Adolph Herseth
Encyclopedia
Adolph Sylvester Herseth, (born July 25, 1921) was principal trumpet
in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
from 1948 until 2001, and served as principal trumpet emeritus from 2001 until his retirement in 2004.
. Herseth graduated from Luther College
in Iowa with a degree in mathematics prior to serving as a musician with the U.S. Navy
during World War II
. He was a student of Boston Symphony Orchestra
trumpeters Marcel LaFosse
(second trumpet) and Georges Mager
(principal trumpet) at the New England Conservatory of Music
.
His ancestors came from Norway, so in 1977 he visited Norway
to see the places where his relatives lived in the municipality of Stange
in Hedmark
County.
Herseth is widely regarded as one of the greatest orchestral trumpeters of his generation.
As the principal trumpet of the Chicago Symphony for 53 years, Herseth performed under Bruno Walter
, George Szell
, Eugene Ormandy
, Leonard Bernstein
, James Levine
, Claudio Abbado
, and many other prominent orchestral conductors. His tenure in the orchestra spanned the time of 6 different CSO music directors - Artur Rodziński
(1947-48), Rafael Kubelik
(1950-53), Fritz Reiner
(1953-1962), Jean Martinon
(1963-1968), Sir Georg Solti
(1969-1991), and Daniel Barenboim
(1991-2006).
Herseth's tenure as principal trumpet spanned the Reiner years, during which the orchestra rose to prominence, due in part to the powerful and precise sound of its brass section. As explained by the Telegraph in London on Sept. 18, 2009, “The orchestra’s rise to fame began with the great Fritz Reiner in the Fifties, but it was during the 22-year reign of the fierce Hungarian Georg Solti that the orchestra became the brawny yet subtle precision instrument that it is today, famed especially for its noble and stupendously powerful brass sound.” A Smithsonian profile of Herseth, published Sept. 1, 1994, offered this description: “The Chicago has long been recognized as one of the world’s great orchestras, and Adolph Sylvester Herseth has had a major role in the evolution of its distinctive sound.” As described in the Chicago Sun-Times, July 22, 2001, “For decades Herseth's rich, golden tone and powerful yet expressive playing were a cornerstone of the fabled ‘Chicago Sound.’” That brass sound drew worldwide attention to the CSO, and propelled the great American orchestra’s reputation around the globe." According to an entry on the Chicago History Museum's online history of the city, the CSO’s "unmistakable sound and high standard of performance helped define the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as a world class institution. It also made Chicago an international center for the study of brass instrument performance."
Herseth retired in 2001. The position he occupied is now named after him - The Adolph Herseth Principal Trumpet Chair.
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
from 1948 until 2001, and served as principal trumpet emeritus from 2001 until his retirement in 2004.
Biography
Bud Herseth was born in Lake Park, MNLake Park, Minnesota
Lake Park is a city in Becker County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 783 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
. Herseth graduated from Luther College
Luther College (Iowa)
Luther College is a four-year, residential liberal arts institution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, located in Decorah, Iowa, USA...
in Iowa with a degree in mathematics prior to serving as a musician with the U.S. Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was a student of Boston Symphony Orchestra
Boston Symphony Orchestra
The Boston Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1881, the BSO plays most of its concerts at Boston's Symphony Hall and in the summer performs at the Tanglewood Music Center...
trumpeters Marcel LaFosse
Marcel LaFosse
Marcel Lafosse was a French musician and trumpeter with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He studied at the Conservatoire de Paris with Alexandre Petit, and was first Accésit in the Conservatory Prix in 1911. Petit wrote for him the last of the 12 Grandes Études. Conductor Sergei Koussevitzky brought...
(second trumpet) and Georges Mager
Georges Mager
Georges C. Mager was a French musician, and principal trumpet with the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1919 until his death in 1950. He was a renowned trumpeter in Paris before the First World War, playing at the Paris Opera, Concerts Lamoureux, and the Concerts of the Society of the Conservatory...
(principal trumpet) at the New England Conservatory of Music
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
.
His ancestors came from Norway, so in 1977 he visited Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
to see the places where his relatives lived in the municipality of Stange
Stange
is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stangebyen.-Name:...
in Hedmark
Hedmark
is a county in Norway, bordering Sør-Trøndelag, Oppland and Akershus. The county administration is in Hamar.Hedmark makes up the northeastern part of Østlandet, the southeastern part of the country. It includes a long part of the borderline with Sweden, Dalarna County and Värmland County. The...
County.
Herseth is widely regarded as one of the greatest orchestral trumpeters of his generation.
As the principal trumpet of the Chicago Symphony for 53 years, Herseth performed under Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter was a German-born conductor. He is considered one of the best known conductors of the 20th century. Walter was born in Berlin, but is known to have lived in several countries between 1933 and 1939, before finally settling in the United States in 1939...
, George Szell
George Szell
George Szell , originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
, Eugene Ormandy
Eugene Ormandy
Eugene Ormandy was a Hungarian-born conductor and violinist.-Early life:Born Jenő Blau in Budapest, Hungary, Ormandy began studying violin at the Royal National Hungarian Academy of Music at the age of five...
, Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, James Levine
James Levine
James Lawrence Levine is an American conductor and pianist. He is currently the music director of the Metropolitan Opera and former music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Levine's first performance conducting the Metropolitan Opera was on June 5, 1971, and as of May 2011 he has...
, Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , is an Italian conductor. He has served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Vienna State Opera,...
, and many other prominent orchestral conductors. His tenure in the orchestra spanned the time of 6 different CSO music directors - Artur Rodziński
Artur Rodzinski
Artur Rodziński was a Polish conductor of opera and symphonic music. He is especially noted for his tenures as music director of the Cleveland Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic in the 1930s and 1940s.-Biography:...
(1947-48), Rafael Kubelik
Rafael Kubelík
Rafael Jeroným Kubelík was a Czech conductor and composer.-Early life:Kubelík was born in Býchory, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary, today's Czech Republic. He was the sixth child of the Bohemian violinist Jan Kubelík, whom the younger Kubelík described as "a kind of god to me." His mother was a Hungarian...
(1950-53), Fritz Reiner
Fritz Reiner
Frederick Martin “Fritz” Reiner was a prominent conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century.-Biography:...
(1953-1962), Jean Martinon
Jean Martinon
Jean Martinon was a French conductor and composer.-Biography:Martinon was born in Lyon, where he began his education, going on to the Conservatoire de Paris to study under Albert Roussel for composition, under Charles Munch and Roger Désormière for conducting, under Vincent d'Indy for harmony,...
(1963-1968), Sir Georg Solti
Georg Solti
Sir Georg Solti, KBE, was a Hungarian-British orchestral and operatic conductor. He was a major classical recording artist, holding the record for having received the most Grammy Awards, having personally won 31 as a conductor, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition to his...
(1969-1991), and Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim, KBE is an Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor. He has served as music director of several major symphonic and operatic orchestras and made numerous recordings....
(1991-2006).
Herseth's tenure as principal trumpet spanned the Reiner years, during which the orchestra rose to prominence, due in part to the powerful and precise sound of its brass section. As explained by the Telegraph in London on Sept. 18, 2009, “The orchestra’s rise to fame began with the great Fritz Reiner in the Fifties, but it was during the 22-year reign of the fierce Hungarian Georg Solti that the orchestra became the brawny yet subtle precision instrument that it is today, famed especially for its noble and stupendously powerful brass sound.” A Smithsonian profile of Herseth, published Sept. 1, 1994, offered this description: “The Chicago has long been recognized as one of the world’s great orchestras, and Adolph Sylvester Herseth has had a major role in the evolution of its distinctive sound.” As described in the Chicago Sun-Times, July 22, 2001, “For decades Herseth's rich, golden tone and powerful yet expressive playing were a cornerstone of the fabled ‘Chicago Sound.’” That brass sound drew worldwide attention to the CSO, and propelled the great American orchestra’s reputation around the globe." According to an entry on the Chicago History Museum's online history of the city, the CSO’s "unmistakable sound and high standard of performance helped define the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as a world class institution. It also made Chicago an international center for the study of brass instrument performance."
Herseth retired in 2001. The position he occupied is now named after him - The Adolph Herseth Principal Trumpet Chair.