Jacques Singer
Encyclopedia
Jacques Singer was an American conductor. His father was the symphony conductor Mark Eli (Meyer), his mother Rachela “Rose” (Bach).
, New York. He attended on a scholarship the Curtis Institute of Music
in 1926, where he studied with Carl Flesch
. He began attending the Juilliard School
in 1927, studying with Leopold Auer
, Paul Kochanski
and Rubin Goldmark
, and graduating in 1930. He became a naturalized citizen in 1931.
at age eighteen, their youngest member at the time. Leopold Stokowski
took an interest in him and requested he conduct a contemporary piece at one of the rehearsals in 1935. From watching Stokowski, he picked up several of the maestro’s practices: conducting without baton (or score at times), making instructional comments to an audience, and stopping performances during disturbances. These he employed as conductor of the orchestra’s youth orchestra in 1936.
on February 1, 1938. He remained with that orchestra 1938-1942. Audience reaction to his style and personality was positive, and the symphony budget doubled and subscriptions tripled. While there he became engaged in a feud with critic John Rosenfield of the The Dallas Morning News
. Rosenfield welcomed Singer enthusiastically at first, but soon turned against him. Singer became angry enough to print handbills and make speeches defending himself during concert intermissions.
By the 1942/43 season, most of the Dallas Symphony’s musicians were enlisted in the armed services. During World War II Singer served as a private in the U.S. Army. He saw active service and received three battle stars for New Guinea, Bataan, and Corregidor
. He also conducted army band concerts, including the first concert given after the liberation of Corregidor
.
In 1946, he conducted 28 concerts in eight weeks for the New Orleans Summer Concerts. A guest conducting engagement with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
led to his appointment as a conductor of that orchestra in 1947-1951. Singer resigned from the symphony over a disagreement with the board over the $19,000 budget deficit (the board wanted a shortened season). Singer next organized a rival orchestra, the British Columbia Philharmonic. At the first concert, Victoria Symphony Orchestra’s conductor Hans Gruber
called the orchestra unprepared and the chorus incompetent (in the Beethoven Ninth Symphony). The Vancouver Sun’s music critic thought the same performance was “precise, glowing, alive”.
On Broadway in 1952 he conducted performances of Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra and Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra starring Laurence Olivier
and Vivien Leigh
. In 1953 he guest conducted the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Radio Orchestra, and the Haifa Symphony. This included the first concert in Nazareth for the Haifa Symphony.
He led his first concert for the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra on October 18, 1954, and served as conductor there 1955-1962. He worked with the Buenos Aires Symphony Orchestra at this time, being called a “miracle worker” there for his reorganization of the orchestra. Singer also led his first concerts with the London Philharmonic Orchestra
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
in 1962.
(then the Portland Symphony Orchestra) in February 1962 was a success. "Never has the orchestra been more responsive to a baton” was the review in the Oregon Journal. Singer had signed on with Corpus Christi for an additional three years when he was hired as the permanent conductor and music director of the Oregon Symphony in April 1962. He served there 1962–1972. In his first season (1962–1963), the orchestra performed 47 weeks of concerts – the second most by an orchestra of its size in the United States. Jacques Singer changed the scope of the orchestra, and the name, from the Portland Symphony to the Oregon Symphony.
Early in his tenure, Singer requested the concertmaster’s violin to demonstrate a passage. Tubaist John Richards recounted the incident: "He tucked it under his chin and played four or five bars to show what he wanted. The rest of the string section sat openmouthed at how well he could play." Singer had been a violin soloist and also a violinist in the Philadelphia Orchestra at fourteen years old under Stokowski.
Singer proved to be a temperamental conductor there as recounted by a violinist in The Oregonian
. In rehearsal one day, Singer told the tuba
ist John Richards, "I can't hear you". On the next run-through, Richards blasted the note louder. "Still can't hear you", said Singer. The next time, Richards blew the tuba with both lungs. "I still can't hear you" said Singer. Richards was getting angry by now, but Singer chose this moment to tie a white handkerchief onto his baton with which he waved a flag of surrender.
Singer ultimately left the orchestra he had built over a controversy that divided the organization. His attempt to bring in a new concertmaster led to a stand-off between the union and the artistic freedom of a conductor. The concert-master that Singer wanted replaced actually was dismissed the following year, and a new concertmaster was hired, but Singer also left the orchestra over this (board of directors, union versus artistic freedom) dispute. Singer believed in artistry over rules and regulations. Quality ruled his artistic domain.
Singer moved to New York next, where he conducted the American Symphony Orchestra
and conducted several of the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts in Central Park between 1974 and 1979. He became an artist in residence at Northern Illinois University
1977–1980 and he conducted the Northern Illinois Philharmonic (his wife, Leslie, an accomplished pianist, joined the piano faculty). He also guest-conducted the Cosmopolitan Symphony, and he enjoyed encouraging young artists, and delighted in conducting a rehearsal or concert of the New York conservatories (Juilliard and Manhattan) students as well as some very talented high school musicians including his daughter Lori.
(born 1948) is an actor, and daughter Lori Singer
(born November 6, 1957) is an actress. Claude became a prominent New York City corporate writer and Gregory Singer graduated from Juilliard as a violinist.His Nephew, Bryan
, is a noted film producer/director.
Education
Jacques was trained in the violin from an early age, and began to give concerts in Poland at age seven. In 1921 (according to Jacques’ entry in Who’s Who in America) his family moved to the U.S, settling in Jersey City. In 1925 Jacques made his American debut with a recital at The Town HallThe Town Hall
The Town Hall is a performance space, located at 123 West 43rd Street, between Sixth Avenue and Broadway, in New York City. It seats approximately 1,500 people.-History:...
, New York. He attended on a scholarship the Curtis Institute of Music
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
in 1926, where he studied with Carl Flesch
Carl Flesch
Carl Flesch was a violinist and teacher.Carl Flesch was born in Moson in Hungary in 1873. He began playing the violin at seven years of age. At 10, he was taken to Vienna, and began to study with Jakob Grün. At 17, he left for Paris, and joined the Paris Conservatoire...
. He began attending the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
in 1927, studying with Leopold Auer
Leopold Auer
Leopold Auer was a Hungarian violinist, teacher, conductor and composer.-Early life and career:...
, Paul Kochanski
Paul Kochanski
Paul Kochanski was a Polish violinist, composer and arranger.- Training and early career :...
and Rubin Goldmark
Rubin Goldmark
Rubin Goldmark was an American composer, pianist, and educator. Although in his time he was an often performed American nationalist composer, his works are seldom played – instead he is known as the teacher of Aaron Copland and George Gershwin...
, and graduating in 1930. He became a naturalized citizen in 1931.
Violinist with Philadelphia Orchestra
While at Juilliard, he became a violinist with the Philadelphia OrchestraPhiladelphia Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. One of the "Big Five" American orchestras, it was founded in 1900...
at age eighteen, their youngest member at the time. Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Anthony Stokowski was a British-born, naturalised American orchestral conductor, well known for his free-hand performing style that spurned the traditional baton and for obtaining a characteristically sumptuous sound from many of the great orchestras he conducted.In America, Stokowski...
took an interest in him and requested he conduct a contemporary piece at one of the rehearsals in 1935. From watching Stokowski, he picked up several of the maestro’s practices: conducting without baton (or score at times), making instructional comments to an audience, and stopping performances during disturbances. These he employed as conductor of the orchestra’s youth orchestra in 1936.
Conductor in Dallas, Vancouver, and Corpus Christi
With the recommendation of Stokowski, he made his conducting debut with the Dallas Symphony OrchestraDallas Symphony Orchestra
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra. It performs its concerts in the Meyerson Symphony Center in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas, United States....
on February 1, 1938. He remained with that orchestra 1938-1942. Audience reaction to his style and personality was positive, and the symphony budget doubled and subscriptions tripled. While there he became engaged in a feud with critic John Rosenfield of the The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
. Rosenfield welcomed Singer enthusiastically at first, but soon turned against him. Singer became angry enough to print handbills and make speeches defending himself during concert intermissions.
By the 1942/43 season, most of the Dallas Symphony’s musicians were enlisted in the armed services. During World War II Singer served as a private in the U.S. Army. He saw active service and received three battle stars for New Guinea, Bataan, and Corregidor
Corregidor
Corregidor Island, locally called Isla ng Corregidor, is a lofty island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in southwestern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Due to this location, Corregidor was fortified with several coastal artillery and ammunition magazines to defend the entrance of...
. He also conducted army band concerts, including the first concert given after the liberation of Corregidor
Corregidor
Corregidor Island, locally called Isla ng Corregidor, is a lofty island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in southwestern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Due to this location, Corregidor was fortified with several coastal artillery and ammunition magazines to defend the entrance of...
.
In 1946, he conducted 28 concerts in eight weeks for the New Orleans Summer Concerts. A guest conducting engagement with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra performing in Vancouver, British Columbia. Over 240,000 people attend its live performances each year. It was founded in 1930 and plays in 12 venues. Its home is the Orpheum theatre. With an annual operating budget of $9.5 million, it is the...
led to his appointment as a conductor of that orchestra in 1947-1951. Singer resigned from the symphony over a disagreement with the board over the $19,000 budget deficit (the board wanted a shortened season). Singer next organized a rival orchestra, the British Columbia Philharmonic. At the first concert, Victoria Symphony Orchestra’s conductor Hans Gruber
Hans Gruber
Hans Gruber was a Canadian conductor of Austrian birth.Born in Vienna, Gruber became a naturalised Canadian citizen in 1944. He entered The Royal Conservatory of Music in 1939 where he was a conducting student of Allard de Ridder...
called the orchestra unprepared and the chorus incompetent (in the Beethoven Ninth Symphony). The Vancouver Sun’s music critic thought the same performance was “precise, glowing, alive”.
On Broadway in 1952 he conducted performances of Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra and Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra starring Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
and Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh, Lady Olivier was an English actress. She won the Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire , a role she also played on stage in London's West End, as well as for her portrayal of the southern belle Scarlett O'Hara, alongside Clark...
. In 1953 he guest conducted the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Radio Orchestra, and the Haifa Symphony. This included the first concert in Nazareth for the Haifa Symphony.
He led his first concert for the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra on October 18, 1954, and served as conductor there 1955-1962. He worked with the Buenos Aires Symphony Orchestra at this time, being called a “miracle worker” there for his reorganization of the orchestra. Singer also led his first concerts with the London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Orchestra
The London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
in 1962.
Oregon Symphony
Singer’s first performance (as a guest conductor) with his next regional orchestra, the Oregon SymphonyOregon Symphony
The Oregon Symphony is an American orchestra based in Portland, Oregon. Founded as the Portland Symphony Society in 1896, it is the sixth oldest orchestra in the United States, and oldest in the Western United States...
(then the Portland Symphony Orchestra) in February 1962 was a success. "Never has the orchestra been more responsive to a baton” was the review in the Oregon Journal. Singer had signed on with Corpus Christi for an additional three years when he was hired as the permanent conductor and music director of the Oregon Symphony in April 1962. He served there 1962–1972. In his first season (1962–1963), the orchestra performed 47 weeks of concerts – the second most by an orchestra of its size in the United States. Jacques Singer changed the scope of the orchestra, and the name, from the Portland Symphony to the Oregon Symphony.
Early in his tenure, Singer requested the concertmaster’s violin to demonstrate a passage. Tubaist John Richards recounted the incident: "He tucked it under his chin and played four or five bars to show what he wanted. The rest of the string section sat openmouthed at how well he could play." Singer had been a violin soloist and also a violinist in the Philadelphia Orchestra at fourteen years old under Stokowski.
Singer proved to be a temperamental conductor there as recounted by a violinist in The Oregonian
The Oregonian
The Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
. In rehearsal one day, Singer told the tuba
Tuba
The tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
ist John Richards, "I can't hear you". On the next run-through, Richards blasted the note louder. "Still can't hear you", said Singer. The next time, Richards blew the tuba with both lungs. "I still can't hear you" said Singer. Richards was getting angry by now, but Singer chose this moment to tie a white handkerchief onto his baton with which he waved a flag of surrender.
Singer ultimately left the orchestra he had built over a controversy that divided the organization. His attempt to bring in a new concertmaster led to a stand-off between the union and the artistic freedom of a conductor. The concert-master that Singer wanted replaced actually was dismissed the following year, and a new concertmaster was hired, but Singer also left the orchestra over this (board of directors, union versus artistic freedom) dispute. Singer believed in artistry over rules and regulations. Quality ruled his artistic domain.
Singer moved to New York next, where he conducted the American Symphony Orchestra
American Symphony Orchestra
The American Symphony Orchestra is a New York-based American orchestra founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski, then aged 80. Following Maestro Stokowski's departure, Kazuyoshi Akiyama was appointed Music Director of the American Symphony Orchestra from 1973-1978. Music Directors during the early...
and conducted several of the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts in Central Park between 1974 and 1979. He became an artist in residence at Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
1977–1980 and he conducted the Northern Illinois Philharmonic (his wife, Leslie, an accomplished pianist, joined the piano faculty). He also guest-conducted the Cosmopolitan Symphony, and he enjoyed encouraging young artists, and delighted in conducting a rehearsal or concert of the New York conservatories (Juilliard and Manhattan) students as well as some very talented high school musicians including his daughter Lori.
Personal life
Jacques married Leslie Wright, a concert pianist, January 28, 1946. They had four children: Claude, Marc, Lori, and Gregory (the latter being twins). Jacques' son Marc SingerMarc Singer
Marc Singer is a Canadian-born American actor best known for his roles in the Beastmaster film series and as Mike Donovan in the original 1980s TV series V.-Personal life:...
(born 1948) is an actor, and daughter Lori Singer
Lori Singer
Lori Singer is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ariel Moore, the female lead in the 1984 feature film Footloose, and as Julie Miller in the television series Fame.-Film and television career:...
(born November 6, 1957) is an actress. Claude became a prominent New York City corporate writer and Gregory Singer graduated from Juilliard as a violinist.His Nephew, Bryan
Bryan Singer
Bryan Singer is an American film director and film producer. Singer won critical acclaim for his work on The Usual Suspects, and is especially well-known among fans of the science fiction and superhero genres for his work on the X-Men films and Superman Returns.-Early life:Singer was born in New...
, is a noted film producer/director.