Harold Bauer was born inKingston upon Thames; his father was a German violinist and his mother was English. He took up the study of theviolin under the direction of his father andAdolf Pollitzer. He made his debut as a violinist in London in 1883, and for nine years toured England. In 1892, however, he went toParis and studied thepiano underIgnacy Jan Paderewski for a year, though still maintaining his interest in the violin. An anecdote reports that Paderewski jokingly told Bauer to concentrate on the piano because "You have such beautiful hair". In 1893, in Paris, he andAchille Rivarde premieredFrederick Delius's Violin Sonata in B major.[1][2]
During 1893-94 he travelled all through Russia accompanying the noted soprano Mademoiselle Nikita and giving piano recitals and concerts, after which he returned to Paris. Further recitals in the French capital brought him renown, and he almost immediately received engagements in France, Germany and Spain. His reputation was rapidly enhanced by these performances, and his field of operation extended through the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, England, Scandinavia and the United States.
In 1900, Harold Bauer made his debut in America with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, performing the U.S. premiere ofJohannes Brahms' Piano Concerto No.1 in D minor. On 18 December 1908, he gave the world premiere performance ofClaude Debussy's piano suiteChildren's Corner in Paris. After that he settled in the United States, and was a founder of theBeethoven Association.
Between 1915 and 1929 he recorded over 100 pieces for theDuo-Art andAmpico reproducing pianos, one of the most prolific virtuoso pianists in this medium of his era.
Efrem Zimbalist & Harold Bauer playing Theme and Variations from "The Kreutzer Sonata" by Beethoven (1926)
Harold Bauer was also an influential teacher and editor, heading the Piano Department at the well knownManhattan School of Music. Starting in 1941, Bauer taught winter master classes at theUniversity of Miami and served as a visiting professor at theUniversity of Hartford Hartt School of Music with Maestro and Founder - Moshe Paranov and head of the Piano Department - Raymond Hanson, from 1946 until his death inMiami, Florida, in 1951.[3]
He publishedHarold Bauer, His Book (New York, 1948).
Harold's sisterEthel Bauer was also a concert pianist active in London. Harold was married twice. He first married the divorcée Maria Knapp (1861–1940) in 1906 until her death. In January 1941, he married again, the concert pianist, colleague, and his former student,Wynne Pyle.[4] He had no children by either marriage.
The Art of the Piano. Its performers, literature, and recordings. Third edition, by David Dubal. The Pianists section begins on page 11. Pompton Plains, NJ: Amadeus Press, 2004.
The ASCAP Biographical Dictionary. Third edition, New York: American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, 1966
Notable Twentieth-Century Pianists: A Bio-Critical Sourcebook, two volumes, by John Gillespie & Anna Gillespie,Westport, Connecticut:Greenwood Press, 1995
The Penguin Dictionary of Musical Performers: A Biographical Guide to Significant Interpreters of Classical Music — Singers, Solo Instrumentalists, Conductors, Orchestras and String Quartets — Ranging From the Seventeenth Century to the Present Day, byArthur Jacobs, London:Viking Press, 1990
^New York City Marriage Licenses; Borough: Manhattan; Year: 1941
^Robert Schrade (1924-2015), touring concert pianist (with critically acclaimed performances at Carnegie Hall, Town Hall, Lincoln Center, Greece, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, etc.), co-founder of Sevenars Concerts in Massachusetts with wifeRolande Maxwell Young (who also studied with Bauer), and teacher at several schools, including at the Manhattan School of Music (and MSM Prep Division). Robert Schrade was praised by leading critics, including Virgil Thomson and Harold Schonberg, and remastered recordings have been highly praised by American Record Guide and others.
