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56-598: Taipei Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1985 by a group of enthusiastic musicians. It has come a long way under the direction of late American conductor Henry Mazer , who came from Chicago Symphony Orchestra and stayed with TPO for over 18 years. In 1990, TPO undertook their first overseas concert tours to Europe and North America, with performances in France , Belgium , Austria , the United States , and Canada . Franz Endler , one of Vienna's leading music critics, wrote in

112-614: A Special Award for Music Education in 1986 from then-Chicago Mayor Harold Washington . Mazer makes an extended appearance in Sir Yehudi Menuhin's then-widely read autobiography Unfinished Journey. In Taiwan, through "steely strength" the energetic Mazer insisted on walking despite a serious injury and operation that "would have an ordinary person confined to a wheelchair forever." Although Mazer would be survived by several children from his marriage, Mazer lived alone in Taiwan after

168-458: A blonde wig on his bald head that Johnny Carson jokingly presented him. Steinberg's puckish humor was often in evidence, as when he told Time Magazine that he had conceived "something for the New York snobs—an all- Mendelssohn program. This is really the height of snobbishness, the wonderful answer to the question of just what do the snobs need." He said that he spoke four and a half languages –

224-399: A conductor know what he was doing." Armando Ghitalla , distinguished Boston Symphony principal trumpet from 1966 to 1979, said of Steinberg that "his musical taste was one of the finest I've ever heard." Boston Symphony concertmaster Joseph Silverstein said Steinberg was "as sophisticated a musician as I have ever known." Steinberg had a wide range of repertoire, including a sympathy for

280-527: A full-time position elsewhere. In 1968 though he declared, "We are too closely wed, the Pittsburgh Symphony and I, to contemplate any divorce." On another occasion, Steinberg said that conducting had become the profession of a traveling salesman. "A conductor has to stay put to educate an orchestra." However, by 1975, Steinberg was suffering from heart and circulatory ailments and he felt pressured to end his tenure and retired from his Pittsburgh post at

336-414: A glowing sound, a precision of intonation, an absolute unanimity of impulse, and a rare commitment," he added. Despite the international recognition, Mazer led a very simple life while he was in Taiwan. He got along well with his Taiwanese musicians, some of whom he worked with for a decade and were regarded as his own children. Mazer said he found Taiwanese musicians to be more disciplined than those in

392-756: A great conductor will also mean many more recordings of standard fare." However Becker departed Command a few months later and ABC Records , the label's owner, ended the Pittsburgh series. When Steinberg assumed his post with the Boston Symphony in 1969, he made several recordings, first for RCA Red Seal , then Deutsche Grammophon , which signed the Boston Symphony upon expiration of the RCA contract. Steinberg's Boston Symphony recordings for both RCA and DG were praised by critics for their excellence, both musically and technically. Steinberg received numerous awards, including both

448-778: A new orchestra in Taiwan – the Taipei Sinfonietta (later, the Taipei Philharmonic Orchestra ). "I could not help develop the Chicago Symphony Orchestra any further, whereas in Taiwan I could see plenty of development potential", he said. In 1990, Mazer brought the orchestra to perform in the United States and Canada . Music critic William Russo wrote: "The Sinfonietta is one of the finest groups of musicians I have ever heard". Gradually, such impressive reviews overseas would succeed in opening eyes back in Taiwan. During its image-building campaign abroad,

504-509: A triumphant tour of Europe and the Middle East. He was also an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia , the national fraternity for men in music. Steinberg received an honorary doctorate of music from Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1954, an honorary doctorate of music from Duquesne University in 1964, and an honorary doctorate of humanities from the University of Pittsburgh in 1966. He

560-617: A year later, in 1925, for Prague, where he was conductor of the German Theater. He next took the position of music director of the Frankfurt Opera . In 1930, in Frankfurt, he conducted the world premiere of Arnold Schoenberg 's Von heute auf morgen . In 1933, Steinberg was relieved of his post by the Nazis because he was Jewish . According to the grandson of composer Ernst Toch , Steinberg

616-551: Is now Israel . Eventually, with co-founder Bronisław Huberman , Steinberg trained the Palestine Symphony Orchestra, which would later be known as the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra . Steinberg was conducting the orchestra when Arturo Toscanini visited there in 1936. Toscanini was impressed with Steinberg's preliminary groundwork for his concerts and later engaged him as an assistant in preparing for

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672-720: The Boston Symphony Hall . The New York and Boston media showed with positive reviews. Among them, Richard Dyer, the editor of the Music Page of the Boston Globe , who wrote, "The first sound of the Taipei Philharmonic in Boston Symphony Hall was electrifying. The way the orchestra plays is a real tribute to Mazers musicianship. Mazer has a rare understanding of how Verklarte Nacht is constructed, how it should sound and

728-756: The Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra while conducting the Florida Symphony Orchestra. In Chicago, Mazer was put in charge of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's educational program and received press attention when asked to "revitalize" the CSO's youth concerts, working with Chicago's Junior League to raise funding for musical education. In addition to holding "miniconcerts" and lecturing in the Chicago Public Schools , Mazer helped bring "unprepared ghetto children" to concerts. Mazer won

784-712: The NBC Symphony Orchestra radio broadcasts. Steinberg emigrated to the United States in 1938. He conducted a number of concerts with the NBC Symphony Orchestra from 1938 to 1940. He conducted summer concerts at Lewisohn Stadium at the City College of New York (1940–41), led New York Philharmonic concerts in 1943–44, and also conducted at the San Francisco Opera . He became a US citizen in 1944, and

840-641: The RCA Victor Orchestra in several concerto recordings on RCA Victor by Alexander Brailowsky, Jascha Heifetz , William Kapell , and Arthur Rubinstein . Steinberg made numerous recordings for Capitol Records , all but two of them with the Pittsburgh Symphony. The exceptions included a recording with the Los Angeles Woodwinds of Mozart 's Gran Partita , K.361, taped in Hollywood in August 1952, and

896-511: The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in Pittsburgh. Light preferred the sound of this high-ceilinged auditorium with its open stage to that of Syria Mosque for recording. The initial Command recordings, Brahms Symphony No. 2 and Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2, were taped on May 1–2, 1961. Steinberg's recording of the Brahms Symphony No. 2 was nominated for a Grammy for Classical Album of

952-771: The Wheeling Symphony Orchestra in West Virginia from 1948 to 1958 and the Florida Symphony Orchestra in Orlando from 1958 to 1965. In 1966, Mazer was named Associate Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra . Four years later, he received a last-minute invitation to stand-in with the Symphony when its conductor, William Steinberg , was taken ill. Held at New York City 's Carnegie Hall ,

1008-453: The https://www.hotnewspapers.com/austria-newspapers/der-kurier/356/ , "The ensemble plays with precision and unity... the Sinfonietta is of considerable quality... This conductor (Henry Mazer) made Schubert come alive and touch our hearts again." In 1995, TPO embarked on yet another tour to the United States. One of the performances was given at one of the United States leading concert halls,

1064-799: The Bloch, Schuman, and Vaughan Williams were licensed by Capitol). He was also admired as an interpreter of Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Strauss, and Wagner. He made a famous recording of Holst 's The Planets with the Boston Symphony for Deutsche Grammophon, after learning the piece at the age of 70. Unusual for a conductor born in Europe, Steinberg was a sympathetic conductor of George Gershwin's music (he made Gershwin recordings for three different labels). His last Metropolitan Opera appearances were three performances of Wagner's Parsifal in April 1974. Although sometimes criticized for his unusual programming, Steinberg

1120-402: The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, often substituting for Solti on short notice. Although initially described alongside Solti as the "new breed of virtuosi," not every review was positive: following his move to Taiwan, one Chicago critic described his performances as "dull readings." Mazer, however, would end up with no shortage of fans. In Chicago, however, he had seemed overshadowed by Solti, but

1176-656: The English music of Elgar and Vaughan Williams . He led several important premieres, including the US premiere of Anton Webern 's Six Pieces for Orchestra , Op. 6. During his first Pittsburgh season, Steinberg conducted works by Bartók, Berg, Bloch, Britten, Copland, Harris, Honegger, Milhaud, Schuman, Stravinsky, Vaughan Williams, and Villa-Lobos at the Pittsburgh International Contemporary Music Festival (all of these performances appeared on record, and

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1232-659: The Gettysburg Address while rehearsing Brahms' Second Symphony." Steinberg's Command recordings eventually included complete cycles of the Beethoven and Brahms Symphonies, along with a diverse list of other works. Command's Pittsburgh Symphony activity ended after Steinberg recorded Bruckner 's Seventh Symphony , his early Overture in G minor, two arrangements by Robert Russell Bennett, and Dmitri Shostakovich 's Symphony No. 1 in April 1968. Command Vice President and General Manager Loren Becker stated that "Steinberg's stature as

1288-691: The Hague Residentie Orkest , Israel Philharmonic Orchestra , Montreal Symphony Orchestra , Munich Philharmonic , Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire , Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia , RAI Orchestra of Rome, Orchestra of the Teatro di San Carlo , Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (in their 1955 Beethoven cycle), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic , Tonhalle Orchester Zürich , Toronto Symphony Orchestra , Vancouver Symphony Orchestra , Vienna Symphony , and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne . He also appeared at summer festivals in

1344-719: The Kilenyi Bruckner Medal and the Kilenyi Mahler Medal from The Bruckner Society of America. He was named a member of the International Institute of Arts and Letters in 1960. Steinberg was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame the same year. The Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce named Steinberg Man of the Year for 1964 for his contributions to the city's cultural life, and for leading the Pittsburgh Symphony on

1400-761: The Mahler centenary in London. Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony in March 1961 signed a pact with Enoch Light 's Command label. Light had attended a Steinberg concert in Danbury, Connecticut a few years before and told the conductor he'd like to record the orchestra. After the Everest contract lapsed, Steinberg subsequently made a number of technically acclaimed records for Command on 35mm film recording stock. The Command releases, hailed as "outstanding examples of contemporary recording," were made in

1456-522: The Philharmonic's principal guest conductor from 1966 to 1968. From 1969 to 1972, Steinberg was music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (with which he had achieved earlier success as guest conductor), while maintaining his Pittsburgh post. He toured Europe with the Boston Symphony in April 1971. These additional engagements often led to rumors that Steinberg would leave Pittsburgh for

1512-691: The Pittsburgh Symphony for ASCAP Records: Recordings made with the Los Angeles Winds for Capitol Records: Recordings made with the Philharmonia Orchestra for EMI Records: Recordings made with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Everest Records: Recordings made with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Command Classics: Recordings made with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for RCA Victor : Recordings made with

1568-542: The Pittsburgh Symphony moved to Everest Records , but by mutual agreement this contract was terminated after three releases since Everest abandoned their classical recording program. These were audiophile 35mm film master recordings, a technique pioneered by Everest at that time. A casualty of this decision was a planned recording of Mahler's Sixth Symphony with the London Philharmonic, which was to have been made in conjunction with Steinberg's performance given as part of

1624-581: The Staatskapelle Berlin for Parlophone Records: Recordings made with the "Publishers Service Symphony Orchestra" for World's Greatest Opera Records: Recording made for Columbia Records Recording made with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra for Musicraft: Recordings made for RCA Victor (with contracted pickup orchestras unless otherwise noted): Recordings made with the Pittsburgh Symphony for Capitol Records: Recordings made with

1680-529: The Staatskapelle Berlin. In 1940, Steinberg recorded excerpts from Wagner's Lohengrin , Tristan und Isolde , and Tannhäuser as well as Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro , with Metropolitan Opera members, issued anonymously on "World's Greatest Opera" records. After the war, Steinberg made a single album for the Musicraft label with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra – the first studio recording of Shostakovich 's Symphony No. 7 (Leningrad) in 1946. He led

1736-613: The US and Canada (Ambler Temple University Festival, Hollywood Bowl, Ojai , Ravinia, Robin Hood Dell, Saratoga, Tanglewood, and Vancouver) as well as in Europe (Salzburg, Lucerne, Montreux). Steinberg conducted at the Metropolitan Opera in several productions including Barber's Vanessa , Verdi's Aida , and Wagner's Die Walküre , during his sabbatical in 1964–65, and Wagner's Parsifal in 1974. Steinberg had been in declining health for several years; on May 1, 1978, he conducted

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1792-734: The West, and thus more satisfying to work with. He later said, "This wonderful island has given me the best musical experience of my life." In addition to awards and international critical acclaim for his music and recordings, Mazer was noted in Chicago for his contribution to children's concerts, including the CSO's Petites Promenades Concert Series, which held several performances each year, sometimes in collaboration with Lady Solti and composer Irwin Fischer . Mazer had already been actively involved in youth musical education in Orlando through

1848-539: The Year in 1962. Steinberg said of these sessions, "At first I opposed this location, because I can't hear the orchestra there, the ceiling is so high. I suppose it must be so high to make room for the Lincoln inscription. But the engineers said, 'The microphones hear very well, and we will use a lot of them.' Who am I to argue with the engineers? So we recorded in Memorial Hall. I am the only conductor in history who memorized

1904-601: The aforementioned Strauss disc with the Philharmonia Orchestra . His Pittsburgh recordings for Capitol, all made in the Syria Mosque , included concertos with Nathan Milstein and Rudolf Firkušný , as well as a cross-section of the symphonic repertoire from Beethoven to Wagner . Nearly all of Steinberg's Capitol recordings were reissued in a 20-CD boxed set by EMI in September, 2011. In February 1960, Steinberg and

1960-513: The concert brought Mazer to the attention of Sir Georg Solti , who later asked him to be his Associate Conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra , a position he held for the next 15 years. During that time, he performed with internationally acclaimed musicians such as Arthur Rubinstein , Isaac Stern , Andrés Segovia , Rudolf Serkin , Robert Casadesus , and Marian Anderson . Mazer conducted hundreds of subscription concerts for

2016-719: The death of his wife. The Taipei Philharmonic and Henry Mazer Music and Cultural Center in Zhongzhen District in Taipei was built in Mazer's memory. The lower level is dedicated to exhibits on the conductor. Visitors can view Mazer's former belongings, photographs, and listen to Mazer's music and videos on vinyl, CD, and DVD in listening rooms. [REDACTED]  Chinese Wikiquote has quotations related to: Henry Mazer William Steinberg William Steinberg (Cologne, August 1, 1899 – New York City, May 16, 1978)

2072-574: The end of the 1975–76 season. Steinberg guest-conducted most of the major US orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and Philadelphia Orchestra. Abroad he conducted the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra , Berlin Philharmonic , Frankfurt Opera and Museum Orchestra , Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra ,

2128-696: The final concert of his career, leading the New York Philharmonic with guest violinist Isaac Stern . He was hospitalized following the concert and died on May 16, 1978, at the age of 78. He is buried beside his wife Lotte, in Green River Cemetery in East Hampton, New York . Steinberg's first recording was made in 1928, when he accompanied Bronisław Huberman in Tchaikovsky 's Violin Concerto with

2184-818: The following May 2002, TPO went to Germany and Czech Republic as a guest performer during the Prague Spring International Music Festival with Czech pianist Martin Kasik , followed by concerts at the Braunschweig Classix Festival in Germany, and the Janáček International Music Festival in the Czech Republic. Henry Mazer Henry Simon Mazer ( ( 1918-07-21 ) July 21, 1918 – ( 2002-08-01 ) August 1, 2002),

2240-415: The half being English. Of his habit of eating a steak before every concert he conducted, Steinberg told a columnist, "So you see, it's an expensive business – this concert conducting." Referring to a disagreement with violinist Nathan Milstein that led to Milstein walking out of a rehearsal, Steinberg said, "He decided he would not stay and I decided I would not have him." Concerning acoustics he said, "If

2296-468: The hall is resonant, the tempos must be changed. If the acoustics are too bad, you go fast in order to go home quickly!" Steinberg once reacted to an orchestra's sloppy playing of a passage with a typical quip: "Next time, more notes." To an interviewer who said he had heard that the conductor did not care for giving interviews, Steinberg replied that it was fine as long as the subject was one that interested him – "for instance, myself." Recording made with

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2352-477: The orchestra also toured Europe over the next couple of years, playing in Lyons , Brussels , and Antwerp . But the highlights of the various European concerts was their performance in Musikvereinssaal , home to Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra . Following the performances, music critics in Austria dubbed the orchestra a "wonder of Taiwan." After the Vienna trip, Mazer's orchestra enjoyed a surge in popularity back home in Taiwan. In addition, several CDs released by

2408-414: The orchestra met with brisk sales. An overseas tour in 1995 brought the ensemble to New York and Boston . After the performance at the Boston Symphony Hall , Mazer received the greatest review of his career when Boston Globe music critic Richard Dyer compared him to America's beloved Leonard Bernstein . "The way the Taipei Sinfonietta plays is a real tribute to Mazer's musicianship. They play with

2464-465: The refinement of the performances of classical music in Taiwan , leading local musicians to gain recognition overseas. There is a cultural center dedicated to him in Taipei . Born in Pittsburgh , Mazer was educated at Duquesne University and at the Carnegie Institute of Technology . Mazer chose conducting for his career early-on in his life, and became the protégé of renowned conductor Fritz Reiner . At Reiner's recommendation, Mazer conducted

2520-470: The unlikely circumstance of the first all- Schoenberg orchestral program ever given in New York. Steinberg once remarked to a San Francisco Symphony musician he corrected, "I may be wrong, but I don't think so." Violinist David Schneider said, "This quality of not taking himself too seriously endeared him to the musicians." Although all business on the podium, Steinberg was not above a bit of clowning in public; at one Pittsburgh Symphony fundraiser, he donned

2576-411: The wallop it should pack. They play with glowing sound, precision of intonation, absolute unanimity of impulse and rare commitment." In September 2001, TPO, led by conductor Lin Tien-chi , had a tour to Scandinavia to give two concerts in Stockholm , Sweden , and Helsinki , Finland . This event was the first time that a Taiwanese symphonic orchestra has ever been invited to perform in Scandinavia. In

2632-474: Was Hermann Abendroth . He graduated with distinction, winning the Wüllner Prize for conducting, in 1919. He immediately became a second violinist in the Cologne Opera orchestra, but was dismissed from the position by Otto Klemperer for using his own bowings. He was soon re-hired by Klemperer as an assistant, and in 1922, he conducted Fromental Halévy 's opera La Juive as a substitute. When Klemperer left in 1924, Steinberg served as Principal Conductor. He left

2688-408: Was "rehearsing [Toch's opera Der Fächer ( The Fan )] in Cologne when Nazi brownshirts came storming into the hall and literally lifted the baton out of his hand".; Steinberg, who had married Lotte Stern in Frankfurt in 1934, was then restricted to conducting concerts for the Jewish Culture League in Frankfurt and Berlin. The Steinbergs left Germany in 1936 for the British Mandate of Palestine , which

2744-435: Was a German-American conductor . Steinberg was born Hans Wilhelm Steinberg in Cologne , Germany. He displayed early talent as a violinist, pianist, and composer, conducting his own choral/orchestral composition (based on texts from Ovid 's Metamorphoses ) at age 13. In 1914, he began studies at the Cologne Conservatory , where his piano teacher was the Clara Schumann pupil Lazzaro Uzielli and his conducting mentor

2800-511: Was a champion of certain lesser known works including Berlioz's Roméo et Juliette , Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony , Reger 's Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Mozart , and his own orchestral transcription of Verdi 's String Quartet in E minor . Steinberg said, "The literature is so enormous. I look into what my colleagues won't. Actually, I am not success minded. I merely dare. I take a risk. Criticism I get anyway." Steinberg's prestige however filled Carnegie Hall to 80 percent capacity under

2856-440: Was a model of restraint. Steinberg said of his interpretive philosophy, "One must always respect the character of the music and never try to grow lush foliage in a well tempered English garden." Referring to some of his more acrobatic colleagues, Steinberg remarked, "The more they move around, the quieter I get." Pittsburgh principal flute Bernard Goldberg told how Steinberg "looked forward to being 70 years old because only then did

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2912-419: Was an American and later Taiwanese conductor , recording artist and music educator who was the founding principal conductor and music director of Taipei Philharmonic Orchestra from 1985 until suffering a stroke in February 2001. Prior to his move to Taiwan, he was the conductor and associate conductor of major American symphonies including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra . He contributed greatly to

2968-407: Was engaged as music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra from 1945 to 1952. Steinberg is best known for his long tenure as music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 1952 to 1976. Steinberg's Pittsburgh appearances in January 1952 were so impressive, he was quickly engaged as music director and also signed to a recording contract with Capitol Records . Thereafter, Pittsburgh

3024-399: Was named Sanford Professor of Music at Yale University in September 1973, and conducted several concerts with the Yale Philharmonia. William Steinberg was noted throughout his career for his straightforward yet expressive musical style, leading familiar works with integrity and authority such that they sounded fresh and vital. Despite the dynamic drive of his interpretations, his podium manner

3080-415: Was seen as dedicated and highly competent, taking on more avant-garde works neither Solti nor others would touch. Taiwan would be different. Mazer was first approached about coming to Taiwan as a guest conductor during his term with the Chicago Symphony and agreed to visit the country for four concerts in the summer of 1985. After the success of the concerts, Mazer took on the challenge of developing

3136-400: Was the center of his activity although he held other important positions. From 1958 to 1960, he also conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra , but eventually resigned that post because the added workload led to medical problems with his conducting arm. Steinberg led the New York Philharmonic for twelve weeks while on sabbatical leave from Pittsburgh in 1964–65; This led to his engagement as

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