''Meet the Masters'' is a classical music

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

aired in 1952 on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

. The series debuted on February 24, 1952. The first episode featured violinist

Jascha Heifetz Jascha Heifetz (; December 10, 1987) was a Russian-born American violinist. Born in Vilnius, he moved while still a teenager to the United States, where his Carnegie Hall debut was rapturously received. He was a virtuoso since childhood. Fritz ...

. The series went on hiatus after the April 20, 1952, episode, and returned on October 19, 1952. Each episode was developed around "a simple story line woven into the half-hour to give it production appeal along with a pleasing touch of informality."

Jack Gould John Ludlow Gould (February 5, 1914 – May 24, 1993) was an American journalist and critic, who wrote commentary about television. Early life and education Gould was born in New York City into a socially prominent family and attended the Loomi ...

, columnist for ''The New York Times'', reviewed the initial broadcast with mixed feelings. He complimented Heifetz's playing "with all his accustomed brilliance" but felt that the program devoted too much time to Heifetz's answering "a series of questions leading to the standard bromidic gags" from a group of students. In addition to Heifetz, performers featured on the program in the spring of 1952 included

Marian Anderson Marian Anderson (February 27, 1897April 8, 1993) was an American contralto. She performed a wide range of music, from opera to spirituals. Anderson performed with renowned orchestras in major concert and recital venues throughout the United ...

(March 9), Arthur Rubinstein (March 23), The Trio (April 6), and Andres Segovia, Jan Peerce, and Nadine Conner (April 20). The fall of 1952 had repeats of spring episodes plus a show that featured

Gregor Piatigorsky Gregor Piatigorsky (, ''Grigoriy Pavlovich Pyatigorskiy''; August 6, 1976) was a Russian Empire-born American cellist. Biography Early life Gregor Piatigorsky was born in Ekaterinoslav (now Dnipro, Ukraine) into a Jewish family. As a child, he ...

(November 16). The program was sponsored by James Lee & Sons Co., which manufactured carpets, rungs and knitting yarn. In 1953, episodes were distributed by Standard TV via syndication under the title ''Music by the Masters''.

References

External links

Details of four episodes of ''Meet the Masters'' from Oxford University Press USA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meet the Masters NBC original programming 1952 American television series debuts 1952 American television series endings 1950s American music television series