Slovenská hudba, Vol. 50, No 2, p.107-151, 2024

Eduard Reményi – Slovak and Czech Views on the Hungarian Violin Virtuoso

The Hungarian virtuoso Eduard (Ede) Reményi (1830–1989) was, together with Miska Hauser (1820–1887), Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (1812–1865) and Joseph Joachim (1831–1907), one of the most significant promoters of the legacy of the Viennese violin school and of the class of Joseph Böhm at the Vienna Conservatory, not only in the European, but also the transoceanic space. The trace Reményi left in music history was recognized namely thanks to his collaboration and friendship with the crucial exponents of the revolutionary or classicisizing Romanticism – Ferenc Liszt and Johannes Brahms. In addition to European audience Reményi’s art also fascinated the audience in other continents (similarly to Miska Hauser). This study focuses mainly on his work, activities and the influence of his artistic personality in the Central Europe, namely in Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia during the reign of Franz Joseph I. The study was encouraged by the crucial influence, stated by Ján Levoslav Bella himself, Reményi had had on his decision to elevate the composition of music to the dominant force and meaning of his life. This influence and its character are reconstructed on the basis of personal reminiscences and texts extracted from the period newspapers.