A child prodigy, he lived in Poland, Moscow, Berlin, and Paris, before formally immigrating to the U.S. in 1938, at age 27. Roman Totenberg was awarded the Wieniawski Medal of Poland and the Ysaye Medal of Belgium. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate.

He won the International Mendelssohn Prize. Returning to Warsaw in 1921, Totenberg studied with Mieczyslaw Michalowicz and was soon appearing with the Warsaw Philharmonic. A neighbour was concertmaster at the Bolshoi and gave young Roman his first violin lessons. His diversified repertoire included more than thirty concerti. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? In Washington he gave the National Symphony Orchestra’s premiere of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, while at the White House Eleanor Roosevelt served him dinner sitting on the floor and Vice-President Garner didn’t wear shoes. 2,[13] the William Schuman Concerto in its final version, 1959,[14] and the Krzysztof Penderecki Capriccio. After a cousin was beaten by the SS in Berlin, Totenberg moved to Paris, where he worked under George Enesco. His London concert in November 1952, with the clarinettist Gervase de Peyer and the pianist Theo van der Pas, was billed as the “reappearance of the celebrated violinist”. [9][7][10] She added that her father "has students in virtually every major orchestra in the US and several others in Europe. [21] In recital he appeared at the White House,[9][7] Carnegie Hall,[22] the Library of Congress, the Metropolitan Museum of Art,[20] and in every major American and European city. Roman Totenberg, who died of renal failure on 8 May at the age of 101, was a violinist and teacher from Poland whose nine-decade career featured performances before kings and presidents. Roman Totenberg was born in 1911, into a Jewish family in Lodz, Poland. In Europe he performed with all major orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. As you will see from the obituary below, which I wrote on Tuesday, he was an extraordinary man who led an extraordinary life. Roman Totenberg, who has died aged 101, was a Polish-born violinist who made music with Yehudi Menuhin, ate with Eleanor Roosevelt and built sandcastles with Igor Stravinsky. Twice a week he had lessons with Carl Flesch, and in 1932 he won the Mendelssohn Prize. Nina told the story of the theft and belated recovery of her father's Stradivarius in an article for NPR.[35][3]. Totenberg's teaching career was almost as long as his life. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent Premium. “Slow down,” he told her. By the age of 11 he was teaching his first pupil. In 1935, he made his British debut in London and his American debut in Washington, D.C. Roman Totenberg was born in Lódz on New Year’s Day 1911 (“Easy to remember, 1-1-11”), the son of an architect. You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification. [12], Among the many contemporary works he introduced are the Darius Milhaud Violin Concerto No. Analysis: Can the Seattle Seahawks win the Super Bowl this season. A child prodigy, he lived in Poland, Moscow, Berlin, and Paris, before formally immigrating to the U.S. in 1938, at age 27. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates. Roman Totenberg married, in 1941, Melanie Shroder, who died in 1996. He toured South America with Arthur Rubinstein in 1937, turned pages for Fritz Kreisler in Paris, and was ordered to walk backwards offstage after performing for King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy. And once again, the beautiful, brilliant and throaty voice of that long-stilled violin will thrill audiences in concert halls around the world. The family stated that they planned to sell the instrument after it had been restored. He gave many concerts comprising the complete cycle of Beethoven sonatas and all Bach Brandenburg concertos. He returned to Moscow in 1998 as a juror in the Tchaikovsky Violin Competition, visiting the house by the Kremlin where his mother had once fed him horse meat. "[35], “BU celebrates Professor Emeritus of Music Roman Totenberg's 90th Birthday”, ”From the archives: A stolen Stradivarius”, "Roman Totenberg, Violinist and Teacher, Dies at 101", "Stradivari and the Search for Brilliance", "A Special Tribute to Polish Violinist and Virtuoso Roman Totenberg (1 January 1911 – 8 May 2012)", "Roman Totenberg's Remarkable Life And Death", "Brahms & Lipinski Violin Concertos Roman Totenberg, violin", "Roman Totenberg Dies at 101 Violinist, beloved CFA professor, classical music legend", "A Stolen, Then Recovered, Stradivarius Returns To The Stage", "World-renowned violinist, teacher Roman Totenberg dies at 101", "Roman Totenberg] awarded with Muses and Mentors Award", "Melanie Totenberg, 79, Violinist's Wife and Manager", "A Rarity Reclaimed: Stolen Stradivarius Recovered After 35 Years", "Missing for 35 years, the stunning discovery of a stolen Stradivarius", "Stolen 'Ames' Stradivarius violin is recovered after 35 years - The Strad", "Roman Totenberg's Stolen Stradivarius Is Found After 35 Years", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Roman_Totenberg&oldid=974809399, Congress Poland emigrants to the United States, Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 25 August 2020, at 04:17. "My parents gave me life," she said, "and he taught me how to live it.". “You learn a lot more than the students do,” he quipped. NEWTON, Mass. And in 1957 his Brahms and Beethoven programme with Claude Frank “really caused the listener to sit up and listen to each work as if with new ears”. Totenberg suspected aspiring violinist Philip S. Johnson of the theft, but police at the time did not believe there was enough evidence to issue a search warrant. [19], He played under eminent conductors including Leopold Stokowski,[20] Kubelik, Szell, Rodzinski, Grzegorz Fitelberg,[6] Jochum, Rowicki, Krenz, Pierre Monteux,[20] Wit, Steinberg and Vladimir Golschmann. “You simply play differently at different times of your life,” he said on his 95th birthday. "I started teaching when I was 11, and I had a student who was 10," he said in a documentary celebrating his 100th birthday. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. The instrument was recovered and returned to Totenberg's daughters on August 6, 2015. who made his concert debut at the age of eleven with conductor Grzegorz Fitelberg. On a visit to Warsaw he spent a month teaching the young Ida Haendel. According to Nina Totenberg, "We will make sure it is in the hands of another virtuoso violinist. Later that year Totenberg was heard in London and America . [7] In 1938, at age 27, he formally immigrated to the U.S.[9] under the distinguished artist visa program. He performed and taught nationally and internationally throughout his life. His talent became apparent at the age of six when he began taking violin lessons in Moscow from a neighbour, a concert master at the Bolshoi Opera.

[9] He moved with his parents and elder sister to Warsaw and then Moscow where, one day, his dinner consisted of the head of a horse that had died of starvation.
He spent his early childhood years (1914–1921) in Moscow, where the family moved at the beginning of World War I.

Roman Totenberg, who died of renal failure on 8 May at the age of 101, was a violinist and teacher from Poland whose nine-decade career featured performances before kings and presidents. The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Premium. [11], In 1983, he was named Artist Teacher of the Year by the American String Teachers Association,[15] and in April 2007, he was honored with the New England String Ensemble's Muses & Mentors Award for his great artistry and significant contributions to string education. Create a commenting name to join the debate, There are no Independent Premium comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts, There are no comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts. Totenberg was born on 1 January 1911, in Lodz, Poland. At his official debut there in 1935 he gave the premiere of Hindemith’s Sonata. [34]

Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. [36] It was stolen from his office after a concert in May 1980. [6] Returning to Warsaw in 1921, he studied with Mieczyslaw Michalowicz,[7] and made his debut at the age of eleven as soloist with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. After his last British recital, at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in 1971, he was affectionately described as an “Old Master”. He made his solo debut with the Warsaw Philharmonic aged 11, going on to study and perform with many of the great artists of the 20th century. Totenberg recorded for many labels, including Deutsche Grammophon, Telefunken, Philips, Vanguard, Musical Heritage Society, Heliodor, Remington, Da Camera, Dover, Titanic and VQR. [6][33], In 1988, he was awarded the highest Medal of Merit by the Polish government for lifelong contributions to Polish society. [37][38] Modest to a fault, Totenberg refused to say that his playing had improved over the years. He was also awarded the gold medal at the Chopin Conservatory/Warsaw. [11], Totenberg toured South America with Artur Rubinstein in 1937,[11] and gave joint recitals with Karol Szymanowski. Totenberg and his late wife opened their home to students from Sweden, Japan, Poland, South Korea and China, taking care of them as if they were their own children, his daughter Jill said. [1][2], One of Totenberg's favorite instruments was the Ames Stradivarius, which was stolen from his office in the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, Massachusetts after a concert in May 1980. [3], Roman Totenberg was born in Lódz, Poland to a Jewish family, the son of Adam (an architect) and Slanislava (Vinaver) Totenberg. In 1936, at age 25, he played at the White House[9] for Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt.