Erika Morini was a Jewish Austrian

Austrians

Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....

 violin

Violin

The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....

ist, born in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

.

Family and Life

She received her first instruction from her father, Oscar Morini (his original name was Oser or Ojser , , who was the director of his own music school in the Imperial capital Vienna, and completed her studies under Otakar Ševčík

Otakar Ševcík

Otakar Ševčík was a Czech violinist and influential teacher. He was known as a soloist and an ensemble player, including his occasional performances with Eugène Ysaÿe.-Biography:...

. Hers was a case of remarkable precocity.

Her mother was Malka Morini, née Weissmann

Weissmann

Weißmann is a German surname meaning "white man". Common variants in spelling are Weismann, Weissman, Weisman.- Weissmann :* Charles Weissmann, biochemist* Gerda Weissmann Klein* Keith Weissman was senior Iran analyst of AIPAC....

(her father was born at Czernowitz). Her brothers and sisters were:

Alice Morini, pianist

Stella Morini, violinist

Haydee Morini, dancer

Frank Morini, art dealer

Albert Morini (born 1902),impresario concert manager

When she made her début in 1916, with the Leipzig Gewandhaus and Berlin Philarmonic orchestra,under Nikisch

Arthur Nikisch

Arthur Nikisch ; 12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungarian conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London and - most importantly - Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter of the music of Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Liszt...

, the critics made no allowance for her youth, but spoke of her work as the equal of that of the most famous of the younger generation of violinists. Her American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 début at New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 (January 26, 1921) was one of the musical sensations of the year, and since then she performed in the United States often, both in recital and with the foremost orchestra

Orchestra

An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...

s. She resided in New York after 1938, and began spelling her first name Erica. She made her first visit to London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in 1923.

She retired in 1976, and died in October 1995, soon after the theft of her Stradivari violin. ,
Morini is believed to be the last surviving classical musician who made acoustic Red Seal Records for the Victor Talking Machine Company

Victor Talking Machine Company

The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American corporation, the leading American producer of phonographs and phonograph records and one of the leading phonograph companies in the world at the time. It was headquartered in Camden, New Jersey....

. Four months after her death, Erica Morini was described in the journal The Strad as the “most bewitching woman violinist of this century.”

Despite her phenomenal concert reviews and numerous prizes and awards—she received honorary doctorates from Smith College, Massachusetts, in 1955, and from the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, in 1963, while the City of New York honored her lifetime achievement with a gold medal in 1976—and despite the respect in which she was held, Morini was soon forgotten.

External links

• Erika Morini
• "quasi una fantasia - Juden und die Musikstadt Wien", p.131 (English version)