[78-L] Lorin Maazel

[Eric Goldberg]

Solomon was the conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony and conducted a number of records for the old MGM classical series.

Alfidi settled in Europe and continued playing. I have a recording of him playing the Brahms Sonata in f. 

Eric



--- On Fri, 1/21/11, David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca> wrote:

> From: David Lennick <dlennick at sympatico.ca>
> Subject: Re: [78-L] Lorin Maazel
> To: "78-L Mail List" <78-l at klickitat.78online.com>
> Date: Friday, January 21, 2011, 11:51 PM
> I've run across Solomon's name on
> records, but nothing in recent decades. Some 
> accompaniments for Jascha Heifetz with the RCA Victor
> Symphony come to mind.
> 
> And what ever became of Joey Alfidi? I have half an album
> by him (one of two 
> discs on Jubilee).
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Alfidi
> 
> dl
> 
> On 1/21/2011 11:44 PM, DAVID BURNHAM wrote:
> > Those of us into classical music should appreciate
> this.  I recently read a book
> > by David Ewen called "Dictators of the Baton". 
> This book was written in 1943
> > and covers the careers of the significant living
> conductors of the day;  the
> > only exception is the chapter on Frederick Stock who,
> as it is pointed out, died
> > while the book was being written.  In a chapter
> towards the end he discusses
> > child prodigies and points out that conducting is the
> one area in music where
> > there are no child prodigies and that no child prodigy
> has ever developed into a
> > successful adult conductor.
> >
> > Here is a quote:
> >
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> > "Only recently a child conductor excited admiration
> and publicity in New York
> > with guest performances with the NBC Orchestra. 
> Lorin Maazel, aged 11, was the
> > first child ever to direct a major American Orchestra,
> and he directed it in
> > programs which would have taxed the experience and
> equipment of a much older
> > musician.  The story goes that at the age of
> eight he revealed he could read a
> > full orchestral score;  that on his ninth
> birthday, (as his gift), he was given
> > the opportunity to rehearse an orchestra in
> Tchaikovsky's Marche Slav.  His
> > career began officially with the National Youth
> Orchestra which he directed at
> > the New York World's Fair.  A guest performance
> at the Hollywood Bowl, (where he
> > shared the baton with Stokowski), prefaced his New
> York appearances with
> > Toscanini's orchestra.
> >
> > But young Maazel, for all his apparent talent, has
> proved himself to be little
> > more than a routined time-beater.  He seems to
> know the music he conducts, and
> > he responds to it emotionally.  He has a good
> ear.  But he has no understanding
> > of the artistic forces which give  the music its
> dramatic, emotional, or lyric
> > greatness.  He plays bar by bar as if he had been
> taught to do so by rote;  of
> > imagination, sensitive refinement, artistic planning
> or design there are not the
> > slightest traces.
> >
> > Consequently, if we are to search for the conductors
> for tomorrow, we will not
> > find them among child prodigies,....."
> >
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> > I know David Ewen lived long enough to eat his words,
> (d. 1985);  I wonder if he
> > ever did - to Lorin Maazel personally or in print.
> >
> > This is a wonderful book to read - illuminating the
> careers of conductors who
> > until now were, to me, little more than names on
> records, such as Walter
> > Damrosch.  The conductors who, in 1943, he feels
> hold promise for the future are
> > Izler Solomon, Dean Dixon and Sylvan Levin. 
> Dixon is the only one I know of who
> > had a career, I've never heard of Solomon at
> all.  Strangely, there is no
> > mention of Leonard Bernstein whatsoever;  I
> believe his career was underway by
> > 1943.
> >
> > db
> > _______________________________________________
> > 78-L mailing list
> > 78-L at klickitat.78online.com
> > http://klickitat.78online.com/mailman/listinfo/78-l
> >
> >
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 78-L mailing list
> 78-L at klickitat.78online.com
> http://klickitat.78online.com/mailman/listinfo/78-l
>