The Columbia Symphony Orchestra was an

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

formed by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

strictly for the purpose of making recordings. In the 1950s, it provided a vehicle for some of Columbia's better known conductors and recording artists to record using only company resources. The musicians in the orchestra were contracted as needed for individual sessions and consisted of free-lance artists and often members of either the New York Philharmonic or the Los Angeles Philharmonic, depending on whether the recording was being made in Columbia's East Coast or West Coast studios.

Early history

Some of the first recordings featuring the Columbia Symphony Orchestra were made in New York in February 1913. Felix Weingartner made five acoustic sides in New York with the soprano Lucille Marcel (the third of his five marriages) Only one take was subsequently issued, "Ave Maria" from Verdi's ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play '' Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. ...

'' on Columbia US A-5482, matrix number 36622. The other unissued takes included two of Weingartner's own songs, "Vergangenheit" and "Welke Rose",

Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

's "Die Lotosblume", op. 25, no. 7 and Olga von Radecki's "Frisches Grun".

Frank Bridge Frank Bridge (26 February 187910 January 1941) was an English composer, violist and conductor. Life Bridge was born in Brighton, the ninth child of William Henry Bridge (1845-1928), a violin teacher and variety theatre conductor, formerly a m ...

made a single (unissued) take of Grieg's ''Shepherd Boy'', op. 54 with the orchestra for Columbia UK on matrix AX 268, in London on 14 December 1923. The composer and conductor

Robert Hood Bowers Robert Hood Bowers (24 May 1877 - 29 December 1941) was an American composer, conductor and musical director of operettas and stage musicals, and a conductor and musical director for radio. He composed the musical scores for some of the most popul ...

made around 15 double-sided

78 rpm A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts near ...

recordings with the orchestra in September 1927. During a recording session in March 1932 with Weingartner and the

British Symphony Orchestra The British Symphony Orchestra (BSO or BrSO) is the name of a number of symphony orchestras, active in both concert halls and recording studios, which have existed at various times in Britain since c1905 until the present day. There were gaps of ...

in London's

Westminster Central Hall The Methodist Central Hall (also known as Central Hall Westminster) is a multi-purpose venue in the City of Westminster, London, serving primarily as a Methodist church and a conference centre. The building, which is a tourist attraction, also ho ...

, a single unissued take was made of the Waltz from

Leo Delibes Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts a ...

' ballet ''Naila'', although the conductor is unnamed. Howard D. Barlow (May 1, 1892 – January 31, 1972) made a recording of

Deems Taylor Joseph Deems Taylor (December 22, 1885 – July 3, 1966) was an American music critic, composer, and promoter of classical music. Nat Benchley, co-editor of ''The Lost Algonquin Roundtable'', referred to him as "the dean of American music." Earl ...

's suite ''Through the Looking Glass'' with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra in New York in November 1938. Released on Columbia Masterworks set M-350.

Conductors

Over the decades, several noted conductors and soloists collaborated with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra including:

Alfredo Antonini

From 1941 until 1971

Alfredo Antonini Alfredo Antonini (May 31, 1901 – November 3, 1983) was a leading Italian-American symphony conductor and composer who was active on the international concert stage as well as on the CBS radio and television networks from the 1930s through the e ...

also served as a principal conductor of the CBS Symphony Orchestra while collaborating with noted soloists including

Richard Tucker Richard Tucker (August 28, 1913January 8, 1975) was an American operatic tenor and cantor. Long associated with the Metropolitan Opera, Tucker's career was primarily centered in the United States. Early life Tucker was born Rivn (Rubin) Ticke ...

. In 1972 he was cited with an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for conducting the orchestra in the television premier of

Ezra Laderman Ezra Laderman (29 June 1924 – 28 February 2015) was an American composer of classical music. He was born in Brooklyn. Biography Laderman was of Jewish heritage. His parents, Isidor and Leah, both emigrated to the United States from Poland. Thou ...

's opera ''And David Wept.'' ''The New York Times'' - Obiturary - Alfredo Antonini - Conductor of the CBS Symphony for 30 years on nytimes.com
/ref>

Howard Barlow

in the later part of the 1930's, Howard Barlow joined forces with the orchestra which was known at the time as the CBS Symphony Orchestra within the

Columbia Broadcasting System CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

. Together, they recorded

's "Through the Looking Glass Suite", Op. 12. By 1940, they joined forces once again in a recording of Bach's

Air on the G String "Air on the G String", also known as "Air for G String" and "Celebrated Air", is August Wilhelmj's 1871 arrangement of the second movement of Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068. The arrangement differs from th ...

from the Suite No. 3 for Orchestra and the Bouree from Bach's Suite No. 3 for Unaccompanied Cello. Additional recordings with the orchestra included:

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...

's Symphony No. 2 in B flat major, D. 125 and selections from Engelbert Humperdinck's ''Hansel und Gretel Suite''.

Thomas Beecham

In 1949,

Sir Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic orchestras. He was also closely associated with th ...

made a series of recordings in Columbia Records' 30th Street Studios in New York City with a completely different pickup group, which was also called the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Later reissued by

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

on CD, the recordings include ''

Dance of the Hours ''Dance of the Hours'' (Italian: ') is a short ballet and is the act 3 finale of the opera '' La Gioconda'' composed by Amilcare Ponchielli. It depicts the hours of the day through solo and ensemble dances. The opera was first performed in 1876 ...

'' from the opera '' La Gioconda'' by

Amilcare Ponchielli Amilcare Ponchielli (, ; 31 August 1834 – 16 January 1886) was an Italian opera composer, best known for his opera ''La Gioconda''. He was married to the soprano Teresina Brambilla. Life and work Born in Paderno Fasolaro (now Paderno Ponchiell ...

, the overture to ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

'' by

Otto Nicolai Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of William Shakespeare, Shakespeare's comedy '' ...

, ''Carmen Suite'' by

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

, and '' Capriccio Italien'' by Peter Tchaikovsky.

Leonard Bernstein

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

conducted the orchestra, and also played the piano solos, in

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...

's Piano Concerto in G and

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

's ''

Rhapsody in Blue ''Rhapsody in Blue'' is a 1924 musical composition written by George Gershwin for solo piano and jazz band, which combines elements of classical music with jazz-influenced effects. Commissioned by bandleader Paul Whiteman, the work premiered i ...

''. These were released by Columbia in stereo on LP and later reissued by Sony on CD. In addition, Bernstein also joined forces with the orchestra in collaboration with

Glenn Gould Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...

in a performance of

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's Piano Concerto No. 2 in B Flat Major, Op. 19 and

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

's Keyboard Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, BWV 1052 for Columbia Masterworks in 1957

Fausto Cleva

During his tenure at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is opera ...

in 1959,

Fausto Cleva Fausto Cleva (May 17, 1902August 6, 1971) was an Austro-Hungarian Empire-born American operatic Conducting, conductor. Life and career Fausto Cleva was born in Trieste in 1902. After studies at the Conservatorio in his native city and Milan, Cle ...

led the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and the noted tenor

in a recording of several popular arias by

Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini ( Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long ...

Robert Craft

From 1955 onwards, he made many recordings with the CSO, in CBS-projects that were intended to record the

Second Viennese School The Second Viennese School (german: Zweite Wiener Schule, Neue Wiener Schule) was the group of composers that comprised Arnold Schoenberg and his pupils, particularly Alban Berg and Anton Webern, and close associates in early 20th-century Vienn ...

for the first time integrally. In this period, Craft also produced most of the Varèse works with the Columbia Ensemble.

Vladimir Golschmann

Vladimir Golschmann Vladimir Golschmann (16 December 18931 March 1972) was a French-American conductor. Biography Vladimir Golschmann was born in Paris. He studied violin at the Schola Cantorum in Paris. He was a notable advocate of the music of the composers ...

also collaborated with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra in several historic recordings with the young pianist

. Included among their collaborations were recordings of Johann Sebastian Bach's Keyboard Concerti: No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5 & No. 7, as well as the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 during the 1950's.

Alexander Schneider

Alexander Schneider Abraham Alexander Schneider (October 21, 1908 – February 2, 1993) was a violinist, conductor and educator. Born to a Jewish family in Vilnius, Lithuania, he later moved to the United States as a member of the Budapest String Quartet. Early li ...

paired with

Rudolf Serkin Rudolf Serkin (28 March 1903 – 8 May 1991) was a Bohemian-born Austrian-American pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Beethoven interpreters of the 20th century. Early life, childhood debut, and education Serkin was born in t ...

and the Columbia Symphony Orchestra during the 1950's in a recording of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's: Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K. 467 and Piano Concerto No. 27 in B flat major, K. 595.

Igor Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

made many recordings of his own compositions with an incarnation of this orchestra, mainly musicians from the Los Angeles Festival Orchestra founded by

Franz Waxman Franz Waxman (né Wachsmann; December 24, 1906February 24, 1967) was a German-born composer and conductor of Jewish descent, known primarily for his work in the film music genre. His film scores include ''Bride of Frankenstein'', ''Rebecca'', ' ...

. Among the works in which Stravinsky conducted the orchestra are ''

Apollon musagète ''Apollo'' (originally ''Apollon musagète'' and variously known as ''Apollo musagetes'', ''Apolo Musageta'', and ''Apollo, Leader of the Muses'') is a neoclassical ballet in two '' tableaux'' composed between 1927 and 1928 by Igor Stravinsky ...

''; '' Le baiser de la fée''; ''

The Firebird ''The Firebird'' (french: L'Oiseau de feu, link=no; russian: Жар-птица, Zhar-ptitsa, link=no) is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev' ...

'' – suite and complete ballet;

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different ele ...

; ''

Mavra ''Mavra'' is a one-act comic opera composed by Igor Stravinsky, and one of the earliest works of Stravinsky's neo-classical period. The libretto, by Boris Kochno, is based on Alexander Pushkin's ''The Little House in Kolomna''. Mavra is about 25 ...

''; ''

Les noces ''Les Noces'' (French for The Wedding; russian: Свадебка, ''Svadebka'') is a ballet and orchestral concert work composed by Igor Stravinsky for percussion, pianists, chorus, and vocal soloists. The composer gave it the descriptive title " ...

''; ''

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with J ...

''; '' Perséphone''; ''

Petrushka Petrushka ( rus, Петру́шка, p=pʲɪtˈruʂkə, a=Ru-петрушка.ogg) is a stock character of Russian folk puppetry. Italian puppeteers introduced it in the first third of the 19th century. While most core characters came from Italy ...

'' – suite and complete ballet; ''

Pulcinella Pulcinella (; nap, Pulecenella) is a classical character that originated in of the 17th century and became a stock character in Neapolitan puppetry. Pulcinella's versatility in status and attitude has captivated audiences worldwide and kept t ...

'' – suite and complete ballet; ''

The Rake's Progress ''The Rake's Progress'' is an English-language opera from 1951 in three acts and an epilogue by Igor Stravinsky. The libretto, written by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, is based loosely on the eight paintings and engravings '' A Rake's Prog ...

''; ''

The Rite of Spring , image = Roerich Rite of Spring.jpg , image_size = 350px , caption = Concept design for act 1, part of Nicholas Roerich's designs for Diaghilev's 1913 production of ' , composer = Igor Stravinsky , based_on ...

''; the Symphony in E flat; the Symphony in Three Movements and the Violin Concerto; as well as several shorter pieces. In 1977, a recording of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra playing the "Sacrificial Dance" from ''The Rite of Spring'', conducted by Stravinsky, was selected by NASA to be included on the

Voyager Golden Record The Voyager Golden Records are two phonograph records that were included aboard both Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The records contain sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth, and are intended for ...

, a gold-plated copper record that was sent into space on the Voyager space craft. The record contained sounds and images which had been selected as examples of the diversity of life and culture on Earth.

George Szell

In the 1960's

George Szell George Szell (; June 7, 1897 – July 30, 1970), originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer. He is widely considered one of the twentieth century's greatest condu ...

also joined forces with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and

Robert Casadesus Robert Marcel Casadesus (7 April 1899 – 19 September 1972) was a renowned 20th-century French pianist and composer. He was the most prominent member of a distinguished musical family, being the nephew of Henri Casadesus and Marius Casadesus, ...

for a recording of several piano concertos by

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

including: Concerto No. 22 in E flat major, K. 482 and Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488 for Columbia Masterworks (ML5594, 1960).

Bruno Walter

Perhaps the most important recordings the orchestra made were with conductor

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the U ...

, who recorded highly regarded interpretations of

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...

, Bruckner,

Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...

and

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

symphonies. With this orchestra, Walter made his only

stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

recording of Mahler's Symphony No. 9, which he had conducted at its world premiere.

Other recordings

The term Columbia Symphony Orchestra was also used when, for contractual reasons, another orchestra could not appear under its own name. Many

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

musicians also played under the Columbia Symphony name, and some reports mention that the entire Philharmonic frequently played as the Columbia Symphony when recorded on the west coast.

CBS Symphony Orchestra

There was also the Columbia Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra, sometimes called the CBS Symphony Orchestra. This group was formed to perform on

CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broad ...

broadcasts and also made 78-rpm recordings for Columbia Records during the 1940s. It was frequently conducted by Howard Barlow, who later became the music director of " The Voice of Firestone" radio and television programs. One of the Columbia Records releases by the CBS Symphony with Barlow conducting was the "Indian Suites" by

Edward MacDowell Edward Alexander MacDowell (December 18, 1860January 23, 1908) was an American composer and pianist of the late Romantic period. He was best known for his second piano concerto and his piano suites '' Woodland Sketches'', ''Sea Pieces'' and '' ...

, recorded on May 15, 1939; this recording can be heard on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

. The composer

Bernard Herrmann Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in composing for films. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely r ...

conducted the orchestra for some broadcasts, especially ''

The Mercury Theatre on the Air ''The Mercury Theatre on the Air'' is a radio series of live radio dramas created and hosted by Orson Welles. The weekly hour-long show presented classic literary works performed by Welles's celebrated Mercury Theatre repertory company, with mus ...

'' and '' The Campbell Playhouse'' programs presented by

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

References

;Notes ;Citations

External links

Discography of American Historical Recordings: University of California Santa Barbara - Audio recordings online of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra archived at the University of California Santa Barbara

Audio recordings by the Columbia Symphony Orchestra on archive.org

Audio recordings by the Columbia Broadcasting Symphony on archive.org

Audio recordings by the CBS Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alfredo Antonini archived at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts on nypl.org
{{Authority control Disbanded American orchestras CBS Radio