Jascha Heifetz: Early Years in Russia

5. First Performances in St. Petersburg

70 Judging by the absence of a certificate of leave, without which conservatory students were unable to leave the capital, Ruvin and Jascha must have remained in St. Petersburg for the rest of December andinto1911.ThecostofareturntriptoVilniuswaslikelyprohibitive;thus, for the first time, Jascha spent the New Year’s holiday far from his family and friends, but they did not forget about him. Marusya Malkina wrote, “Dear darling Jaschenka! I congratulate you on the New Year and wish you all the best.”1 Each new semester, however, brought another round of bureaucratichurdles.OnJanuary2,forinstance,JaschaandRuvinreceived their residency permit from the conservatory for the period up to June 1, 1911, and had to present their documents at the police station in order to receive a stamp for their apartment on Bolshaya Masterskaya Street.2 On January 20, Jascha turned ten, and for the second time in his young life, spent his birthday away from home and extended family. All the same, a number of significant events in Jascha’s life took place during the first half of 1911. In April he gave his first solo concert in St. Petersburg and prior to that, he performed twice for groups of important people. According to an account based on talks with Jascha’s parents, the boyplayedinSt.Petersburg“fortheItalianConsulinthepresenceofhighFirst Performances in St. Petersburg CHAPTER FIVE 71 First Performances in St. Petersburg ranking persons, and also in the Court Orchestra.”3 The Court Orchestra was an impressive ensemble, and at various times it had been conducted by famous individuals such as Richard Strauss and Arthur Nikisch. The ensemble existed primarily to provide music for the Imperial Court, and events were arranged to please the members of the Tsar’s family. Tiny Jascha with his golden hair and cherub-like appearance surely delighted all those in attendance. Generally, court concerts would take place either at Anichkov Palace or at another court building at 9 Yekaterininsky Canal, near the Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood. In return for their performances, young prodigies generally received valuable gifts, such as gold pocket watches. It is uncertain whether Jascha received such a watch at this particular event, but it is known that as a child he had an impressive watch and was deeply upset when it was lost. The only indication of a date for the appearance with the Court Orchestra is a handwritten note, “before April 17, 1911.” A performance at the Italian Embassy, the evidence suggests, took place during the second half of March 1911, a period of celebration in Italy connected with the fiftieth anniversary of the declaration of Rome as the new capital. The Italian Embassy was located on Bolshaya Morskaya Street in a luxurious building constructed in the 1840s by the architect Auguste de Montferrand. The audience for Jascha’s performance probably included various Russian and Italian diplomats. In a description of a similar private event where Jascha was asked to perform, Aleksandra Brushtein wrote: The ball started late as usual—the first guests began to assemble around midnight. The concert for guests, with the participation of N. N. Figner, A. M. Davydov, and other stars, began around one in the morning. The hostess , a beautiful young woman in Parisian evening dress, led a small boy in a sailor suit to the middle of the hall. Curly headed like a Raphael cherub, he sleepily rubbed his eyes with his fist—children of his age at that hour should have been fast asleep—with the other hand held his violin to himself. “Now gentlemen, Jaschenka will play for us!” the hostess announced merrily, “And then Jaschenka will have tea and cake!” This she said directly to the little boy.4 At the end of February 1911, Nalbandian left St. Petersburg for a few weeks on a tour of cities in the Poznansk and Reinsk provinces. He per- 72 Jascha Heifetz formed works by Vitali, Cui, and Tchaikovsky, as well as his own compositions , and was accompanied by the pianist Samuil Maykapar and his wife, the singer Nina Ormeli. On his return, lessons recommenced for Jascha, who was busy preparing for his St. Petersburg recital debut scheduled for April. Throughout this period, Ruvin and Jascha continued to correspond with family and friends in Vilnius, describing their life in detail. Jascha received a postcard from Marusya Malkina on March 22; one side had a bust of Anton Rubinstein and on the other was a message: “Your...