Eugenia Argiewicz Explained

Eugenia Argiewicz
Other Names:Eugenie Argiewicz, Eugenia Argiewicz Bem, Eugenia Bem, Genia Bem
Birth Date:16 June 1887
Birth Place:Warsaw
Death Date:March 1969
Death Place:San Francisco
Nationality:Polish, American
Occupation:Violinist

Eugenia Argiewicz (16 June 1887 – March 1969), later Eugenia Argiewicz Bem, was a Polish violinist based in San Francisco, California for much of her career.

Early life

Eugenia Argiewicz was born in Warsaw. Her father sold military uniforms. She started studying music as a small child, and trained with violinist Eugène Ysaÿe in Brussels.[1] Her brother Artur Argiewicz was also a noted violinist,[2] [3] [4] and they sometimes performed together.[5] Artur and their mother also moved to San Francisco.[6] Another brother, Bernard, was a professional cellist based in Detroit and Philadelphia.[7]

Career

Argiewicz performed in major European cities as a girl.[8] She moved to the United States in the 1910s. She was a soloist with the Seattle Symphony,[9] In 1917 she accompanied British cellist May Mukle when she performed in Sacramento,[10] and in the 1924–1925 season she played violin in the San Francisco Symphony.[11] [12] "Mme. Bem is intense and emotional," commented one Los Angeles reviewer in 1918, "but plays with a musicianly manner and her style is fresh and invigorating."[13]

Argiewicz and her husband led the Stanislas Bem Little Orchestra, which performed at San Francisco's Whitcomb Hotel; they were among the first musicians to perform on KFRC radio when it began broadcasting in 1924, from the roof of the same hotel. They also played in a chamber trio with pianist Vladimir Shavitch,[14] until she was replaced in 1918.[15] She also played ragtime music.[16]

Personal life

Eugenia Argiewicz married cellist Stanisław Bem in 1915, in San Francisco. They had a daughter, Vanda (1920-2008), who became a concert pianist and music educator.[17] Eugenia Argiewicz Bem was widowed in 1956,[18] and died in 1969, in San Francisco, aged 82 years. Her granddaughter Gail Colman married San Francisco-based Spanish graphic artist Victor Moscoso.[19] Eugenia Bem's great-grandson Justin "Justo" Moscoso ran for a seat in Congress in 2000, as the Green Party candidate.[20]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Argiewicz Eugenia. Virtual Shtetl. 2020-05-14.
  2. Book: Miller, Leta E.. Music and Politics in San Francisco: From the 1906 Quake to the Second World War. 2012. University of California Press. 978-0-520-26891-3. 61–62, 111. en.
  3. News: 1966-05-11. Violinist Argiewiz dies at 85. 4. Daily Independent Journal. 2020-05-14. Newspapers.com.
  4. Web site: Stradivari. Antonio. 1718. Property. 2020-09-24. Tarisio. en-US.
  5. News: 1926-02-14. Argiewicz to Give Recital. 50. The San Francisco Examiner. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  6. News: 1922-12-09. Son Refuses to Assist Mother, 70, and Helpless. 13. Oakland Tribune. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  7. News: 1955-12-09. B. I. Argiewicz, Musician, Dies. 12. The Philadelphia Inquirer. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  8. News: 1928-02-25. Violinist Acclaimed Abroad Coming Here. 14. The Sacramento Bee. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  9. Book: Hunt, Rockwell Dennis. California and Californians. 1932. Lewis Publishing Company. 496–497. en.
  10. News: Smith. Oenone. 1917-05-07. Saturday Club's Program Warmly Greeted. 16. The Sacramento Bee. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  11. Web site: A Listing of All the Musicians of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra from its Founding in 1911. Stokowski. 2020-05-14.
  12. Book: Rothe, Larry. Music for a City Music for the World: 100 Years with the San Francisco Symphony. 2011-07-22. Chronicle Books. 978-1-4521-1024-0. 53. en.
  13. May 4, 1918. Mme. Bem's Los Angeles Success. Pacific Coast Musical Review. 34. 4.
  14. August 24, 1918. Shavitch-Argiewicz-Bem Trio. Pacific Coast Musical Review. 34. 6.
  15. News: 1918-09-22. Trio Makes Change in Personnel. 68. The San Francisco Examiner. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  16. News: 1915-01-10. Calling Violinist Names. 29. The Spokesman-Review. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  17. News: October 21, 2008. Vanda B. Colman. Marin Independent Journal.
  18. News: 1956-12-12. Last Rites Held for Stanislas Bem, 68. 55. The San Francisco Examiner. 2020-05-15. Newspapers.com.
  19. Web site: Victor Moscoso had to unlearn what he'd learned in art school. Whiting. Sam. 2017-03-10. San Francisco Chronicle. en-US. 2020-05-15.
  20. Web site: Voter Information for Justin "Justo" Moscoso. League of Women Voters. 2020-05-15.

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