[Kubelik, Jan. (1880–1940)] Drdla, Franz [Frantisek Alois]. (1868-1944)
Serenade No. 1 (A dur) ("célèbre Kubelik-Serenade")
Trieste: Schmidl & Co.. [after 1905]. Thirteenth edition. An attractive score for violin and piano, a tribute from one Czech violinist to another. Piano score and violin part. Upright folio. 13.5 x 10.5 inches (34.4 x 26.3 cm). [PN] C.Sch. 3484 Co. Unusual pagination: violin part to inside of wrapper, paginated "2" and "3"; piano score lot a bifolium laid in loosely and paginated "3" to "6." Decorative title incorporating a portrait of Czech violinist and composer Jan Kubelík, to whom the composition is also dedicated. Handstamp of Th. Henkel's Musikhandlung, Frankfurt, to foot of title. Lower outer corner bumped and stained, else in fine condition.Drdla, himself a violinist, achieved some fame in the early twentieth century. "Maybe the most popular [of his compositions] was his Serenade, dedicated to Jan Kubelík" (Czech Wikipedia). The large number of editions suggests that this composition sold well. Young Jan Kubelík enjoyed stardom on both sides of the Atlantic and probably contributed to the dissemination of the work. The first edition (same plates, but different PN) dates to about 1903 according to IMSLP; the copyright note to the title ("Copyright 1905 by Friedrich Hofmeister in Leipzig") establishes the earliest possible date of the present edition, but a thirteenth edition will of course be more recent. The publishing house of Carlo Schmidl in Trieste existed from 1889 and became an imprint of Ricordi in 1902. (21777)
Printed Music Classical Music