1936 Conductor WILLIAM STEINBERG Hand SIGNED AUTOGRAPH Letter PHOTO Jewish TLS

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Seller: judaica-bookstore ✉️ (2,805) 100%, Location: TEL AVIV, IL, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 276320071621 1936 Conductor WILLIAM STEINBERG Hand SIGNED AUTOGRAPH Letter PHOTO Jewish TLS. DESCRIPTION :  WILLIAM STEINBERG was the conductor in the SECOND 1936 Concert of the PALESTINE ORCHESTRA after the INAUGURAL CONCERT which was conducterd by TOSCANINI , Who, Together with BRONISLAW HUBERMAN have founded the PALESTINE ORCHETRA . STEINBERG was the conductor of most of the PO CONCERTS which took place at this FIRST CONCERT SEASON ( 1936-1937 ). The Palestine Tel Aviv photographer SEBBA took a serie of PHOTOS of STEINBERG during the rehearsals of the PO and a reproduction of one of these PHOTOS , A reproduction action photo is the subjest of this AUCTION. The REPRODUCTION PHOTO depicts around 35 years old STEINBERG in action , Enthusiastically conducting during a rehearsal for one of these 1936 concerts . This historical REPRODUCTION PHOTO is matted together with a BOLDLY HAND SIGNED ( With a fountan pen ) AUTOGRAPHED LETTER  ( TLS ) of the beloved conductor . A personal letter , Typed on the letter head of the "PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY SOCIETY" and HAND SIGNED by WILLIAM STEINBERG. The original hand signed AUTOGRAPH and the REPRODUCTION PHOTO are nicely matted together , Suitable for immediate framing or display . ( An image of a suggested framing is presented - The frame is not a part of this sale - An excellent framing - Buyer's choice - is possible for extra  $80 ). The size of the decorative mat is around 9 x 19 " . The size of the reproduction photo is around 7 x 9 " . The size of the original hand signed autographed letter TLS ( Autogramme ) is around 6 x 6 " . Very good condition of the original hand signed autograph, The reproduction action photo and the decorative mat . ( Pls look at scan for accurate AS IS images  ) . Authenticity guaranteed.  Will be sent inside a protective rigid packaging .   PAYMENTS : Payment method accepted : Paypal . SHIPPMENT :SHIPP worldwide via registered airmail is $ 29  . Will be sent inside a protective packaging. Handling within 3-5 days after payment. Estimated Int'l duration around 14 days. William Steinberg (Cologne, August 1, 1899 – New York City, May 16, 1978) was a German-American conductor.   Contents ·       1Biography ·       2Conductor and music director o   2.1Selected discography ·       3References ·       4External links Biography[edit] Steinberg was born Hans Wilhelm Steinberg in Cologne, Germany. He displayed early talent as a violinist, pianist, and composer, conducting his own choral/ orchestral composition (based on texts from Ovid's Metamorphoses) at age 13. In 1914, he began studies at the Cologne Conservatory, where his piano teacher was the Clara Schumann pupil Lazzaro Uzielli and his conducting mentor was Hermann Abendroth. He graduated with distinction, winning the Wüllner Prize for conducting, in 1919. He immediately became a second violinist in the Cologne Opera orchestra, but was dismissed from the position by Otto Klempererfor using his own bowings. He was soon hired by Klemperer as an assistant, and in 1922 conducted Fromental Halévy's La Juiveas a substitute. When Klemperer left in 1924, Steinberg served as Principal Conductor. He left a year later, in 1925, for Prague, where he was conductor of the German Theater. He next took the position of music director of the Frankfurt Opera. In 1930, in Frankfurt, he conducted the world premiere of Arnold Schoenberg's Von heute auf morgen. He was relieved of his post in 1933 by the Third Reich because he was Jewish. According to the grandson of composer Ernst Toch, Steinberg was "rehearsing [Toch's opera Der Fächer (The Fan)] in Cologne when Nazi brownshirts came storming into the hall and literally lifted the baton out of his hand".;[1] Steinberg, who had married Lotte Stern in Frankfurt in 1934, was then restricted to conducting concerts for the Jewish Culture League in Frankfurt and Berlin. The Steinbergs left Germany in 1936 for the British Mandate of Palestine, which is now Israel.[2] Eventually, with co-founder Bronisław Huberman, Steinberg trained the Palestine Symphony Orchestra, which would later be known as the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Steinberg was conducting the orchestra when Arturo Toscanini visited there in 1936. Toscanini was impressed with Steinberg's preliminary groundwork for his concerts and later engaged him as an assistant in preparing for the NBC Symphony Orchestra radio broadcasts.[3] Steinberg emigrated to the United States in 1938. He conducted a number of concerts with the NBC Symphony Orchestra from 1938 to 1940. Steinberg conducted summer concerts at Lewisohn Stadium in New York (1940–41), led New York Philharmonic concerts in 1943-44, and also conducted at the San Francisco Opera. He became a US citizen in 1944, and was engaged as music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra from 1945 to 1952. He is best known for his tenure as music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 1952 to 1976. Steinberg's Pittsburgh appearances in January 1952 were so impressive that he was quickly both engaged as music director and signed to a contract with Capitol Records. Thereafter Pittsburgh was the center of his activity although he held other important positions. From 1958 to 1960 he also conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra, but eventually resigned that post because the added workload led to problems with his arm.[4] He led the New York Philharmonic for twelve weeks while on sabbatical leave from Pittsburgh in 1964-65, which led to his engagement as the Philharmonic's principal guest conductor from 1966 to 1968. From 1969 to 1972 Steinberg was music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (with which he had achieved earlier success as guest conductor) while maintaining his Pittsburgh post. He toured Europe with the Boston Symphony in April 1971. These additional engagements often led to rumors that Steinberg would leave Pittsburgh for a full-time position elsewhere. In 1968 though he declared, "We are too closely wed, the Pittsburgh Symphony and I, to contemplate any divorce."[5] On another occasion Steinberg said that conducting had become the profession of a traveling salesman. "A conductor has to stay put to educate an orchestra."[6] Steinberg guest-conducted most of the major US orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and Philadelphia Orchestra. Abroad he conducted the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, Frankfurt Opera and Museum Orchestra, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, RAI Orchestra of Rome, Orchestra of the Teatro di San Carlo, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (in their 1955 Beethoven cycle), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne. He also appeared at summer festivals in the US and Canada (Ambler Temple University Festival, Hollywood Bowl, Ojai, Ravinia, Robin Hood Dell, Saratoga, Tanglewood, and Vancouver) as well as in Europe (Salzburg, Lucerne, Montreux). He conducted the Metropolitan Opera in several productions including Barber's Vanessa, Verdi's Aida, and Wagner's Die Walküre during his sabbatical in 1964-65. Steinberg recorded Don Juan and his own suite from Der Rosenkavalier (works by Richard Strauss) with Walter Legge's Philharmonia Orchestra in the summer of 1957. The following year he conducted them in concerts at Lucerne before assuming the conductorship of the London Philharmonic. Steinberg's first recording was however made in 1928, when he accompanied Bronisław Huberman in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with the Staatskapelle Berlin. In 1940 Steinberg recorded excerpts from Wagner's "Lohengrin," "Tristan und Isolde," and Tannhäuser, as well as Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro," with Metropolitan Opera members, issued anonymously on "World's Greatest Opera" records.[7] After the war Steinberg made a single album for the Musicraft label with the Buffalo Philharmonic - the premiere recording of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7 in 1946. He led several accompaniments for concerto recordings on RCA Victor by Alexander Brailowsky, Jascha Heifetz, William Kapell, and Arthur Rubinstein. Steinberg made numerous recordings for Capitol Records, all but two of them with the Pittsburgh Symphony. The exceptions included a recording with the Los Angeles Woodwinds of Mozart's Gran Partita, K.361, taped in Hollywood in August 1952, and the aforementioned Strauss disc with the Philharmonia Orchestra. His Pittsburgh recordings for Capitol, all made in the Syria Mosque, included concertos with Nathan Milstein and Rudolf Firkušný, as well as a cross-section of the symphonic repertoire from Beethoven to Wagner. Nearly all of Steinberg's Capitol recordings were reissued in a 20-CD box set by EMI in September 2011.[8] In February 1960 Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony moved to Everest Records, but by mutual agreement this contract was terminated after three releases since Everest abandoned their classical recording program. These were audiophile 35mm film master recordings, a technique pioneered by Everest Records at that time. A casualty of this decision was a planned recording of Mahler's Sixth Symphony with the London Philharmonic, which was to have been made in conjunction with Steinberg's performance given as part of the Mahler centenary in London. Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony in March 1961 signed a pact with Enoch Light's Command label. Light had attended a Steinberg concert in Danbury, Connecticut a few years before and told the conductor he'd like to record the orchestra. After the Everest contract lapsed, Steinberg subsequently made a number of technically acclaimed records for Command on 35mm film recording stock. The Command releases, hailed as "outstanding examples of contemporary recording," were made in the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in Pittsburgh. Light preferred the sound of this high-ceilinged auditorium with its open stage to that of Syria Mosque for recording.[9][10] The initial Command recordings, Brahms Symphony No. 2 and Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2, were taped on May 1–2, 1961. Steinberg's recording of the Brahms Symphony No. 2 was nominated for a Grammy for Classical Album of the Year in 1962.[11] Steinberg said of these sessions, "At first I opposed this location, because I can't hear the orchestra there, the ceiling is so high. I suppose it must be so high to make room for the Lincoln inscription. But the engineers said, 'The microphones hear very well, and we will use a lot of them.' Who am I to argue with the engineers? So we recorded in Memorial Hall. I am the only conductor in history who memorized the Gettysburg Address while rehearsing Brahms' Second Symphony."[12] Steinberg's Command recordings eventually included complete cycles of the Beethoven and Brahms Symphonies, along with a diverse list of other works. Command's Pittsburgh Symphony activity ended after Steinberg recorded Bruckner's Seventh Symphony, his early Overture in G minor, two arrangements by Robert Russell Bennett, and Dimitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1 in April 1968.[13] Command Vice President and General Manager Loren Becker stated that "Steinberg's stature as a great conductor will also mean many more recordings of standard fare."[14] However Becker departed Command a few months later and ABC, the label's owner, ended the Pittsburgh series. When Steinberg assumed his post with the Boston Symphony in 1969, he made several recordings first for RCA, then Deutsche Grammophon, which contracted the Boston Symphony upon expiration of the RCA pact. His Boston recordings for both RCA and DG were of the first rank both musically and technically. Steinberg received numerous awards, including both the Kilenyi Bruckner Medal and the Kilenyi Mahler Medal from The Bruckner Society of America.[15][16] He was named a member of the International Institute of Arts and Letters in 1960.[17] Steinberg was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame the same year. The Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce named Steinberg Man of the Year for 1964 for his contributions to the city's cultural life, and for leading the Pittsburgh Symphony on a triumphant tour of Europe and the Middle East.[18] He was also an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the national fraternity for men in music.[19] Steinberg received an honorary doctorate of music from Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1954,[20] an honorary doctorate of music from Duquesne University in 1964,[21] and an honorary doctorate of humanities from the University of Pittsburgh in 1966.[22] He was named Sanford Professor of Music at Yale University in 1974. Steinberg died in New York City on May 16, 1978, having entered the hospital after conducting a New York Philharmonic concert on May 1 that featured violinist Isaac Stern.[5] William Steinberg was noted throughout his career for his straightforward yet expressive musical style, leading familiar works with integrity and authority such that they sounded fresh and vital. Despite the dynamic drive of his interpretations, his podium manner was a model of restraint. Steinberg said of his interpretive philosophy, "One must always respect the character of the music and never try to grow lush foliage in a well tempered English garden."[23] Referring to some of his more acrobatic colleagues, Steinberg remarked, "The more they move around, the quieter I get."[24] Pittsburgh principal flute Bernard Goldberg told how Steinberg "looked forward to being 70 years old because only then did a conductor know what he was doing."[25] Armando Ghitalla, distinguished Boston Symphony principal trumpet from 1966–79, said of Steinberg that "his musical taste was one of the finest I've ever heard."[26] Boston Symphony concertmaster Joseph Silverstein said Steinberg was "as sophisticated a musician as I have ever known."[27] Steinberg had a wide range of repertoire, including a sympathy for the English music of Elgar and Vaughan Williams. He led several important premieres, including the US premiere of Anton Webern's Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6. During his first Pittsburgh season, Steinberg conducted works by Bartók, Berg, Bloch, Britten, Copland, Harris, Honegger, Milhaud, Schuman, Stravinsky, Vaughan Williams, and Villa-Lobos at the Pittsburgh International Contemporary Music Festival (all of these performances appeared on record, and the Bloch, Schuman, and Vaughan Williams were licensed by Capitol). He was also admired as an interpreter of Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Strauss, and Wagner. He made a famous recording of Holst's The Planets with the Boston Symphony for Deutsche Grammophon, after learning the piece at the age of 70. Unusual for a conductor born in Europe, Steinberg was a sympathetic conductor of George Gershwin's music (he made Gershwin recordings for three different labels). His last Metropolitan Opera appearances were three performances of Wagner's Parsifal in April 1974. Although sometimes criticized for his unusual programming, Steinberg was a champion of certain lesser known works including Berlioz's Roméo et Juliette, Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony, Reger's Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Mozart, and his own orchestral transcription of Verdi's String Quartet in E minor. Steinberg said, "The literature is so enormous. I look into what my colleagues won't. Actually, I am not success minded. I merely dare. I take a risk. Criticism I get anyway."[28] Steinberg's prestige however filled Carnegie Hall to 80 percent capacity under the unlikely circumstance of the first all-Schoenberg orchestral program ever given in New York.[29] Steinberg once remarked to a San Francisco Symphony musician he corrected, "I may be wrong, but I don't think so." Violinist David Schneider said, "This quality of not taking himself too seriously endeared him to the musicians."[30] Although all business on the podium, Steinberg was not above a bit of clowning in public; at one Pittsburgh Symphony fundraiser, he donned a blonde wig on his bald head that Johnny Carson jokingly presented him. Steinberg's puckish humor was often in evidence, as when he told Time Magazine that he had conceived "something for the New York snobs—an all-Mendelssohn program. This is really the height of snobbishness, the wonderful answer to the question of just what do the snobs need."[31] He said that he spoke four and a half languages - the half being English.[5] Of his habit of eating a steak before every concert he conducted, Steinberg told a columnist, "So you see, it's an expensive business - this concert conducting."[32] Referring to a disagreement with violinist Nathan Milstein that led to Milstein walking out of a rehearsal, Steinberg said, "He decided he would not stay and I decided I would not have him."[33] Concerning acoustics he said, "If the hall is resonant, the tempos must be changed. If the acoustics are too bad, you go fast in order to go home quickly!"[34] To an interviewer who said he had heard that the conductor did not care for giving interviews, Steinberg replied that it was fine as long as the subject was one that interested him - "for instance, myself."[35] Conductor and music director[edit] ·       1924 Oper Köln ·       1925–1929 Prague State Opera ·       1929–1933 Oper Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main ·       1936–1938 Palestine Symphony ·       1945–1952 Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra ·       1952–1976 Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra ·       1958–1960 London Philharmonic ·       1969–1972 Boston Symphony Orchestra Selected discography[edit] Recordings made with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra for Musicraft: ·       December 4, 1946 Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7, "Leningrad" (This was the first commercial recording of the work) Recordings made with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Everest Records: ·       February 13, 14, 16, 1960 Robert Russell Bennett: A Commemoration Symphony (based on works by Stephen Foster); A Symphonic Story of Jerome Kern ·       February 13, 14, 16, 1960 Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4 ·       February 13, 14, 16, 1960 George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue (with Jesus Maria Sanroma), An American in Paris Recordings made with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for Command Classics: ·       May 1–2, 1961 Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2 ·       May 1–2, 1961 Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2 ·       November 1–4, 1961 Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 1 ·       November 1–4, 1961 Richard Wagner: Selections from Der Ring des Nibelungen ·       November 1–4, 1961 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 ·       April 30-May 2, 1962 Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 3, Tragic Overture ·       April 30-May 2, 1962 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 4, Leonore Overture No. 3 ·       April 30-May 2, 1962 Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 3 ·       April 30-May 2, 1962 Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 8 ·       April 29-May 1, 1963 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 3, "Eroica" ·       April 29-May 1, 1963 Richard Wagner: Preludes and Overtures ·       April 29-May 1, 1963 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 ·       April 27–29, 1964 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 1, Symphony No. 2 ·       April 27–29, 1964 Giuseppe Verdi: String Quartet in E (arr. Steinberg) ·       April 27–29, 1964 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker Suite ·       June 7–9, 1965 Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4 ·       June 7–9, 1965 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 ·       June 7–9, 1965 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 ·       April 4–8, 1966 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 ·       April 4–8, 1966 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 ·       April 4–8, 1966 Igor Stravinsky: Petrouchka ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Maurice Ravel: Valses nobles et sentimentales ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Antonín Dvořák: Scherzo capriccioso ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Hector Berlioz: Rakoczy March ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Camille Saint-Saëns: French Military March ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Johann Strauss: Perpetual Motion, Tritsch-Tratsch Polka ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 George Gershwin: Porgy and Bess - Symphonic Picture, An American in Paris ·       May 15, 17, 18, 1967 Aaron Copland: Appalachian Spring, Billy the Kid ·       April 6–8, 1968 Dimitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 1 ·       April 6–8, 1968 Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 7, Overture in G Minor ·       April 9–10, 1968 Robert Russell Bennett: The Sound of Music - Symphonic Picture, My Fair Lady - Symphonic Picture Recordings made with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for RCA Victor: ·       September 29, 1969 Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 9, D 944 The Great ·       January 12, 1970 Camille Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre with Joseph Silverstein, violin ·       January 12, 1970 Richard Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks, Op. 28 ·       January 19 and October 19, 1970 Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 ·       October 26, 1970 Paul Dukas: The Sorcerer's Apprentice Unissued recordings made with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for RCA Victor: ·       January 12, 1970 Igor Stravinsky: Scherzo fantastique, Op. 3; Scherzo a la Russe ·       October 26, 1970 Felix Mendelssohn: Scherzo from Octet in E flat Recordings made with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for DGG: ·       September 28 and October 12, 1970 Gustav Holst: The Planets ·       March 24, 1971 Richard Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 ·       October 4/5, 1971 Paul Hindemith: Symphony: Mathis der Maler ·       October 5, 1971 Paul Hindemith: Concert Music for Strings and Brass Live recordings issued commercially: ·       July 18, 1943 Johannes Brahms: Violin Concerto - Adolf Busch, New York Philharmonic, Music & Arts CD ·       December 3, 1946 Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7, "Leningrad" - Buffalo Philharmonic, Allegro Records (LP, sourced from concert performance given the day before the Musicraft recording of the work) ·       September 10, 1965 Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 2, "Resurrection" - Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, ICA Classics CD ·       December 19, 1969 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: "Don Giovanni" Overture - Boston Symphony Orchestra Archives Release CD ·       February 26, 1972 Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 8 - Boston Symphony Orchestra, BSO From the Broadcast Archives 1943-2000 CD set ·       June 15, 1973 Ludwig van Beethoven: Missa Solemnis - Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, ICA Classics CD Video concert recordings issued commercially: ·       Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 (October 6, 1970) & Symphony No. 8 (January 9, 1962); Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 55 (October 7, 1969) - Boston Symphony Orchestra, ICA Classics DVD ·       Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 8 (January 9, 1962) - Boston Symphony Orchestra, ICA Classics DVD     William Steinberg: Biography   William Steinberg (born Wilhelm Hans Steinberg) was a conductor, an exceptional orchestra builder and interpreter of the Romantic to early 20th Century repertory.  H e developed precociously as a musician. At the age of thirteen he composed and conducted a cantata for chorus and orchestra based on selections of Ovid's Metamorphoses. He was also a fast-developing pianist and violinist. He studied at Cologne Conservatory with Franz Bölsche in music theory, Lazzaro Uzielli in piano, and Hermann Abendroth in conducting. He won the Wüllner prize in conducting in his graduation year of 1920.  He obtained a position conducting at Cologne Opera, where he was an assistant to Otto Klemperer. When Klemperer left in 1924, Steinberg received the appointment as Principal Conductor. In 1925 he accepted the post of conductor of the German Theater in Prague. In 1929 he became musical director of the Frankfort Opera. His tenure there was marked by an interest in modern opera. His productions included Berg's Wozzeck, Schoenberg's Von heute auf Morgen, Antheil's Transatlantic, and Weill's Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny.  T he advent of Nazi rule in 1933 ended his career. He was restricted to conducting concerts for the Jewish Culture League in Frankfurt and Berlin. This was an insidious creation of the Nazis that both furthered its institutionalized anti-Semitism by creating a segregated organization for a segregated orchestra, while preserving the illusion that the Nazis goals went no further than ethnic separation. Steinberg left Germany in 1936 for Palestine, where he conducted the new orchestra there that eventually became the Israel Philharmonic. The Palestine Philharmonic's first concert was conducted by Arturo Toscanini. After working with Steinberg, Toscanini invited him to go to the United States as associate conductor of his NBC Symphony Orchestra. Steinberg took up that position in 1938. Toscanini and Klemperer were Steinberg's two mentors. He adopted their clear, faithful approach to the classic scores and, like Klemperer, lost much of his early interest in Modern music.  S teinberg guest conducted regularly during his tenure with the NBC SO. In 1945 he became Music Director of the Buffalo (New York) Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1952 he obtained the major appointment of his career, as music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He restored that orchestra to an artistic high point. Concurrently, he was musical director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1958-1960).  In 1960 he scored a great success guest conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra and was the preferred choice of its board for their next music director, as Charles Munch was stepping down from the position. However, RCA, the orchestra's record company, successfully pressured them to appoint Erich Leinsdorf, already on their roster of conductors. After Leinsdorf's tenure, one of mixed success, ended, they did appoint Steinberg to the post effective 1969. This was also only a partial success, because then health problems interfered with his abilities and caused frequent substitutions. He left the position in 1972 and restricted his activities.   WILLIAM  STEINBERG     Opera and Symphony Orchestra Conductor primus  inter  pares            LEFT CLICK ON IMAGES FOR FULL SIZE   LAST  UPDATED: Ausgust 10, 2008    I would like to thank the many people who have provided me with information regarding Steinberg so far, and still coming - someday I will include their names here but no before getting their permission. Any information you may posses about Steinberg please let me know. My e-mail is at the bottom of the page ~ John Nemaric  - PhD BIOGRAPHY   William Steinberg quickly established himself as a real star in the conducting firmament of classical music after being named Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic in 1946. His name has been engraved forever in the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles with his own star at 1645 Vine Street near the Capitol Building - he produced many outstanding recordings for the Capitol label in the 1950's. Steinberg, as he was called even by his best friends, blatantly delighted himself and his orchestras in performing "the music nobody wants to play, nobody wants to conduct and nobody wants to hear."  He treated his musicians with courtesy and respect, regaled them with a rich sense of humor, rode the bus with them on tour, and preached such heresies as "gaiety is the only atmosphere for music making." As for the age-old maxim that deviations from the standard classical repertoire spelled box office suicide, he persisted season after season in offering one of the most adventuresome and widely varied programs in music. Steinberg liked to describe his role as conductor as a primus inter pares - a leader of equals - and he took great pains to let his musicians share the accomplishment.   Although Steinberg was and still is best know as an orchestral conductor, he was in private life an avid reader and book collector. At the time of his death his personal library included approximagely 1,400 volumes of literature, represented by titles in English, German, French, Japanese and Chinese. He collected many private press books, which were published in limited editions and signed by authors. Napoleon was one of his special interests, along with old Bibles (one dates from 1684), miniatures, and books on art, poetry, and travel. In addition to separate works, he had acquired and read Balzac, Goethe, Poe, Schiller, Shaw and Shakespeare. His music score collection consisted of approximately 800 titles, including full and study scores, opera scores, chamber works, vocal and piano solos, facsimile reprints, and recordings. He received numerous presentation copies of symphonic works, signed by the composers, such as Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Nicolai Lopatnikoff, Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg, Ernst Toch, and Virgil Thomsom. While not a music antiquarian, Steinberg acquired early editions of Beethoven, Chopin, Haydn, and Mozart, as well as an autographed copy of Wagner's "Die Walkure." Notable musicians of his acquaintance also presented him with autographed photographs. He also experimented with china ink drawings. TIMELINE dates shown always correspond to the latest information available - subject to changes   1898, August 1 - Born, Cologne, Germany. 1911 - At age 13 composes a cantata for chorus and orchestra based on Ovid's Metamorphoses. 1914/18 - Member of a German military band during WW I - played the French Horn. 1920 - Wins the Wülner prize in conducting in this his graduation year at the Cologne Conservatory. Recitation instruments: piano and violin. 1920 - Appointed Assistant Conductor to Otto Klemperer at the Cologne Opera. 1924 - After Otto Klemperer's departure from the Cologne Opera is appointed Conductor in his replacement. 1925 - Takes the post of Conductor of the German Theater of Prague. 1928 - First known recording (for the Columbia label) in Germany with Bronislaw Huberman playing the "Gibson" Stradivarius (now owned by Joshua Bell). 1929 - Becomes Musical Director of the Frankfurt Opera. 1934 - Banned from the podium by the German government for political reasons while rehearsing the premiere of one of Ernst Toch operas: "Der Fächer." Goes underground musically speaking. 1936 - Emigrates to the Palestine Protectorate (UK). Co-founder with Bronislaw Huberman of the Palestine Orchestra, later to become the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.  1938 - Arrives to the US and becomes Assistant Conductor to Arturo Toscanini's and the NBC Symphony Orchestra. 1942 - First recording for US Columbia Records. 1942, November 13 - First concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra as a guest conductor. Program included: §  Carl Maria von Weber: Overture to The Freischutz. §  Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 3, Opus 90. §  Ivan Langstroth: Scherzo §  Igor Stravinsky: Fireworks, Opus 4. §  Richard Strauss: Don Juan, Opus 20. §  Franz Liszt & Byrns: Grand Galop Chromatique  (arr.) for orchestra. 1945 - Becomes Musical Director and Conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Leaves the BPO in 1952 for Pittsburgh. 1946 - First recording with RCA Records. 1952, January 4 - First concert with the PSO as a guest conductor.  Venue: Syria Mosque. Program included: §  Georg Frederick Händel : Music for the Royal Fireworks. §  Franz Schubert : Symphony No. 2 in B-flat major, D. 125 §  Gustav Mahler : Symphony No. 1 in D major. 1952, October 31 - Becomes Musical Director and Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. First work conducted as Musical Director of the orchestra: Variations on a Theme by Haydn , Opus 56a  by Johannes Brahms. Venue: Syria Mosque. 1952 - First recording with the PSO for Capitol Records. 1952 - First recording with the PSO for ASCAP. 1955 - Premieres Ernst Toch Third Symphony ; wins the 1956 Pulitzer Prize. 1958 - Jointly with Conductor John Pritchard awarded a shared first prize in conduction to Zubin Metha, Haig Yaghjian and Sverre Bruland at Liverpool's international competition for conductors. 1959 - Appointed Musical Advisor to Haig Yaghjian. 1959 - Hires my friend Ray Marsh as Assistant Violist. 1960 - First recordings with the PSO for Everest Records on 35 mm magnetic film strip. 1960 - First recording with the PSO for Command Records. Recording engineer was C. Robert Fine of Fine Sounds, NYC. Recorded on 35 mm magnetic film strip. 1960, January 1 - First concert as a Guest Conductor with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Venue: Boston Symphony Hall. Program included: §  Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 99 in E flat. §  Richard Strauss: "Tod un Verklärung" , Opus 24 (Death and Transfiguration). §  Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 1 in D major. 1960, February 12 - Under his auspices Haig Yaghjian makes his debut as Guest Conductor of the PSO. Would later become the PSO's Assistant Conductor. 1961, February - Appears as a guest conductor in Philadelphia, New York's Carnegie Hall, Baltimore and Chicago. 1964, August 10 through November 1 - Tour of Europe and Near East under de auspices of the Office of Cultural Presentations, Department of State, USA.  Cities and Countries: Athens, Greece; Beirut, Lebanon; Teheran, Iran; Lucerne, Swittzerland; Edinburgh, Scottland, United Kingdom; Luxembourg, Luxembourgh; Frankfurt, Germany; Berlin, Germany; Warsaw, Poland; Krakow, Poland; Katowice, Poland; Lodz, Poland; Sarajevo, Yugoslavia; Ljubljana, Yugoslavia; Zagreb, Yugoslavia; Belgrade, Yugoslavia; Munich, Germany; Milan, Italy; Turin, Italy; Florence, Italy; Lyon, France; Bilbao, Spain; Madrid, Spain; Barcelona, Spain; Lisbon, Portugal; Oporto, Portugal; Reykjavik, Iceland. 1964 - Receives an Honorary Doctors Degree from Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. 1969, September 26 - Becomes Music Director and Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. First work conducted as Musical Director: Overture to "The Consecration of the House" , Opus 124, by Ludwig van Beethoven. 1970 - First recording with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for DGG. 1971, April - Takes the Boston Symphony Orchestra on tour to Europe. 1973 - Tour of Oregon (USA), Alaska (USA) and Japan with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Participates in the 1973 Osaka Music Festival. 1974, March 26 - Last appearance as a Conductor with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Only work performed: Symphony No 7  by Anton Bruckner. 1974, July 25 - Last appearance as a Conductor with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Program included: the Concerto No. 1 in B-flat major for Piano and Orchestra, Opus 23 by Pyotr I'lyich Tchaikovsky with Van Cliburn at the piano. 1977, December 18 - Last work as a conductor with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra: Manfred Symphony, Opus 58 by Pyotr I'ylich Tchaikowsky. Venue: Heinz Hall. 1978, May 16 - Died, New York City, USA 2007 - With the last concert of the season 2006/07 my good friend Ray Marsh (Violist Emeritus) retires from the PSO after 48 years in the viola section. He was hired by Steinberg in 1959. ANECDOTES / QUOTES "On our tours, when we give communities a choice of programs, they generally choose pieces by the three great American composers: Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms." ----- After the first piece the players of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (February 1961) declined his invitation to stand and share in the applause, but sat and applauded with the audience. ----- After the performance of Bruckner's Eight's Symphony in New York, one of the symphony staff told him admiringly,                " I happened to be up in the second balcony and I stood through the whole performance."  Said Steinberg dryly, "So did I."  ----- Steinberg when on tour travels with the members of the orchestra, not a very common event; the PSO had three buses. According to him these were the buse's names: Bus # 1: "The Stinker Bus", permits smokers; his bus. Bus # 2: "The Hospital Bus", very quiet and peaceful, and non-smoking. Bus # 3: "............", there is no adequate language to describe it... ----- Steinberg was rehearsing the PSO and had completed a run of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. Next came Anton von Webern's "Six Pieces for Orchestra", Opus 6; he had premiered that work in the US in 1957. Raising his baton, he smiled at the orchestra and quipped: "...first the Hit Parade" then the "...Sh...t  Parade." Steinberg was completely frank in his evaluation of a well-known singer who appeared with the orchestra on one of its tours. "How did she sound?"  he was asked. He answered in a single word: "Local." -----   The young man on the podium was flogging the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra at a dead run through Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony when a handclap sounded from the raised platform in the rear. "Mr. Goldstein," said Conductor William Steinberg with icy politeness, "why are you in such a hurry? We admire the playing of the orchestra, and we are surprised they can play all the notes, but we would rather listen to the music of Mendelssohn." ----- Conductor Steinberg did as much teaching as judging. He went on the theory that all conductors are wrapped in conceit..."The degree of conceit among conductors is enormous, even in beginners."  One such conductor remarked that "he demolished your authority entirely right in front of the orchestra." ----- Once when he spotted a shoulder-to-waist stroke (an exagerated gesture on the part of a prospective conductor), he inquired acidly: "Are you a windmill?" ----- The prospective conductor thought that one group played their eighth notes too fast...he had thought the second violins were the culprits of such mistake..."To my ear," said Steinberg, "it was the violas, but I did not want to let out the secret." -----   The (conductors) contest did not turn up the "fair-haired wonder boy we were looking for." Said he: "Conducting is, in its best sense, conveying experience. How can young men convey experience?" ----- Steinberg performed frequently with the PSO Anton Bruckner's music. He recorded Bruckner's Overture in G minor and was issued by Command Classics (LP 12002 S) in 1968. However, this recording was never listed on any catalog of the time (see Schwann catalog). Later on Steinberg's Bruckner recordings were re-issued on a MCA double CD but the overture was omitted. The result, Steinberg's recording with the PSO of this particular Bruckner piece has never been listed anywhere to this date. I own an original LP of this recording.         Steinberg and the Pittsburgh Symphony I asked Gideon Toeplitz for this chance to express my gratitude and my family's -- it's hard to say just to say how pleased and proud we were to hear about the Steinberg Society, and we want to thank the Pittsburgh Symphony Society, and all of you who remember Steinberg and who treated him so well his many years here. These last few weeks I've spent time talking about him with some of the orchestra members, some retired and some still active. I have enjoyed not only seeing faces that I haven't seen in 20 years, but also being able to meet players I hadn't met before -- or rather, being allowed to put a face here or there to the familiar voices of the orchestra, instrumental voices I grew up listening to. I believe it's the players who can best testify to what we all cherish about Steinberg. It would be easy to say we valued his musicianship. But I think it would be truer to say that was greatest about Steinberg -- maybe even more important than his great talent -- was his love of the music and his dedication to the composers whose work was truly his life blood. I have thought a great deal about Steinberg over these last few years, listened to his recordings over and over again. I suppose I am as nearly as harsh a critic as his beloved wife, my grandmother Lotte, whose death was such a blow to him. Being as close to the kind of creative soul that Steinberg was makes one acutely aware of just what sorts of pressures ambition brings. For to be honest, Steinberg was too often less than happy, and I think it would be fair to say that he sometimes felt mistreated -- by three or four influential music critics in New York or Boston, or by this or that agent. I personally feel that to this day Steinberg never got the critical recognition he deserves -- maybe partly because he scorned it, but that's another story. Yet these external disappointments perhaps leads to the inescapable conclusion, however trite, that it's not where you're going, but how you get there. Which is where the city of Pittsburgh comes in, because I can say with certainty that he always, always felt nothing but pride about this orchestra and this city. Steinberg struggled terribly early on in his career, and it is no exaggeration to say that coming to PIttsburgh not only saved him, it made him. For I can say, also without fear of contradiction, that whatever his native talent or intellect, it was here that he became a great conductor. It bears repeating: he would never have been the musician he came to be had it not been for this city and this orchestra. Let me return to the musicians, because when they speak of Steinberg, what they cherish about him was number one, how much he loved the music, and respected the composer, and two, how he made the making of music a collaborative effort, an labor of love, to wear out another cliche, between composer, orchestra, and audience. Here is just a little of what I have heard in the past couple of weeks: "We were given a responsibility and a respect, and we returned it. When Steinberg heard poor playing, it was never, 'how can you do that to me?' -- it was 'how can you do that to the music?'" Another player said, "He was giving something to the people, handing it gently to them, beautifully." These days everywhere you turn -- not just music, but the fine arts, and the literary world -- when the role of many a so-called artist seems to be confused with that of say a quarterback, or of a matinee idol, or a sort of esthetic robber-baron -- the memory of Steinberg, my mother's stepfather, who understood that as a performer his function was only to serve the music, and who did so with all of his soul, is an inspiration to me personally. I could say that Steinberg was capable of drawing from an orchestra -- somehow with that almost unfathomable beat -- an exquisite, delicate phrasing, a certain subtle, intimate grace which only a very few conductors are even capable of hearing. I could quote some of the musicians who remember particular performances of Bruckner or Mahler or Beethoven which moved everyone within earshot to tears. These words might fail the music, as words so often do. But still I would like to say that Steinberg will be remembered not only for bringing out the very best from his musicians, but of making orchestral music what it really is at its best, that worthiest and most triumphant of Western traditions: a great collaborative effort. And this is how I would like to remember Steinberg, who wished never to be thought of as anything more or less than what he was: a musician.       William Steinberg BPO Music Director: 1945-1952         William Steinberg was born on August 1, 1899 in Cologne where his musical experience began at home with lessons on the piano and violin. After entering the Cologne Conservatory he received training in conducting with Hermann Abendroth, piano with Lazzaro Uzielli, and theory with Franz Bolsche. Steinberg graduated with distinction in 1920, having been awarded the Wullner Prize for conducting. Subsequently he became an assistant to Otto Klemperer at the Cologne Opera, whom he succeeded in 1924 as principal conductor. In turn Steinberg began to appear at a variety of important venues in Europe, including engagements in Czechoslovakia at the German theater in Prague.         As with virtually all major conductors of the period, Steinberg gradually worked his way up the opera-house ladder which culminated with his appointment as maestro of the Frankfurt Opera in 1929. While at that post Steinberg conducted the first public performance of Arnold Schoenberg's opera Von Heute auf Morgen in 1930.         But given his ancestry, after Steinberg began to accept invitations as guest conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic the Nazi regime had him removed from his Frankfurt post. In 1933 he was henceforth restricted to conducting all-Jewish orchestras which would be allowed to perform only for the audiences of the Jewish Culture League. Finally, in 1936 he took the bold step of emigrating to Palestine where, with Bronislav Hubermann, he formed what is now the Israel Philharmonic. It was shortly after that dramatic juncture that he encountered the legendary Arturo Toscanini who noted Steinberg's unusual gifts and invited the young maestro to become the Associate Conductor of the NBC Symphony Orchestra where he served from 1938 through 1941.         Following a variety of guest appearances in the U.S. during World war II Steinberg was named permanent guest conductor of the San Francisco Opera in 1944, where he served through 1948. But along the way Steinberg was also attracted to the podium of the Buffalo Philharmonic, largely through the efforts of the versatile and industrious Cameron Baird (who at the time was the Chairman of the UB Music Department).         During his tenure as Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic (from 1945 until 1953) Steinberg initiated many changes in the orchestra's personnel, including the beginning of an influx of extraordinary players from Europe who, like Steinberg himself, sought new lives and careers here in the United States just after the War. Their presence on stage - primarily in the strings - had a lot to do with the distinctly European sound which began to resonate from the BPO during the late 40's and continued throughout the 50's. To this of course was added Steinberg's relentless demand for impeccable performance. The time frame and timbre of the Orchestra is handsomely preserved on the BPO's first commercial recording, the "Leningrad" Symphony No.7 by Dimitri Shostakovich on the Musicraft label.         It is fair to say that Steinberg's success in Buffalo sparked the remainder of his extraordinary career. He began his long tenure as Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 1952, during which time he was also the principal conductor of the London Philharmonic. From 1964 through 1968 Steinberg also served as the senior guest conductor of the New York Philharmonic, after which he became the Music Director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, a post he held until 1972.         In the course of his long career Steinberg directed the world premieres of several important works including the ballet suite Billy the Kid by Aaron Copland, Lukas Foss' Choral Symphonyand Roger Sessions' Symphony No.8. Today a significant portion of his wide discography has been made available on CDs including his important recordings of the masterworks of Beethoven, Bruckner, Borodin and Mussorgsky. Additional Steinberg reissues feature the virtuosity of Jasha Heifetz, Nathan Milstein and Vladimir Horowitz, among others.   William Steinberg (born Wilhelm Hans Steinberg) was a conductor and an exceptional orchestra builder and interpreter of the Romantic to early-twentieth century repertory. He developed precociously as a musician. At the age of 13 he composed and conducted a cantata for chorus and orchestra based on selections of Ovid's Metamorphoses. He was also a fast-developing pianist and violinist. He studied at Cologne Conservatory with Franz Bölsche in music theory, Lazzaro Uzielli in piano, and Hermann Abendroth in conducting. He won the Wüllner prize in conducting in his graduation year of 1920. He obtained a position conducting at Cologne Opera, where he was assistant to Otto Klemperer. When Klemperer left in 1924, Steinberg received the appointment as Principal Conductor. In 1925 he accepted the post of conductor of the German Theater in Prague. In 1929 he became musical director of the Frankfurt Opera. His tenure there was marked by an interest in modern opera. His productions included Berg's Wozzeck, Schoenberg's Von heute auf Morgen, Antheil's Transatlantic, and Weill's Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny. The advent of Nazi rule in 1933 effectively ended his German career. He was restricted to conducting concerts for the Jewish Culture League in Frankfurt and Berlin. This was an insidious creation of the Nazis that both furthered its institutionalized anti-Semitism by creating a segregated organization for a segregated orchestra, while preserving the illusion that the Nazis goals went no further than ethnic separation. Steinberg left Germany in 1936 for Palestine, where he conducted the new orchestra there that eventually became the Israel Philharmonic. The Palestine Philharmonic's first concert was conducted by Arturo Toscanini. After working with Steinberg, Toscanini invited him to go to the United States as associate conductor of his NBC Symphony Orchestra. Steinberg took up that position in 1938. Toscanini and Klemperer were Steinberg's two mentors. He adopted their clear, faithful approach to the classic scores and, like Klemperer, lost much of his early interest in modern music. Steinberg guest conducted regularly during his tenure with the NBC Symphony Orchestra. In 1945 he became Music Director of the Buffalo (New York) Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1952 he obtained the major appointment of his career, as music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He restored that orchestra to an artistic high point. Concurrently, he was musical director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1958 - 1960). In 1960 he scored a great success guest conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra and was the preferred choice of its board for their next music director, as Charles Münch was stepping down from the position. However, RCA, the orchestra's record company, successfully pressured them to appoint Erich Leinsdorf, already on their roster of conductors. After Leinsdorf's tenure, one of mixed success, ended, they did appoint Steinberg to the post effective 1969. This was also only a partial success, because then health problems interfered with his abilities and caused frequent substitutions. He left the position in 1972 and restricted his activities.. ebay4547
  • Condition: Very good condition of the original hand signed autograph, The reproduction photo and the decorative mat . ( Pls look at scan for accurate AS IS images )
  • Country of Manufacture: Israel
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: Israel
  • Original/Reproduction: Original
  • Autograph Authentication: 100% Authenticity GUARANTEED - Unlimited RETURN
  • Signed: Yes
  • Industry: Music

PicClick Insights - 1936 Conductor WILLIAM STEINBERG Hand SIGNED AUTOGRAPH Letter PHOTO Jewish TLS PicClick Exclusive

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