National Philharmonic Orchestra

Leopold Stokowski ranks among the twentieth century’s most significant and influential conductors. His ensembles became renowned for their lush, alluring sonorities, while he tirelessly championed contemporary scores, introducing major works by Mahler, Prokofiev, and Rachmaninoff. Born in London on April 18, 1882, he trained at the Paris Conservatory before moving to the United States in 1905, where he took the post of organist and choirmaster at St. Bartholomew’s Church in New York City. He launched his conducting career four years later with the Cincinnati Symphony and, in 1912, assumed leadership of the Philadelphia Orchestra, shaping it into one of the globe’s most admired ensembles.

The orchestra’s first recording, Brahms’ Hungarian Dance #5, appeared in 1917. Over the ensuing decades Stokowski produced more than seven hundred discs, including the soundtrack for Walt Disney’s 1940 landmark Fantasia, in which he also performed on screen. He presented more than four hundred new compositions in either world or U.S. premieres, among them Mahler’s Symphony #8, Prokofiev’s Symphony #6, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #4, Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du printemps, and Vaughan Williams’ Symphony #9. Although his Bach transcriptions proved frequently divisive, they played a decisive role in broadening the composer’s audience.

Stokowski stepped down from full-time responsibilities in Philadelphia in 1936 yet continued to lead portions of each season for several years. In 1940 he established the All-American Youth Orchestra, and from 1942 to 1943 he shared the podium of the NBC Symphony Orchestra with Arturo Toscanini. Later declining extended engagements, he nevertheless accepted short-term appointments with many of the world’s foremost orchestras. In 1962 he created New York’s American Symphony Orchestra to nurture emerging musicians. After completing his last recordings in May 1977, Stokowski died on September 13 of that year at the age of ninety-five.