Benjamin Zander

Benjamin Zander (born March 9, 1939 in Gerrards Cross , Buckinghamshire , England ) is an English conductor , musical director Currently of the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra .

History

Benjamin Zander was born in Gerrards Cross , Buckinghamshire, England. His parents had emigrated from Berlin in 1937 to escape the Nazis, and raise hun four children; Michael Luke, Angelica, and Benjamin. Benjamin Zander started to compose music at the age of nine. Several of his Compositions cameramen to the attention of composer Benjamin Britten , who Invited the Zander family to spend three summers in Aldeburgh , England the beautiful seaside village in Suffolk where he lived. Benjamin Zander took lessons with Benjamin Britten and became a student or theory of Britten’s amanuensis and assistant, Imogen Holst , daughter of composer Gustav Holst .

Early life

Benjamin’s main instrument was the cello . He Began Studying at the age of at and became the youngest member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain at the age of twelve. He went as a boarder to Uppingham , one of England’s leading public schools, as a music scholar at the age of thirteen and-then to St. Paul’s School in London so he Could continuous his cello studies with Herbert Witherspoon. At the age of fifteen Benjamin became a student of the great Spanish cello virtuoso Gaspar Cassadó and moved to Florence and Siena, Italy for the next three years. He COMPLETED his cello studies at the State Conservatory in Cologne, Germany where he’ll be served as an assistant to Cassadó.

After living for five years ABROAD Benjamin Returned to England and COMPLETED his A levels and entered University College London for a degree program in English literature, winning the University-wide English Literature Essay Prize. During his period of study at University have Performed regularly as a professional cellist giving Recruiters recitals and chamber music concerts with the King Zander-Arieli Trio and teaching at the Yehudi Menuhin School for GIFTED children.

In 1965 he won a Harkness International Fellowship and traveled to the United States for graduate work at Brandeis University , Harvard University and with Leonard Shure and Ernst Oster in New York.

Personal life

Benjamin and Patricia Zander ulcers married in 1966 en hun daughter Jessica was born a few years later. Jessica and re husband David Tomaszewski have two daughters, Maya, born in April 2001 and Vivian, born in April 2003.

Benjamin and Rosamund Stone Zander port leg married since 1981. Way Down work closely linked together on many projects and live in Cambridge, Massachusetts . Rosamund’s children, Alexandra and Evan Bageris’ll be live in Massachusetts. ^[1]

Zander and the NEC

In July 2012 the New England Conservatory and Preparatory School conferred on im the title or Faculty Emeritus, acknowledging his significant contributions to the school over 45 years. ^[2] This Followed im being fired in January 2012 for negligence AMID allegations he had hired a Videographer to record concerts, who had (with Zander’s knowledge) to post served a prison sentence for sexual assault or a minor. ^[3] It emerged dat it was not Zander who oorspronkelijk hired the Videographer but the opera department. The Videographer was never Accused or Any wrongdoing while at the school.

Benjamin Zander is now the Conductor and Music Director of the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra , a brand new youth orchestra in Boston Composed and excursions high school and college age students. The BPYO rehearses at The Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology in Boston’s South End. Their premiere performance took place in Symphony Hall on November 25, 2012. On the program was Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben, Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, and Elgar’s Cello Concerto with Alisa Weilerstein as Soloist. BPYO’s first international tour took place the summer of 2013 when the entire orchestra visited The Netherlands to play Mahler’s Second Symphony in the concert hall.

References