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Andre KostelanetzPopular conductor and arranger, one of the pioneers of light music.
Date of Birth: 22.12.1901
Country:  Haiti |
Content:
Biography of Andre Kostelanetz
Born in St. Petersburg, Andre Kostelanetz was a popular conductor and arranger, known as one of the pioneers of light music. He fled Russia in 1922 after the revolution and settled in the United States. In the 1930s, Kostelanetz started conducting radio concerts and soon had his own show on CBS called "Andre Kostelanetz Presents." He was best known for his arrangements and recordings of light classical music, with a focus on orchestral versions of melodies and rhythms in the style of Broadway shows.
Kostelanetz's numerous recordings sold over 50 million copies, making them hits on various radio stations. He worked for many years with the New York Philharmonic, often performing as "Andre Kostelanetz and His Orchestra." Modern music lovers are most familiar with Andre through his series of instrumental albums recorded for Columbia Records from the 1940s to the 1980s. Interestingly, Kostelanetz began composing his melodies even before the genre of "light music" officially formed. Despite his early start, Andre's career continued long after many of his contemporaries had retired.
Outside of the United States, Kostelanetz was primarily known as the arranger of the orchestral version of the melody "With a Song in my Heart," the signature tune of the popular BBC radio program "Forces Favourites." He also achieved success with his versions of compositions such as Aaron Copland's "Lincoln Portrait," Jerome Kern's "Portrait of Mark Twain," William Schuman's "New England Triptych," and many others.
William Walton dedicated his "Capriccio burlesco" to Kostelanetz, and Andre conducted its debut performance and the first official recording. Towards the end of his career, Andre transformed from a performer to a label, as almost everything released under his name in the 1970s was arranged by other musicians.
Collaborating on compositions attributed to Kostelanetz were Teo Macero, Torrie Zito, Hank Levy, Luther Henderson, Jack Cortner, Eddie Sauter, Claus Ogerman, Jack Pleis, Tommy Newsom, Harold Wheeler, Bobby Scott, LaMont Johnson, Wade Marcus, Patrick Williams, Sammy Nestico, Warren Vincent, Dick Hyman, Jorge Calandrelli, and Don Sebesky. His final concert, "A Night in Old Vienna," was performed on December 31, 1979, at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.
