Preamble

Robert Bridges's sonnet “To Joseph Joachim” was written in 1904 as part of the celebrations for the sixtieth anniversary of Joachim's first London performances, and its lines express the esteem in which the violinist was held in Britain. Joachim had long been a familiar figure in British musical life, and it may be asserted that he was considered by many to be as British (or more precisely English) as he was German—the fact that he was actually Hungarian being either overlooked or unknown. His annual sojourns were eagerly anticipated by both the music-loving public and the press. Tickets for his concerts and recitals rapidly sold out—not only in London but also in provincial cities throughout the country. Joachim introduced new music to concertgoers and re-acquainted them with standard concert and chamber music repertoire that had previously received limited performances, and it was as leader of his ensemble, the Joachim Quartet, that his greatest achievements were realized.

While many other foreign musicians were welcomed and celebrated in Britain throughout the nineteenth century, Joachim was more than just a German visitor, and it may reasonably be claimed that his status was unique. His relationship with the country eventually ran so deep that it could even be suggested that, when he went home to Berlin, he was merely visiting Germany. However, although the facts of Joachim's time in Britain are well-documented, there has hitherto been little academic examination of the circumstances and enduring consequences of his first visits. This chapter begins to address this lacuna by presenting a consideration of Joachim's almost lifelong commitment to the musical culture of Britain in the context of a narrative of selected events starting in the spring of 1844.

First Visits to London and the Foundations of a Relationship

Joachim's earliest years are described in detail elsewhere, most particularly by Robert Eshbach, so all that need be asserted here is that the young Joachim had little opportunity to experience what would now be regarded as a conventional childhood. At the age of about seven, he was sent away from his home to live with relatives—first in Vienna and later in Leipzig—essentially to devote his life to music. In March 1844, he had been residing with his cousin Fanny and her husband Hermann Wittgenstein for several months, and tensions between the cousins had been increasing.