ON THIS DAY

Austrian Violinist Willi Boskovsky Died in 1991

April 21, 2021

2 MIN READ

He is best remembered as the long-standing conductor of the Vienna New Year's Concert

Austrian violinist and conductor Willi Boskovsky died on this day in 1991 at the age of 81.

Born in Vienna, Boskovsky enrolled in the Vienna Academy of Music at just nine years old. He served as concertmaster of the Vienna Philharmonic from 1939 to 1971 and became conductor of the Vienna New Year's Concert in 1955, focusing primarily on the works of Johann Strauss II and his contemporaries.

Boskovsky also led the Wiener Johann Strauss Orchester until his passing. Before his death in Visp, Switzerland, Boskovsky led the Boskovsky Quartet and the Vienna Octet, showcasing his mastery in chamber music.

As a Mozart expert, he recorded numerous pieces, including all the violin and piano sonatas with Lili Kraus, and the complete trios for violin, piano, and cello with Kraus and Nikolaus Hübner.

Boskovsky's musical legacy also includes notable performances such as the Brahms' Double Concerto in A minor, Op.102, conducted by Wilhelm Furtwängler, and prominent violin solos in orchestral works like Richard Strauss' Ein Heldenleben under Clemens Krauss's baton.

Despite plans to conduct again in 1980, a stroke in January 1979 forced him to step down, leading to Lorin Maazel's appointment to continue the tradition of the New Year's Concerts.