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Eugene Ormandy commercial sound recordings
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Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts [Contact Us]3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Eugene Ormandy (1899-1985), was a violinist and conductor, best known for his 44-year association with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Ormandy was born Jenö Blau in Budapest, Hungary to Rosalie and Benjamin Blau. He was a musical prodigy; beginning his violin studies at the age of five at the Royal Hungarian Academy of Music, he had his first concert at 7, and graduated with a master's degree at the age of fourteen. His first musical engagement upon arriving in the United States in 1921 was as a violinist at the Capitol Theatre in New York. The orchestra played concerts and provided live musical accompaniment for silent movies. Ormandy quickly became concertmaster and eventually conducted the group.
Ormandy first conducted the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1931 when Arturo Toscanini, a famous Italian conductor, fell ill and a last-minute replacement was needed. This opportunity led to Ormandy's first major appointment as the conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra (now Minnesota Orchestra), where he served until 1936. Ormandy joined the Philadelphia Orchestra as associate conductor under Leopold Stokowski and became music director in 1938. He served as lead conductor until his retirement in 1980 when he was appointed conductor laureate. Ormandy's conducting style was known to produce a particular "Philadelphia Sound" and he was alternately praised and denounced for it by critics. Under Ormandy's direction, the Philadelphia Orchestra often performed in other American cities and internationally in locations such as Finland, Latin America, and China. Though he retired in 1980, Ormandy occasionally appeared as a guest conductor for the Philadelphia and other orchestras. His last concert was in 1984 at Carnegie Hall, conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra. He died in 1985.
For a more complete biographical note, please see Eugene Ormandy papers, 1921-1991, Ms. Coll. 91.
This collection consists of 663 sound recordings, largely of classical music performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Eugene Ormandy. The collection is arranged in alphabetical order by composer, or occasionally by the title of the recording when multiple composers or a themed recording was created.
- Publisher
- University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts
- Finding Aid Date
- 2018 October 31
- Access Restrictions
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This entire collection consists of original audio material.
Access to original audio/visual materials and computer files is restricted. The Kislak Center will provide access to the information on these materials from duplicate master files. If the original does not already have a copy, it will be sent to an outside vendor for copying. Patrons are financially responsible for the cost. The turnaround time from request to delivery of digital items is about two weeks for up to five items and three to seven weeks for more than five items. Please contact Reprographic Services (reprogr@upenn.edu) for cost estimates and ordering. Once digital items are received, researchers will have access to the files on a dedicated computer in the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center. Researchers should be aware of specifics of copyright law and act accordingly.
- Use Restrictions
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Copyright restrictions may exist. For most library holdings, the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania do not hold copyright. It is the responsibility of the requester to seek permission from the holder of the copyright to reproduce material from the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts.