Egon Morbitzer (6 February 1927 – 14 March 1989) was a German violinist who was born in Mrsklesy and died in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Life

Born in Mrsklesy near

Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...

, Morbitzer received his first, only sporadic lessons in Olomouc. From 1939 the family lived in

Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt (; Lower_Austria.html" ;"title=".e. Lower Austria">.e. Lower Austria , ) is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administr ...

, where he now received regular violin lessons from the then director Fritz Heindl. In 1940, he made his debut there with

Pierre Rode Jacques Pierre Joseph Rode (; 16 February 1774 – 25 November 1830) was a French violinist and composer. Life and career Born in Bordeaux, Aquitaine, France, Pierre Rode traveled in 1787 to Paris and soon became a favourite pupil of the great Gi ...

's A major violin concerto. In 1941, he moved to the

University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university established in 1817 located in Vienna. With a student body of over three thousand, it is the largest institution of its kind in Austria, and one of t ...

, but was dissatisfied with the training there, so in 1943 he came to the Thuringian State Conservatory in Erfurt, where the renowned violin teacher Prof. Walter Hansmann (1875–1963) taught him. Shortly before the end of the war, Morbitzer was called up and wounded in April 1945. From May 1945, he was able to continue and complete his studies in Erfurt. Among his fellow students in Erfurt was the pianist

Dieter Zechlin Dieter Zechlin (30 October 1926 – 16 March 2012) was a German pianist. He was one of East Germany's most prominent pianists throughout the 1950-80s. In 1959 he received the Art Prize of the GDR and in 1961 the National Prize of the GDR. Ze ...

, who accompanied him in 1946 to a trial audition at the

Deutsches Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle Weimar The (DNT), or German National Theater and Weimar State Orchestra, is the most significant arts organization in Weimar. The institution unites the (German National Theater) with the (Weimar State Orchestra). It plays on a total of six stages ...

, which was then directed by

Hermann Abendroth Hermann Paul Maximilian Abendroth (19 January 1883 – 29 May 1956) was a German conductor. Early life Abendroth was born on 19 January 1883, at Frankfurt, the son of a bookseller. Several other members of the family were artists in diverse dis ...

, who immediately engaged Morbitzer as 1st

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 1948, he also became a lecturer at the

Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar The University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar (in German: Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt Weimar) is an institution of music in Weimar, Germany. The Hochschule Franz Liszt, who spent a great deal of his life in Weimar, encouraged the founding o ...

, which appointed him professor in 1949. At the age of 22, Morbitzer was thus the youngest professor in the

GDR East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

. Finally, from 1951 until his death, he was concertmaster of the

Staatskapelle Berlin The Staatskapelle Berlin () is a German orchestra and the resident orchestra of the Berlin State Opera, Unter den Linden. The orchestra is one of the oldest in the world. Until the fall of the German Empire in 1918 the orchestra's name was , i.e ...

. In 1953, he also founded the

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

of the

Staatsoper Unter den Linden The Staatsoper Unter den Linden ( State Opera under the Lime Trees), also known as the Berlin State Opera (), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Pr ...

, which was sponsored by the . Other members were Bernd Müller (2nd violin), Alfred Lipka (

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

) and Karl-Heinz Schröter (

violoncello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C ...

). The quartet not only played the classical literature, but was also committed to contemporary composers, especially

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

. Through Dieter Zechlin, Morbitzer also met his wife, the composer

Ruth Zechlin Ruth Zechlin (22 June 1926 – 4 August 2007) was a German composer. Life Ruth Oschatz was born in Grosshartmannsdorf, where she began piano lessons at the age of five years, and wrote her first composition at the age of seven. From 1943 to 1 ...

, in 1951, who dedicated four of her six string quartets to his ensemble. Morbitzer was one of the best-known violinists in the

. He frequently gave guest performances abroad and recorded numerous disks, both as a soloist and with his string quartet. In 1975, he was made an honorary member of the

Tokyo Symphony Orchestra The (TSO) is a Japanese orchestra, administratively based in Kawasaki. The orchestra offers subscription concert series at its home, the Muza Kawasaki Symphony Hall and at Suntory Hall, the Concert Hall of the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, ...

. He died in Berlin of cancer at the age of 62. After his death, he also became an honorary member of the Staatskapelle.

Family

Morbitzer was married to Christina Morbitzer ''née'' Bürgmann, a daughter of the

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

Ferdinand Bürgmann (1904-1987), who made a name for himself in particular in operas by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

. Their son Wolfgang Morbitzer (born 7 February 1965 in Berlin) has been the solo percussionist of the

Norddeutsche Philharmonie Rostock The Norddeutsche Philharmonie Rostock, based in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, is the state's largest symphony orchestra and also the orchestra of the Volkstheater Rostock. Founded in 1897, the orchestra grew to 90 musicians by 1991. Th ...

since August 1988.

Recordings (selection)

Max Bruch Max Bruch (6 January 1838 – 2 October 1920) was a German Romantic Music, Romantic composer, violinist, teacher, and conductor who wrote more than 200 works, including three violin concertos, the first of which has become a staple of the violin ...

, ''Violinkonzert g-Moll'' op. 26;

Johan Svendsen Johan Severin Svendsen (30 September 184014 June 1911) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway, he lived most of his life in Copenhagen, Denmark. Svendsen's output includes two symphonies, a vi ...

, ''Romanze für Violine und Orchester G-Dur'' op. 26, with the Staatskapelle Berlin conducted by

Franz Konwitschny Franz Konwitschny (14 August 1901, Fulnek, Moravia – 28 July 1962, Belgrade) was a German conductor and violist of Moravian descent. Biography Konwitschny came from a family of musicians. From 1920 to 1923 he took violin lessons at the Academ ...

– Eterna 1961 *

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

, ''Violinsonate a-Moll'' op. 105;

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

, ''Violinsonate G-Dur'' op. 78, with

(piano) – Eterna 1961 * ''Canzonetta. Berühmte Violinstücke'', with Siegfried Stöckigt (piano) – Eterna 1984

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morbitzer, Egon 20th-century German classical violinists Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin 1927 births 1989 deaths People from Olomouc District Concertmasters of the Staatskapelle Berlin

Life

Family

Recordings (selection)

References

Further reading

External links