The treasure of the emperor

Yasha (Joseph Robertovich) Haifets became a legend during his lifetime, he was called the Emperor of the violin. The largest German violinist Karl Flash wrote about Haifaca: “He, undoubtedly, is the pinnacle of the modern development of our art. First of all, his constant, unwashed technical equipment is worthy of surprise. He does not need to be "played out". Fingers and bow act without fail, like a machine that immediately begins to work at full power by pressing the button. Haifets's tone is noble and enchanted, technical skill has no flaws ... Haifets gramophone records belong to the perfect, so the glory about him will survive him for a long time ... ”

Haifets, in the role of Haifets, Haifets was the best student of the St. Petersburg violinist Leopold Auer, for whom Tchaikovsky and Glazunov wrote and who created a Russian violin school, which became the most authoritative in the world in the twentieth century. The fate of Haifets formed fantastically well. Born in the city of Vilna in the family of a poor violinist, he, being three years old, received a small scree from his father as a gift. The child’s phenomenal abilities were discovered immediately; Already at the age of six, Haifets played Mendelsson's concert. Glazunov himself, the director of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, cleared up the king with a special permission, which allowed the family to settle in the capital so that the boy could study with Auer. In 1912, Haifets with triumph performed a Tchaikovsky concert in Berlin, and in 1917, having signed a contract, emigrated to America through Siberia.

On October 27, 1917, the Haifets made his debut in the New York Carnegie Hall, after which he was unconditionally recognized as a “violinist number one”. His lifestyle exemplary corresponded to the status of a star. Hollywood filming groups simply recorded how the Haifets cares for roses on his villa, plays tennis, drives a car and engages in a specially designed “simple” violin for gamm and sketches, and two invaluable stidyuria and guarders Del Jesu for a concert repertoire. In 1939, the feature film of They Shall Have Music (“They need music”) was shot in Hollywood, where the violinist of the pine

Ral of himself - the legendary Heifets, whose arrival saves a music school from closing and decides the fate of the heroes. It is written in the credits: in the role of Haifets Yasha Haifets.

The musician was the best orchestras, conductors and pianists, whom he chose, arranging strict contests. The accompanist Brooks Smith, with whom Haifets worked from 1954 to his last concert in 1972, the violinist chose, listening to 75 pianists. Haifets was one of the first in the world to get access to technological discoveries in the field of recording, which in the thirties was incredibly expensive. He was the first to carry out a trick unique for his era: he recorded separately both parties of the Bach concert for two violins, which were then united. And when it became possible to record large pieces of music, Haifets chose not a hit, but the 5th concert of Mozart. In other words, he emphasized that he intends to establish himself before the general public as a serious musician.

The image and role of the star sometimes paradoxically prevented the modern Haifets to the public to consider it not only a brilliant virtuoso, but also an interesting interpreter. The authoritative Soviet teacher Israel Yampolsky wrote about this back in 1934 in a review of the artist’s performances in Russia: “To see in Heifets only virtuoso means not to see the main thing. The violinist, about the breadth of the creative aspirations of which speaks of the maximum perfection of the performance of such polarly opposite works of works, such as, for example, concerts of Vietana and Brahms, cannot be counted in the category of brilliant virtuoso violinists ... Heifets must be able to listen. ” Haifets modernized the Auer school, practically creating his direction. In addition, thanks to Heifets’s cooperation with leading American composers Korngold, Castelnuo-Tedesco, Rosa, Grunberg, Vaxman and others-in the twentieth century the violin repertoire expanded significantly.

The tour of 1934 remained the only visit to Haifets to his homeland after his departure to America. In 17 days in Moscow and St. Petersburg, the musician gave 13 concerts, a master class, met at the Moscow Conservatory with students. After the concerts of Haifets, enthusiastic crowds escorted to the hotel, each time overlapping the movement in Bolshaya Nikitskaya. In the same days, the musician met with the relatives remaining in Russia, who handed him his first violin stored all this time.

Haifets left a huge discography. It captures almost the entire classic violin repertoire and many works of the 20th century, and in different interpretations from children's and youthful to mature. These records are impressive more than the most magnificent pannegiriks. The wealth of interpretative ideas and the variety of directions of thought outlined by the violinist allow in each of his records to endlessly discover something new.

Haifets, who was again acquired in 1994, the American Navy company, together with the British EMI and German Decca, released a complete (as it seemed) collection of Heifets studio records at 65 compact disks. But it turned out that in the process of his preparation in the archives of the RCA studio, with which Heifets collaborated, the notes that were never published and not even known so far were found. On the 100th anniversary of the musician, which was celebrated in 2001, BMG and RCAVICTIOR decided to publish these records in the new JASCHA HEIFETZ REDISCovered series, but only this year was released.

There are two serious works on it. These are the most popular works of the chamber violin repertoire - the first sonata of Brams and the third sonata of Grieg, recorded with the pianist Emmanuel Bay in 1936.

The first is especially valuable in that it replenishes the gap that existed in the Bratsov cycle of Heifets. Having recorded all ten Beethoven sonata, the violinist also planned to record three Brahms sonatas with a young English pianist William Capell. But he managed to do only the third in 1950: two months before the next meeting in the Capell studio, he crashed in a car accident. The second sonata is known in 1936 (with the same Emmanuel Bay), and the first was still not published. Haifets plays it very strictly, emphasizes the tragic intonations and demonstrates the “higher aerobatics” of the performer: conveys various emotional states, preventing the pace changes, which many resort to, but only to changely changing the nature of the sound.

In the expressive sonata, Grieg Haifets reaches drama, doing without the usual "romantically" exaggerated accents. There is a paradoxical dramatic impression of the pressure and restraint characteristic of the performing style of Heifets. In addition, the third part of the Grieg sonata requires filigree finger technology of the left hand and Khaifets fully uses the opportunity to show off.

In addition to the disk sonata, there are six more plays, still not known in the performance of Haifets. Most of them were recorded in 1922-1924. The most interesting and unexpected is Lensky's aria in the processing of Auer for the violin. Having preserved the style, meaning, main melodic lines and the composition of Tchaikovsky, Auer used the entire spectrum of the sound palette of the violin: from the sopranist register on the string “Mi” to the bass overtones on the string “Salt” (the very one, on which Paganini showed his famous tricks).

Haifets, and he himself did a lot of processing, does not allow the Lensky aria and the shadow of the parody, demonstrating a noble sound and an excellent taste. The recording of this play, like another three miniatures - “Tamburina” Ramo, “Sicilian” of Bach and the Caprice “Saltarella” Venyavsky, is the only Haifets discography. In addition to them, the version of Sapateado was discovered by Sarasate of one of the favorite “bees” of Haifets, still known in the records of 1918, 1926 and 1946. The unknown version of 1924 confirms the professional stability of the violinist: it is difficult to say which of the four records are the best.

And finally, the only audio recording of 1928 was discovered today, where the Haifets plays the piano (so far he could be observed as a pianist only on films, where a violinist, conducting a master class, accompanies his student in the first part of the Bach laminore concert in 1962). This find is a comic number: the processing of the Spanish song “Valencia” of the composer Padilla Shitar of the 20s, which was even part of the Parisian “Moulin Rouge” program. The song is performed in four hands. Haifets plays with Isidor Akhron, but who, unfortunately, has some kind of party.

It is also unclear why Haifets rejected these notes at one time. By the purity of intonation, the quality of the strokes and other technical characteristics, they are no worse than the rest. But the Haifets was distinguished by incredible perfectionism and most likely decided that it was these several plays that he would record better another time. With the participation of Pavel Sedov.

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