Tanglewood
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| Former names | Berkshire Music Center |
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| Address | 297 West Street,Lenox, Massachusetts,United States |
| Location | Lenox, Massachusetts,United States |
| Coordinates | 42°20′57″N73°18′36″W/ 42.34917°N 73.31000°W |
| Owner | Boston Symphony Orchestra |
| Capacity | Koussevitzky Music Shed: 5,700 Seiji Ozawa Hall: 1,200 |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1937–1938 |
| Opened | August 4, 1938 |
| Renovated | 1959 |
| Tenants | |
| Boston Symphony Orchestra Boston Pops Orchestra Tanglewood Festival Chorus Tanglewood Music Festival Tanglewood Music Center Tanglewood Learning Center Boston University Tanglewood Institute | |
| Website | |
| www | |
Tanglewoodis amusic venueandfestivalin the towns ofLenoxandStockbridgein theBerkshire Hillsof westernMassachusetts.It has been the summer home of theBoston Symphony Orchestrasince 1937. Tanglewood is also home to three music schools: theTanglewood Music Center,Tanglewood Learning Center, and theBoston University Tanglewood Institute.Besides classical music, Tanglewood hosts the Festival of Contemporary Music, jazz and popular artists, concerts, and frequent appearances byJames Taylor,John Williams,and theBoston Pops.
History[edit]
Early beginnings[edit]
The history of Tanglewood begins with a series of concerts held on August 23, 25 and 26, 1934, at theInterlakenestate of Daniel Hanna, about a mile from today’s festival site. A few months earlier, composer and conductorHenry Kimball Hadleyhad scouted the Berkshires for a site and support for his dream of establishing a seasonal classical music festival. He found an enthusiastic and capable patron inGertrude Robinson Smith.Within a few months they had organized a series of concerts featuring theNew York Philharmonic Orchestra,where Hadley once had been the associate conductor.[1]Staged in an amphitheater built on the estate's show horse ring, the first concert was attended bySara Delano Roosevelt,the President's mother. Heartened by the success of this effort, Robinson and Hadley organized another well received series of concerts in Interlaken the following summer.[2]
Boston Symphony Orchestra era begins, 1936[edit]
After two seasons featuring the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), under the direction of ConductorSerge Koussevitzky,was invited to perform at the 1936 festival held at Holmwood, the home ofMargaret Vanderbiltin nearby Lenox. The BSO gave its first concert in the Berkshires on August 13, 1936.[3]For nearly eighty years the BSO has remained the crown jewel of the music festival.
Festival moves to Tanglewood, 1937[edit]
In 1937 the festival site was moved to "Tanglewood", an estate donated by Mrs. Gorham Brooks and Miss Mary Aspinwall Tappan, daughter of William Tappan andCaroline Sturgis.[4]"Tanglewood" took its name fromTanglewood Tales,written byNathaniel Hawthorne,while he lived in a cottage located on the estate.[5]
The season consisted of six concerts over two weeks given inside a temporary tent erected around a plywood shell. Event press noted how the concerts had already become high society events.[6]
On August 12, 1937, a thunderstorm interrupted a performance ofRichard Wagner'sRide of the Valkyries.TheBoston Globereported that "Gertrude Robinson Smith strode purposefully to the stage when the concert stopped and addressed the record crowd of 5,000, haranguing: 'Now do you see why we must have a permanent building for these concerts?' In minutes, more than $30,000 was raised."[7]
Music Shed opens, 1938[edit]
The following year, theEliel Saarinen-designed, fan-shaped Shed (now known as the Koussevitzky Music Shed, or simply "The Shed" ) was constructed, with some 5,100 seats, giving the BSO a permanent open-air structure in which to perform.[8]Broad lawns extend beyond the Shed, providing outdoor space for concert goers and sweeping views ofStockbridge BowlandMonument Mountainin the distance. At the opening ceremony for the Shed on August 4, 1938, Gertrude Robinson Smith's dedication comments were recorded and can be heard today.[9]
Later history[edit]
The Boston Symphony Orchestra has performed in the Koussevitzky Music Shed every summer since 1938, except for the interval 1942–45 when the Trustees canceled the concerts and summer school due toWorld War II,and during summer 2020, when performances were cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.The Shed was renovated in 1959 with acoustic designs byBBN Technologies.In 1986 the BSO acquired the adjacent Highwood estate, increasing the property area by about 40%.Seiji OzawaHall (1994) was built on this newly expanded property.[10]Leonard Bernsteinconducted the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood. In 1986, a then 14-year-oldMidoriwould debut with the BSO and snap two E-strings, one on the concertmaster'sStradivarius,playing Bernstein'sSerenade after Plato's "Symposium".[11]In August 1990, Bernstein would conduct what proved to be his final concert, whichDeutsche Grammophonwould later release as a live recording on CD.[12]
Aaron Copland[edit]
Following his death in 1990, composerAaron Copland'sashes were scattered over the Tanglewood Music Center.[13]There is a memorial garden with a bust of Copland on the Tanglewood grounds.
Young musicians[edit]
In addition to hosting world-renowned programs ofclassical,jazz,andpopular music,Tanglewood provides musical training. In 1940 conductor Serge Koussevitzky initiated a summer school for approximately 300 young musicians, now known as theTanglewood Music Center.Also nearby is the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI), a program that collaborates with young musicians. Days in the Arts (DARTs) is for middle school students and is another organization that collaborates with Tanglewood.[14]Other youth-symphony organizations have performed at either the Music Shed or Ozawa Hall, including the Norwalk Youth Symphony, fromNorwalk, Connecticut,theEmpire State Youth Orchestra,fromAlbany, New York,and the Greater Boston Youth Symphony (currently known as the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras).
BSO and Tanglewood music directors[edit]
- Serge Koussevitzky(1936–1949)
- Charles Munch(1949–1962)
- Erich Leinsdorf(1962–1969)
- William Steinberg(1969–1972)
- Seiji Ozawa(1973–2002)
- James Levine(2004–2011)
- Andris Nelsons(2014–present)
Facilities[edit]
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- TheKoussevitzky Music Shedwas inaugurated in 1938, with major acoustic refurbishment made in 1959. Originally unnamed, the Shed was re-dedicated to TMC's founder in 1988. Most BSO, all Pops and some TMC orchestra concerts are held there.
- Seiji Ozawa Hallopened in 1994 and is the place where most Tanglewood chamber concerts, as well as TMC orchestra concerts, now take place. Designed by William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc. of Boston, Massachusetts, Seiji Ozawa Hall has been ranked one of the two Best Concert Halls in the U.S. built in the past 50 years, one of the four Best Concert Halls ever built in the U.S., and the 13th Best Concert Hall in the world (from Leo Beranek'sConcert Halls and Opera Houses). Seiji Ozawa Hall has received numerous awards for its architecture, including a National American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Interior Architecture (2000) and a National American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Architecture (1995). The acoustics of the hall were designed in conjunction with the architect by R. Lawrence Kirkegaard, ofKirkegaard Associates.
- TheAaron Copland Library,Theatre, Chamber Music Hall and additional administrative, performance and practice buildings are spread throughout the Tanglewood grounds.
Further reading[edit]
- Joseph Horowitz.Classical Music in America: A History of Its Rise and Fall.W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.ISBN0-393-05717-8.
- Andrew L. Pincus.Scenes from Tanglewood.Northeastern University Press, 1989.ISBN1-55553-054-0.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^"Berkshire Magazine, Madame Chairman"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 22, 2015.RetrievedDecember 19,2015.
- ^"The Berkshire Eagle, Tanglewood tid bits".RetrievedDecember 19,2015.
- ^"BSO History of Tanglewood".RetrievedDecember 19,2015.
- ^"Caroline Sturgis Tappan, Biographical Note".RetrievedDecember 20,2015.
- ^"BSO, History of Tanglewood".RetrievedMarch 20,2015.
- ^"Music: In Tanglewood's Tent".Time.1937-08-16.ISSN0040-781X.Retrieved2022-12-10.
- ^"Berkshire Magazine, Madame Chairman"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 22, 2015.RetrievedDecember 19,2015.
- ^Leo Beranek, "Concert Halls and Opera Houses" 2nd ed. NY:Springer, 2007ISBN0-387-95524-0pp. 93–97.
- ^"Gertrude Robinson Smith speaks at the dedication of Tanglewood's historic Music Shed".YouTube.RetrievedDecember 26,2015.
- ^Leo Beranek, "Concert Halls and Opera Houses" 2nd ed. NY:Springer, 2007ISBN0-387-95524-0pp. 89−92.
- ^Page, Tim (1986-07-29)."UNPRETENTIOUS PRODIGY PUZZLED BY ALL THE FUSS".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved2024-07-02.
- ^Eagle, Andrew L. Pincus, Special to The (2022-06-28)."'A great voice falls silent': An appreciation of Leonard Bernstein, Oct. 16, 1990, by Andrew Pincus ".The Berkshire Eagle.Retrieved2024-07-02.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^Wilson, Scott.Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons,3rd ed.: 2 (Kindle Location 9788). McFarland & Company. Kindle Edition.
- ^"Tanglewood".BSO.Retrieved2022-12-01.
External links[edit]
- Official website
- Dedication of the Music Shed at Tanglewood by Gertrude Robinson Smith| NBC Radio Broadcast – August 4, 1938 (YouTube)
- Virtual tour of the Koussevitzky Music Shed
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