Koussevitzky as Champion of American Composers
A proponent of new music wherever he found himself, Serge Koussevitzky was particularly committed to promoting the composers of his new homeland. In October 1939, he organized a festival celebrating the works of American composers. In return, composers such as Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Roy Harris and William Schuman organized a celebratory dinner in 1944, thanking him for the 150 American works performed thus far during his tenure with the BSO.
Koussevitzky poses with composers (mostly American) after a BSO performance of John Alden Carpenter’s Concerto for Violin, March 3, 1939
From left to right: Walter Piston, John Alden Carpenter, Nadia Boulanger, Roy Harris, Serge Koussevitzky, Zlatko Balokovic (violin soloist), Mabel Daniels, Jean Françaix, and Edward Burlingame Hill. During his tenure, Koussevitzky conducted works by all the American composers depicted here.
Photographer unknown
Festival Honoring American Composers: October 1939
Serge Koussevitzky with American composers at the time of the BSO’s American Music Festival, October 1939
Left to right: unidentified, Aaron Copland, unidentified, Serge Koussevitzky, Roy Harris, Walter Piston (behind Harris’ shoulder), William Schuman, and Randall Thompson
To celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) organized a week-long festival in New York City held during the first week in October 1939. Due to its non-union status at the time, the BSO was prohibited from participating in the ASCAP event. In response, Koussevitzky and the BSO organized a festival in Boston, with two concerts on October 4 and October 6, 1939.
Photographer unknown
Program book for the festival honoring American composers, October 1939
Featuring two programs comprised entirely of works by American composers, the BSO’s festival celebrating American music took place on October 4 and 6, 1939. The concerts were offered free to the public and 12,000 hopeful attendees had to be turned away.
Newspaper review of the BSO’s two-concert festival celebrating American composers
Reflecting the prejudices of the period, a critic speculates on what defines American music in this review of the first of the BSO’s two-concert series celebrating works by American composers. According to the article, by 1939, Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra had performed 123 works by 46 American composers.
Christian Science Monitor, October 5, 1939
Newspaper review of the BSO’s two-concert festival celebrating American composers
Premiering and Recording
Composer Samuel Barber chats with conductor Serge Koussevitzky, ca. March 1944
During World War II, Samuel Barber joined the Army Air Corps. While serving, he continued to compose. The BSO premiered his second symphony, commissioned by and dedicated to the Army Air Forces, on March 3, 1944.
Photograph by David Nilsson
Three-disc 78 rpm record featuring Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring, recorded by Serge Koussevitzky and the BSO
Among Koussevitzky’s recordings of American composers was Copland’s Appalachian Spring, released in 1946 by the RCA Victor label. Because 78 rpm records have a maximum of five minutes per side (depending on the size of the disc), the set required three discs for the 25-minute composition.
American Composers Testimonial Dinner, May 16, 1944
Music instead of Meat
To celebrate Serge Koussevitzky’s 20th anniversary as conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Roy Harris, William Schuman and others organized a dinner in his honor. In lieu of a menu, the event’s dinner card listed over 150 works performed by Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra during the twenty years of his tenure.
Program and dinner card for the American Composers’ Testimonial Dinner, May 16, 1944
To read the full program, click here.