George Szell ( / ˈ s ɛ l / ; June 7, 1897 – July 30, 1970), originally named György Széll, György Endre Széll, or Georg Szell, was a conductor, composer, and pianist born in Austro-Hungary who later became an American citizen. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest conductors of the twentieth century. Szell served as the music director of the Cleveland Orchestra in Cleveland, Ohio, and recorded many of the most important classical music pieces with that orchestra and others.
Szell arrived in Cleveland in 1946 to lead an orchestra that was not very large and was trying to recover from the problems caused by World War II. By the time of his death, critics, including Donal Henahan, said he had helped transform the orchestra into "one of the best orchestras in the world."
Szell’s recordings have kept his influence alive in the classical music world long after he died. His name is closely linked with the Cleveland Orchestra. In the late 1980s, when the orchestra’s music director, Christoph von Dohnányi, said, "We give a great concert, and George Szell gets a great review," it showed how highly Szell was respected.
Life and career
György Endre Széll was born in Budapest but grew up in Vienna. His family was of Jewish origin but converted to Catholicism. As a young boy, he was taken regularly to Mass. Charry 2011
Szell began his formal music training as a pianist, studying with Richard Robert. One of Robert's other students was Rudolf Serkin; Szell and Serkin became lifelong friends and musical collaborators.
At the age of eleven, he began touring Europe as a pianist and composer, making his London debut at that age. Newspapers declared him "the next Mozart." Throughout his teenage years, he performed with orchestras in this dual role, eventually making appearances as composer, pianist, and conductor, as he did with the Berlin Philharmonic at age seventeen.
Szell quickly realized that he was never going to make a career out of being a composer or pianist and that he much preferred the artistic control he could achieve as a conductor. He made an unplanned public conducting debut when he was seventeen, while vacationing with his family at a summer resort. The Vienna Symphony's conductor had injured his arm, and Szell was asked to substitute. Szell quickly turned to conducting full-time. Though he abandoned composing, throughout the rest of his life he occasionally played the piano with chamber ensembles and as an accompanist. Despite his rare appearances as a pianist after his teens, he remained in good form. During his Cleveland years, he occasionally would demonstrate to guest pianists how he thought they should play a certain passage.
In 1915, at the age of 18, Szell won an appointment with Berlin's Royal Court Opera (now known as the Staatsoper). There, he was befriended by its music director, Richard Strauss. Strauss instantly recognized Szell's talent and was particularly impressed with how well the teenager conducted Strauss's music. Strauss once said that he could die a happy man knowing that there was someone who performed his music so perfectly. In fact, Szell ended up conducting part of the world premiere recording of Don Juan for Strauss. The composer had arranged for Szell to rehearse the orchestra for him, but having overslept, showed up an hour late to the recording session. Since the recording session was already paid for, and only Szell was there, Szell conducted the first half of the recording (since no more than four minutes of music could fit onto one side of a 78, the music was broken up into four sections). Strauss arrived as Szell was finishing conducting the second part; he exclaimed that what he heard was so good that it could go out under his own name. Strauss went on to record the last two parts, leaving the Szell-conducted half as part of the full world premiere recording of Don Juan.
Szell credited Strauss as being a major influence on his conducting style. Much of Szell's baton technique, the Cleveland Orchestra's lean, transparent sound and Szell's willingness to be an orchestra builder, were influenced by Strauss. The two remained friends after Szell left the Royal Court Opera in 1919; even after World War II, when Szell had settled in the United States, Strauss kept track of how his protégé was doing.
In the fifteen years during and after World War I, Szell worked with opera houses and orchestras in Europe: in Berlin, Strasbourg – where he succeeded Otto Klemperer at the Municipal Theatre – Prague, Darmstadt, and Düsseldorf, before becoming principal conductor, in 1924, of the Berlin State Opera, which had replaced the Royal Opera. In 1923 he conducted the premiere of Hans Gál's opera Die heilige Ente in Düsseldorf. He was engaged as first Kapellmeister at the Berlin State Opera from 1924 to 1929. At the same time, he directed the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and taught at the Berlin Academy of Music (from 1927 to 1930), making recordings with the Vienna Philharmonic.
From 1936 to 1939, he led the Scottish National Orchestra and, from 1937 to 1939, the Resident Orchestra of The Hague. In 1939, Szell returned to Prague as general music director and director of the Prague State Opera. The Prague Masonic Grand Lodge "Lessing of the Three Rings" lists him as a member under the name "Georg Szell."
At the outbreak of war in Europe in 1939, Szell was returning via the U.S. from an Australian tour and ended up settling with his family in New York City. From 1940 to 1945 he taught composition, orchestration, and music
Conducting style
Szell's behavior during rehearsals was that of a strict and demanding leader. He prepared for rehearsals very carefully and could play the entire musical score on the piano from memory. He focused on details such as how music was shaped, clarity, balance, and structure. He also required his musicians to follow strict rules about rhythm that had not been common before. The result was often a level of accuracy and teamwork among the musicians similar to what is seen in the best string quartets. Although Szell used strict methods, many orchestra members were proud of the musical quality he aimed to achieve. Video recordings show that Szell explained his goals clearly, showed happiness when the orchestra met his expectations, and avoided repeating parts of the music that were already performed well. His left hand, which he used to shape each musical sound, was often described as the most graceful in music.
Because of Szell's strict attention to detail and thorough rehearsals, some critics, like Donald Vroon, editor of American Record Guide, said his music lacked emotion. In response, Szell explained: "The line between clarity and coolness, self-discipline and severity is very thin. There are different types of warmth in music, from the pure warmth of Mozart to the rich warmth of Tchaikovsky, from the noble passion of Fidelio to the intense passion of Salome. I cannot pour chocolate sauce over asparagus." He also said, "It is perfectly acceptable to prefer music that is fast-paced, rhythmically loose, or untidy. But to me, true artistry is not the same as disorder."
Szell has been called a "literalist" because he played only what was written in the musical score. However, he was willing to change the music in ways that were not traditional if he believed the music needed it. Like many conductors before and after him, he made small changes to the orchestrations and notes in works by composers such as Beethoven and Schubert.
Cloyd Duff, a timpanist with the Cleveland Orchestra, once shared a story about Szell. Szell insisted that Duff play the snare drum part in Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra, even though Duff was not supposed to play that instrument. A month after recording the concerto in Cleveland (October 1959), the orchestra was to perform it at Carnegie Hall as part of a two-week tour of the Eastern United States, along with Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5. Szell became increasingly frustrated with the side drum part in the second movement. By the time they reached New York City, his frustration had grown greatly. "Starting with the musician who had played on the recording, Szell tested each of the staff percussionists on the side drum part. He made them so nervous that one by one, they all made mistakes. Finally, Szell turned to timpanist Cloyd Duff."
This is how Duff described the event:
Szell's reputation for being a perfectionist was well known, and his knowledge of musical instruments was deep. The Cleveland trumpeter Bernard Adelstein once shared a story about Szell's understanding of the trumpet.
Repertoire
Szell mainly performed music from the main Austro-German classical and romantic composers, including Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, as well as Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, Wagner, Bruckner, Mahler, and Strauss. He once explained that as he aged, he intentionally limited the pieces he performed, believing it was his responsibility to focus on works he felt he was best suited to interpret. He noted that this was important because some traditions were fading as older conductors, whom he respected and learned from, passed away. Szell also performed modern music, giving many world premieres in Cleveland. He was closely linked to composers such as Dutilleux, Walton, Prokofiev, Hindemith, and Bartók. Szell helped begin the Cleveland Orchestra’s long-term partnership with composer-conductor Pierre Boulez. He recorded music as a pianist with the Budapest String Quartet and also performed with the Cleveland Orchestra’s concertmaster, violinist Rafael Druian, on four sonatas by Mozart.
Other orchestras
After World War II, Szell worked closely with the Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam, where he often conducted as a guest and recorded many performances. He also frequently conducted with the London Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Philharmonic, and at the Salzburg Festival. Between 1942 and 1955, he conducted the New York Philharmonic every year. In his final year, he served as the Musical Advisor and senior guest conductor for that orchestra. In 1960, he recorded Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat, K. 482, and Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488, with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and pianist Robert Casadesus for Columbia Masterworks (ML 5594, 1960).
Personal life
Szell married twice. His first marriage was in 1920 to Olga Band (1898–1984), who was also a student of Richard Robert. This marriage ended in divorce in 1926. His second marriage, in 1938 to Helene Schultz Teltsch, who was originally from Prague, was more successful and lasted until Szell's death. Szell owned homes on Park Avenue in New York City and in Shaker Heights, near Cleveland's orchestra hall. When he was not making music, he enjoyed cooking and had a strong interest in cars. He often refused to use the orchestra's chauffeur and drove his own Cadillac to rehearsals until nearly the end of his life.
In 1963, the British government awarded Szell the title of Honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Death
He passed away due to cancer of the bone marrow in Cleveland in 1970. His body was burned, and his ashes were placed in a burial site in Sandy Springs, Georgia, along with his wife's ashes after she died in 1991.
Discography
Most of Szell's recordings were made with the Cleveland Orchestra for Epic / Columbia Masterworks, which is now known as Sony Classical. He also recorded with the New York Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra. There are many live stereo recordings of music pieces that Szell did not conduct in the studio, made with the Cleveland Orchestra and other orchestras.
Below is a list of some of Szell's most important recordings — all with Szell conducting the Cleveland Orchestra (released by Sony, unless stated otherwise).
Ludwig van Beethoven:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: