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57-558: When the RBPF was first established it was with a complement of 19 serving Policemen. At that time they wore regulation police uniforms, and their selection was due to the love for music and the knowledge of the art. The first Bandmaster was Capt. Willocks who came to the Island with the 2nd. Battalion of the West Riding Regiment, as its Bandmaster. In 1914, Sergeant Major Emmanuel Bennernagel of

114-723: A bang!” said Szell, who was named Music Director and Conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra in January 1946. “People talk about the New York, the Boston, and the Philadelphia. Now they will talk about the New York, the Boston, the Philadelphia, and the Cleveland.” However, Szell's time in Cleveland began during a period of unrest and uncertainty. The Orchestra's previous music director, Erich Leinsdorf , had temporarily vacated his post after being drafted into

171-453: A certain passage. In 1915, at the age of 18, Szell won an appointment with Berlin's Royal Court Opera (now known as the Staatsoper ). There, he was befriended by its Music Director, Richard Strauss . Strauss instantly recognized Szell's talent and was particularly impressed with how well the teenager conducted Strauss's music. Strauss once said that he could die a happy man knowing that there

228-406: A diminuendo. Everybody was a little bit shocked that I had played it as loudly as I did. But Szell, true to his word, looked away, didn't look at me once and I didn't look at him under the circumstances. Szell's reputation as a perfectionist was well-known, and his knowledge of instruments was deep. The Cleveland trumpeter Bernard Adelstein recounted Szell's knowledge of the trumpet: He knew all

285-528: A director of music at a cathedral, particularly in England). The title of "music director" or "musical director" is used by many symphony orchestras to designate the primary conductor and artistic leader of the orchestra. The term "music director" is most common for orchestras in the United States. With European orchestras, the titles of "principal conductor" or "chief conductor" are more common, which designate

342-472: A few hours each per week, and most stations have a diverse and extensive library of several different music genres . In the British Armed Forces , a director of music is a commissioned officer , always a musician commissioned from the ranks, who leads a military band. A non-commissioned officer or warrant officer who leads a band is called a bandmaster . In pop music, a musical director or "MD"

399-566: A hall with acoustics worthy of your great art," said Leopold Stokowski , former conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra . "In the hall the music was dry and half dead-sounding." Although plywood was later added to the hall, further changes were still required to achieve Szell's desired tone. As early as the 1955-56 season, Szell recognized the need for an outdoor venue at which the Orchestra would host summer concerts and programs. During

456-403: A live setting (which may or may not include playback of prerecorded tracks). The music director generally leads rehearsals as well as each performance, allowing the lead artist to focus on performing. Generalmusikdirektor (GMD, general music director) is a German title for the artistic director of an orchestra , an institution or a town. A music director (Latin: director musices )

513-582: A major influence on his conducting style. Much of Szell's baton technique, the Cleveland Orchestra's lean, transparent sound and Szell's willingness to be an orchestra builder, were influenced by Strauss. The two remained friends after Szell left the Royal Court Opera in 1919; even after World War II, when Szell had settled in the United States , Strauss kept track of how his protégé was doing. In

570-557: A new stage — the Szell Shell — that surrounded the musicians and projected their tone in a different way, eliminating “dryness” and providing clearer-sounding strings. In July 1968, the Orchestra opened its new summer home, Blossom Music Center , about 25 miles south of Cleveland, providing Szell and his musicians with year-round employment. Two years later, in May 1970, the Orchestra continued to advance its reputation internationally by touring to

627-412: A radio station, the person in charge of musical activities or the head of the music department in a school, the coordinator of the musical ensembles in a university, college, or institution (but not usually the head of the academic music department), the head bandmaster of a military band, the head organist and choirmaster of a church, or an organist and master of the choristers (the title given to

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684-509: A result, the Orchestra traveled to Europe in the spring of 1957, with stops in Antwerp, Brussels, and behind the Iron Curtain. The tour was a success, bringing the Orchestra worldwide acclaim and instilling a sense of pride in the citizens of Cleveland. The next decade or so was a busy and fruitful time for Szell and the Orchestra. By the 1958-59 season, acoustic renovations had been completed on

741-611: A symphony orchestra and the opera. The first person with this title was Gaspare Spontini in Berlin in 1819. Daniel Barenboim has been Generalmusikdirektor of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin from 1992 to 2023. Brass bands , wind bands , choirs , opera companies and other ensembles may also have musical directors. George Szell George Szell ( / ˈ s ɛ l / ; June 7, 1897 – July 30, 1970), originally György Széll , György Endre Szél , or Georg Szell ,

798-410: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Director of Music A music director , musical director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band , the director of music of a film, the director of music at

855-628: Is a flat note on the C-trumpet." I said, "Yes, that's why I play it on one and two." He said, "But one and two is sharp, isn't it?" I said, "Yes, but I make an adjustment, by lengthening the first slide a little bit." And he said, "Ah, yes, but it's still out of tune." Szell primarily conducted works from the core Austro-German classical and romantic repertoire, from Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, through Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Brahms and on to Wagner, Bruckner, Mahler and Strauss. He said once that as he got older he consciously narrowed his repertoire, feeling it

912-583: Is capable of doing that." He said, "Even so, I want you to play the part." I said, "Do you realize how silly that will look, to see me get up from the timpani to go over to the snare drum and then back to the timpani and back to the snare drum at the end?" I said, "It's really uncalled for," or words to that effect. But, he said, "OK, but I want you to play that part. It's very important that we do it just right." I said, "OK, I'll play it for you, but don't you dare look at me." So when I played it, I played it louder than they had played it before so I had more room to make

969-403: Is responsible for supervising the musical arrangements and personnel for a touring artist. This can include festivals and televised performances as well as those at traditional on-stage venues. In the modern era, the sound of a studio recording is often impossible or impractical to reproduce on stage, and it is the music director's job to assemble musicians and arrangements to adapt that material to

1026-405: Is very thin between clarity and coolness, self-discipline and severity. There exist different nuances of warmth — from the chaste warmth of Mozart to the sensuous warmth of Tchaikovsky, from the noble passion of Fidelio to the lascivious passion of Salome . I cannot pour chocolate sauce over asparagus." He further stated: "It is perfectly legitimate to prefer the hectic, the arhythmic,

1083-472: The Berlin Philharmonic at age seventeen. Szell quickly realized that he was never going to make a career out of being a composer or pianist and that he much preferred the artistic control he could achieve as a conductor. He made an unplanned public conducting debut when he was seventeen, while vacationing with his family at a summer resort. The Vienna Symphony's conductor had injured his arm, and Szell

1140-684: The Cleveland Orchestra , once recalled how Szell had insisted that he play the snare drum part in Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra , an instrument which he was not supposed to play. A month after having recorded the concerto in Cleveland (October 1959), it was to be performed at Carnegie Hall , as part of an annual two-week tour of the Eastern United States along with Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 . Szell had begun getting increasingly irritated about

1197-586: The United Kingdom , Virgin Islands , Suriname , St. Kitts , Grenada , Canada and Germany . On 30 November 2021, the band was renamed the Barbados Police Service Band to reflect the transition of Barbados from a monarchy to a republic . This article on a Caribbean band or other musical ensemble is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Barbados -related article

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1254-552: The fingerings on the trumpet. For example, on the C-trumpet, the "E" on the fourth space is played open, with no valve , and it's a flat note. But there are two other options on the C-trumpet. You can play the same note with the first and second valves or the third valve. Both of them sound sharp. The third valve is a little sharp and the first and second valves together sounds even sharper. And he knew that. He called me in once when we were playing an octave in Don Juan . He said, "The 'E'

1311-470: The side drum part in the second movement and by the time they reached New York City , Szell's escalation was going off the scale. "Starting with the one who had played on the recording, Szell tried out each of the staff percussionists on the side drum part. He made them so nervous that, one by one, they all stumbled. Finally Szell turned to timpanist Cloyd Duff." This is the story as Duff tells it: Szell came to me and said to me, "Cloyd I want you to play

1368-638: The British Guiana Militia Band was appointed as Bandmaster, and took it on its first overseas tour to St. Lucia in 1945. He was also responsible for instituting the Band Cadet system of recruitment. Captain Charles E. Raison replaced Sergeant Major Bennernagel in 1946, and since then the band has had a number of Directors of Music which included Lieutenant William Griesley and Lieutenant Joseph Griffith. Since December 2012, Superintendent Keith Ellis has held

1425-695: The Cleveland Orchestra's long association with the composer-conductor Pierre Boulez . After World War II Szell became closely associated with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam , where he was a frequent guest conductor and made a number of recordings. He also regularly appeared with the London Symphony Orchestra , Chicago Symphony Orchestra , the Vienna Philharmonic , and at the Salzburg Festival . From 1942 to 1955, he

1482-580: The Far East, including stops in Japan and Korea. However, Szell's health began to deteriorate. During a concert in Anchorage , Alaska , Szell ceased conducting momentarily and, as cellist Michael Haber recalled, "I felt a chill through my body...I remember thinking something was terribly wrong." Indeed, something was wrong: This was Szell's final performance, and he died on July 30, 1970. Szell's manner in rehearsal

1539-551: The Orchestra in the late 1980s, then-Music Director Christoph von Dohnányi remarked, "We give a great concert, and George Szell gets a great review." György Endre Szél was born in Budapest but grew up in Vienna . His family was of Jewish origin but converted to Catholicism. As a young boy he was taken regularly to Mass . Szell began his formal music training as a pianist, studying with Richard Robert . One of Robert's other students

1596-459: The United States in the middle of the 20th century, following an evolution of titles. Early leaders of orchestras were simply designated as the "conductor." In the 1920s and 1930s, the term musical director began to be used, in order to delineate the fact that the person in this position was doing much more than just conducting, and to differentiate them from guest conductors who simply led one particular program or concert. George Szell , for instance,

1653-511: The armed forces. During Leinsdorf's absence, Szell made his Severance Hall debut — in November 1944 — to glowing reviews. And despite Leinsdorf's impending return, public opinion shifted toward Szell. Following intense negotiations that included granting Szell complete artistic control over personnel, programming, scheduling, and recording, the Orchestra's Board of Trustees appointed him the ensemble's fourth music director. Shortly after accepting

1710-525: The closing decades of the 20th century with the advent and encouragement of more power sharing and cooperative management styles (with the orchestra musicians themselves, the administrative staff, and volunteer board of directors). The music director in American lingo also assists with fund-raising, and also is the primary focus of publicity for the orchestra, as what is often called its "public face". The term "music director" or "musical director" became common in

1767-459: The conductor who directs the majority of a given orchestra's concerts in a season. In musical theatre and opera , the music director is in charge of the overall musical performance, including ensuring that the cast knows the music thoroughly, supervising the musical interpretation of the performers and pit orchestra, and conducting the orchestra. In the 20th century, the title and position typically brought with it an almost unlimited influence over

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1824-402: The credit for the lyrics of the songs. The "music director" for a theatrical production or Broadway or West End musical often serves as rehearsal pianist and conductor. This music director is often also the vocal coach, may also be involved in arranging material for new works, or collaborate on underscoring. There was a Tony Award category for Best Musical Director beginning in 1948, but it

1881-410: The disruptions of World War II . By the time of his death he was credited, to quote the critic Donal Henahan, with having built it into "what many critics regarded as the world's keenest symphonic instrument." Through his recordings, Szell has remained a presence in the classical music world long after his death, and his name remains synonymous with that of the Cleveland Orchestra. While on tour with

1938-767: The fifteen years during and after World War 1, Szell worked with opera houses and orchestras in Europe: in Berlin , Strasbourg — where he succeeded Otto Klemperer at the Municipal Theatre — Prague , Darmstadt , and Düsseldorf , before becoming principal conductor, in 1924, of the Berlin Staatsoper , which had replaced the Royal Opera. In 1923 he conducted the premiere of Hans Gál 's opera Die heilige Ente in Düsseldorf. At

1995-660: The orchestra's players were proud of the musical integrity to which he aspired. Video footage also shows that Szell took care to explain what he wanted and why, expressed delight when the orchestra produced what he was aiming for, and avoided over-rehearsing parts that were in good shape. His left hand, which he used to shape each sound, was often called the most graceful in music. As a result of Szell's exactitude and very thorough rehearsals, some critics (such as Donald Vroon , editor of American Record Guide ) have censured Szell's music-making as lacking emotion. In response to such criticism, Szell expressed this credo: "The borderline

2052-661: The outbreak of war in Europe in 1939, Szell was returning via the U.S. from an Australian tour and ended up settling with his family in New York City . From 1940 to 1945 he taught composition, orchestration, and music theory at the Mannes College of Music in Manhattan; his composition students at Mannes included George Rochberg and Ursula Mamlok . In 1946, Szell became a naturalized U. S. citizen. “A new leaf will be turned over with

2109-421: The particular orchestra's affairs. As implied by the name, the music director not only conducts concerts, but also controls what music the orchestra will perform or record, and has much authority regarding hiring, firing, and other personnel decisions over an orchestra's musicians. Such authoritarian rule, once expected and even thought necessary for a symphonic ensemble to function properly, has loosened somewhat in

2166-451: The position, Szell remarked that he would "dedicate all [his] efforts...to make The Cleveland Orchestra second to none in quality of performance." He devoted much of his energy to exacting his will on his musicians — releasing some and hiring others in an effort to achieve his desired sound. He expected technical perfection and total commitment from musicians during rehearsals and performances. His standards were stringent, his goals lofty: He

2223-606: The post of Director of Music . In 1957 the music of the Barbados National Anthem was re-arranged by Inspector Prince Cave. He gave the Anthem a more sustained harmony while at the same time retaining the original tune. In 2016 for the 50th Anniversary of Independence, Constable Steve Sobers arranged a special descant to the 2nd verse of the anthem. The band today is made up of 54 Officers, men and women, along with 10 band apprentices and tours extensively, visiting countries like

2280-420: The preceding years, summer attendance for Orchestra performances at Cleveland's Public Auditorium had waned and, among the adjustments made to provide employment for the musicians, a series of concerts was played before Cleveland Indians baseball games. Around the same time, Szell determined that the Orchestra needed to embark on its first international tour if it hoped to keep pace with other major symphonies. As

2337-517: The recording (since no more than four minutes of music could fit onto one side of a 78, the music was broken up into four sections). Strauss arrived as Szell was finishing conducting the second part; he exclaimed that what he heard was so good that it could go out under his own name. Strauss went on to record the last two parts, leaving the Szell-conducted half as part of the full world premiere recording of Don Juan. Szell credited Strauss as being

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2394-518: The snare drum part. I remember how you played these things in Philadelphia [over twenty years earlier at the Robin Hood Dell when Szell was guest conductor and Duff was a student at Curtis ]." He had an awfully good memory, he liked my percussion playing. He said, "I want you to play the part," and I really blew my lid. I said, "You're ruining the whole section. Nobody can make a diminuendo to please you because they're so nervous. Every one of those men

2451-566: The term "music director" used to appear in the film credits for a professional hired to supervise and direct the music selected for a film or music documentary , but today the more common designation is music supervisor . In India, where many films are produced as musicals , the term "music director" is commonly used for the composer and music producer of the songs and score used in the film. Their roles also entail arranging, mastering, mixing and supervising recording of film music with conducting and orchestration. Usually, another artist will receive

2508-446: The untidy. But to my mind, great artistry is not disorderliness." He has been described as a "literalist", playing only what is in the score. However, Szell was quite prepared to play music in unconventional ways if he thought the music needed these; and, like most other conductors before and since, he made many small modifications to orchestrations and notes in the works of Beethoven, Schubert and others. Cloyd Duff , timpanist with

2565-402: Was Rudolf Serkin ; Szell and Serkin became lifelong friends and musical collaborators. At the age of eleven, he began touring Europe as a pianist and composer, making his London debut at that age. Newspapers declared him "the next Mozart." Throughout his teenage years he performed with orchestras in this dual role, eventually making appearances as composer, pianist and conductor, as he did with

2622-484: Was "actually my task to do those works which I thought I'm best qualified to do, and for which a certain tradition is disappearing with the disappearance of the great conductors who were my contemporaries and my idols and my unpaid teachers." He did program contemporary music, however; he gave numerous world premieres in Cleveland, and he was particularly associated with such composers as Dutilleux , Walton , Prokofiev , Hindemith and Bartók . Szell also helped initiate

2679-418: Was a Hungarian -born American conductor and composer . Considered one of the twentieth century's greatest conductors, he was music director of the Cleveland Orchestra of Cleveland , Ohio , and recorded much of the standard classical repertoire in Cleveland and with other orchestras. Szell came to Cleveland in 1946 to take over its respected if undersized orchestra, which was struggling to recover from

2736-773: Was an annual guest conductor of the New York Philharmonic and served as Musical Advisor and senior guest conductor of that orchestra in the last year of his life. In 1960 he conducted the Columbia Symphony Orchestra with Robert Casadesus in a recording for Columbia Masterworks of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E flat, K.482 and Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488 (ML 5594, 1960). Szell married twice. The first, in 1920 to Olga Band (1898-1984), another of Richard Robert 's pupils, ended in divorce in 1926. His second marriage, in 1938 to Helene Schultz Teltsch, originally from Prague,

2793-479: Was appointed as "musical director" of the Cleveland Orchestra in 1946, and his position was so named until his death in 1970. His successor, Lorin Maazel , was given the title "music director." Other major American orchestras kept more current with the times and began using the simpler term in the 1950s and 1960s. The term can also refer to the person who directs a school band or heads the music program. Alternatively,

2850-410: Was asked to substitute. Szell quickly turned to conducting full-time. Though he abandoned composing, throughout the rest of his life he occasionally played the piano with chamber ensembles and as an accompanist. Despite his rare appearances as a pianist after his teens, he remained in good form. During his Cleveland years he occasionally would demonstrate to guest pianists how he thought they should play

2907-630: Was cremated, and his ashes were buried, in Sandy Springs, Georgia , along with his wife upon her death in 1991. The British government made Szell an honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1963. Most of Szell's recordings were made with the Cleveland Orchestra for Epic / Columbia Masterworks (now Sony Classical ). He also made recordings with the New York Philharmonic,

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2964-467: Was discontinued in 1964 in part due to the fluid responsibilities of musical directors. A music director of a radio station is responsible for interacting with record company representatives, auditioning new music, offering commentary, and making decisions (sometimes in conjunction with the program director ) as to which songs get airplay, how much and when. In college radio , there may be more than one music director, as students usually volunteer only

3021-552: Was much happier, and lasted until his death. Szell had homes on Park Avenue in New York City and in Shaker Heights , near Cleveland's orchestra hall. When not making music, he was a gourmet cook and an automobile enthusiast. He regularly refused the services of the orchestra's chauffeur and drove his own Cadillac to rehearsal until almost the end of his life. He died from bone-marrow cancer in Cleveland in 1970. His body

3078-600: Was originally the title of the person responsible for music in a town in Germany and Austria. Johann Sebastian Bach was music director in Leipzig , Georg Philipp Telemann and later Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach were music directors in Hamburg , Robert Schumann was music director in Düsseldorf . Generalmusikdirektor is a title given by larger towns to a person typically responsible for

3135-439: Was singularly focused on elevating the Orchestra to new levels of excellence. Not long into his tenure, Szell began making guest appearances in other cities, especially New York, and Cleveland steadily gained a reputation as one of the world's leading ensembles. By the early 1950s, he'd grown concerned about "dry" acoustics at Severance Hall — an issue that had preoccupied him since his arrival in Cleveland. "I only wish you had

3192-402: Was someone who performed his music so perfectly. In fact, Szell ended up conducting part of the world premiere recording of Don Juan for Strauss. The composer had arranged for Szell to rehearse the orchestra for him, but having overslept, showed up an hour late to the recording session. Since the recording session was already paid for, and only Szell was there, Szell conducted the first half of

3249-449: Was that of an autocratic taskmaster. He meticulously prepared for rehearsals and could play the entire score on the piano from memory. Preoccupied with phrasing , transparency, balance and architecture, Szell also insisted upon hitherto unheard-of rhythmic discipline from his players. The result was often a level of precision and ensemble playing normally found only in the best string quartets. For all Szell's absolutist methods, many of

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