Leo Birnbaum; Viola player and youngest founding member of Beecham's LPO who also worked with Vera Lynn and the Beatles
Hyfler/Rosner
Last Updated: 8:35PM BST 04/05/2008
Telegraph
Viola player and youngest founding member of Beecham's LPO
who also worked with Vera Lynn and the Beatles
Birnbaum playing viola with Sir Thomas Beecham's London
Philharmonic during a tour of Germany in 1936
Leo Birnbaum, who died on April 20 aged 97, was for many
years principal viola with the London Philharmonic, and the
last of its founder members; as a freelance he played with
Mantovani, Vera Lynn, Rachmaninov, Perlman, Heifetz, Sinatra
and the Bee Gees and transcribed orchestral arrangements for
the Beatles.
Leo Birnbaum was born in the Caledonian Road, near King's
Cross, in London on February 9 1911 to Polish Jewish parents
who had moved to England some five years earlier. His
father, Abraham, was a fiddle maker and Leo, like his two
elder sisters, was immersed in music from his earliest days.
After school at West Hampstead, he won a scholarship to the
Guildhall, where he studied under Ernest Yonge and switched
from violin to viola. To support himself in the evenings he
played at Gatti's restaurant in the Strand.
In 1932 Ernest Yonge introduced him to Frederick Lawrence,
who was recruiting for Sir Thomas Beecham's new London
Philharmonic Orchestra, and at just 21 Birnbaum became its
youngest founding member. He took part in Beecham's famous
opera season at Covent Garden and continued to study with
Yonge until, in 1936, he moved up to the first viola desk.
Beecham's eccentricities led to some odd moments - as when
he discovered Black Velvets and insisted his orchestra
sample the drink. Birnbaum, unused to drink, fell asleep
during the subsequent rehearsal and woke to find the
conducter and entire orchestra gathered round him laughing.
With the LPO he took part in concerts and recordings with
Kreisler, Heifitz and Rachmaninov, and played to members of
the Royal Family (and Mrs Simpson).
Although Birnbaum was reluctant to tour Germany, Beecham
insisted, and he thus played to Ribbentrop, Goering and
Hitler. Waiting for Hitler to arrive on one occasion,
Beecham - not realising a microphone had been left switched
on - demonstrated his characteristic diplomacy by
complaining: "The old b----r's rather late getting here."
In 1938 Birnbaum resigned from the LPO and briefly joined
the London Symphony Orchestra, before playing with Mantovani
in the band for the West End show Lady Behave, and in 37
wartime recordings, many with Vera Lynn.
Birnbaum then joined the Coldstream Guards with the rank of
"musician". As well as playing in the string band (the task
for which he had really been recruited), he had to learn the
clarinet - over a weekend. He became "last third clarinet".
He freely admitted that his mastery of the instrument was so
incomplete that he would often mime, and that the
bandmaster's idea of entertainment was to call on him for a
B flat for the rest of the band to tune to.
With the string band, however, he played much chamber music
to dignitaries and troops - as well as to the public at the
National Gallery lunchtime concerts. He greatly enjoyed the
camaraderie of the Guards and made several lifelong friends.
After the war he played with many different orchestras,
including appearances at the opening of the Festival Hall
and a tour of America with the Philharmonia in 1955. By the
end of the decade he decided to go entirely freelance and
was much in demand as a perfect sight reader for lucrative
recording work.
This led to occasional deputising with major orchestras
including a tour of the Soviet Union with the Royal
Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra's
seasons at Daytona Beach, Florida. The highlight of the 1968
season was playing with the young Itzak Perlman and Pinchas
Zukerman.
Birnbaum was in the backing orchestra for the Beatles' first
studio recording of Hello Goodbye at Abbey Road studios, and
from 9pm until 2am each night transcribed Paul McCartney's
piano-playing to provide the string parts for the musicians
the next morning.
He was also a regular in Saturday morning children's
concerts at the Festival Hall with Robert Mayer and Ernest
Read.
He retired in 1986 (osteoporosis made playing too painful),
sold his viola (thought to have been a Guanarius, and
previously owned by William Primrose) and took up the piano.
He and his wife bought a flat on Malta, where she had been a
Wren during the war, and made frequent visits to it.
Birnbaum married Brenda Heimann, on the condition that he
change his name to the more English-sounding Birney and that
if things were not working out after seven years they would
divorce. He agreed to both conditions (though he continued
to use Birnbaum as his professional name), and the couple
celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary two days before
his death.
Leo Birnbaum is survived by his wife and their daughter.