:''Not to be confused by The Little Orchestra of London'' The Little Orchestra Society is an American orchestra based at 630 9th Avenue, Suite 807 in New York City. It was founded in 1947 by Thomas Scherman, who served as its conductor until his death in 1979. From 1979 to 2011 the Orchestra was led by Dino Anagnost. Its membership has ranged between 45 and 60 musicians. The orchestra's name is borrowed from The Little Orchestra of London, which was formed by

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

during the

Bach Revival :''See Historically informed performance for a more detailed explanation of this topic.'' The general discussion of how to perform music from ancient or earlier times did not become an important subject of interest until the 19th century, when Eu ...

. In 2019, the Orchestra named David Alan Miller its new Artistic Advisor. Its first concert took place at

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

in Manhattan on October 27, 1947. In 1959 the orchestra toured to eight Asian countries including

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

, Hong Kong, India, and Japan, performing the music of

Henry Cowell Henry Dixon Cowell (; March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, publisher and teacher. Marchioni, Tonimarie (2012)"Henry Cowell: A Life Stranger Than Fiction" ''The Juilliard Journal''. Retrieved 19 June 202 ...

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 ...

guest conducted the orchestra on April 2, 1957, in a concert that included

Johannes 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 wit ...

' '' Serenade No. 2 in A Major''. Monteux had recorded the serenade in the preceding year, but this performance too was recorded. The orchestra commissions new works and has given 65 world premieres (by composers including

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 ...

, Douglas Moore, and David Diamond), and more than 175 U.S. and New York premieres by such composers as

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread ...

John Corigliano John Paul Corigliano Jr. (born February 16, 1938) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. His scores, now numbering over one hundred, have won him the Pulitzer Prize, five Grammy Awards, Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, an ...

, and Christopher Rouse.

Discography

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 ...

, Octet in E-Flat Major, Op. 103 & Rondino in E-Flat Major, Grove 146, Thomas Scherman conducting,

EMS Recordings EMS Recordings was founded in 1949 by Jack Skurnick in New York City. The company won first prize at the Audio Fair of 1950 for the high quality and interest of its recordings. It issued the first recording of works of Edgard Varese. Skurnick's par ...

#1, 1950
''Hello, World!/The Greatest Sound Around''

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

, narrator (on ''Hello World!''), words and music by Susan Otto and William R. Mayer, The Little Orchestra Society, Thomas Scherman, conductor, John Langstaff, tenor (on ''The Greatest Sound Around'').

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

Red Seal LM-2332, 1959

References

External links

Official site
*Listen t
Little Orchestra Society Concerts
on

WNYC WNYC is the trademark and a set of call letters shared by WNYC (AM) and WNYC-FM, a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations located in New York City. WNYC is owned by New York Public Radio (NYPR), a nonprofit organization that ...

Musical groups established in 1947 Chamber orchestras 1947 establishments in New York City Orchestras based in New York City {{US-orchestra-stub