Isolde Menges

A native of Sussex, UK, Isolde Menges (1893-1976) was an accomplished violinist who was most active in the first part of the 20th century. A student of Leopold Auer and Carl Flesch (4), she concertised widely, as soloist and with the Menges Quartet (founded by her in 1931) and Quintet, in locations such as Darmstadt (at 14 years of age), Liége, Wiesbaden, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, and throughout England, Scotland, and the United States (1, 3).

Her Quartet gave a complete cycle of Beethoven quartets in Wigmore Hall in London in 1938, and another in Oxford.

She gave concerti with noted orchestras and conductors such as the New Queen’s Hall Orchestra conducted by Henry J. Wood), and London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Bruno Walter, and the Royal Philharmonic Society (2). In 1916 she played the Brahms concerto and Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole with Ernest Bloch (5).

A major prize commemorates her at the Royal College of Music, where she taught.

Press Notices

"February 1913: Queen's Hall, Tchaikovsky V concerto:" "...remarkable command of the bow and ... almost childish delight in displaying her mastery. Sometimes the conductor had to restrain her when she was on the point of making off with a passage at breakneck speed, and her phrasing was of the impulse kind which makes such frankly bravura music as this entertaining... [H] er tone was extraordinarily pure and her style clean and crisp... [In a Chopin nocturne] great beauty of cantabile quality, but she missed some of the daintiness of Kreisler's "Schoen Rosmarin" by taking it too fast" [The Times, Wednesday, Feb 05, 1913; pg. 8] And in this piece in April 1913: "... clean double-stopping, and ... brilliant manipulation of exacting passages... She.. succeeded in making the listener take a good deal of interest in it". [The Times, Thursday, Apr 24, 1913; pg. 8]

"May 24, 1913: Queen's Hall, Brahms V concerto:" " [Although in the Tchaikovsky in February she showed] impulsiveness which bordered upon rashness... [now in the Brahms] her playing... was exceedingly careful of detail, and there was a very great beauty in her whole performance. She had evidently studied the work musically as well as technically, as the distinction of her phrasing showed... [but] she did not quite succeed in making clear.. the intricate development of the slow movement" [The Times, Saturday, May 24, 1913; pg. 42] .

"1915: Aeolian Hall, London, Brahms sonata in D minor, acc. Hamilton Harty:" ".. performance was an exceedingly well thought out one, in which the only disadvantage seemed to be a too meticulous care for the emphasis of certain rhythmic accents... [She] was at her best alike in the .. pieces of Kreisler and the .. chaconne by Vitali... In the former her great variety of bowing and her feeling for the effect of sharply contrasted rhythms... gave remarkable life to her playing. In the latter it was chiefly her splendid tone and the display of an accurate technique in high octave passages... which gave the feeling of complete assurance..." [The Times, Wednesday, Apr 21, 1915; pg. 11]

"1920: Wigmore Hall, Wieniawski concerto, Handel sonata:" "The double stops and other ornaments are a model of neatness, and these are helped by a sensitive bow-hand" [The Times, Monday, Feb 09, 1920; pg. 12] .On February 21, same venue: "... she seems to be absolutely happy when giving out the charming melody; she enjoys it and has the gift of conveying her enjoyment to her hearers" [The Times, Saturday, Feb 21, 1920; pg. 12] .

"1923: Queen's Hall, Dvorak v concerto:" "Miss Menges fully realized the warmth and passion of the Czech and the power of the fiddle to convey it" [The Times, Monday, Sep 24, 1923; pg. 10]

"1926, Queen's Hall, Beethoven v concerto:" "..capably played.. [but she] improved as the work proceeded. In the first movement her playing was rather cold and uninspired [with an] unimaginative performance by the orchestra.. However she warmed up to the lyrical dialogue in the second movement, and entered upon the third with a gusto..." [The Times, Saturday, Sep 25, 1926; pg. 12]

Notable Recordings

Beethoven

1925 Kreuzer sonata; with Arthur De Greef

Concerto; with Royal Albert Hall Orchestra under Landon Ronald

Brahms

1929 2nd and 3rd sonatas; with Harold Samuel

Schubert

1928 Sonata (Sonatina) for Violin and Piano in G minor, D408; with Arthur de Greef

References

1. http://www.concertprogrammes.org.uk/html/search/verb/GetRecord/812 accessed on 19.5.2008

2. http://www.concertprogrammes.org.uk/html/search/verb/GetRecord/810 accessed on 19.5.2008

3. http://concertprogrammes.orangeleaf.com/html/search/verb/ListIdentifiers/set/agentName/288 accessed on 20.5.2008

4. http://www.violinist.com/discussion/response.cfm?ID=9068 accessed on 20.5.2008

5. http://www.ernestblochlegacy.org/home.cfm?dir_cat=79294 accessed on 20.5.2008