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August Wilhelmj

August Emil Daniel Ferdinand Wilhelmj (German pronunciation: [vɪlˈhɛlmi] vil-HEL-mee; 21 September 1845 – 22 January 1908) was a German violinist and teacher.

Wilhelmj was born in Usingen and was considered a child prodigy; when Henriette Sontag heard him in 1852 at seven years old, she said, "You will be the German Paganini". In 1861, Franz Liszt heard him and sent him to Ferdinand David with a letter containing the words "Let me present you the future Paganini!". His teachers included: Ferdinand David, for the violin, Moritz Hauptmann, for music theory and composition, and Joachim Raff for composition.

A personal friend of Wagner, he led the violins at the première of Der Ring des Nibelungen in Bayreuth in 1876. He visited Australia in 1881, playing in the old Freemasons' Hall, but though appreciated by those who attended his concerts, their number was not sufficient to make the tour a financial success. It was not until introduced to London audiences by Jenny Lind in 1886 that Wilhelmj became a "household name".

He has become famous for his late nineteenth century arrangement of the second movement of J. S. Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3 for violin and piano, known as Air on the G String and for his re-orchestration of the 1st movement of Niccolò Paganini's Violin Concerto No.1 in D major Op. 6 (1883/1884).

From 1894 on he was a Professor of violin at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Among his pupils were Jessie and Harold Grimson, American violinist Nahan Franko, Canadian musician Donald Heins, and the Australian conductor Aylmer Buesst. Wilhelmj owned a Stradivari 1725 violin from 1866 until his retirement, which later came to be known by his name. Another known violin was made by Giovanni Francesco Pressenda 1843 (Ex Wilhelmj) His 1785 Guadagnini was later owned (as "ex-Wilhelmj") by Jack Liebeck. He died in London.

Wilhelmj's sister-in-law was composer and singer Maria Wilhelmj.

Birth and Death Data: Born September 21, 1845 (Usingen), Died January 22, 1908 (London)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1904 - 1938

Roles Represented in DAHR: arranger, composer

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 42 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor A-1140 7-in. 3/14/1905 Then you'll remember me Charles D'Almaine Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor B-1140 10-in. 3/19/1904 Then you'll remember me Charles D'Almaine Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-8810 12-in. 5/27/1930 Prize song Mischa Elman ; Carroll Hollister Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-9014 12-in. 5/25/1910 Ave Maria Maud Powell Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-9871 12-in. 6/14/1928 Air for G string Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-9871 12-in. 1/31/1911 Air for G string Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-9872 12-in. 10/6/1915 Mélodie Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-13184 12-in. 6/14/1928 Ave Maria Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-13184 12-in. 4/23/1913 Ave Maria Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-13877 12-in. 9/30/1913 Romance in E flat Jan Kubelík Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor B-13892 10-in. 10/1/1913 Air for G string Jan Kubelík Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-15014 12-in. 6/25/1914 Ave Maria Maud Powell Violin solo, with string quartet and harp arranger  
Victor C-16770 12-in. 11/12/1915 Walther's Preislied Beatrice Harrison Cello solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-16936 12-in. 12/27/1915 Prize song Beatrice Harrison Cello solo, with harp and orchestra arranger  
Victor CVE-21072 12-in. 12/31/1926 Ave Maria Jascha Heifetz Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-21072 12-in. 11/9/1917 Ave Maria Jascha Heifetz Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-22640 12-in. 3/20/1919 Nocturne Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor B-25938 10-in. 1/6/1922 Walther's preislied Efrem Zimbalist Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-29887 12-in. 6/17/1929 Album leaf : Romance Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor C-29887 12-in. 4/17/1924 Album leaf : Romance Mischa Elman Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-34412 12-in. 1/19/1926 Prize song Pablo Casals Cello solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CVE-34447 12-in. 2/2/1926 Nocturne Efrem Zimbalist Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Victor CS-023923 10-in. 6/28/1938 Ave Maria Boston Pops Orchestra ; Arthur Fiedler Orchestra, with organ and harp soloists arranger  
Columbia 49901 12-in. 10/18/1920 Nocturne in D flat major Duci De Kerékjártó ; Maurice Eisner Violin solo, with piano arranger  
Columbia 98154 12-in. 6/28/1924 By the sea Duci De Kerékjártó Violin solo, with piano arranger  
(Results 1-25 of 42 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Wilhelmj, August," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/106179.

Wilhelmj, August. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/106179.

"Wilhelmj, August." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/106179

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