Samuel Gardner (August 25, 1891, Elizavetgrad – January 23, 1984) was an American composer and violinist of Russian Jewish origin. He won a Pulitzer prize with a

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

in 1918. He was a student of Franz Kneisel and Percy Goetschius, and began his career as a concert violinist; among his compositions is a violin concerto. He wrote a number of other chamber works, and a handful of things for orchestra, including ''Broadway'', which was performed by the Boston Symphony in the 1929-30 season.

Biography

Samuel Gardner was born August 25, 1891, in Elizavethgrad, Russian Empire, and was brought to the United States at the age of one. His family settled in Providence, Rhode Island, where Gardner attended elementary and high school. From the age of seven, he studied violin with Felix Wendelschaefer. He continued his studies in Boston with Charles Martin Loeffler and Felix Winternitz from 1902 to 1908. At the

New York Institute of Musical Art The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most e ...

(1908-1913), Gardner studied violin with

Franz Kneisel Franz Kneisel (born January 26, 1865, Bucharest - died March 26, 1926, New York) was a violinist and music teacher. He completed early musical training at the Bucharest Conservatory and moved to Vienna in 1879, where he studied under Jakob Grün. ...

and composition with Percy Goetschius. Gardner made his New York debut in 1913, played 2nd violin in the

Kneisel Quartet The Kneisel Quartet was a string quartet founded in 1885 by violinist Franz Kneisel, then concertmaster of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. It continued to perform until 1917, and was generally considered the leading string quartet of its time in t ...

from 1914 to 1915, performed with the Chicago Symphony (several times as soloist) in 1915, and toured with the Elshuco Trio in 1916 and 1917. In addition to solo recitals, Gardner appeared as soloist with the New York Philharmonic under

Josef Stránský Josef Stránský (September 9, 1872 – March 6, 1936) was a Czech conductor, composer, and art collector/dealer who moved to the United States and conducted the New York Philharmonic from 1911 to 1923. Biography He was born on September ...

and Willem Mengelberg, with the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription ...

under Leopold Stokowski, with the St. Louis, Chicago, and Los Angeles Symphonies, and in Germany and Holland. He premiered his own Violin Concerto in 1918 with the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

under

Pierre Monteux Pierre Benjamin Monteux (; 4 April 18751 July 1964) was a French (later American) conductor. After violin and viola studies, and a decade as an orchestral player and occasional conductor, he began to receive regular conducting engagements in ...

. As a violin teacher, Gardner held appointments at the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School) from 1924 to 1941. He also taught at Columbia University, the University of Wisconsin, the

Hartt School of Music The Hartt School is the comprehensive performing arts conservatory of the University of Hartford located in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States, that offers degree programs in music, dance, and theatre. Founded in 1920 by Julius Hartt and ...

, and the Atlanta School of music. Gardner published a number of pedagogical works which include a method for violin and his Harmonic Thinking school of string playing. Gardner's conducting appearances included the premiere of his symphonic poem New Russia in 1921 with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the first performance of his Broadway (1924) with the Boston Symphony in 1930. From 1938 to 1939, Gardner conducted for the Federal Music Project in New York, and in 1946 he became the first Conductor and Music Director of the Staten Island Symphony. Gardner received a prize from the

Pulitzer Foundation Pulitzer Arts Foundation is an art museum in St. Louis, Missouri, that presents special exhibitions and public programs. Known informally as the Pulitzer, the museum is located at 3716 Washington Boulevard in the Grand Center Arts District. The b ...

for his Second String Quartet (1918), the Loeb Prize for a symphonic poem (1918), and an honorary doctorate from the

New York College of Music The New York College of Music was an American conservatory of music located in Manhattan that flourished from 1878 to 1968. The college was incorporated under the laws of New York and was empowered to confer diplomas and degrees ranging from a Bac ...

(1939). The composer of many violin works, Gardner was especially renowned for "From the Canebrake," which is still a standard encore piece for violinists. He died in New York on January 23, 1984.

References

Sources

External links

Samuel Gardner Music Collection
at th
University of South FloridaThe Samuel Gardner Collection
at th
Archives at Yale
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Samuel 1891 births 1984 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American violinists American male composers American male violinists Pupils of Percy Goetschius 20th-century American male musicians