A Biography of Gregor Piatigorsky (August, 2000)
by Robert Battey One of the pre-eminent string players of the 20th century, Gregor Piatigorsky was born in Ukraine in 1903, and died in Los Angeles in 1976. His international solo career lasted over 40 years, and especially during the 1940's and early 1950's he was the world's premier touring cello virtuoso -- Casals was in retirement, Feuermann had died, and the three artists who were to succeed Piatigorsky (Starker, Rose, and Rostropovich) were still in their formative stages. His one true peer, Fournier, was limited in his travelling abilities by polio. Thus, Piatigorsky had the limelight almost to himself. He was gregarious, loved to travel and perform anywhere, and he hobnobbed as easily with farmers in small towns as he did with Toscanini, Stravinsky, rubinstein, and Schoenberg. It [...]
A Biographical Sketch of David Popper
The following was written for inclusion in a new performing edition of the High School of Cello Playing that will be released soon. Robert Battey David Popper (1843-1913) It’s not commonly known that the composer of the famous Hungarian Rhapsody and cello professor at the storied Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest was actually Bohemian (Czech). David Popper was born in Prague to Jewish parents, his father a cantor at two large synagogues. Popper’s musical talent was evident from early childhood, first at the piano and then on the violin, which he studied from age 6 to 12 (this was not so unusual; others who began on the violin included Piatti, Servais, Becker, Casals, and Carter Brey). But at his audition for the Prague Conservatory, Popper was accepted with the curious [...]