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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Short description|German composer (1838–1920)}}
{{Infobox classical composer
| name          = Max Bruch
| image         = [[Image:Max bruch.jpg|200px]]
| caption       =
| birth_date    = {{Birth date|1838|01|06|df=y}}
| birth_place   = [[Cologne]], Prussia
| death_date    = {{Death date and age|1920|10|02|1838|01|06|df=y}}
| death_place   = [[Berlin-Friedenau]], Germany
| era           = Late Romantic
| list_of_works = [[List of compositions by Max Bruch|List of compositions]]
| spouse        = {{marriage|Clara Tuczek|1881|1919|end=died}}
| signature     = Signature Max Bruch.png
}}
[[File:Max Bruch 1920.jpg|thumb|Max Bruch in c. 1920]]
'''Max Bruch'''{{efn|In the literature his full name appears either as ''Max '''Christian Friedrich''' Bruch'' or ''Max '''Karl August''' Bruch''}} (6 January 1838 – 2 October 1920) was a German [[Romantic Music|Romantic]] composer, violinist, teacher, and conductor who wrote more than 200 works, including three [[violin concerto]]s, the first of which has become a staple of the violin repertoire.

== Early life and education ==
Max Bruch was born in 1838 in [[Cologne]] to Wilhelmine ({{Nee|Almenräder}}), a singer, and August Carl Friedrich Bruch, an attorney who became vice president of the Cologne police. Max had a sister, Mathilde ("Till").{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=15}} He received his early musical training under the composer and pianist [[Ferdinand Hiller]], to whom [[Robert Schumann]] dedicated his [[Piano Concerto (Schumann)|Piano Concerto in A minor]]. The [[Bohemia]]n composer and piano virtuoso [[Ignaz Moscheles]] recognized Bruch's aptitude.{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=25}}

At the age of nine, Bruch wrote his first composition, a song for his mother's birthday. From then on, music was his passion. His studies were enthusiastically supported by his parents. His many early works included motets, psalm settings, piano pieces, violin sonatas, a string quartet, and even orchestral works such as the prelude to a planned opera, ''Joan of Arc''. Few of these early works have survived.{{cn|date=October 2023}}

Bruch's first music theory lesson was in 1849 in [[Bonn]]. It was given by Professor [[Heinrich Carl Breidenstein]], a friend of his father's. At this time, Bruch was staying at an estate in [[Bergisch Gladbach]], where he wrote much of his music. The farm belonged to an attorney and notary named Neissen, who lived there with his unmarried sister. Later, the estate was bought by the Zanders family, who owned a large [[paper mill]]. In later years, {{Ill|Maria Zanders|de||lt=|WD=}} became a friend and patron to Bruch.{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=98}}

The young Bruch was taught French and English conversation by his father, who was very wealthy.

== Career ==
After briefly studying philosophy and art in [[Bonn]] (1859), Bruch had a long career as a teacher, conductor, and composer, moving among musical posts in Germany: [[Mannheim]] (1862–1864), [[Koblenz]] (1865–1867), [[Sondershausen]] (1867–1870), [[Berlin]] (1870–1872), and [[Bonn]], where he spent 1873–78 working privately. At the height of his career he spent three seasons as conductor of the [[Royal Liverpool Philharmonic|Liverpool Philharmonic Society]] (1880–83).

He taught composition at the [[Berlin University of the Arts|Berlin Hochschule für Musik]] from 1890 until his retirement in 1910. His notable students included the Italian composer [[Ottorino Respighi]], American pianist [[Rudolph Reuter]], and the German pianist, composer, and writer [[Clara Mathilda Faisst]] (1872–1948). ''{{See LMST|Max|Bruch}}''[[File:Bruch-tomb.JPG|thumb|Bruch's grave, at the [[Alter St.-Matthäus-Kirchhof|Old St. Matthäus churchyard]] at Berlin-[[Schöneberg]]]]

== Personal life and final years ==
Bruch married Clara Tuczek, a singer whom he had met on tour in Berlin, on 3 January 1881. She is believed to have been born on 15 February 1854 and thus 26 at the time of the marriage;<ref>{{cite web | title=Philippine Clara Marie Tuczek (1854–1919) | website=FamilySearch.org | url=https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KCFJ-2XT/philippine-clara-marie-tuczek-1854-1919 | access-date=2025-08-05}}</ref> some sources suggest she was 16.{{By whom|date=August 2025}} She belonged to a musical family; her sister was composer [[Felicia Tuczek]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hixon, Donald L. |first=Hennesse, Don A. |title=Women in Music: An Encyclopedic Bibliography |publisher=Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press |year=1993 |isbn=0810827697 |edition=2nd |language=English}}</ref> The couple returned to Liverpool where Bruch was conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic Society (1880–83) and took lodgings in the [[Sefton Park]] area. Their daughter, Margaretha, who later became a noted author and champion of her father's life and works, was born in Liverpool in 1882. Their first son, Max Felix Bruch, was born on 31 May 1884 in Breslau and showed great aptitude for music at an early age. They had two further sons, Hans and Ewald.<ref>{{cite web | title=Why was composer Max Bruch considered "humorless, arrogant, egotistical"? | website=Interlude | date=2020-10-21 | url=https://interlude.hk/max-bruch-and-clara-tuczek/#:~:text=Max%20and%20Clara%20had%20two,at%20the%20age%20of%2026 | access-date=2025-08-05}}</ref> Of the four children, only Max Jr. and Ewald married, but neither had children of their own, and so Bruch's direct family line ended with Ewald's death in 1974.

== Death ==
Bruch died in his home in Berlin-[[Friedenau]] in 1920. He was buried next to his wife Clara, who had died on 26 August 1919, at the [[Alter St.-Matthäus-Kirchhof|Old St. Matthäus churchyard]] at Berlin-[[Schöneberg]]. Margaretha Bruch later had carved on the gravestone, "Music is the language of God."{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=287}}

== Works ==

{{Main|List of compositions by Max Bruch}}

[[File:Rathausturm Köln - Max Bruch.jpg|thumb|Sculpture of Bruch on the restored tower of the [[Cologne City Hall]]]]

Bruch's complex and well-structured works in the German Romantic musical tradition placed him in the camp of Romantic classicism exemplified by [[Johannes Brahms]], rather than the opposing "[[New German School|New Music]]" of [[Franz Liszt]] and [[Richard Wagner]]. In his time, Bruch was known primarily as a [[Choir|choral]] composer and often, to his chagrin, was overshadowed by his friend Brahms, who was more popular and widely regarded.

Today, as it was during his life, Bruch's [[Violin Concerto No. 1 (Bruch)|Violin Concerto No. 1, in G minor]], Op. 26 (1866) is one of the most popular Romantic violin concertos. It uses several techniques from [[Felix Mendelssohn]]'s [[Violin Concerto (Mendelssohn)|Violin Concerto in E minor]], including the linking of movements, as well as omitting the [[Classical period (music)|Classical]] opening orchestral exposition and other conservative formal structural devices of earlier concertos. [[Joseph Joachim]] was the main person he referred to while composing and developing his concerto, and it was Joachim's revisions that made it to the final, published version of the piece.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fifield |first=Christopher |title=Max Bruch: his life and works |publisher=New York : G. Braziller |year=1988 |isbn=0807612049 |language=English}}</ref> Despite these modifications to the conventional Romantic style, Bruch often was considered a conservative composer. 

The two other works of Bruch that still are widely played, also were written for solo string instrument with orchestra: the ''[[Scottish Fantasy]]'' for violin and orchestra, which includes an arrangement of the tune "Hey Tuttie Tatie", best known for its use in the song "[[Scots Wha Hae]]" by [[Robert Burns]]; and the ''[[Kol Nidrei (Bruch)|Kol Nidrei]]'', Op. 47, for cello and orchestra (subtitled "Adagio on Hebrew Melodies for Violoncello and Orchestra"), which begins and ends with the solo cello's setting of the [[Kol Nidre]] ("All Vows ... ") incantation that opens the Jewish ([[Ashkenazic]]) [[Yom Kippur]] service. This work may well have inspired [[Ernest Bloch]]'s ''[[Schelomo]]'' (subtitled "Hebrew Rhapsody") of 1916, an even more passionate and extended one-movement composition, also with a Jewish subject and also for solo cello and orchestra.

The success of ''Kol Nidrei'' led to an assumption by many that Bruch was of Jewish ancestry, although Bruch himself denied this<ref>{{Cite web |author=Pinson, H. |title=Book Review of "Famous Musicians of Jewish Origin" |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4464925?read-now=1&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents |access-date=2025-11-05 |website=[[JSTOR]] ([[Jewish Social Studies]], Vol. 12, No. 4 (Oct., 1950), pp. 408-409) |date=Oct 1950 }} "Although Max Bruch formally denied being Jewish he is included here, presumably because of his ''Kol Nidrei''. (Does this same composer's ''Scottish Fantasy'' commit him to Scottish lineage?)"</ref> and there is no evidence that he was Jewish. As far as can be ascertained, none of his ancestors were Jews. Bruch was given the middle name Christian{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=15}} and was raised [[Protestant]].{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=109}} On one occasion he was even recorded making an [[antisemitic]] comment in the wake of Germany's defeat in [[World War I]].{{sfn|Fifield|2005|p=318}} Ironically, despite repeated denials by Bruch's surviving family, so long as the [[Nazi Party]] was in power (1933–1945), performance of his music was restricted because he was considered a "possible Jew" for having written music with an openly Jewish theme. As a result, his music was largely forgotten in German-speaking countries.

In the realm of [[chamber music]], Bruch is not well known, although his "Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano" are occasionally revived, there being very little other music written for this rare combination of instruments. As with Brahms and Weber who produced clarinet compositions with a particular clarinetist in mind, so did Bruch write these trios for a particular clarinettist, his own son Max. He also wrote many other pieces in the chamber music tradition, of which his septet is noteworthy. His first major chamber pieces, composed at the start of his career, are two string quartets that are similar in tone and intensity to Schumann's string quartets (Op. 41). The composition of his second piano quintet is intriguing, as he began the composition while conductor of the [[Liverpool Philharmonic Society]]. Although written for amateurs, it is a fair composition and was completed only after Bruch, having left Liverpool, was gently persuaded to finish the last movement.

[[Sir Donald Tovey]] wrote "I find myself entirely in agreement with the writer of the article in Grove's ''Dictionary'' who says that Bruch's greatest mastery lies in the treatment of chorus and orchestra."<ref>Donald Francis Tovey, ''Essays in Musical Analysis'', vol. 3, Oxford University Press (1936)</ref> Tovey went on to praise in particular ''Odysseus: Szenen aus der Odyssee''<ref> ''Cf.'' [[Odysseus (oratorio)]]</ref> (''Odysseus: Scenes from [[The Odyssey]]''), op. 41, for chorus, soloists and orchestra,<ref> Recorded on Koch Schwann, 3-6557-2, in 1997</ref> and a Kyrie and Sanctus.

[[File:Bruch und Zanders.jpg|thumb|Memorial for Bruch and {{Ill|Maria Zanders|de||lt=|WD=}} in the pedestrian zone of [[Bergisch Gladbach]] city centre]]
In 1918, toward the end of his life, Bruch once more considered smaller ensembles with the composition of two string quintets, of which one served as the basis for [[Octet (Bruch)|a string octet]], written in 1920 for four violins, two violas, cello, and a double bass. This octet is somewhat at odds with the innovative style of the decade. While composers such as [[Arnold Schoenberg|Schönberg]] and [[Stravinsky]] were part of the forward-looking modern trend, Bruch and others tried to keep composing within the Romantic tradition, avoiding the revolutionary spirit of the era. All three of these late chamber works exhibit a '[[concertante]]' style in which the first violin part is predominant and contains much of the musical interest. By the time they came to be performed professionally for the first time, in the 1930s, Bruch's reputation had deteriorated and he was known only for the famous Concerto.<ref>Tully Potter, notes to [[Hyperion Records]] CD CDA68168 (2017).</ref>

Bruch's other works include his two less well-known concerti for violin and orchestra, [[Violin Concerto No. 2 (Bruch)|No. 2 in D minor]] (1878) and [[Violin Concerto No. 3 (Bruch)|No. 3 in D minor]] (1891) (which Bruch regarded as at least as fine as the famous first); as well as a [[Concerto for Clarinet, Viola, and Orchestra]], and many more pieces for violin, viola, or cello, and orchestra. His three symphonies contain distinctive German Romantic melodic writing that is orchestrated effectively.

To this output he added three orchestral suites in later life, of which the third has a remarkable history. Its origin can be found in [[Capri]], where Bruch had witnessed a procession in which a tune was played on a tuba that "could very well be the basis of a funeral march", and would be the basis of this suite, that he finished in 1909. The American Sutro sisters piano duo, [[Rose and Ottilie Sutro]], however, had asked Bruch for a concerto specifically for them, which he produced by arranging this suite into a double piano concerto, but only to be played within the Americas and not beyond. The [[Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra (Bruch)|Concerto in A flat minor for Two Pianos and Orchestra]], Op. 88a, was finished in 1912 for the Sutros, but was never played in the original version. They performed the work only twice, in two different versions of their own. The score was withdrawn in 1917 and rediscovered only after Ottilie Sutro's death in 1970. The sisters also played a major part in the fate of the manuscript of the Violin Concerto No. 1: Bruch had sent it to them to be sold in the United States, but they kept it and sold it only for their own profit.

Violinists [[Joseph Joachim]] and [[Willy Hess (violinist)|Willy Hess]] advised Bruch on his writing for that instrument, and Hess premiered some of his works, including the ''Concert Piece for Violin and Orchestra'', Op. 84, which was composed for him.

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

=== Sources ===
* {{cite book|first=Christopher|last=Fifield |author-link= Christopher Fifield |year=2005|title=Max Bruch: His Life and Works |publisher=[[Boydell Press]]|location=Woodbridge |isbn=1-8438-3136-8}}
* [[Fifield, Christopher]] (1988). ''Max Bruch: His Life and Works.'' New York : [[G. Braziller]]. ISBN 0-8076-1204-9. 

== Further reading ==
* {{NDB|2|641|642|Bruch, Max Karl August|Alfons Ott|118674501}}
* {{cite book |first=J.A. |last=Fuller Maitland |author-link=John Alexander Fuller Maitland |year=1894 |chapter=Max Bruch |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/mastersofgermanm00full/page/n119 |title=Masters of German Music |publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons |location=New York |oclc=1333984}}
<!-- * Matthias Falke: ''Die Symphonie zwischen Schumann und Brahms.'' Studien zu Max Bruch und Robert Volkmann. Berlin 2006, ISBN 978-3-936637-09-0.
* Karl-Gustav Fellerer: ''Max Bruch (1838–1920).'' In: Rheinische Lebensbilder, Band 5. Hrsg. von [[Bernhard Poll]]. Rheinland Verlag, Köln 1973, S. 175–190.
* Ders.: ''Max Bruch 1838–1920.'' In: ''Beiträge zur Rheinischen Musikgeschichte.'' Heft 103, Köln 1974.
* Ders.: ''Max Bruch, Biographie eines Komponisten.'' Aus d. Engl. von Renate Maria Wendel, Zürich 1990, ISBN 3-7263-6616-4.
* D. Kämper (Hrsg.): ''Max-Bruch-Studien. Zum 50. Todestag des Komponisten.'' Köln 1970, In: ''Beiträge zur rheinischen Musikgeschichte.'' Heft 87.
* Hildegard Neuhauser: ''Musikpflege in Bergisch Gladbach im 19. Jahrhundert – die Unternehmerin Maria Zanders und der Komponist Max Bruch.'' Fernwald 2004, ISBN 3-929379-12-0.
* Dies. (Hrsg.): ''Noch eines, lieber Freund!…'' Briefe des rheinischen Komponisten Max Bruch an den Kaiserlichen Musikdirektor Arnold Kroegel in Köln (1900–1920). mbv, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-86664-384-0.
* Magdalene Christ, Albert Eßer: ''Bergisch Gladbach – Ein Ort für Max Bruch.'' Begleitbroschüre zur gleichnamigen Ausstellung im Rahmen des Max-Bruch-Musik-Festivals mit Exponaten aus dem Stadtarchiv Bergisch Gladbach und dem Max-Bruch-Archiv in der Stiftung Zanders vom 13.10.–17. November 2013, Bergisch Gladbach 2013. -->

== External links ==
{{cc}}
{{Wikisource1911Enc|Bruch, Max}}
* {{IMSLP|id=Bruch%2C_Max|cname=Max Bruch}}
* {{ChoralWiki}}
* [http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/bruch.html Recommended recordings of Bruch's music] from Classical Net
* [{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=q7108/biography|pure_url=yes}} Max Bruch] on the [[AllMusic]] website
* [http://www.chazzanut.com/bruch.html Background information on Bruch's arrangement of ''Kol Nidrei''] from Chazzanut Online
* Thomas Wood's [https://web.archive.org/web/20071230102156/http://www.wooster.edu/music/twood/bruchcatalog.html Max Bruch Home Page] (with a link to a bibliography an unreferenced catalogue of works by opus number)
* [http://www.mutopiaproject.org/cgibin/make-table.cgi?Composer=BruchM Free scores] [[Mutopia Project]]

{{Max Bruch}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruch, Max}}
[[Category:1838 births]]
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[[Category:Musicians from the Rhine Province]]
[[Category:19th-century German classical composers]]
[[Category:19th-century German conductors (music)]]
[[Category:German string quartet composers]]
[[Category:20th-century German classical composers]]
[[Category:20th-century German conductors (music)]]
[[Category:20th-century German male musicians]]
[[Category:Child classical musicians]]
[[Category:German expatriates in England]]
[[Category:German male classical composers]]
[[Category:German male conductors (music)]]
[[Category:German Romantic composers]]
[[Category:Pupils of Carl Reinecke]]
[[Category:Honorary members of the Royal Philharmonic Society]]
[[Category:Musicians from Cologne]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class)]]
[[Category:People from Tempelhof-Schöneberg]]
[[Category:Composers for clarinet]]
[[Category:Principal conductors of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic]]
[[Category:Composers for viola]]