Max Bruch/Kol Nidrei: Redux nokhamol!

[Spudicmikhl <Spudicmikhl...>]

       Hi Sylvie and Judy, just wanted to chime in a little further on the 
issue of Max Bruch's religious origins and present the topic in light of a 
biography of Max Bruch that I stumbled upon a few years ago at a bookfair at 
a synagogue in Queens, 
New York.  After Sylvie's question came up, I pulled that book off the shelve 
once more and examined it with the issue in mind of understanding the 
connection between Bruch and Judaism.   Let me give this my best attempt.

       In what is probably the definitive English language biography of Max 
Bruch, written by Christopher Fifield, "Max Bruch - His Life and Works" (New 
York, George Braziller, 1988), there is a passage just before Chapter One, 
and following the Preface, found under the title "Origins."  I find it 
curiously worded and thought I would quote the most relevant paragraph 
concerning the topic of Bruch's religious affiliation:

       "It has been erroneously recorded in such books as Kohut's "Beruehmte  
                     juedische Maenner und Frauen,"Gunther's "Rassenkunde des 
deutschen Volkes," and Zaleski's "Famous Musicians of a Wandering Race," that 
Max Bruch was Jewish.  This was refuted by the composer, by his daughter 
Margarethe and his youngest son Ewald, and by Professor Felix Bruch, a 
descendant of the composer's cousin. During the Third Reich an attempt was 
again made to label Bruch a Jew, but in November 1933 this was corrected at 
the insistence of his family.  Bruch himself always considered that the 
composition of Kol Nidrei was the reason for the confusion."

       For such an exhaustive biography from whence the above quotation, 
strangely there is very little commentary regarding this question of Bruch 
(who died in 1920) and his encounter with "Jewish music."  One would 
logically expect this as witnessed by the ensuing reception history of what 
is probably his most popular work aside from his G minor Violin Concerto. 
       
       Christopher Fifiled, an English scholar, in my estimation is 
malignantly short on words about this topic.  I make this judgement from not 
only the fact that he quotes a Nazi German source ("Handbuch der Judenfrage," 
ed.32, 1933) to substantiate that in November 1933 the Bruch family corrected 
the attempt to label Bruch a Jew.   The source for this last statement is a 
footnote, rather than mentioned by name in the body of the text as the other 
sources above it, as if to lessen the impact of it being of Nazi provenance.  
It's a shame that Fifield has absolutely no commentary on this source 
material and being in a position to write an extended study of the composer, 
one would think that this topic would have been explored with a little more 
rigor.  
      
        Finally, to push matters a little bit futher, there is a quote from 
Bruch to Emil Kamphausen (referred to as a "philistine friend" in a prior 
letter exchange).  Bruch discusses the provenance of the two melodies that he 
utilized in his setting of the "Kol Nidre" and there is the following quote: 
       
        "I got to know both melodies in Berlin, where I had much to do with 
the 
children of Israel in the Choral Society.  The success of "Kol Nidrei" is     
         assured, because all the Jews in the world are for it eo ipso"  
(January 31, 1882).  

       Aside from the fact that Fifield makes in my opinion a translator's 
misjudgement in rendering the highly poeticized German expression much too 
literally as "children of Israel,"  ("Jews" or "Jewish members" would have 
done the trick) but again, there is no commentary; he really could have 
contextualized Bruch's attitude as expressed in this quote.  

       As exhaustive as this biography portends to be in its 351 pages of 
detailed discussion about Bruch's life and work, except for a direct quote of 
source material there is very little reflection on the topic of Bruch's 
attitude towards the "Kol Nidre" or more importantly, no attempt by this 
biography to place the question of Bruch's origins into a more formidable bas 
relief.  Is it enough to provide sans commentary that Bruch's immediate 
family was annoyed to be considered Jewish? Or quote without commentary 
Bruch's written comment to a "philistine friend" that if  his work is popular 
among Jews, it will be popular around the world "eo ipso."   In other words, 
Jews are in such powerful positions to collectively popularize music that 
"they" uniformly deem to be worthy.  Do I need to say there's dangerous 
territory hinted at here.  

       Without more commentary, you might easily infer that Bruch and his 
family were not particular pleased to be affiliated with the "children of 
Israel."  Granted, from this biography, and the way the information is 
stacked--and with such a dirth of commentary on the salient issue of Bruch 
and his connection to Judaism-- I believe it would be unfair to already make 
any such accusation that the composer of such a uniquely touching work was 
less than a mentsh, although this may very well be the case.

       Regardless of the verdict, Pablo Casals recording of Bruch's "Kol 
Nidrei," prior to World War II will remain as simply one of the most 
beautiful, heartfelt, musical recordings ever committed to vinyl.  Perhaps 
some other list members with access to more source material could shed 
further light on this topic.  

Michael Spudic
New York