Louis Rée

[Wheesht]

Louis [Luis] Rée, born in Edinburgh 15 Oct. 1861, died in Vienna, 75 years ago tomorrow, 28 February 1939.
Studied at St Andrews University, then at the Music Conservatoire in Geneva 1879-1880. Further studies at Stuttgart Polytechnic and Music Conservatoire (where he studied piano with Lebert and Pruckner and theory with Faißt, Seifritz and Doppler). In 1885 he studied piano with Leschetitkzy and composition with Robert Fuchs in Vienna. In 1889 he married the singer and pianist Susanne Pilz (1862-1937). With her he undertook numerous concert tours mostly playing on two pianos. Apart from arrangements for two pianos, they also played his own compositions. In 1914 he became a teacher for piano and composition at the "Neuen Wiener Konservatorium"while his wife taught piano and singing. They have an honorary grave at the "Zentralfriedhof" in Vienna.

Works for Orchestra:
Piano Concerto
Concerto for two Pianos in B flat major
Concert Piece for Cello and Orchestra in one movement. (A minor)
Concerto for Violin and Orchestra A Major

Plus some Lieder and works for piano solo and for two pianos.

I have no idea if any of his orchestral scores survive.

Here are details of two orchestra concerts in Vienna featuring music by Rée. This seems to indicate that he had quite a good reputation at the time, but the only contemporary reviews I have been able to find are not exactly laudatory.

5 February 1911
Theater an der Wien
Oskar Nedbal     conductor     
Louis Rée     piano     
Susanne Rée     piano     
Wiener Tonkünstler-Orchester:       
Franz Liszt     "Les Préludes", symphonic poem Nr. 3 S 97
Louis Rée     Concerto for 2 pianos and orchestra B-Dur
Oskar Nedbal     "Valse triste" from the Ballett "Pohádka o Honzovi"
Oskar Nedbal     "Grande Polonaise" from the Ballett "Pohádka o Honzovi"

23 November 1912
Musikverein Wien, Großer Saal
Oskar Nedbal     conductor     
Nora Duesberg violin     
Wiener Tonkünstler-Orchester:        
Brahms     Violin Concerto
Louis Rée     Concerto for Violin and Orchestra A major
Beethoven     Romance for Violin and Orchestra Nr. 2 op. 50
Saint-Saëns     "Havanaise" for Violin and Orchestra op. 83
Leone Sinigaglia     "Rapsodia piemontese" for Violin and Orchestra op. 26

[Mark Thomas]

the only contemporary reviews I have been able to find are not exactly laudatory

Interesting. Thank you. Can you expand on why he was less than a success?

By the way, did he compose any chamber or instrumental music and, if so, are you able to expand your catalogue to include them? It's always better to have the full picture.

[Wheesht]

I don't have a full catalogue but I have started adding up bits and pieces as and when I find them and I hope to have a more complete picture soon. As to why he wasn't critically acclaimed as a composer, that information is based on at least one review which claimed his concert for two pianos lacked originality. Again, some serious feretting will be required. I first came across the name Rée in a 1930s Austrian magazine of film, dance and mostly popular, but also classical music.

[Gareth Vaughan]

If any of his unpublished scores do survive they may well be in the archives of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna. Worth an enquiry.

[eschiss1]

Several small-ensemble works were published. (IMSLP has only arrangements by him, not any of his compositions, at present.)

At least these (from HMB and Worldcat ; partial list; some survive, some may not)

For piano solo, duet, or 2 pianos:
Op.1 - Albumblätter, 12 Characterpieces (Breitkopf & Härtel, 1880)
Op.3 - Gavotte (Zumsteeg, 1883) (copy @ St Pancras)
Op.4 - 7 Characterpieces for piano (Zumsteeg, 1886) (copy @ Pancras, British Lib)'
Op.5 - Vier Stücke in Tanz-Form (Zumsteeg, 1886) (copy @ St Pancras)
Op.7 - 5 Piano Pieces (Bote & Bock , 1888)
Op.8 - Variations on an original (his own, that is) theme (Protze of Leipzig, 1889). U. Edinburgh has a copy.
Op.13 - Weihnachtsbilder. Leichte Klavierstücke f. die Jugend (Protze, 1889)
Op.14 - Variations and fugue for 2 pianos (Protze, 1891). (Mecklenburgische Landesbibliothek Schwerin has a copy.)
Op.16. Quatre Morceaux p. Piano. (Protze, 1891)
Op.17. Suite im alten Styl. (Protze, 1891) (U. Edinburgh has a copy.) (Opp.13, 16, 17: see HMB 1891 Dec., p.536. Op.13 also appears HMB 1890, p.13 (Jan.1890, so 1889 pub.)
Op.20 Waltzes for Piano Duet (Rebay & Robitschek, 1894)
Op.21 Suite champêtre for 2 pianos (Robitschek, 1896)
Op.22 6 Bagatelles for Piano (Leipzig, Robitschek, 1896)
Op.23. Bal à la Cour (suite for piano duet) (Leipzig, Robitschek, 1897)
Op.24 Trois Valses caractéristiques p. Piano  (Leipzig, Robitschek, 1897) (copy @ SLUB Dresden)
Op.25 Quatre Morceaux lyriques p. Piano. (Robitschek, 1897)
Op.26 Sechs leichte Stücke f. die Jugend f. Pfte. (Robitschek, 1900)
Op.27 Miscellen, 4 Klavierstücke (Robitschek, 1900)
Op.28 Ballade in G (Robitschek, 1900)
Op.32 Scherzo for 2 pianos (Forberg, 1909)

For violin & piano:
Op.15. Romance & Scherzo. (Protze, 1891.)

Lieder, Songs:
Op.9 6 Lieder (Protze, 1889) (a few copies at libraries)
Op.10 Liebes-Idylle. Cyklus v. 10 Gedichten (Protze, 1891) (Opp.10,11,12,18: see HMB 1891 Dec., p.557.)
Op.11 4 Lieder for Alto & Piano (Protze, 1891)
Op.12 8 Lieder v. M. Kalbeck f. 1 hohe Singst. m. Pfte. (Protze, 1891)
Op.18 6 Lieder f. 1 Singst. m. Pfte (Protze, 1891)
Maybe ? a relative of Anton Rée, whose compositions are also much listed in HMB before his?

(Of course, more material may be in sources orthogonal (not the right word...) to HMB, e.g. Bibliographie de la France, Musical Times, &c&c&c&c...- and manuscripts might also be in family or university(?) papers as often happens with composers... worth a look if not already done though I suppose already done...)

[thalbergmad]

The nice BSB people (or whatever they are called)  have recently digitalised 10 original works which might allow for an appraisal of this composer.

I have had a quick dash through a valse caprice, but it is of amateur craft. Victorian girls piano book stuff.

Thal

[Mark Thomas]

Victorian girls piano book stuff

Now, that's what I call a put down, Mike!

[Wheesht]

On a recent trip to Vienna I was able to look into Rée in some more detail. He was indeed related to Anton Rée (1820-1886), they were cousins.
The Austrian National Library has two copies of an undated small book entitled Louis und Susanne Rée, published by 'Concertdirection Hermann Wolff' in Berlin about 1898. It consists mostly of (extracts of) concert reviews from various newspapers, and one copy also contains a list of works published up to that time.

It would appear that, certainly as performers, Susanne and Louis Rée were highly regarded in their time, with her clearly seen as the truly great virtuoso. The reviews collected in that book are consistently good, often from major newspapers and journals of the time such as the 'Prager Tagblatt' and the 'Neue Zeitschrift für Musik'.

The following of his compositions are especially highlighted and praised: Op. 14 Variations and Fugue on an original theme for two pianos ('a work of great importance for the repertoire'), Op.17. Suite im alten Styl ('charming'), Op. 21 'Suite champêtre', as well as the Piano Concerto ('the third movement alone will secure the composer a place of honour among composers of renown').
In a concert at the Grosser Musikvereinssaal on 9 March 1925 the Wiener Sinfoniker, conducted by Rudolf Nilius, played the premiere of Rée's Suite for Large Orchestra 'Auf dem Lande', and in April 1934 the couple, who had a repertoire of between 80 and 100 pieces and played everything by heart, gave their 1000th concerto. This included one more new piece by Louis Rée, the tone poem 'Im Prater' which apparently showed how very Viennese the Scot Rée and his Prague-born wife had become by then.