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Julius Rudel

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Julius Rudel (6 March 1921 – 26 June 2014) was an Austrian-born American opera and orchestra conductor. He was born in Vienna and was a student at the city's Academy of Music. He emigrated to the United States at the age of 17 in 1938 after the country was annexed by Germany.

He studied conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City. After completing his music studies, he joined the New York City Opera. He died on 26 June 2014 at the age of 93.

External audio
audio icon You may hear Julius Rudel with Jorge Bolet and the Lewisohn Stadium Symphony Orchestra of New York in:
Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30
Mozart's Symphony No. 35 in D major K. 385 ("The Hoffner")
Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition in 1957
Here on wnyc.org

Career

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After 1944, Rudel began a 35-year career with the New York City Opera that continued until 1979. After rising to Principal Conductor and General Director in 1957, he brought the company international acclaim with his innovative programming (including three seasons of all-American operas in 1958, 1959, and 1960), and formed a partnership with Beverly Sills, who became the leading soprano of the NYCO. He led the company to its new home at the New York State Theater in Lincoln Center, where it opened in February 1966 with Alberto Ginastera's Don Rodrigo, in which he cast an unknown 25-year-old tenor, Plácido Domingo.[1] In 1953, he conducted the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts, in the Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, in the summer series.[2]

Rudel was a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity.[3]

In 1979, Julius Rudel became the music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Though faced with many financial constraints, Rudel's tenure was marked with emphasis on the classical repertoire as well as gala performances with Beverly Sills and Plácido Domingo. Rudel also took the BPO on a West Coast tour and made a commemorative recording with CBS Masterworks of music for the holiday season.

In 2009 he was honored by the US National Endowment for the Arts for his many contributions to opera. He died in Manhattan on 26 June 2014.[4]

Recordings

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See also

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References

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Notes

  1. ^ Schonberg, Harold C. (23 February 1966). "City Opera Company Sparkles in its Rich New Setting" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  2. ^ "Notable Events and Performers". Naumburg Orchestral Concerts. Retrieved 23 February 2025.
  3. ^ Delta Omicron Archived 27 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ McFadden, Robert (26 June 2014). "Julius Rudel, Longtime City Opera Impresario Dies at 93". The New York Times.

Sources

  • Morgan, Brian (2006), Strange Child of Chaos: Norman Treigle iUniverse, 2006. ISBN 0-595-38898-1
  • Rudel, Julius; Rebecca Paller (2013), First and Lasting Impressions: Julius Rudel Looks Back on a Life in Music. University of Rochester Press. ISBN 978-1-58046-434-5
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Cultural offices
Preceded by Music Director, Caramoor Festival
1962–1976 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Music Director, Buffalo Philharmonic
1979–1985 		Succeeded by
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