| 3 Chronology |
Carl Flesch
J. Sánchez-Penzo |
| 1873, Oct. 9: | Flesch is born in Wieselburg
(Moson), Hungary. His father, who belonged to an
old and renowned Jewish family, was military physician at Wieselburg.
| 1878:
| When 4 years and 11 months of age he
starts school.
| 1879:
| Shortly before his 6th birthday he begins
to receive violin lessons from a saddler who played this instrument
each Sunday in the church. A short time later Flesch upgrades
receiving violin lessons from the fire-brigade's bandmaster.
| 1883:
| His mother brings him to Vienna, where
he firstly receives lessons by Adolf Back for 2 years Flesch
will later consider as lost years.
| 1883, Dec. 31:
| First public appearance
at Wieselburg playing Alard's 'Faust Fantasy'.
| 1885:
| He plays to Josef Hellmesberger sen., at that
time director of the Vienna Conservatoire.
His opinion of Flesch's playing was rather discouraging.
Jakob Grün was then consulted. He recommended him to attend
Josef Maxintsak's class and promissed to take Flesch into his
own class a year later.
| 1885 (Autumn):
| Flesch enters Josef Maxintsak's class.
| 1886 (Autumn):
| Flesch enters Jakob Grün's class.
| 1890 - 1894:
| Studies at the Paris
Conservatoire, where he finishes with the Grand Prix. While
being in Sauzay's class, he occasionally takes private lessons
with Marsick, who succeeded Sauzay at the conservatoire two
years later.
| 1895:
| First appearances in Vienna. In two
successful and acclaimed concerts he performs works by Paganini,
Bach, Saint-Säens and other composers.
| 1896 (Autumn):
| Successful Berlin debut with a similar
programme as in Vienna.
As a result of the 2 Berlin concerts he gets several engagements
for appearances in Halle, Leipzig, Budapest, Prague and Strassbourg.
| 1897 - 1902:
| Professor at the Bucarest Conservatoire
and musician at the court of the Romanian Queen Elisabeth
(Carmen Sylva).
| 1902 - 1903:
| Flesch returns to Berlin.
| 1903:
| Flesch is appointed as professor
of the Amsterdam Conservatoire becoming the successor of the
Joachim pupil Bram Eldering.
| 1903 - 1908:
| He teachs in Amsterdam, where
he continues developing as pedagogue and soloist. He creates
a concert cycle performing chronologically works for violin solo
from 17th to 20th century. The concert cycle takes place in Berlin
in 1905.
| 1906:
| He marries Bertha Josephus-Jitta, who belonged
to one of the most distinguished Jewish families in the Netherlands at
that time.
| 1908:
| Flesch and his family move to Berlin, where
he gives private lessons and builds a duo with Arthur Schnabel.
Later on Jean Gérardy joins them to build a trio.
| 1914:
| During his America tour Flesch performs in
25 cities in the USA and makes his first recordings.
| 1914:
| Gérardy leaves the trio being succeeded by Hugo
Becker. Until 1921 the members are Flesch (violin), Becker (cello), and
Schnabel (piano). In 1921 Schnabel leaves the trio. He is succeeded
some years later by Carl Friedberg.
| 1920:
| Flesch founds a society for helping
indigent musicians with the name 'Hilfsbund für deutsche Musikpflege'.
| 1921:
| 12 weeks master class at the Musikhochschule
Berlin.
| 1923 - 1924:
| Concert tour in the USA.
| 1924 - 1928:
| He teachs at the Curtis Institute in
Philadelphia, as head of the violin department,
and gives privat lessons in Baden-Baden, Germany.
| 1928:
| He is appointed to
the Musikhochschule in Berlin, where he teachs during the winter
months. In summer he gives private lessons and helds courses
mainly in Baden-Baden.
It is the latter which led to the current Baden-Baden Flesch Akademie,
which is intended to perpetuate the tradition.
| 1930:
| The Flesch family adoptes the German
nationality retaining the Hungarian as well.
| 1934, Sept. 30:
| Flesch leaves the Musikhochschule Berlin.
| 1935, June 20:
| The Nazis deprive Flesh and his wife of the
German nationality. A short time later they leave Germany
and emigrate to London.
| 1939, Sep.:
| At the very beginning of the war Flesch
and his wife live in London. He gets several Dutch engagements and
receives the permission to go to Holland with his wife,
where they both remain.
| 1940, May:
| Germany occupies the Netherlands.
Flesch is denied by the German occupation authorities
to return to London or leave Holland.
| 1942:
| Géza von Kresz and Ernst von Dohnanyi
as well as the Hungarian goverment
help Flesch and his family move from Den Haag to Budapest.
| 1943, April:
| Flesch and his wife arrive in
Lucern, Switzerland, where he had been offered a teaching post
through the good offices of the conductor Ernest Ansermet.
Some days later he starts giving master-classes at the
Conservatoire
| 1944, Nov. 15:
| Flesch dies in Lucerne, Switzerland
| |