Comtesse
Angèle Potocka, Theodore Leschetizky:
An Intimate Study of the Man and the Musician
(New York: The Century Co., 1903)
The
Comtesse Angèle Potocka wrote this personal
account of her brother-in-law's life at the
same time he was writing a series of twelve
piano pieces entitled "Scenes of My Youth."
Drawing on her many years of friendship, the
long relationship their two families shared,
and Leschetizky's diary, she offered an intimate
picture of his personality and activities--often
in his own words. Especially interesting for
understanding Leschetizky's influence on Russian
music and Vinogradskii, are the chapters on
Leschetizky's years in St. Petersburg. During
this period (1852-1878), he became a close friend
of the aristocracy and performed at their parties,
and married Anna Carlowna de Friedebourg in
1856 and soon had a son. In 1862, the St. Petersburg
Conservatory was formed from the nucleus of
Leschetizky's school. One of his students there
was Annette Essipoff (in the same class as Tchaikowsky).
Leschetizky and Essipoff fell in love, and after
his two year divorce suit, they married. In
1878, the same year Vinogradskii transferred
to St. Petersburg University and to science
studies, they both fell ill with typhoid and
moved to Vienna. |