Rudolf Tobias

Rudolf Tobias was an Estonian composer, organist, choral conductor, and teacher. He was born on May 29, 1873, in Käina on the island of Hiiumaa in the Russian Empire, and died on October 29, 1918, in Berlin.

He graduated from the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in 1897, having studied organ with Louis Homilius and composition with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. He appeared as an organist and choral conductor in Saint Petersburg and Tartu. From 1904 to 1908 he was active in concert life in Tartu as a conductor, organist, and pianist, and he organized oratorio concerts.

From 1909 Tobias lived in Germany. Between 1912 and 1918 he taught music theory at the Berlin Higher School of Music.

The central place in Tobias's compositional legacy is occupied by large-scale vocal-symphonic works. His early compositions, such as the orchestral overture Julius Caesar written in 1896, are classical in style, while his later works develop impressionist and expressionist tendencies.

A notable example of the fate of his music is the cantata Jonah's Mission. After failing at its premiere in 1909, it was not performed again until 1989, when it was restored by the pianist Vardo Rumessen and conducted by Peeter Lilje; this later performance was received enthusiastically by the public.

Among his principal works are the cantatas and oratorios John of Damascus (1897), The Dream of Kalevipoeg (1907), Jonah's Mission (1909, restored in 1989), The Maiden of Light of Ilmaneitsi (1911), and Kalevipoeg at the Gates of Hell (1912). His instrumental works include the overture Julius Caesar (1896), a Piano Concerto with Orchestra from 1897 later restored by Vardo Rumessen, two string quartets from 1899 and 1900, the symphonic capriccio The Black Raven, Herald of War (1909), and two piano sonatinas with other pieces.

Tobias's portrait appeared on the Estonian 50-kroon banknote. A monument to him was erected in the city of Haapsalu, and in 1999 he was included in the list of the 100 great figures of Estonia of the twentieth century, compiled from written and online voting. He was buried in the cemetery of his native village, at Kullamaa Churchyard in Kullamaa, Estonia.

Connections

This figure has 1 connection in the Music Lineage catalog.