** Listening to these pieces, you know someone who knew the organ wrote them. When they arrived in California they made recordings for Columbia, among which are the ones here.* Stokowski's Bach transcriptions had sold well for RCA and Columbia wanted some recordings of their own.įirst, let me say that if anyone could orchestrate Bach it was Stokowski. Anyway, the following year the orchestra was reformed with some different players and toured the U.S. He told me some wonderful stories like the time he took a robe to Stokowski's cabin and found him with a woman. In fact, Warren Eason, once Vice President of the Leopold Stokowski Society of America, was a 17 year-old horn player who toured South America with the orchestra. The orchestra did have some principals from Philadelphia, Sol Schoenbach on bassoon and Mason Jones on horn for example, but was primarily recruited from all over the country. He formed the All-American Youth Orchestra, with the help of the State Department and Columbia Records. In 1940 Stokowski left the Philadelphia Orchestra to strike out on his own. I would suggest, however, that another possible audience exists for this disc, those who are curious and want to learn about music. If you are seeking an introduction to Stokowski's Bach transcriptions, however, you would probably want to start with one of his three stereo recordings (if you can find them). I am but one of thousands of people who owe their love of classical music to that movie. When you think of Stokowski what usually comes to mind is the opening of 'Fantasia' where The Maestro plays 'his' orchestration of Bach's 'Toccata and Fugue'. This disc is primarily for aficionados of Stokowski's art. Let's put the cards on the table at the outset. If you want some kind of proof that Stokowski attained his sound through some kind of occult powers this is the portrait is for you. Stokowski looks like a first encounter of the third kind… or something like that. The cover on this disc is the weirdest portrait of Stokowski that I have ever seen.

Stokowski transcriptions recordings