traditional Synagogue Prayer Modes ........................................................................... 32 Ex.2.1.2 Kol Nidrei Melody, One variant ..................................................................................... 35 Ex.2.1.3 Schoenberg’s Kol Nidrei Melody ................................................................................... 36 Ex.2.2.1 Example of Yiddish Folksong ........................................................................................ 39 Ex. 2.2.2 “Work Song” from 19th Century .................................................................................. 41 Ex. 2.2.3 Example of Klezmer music for the bride ...................................................................... 43 Ex.2.2.4 Viennese Broadside with Jewish Stereotypes ................................................................ 45 Ex. 2.3.1 Excerpt of Bass Aria from Mendelssohn’s Elijah ......................................................... 53 Ex.2.3.2 Mahler Caricatures ......................................................................................................... 57 Ex.2.3.3 Zemlinsky Caricatures .................................................................................................... 58 Ex. 2.4.1 Drawings satirizing Mahler’s as director of the Vienna State Opera, 1897-1907. ........ 64 Ex. 3.1.1 Brüll’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in F Major, Movement I, Opening Theme (mm. 1-6) ... 69 Ex. 3.1.2 Beethoven, Egmont Overture Op.84, Piano Reduction (mm. 74-94) ........................... 69 Ex. 3.1.3 Movement I, Thematic-like transitional passages (mm. 77-80) .................................... 70 Ex. 3.1.4 Piano Concerto No. 1 in F Major, Second Theme (m. 120) .......................................... 71 Ex. 3.1.5 Piano Concerto No. 1 in F Major Movement 1, Cadenza, (m.441) .............................. 72 Ex. 3.1.6 Piano Concerto No. 1 in F Major, Movement I, Double Exposition, Sonata Form ...... 72 Ex.3.1.7 Piano Concerto