André Kostelanetz

Born: Dec 22, 1901 in St. Petersburg, Russia - Die

André Kostelanetz arranged classical pieces as easy listening numbers, bringing the music to a broad, middle-brow audience that wouldn't normally have listened to the music. In the process, he inadvertently invented easy listening music. Kostelanetz grasped the power of radio and he adapted his arrangements to fit the conventions of mass communications.

Kostelanetz began performing music in his childhood as a member of the Petrograd choir. He would eventually become leader of the choir. In 1922, he moved to the United States. Initially, he didn't find jobs as a conductor/arranger, so he had to perform as an accompanist. In 1924, Kostelanetz made his radio debut, conducting an orchestra.

In the '30s, he assembled a 65-piece orchestra, which happened to be the largest orchestra broadcast on radio, for the national show Andre Kostelanetz Presents. By the mid-'30s, he was one of the most popular radio stars in the U.S., as evidenced by the sheer amount of awards he won and polls he topped. In 1943, a poll of U.S. and Canadian audiences commended him for his support for popular and serious music.

Not only was he popular, he was quite innovative as well. Kostelanetz understood the potential of recording as a way to expose mass audiences to music. Consequently, he also grasped the technological necessities of recording, and helped promote the value of recording engineers. But his most noteworthy technological advance was his invention of a mechanical tuning instrument that told musicians whether they were in pitch or not. The device was adapted by the military and used as a way to track submarines.

Kostelanetz never lost his popularity, even as musical styles shifted dramatically over the next four decades. Over the course of his career, he sold over 52 million records. The arranger continued to interpret classical pieces, as well as show tunes and popular songs until his death in 1980.

Discography:

Albums:
1948 Carnival Tropicana
1951 Music of Vincent Youmans
1951 The Grandma Moses Suite
1953 Music of Cole Porter
1954 Lure of the Tropics
1955 Meet Andre Kostelanetz
1958 Blues Opera
1959 Lure of Paradise
1959 Strauss Waltzes
1963 Stereo Wonderland of Golden Hits
1963 Wonderland of Christmas
1964 New York Wonderland
1966 Wishing You a Merry Christmas
1967 Joy to the World: Music for Christmas
1969 Sounds of Love
1969 Traces
1971 Love Story
1978 You Light Up My Life
1979 Plays the Theme from Superman the Movie and Other Pop Hits of Today!
1990 World's Greatest Love Songs
1995 Academy Award Winning "Shadow of Your Smile"
1995 Christmas Concert [live]
1999 Music of Jerome Kern
2000 The Music of Irving Berlin