San Antonio Symphony
Encyclopedia
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Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
based in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. Its season runs from late September to early June. Sebastian Lang-Lessing is Music Director.
The orchestra is housed within The Majestic Theatre, San Antonio
The Majestic Theatre, San Antonio
The Majestic Theatre is San Antonio's oldest and largest atmospheric theatre. The theatre seats 2,311 people and was designed by architect John Eberson, for Karl Hoblitzelle's Interstate Theatres in 1929....
.
Artistic and organizational facts
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
schedule. The 2010–2011 season includes 14 different classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
subscription programs (each performed twice), six Pops
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
programs (also performed twice each), four different programs in a Young People's Concerts series (each performed six times), four programs in an Interactive Family Classics series, and other features such as "Special Attractions" that includes a concert with pianist Lang Lang and Community Concerts. Many of these concerts feature performances by noted guest artists.
The 2010–2011 artistic staff of the San Antonio Symphony consists of Music Director Sebastian Lang-Lessing, Resident Conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
Ken-David Masur, Mastersingers Conductor John Silantien, and 72 full-time musicians. Christopher Wilkins holds the title of Music Director Emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
. The orchestra musicians collectively belong to the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians
International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians
The International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians is a Players' Conference of the American Federation of Musicians ICSOM represents over 4,000 symphonic musicians in the top 51 AFM orchestras in the United States and Puerto Rico...
(ICSOM), and virtually all individually are members of the American Federation of Musicians
American Federation of Musicians
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada is a labor union of professional musicians in the United States and Canada...
(AFM). The San Antonio Mastersingers
San Antonio Mastersingers
The San Antonio Mastersingers is the official chorus of the San Antonio Symphony. In addition to performing with the symphony, they also perform several other concerts annually in San Antonio, Texas, and surrounding communities. The 2007–2008 season will culminate with a performance at...
is a chorus
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
that performs frequently with the symphony. Although its members participate on a volunteer basis, the Mastersingers are considered by many to be of professional quality. Each year the San Antonio Symphony are joined by the Philharmonic Orchestra of YOSA, Youth Orchestras of San Antoniohttp://www.yosa.org, for a side by side concert.
The San Antonio Symphony's primary performance venue is the Majestic Theatre in downtown San Antonio
The Majestic Theatre, San Antonio
The Majestic Theatre is San Antonio's oldest and largest atmospheric theatre. The theatre seats 2,311 people and was designed by architect John Eberson, for Karl Hoblitzelle's Interstate Theatres in 1929....
. Completed in 1929, the former movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
house became the Symphony's home in 1989.
The Symphony Society of San Antonio manages operations of the San Antonio Symphony through the efforts of a board
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
chaired by Dennert O. Ware under the leadership of President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
& CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
Jack Fishman. The organization is a member of the American Symphony Orchestra League (ASOL).
History
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Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
immigrant Carl Beck at the state Sängerfest
Saengerfest
Saengerfest, also Sängerbund-Fest, Sängerfeste, or Sängerfest, meaning singer festival, is a competition of Sängerbunds, or singer groups, with prizes for the best group or groups. Participants number in the hundreds and thousands, and the fest is usually accompanied by a parade and other...
in 1887. A performance of the Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 4 (Mendelssohn)
The Symphony No. 4 in A major, Op. 90, commonly known as the Italian, is an orchestral symphony written by German composer Felix Mendelssohn ....
by Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
in these concerts was the first of a complete symphony
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
in the state of Texas. Beck again conducted a symphony orchestra when the Sängerfest returned to San Antonio in 1896. Beck was engaged as the director of the Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
Männerchor
Maennerchor
"Maennerchor" is the name given to German social clubs, primarily in the northeastern United States, Pennsylvania in particular. The earliest forms of these clubs where "singing societies" that perpetuated traditional choral music, both German and German American culture, providing...
in San Antonio, then succeeded in that role by Carl Hahn in about 1904. Hahn worked with Mrs. Eli Hertzberg, a leading local musician and arts patron, to create the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, which gave its first concert on May 18, 1905. The orchestra performed sporadically for the next several years but was revived in 1914 (as the "San Antonio Philharmonic") by a new conductor, Arthur Claassen. By 1916, the ensemble was again called the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra. By 1918 it was under the musical direction of Julien Paul Blitz
Julien Paul Blitz
Julien Paul Blitz was an American cellist, conductor, and teacher. He was the first music director of the Houston Symphony.-Biography:...
. Concerts continued into the 1920s, but this organization appears ultimately to have foundered.
The present San Antonio Symphony, an organization independent of the aforementioned predecessors, was created in 1939 by Max Reiter, a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
immigrant, who became its first Music Director. The group's early ambition is evidenced by the fact that the legendary violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz was a violinist, born in Vilnius, then Russian Empire, now Lithuania. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time.- Early life :...
was a guest artist during the first season. By 1943, the orchestra employed 75 professional musicians, and in the 1944–1945 season the organization's budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
topped $100,000, making it one of only 19 "major" orchestras in the country at that time, and the only one in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Unlike many orchestras, the San Antonio Symphony was able to continue operations through World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
—largely because the city's strong military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
presence helped bolster the local economy. Before his death in 1950, Reiter had started an Opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
Festival
Music festival
A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...
, created an Opera Chorus, and brought nationwide attention to the orchestra, with world premiere
Premiere
A premiere is generally "a first performance". This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, ballets and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media...
s by several important composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s, guest appearances by world-class artists, and overall high musical quality.
Reiter was succeeded by Victor Alessandro
Victor Alessandro
Victor Nicholas Alessandro was an orchestra conductor and long-time resident of San Antonio, Texas. Born in Waco, Texas, he studied at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Alessandro also spent a number of years in Italy during his youth where he studied with Ildebrando Pizzetti...
, a native Texan
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. The Symphony continued to grow in scope, including the addition of Young People's Concerts. In 1969 the orchestra took up residence in the Theater for the Performing Arts (which would later be named for a San Antonio mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
, Lila Cockrell). In 1970 the orchestra made its first major-label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
recordings, for Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
. Alessandro died in 1976. A complete chronological list of San Antonio Symphony Music Directors is shown below.
Financial difficulties forced the cancellation of much of the 1987–1988 season. During this time, the musicians formed and presented a concert series with their own organization, Orchestra San Antonio. Later, the 2003–2004 season would likewise be cancelled due to bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
.
The 1990s were highlighted by recognition and acclaim for the San Antonio Symphony's creative
Creativity
Creativity refers to the phenomenon whereby a person creates something new that has some kind of value. What counts as "new" may be in reference to the individual creator, or to the society or domain within which the novelty occurs...
and culturally diverse
Multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...
programming, culminating in awards by the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
(NEA), American Symphony Orchestra League
League of American Orchestras
The League of American Orchestras, known until Fall 2007 as the American Symphony Orchestra League , is an association of U.S. and Canadian orchestras. Over 950 orchestras are members, including youth, community, and professional orchestras....
(ASOL), the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers
American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers
The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization that protects its members' musical copyrights by monitoring public performances of their music, whether via a broadcast or live performance, and compensating them...
(ASCAP), and the Knight Foundation
John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is an American private, non-profit foundation dedicated to supporting transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts....
.
Due to decisions made in the wake of recent financial difficulties, the San Antonio Symphony currently performs a shorter season and with a slightly smaller musician complement than in some previous years, but it continues to be highly regarded artistically.
In the early part of the 2006-2007 season, CEO David Green and the executive board chose not to renew Music Director Larry Rachleff's contract beyond the 2007-2008 season. This decision was opposed by a majority of the musicians and by many San Antonio Symphony supporters.In January 2008, Christopher Seaman
Christopher Seaman
Christopher Seaman is a British conductor, the son of Albert Edward Seaman and Ethel Margery Seaman. He was educated at Canterbury Cathedral Choir School and The King's School, Canterbury, and later studied at King's College, Cambridge...
was appointed Artistic Adviser, a "position . . . similar to that of an interim music director" for the 2008–2009 season. Sebastian Lang-Lessing became the orchestra's eighth music director in 71 years with a concert on October 2, 2010.
Chronology of Music Directors
- Max Reiter, 1939–1950
- Victor AlessandroVictor AlessandroVictor Nicholas Alessandro was an orchestra conductor and long-time resident of San Antonio, Texas. Born in Waco, Texas, he studied at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Alessandro also spent a number of years in Italy during his youth where he studied with Ildebrando Pizzetti...
, 1950–1976 - François Huybrechts, 1978–1980
- Lawrence Leighton SmithLawrence Leighton SmithLawrence Leighton Smith, a conductor and pianist, was born April 8, 1936 in Portland, Oregon.He studied piano with Ariel Rubstein in Portland and Leonard Shure in New York. He earned bachelor's degrees from Portland State University in 1956 and Mannes College of Music in 1959...
, 1980–1985 - Christopher Wilkins, 1992–2000 (Wilkins was appointed "Music Director Designate" in 1990 and held that position during the 1991-1992 season.)
- Larry Rachleff, 2004–2008
- Sebastian Lang-Lessing, 2010–
Sixten Ehrling
Sixten Ehrling
Sixten Ehrling, , was a Swedish conductor who, during a long career, served as the music director of the Royal Swedish Opera and the principal conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, amongst others....
and Christopher Seaman
Christopher Seaman
Christopher Seaman is a British conductor, the son of Albert Edward Seaman and Ethel Margery Seaman. He was educated at Canterbury Cathedral Choir School and The King's School, Canterbury, and later studied at King's College, Cambridge...
have served as Artistic Advisors, and Zdeněk Mácal
Zdenek Mácal
Zdeněk Mácal is a Czech conductor.Mácal began violin lessons with his father at age four. He later attended the Brno Conservatory and the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts, where he graduated in 1960 with top honors. He became principal conductor of the Prague Symphony Orchestra and...
has served as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor.
Musicians
Members of the San Antonio Symphony with Wikipedia articles include:- Max DimoffMax DimoffMaximilian Dimoff has been the principal bassist of the Cleveland Orchestra since 1997. He has appeared with the orchestra at their summer venue, the Blossom Festival, performing Koussevitsky's Concerto for Double Bass. He attended Northwestern University, where he studied with Jeff Bradetich. Mr....
, bass, assistant principal and principal 1990–1993 - Julius HegyiJulius Hegyi-Reviews:John Rockwell wrote in the New York Times "...it can be flatly said that the best performance was Mr. Hegyi's account of Barber's one-movement symphony, which had its premiere in 1936, was revised in 1944 and championed by Artur Rodzinski and Bruno Walter...
, violin, concertmaster 1948 - Eric RosenblithEric RosenblithEric Rosenblith, is an Austrian-born American violinist. He is the former concertmaster of the Indianapolis and San Antonio Symphony Orchestras, and has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout North America, Europe, and Asia...
, violin, concertmaster 1952–1955 - Stephanie Sant'Ambrogio, violin, concertmaster 1994–2007
Sources
- "Immigrant conductor founded symphony during war years." Allen, Paula. San Antonio Express-NewsSan Antonio Express-NewsThe San Antonio Express-News is the daily newspaper of San Antonio, Texas. It is ranked as the third-largest daily newspaper in the state of Texas in terms of circulation, and is one of the leading news sources of South Texas, with offices in Austin, Brownsville, Laredo, and Mexico City...
, 27 March 2005. - International Who's Who in Music and Musical Gazetteer, ed. César Saerchinger. New York: Current Literature Publishing Company, 1918.
- San Antonio Symphony, Season 07–08 (program book)
- "San Antonio Symphony Orchestra." Albrecht, Theodore. The Handbook of Texas Online
- Wolz, Larry. "Roots of Classical Music in Texas: The German Contribution." Chapter 5 of The Roots of Texas Music, ed. Lawrence Clayton and Joe W. Specht. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2003. ISBN 1-58544-221-6.
External links
- San Antonio Symphony Official website