Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MAESTROS
BY THE AUTHOR
P H Y L L I S W H I T E R O D R G U E Z - P E R A LTA
Rodrguez-Peralta, Phyllis W.
Philadelphia maestros : Ormandy, Muti,
Sawallisch / Phyllis White Rodrguez-Peralta.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-59213-487-4 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Conductors (Music)Biography.
2. Ormandy, Eugene, 18991985. 3. Muti, Riccardo [1941 ].
4. Sawallisch, Wolfgang, 1923 . 5. Philadelphia
OrchestraHistory. I. Title.
ML402.R63 2006
784.2092274811dc22
[B]
2005054889
2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3 1
To the memory of my husband,
Lorenzo Rodrguez-Peralta, M.D.
CONTENTS
Preface ix
A Note on Sources xv
Acknowledgments xvii
Notes 149
Index 163
PREFACE
ix
PREFACE
x
PREFACE
xi
PREFACE
xii
PREFACE
xiii
A NOTE ON SOURCES
xv
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
xvii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
xviii
(previous) Eugene Ormandy conducting the Orchestra. Courtesy of the University of
Pennsylvania Rare Book and Manuscript Library
2
CHAPTER ONE
Eugene Ormandy
3
CHAPTER ONE
4
EUGENE ORMANDY
5
CHAPTER ONE
6
EUGENE ORMANDY
7
CHAPTER ONE
8
EUGENE ORMANDY
9
CHAPTER ONE
Eugene Ormandy as a young violinist on tour in Europe before his arrival in the
United States in 1921. Courtesy of the University of Pennsylvania Rare Book and
Manuscript Library
10
EUGENE ORMANDY
11
CHAPTER ONE
12
EUGENE ORMANDY
13
CHAPTER ONE
14
EUGENE ORMANDY
15
CHAPTER ONE
16
EUGENE ORMANDY
17
CHAPTER ONE
18
EUGENE ORMANDY
19
CHAPTER ONE
20
EUGENE ORMANDY
rehearsals and has you sit alongside him. You are invited
to interrupt at any time, to say whether something should
be played faster, slower, or whether something is wanting
in dynamics. Any suggestion gets his courteous consider-
ation. It all contributes by giving the writer an inner sat-
isfaction, a feeling that he not only has had his work
played by the greatest orchestra of them all, but he has
found the best possible performance that the orchestra
could have given it.10
Ormandy had tremendous success when he and his
Orchestra accompanied soloists, particularly instrumen-
talists. He was very exible with soloists, which allowed
a degree of spontaneity, and he was always able to antic-
ipate and collaborate perfectly with them. All the great
performers appeared with Ormandy and the Philadelphia
Orchestra. Pianists Arturo Rubinstein and Rudolf Serkin
became particular friends who performed often with him.
Artists as diverse as Gary Graffman, Alicia de Larrocha,
Radu Lupu, Maurizio Pollini, Van Cliburn, Andr Watts,
Fritz Kreisler, Efrem Zimbalist, Isaac Stern, Itzhak Perl-
man, Pinchas Zuckerman, Mstislav Rostropovitch,
Kirsten Flagstad, Lauritz Melchior, Marian Anderson,
Beverly Sills, Plcido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti
praised his conscientious preparation and sensitive
support. Ormandy was respectful to established musi-
cians, especially superstars. In addition, appearances with
21
CHAPTER ONE
22
EUGENE ORMANDY
23
CHAPTER ONE
24
EUGENE ORMANDY
25
CHAPTER ONE
26
EUGENE ORMANDY
27
CHAPTER ONE
28
EUGENE ORMANDY
29
CHAPTER ONE
30
EUGENE ORMANDY
31
CHAPTER ONE
32
EUGENE ORMANDY
33
CHAPTER ONE
34
EUGENE ORMANDY
35
CHAPTER ONE
36
EUGENE ORMANDY
37
CHAPTER ONE
38
EUGENE ORMANDY
39
CHAPTER ONE
40
EUGENE ORMANDY
41
CHAPTER ONE
42
EUGENE ORMANDY
43
CHAPTER ONE
44
EUGENE ORMANDY
45
(previous) Riccardo Muti in rehearsal. Adrian Siegel Collection, courtesy of the
Philadelphia Orchestra Association Archives
48
CHAPTER TWO
Riccardo Muti
49
CHAPTER TWO
50
RICCARDO MUTI
51
CHAPTER TWO
52
RICCARDO MUTI
53
CHAPTER TWO
54
RICCARDO MUTI
55
CHAPTER TWO
56
RICCARDO MUTI
57
CHAPTER TWO
58
RICCARDO MUTI
59
CHAPTER TWO
60
RICCARDO MUTI
61
CHAPTER TWO
62
RICCARDO MUTI
63
CHAPTER TWO
64
RICCARDO MUTI
65
CHAPTER TWO
66
RICCARDO MUTI
67
CHAPTER TWO
68
RICCARDO MUTI
69
CHAPTER TWO
70
RICCARDO MUTI
71
CHAPTER TWO
72
RICCARDO MUTI
73
CHAPTER TWO
74
RICCARDO MUTI
75
CHAPTER TWO
76
RICCARDO MUTI
77
CHAPTER TWO
78
RICCARDO MUTI
79
CHAPTER TWO
80
RICCARDO MUTI
Muti conducting at the February 13, 2005, Musicians Pension Fund Concert.
Reprinted by permission of The Philadelphia Inquirer/John Costello
81
CHAPTER TWO
82
RICCARDO MUTI
83
(previous) Wolfgang Sawallisch conducting. Reprinted by permission of
The Philadelphia Inquirer/John Costello
86
CHAPTER THREE
Wolfgang Sawallisch
87
CHAPTER THREE
88
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
89
CHAPTER THREE
90
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
91
CHAPTER THREE
92
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
93
CHAPTER THREE
94
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
95
CHAPTER THREE
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W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
97
CHAPTER THREE
98
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
99
CHAPTER THREE
100
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
101
CHAPTER THREE
102
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
103
CHAPTER THREE
104
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
105
CHAPTER THREE
106
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
107
CHAPTER THREE
108
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
109
CHAPTER THREE
110
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
111
CHAPTER THREE
112
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
113
CHAPTER THREE
114
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
115
CHAPTER THREE
116
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
117
CHAPTER THREE
118
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
119
CHAPTER THREE
120
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
love.18 They were married after the war, and they have
one son, Georg.
In August 1998, to celebrate her husbands seventy-
fth birthday, Mrs. Sawallisch planned a surprise dinner
and concert that included several guests from abroad.
Unexpectedly, Sawallisch had to host his own birthday
fete because his wife was in the hospital. Although he
knew that she had been diagnosed with cancer, he never-
theless returned to Philadelphia to fulll his fall commit-
ments to the Orchestra. When her condition worsened, he
canceled his performances for the last two weeks in Octo-
ber and went back to Germany to be at her side.
Mechthild Sawallisch died during Christmas week,
1998.19 After 46 years of an extremely close marriage,
Sawallisch returned alone to Philadelphia for his sched-
uled concerts beginning in January 1999. Nothing was
canceled, not one rehearsal, not one concert. Reports say
that he became even closer to his Orchestra. In turn, they
watched him grapple stoically with his sorrow and lone-
liness. Only once, in his rst week back, during a rehearsal
of the funereal Adagio of Bruckners Sixth Symphony,
did his emotions break through.
Music was Sawallischs solace. He can become pas-
sionate in speaking of music as an expression of the human
desire for harmony and beauty. In an interview on German
television, he said: I am still convinced that music, more
121
CHAPTER THREE
122
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
123
CHAPTER THREE
124
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
125
CHAPTER THREE
126
W O L F G A N G S AWA L L I S C H
127
CHAPTER THREE
128
CHAPTER FOUR
129
CHAPTER FOUR
Interview with G A R Y G R A F F M A N
Pianist and President/
Director of the Curtis Institute of Music
130
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
131
CHAPTER FOUR
132
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
133
CHAPTER FOUR
134
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
135
CHAPTER FOUR
136
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
Interview with L A N G L A N G
Pianist
137
CHAPTER FOUR
138
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
Q Does the soloist have the nal word, or are you obliged
to follow the conductors ways?
139
CHAPTER FOUR
140
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
Interview with S A R A H C H A N G
Violinist
141
CHAPTER FOUR
142
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
143
CHAPTER FOUR
144
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
145
CHAPTER FOUR
146
VOICES FROM THE MUSIC WORLD
147
NOTES
149
NOTES TO CHAPTER ONE
150
NOTES TO CHAPTER TWO
151
NOTES TO CHAPTER TWO
152
NOTES TO CHAPTER THREE
153
NOTES TO CHAPTER THREE
154
NOTES TO CHAPTER THREE
155
NOTES TO CHAPTER THREE
156
NOTES TO CHAPTER FOUR
157
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
159
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
160
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
161
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
162
INDEX
163
INDEX
164
INDEX
Kabalevsky, Dmitri, 35
Hahn, Hillary, 104
Karajan, Herbert von, 76
Hampson, Thomas, 103, 104,
Kavakos, Lenidas, 104
106, 110
Kennedy, President John, 94
Hanson, Howard, 20
Kernis, Aaron Jay, 109,
Haydn, Josef, 44, 99, 102,
111, 123
108, 137
Khrennikov, Tikhon, 33
Hayes, David, 125
Hendricks, Barbara, 104 Kim, David, 104
Higdon, Jennifer, 109, 111 Kimmel, Sidney, 122
Hindemith, Paul, 19, 108 Klein, Howard, 91
Hitler, Adolph, 101 Klemperer, Otto, 56
Hofmann, Josef, 135 Kodly, Zoltn, 9, 19, 24, 39
Horowitz, Vladimir, 133, Kovacevich, Stephen, 114
149 Kreisler, Fritz, 21
Hubay, Jeno, 8, 9, 10 Kremer, Gidon, 78
Humperdinck, Engelbert, 89 Kupferberg, Herbert, 49,
Hvorostovsky, Dmitri, 106 149, 150, 151
165
INDEX
166
INDEX
167
INDEX
168
INDEX
Osawa, Seiji, 24
Rachmaninoff, Sergei, 20,
22, 34, 43, 110, 149, 157
Ramey, Samuel, 65, 77
Paganini, Niccol, 141,
Rands, Bernard, 64, 77, 108
142, 157
Rapee, Erno, 12
Papa, Ren, 107
Rattle, Sir Simon, 124, 136
Pavarotti, Luciano, 21,
Ratzinger, Cardinal Joseph
65, 78
Penderecki, Krzysztof, 20, (Pope Benedict XVI), 156
109, 155 Rautavaara, Einojuhani,
Perahia, Murray, 66, 104 108, 118
Perlman, Itzhak, 21, 66, 95, Ravel, Maurice, 77, 123, 131,
104, 123 132, 133
Persichetti, Vincent, 20 Richter, Sviatoslav, 5354
Petrillo, James, 34 Ridge, Governor Tom,
Pew Foundation, 76 117, 118
Philadelphia sound, xi, Rihm, Wolfgang, 198
1617, 35, 59, 92, 95 Rochberg, George, 77, 108
Piston, Walter, 20 Rorem, Ned, 95
Pohlig, Carl, xii Rostropovich, Mstislav,
Pollini, Maurizio, 21, 65, 104 21, 33
Pontinen, Roland, 108 Rouse, Christopher, 63
Pope Paul VI, 154 Rubinstein, Arturo, 21,
Prempr, Raymond, 63 32, 133
Prokoev, Sergei, 19, 54, 157 Ruo, Huang, 108, 109
Puccini, Giacomo, 32, 64, 77 Ruoff, Wolfgang, 89
169
INDEX
170
INDEX
171
INDEX
Votto, Antonino, 52
Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich,
13, 33, 38, 44, 67, 133,
146, 156, 157
Wagner, Richard, 33, 64, 73,
Thomson, Randall, 20
90, 92, 107, 109, 114, 115
Toscanini, Arturo, 3, 4, 13,
Walter, Bruno, 30, 32, 71
32, 33, 52, 53, 71, 73
Watts, Andr, 21, 66, 104,
Truman, Margaret, 32
110
Truman, President Harry, 32
Weber, Carl Mara von, 108
Webster, Daniel, 58, 152
Ullmann, Viktor, 108 Weill, Kurt, 108
Upshaw, Dawn, 104 Weinberger, Jaromir, 4
Wernick, Richard, 63
Wilford, Ronald, 54
Valds, Lesley, 156
Vanessa, Carol, 77
Verbrugghen, Henri, 4 Yardumian, Richard, 150
Verdi, Giuseppe, 64, 66, 77, Yun, Isang, 92
102
Verizon Hall, features of, 98,
99, 111, 114, 123 Zimbalist, Efrem, 21
Villa Lobos, Heitor, 20 Zinman, David, 132, 136
Voight, Deborah, 107 Zuckerman, Pinchas, 21, 65
172
PHYLLIS WHITE RODRGUEZ-PERALTA is an
Emeritus Professor of Temple University, formerly the
Chair of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. She
is the author of Jos Santos Chocano: An Analysis of His
Works, and Tres poetas cumbres en la poesa peruana: Chocano,
Eguren y Vallejo.