JAVS Spring 2014

L’A LTISTE O UBLIÉ : A S HORT H ISTORY OF T HÉOPHILE L AFORGE AND THE E STABLISHMENT AND I NFLUENCE OF THE V IOLA S TUDIO AT THE C ONSERVATOIRE DE P ARIS

Conservatoire de Paris, 1911(unless otherwise indicated, all images courtesy of the Bibliothèque nationale de France)

played a prominent role in the founding of the viola studio at the Conservatoire de Paris and encouraged the creation of compositions for the instrument. Despite this significance, relatively little has been written about Laforge or the influence of the French school on the rising prominence of the viola.

by Nora Hamme

Credit for the rise of the modern viola is often given to Lionel Tertis and William Primrose. However, before these famous violists came along, many other notable European musicians, including Hermann Ritter, Oskar Nedbal, and Théophile Laforge, had begun a wave of interest in the viola, specializing in and promoting it as a solo instrument. 1 Laforge

The Conservatoire de Paris was originally established as two separate institutions. The École royale de

V OLUME 30 NUMBER 1 21