Jacques Singer

Jacques Singer (born May 9, 1910 in Przemyśl, Poland - died August 11, 1980 in Manhattan) was an American conductor. His father was Mark Eli, his mother Rachela (Bach).

Jacques was trained in the violin from an early age, and began to give concerts in Poland at age seven. In 1921 (according to Jacques’ entry in Who’s Who in America) his family moved to the U.S. In 1925 Jacques made his American debut with a recital at The Town Hall, New York. He attended on a scholarship the Curtis Institute of Music in 1926, where he studied with Carl Flesch. He later studied at the Juilliard School with Leopold Auer, Paul Kochanski and Rubin Goldmark, graduating in 1931. He became a naturalized citizen in 1931.

He became a violinist with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age eighteen, their youngest member at the time. Leopold Stokowski took an interest in him and requested he conduct a contemporary piece at one of the rehearsals in 1935. With the recommendation of Stokowski, he made his conducting debut with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra on February 1, 1938. He remained with that orchestra 1938-1942. While there he became engaged in a feud with critic John Rosenfield of the "The Dallas Morning News". Rosenfield welcomed Singer enthusiastically at first, but soon turned against him. Singer became angry enough to print handbills and make speeches defending himself during concert intermissions.

During World War II he served as a private in the U.S. Army. He saw active service and received three battle stars for New Guinea, Bataan, and Corregidor. He also conducted army band concerts, including the first concert given after the capture of Corregidor.

In 1946, he conducted 28 concerts in eight weeks for the New Orleans Summer Concerts. A guest conducting engagement with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra led to his appointment as a conductor of that orchestra in 1947-1951.

On Broadway in 1952 he conducted performances of Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra and Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra starring Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh. In 1953 he guest conducted the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Radio Orchestra, and the Haifa Symphony. This included the first concert in Nazareth for the Haifa Symphony.

He led his first concert for the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra on October 18, 1954, and served as conductor there 1955-1962.

He was the conductor of the Oregon Symphony 1962-1972 (then the Portland Symphony Orchestra). Singer proved to be a temperamental conductor there as recounted by violinist Hugh Ewart in "The Oregonian". In rehearsal one day Singer told the tubaist, John Richards "I can't hear you". On the next run through, Richards blasted the note louder. "Still can't hear you" said Singer. The next time, Richards blew the tuba with both lungs. "I still can't hear you" said Singer. Richards was getting angry by now, but Singer chose this moment to tie a white handkerchief onto his baton with which he waved a flag of surrender.

Hugh Ewart also recalled an unhappy performance of Isaac Stern with the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Stern was performing the Beethoven Violin Concerto in D, op. 61. Singer forgot to cue the timpanist for the four taps that begin that work. "Stern was apoplectic," Ewart recalled. As he left the stage after performing, Stern hissed, "I will never play with this orchestra again." Stern did, but it took his manager Sol Hurok to change his mind.

Jacques Singer also appeared in New York with the American Symphony Orchestra and conducted several of the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts between 1974-1979. He was a professor at Northern Illinois University 1977-1980 where he conducted the Northern Illinois University Philharmonic. He died at his home in Manhattan in 1980 of cancer.

Jacques married Leslie Wright, a concert pianist, January 28, 1946. They had four children: Claude, Marc, Lori, and Gregory (the latter being twins). Jacques' son Marc Singer (born 1948) is an actor, and daughter Lori Singer (born 1957) is an actress. Claude became a writer and Gregory Singer graduated from Juilliard as a violinist.

Awards

*Gold Medal, Buenos Aires Filharmonica, 1959

References

*"Jacques Singer Dies, Led Orchestras in the West" "New York Times", August 12 1980.
*Living Musicians first supplement (1957).
*"Mr. Culture" "Time". December 4 1950.
*Social Security Death Index (verification of birth date)
*Stabler, David. "Parting Notes", "The Oregonian", June 9 1999 page C1.
*Stoddard, Hope. Symphony Conductors of the U.S.A. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1957.
*Who was Who in America Volume VII 1977-1981. Chicago: Marquis Who’s Who, 1981. Note: Birth date given in this source is May 9 1917.