 |
NATHANIEL SHILKRET At the age
of seven, New York City-born Nathaniel Shilkret (18891982) was the clarinet
soloist for the New York Boys Orchestra on its tour of the United States, and
in his teen years he played in several of New York's most popular orchestras
and bands, including the Russian Symphony Orchestra, Victor Herbert's
orchestra, and John Phillip Sousa's Grand Concert Bandas well as under both
Vassily Safanov and Gustav Mahler in the New York Philharmonic Society (later
the New York Philharmonic). For many years Shilkret's most prominent
association was with the Victor Talking Machine Company (later RCA Victor),
where, as "director of light music," he conducted numerous recordings
with his Victor Salon Orchestra and other ensembles. Many of those
recordingseither in a popular or what was then called light classical
veinbecame best-selling hit records. Shilkret conducted for thousands of
network radio broadcasts during those years, and recorded for many labels, such
as Brunswick, Columbia, Edison, and Okeh. Some of his recordings also featured
him as an instrumental soloist, playing clarinet, piano, organ, celeste,
chimes, and trumpetand even whistling. Shilkret wrote a number of popular
songs, of which the best-known and most commercially successful was "The
Lonesome Road." It was sung in the initial film version of Show Boat
in 1929 and has been recorded in vocal and instrumental versions by more than
100 popular performers, including the Andrews Sisters (on the Paul Whiteman
radio show), Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Bing Crosby, Sammy Davis Jr.,
Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, Tommy Dorsey, Earl Hines, Al Hirt, Paul Robeson, and Helen
Traubel. Shilkret conducted the 1927 electrical recording of George Gershwin's Rhapsody
in Blue (credited to Paul Whiteman); and he was selected to conduct the
initial broadcast and recording of Gershwin's An American in Pariswhich
he also directed at the 1937 Gershwin Memorial Concert in Los Angeles. In 1935
he relocated to Los Angeles, where he worked intensively in Hollywoodprimarily
at RKO and MGM studios. He composed, arranged, or conducted for at least
several dozen film scores, including Shall We Dance, with Fred Astaire
and Ginger Rogers (1937, with a score by Gershwin); Swing Time (1936,
with a Jerome Kern score); The Bohemian Girl and Mary of Scotland
(both 1936); and several Laurel and Hardy films. Although Shilkret is best
remembered for his commercial and film music, he also wrote a number of concert
works. His trombone concerto was commissioned by Tommy Dorsey, who played it in
1945 in New York with Leopold Stokowski conducting, and it was played at
Carnegie Hall in 2003 by the New York Pops orchestra conducted by Skitch
Henderson. Among his other classically oriented pieces are Skyward
(1928), a symphonic poem; Firefly Scherzo; Southern Humoresque
for violin; and a clarinet quintet
|
|
Role: Classical Composer
|
| Album Title |
Catalogue No |
Work Category |
| BERLIN, Irving: Say It Isn't So - Songs of Irving Berlin (1919-1950) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120829 |
Nostalgia
|
| CROOKS, Richard: Neapolitan Love Song (1924-1933) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120639 |
Nostalgia, Operetta
|
| CROOKS, Richards: Opera Arias / Songs (1925-1945) |
Delos
DE5501 |
Vocal, Opera, Operetta
|
| EDDY, Nelson: A Perfect Day (1935-1947) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120591 |
Nostalgia
|
| GERSHWIN, George: Gershwin and Friends (1927-1951) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120664 |
Nostalgia
|
| GERSHWIN: Porgy and Bess (Original Cast Recordings) (1935-1942) |
Naxos Historical
8.110219-20 |
Orchestral, Chamber Music, Vocal, Opera
|
| GIGLI, Beniamino: Gigli Edition, Vol. 2: Milan, Camden and New York Recordings (1919-1922) |
Naxos Historical
8.110263 |
Vocal, Nostalgia, Opera
|
| GIGLI, Beniamino: Gigli Edition, Vol. 3: Camden and New York Recordings (1923-1925) |
Naxos Historical
8.110264 |
Vocal, Opera
|
| GIGLI, Beniamino: Gigli Edition, Vol. 4: Camden and New York Recordings (1926-1927) |
Naxos Historical
8.110265 |
Vocal, Nostalgia, Opera
|
| GIGLI, Beniamino: Gigli Edition, Vol. 7: London, New York and Milan Recordings (1931-1932) |
Naxos Historical
8.110268 |
Vocal, Choral - Sacred, Opera
|
| HITS OF THE 1920s, Vol. 2 (1921-1923) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120841 |
Nostalgia
|
| MERMAN, Ethel: It's De-Lovely (1932-54) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120838 |
Nostalgia
|
| SCHIPA, Tito: Complete Victor Recordings (The), Vol. 1 (1922-1925) |
Naxos Historical
8.110332 |
Vocal, Opera
|
| SHILKRET, Nathaniel: Skyscrapers Symphonic Jazz (1928-1932) |
Naxos Jazz Legends
8.120644 |
Jazz
|
| SONGS of IRELAND (1916-1950) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120640 |
Nostalgia
|
| TCHAIKOVSKY / WIENIAWSKI: Violin Concertos (Elman) (1929, 1950) |
Naxos Historical
8.110912 |
Concertos, Orchestral
|
| TIBBETT, Lawrence: De Glory Road (1931-1936) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120595 |
Nostalgia
|
| TIBBETT, Lawrence: The White Dove (1926-1931) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120593 |
Nostalgia
|
| ULTIMATE VOCAL COLLECTION (THE) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120863-64 |
Nostalgia
|
| WHITEMAN, Paul: Music for Moderns (1927-1928) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120505 |
Nostalgia |
| ARMSTRONG, Louis: I've Got The World On A String (1930-1933) (Louis Armstrong, Vol. 2) |
Naxos Jazz Legends
8.120609 |
Jazz
|
| BRITISH DANCE BANDS, Vol. 2 (1928-1940) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120604 |
Nostalgia
|
| BRITISH DANCE BANDS, Vol. 3 (1928-1949) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120656 |
Nostalgia
|
| DAVIS JR, Sammy: Hey There (1949-1955) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120833 |
Nostalgia
|
| McCORMACK, John: 18 Favourites (1911-1936) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120504 |
Vocal, Nostalgia
|
| ROBESON, Paul: Roll Away Clouds (1928-1937) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120543 |
Nostalgia
|
| SHILKRET, Nathaniel: Skyscrapers Symphonic Jazz (1928-1932) |
Naxos Jazz Legends
8.120644 |
Jazz
|
| SHILKRET: Trombone Concerto / HOGBERG: Trombone Concerto / LINDBERG: Helikon Wasp |
BIS
BIS-SACD-1448 |
Concertos, Orchestral
|
| WHITEMAN, Paul: A Pops Concert (1927-1929) |
Naxos Nostalgia
8.120520 |
Nostalgia |
|
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