The concert performance by pianist Hermann Schwertmann and conductor Alexander Paulmuller with the Niederösterreichisches Tonkünstlerorchester of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto in B Flat, Op. 23, prompted Marcel Prawy to arrange for a recording session.

Remington R-199-76

Hermann Schwertmann in the mid nineteen fifties.

The same performance was released by Don Gabor on his Plymouth label (P-12-43). But then on label and cover the name Hans Kessler was printed, a pseudonym for Hermann Schwertmann.

When pianist Hermann Schwertmann, conductor Alexander Paulmüller and the 'Nieder-Österreichisches Tonkünstler Orchester' were rehearsing Tchaikowsky's First Concerto Op. 23 and the actual concert was a great succes, Marcel Prawy proposed to tape the performance.
Tchaikovsky's popular Opus 23 was still missing in the growing Remington catalog of classical music. This was an opportunity to fill the gap.
They all agreed.

Marcel Prawy, the well known Viennese lawyer/musicologist/dramaturge was Donald Gabor's producer for the recordings originating in Austria.
It was not the taping of the live performance on November 25th 1951, but the recording was made on a separate day, as there are no noises of the public and there is no applause. It was a "studio recording" done in the Musikvereinssaal with its beautiful acoustics.
Despite all this, the performance of the popular B flat, Opus 23, by these artists is not impeccable, nor is the sound recording. It is nevertheless a remarkable performance.
In the difficult years after the Second World War, when producers of American record companies were traveling from one European city to another, instrumentalists, singers, orchestras and conductors were all too eager to make recordings.
Doing several takes was simply not done as the costs had to be kept low. If the sound quality may have been the primary objective of the technician, it was not always an important issue for the producer, nor for the artists. And certainly not in the case of those early recordings for a budget label as Remington was. To everyone involved it was more important to earn a living than to chisel and refine the end product.
It is however possible that a relatively good sounding pressing can be encountered. The quality of a record also depends on the matrix production, the quality of the vinyl and the pressing process.

Brahms, Strauss and Tchaikovsky: A tour de force for any pianist. Not for Hermann Schwertmann.

Already in 1947 Hermann Schwertmann had performed Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 with the same orchestra, but then conducted by Milo von Wawak. Especially for the pianist that evening was a demanding enterprise because also the First Concerto of Johannes Brahms and Richard Strauss's 'Burlesque for Piano and Orchestra' were on the program.
Over the years critics were always very positive about Schwertmann's performances.

The Tchaikovsky Concerto was certainly one of Hermann Schwertmann's favorites on the long list of solo concertos which he had on his repertory, ranging from the popular J.S. Bach to the modern, unknown Karl Senn and Ernst Ludwig Uray.

Johann Sebastian Bach - Concerto in D Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 2, Piano Concerto No. 5 Johannes Brahms - Piano Concerto No. 1 Frédéric Chopin - Piano Concerto No. 1 Claude Debussy - Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra George Gershwin - Piano Concerto in F Edward Grieg - Piano Concerto Joseph Haydn - Piano Concerto No. 7 Franz Liszt - Piano Concerto No. 2 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concertos KV271, KV 449 and KV 488 Sergei Rachmaninoff - Piano Concerto No. 2 Dimitri Shostakovich - Piano Concerto Karl Senn - Piano Concerto Richard Strauss - Burlesque for piano and Orchestra Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky - Concerto No. 1 Ernst Ludwig Uray - ' Konzertante Musik' for Viola, Piano and Orchestra

Hermann Schwertmann was born on August 5th 1919. His talent was soon discovered and already at the age of 14 he started studying the piano at the 'Staatsakademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Wien' (Viennese State Academy for Music and Dramatic Art). At the same time he studied at the 'Bundesgymnasium' and passed the final exams at the age of 18. From then on until the outbreak of World War Two, he studied musicology and the English language at the University of Vienna, while he continued to study the piano. He passed his exam ('Reifeprüfung für Klavier') with Bertha Jahn-Beer in 1938. He then studied for the next year with Emil von Sauer, and with Friedrich Wührer the year after. Again he passed his exam with high notes receiving the 'Diplom Konzertfach' (Concert Pianist Certificate).
But building a career was not on the program. On the 20th of December 1940, at the age of twenty one, he was drafted into the army and he formally served until the end of the war, but gave concerts at several occasions. After having been imprisoned by the Allied Forces, a fate of numerous citizens from all walks of life, the young pianist was released at the end of March 1946.

In 1947 at the time of the performance with the Tonkünstlerorchester conducted by Milo Wawak

A few days later, on April 1st, he took up the post of teacher at the 'State Academy for Music and Dramatic Arts' and was able to really start a career as a performer when, in that same year, he joined the 'Collegium musicum Wien'. He was a member until 1953. He also teamed up with harpsichordist/pianist Kurt Rapf to perform, as duo pianists, works for four hands and for two pianos, written in a variety of styles. Their repertory was quite extensive. And their success is well documented. The 'Kleines Volksblatt' from November 1st, 1950, wrote: 'The highlight of the evening brought the exact and swingful execution of the Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion of Bartók (...) by Kurt Rapf and Hermann Schwertmann.' ('Den Höhepunkt des Abends brachte die exakte und schwungvolle Aufführung der Sonate für zwei Klaviere und Schlagzeug von Bartòk (...) durch Kurt Rapf und Hermann Schwertmann.')

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach - Sonata Béla Bartòk - Sonata for 2 Pianos and Percussion George Bizet - Jeux d'enfants Johannes Brahms - Liebeslieder-Walzer and Variations on a Theme by Haydn Claude Debussy - Petite Suite, En blanc et noir, Six epigraphes antiques Antonin Dvorak - 3 Slavonic Dances Manuel de Falla - Nights in the Gardens of Spain George Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue Anton Heiller - Toccata Paul Hindemith - Sonate (1938) Manuel Infante - Danses Andalouses Franz Liszt - Concerto pathetique Peter Mieg - Concerto for 2 Pianos. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Fantasy for an Organ KV 608, Adagio und Fuge, Sonata KV 358, Sonate KV 448, Sonata for 4 Hands, Concerto for 2 Pianos K 365 Felix Petyrek - 4 Concert Studies, Toccata and Fugue Sergej Rachmaninoff - Suite Nr. 2 Maurice Ravel - Ma Mère l'Oye Max Reger - Introduction, Passacaglia and Fugue Op. 96, Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Beethoven Karl Schiske - Sonate Op. 29 - 1949 Franz Schubert - Marches from Op. 40, Fantasy Op. 103 Norbert Sprongl - Capriccio - First performance Igor Strawinsky - Die Bauernhochzeit Esther Williamson - Sonata

Pursuing a career as a performing artists is not an easy task. Gradually the emphasis was put on teaching and the activities at the University where he helped reorganize the university's teaching plans. He also was responsible for the organization of the various competitions named after significant people: 'Bösendorfer Wettbewerb', 'Heydner Wettbewerb' and 'Rombro-Stepanow Wettbewerb', the contests for young students and upcoming artists. In 1960 he officially became a professor and in 1967 he received the title of 'extraordinary university professor' to be appointed 'university professor' only three years later, in 1970.

Hermann Schwertmann in 1952 at the the time when he was pursuing a career as a concert pianist (Photo by Fayer, Vienna).

Most musicians do not restrict their repertories to the works solely written for their specific instruments alone. Hermann Schwertmann too had a vast repertory of chamber music, he was accompanying violinists and cellists, and other instrumentalists, and he often appeared as a member of chamber music ensembles. It is interesting to see what the repertory of an artist can look like, in this case that of Hermann Schwertmann.

Béla Bartòk - Second Sonata for Violin and Piano Charles-Auguste de Bériot - 'Scène de ballet' for Violin and Piano Ludwig van Beethoven - Sonatas for Violin and Piano Nos. 1, 2, 5 (Spring), 7, 9 (Kreutzer), and 10; Sonata for Violoncello and Piano No. 3; Trio No. 4 for Clarinet, Violoncello and Piano Johannes Brahms - Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1, Sonata for Violoncello and Piano No. 1, Trio for Piano, Violin and Horn, Piano Quartet No. 2 Antonin Dvorak - Sonatine for Violin and Piano Op. 100 Walter Gieseking - Sonatine for Flute and Piano Stephen Heller - Quintet for Clarinet, Violin, Violoncello and Piano Kurt Hessenberg - Sonate F für Violine und Klavier Paul Hindemith - Sonata for Flute and Piano, Sonata for Oboe and Piano, Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Sonata for Bass and Piano Jenö Hubay - Csárdas for Violin and Piano No. 4 Augustin Kubizek - Trio for Clarinet, Violoncello and Piano Prinz Louis Ferdinand - Piano Quartet Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy - Sextet for Piano, Violin, Two Altos, Cello and Bass Op. 110 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Sonata for Violin and Piano KV 301 Friedrich Neumann - Sonata for Clarinet and Piano Thomas Pitfield - Sonatine for Flute and Piano (1948) Reinhold Portisch - Trio for Violin, Clarinet und Piano Kurt Rapf - Trio (1984) for Clarinet, Violoncello and Piano Max Reger - Sonata for Violin and Piano Op. 139, Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Piano Trio Op. 2 Karl Schiske - Sonata for Violin and Piano, Sextet for Clarinet String Quartet and Piano Franz Schubert - Sonatina for Violin and Piano Op. 137/3, Trout Quintet Robert Schumann - Sonata for Violin and Piano Op. 121, 3 Fantasy Pieces Op. 73 for Cello and Piano, Piano Quintet Es-Dur Friedrich (Bedrich) Smetana - Two Pieces from 'Aus der Heimat' for Violin and Piano Norbert Sprongl - Sonata for Flute and Piano Op. 70, Third Violinsonata (World Première), Sonata for Bass and Piano Op. 74 (World Première), Quintet Op. 67 Richard Strauss - Sonata Op. 6 for Violoncello and Piano, Violin Sonata Op. 18 Erich Zeisl - Sonata for Cello and Piano (1951)

And for a recital pianist there is also quite a number of pieces, mainstream and some modern works. This shows that there would have been ample opportunity to make more recordings of this pianist for whatever label.

Johann Sebastian Bach - Toccata and Fugue in E Ludwig van Beethoven - Sonatas (Pathétique, Moonlight, Waldstein, Sonata Op. 78, Op. 111), Polonaise Op. 89, Rondo 'Die Wut über den verlorenen Groschen', Eroica Variations Johannes Brahms: Rhapsodie in E Alfredo Casella - 11 Pezzi infantili (1920) Frédéric Chopin - Ballades Nos. 1 and 3, Etüde Op. 10 Nos. 3, 4, 7 and 12, Mazurkas (Op. 6 No. 2, Op. 68 No. 2, Op. 68 No. 3, Op. 37 No. 2), Prelude Op. 28 No. 2, Polonaise Op. 53, Polonaise Op. 21, Nocturne in F, Introduction et Polonaise Op. 22, Scherzo Op. 39 Muzio Clementi - Sonata in G Claude Debussy - Suite pour le piano Georg Friedrich Händel - Partita A-Dur, Sonata Karl Herrmann - Sonata E. T. A. Hoffmann - Sonate Franz Liszt - Sonata in B, Polonaise in E, Rigoletto-Paraphrase Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy - Lied ohne Worte (Song Without Words) Op. 19 No. 9, Variations sérieuses Op. 54 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Sonatas (in A, in B) Max Reger - Intermezzi Op. 45, Humoreske Op. 20 Nos. 1 and 4 Erwin Christian Scholz - Third Piano Sonata Op. 52 Franz Schubert - Sonata D 485, Sonata in A, Impromptu in B, Impromptu in E flat, Moment musical Op. 94 Nos. 1, 2 and 6 Robert Schumann - Carneval Op. 9, Toccata in C Op. 7, Sonate in F sharp, Scherzo in A Op. 99 Norbert Sprongl - Four Preludes for Piano, Four Dance Pieces for Piano Op. 96 Carl Maria von Weber - Rondo brillant Op. 62

Hermann Schwertmann appeared regularly in the studios of the ORF and there are certainly taped performances in the archive. However the only commercial recording he made is Remington R-199-76 which was released in May 1952.
Despite minor irregularities - remember that the performance was taped in a limited time frame; there is only one instance where a possible splice can be heard - Schwertmann's is a very sensitive approach to Tchaikovsky's masterpiece. His phrasing is at times beautiful. Subdued passion and meditative intimacy alternate each other. The transition from cadenza to the finale of the first movement is exemplary. He is one of the few pianists who plays the second movement without difficulty and rhythmically exact.

Alexander Paulmüller in the nineteen sixties when he was conductor of the Bruckner Orfchestra (1958-1961) and of the Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra (until 1972).

Alexander Paulmüller is a very good conductor. Like Kurt Wöss, he studied for some time with legendary Felix Weingartner. There is an added sense of a live recording and there is no cold calculation in the music making, there is no bravura for the sake of it, no virtuosity to impress. Schwertmann gives a very personal, yet affirmative account.
In his assessment in the early nineteen fifties of 18 recordings of the Tchaikovsky Concerto, critic Warren DeMotte wrote that this Remington was not a bargain. The listener may agree with him on certain points, but definitely not on aspects of atmosphere and concentration. Notwithstanding DeMotte's evaluation, Schwertmann's performance hardly ever fails to compel.
The same recording was issued on the Plymouth label, but then, as Don Gabor so often did, with a different (fantasy) name as soloist, in this case Hans Kessler, maybe to avoid extra license payments to Marcel Prawy, or just presenting a Tchaikovsky recording with a "different" artist to fool the record buying public.

One may regret that no more takes were made. But really regrettable is that no other commercial recordings of Schwertmann were made and then wirth more recording time, so attention could have been paid to quality. Maybe someday radio recordings, made by the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (OR, Österreichischer Rundfunk), will be published and then the listener could be taken by surprise again. The often cited phrase: 'It is a pity that not more recordings were made of this artist', is fully justified in the case of Hermann Schwertmann.

Remington R-199-176 from 1951 with Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto in B Flat, Op. 23, performed by pianist Hermann Schwertmann, conductor Alexander Paulmuller and the Niederoesterreichisches Tonkuenstlerorchester .

For many years in a row Hermann Schwertmann organized the Beethoven competitions and was a juror for several other competitions. His dedication to the cause of music resulted in receiving the 'Great Honor of Merit of the Austrian Republic' (Großes Ehrenzeichen für Verdienste um die Republik Österreich) awarded on September 25th, 1974, by the Ministry of Science and Research.
From 1978 till 1984 he also taught at the 'Japanese Summer Seminars'. Numerous were his students. Many of these do play a role, be it as a pedagogue, an instrumentalist, or as a composer.
After 37 years of devoted teaching and managing, he retired in September 1984 at the age of 65.
Hermann Schwertmann lives in Vienna.

Rudolf A. Bruil - February 12th, 2006

Biographical details and images of Hermann Schwertmann, the poster and the program, submitted by his daughter, cellist player Ursula Erhart-Schwertmann, Vienna.

On July 22, 2007, I received the sad message that after a long, serious illness, pianist Hermann Schwertmann, aged 87, had passed away in Vienna on July 13, 2007.

R.A.B.