Victor August Herbert (February 1 1859 –
May 26 1924) was a composer of
light opera, cellist and conductor. He was prominent among the tin pan alley composers and
later a founder of the American Society of Composers,
Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP).
Biography
Herbert was born in Dublin, Ireland, and at age three and a
half, shortly after the death of his father, moved to live with his playwright grandfather,
where he received encouragement in his creative endeavours. However, after his mother remarried a physician, his music was put on
hold until a relatively late age.
Early career
Herbert received his early musical training in Europe at the Stuttgart Conservatory, where
he developed into an outstanding cellist. He played cello in the orchestra of Johann Strauss in Vienna. He came to the United States in 1886 when his wife, soprano Therese Förster, was engaged by the
Metropolitan Opera Company. He played cello in the Met orchestra. Madame
Herbert-Förster sang the title role in the Met's first production of Verdi's
Aida.
Conductor
In 1892, Victor Herbert exhibited another side of his musical life when he became conductor of the 22nd Regimental Band of the
New York National Guard, succeeding the great Patrick Gilmore; the following year he took over leadership of Gilmore’s civilian band following
Gilmore’s death. Herbert conducted the Pittsburgh Symphony from 1898 until
1902, building that orchestra into a major American ensemble, with tours to major cities, including New York and Chicago, where
his Auditorium Festival March celebrated the twelfth anniversary of Chicago's Auditorium
Theatre in 1901, designed by Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright. Six years later, Herbert founded the Victor Herbert Orchestra and conducted
programs of light orchestral music on tours and at summer resorts for many years.
Composer
Among other works, Herbert composed two operas, Natoma and Madeleine, one cantata, 43 operettas, incidental music to 10 stage productions of others including
several of the Ziegfeld Follies, 31 compositions for orchestra including the
Auditorium Festival March (1901), nine band compositions, nine cello compositions and five
violin compositions with piano or orchestra, 22 piano compositions, one flute and clarinet duet with orchestra, 54 songs not
including those from other works, 12 choral compositions, and numerous orchestrations of works by other composers.
In 1894, Herbert composed the first of his operettas, Prince Ananias, which was soon followed by the successful The Wizard of the Nile, The Serenade and
The Fortune Teller. Starting in 1903, Babes in Toyland, Mlle. Modiste,
The Red Mill, Naughty
Marietta, and other successes made him one of the best-known figures in American music. He finally realized his
long-standing intention to compose an Irish operetta, Eileen, produced in 1917.
Herbert's last operetta was The Dream Girl in 1924. His most successful operettas include:
A number of these Herbert operettas are still performed and recorded today by light opera companies, as well as occasionally
by the larger opera companies.
Herbert's first opera Natoma debuted in Philadelphia on February 25 1911 and in New York on
February 28 1911. It starred Mary Garden in the title role and the young Irish tenor John
McCormack in his opera debut, creating the role of the American seaman, Paul. His short opera Madeleine was
produced at the Metropolitan Opera in 1914.
Herbert's 1894 Cello Concerto No. 2 in E minor, op. 30 is featured on a recent Yo-Yo
Ma recording with Kurt Masur and the New York
Philharmonic, adding weight to Herbert's reputation as an under appreciated composer of his era. An early rare recording
with Bernard Greenhouse and the Vienna Symphony
Orchestra conducted by Max Schoenherr displays a warm cello sound and a virtuoso technique
produced by one of the greatest American cellists of the twentieth century. Antonín
Dvořák claimed to have been inspired to write his Concerto for Cello and
Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104 (1894-1895) after hearing this concerto.
ASCAP
In the early years of the twentieth century, Herbert championed the right of composers to profit from their work and worked
closely with John Philip Sousa, Irving Berlin,
and others in founding, on February 13, 1914, the
American Society of Composers, Authors, and
Publishers (ASCAP), the organization that even today protects the rights of creative musicians. Herbert served as the
organization's vice president for a decade.
Recent recordings
- The Music of Victor Herbert recorded by Beverly Sills, soprano, and Andre Kostelanetz,
conducting, on Angel records SFO-37160 (1976)
- Victor Herbert Eileen Romantic Comic Opera in Three Acts (1917) recorded in 1998 by the Ohio Light Opera, James Stewart, Artistic Director; Newport Classic, (NPD 85615/2)
- Victor Herbert: Beloved Songs and Classic Miniatures (1999) recorded by Virginia Croskery, soprano, and Keith Brion,
conducting the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra on the Naxos CD 8.559.26
- The Red Mill: Romantic Opera in Two Acts by Victor Herbert recorded in 2001 by Ohio Light
Opera; L. Lynn Thompson, Conductor; Steven Daigle, Artistic Director; Albany Records (Troy 492/493).
See also
Bibliography
- Herbert, Victor (1927). Victor Herbert Song
Album, Vol. 1, New York: M. Witmark & Sons. OCLC 8022756.
- Herbert, Victor (1938). Victor Herbert Song
Album, Vol. 2, New York: M. Witmark & Sons. OCLC 38229555.
- Herbert, Victor (1976). The Music of Victor
Herbert. New York: Warner Bros. Publications. OCLC 3551867.
- Kaye, Joseph (1931). Victor Herbert: The Biography
of America's Greatest Composer of Romantic Music. New York: G. Howard Watt. OCLC 871263.
- Purdy, Claire Lee (1944). Victor Herbert: American
Music Master. New York: Julian Messner, Inc.. OCLC 3898217.
- Waters, Edward N. (1955). Victor Herbert: A Life
in Music. New York: Macmillan. OCLC 1293405.
(reprinted in 1978 by Da Capo Press)
- American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Victor Herbert. A bibliography of his recordings, compositions,
operettas, instrumental, choral and other works. New York, 1959.
- Barnes, Edwin N. C. Near Immortals: Stephen Foster, Edward MacDowell, Victor Herbert. Washington, D.C.: Music
Education Publications, c1940.
- Crouse, Russel. The Great Victor Herbert. Hollywood, 1939.
- Forbes, Douglas L. Some Serious Compositions of Victor Herbert. A study in musical style. 1957. (Dissertation)
References
- Ganzl, Kurt. The Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre (3 Volumes). New York: Schirmer Books, 2001.
- Traubner, Richard. Operetta: A Theatrical History. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1983
- Bordman, Gerald. American Operetta. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.
External links
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