He was born in Muhlhausen, Alsace, in 1861. He enjoyed the advantages of instruction under Joachim, in Berlin, after which he continued his studies in Paris, with Massart and Leonard, studying composition with Guiraud. While in Paris he was a member of Pasdeloup's celebrated orchestra, and was afterward appointed first violin and soloist in the private orchestra of Baron Derwies, at Nice, of which orchestra César Thomson was also a member.
In 1880 Mr. Loeffler crossed the Atlantic, and took up his residence in New York, but the following year he was engaged as second concert-master and soloist in the Boston Symphony Orchestra, a position which he has held ever since, and in which he has had opportunity to display his exceptional talents.
As a violinist he plays with largeness of style, boldness of contrast, and exquisite grace. He has a technique equalled by few, and his performances have been confined to music of the highest class. Mr. Loeffler has never made a tour of the country as a virtuoso, but as soloist of the orchestra he has been heard under the best conditions in most of the large cities of the United States, and has shown himself to be a virtuoso in the best sense of the word.
As a composer Mr. Loeffler is distinctly original and imaginative. His works are both poetical and musical, and they display high thought and exceptional knowledge. His compositions include a sextet, a quintet, and an octet, also a suite for violin and orchestra, "Les Veillées de l'Ukraine;" a concerto for violoncello, which has been played by Mr. Alwyn Schroeder; a divertimento for violin and orchestra, and a symphonic poem, "La Mort de Tintagiles." Besides these large works he has written a number of songs, of which five are with viola obligato. These works have been performed by the Kneisel Quartet and the Symphony Orchestra, the solo parts of the suite and divertimento by the composer himself, and they have gained for him a reputation as a gifted and scholarly tone artist.
One of the most promising young violinists of the century was a native of Brazil, Maurice Dengremont, who was born in Rio Janeiro, in 1867. He was the son of a French musician who had settled in Brazil, and who gave him his first lessons to such good effect that, when only eight years of age, he gave a concert, and the Brazilian orchestra was so delighted with his playing that its members presented him with a medal, to which the emperor added an imperial crown, as a recognition of his talent.
He now became a pupil of Leonard, and after three years' study he appeared in many concerts, travelling throughout Europe and England, and being received with enthusiasm. About 1880 he visited America, but his career ended shortly after, as he fell a victim to dissipation.
Dengremont was compared with Sarasate and Wilhelmj, but all that could be said about him was that he might have developed into a player of their rank. As it was, he disappointed his admirers, and died while still quite young.
Of the many violinists who have made their home in the United States there are few whose accomplishments better entitle them to a position among celebrated violinists than Mr. Franz Kneisel.
Mr. Kneisel was called to Boston to fill the position of concert-master of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1885, and has held that place for fourteen years, during which time he has done much toward the cultivation of musical taste in America.
He was born in Roumania, of German parents, in 1865, and gained his musical education at Bucharest and at Vienna, where he studied under Grün and Hellmesberger. He then received the appointment of concert-master of the Hofburg Theatre Orchestra, after which he went to Berlin to fill the same position in Bilse's orchestra, following Halir, Ysaye, and César Thomson.