The beautiful violin solo in the Scherzo of Schumann’s Fourth Symphony, just released, is performed by Siegfried Borries, at that time First Konzertmeister of the Berlin Philharmonic.

Born in Münster in 1912, he studied violin with, among others, Bram Eldering at the Cologne School of Music. In 1932, he won both the International Grand Prix awarded in Vienna and the Mendelssohn Prize granted by the Berlin Academy of Music.

At the age of just 21, Furtwängler appointed him Konzertmeister of the Berlin Philharmonic, where he succeeded Henry Holst. He left the orchestra at the end of 1941, and became guest Konzertmeister at the Berlin Staatskapelle conducted by Karajan. He rejoined the Philharmonic in July 1945. Distancing himself from the Orchestra in 1957, he left for good in 1961.

From 1946 onwards, he gave masterclasses at the Berlin International Music Institute, and taught violin at the Berlin Musikhochschule from 1948. He died in 1980.

Siegfried Borries, Munich, May 1953

As previously announced, a new product is now available on the shop:

SWF D15

In addition to the 1953 Deutsche Grammophon recording with the Berliner, now re-mastered in high definition, you will find a facsimile of the original score used by Furtwängler, with its numerous annotations and modifications (lightening of the orchestration). The booklet (25 pages!) includes an analysis by conductor Jan Moritz Onken, translated by Marc Trautmann, so you can follow the score while listening to Furtwängler’s performance.

We therefore invite you to immerse yourself totally in Furtwängler’s grandiose vision and artistic work. We remind you that the license obtained from Universal (DGG registration) has been granted for 3 years, and excludes streaming. So don’t delay, and enjoy the download.

… But not forgetting to watch the podcast.

The development of this product proved costly: license granted by Universal, cost of scanning the score (Zentrabibliothek, Zürich), cost of translating (French + English) the 60 pages of Onken’s work…

So we hope you will understand why the price is €15.00, a higher price than usual, but inferior to the real cost price of the product.

The SWF has made an exceptional effort to make this extraordinary project a reality, and now it’s time for you to enjoy it…

We have just been informed of the death of pianist François Kerdoncuff, born in 1954, after a long illness that kept him away from the stage for several years.

A great admirer of Furtwängler’s art, he was also deeply involved in the performance of the musician’s works, playing and recording the two violin sonatas and the Klavierquintett.

He took part in several concerts organized by the SWF, notably with mezzo-soprano Brigitte Balleys in 1999, and cellist Henri Demarquette in 2004. He had performed Brahms’s 4 Ballades op. 10 as part of the tribute to our former president Philippe Leduc, just ten years ago.

The SWF expresses its sympathy to his family, and especially to his children.

François Kerdoncuff rehearsing the Klavierquintett on Furtwängler’s Bechstein. Clarens, May 1993.

Nearly fifteen years ago, a document from the SWF, Furtwängler in Kassel featured the recollections of Hans Joachim Schaeffer, who worked at the city’s Staatstheater, and notably highlighted the importance of the invitation of Furtwängler to conduct the opera orchestra.

On the programme, preceding Beethoven’s 1st Symphony: Furtwängler’s own 2nd Symphony. Paul Schmitz, the opera’s musical director, trained the musicians, with the help of the recording that had just been released by DGG. Furtwängler was very pleased with this preliminary work.

To supplement this concert, here is a pdf version of the facsimile of the programme. This is the only time Furtwängler conducted this orchestra, and we must give him all the recognition he deserves.

Furtwängler and Paul Schmitz, Kassel 1953

We mentioned the concert agent Harold Holt when we published the facsimile of the programme for the concert of 7 December 1935 in Edinburgh.

In charge of the Berlin Philharmonic’s tours with Furtwängler, he produced the flyer below presenting the planned 1934-35 concert series in Birmingham (“International Subscription Celebrity Concerts”). Among a superb array of artists including Menuhin, Piatigorsky, Horowitz, Conchita Supervia and others, the BPO and its conductor are billed to give a concert on 1 February 1935.

But this was to prove impossible when the time came.  Furtwängler had resigned from all his posts in December 1934.  His return to favour in the spring of 1935 allowed the tour to take place, but only during the following winter.