Mischa Elman

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Lore & Background

Mischa Elman was born Moses or Moishe Elman to a Jewish family in Talnoye, Umansky Uyezd, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire (today Talne, Ukraine). His grandfather Yosele Elman was a klezmer violinist, and his father Shevel-Shloime Iosifovich Elman was a melamed and amateur violinist. Showing perfect pitch at a very young age, Elman was given a miniature violin and soon learned several tunes by himself. He studied at the Imperial Academy of Music in Odessa, and after a recommendation from Pablo de Sarasate, he auditioned for Leopold Auer at age 11, playing the Wieniawski Concerto No. 2 and Paganini's 24th Caprice. Auer was so impressed that he had Elman admitted to the St. Petersburg Conservatory. As a boy, Auer arranged for Elman to play with the famous Colonne Orchestra during their visit to Pavlovsk. Conductor Édouard Colonne, unaware of Elman's age, initially refused to conduct for a child prodigy, saying 'I have never yet played with a child, and I refuse to start now.' Elman performed with piano accompaniment instead, but after hearing him play, Colonne invited him to perform with the Orchestre Colonne in Paris four months later. Elman made his Berlin debut in 1904, his London debut in 1905 (including the British premiere of Alexander Glazunov's Violin Concerto in A minor), and his Carnegie Hall debut in 1908, all to great success. He became a U.S. citizen in 1923 and sometimes performed as many as 107 concerts in a 29-week season.

Reader's Guide

Mischa Elman's significance lies in his long career as a virtuoso violinist whose recorded legacy spanned more than six decades. He made his first 78 rpm discs for Pathé in Paris in 1906 and his final LP sessions for Vanguard in New York in 1967. The greater part of his discography was recorded for Victor Talking Machine Company/RCA Victor, with whom he had an exclusive relationship through 1950. Sales of his records exceeded two million. He gave the premiere of Bohuslav Martinů's second concerto in 1943, which was written for him. A frequent accompanist in chamber works during his early American career was Emmanuel Bay, who was born on exactly the same day as Elman, January 20, 1891. From 1950, his steady accompanist and recital partner was Joseph Seiger. He also briefly performed and made recordings with the Mischa Elman String Quartet. Elman died in his apartment on April 5, 1967, in Manhattan, New York City, a few hours after completing a rehearsal with Seiger. He is buried in the Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

Did You Know?

• Elman's grandfather Yosele was a klezmer, a Jewish professional traditional musician who played the violin.
• At age 11, Elman auditioned for Leopold Auer by playing the Wieniawski Concerto No. 2 and Paganini's 24th Caprice.
• Conductor Édouard Colonne initially refused to conduct for Elman, saying 'I have never yet played with a child, and I refuse to start now.'
• Elman sometimes performed as many as 107 concerts in a 29-week season.
• His frequent accompanist Emmanuel Bay was born on exactly the same day as Elman: January 20, 1891.

Early Life & Musical Awakening

Moses Elman was born on January 20, 1891, in Talnoye, Umansky Uyezd, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire (today Talne, Ukraine), into a Jewish family where music ran through the veins. His grandfather Yosele Elman was a klezmer, a Jewish professional traditional musician who played the violin, and his father Shevel-Shloime Iosifovich Elman was a melamed and amateur violinist. The boy's perfect pitch announced itself when he was very young, yet his father hesitated about a career as a musician, since musicians were not very high on the social scale. He finally gave in and gave the child a miniature violin, on which young Mischa soon learned several tunes by himself. The family moved to Odessa, where he studied at the Imperial Academy of Music. Pablo de Sarasate gave him a recommendation, stating that he could become one of the great talents of Europe. At just eleven, Elman sat before Leopold Auer and played the Wieniawski Concerto No. 2 and Paganini's 24th Caprice. Auer was so impressed that he had Elman admitted to the St. Petersburg Conservatory.

The Colonne Refusal & Conquest of Europe

Still only a boy, Elman was set up by Auer to play with the famous Colonne Orchestra during their visit to Pavlovsk. Auer, aware of conductor Édouard Colonne's well-known hatred of child prodigies, deliberately withheld the young violinist's age. When Colonne saw young Mischa waiting to go on the platform, he realized he had engaged a child. He was furious and flatly refused to continue with the programme, retorting 'I have never yet played with a child, and I refuse to start now.' No amount of persuasion could budge him, and Elman was forced to perform with piano accompaniment while the conductor and orchestra sat listening. According to Elman: 'I was eleven at the time. When Colonne saw me, violin in hand, ready to step on the stage, he drew himself up and said with emphasis: "I play with a prodigy! Never!" Nothing could move him, and I had to play to a piano accompaniment. After he had heard me play, though, he came over to me and said: "The best apology I can make for what I said is to ask you to do me the honor of playing with the Orchestre Colonne in Paris." He was as good as his word. Four months later I went to Paris and played the Mendelssohn concerto for him with great success.' His momentum carried him through a Berlin debut in 1904 that created a great sensation, a London appearance in 1905 featuring the British premiere of Alexander Glazunov's Violin Concerto in A minor, and a Carnegie Hall performance in 1908 that made a great impression on his American audience. He toured Australia in the summer of 1914 before the outbreak of World War I drew him back to the United States.

A Career of Extraordinary Demands

Once established in America, Elman's schedule was staggering. In a single season he sometimes appeared in as many as 107 concerts over 29 weeks, a workload that speaks to both his physical stamina and the public's insatiable appetite for his playing. His artistry was not confined to the solo stage; he was deeply committed to chamber music. In his early American career, the pianist Emmanuel Bay—born on exactly the same day as Elman, January 20, 1891—was a frequent accompanist, and he also performed and recorded with Josef Bonime, Carroll Hollister, Wolfgang Rosé and others. From 1950 onward, Joseph Seiger became his steady accompanist and recital partner. Elman also briefly performed and made recordings with the Mischa Elman String Quartet. His repertoire stretched across centuries and styles, from Bach and Vivaldi to Tchaikovsky and Martinů. In 1943 he gave the premiere of Bohuslav Martinů's second concerto, which was written for him. His recorded output sold more than two million copies, and in 1917 the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity elected him to honorary membership. He became a U.S. citizen in 1923.

A Recording Legacy & a Sudden End

Elman's discography spans an astonishing six decades. His earliest 78 rpm discs were cut for Pathé in Paris in 1906, and his final LP sessions took place for Vanguard in New York in 1967. The bulk of his output was made for the Victor Talking Machine Company/RCA Victor, with whom he had an exclusive relationship through 1950. After that, he recorded for Decca/London and later the Vanguard label. His catalog encompasses everything from Bach's E-major Concerto with John Barbirolli to Tchaikovsky's D-major Concerto with both Sir Adrian Boult and Barbirolli, from Sarasate's Zigeunerweisen to a rare duet with Enrico Caruso on Massenet's Élégie Mélodie. Yet a persistent frustration lingers: unlike the recordings of his contemporary Jascha Heifetz, which have been readily available on CD for years, Elman's discs have never been reissued on CD in a systematic manner. His life ended abruptly on April 5, 1967, in his Manhattan apartment, a few hours after completing a rehearsal with Seiger. He was buried at Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.