Ferdinand Lachner (23 March 1856 – 23 October 1910) was a Czech violinist and music teacher.

Early life and education

Lachner was born on 23 March 1856 in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

. He had his first violin lessons with Erasmus Laub, the father of the violinist and composer

Ferdinand Laub Ferdinand Laub (19 January 1832 – 17 March 1875) was a Czechs, Czech violinist and composer. Life and career Laub was born in Prague from a German Bohemian family which had assimilated into the ethnic Czech community. His father Erasmus (1794� ...

. He attended the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory () is a public music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, the school offers four- or six-year courses, which can be compared to the level of a high school diploma in other countries. Graduates c ...

from 1870 to 1876, where he studied violin with

Antonín Bennewitz Antonín Bennewitz (also Anton Bennewitz; 26 March 1833 – 29 May 1926) was a Bohemian violinist, conductor, and teacher. He was in a line of violinists that extended back to Giovanni Battista Viotti, and forward to Jan Kubelík and Wolfgang ...

Professional career

In 1879 Lachner worked as

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German language, German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (UK) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (clarinet or oboe in a concert band). After the Conducting, conductor, the concertma ...

in Breslau. He also worked in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

and from 1883 to 1887 was concertmaster at the

Prague National Theatre The National Theatre () is a historic opera house in Prague, Czech Republic. It is known as the alma mater of Czech opera, and as the national monument of Czech history and art. The National Theatre belongs to the most important Czech cultural ...

. From 1887 he taught at the Prague Conservatory, where his students included Ema Destinová. He became friends with

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8September 18411May 1904) was a Czech composer. He frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example of his predec ...

, with whom he traveled through the

Bohemian Forest The Bohemian Forest, known in Czech as () and in German as , is a low mountain range in Central Europe. Geographically, the mountains extend from Plzeň Region and the South Bohemian Region in the Czech Republic to Austria and Bavaria in Germ ...

in the summer of 1878. He formed a piano trio with him and cellist

Alois Neruda Alois Neruda (baptized Alois Jan; 20 June 1837 – 25 January 1899) was a Czech cellist. Life Neruda was born on 20 June 1837 in Kostelec nad Labem. His father was the composer and singing teacher Josef Neruda (1804–1876). He won a demanding ...

(later with

Hanuš Wihan Hanuš Wihan (5 June 1855 – 1 May 1920) was a Czech cellist. Some considered him the greatest of his time. He was strongly associated with the works of Antonín Dvořák, whose Cello Concerto in B minor, Rondo in G minor, and the short pie ...

). He premiered several of Dvořák's violin works and accompanied Dvořák and Wihan on a farewell tour of

and

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

before Dvořák left for the

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

in 1892. Lachner played in the public première performances of both of Smetana's string quartets, in 1879 and 1884 respectively.

Early life and education

Professional career

References

Further reading