Eugène Ysaÿe |

Eugene Ysaÿe

Art is the result of a perfect combination of thoughts and feelings. E. Izai

E. Isai was the last virtuoso composer, along with F. Kleisler, who continued and developed the traditions of the romantic art of outstanding violinists of the XNUMXth century. The huge scale of thoughts and feelings, the richness of fantasy, improvisational freedom of expression, virtuosity made Izaya one of the outstanding interpreters, determined the original nature of his performing and composing work. His inspired interpretations greatly helped the popularity of the work of S. Frank, C. Saint-Saens, G. Fauré, E. Chausson.

Izai was born into the family of a violinist, who began to teach his son at the age of 4. The seven-year-old boy already played in a theater orchestra and at the same time studied at the Liège Conservatory with R. Massard, then at the Brussels Conservatory with G. Wieniawski and A. Vietan. Izaya’s path to the concert stage was not easy. Until 1882. he continued to work in orchestras – he was the concertmaster of the Bilse Orchestra in Berlin, whose performances were held in a cafe. Only at the insistence of A. Rubinstein, whom Izai called “his true teacher of interpretation”, did he leave the orchestra and take part in a joint tour of Scandinavia with Rubinstein, which determined his career as one of the best violinists in the world.

In Paris, Isaiah’s performance art is universally admired, as are his first compositions, among which the “Elegiac Poem”. Franck dedicates his famous Violin Sonata to him, Saint-Saens the Quartet, Fauré the Piano Quintet, Debussy the Quartet and the violin version of the Nocturnes. Under the influence of the “Elegiac Poem” for Izaya, Chausson creates the “Poem”. In 1886 Ysaye settled in Brussels. Here he creates a quartet, which has become one of the best in Europe, organizes symphony concerts (called “Izaya Concerts”), where the best performers perform, and teaches at the conservatory.

For more than 40 years Izaya continued his concert activity. With great success, he performs not only as a violinist, but also as an outstanding conductor, especially famous for his performance of works by L. Beethoven and French composers. At Covent Garden he conducted Beethoven’s Fidelio, from 1918-22. becomes chief conductor of the orchestra in Cincinnati (USA).

Due to diabetes and hand disease, Izaya reduces his performances. The last time he plays in Madrid in 1927 is a Beethoven concerto conducted by P. Casals, he conducts the Heroic Symphony and the triple Concerto performed by A. Cortot, J. Thibaut and Casals. In 1930, Izaya’s last performance took place. On a prosthesis after a leg amputation, he conducts a 500-piece orchestra in Brussels at celebrations dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the country’s independence. At the beginning of the next year, the already seriously ill Izaya listens to a performance of his opera Pierre the Miner, which had been completed shortly before. He soon died.

Izaya has over 30 instrumental compositions, mostly written for the violin. Among them, 8 poems are one of the genres closest to his style of performance. These are one-part compositions, of an improvisational nature, close to the impressionistic manner of expression. Along with the well-known “Elegiac Poem”, the “Scene at the Spinning Wheel”, “Winter Song”, “Ecstasy”, which have a programmatic character, are also popular.

Izaya’s most innovative compositions are his Six Sonatas for solo violin, also of a program nature. Izaya also owns numerous pieces, including mazurkas and polonaises, created under the influence of the work of his teacher G. Wieniawski, the Solo Cello Sonata, cadenzas, numerous transcriptions, as well as the orchestral composition “Evening Harmonies” with a solo quartet.

Izai entered the history of musical art as an artist whose whole life was devoted to his beloved work. As Casals wrote, “the name of Eugène Isaiah will always mean for us the purest, most beautiful ideal of an artist.”

V. Grigoriev

Eugene Ysaye serves as a link between the Franco-Belgian violin art of the late XNUMXth and early XNUMXth centuries. But the XNUMXth century brought him up; Izai only passed on the baton of the great romantic traditions of this century to the anxious and skeptical generation of violinists of the XNUMXth century.

Isai is the national pride of the Belgian people; Until now, international violin competitions held in Brussels bear his name. He was a truly national artist who inherited from the Belgian and related French violin schools their typical qualities – intellectualism in the implementation of the most romantic ideas, clarity and distinctness, elegance and grace of instrumentalism with a huge inner emotionality that has always distinguished his playing. He was close to the main currents of the Gallic musical culture: the high spirituality of Cesar Franck; lyrical clarity, elegance, virtuosic brilliance and colorful pictorialism of Saint-Saens’ compositions; unsteady refinement of Debussy’s images. In his work, he also went from classicism, which has features in common with the music of Saint-Saens, to improvisational-romantic sonatas for solo violin, which were stamped not only by impressionism, but also by the post-impressionist era.

Ysaye was born on July 6, 1858 in the mining suburb of Liège. His father Nikola was an orchestral musician, conductor of salon and theater orchestras; in his youth, he studied at the conservatory for some time, but financial difficulties did not allow him to finish it. It was he who became the first teacher of his son. Eugene began learning to play the violin at the age of 4, and at the age of 7 he joined the orchestra. The family was large (5 children) and needed extra money.

Eugene recalled the lessons of his father with gratitude: “If in the future Rodolphe Massard, Wieniawski and Vietanne opened horizons for me regarding interpretation and techniques, then my father taught me the art of making the violin speak.”

In 1865, the boy was assigned to the Liege Conservatory, in the class of Desire Heinberg. Teaching had to be combined with work, which adversely affected success. In 1868 his mother died; this made life even more difficult for the family. A year after her death, Eugene was forced to leave the conservatory.

Until the age of 14, he developed independently – he played the violin a lot, studying the works of Bach, Beethoven and the usual violin repertoire; I read a lot – and all this in the intervals between trips to Belgium, France, Switzerland and Germany with orchestras conducted by my father.

Fortunately, when he was 14 years old, Vietang heard him and insisted that the boy return to the conservatory. This time Izai is in Massara’s class and is making rapid progress; soon he won the first prize at the Conservatory competition and a gold medal. After 2 years, he leaves Liege and goes to Brussels. The capital of Belgium was famous for its conservatory all over the world, competing with Paris, Prague, Berlin, Leipzig and St. Petersburg. When young Izai arrived in Brussels, the violin class at the conservatory was headed by Venyavsky. Eugene studied with him for 2 years, and completed his education at Vieuxtan. Vietang continued what Venyavsky had begun. He had a considerable influence on the development of aesthetic views and artistic taste of the young violinist. On the day of the centenary of the birth of Vietanne, Eugene Ysaye, in a speech delivered by him in Verviers, said: “He showed me the way, opened my eyes and heart.”

The path of the young violinist to recognition was difficult. From 1879 to 1881, Isai worked in the Berlin orchestra of W. Bilse, whose concerts were held in the Flora cafe. Only occasionally did he have the good fortune to give solo concerts. The press each time noted the magnificent qualities of his game – expressiveness, inspiration, impeccable technique. In the Bilse Orchestra, Ysaye also performed as a soloist; this attracted even the largest musicians to the Flora cafe. Here, to listen to the play of a wonderful violinist, Joachim brought his students; the cafe was visited by Franz Liszt, Clara Schumann, Anton Rubinstein; it was he who insisted on the departure of Izaya from the orchestra and took him with him on an artistic tour of Scandinavia.

The trip to Scandinavia was a success. Izai often played with Rubinstein, giving sonata evenings. While in Bergen, he managed to get acquainted with Grieg, all three of whose violin sonatas he performed with Rubinstein. Rubinstein became not only a partner, but also a friend and mentor of the young artist. “Do not give in to external manifestations of success,” he taught, “always have one goal in front of you – to interpret music according to your understanding, your temperament, and, especially, your heart, and not just like it. The true role of the performing musician is not to receive, but to give…”

After a tour of Scandinavia, Rubinstein assists Izaya in concluding a contract for concerts in Russia. His first visit took place in the summer of 1882; concerts were held in the then popular concert hall of St. Petersburg – the Pavlovsk Kursaal. Isai was successful. The press even compared him to Venyavsky, and when Yzai played Mendelssohn’s Concerto on August 27, enthusiastic listeners crowned him with a laurel wreath.

Thus began Izaya’s long-term ties with Russia. He appears here in the next season – in January 1883, and in addition to Moscow and St. Petersburg tours in Kyiv, Kharkov, Odessa, throughout the winter. In Odessa, he gave concerts together with A. Rubinstein.

A lengthy article appeared in the Odessa Herald, in which it was written: “Mr. Isaiah captivates and captivates with the sincerity, animation and meaningfulness of his game. Under his hand, the violin turns into a living, animated instrument: it sings melodiously, cries and moans touchingly, and whispers lovingly, sighs deeply, rejoices noisily, in a word conveys all the slightest shades and overflows of feeling. This is the strength and mighty charm of Isaiah’s play…”

After 2 years (1885) Izai is back in Russia. He makes a new big tour of her cities. In 1883-1885, he made acquaintances with many Russian musicians: in Moscow with Bezekirsky, in St. Petersburg with C. Cui, with whom he exchanged letters about the performance of his works in France.

His performance in Paris, in one of Edouard Colonne’s concerts in 1885, was extremely important for Ysaye. The column was recommended by the young violinist K. Saint-Saens. Ysaye performed the Spanish Symphony by E. Lalo and the Rondo Capriccioso of Saint-Saens.

After the concert, the doors to the highest musical spheres of Paris opened before the young violinist. He closely converges with Saint-Saens and the little-known Cesar Franck, who was beginning at that time; he participates in their musical evenings, eagerly absorbing new impressions for himself. The temperamental Belgian attracts composers with his amazing talent, as well as the readiness with which he devotes himself to promoting their works. From the second half of the 80s, it was he who paved the way for most of the latest violin and chamber-instrumental compositions by French and Belgian composers. For him, in 1886 Cesar Franck wrote the Violin Sonata – one of the greatest works of the world violin repertoire. Franck sent the Sonata to Arlon in September 1886, on the day of Isaiah’s marriage to Louise Bourdeau.

It was a kind of wedding present. On December 16, 1886, Ysaye played the new sonata for the first time at an evening in the Brussels “Artist’s Circle”, the program of which consisted entirely of the works of Franck. Then Isai played it in all countries of the world. “The sonata that Eugene Ysaye carried around the world was a source of sweet joy for Frank,” wrote Vensant d’Andy. The performance of Izaya glorified not only this work, but also its creator, because before that the name of Frank was known to few people.

Ysaye did a lot for Chausson. In the early 90s, the remarkable violinist performed the piano trio and the Concerto for Violin, Piano and Bow Quartet (for the first time in Brussels on March 4, 1892). Especially for Isaiah Chausson wrote the famous “Poem”, performed by the violinist for the first time on December 27, 1896 in Nancy.

A great friendship, which lasted 80-90s, connected Isai with Debussy. Isai was a passionate admirer of Debussy’s music, but, however, mainly works in which there was a connection with Franck. This clearly affected his attitude towards the quartet, composed by the composer counting on Izaya. Debussy dedicated his work to the Belgian quartet ensemble headed by Ysaye. The first performance took place on December 29, 1893 at a concert of the National Society in Paris, and in March 1894 the quartet was repeated in Brussels. “Izay, an ardent admirer of Debussy, made a lot of efforts to convince the other quartetists of his ensemble of the talent and value of this music.

For Isaiah Debussy wrote “Nocturnes” and only later remade them into a symphonic work. “I am working on three Nocturnes for solo violin and orchestra,” he wrote to Ysaye on September 22, 1894; – the orchestra of the first is represented by strings, the second – by flutes, four horns, three pipes and two harps; the orchestra of the third combines both. In general, this is a search for various combinations that can give the same color, as, for example, in painting a sketch in gray tones … “

Ysaye highly appreciated Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande and in 1896 tried (though unsuccessfully) to get the opera staged in Brussels. Isai dedicated their quartets to d’Andy, Saint-Saens, the piano quintet to G. Fauré, you can’t count them all!

Since 1886, Izai settled in Brussels, where he soon joined the “Club of Twenty” (since 1893, the society “Free Aesthetics”) – an association of advanced artists and musicians. The club was dominated by impressionist influences, its members gravitated towards the most innovative trends for that time. Isai headed the musical part of the club, and organized concerts at its base, in which, in addition to the classics, he promoted the latest works by Belgian and foreign composers. Chamber meetings were decorated with a magnificent quartet headed by Izaya. It also included Mathieu Krikbum, Leon van Gut and Joseph Jacob. Ensembles Debussy, d’Andy, Fauré performed with this composition.

In 1895, the symphonic Izaya Concertos were added to the chamber collections, which lasted until 1914. The orchestra was conducted by Ysaye, Saint-Saens, Mottl, Weingartner, Mengelberg and others, among the soloists were such as Kreisler, Casals, Thibault, Capet, Punyo, Galirzh.

Izaya’s concert activity in Brussels was combined with teaching. He became a professor at the conservatory, from 1886 to 1898 he directed its violin classes. Among his students were subsequently prominent performers: V. Primroz, M. Krikbum, L. Persinger and others; Isai also had a great influence on many violinists who did not study in his class, for example, on J. Thibaut, F. Kreisler, K. Flesch. Y. Szigeti, D. Enescu.

The artist was forced to leave the conservatory due to his extensive concert activity, to which he was more attracted by the inclination of nature than to pedagogy. In the 90s, he gave concerts with particular intensity, despite the fact that he developed a hand disease. His left hand is especially disturbing. “All other misfortunes are nothing compared to what a sick hand could cause,” he wrote anxiously to his wife in 1899. Meanwhile, he cannot imagine life outside of concerts, outside of music: “I feel happiest when I play. Then I love everything in the world. I give vent to feeling and heart … “

As if captured by a performing fever, he traveled around the main countries of Europe, in the fall of 1894 he gave concerts in America for the first time. His fame becomes truly world-wide.

During these years, he again, two more times, came to Russia – in 1890, 1895. On March 4, 1890, for the first time for himself, Izai publicly performed Beethoven’s Concerto in Riga. Before that, he did not dare to include this work in his repertoire. During these visits, the violinist introduced the Russian public to the chamber ensembles d’Andy and Fauré, and to Franck’s Sonata.

During the 80s and 90s, Izaya’s repertoire changed dramatically. Initially, he performed mainly works by Wieniawski, Vietaine, Saint-Saens, Mendelssohn, Bruch. In the 90s, he increasingly turns to the music of the old masters – the sonatas of Bach, Vitali, Veracini and Handel, the concertos of Vivaldi, Bach. And finally came to the Beethoven Concerto.

His repertoire is enriched with the works of the latest French composers. In his concert programs, Izai willingly included works by Russian composers – plays by Cui, Tchaikovsky (“Melancholic Serenade”), Taneyev. Later, in the 900s, he played concertos by Tchaikovsky and Glazunov, as well as chamber ensembles by Tchaikovsky and Borodin.

In 1902, Isai bought a villa on the banks of the Meuse and gave it the poetic name “La Chanterelle” (a fifth is the most sonorous and melodious upper string on a violin). Here, during the summer months, he takes a break from concerts, surrounded by friends and admirers, famous musicians who willingly come here to be with Izaya and plunge into the musical atmosphere of his home. F. Kreisler, J. Thibaut, D. Enescu, P. Casals, R. Pugno, F. Busoni, A. Cortot were frequent guests in the 900s. In the evenings, quartets and sonatas played. But this kind of rest Izai allowed himself only in the summer. Until the First World War, the intensity of his concerts did not weaken. Only in England he spent 4 seasons in a row (1901-1904), conducted Beethoven’s Fidelio in London and participated in the festivities dedicated to Saint-Saens. The London Philharmonic awarded him a gold medal. In these years he visited Russia 7 times (1900, 1901, 1903, 1906, 1907, 1910, 1912).

He maintained a close relationship, sealed with bonds of great friendship, with A. Siloti, in whose concerts he performed. Siloti attracted magnificent artistic forces. Izai, who exuberantly manifested himself in the most diverse areas of concert activity, was just a treasure for him. Together they give sonata evenings; in concerts Ziloti Ysaye performs with Casals, with the famous St. Petersburg violinist V. Kamensky (in Bach’s double concerto), who led the Mecklenburg-Strelitzky quartet. By the way, in 1906, when Kamensky suddenly fell ill, Izai replaced him with an impromptu ch in the quartet at one of the concerts. It was a brilliant evening, which was enthusiastically reviewed by the St. Petersburg press.

With Rachmaninov and Brandukov, Izai once performed (in 1903) the Tchaikovsky trio. Of the major Russian musicians, pianist A. Goldenweiser (sonata evening on January 19, 1910) and violinist B. Sibor gave concerts with Yzai.

By 1910, Izaya’s health was failing. Intense concert activity caused heart disease, nervous overwork, diabetes developed, and the disease of the left hand worsened. Doctors strongly recommend that the artist stop the concerts. “But these medical remedies mean death,” Izai wrote to his wife on January 7, 1911. – Not! I will not change my life as an artist as long as I have one atom of power left; until I feel the decline of the will that supports me, until my fingers, bow, head refuse me.

As if challenging fate, in 1911 Ysaye gives a number of concerts in Vienna, in 1912 he travels around Germany, Russia, Austria, France. In Berlin on January 8, 1912, his concert was attended by F. Kreisler, who was specially delayed in Berlin, K. Flesh, A. Marto, V. Burmester, M. Press, A. Pechnikov, M. Elman. Izai performed the Elgar Concerto, which at that time was almost unknown to anyone. The concert went off brilliantly. “I played “happy”, I, while playing, let my thoughts pour out like an abundant, clean and transparent source …”

After a 1912 tour of European countries, Izai travels to America and spends two seasons there; he returned to Europe on the very eve of the World War.

Having finished his American trip, Izaya happily indulges in relaxation. At the beginning of the summer before the First World War, Isai, Enescu, Kreisler, Thibaut and Casals formed a closed musical circle.

“We were going to Thibault,” Casals recalls.

– Are you alone?

“There were reasons for that. We’ve seen enough people on our tours… and we wanted to make music for our own pleasure. At these meetings, when we performed quartets, Izai liked to play the viola. And as a violinist, he sparkled with an inimitable brilliance.

The First World War found Ysaye vacationing at the villa “La Chanterelle”. Izaya was shaken by the impending tragedy. He too belonged to the whole world, was too closely connected by virtue of his profession and artistic nature with the cultures of different countries. However, in the end, the patriotic impulse prevailed in him too. He participates in a concert, the collection from which is intended for the benefit of refugees. When the war moved close to Belgium, Ysaye, having reached Dunkirk with his family, crossed on a fishing boat to England and here also tries to help the Belgian refugees with his art. In 1916, he gave concerts on the Belgian front, playing not only at the headquarters, but also in hospitals, and at the forefront.

In London, Ysaye lives in isolation, mainly editing cadences for concertos by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart’s Symphony Concerto for violin and viola, and transcribing pieces for violin by ancient masters.

During these years, he closely converges with the poet Emil Verharn. It seemed that their natures were too different for such a close friendship. However, in epochs of great universal human tragedies, people, even very different ones, are often united by the kinship of their attitude to the events taking place.

During the war, concert life in Europe almost came to a standstill. Izai only once went to Madrid with concerts. Therefore, he willingly accepts the offer to go to America and goes there at the end of 1916. However, Izaya is already 60 years old and he cannot afford to conduct intensive concert activity. In 1917, he became principal conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In this post, he found the end of the war. Under the contract, Izai worked with the orchestra until 1922. Once, in 1919, he came to Belgium for the summer, but could return there only at the end of the contract.

In 1919, the Ysaye Concerts resumed their activities in Brussels. Upon his return, the artist tried, as before, to become the head of this concert organization again, but his failing health and advanced age did not allow him to carry out the functions of a conductor for a long time. In recent years, he devoted himself mainly to composition. In 1924 he wrote 6 sonatas for solo violin, which are currently included in the world violin repertoire.

The year 1924 was extremely difficult for Izaya – his wife died. However, he did not remain a widower for long and remarried his student Jeanette Denken. She brightened up the last years of the old man’s life, faithfully looked after him when his illnesses intensified. In the first half of the 20s, Izai still gave concerts, but was forced to reduce the number of performances every year.

In 1927, Casals invited Isaiah to take part in the concerts of the symphony orchestra organized by him in Barcelona, ​​at gala evenings in honor of the 100th anniversary of Beethoven’s death. “At first he refused (we must not forget,” recalls Casals, “that the great violinist had almost never performed as a soloist for a very long time). I insisted. “But is it possible?” – he asked. “Yes,” I replied, “it is possible.” Izaya touched my hands in his and added: “If only this miracle happened!”.

There were 5 months left before the concert. Some time later, Izaya’s son wrote to me: “If you could see my dear father at work, daily, for hours, slowly playing scales! We can’t look at him without crying.”

… “Izaya had amazing moments and his performance was a fantastic success. When he finished playing, he sought me out backstage. He threw himself on his knees, grabbed my hands, exclaiming: “He is risen! Resurrected!” It was an indescribably moving moment. The next day I went to see him off at the station. He leaned out of the car window, and when the train was already moving, he still held my hand, as if afraid to let it go.

In the late 20s, Izaya’s health finally deteriorated; diabetes, heart disease have sharply increased. In 1929, his leg was amputated. Lying in bed, he wrote his last major work – the opera “Pierre Miner” in the Walloon dialect, that is, in the language of the people whose son he was. The opera was completed very quickly.

As a soloist, Izai no longer performed. He happened to appear on the stage one more time, but already as a conductor. On November 13, 1930, he conducted in Brussels at the celebrations dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Belgian independence. The orchestra consisted of 500 people, the soloist was Pablo Casals, who performed the Lalo Concerto and the Fourth Poem of Ysaye.

In 1931, he was struck by a new misfortune – the death of his sister and daughter. He was supported only by the thought of the upcoming production of the opera. Its premiere, which took place on March 4 at the Royal Theater in Liege, he listened to in the clinic on the radio. On April 25, the opera was held in Brussels; the sick composer was taken to the theater on a stretcher. He rejoiced at the success of the opera like a child. But that was his last joy. He died on May 12, 1931.

Izaya’s performance is one of the brightest pages in the history of world violin art. His style of play was romantic; most often he was compared with Wieniawski and Sarasate. However, his musical talent allowed, albeit peculiarly, but convincingly and vividly, to interpret the classical works of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms. His interpretation of these writings was recognized and highly appreciated. So, after the concerts of 1895 in Moscow, A. Koreshchenko wrote that Izai performed Sarabande and Gigue Bach “with an amazing understanding of the style and spirit” of these works.

Nevertheless, in the interpretation of classical works, he could not be put on a par with Joachim, Laub, Auer. It is characteristic that V. Cheshikhin, who wrote a review of the performance of Beethoven’s concerto in Kyiv in 1890, compared it not with Joachim or Laub, but … with Sarasate. He wrote that Sarasate “put so much fire and strength into this young work of Beethoven that he accustomed the audience to a completely different understanding of the concerto; in any case, the graceful and gentle manner of transferring Isaiah is very interesting.

In J. Engel’s review, Yzai is rather opposed to Joachim: “He is one of the best modern violinists, even the first among the first of his kind. If Joachim is unattainable as a classic, Wilhelmi is famous for his incomparable power and fullness of tone, then Mr. Isaiah’s playing can serve as a wonderful example of noble and tender grace, the finest finishing of details, and warmth of performance. This juxtaposition should not at all be understood in such a way that Mr. Isaiah is not capable of classical completeness of style or that his tone is devoid of strength and fullness – in this respect he is also a remarkable artist, which is evident, among other things, from Beethoven’s Romance and the Fourth concert Vietana … “

In this regard, A. Ossovsky’s review, which emphasized the romantic nature of Izaya’s art, puts all the dots on the “and” in this respect. “Of the two conceivable types of musical performers,” Ossovsky wrote, “artists of temperament and artists of style,” E. Izai, of course, belongs to the first. He played classical concertos by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven; We also heard chamber music from him – Mendelssohn’s and Beethoven’s quartets, M. Reger’s suite. But no matter how many names I named, everywhere and always it was Izaya himself. If Hans Bülow’s Mozart always came out as only Mozart, and Brahms only Brahms, and the personality of the performer was expressed only in this superhuman self-control and in cold and sharp as steel analysis, then Bülow was not higher than Rubinstein, just as now J. Joachim over E. Ysaye…”

The general tone of the reviews irrefutably testifies that Izai was a true poet, a romantic of the violin, combining the brightness of temperament with amazing simplicity and naturalness of playing, grace and refinement with penetrating lyricism. Almost always in the reviews they wrote about his sound, the expressiveness of the cantilena, about singing on the violin: “And how she sings! At one time, the violin of Pablo de Sarasate sang seductively. But it was the sound of a coloratura soprano, beautiful, but little reflective of feeling. Izaya’s tone, always infinitely pure, not knowing what the “creaky” sound characteristic of ekrypkch is, is beautiful both in piano and forte, it always flows freely and reflects the slightest bend of musical expression. If you forgive the author of the review such expressions as “bending expression”, then in general he clearly outlined the characteristic features of Izaya’s sound manner.

In reviews of the 80s and 90s one could often read that his sound was not strong; in the 900s, a number of reviews indicate just the opposite: “This is just some kind of giant who, with his mighty wide tone, conquers you from the first note …” But what was indisputable in Izaya for everyone was his artistry and emotionality – generous the cordiality of a broad and multifaceted, amazingly rich spiritual nature.

“It’s hard to resurrect the flame, Izaya’s impulse. The left hand is amazing. He was wondrous when he played the Saint-Saens concertos and no less exceptional when he played the Franck sonata. An interesting and wayward person, an extremely strong nature. Loved good food and drink. He claimed that the artist spends so much energy during performances that he then needs to restore them. And he knew how to restore them, I assure you! One evening, when I came to his dressing room to express my admiration, he answered me with a sly wink: “My little Enescu, if you want to play like me at my age, then look, don’t be a hermit!”

Izai really amazed everyone who knew him with his love of life and magnificent appetite. Thibaut recalls that when he was brought to Izaya as a child, he was first of all invited to the dining room, and he was shocked by the amount of food consumed by the giant with Gargantua’s appetite. After finishing his meal, Izaya asked the boy to play the violin for him. Jacques performed the Wieniawski Concerto, and Izai accompanied him on the violin, and in such a way that Thibaut clearly heard the timbre of each of the orchestral instruments. “It was not a violinist – it was a man-orchestra. When I finished, he simply put his hand on my shoulder, then said:

“Well, baby, get out of here.

I returned to the dining room, where the attendants were clearing the table.

I had time to attend the following small dialogue:

“Anyway, a guest like Izaya-san is capable of making a serious hole in the budget!”

– And he admitted that he has a friend who eats even more.

– BUT! Who is it?

“This is a pianist named Raul Pugno…”

Jacques was very embarrassed by this conversation, and at that time Izai confessed to his father: “You know, it’s true – your son plays better than me!”

Enescu’s statement is interesting: “Izai … belongs to those whose genius crosses out minor weaknesses. Of course, I don’t agree with him on everything, but it never occurred to me to oppose Izaya’s with my views. Don’t argue with Zeus!

A valuable observation regarding Isai’s violin techniques was made by K. Flesh: “In the 80s of the last century, the great violinists did not use wide vibration, but used only the so-called finger vibration, in which the fundamental tone was subjected to only imperceptible vibrations. To vibrate on relatively inexpressive notes, let alone passages, was considered indecent and unartistic. Izai was the first to introduce a wider vibration into practice, seeking to breathe life into violin technique.

I would like to finish the outline of the image of Izaya the violinist with the words of his great friend Pablo Casals: “What a great artist Izaya was! When he appeared on the stage, it seemed that some kind of king was coming out. Handsome and proud, with a gigantic figure and the appearance of a young lion, with an extraordinary gleam in his eyes, flamboyant gestures and facial expressions – he himself was already a spectacle. I did not share the opinion of some colleagues who reproached him with excessive liberties in the game and excessive fantasy. It was necessary to take into account the trends and tastes of the era in which Izaya was formed. But the most important thing is that he immediately captivated the listeners with the power of his genius.

Izai passed away on May 12, 1931. His death plunged Belgium into national mourning. Vincent d’Andy and Jacques Thibault came from France to attend the funeral. The coffin with the body of the artist was accompanied by a thousand people. A monument was erected on his grave, decorated with a bas-relief by Constantine Meunier. Izaya’s heart in a valuable box was transported to Liege and buried in the homeland of the great artist.

L. Raaben