George Szell's Reign: Behind the Scenes with the Cleveland Orchestra (Music in American Life)

Charming and illuminating anecdotes that depict interactions among the players and between individual players and the maestro abound, along with sometimes humorous and sometimes harsh instances of Szell's behavior." ?--Mary Sue Welsh, author of One Woman in a Hundred: Edna Phillips and the Philadelphia Orchestra. "Kraus has collected a multitude of telling personal accounts

As a musician herself, and married to an oboist who worked under Szell, Kraus pulls back the curtain on this storied era through fascinating interviews with orchestra musicians and patrons. Filled with vivid backstage stories, George Szell's Reign reveals the human side of a great orchestra ”and how one visionary built a premier classical music institution.. George Szell was the Cleveland Orchestra's towering presence for over a quarter of a century. Their recollections combine with Kraus's own to paint a portrait of a multifaceted individual who both earned and transcended his tyrannical reputation. A great many remember playing under his difficult leadership as the high point in their lives. If some musicians hated Szell, others loved him or at the least respected his fair-minded toughness. From the boardroom to the stage, Szell's powerful personality affected every aspect of a musical institution he reshaped in his own perfectionist image. Marcia Hansen Kraus's participation in Cleveland's classical musical scene allowed her an intimate view of Szell and his achievements