A brief history of the

Russian-Soviet Violin School

1862-the Present
 Born in  Lublin, Poland, then part of the Russian
Empire in 1835

Entered the Paris Conservatoire at age 8, graduated at

11

International soloist at Age 13

Taught at the behest of the Czar at the St. Petersburg

Conservatory from 1862-1869

• Tireless inventor of technical and

musical ideas
• Known for his glowing, warm tone
and boundless virtuosity
• Funeral in 1880 was attended by Henryk Wieniawski
40,000 people in Moscow 1835-1880
Studied with Joseph Joachim

Knew both Clara Schumann and

Brahms

At first, was less admired than his

predecessor, but Tchaikovsky’s love of
his playing convinced the skeptics

• Huge proponent of Bach Solo

Sonatas and Partitas
• Demanded musical vitality
• Instilled individuality as a
mandatory characteristic of every
pupil
• Knew when to leave well enough
alone Leopold Auer
1835-1930
The Master of
Invention

• Known for his silken tone

• Effortless technique coupled
with enormous stamina
• Tireless arranger as well as
composer

1903-1992
The birth of the
Hollywood violinist

•Known for his sensuous tone

•Widely recognized as one of the foremost exponents of
the Hollywood tone
•Worked closely with Korngold, Rosza and Max Steiner
in creating the Golden Age of Hollywood

Toscha Seidel
1899-1962
Born in Vilnius, Lithuania, which was then occupied by
Russia, entered Auer’s class at age 9

Berlin Philharmonic debut at age 11, replacing an ailing

Pablo Casals, Carnegie Hall recital at 16

The first international non-vocal superstar. Referred to in

films, sports broadcasts and commercials

•Played the “David” del Gesu for most of his career.

•Was a lifelong philanthropist, helping his friends,
students and as an anonymous donor
•Owned an electric car in 1948
•Championed new music from not just Hollywood
composers, but Prokofiev and Sibelius
•Wrote popular songs under the pseudonym of Jim
Hoyl
•Was an outstanding pianist
•Recorded a lot of chamber music repertoire with the
Million Dollar Trio and Hollywood musicians of
1901-1987
note
 Divergence between the Russian and the Soviet
Violin Schools
1936-1973 The Yampolsky/Yankelevich years
• Shift from St. Petersburg to Moscow as the musical center
of the USSR
• Lessons twice a week with the primary professor
• Rigorous methodology focused on technical perfection,
physical freedom and mental toughness
• Ruthless culling of the class at preset intervals resulting in
the most technically reliable classes year in and year out
• Primary focus was Olympic style competition, very similar
to gymnastics or fencing.
The Wieniawski/Auer Years
• St. Petersburg and the Mariinsky Theater was the artistic
center of the Imperial Russia
• Emphasized great discipline for the purpose of nurturing
individuality
• Wealth of knowledge required of students in the tradition of
the Mighty Five, who were composers as well as scientists,
military and navy officers, journalists and philosophers
• Required the students to take the lead on their development
while correcting the course and instilling a sense of
compositional style
Self-professed Heifetz fanatic

Having heard Heifetz in 1934,

Kogan said Heifetz is his violinistic
idol. He is said to have modeled his
practice regiment after JH for the
rest of his life

• Won the First Prize at the 1951

Queen Elizabeth Competition
• First Soviet violinist to have
played and recorded the Berg
Concerto

Leonid Kogan
1924-1982
 The first Soviet
violinist to be
accepted in the West
•Studied in Odessa with Stolyarsky (like
Milstein), his only teacher
•Was not a prodigy
•The silver medal at the 1935 Wieniawski
competition was viewed as a crushing defeat by
the Soviet authorities
•Won the Ysaye Competition in 1937
•Champion of new music
•While he is known as a Strad player, he
preferred German bows by Nürnberger and
Richaume
•Played in eponymous quartet and piano trio
•Important conductor and pedagogue (Gidon 1904-1907
Kremer and Ilya Kaler, active currently)
Arguably the least ”Soviet” violinist
of all

Grew up in Riga, Latvia; studied at

the St. Petersburg Conservatory
with Mikhail Vaiman

• Won the 1967 Queen Elisabeth

Competition
• Possessed incredible virtuosity,
yet detested the idea
• Teacher of Janine Jansen
• A mystic and a philosopher

1946-1996
The 21st century
leaders and beyond

• Studied with Zakhar Bron

• won the 1984 International Karol
Lipiński and Henryk Wieniawski
Young Violin Player Competition
• Is a special gift for charm and
effortless virtuosity
Born 1974
Vadim Repin

• At 17, the youngest winner of the

Queen Elizabeth Competition
• Student of Zahar Bron
• One of the primary exponents of the
Novosibirsk Music School and a
champion of that part of Russia

Born 1971