Frédérique Petrides
Encyclopedia
Frédérique Petrides (September 26, 1903 – January 12, 1983), was a Belgian-American
conductor and violinist. In 1933, she founded and conducted the Orchestrette Classique
in New York
. It consisted of women musicians and premiered works by then relatively untried American composers, such as Paul Creston
, Samuel Barber
and David Diamond
, that are now widely played and celebrated.
She also edited and published the ground-breaking newsletter, Women in Music
, which highlighted the activities of professional women musicians throughout the ages.
In addition, she founded several concert series in Manhattan
, including the West Side Orchestral Concerts, the Student Symphony Society of New York, and the Carl Schurz Park
concerts.
, it was almost unheard of for a woman to be an orchestral conductor. And even at the close of her career, in 1977, not much had changed in that regard. Petrides was a pioneer, as one of the first woman conductors and "one-woman crusader" for the rights and advancement of women musicians in general, through her performances, articles and the dissemination, in the United States and internationally, of the Women in Music
newsletters.
, who was also an accomplished painter and photographer.
Growing up, Frédérique ("Riki" to family and friends) and her siblings, had, according to her brother Jan's memoir, written in 1957, a very formal father, in manner and dress, old enough to be their "grand-father" and two "simultaneous mothers" : Séraphine, who attended to their artistic development, and her closest friend since childhood, Jeanne Françoise Schenck, whom they called Godel (Bavarian German for godmother). Godel lived with them and, assisted by their governess, Fraulein Klara, attended to the day-to-day matters. She was also responsible for their schooling, with the result that all three were given high scholastic marks when they eventually entered the German school on Antwerp's rue Grétry, considered one of the best private schools in the city. Jan Mayer wrote this about their father, mother and Godel, "...few people have been so fortunate in the choice of their early associates."
And many days were spent at The Kitchburg (German for Kitsch Castle), the family's country home in Capellenbosch, a suburb of Antwerp. There the children explored the grounds, played with the domesticated and wild animals, invented elaborate games of the imagination; and scouted for swarms of bees to add to their mother's bee hives.
Another aspect of Riki’s upbringing, was the family's isolation. Her father had been born German, and his powerful and aristocratic family (his mother was a von Wittgenstein; his grand-mother a Schaafhausen) disapproved of his marriage to the Belgian musician, Séraphine Sebrechts, and except for his brother, August, ended all communications with him. Also later, with the advent of World War I
, most of the Mayers' Belgian friends were no longer willing to be on good terms with an expatriate German, and turned their backs on him and his family.
All the while, Riki pursued her musical training. She studied violin as one of three private students accepted by Mathieu Crickboom
, who played second violin in the famed Ysaye
String Quartet; and she was taught theory and composition by her mother; Sebrechts had been "preparing to compete for the Belgium
Prix de Rome
in composition until dissuaded by her conventional parents. It was the waste of her mother’s fine talent, Petrides believes, which motivated her to work for the advancement of women musicians, as she did in the 1930’s and 40’s".
where she enrolled in a conducting class at New York University
, because an orchestra was available to her there on which she could practice. She also gave violin recitals, violin lessons, and coached string players.
Years later, from 1950–1956, at the invitation of a conductor whom she greatly admired, Dimitri Mitropoulos, she would attend his New York Philharmonic
rehearsals, and confer with him, which strengthened her development as a conductor.
, in 1933, of which he became manager and publicist. The Orchestrette, an all-women chamber orchestra, gave five to six concerts annually in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, now Weill Recital Hall. In 1942, the Orchestrette Classique
was re-named the Orchestrette of New York.
Under Madame Petrides's direction, the programming was notable in combining performances of little-known works by the classical masters with premieres of pieces by then relatively unknown American composers like Samuel Barber
and Paul Creston
, and the British Ralph Vaughan Williams
, that have since entered the musical canon.
From 1935 to 1940, with the help of her husband, Frédérique Petrides edited and published the Orchestrette's Women in Music
newsletters; a unique series, it followed the activities of women musicians from ancient times to the then present.
was made up of extraordinary women instrumentalists, and, because the Second World War's draft caused vacancies, they were suddenly offered positions in the major symphony orchestras. Petrides, not wanting to discourage her players’ advancement, chose to let the Orchestrette come to an end, and its final performance was given in 1943.
, which she headed for seven years. Then, in 1956 and 1957, she conducted concerts in Washington Square Park
; and in 1958, she founded the Carl Schurz Park
concert series on Manhattan’s Upper East Side
, at which, for five years, she led her Festival Symphony Orchestra, composed primarily of members of the New York Philharmonic
. In 1962, she founded the West Side Community Concerts
,(renamed West Side Orchestral Concerts in 1968) in Riverside Park
, where she continued to lead her Festival Symphony Orchestra until 1977.
She also established the Student Symphony Society of New York City
, which she conducted for eleven seasons, beginning in 1950, whose members, age nine to nineteen, were selected for their talent.
, H. Howard Taubman, Irving Kolodin, Olin Downes
, Robert A. Simon, Jerome D. Bohm, Francis D. Perkins, Theodore Strongin
, Raymond Ericson
, Harold C. Schonberg
and Robert Sherman
who, in the New York Times of July 3, 1970, describes Petrides as “a prime mover in New York’s cultural affairs since the mid-thirties”.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
conductor and violinist. In 1933, she founded and conducted the Orchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique, later called Orchestrette of New York was an American chamber orchestra in New York made up of women musicians. Frédérique Petrides , a pioneering woman conductor who led other orchestras in New York, founded it in 1932 and served as its conductor until it ceased in 1943...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. It consisted of women musicians and premiered works by then relatively untried American composers, such as Paul Creston
Paul Creston
Paul Creston was an Italian American composer of classical music.Born in New York City to Sicilian immigrants, Creston was self‐taught as a composer. He was an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity, initiated into the national honorary Alpha Alpha chapter...
, Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
and David Diamond
David Diamond (composer)
David Leo Diamond was an American composer of classical music.-Life and career:He was born in Rochester, New York and studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Eastman School of Music under Bernard Rogers, also receiving lessons from Roger Sessions in New York City and Nadia Boulanger in...
, that are now widely played and celebrated.
She also edited and published the ground-breaking newsletter, Women in Music
Women in Music
Women in Music was an American newsletter founded in July 1935 by its publisher and editor, Frédérique Petrides, then the conductor of the Orchestrette Classique – an orchestra based in New York made-up of all women musicians. The publication ran until December 1940...
, which highlighted the activities of professional women musicians throughout the ages.
In addition, she founded several concert series in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, including the West Side Orchestral Concerts, the Student Symphony Society of New York, and the Carl Schurz Park
Carl Schurz Park
Carl Schurz Park is a 14.9 acre public park on the Upper East Side of New York City, named for German-born Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz in 1910, at the edge of what was then a solidly German-American community of Yorkville....
concerts.
A pioneer and advocate
In 1933, when Frédérique Petrides first presented her Orchestrette ClassiqueOrchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique, later called Orchestrette of New York was an American chamber orchestra in New York made up of women musicians. Frédérique Petrides , a pioneering woman conductor who led other orchestras in New York, founded it in 1932 and served as its conductor until it ceased in 1943...
, it was almost unheard of for a woman to be an orchestral conductor. And even at the close of her career, in 1977, not much had changed in that regard. Petrides was a pioneer, as one of the first woman conductors and "one-woman crusader" for the rights and advancement of women musicians in general, through her performances, articles and the dissemination, in the United States and internationally, of the Women in Music
Women in Music
Women in Music was an American newsletter founded in July 1935 by its publisher and editor, Frédérique Petrides, then the conductor of the Orchestrette Classique – an orchestra based in New York made-up of all women musicians. The publication ran until December 1940...
newsletters.
In Belgium
Frédérique Petrides was born Frédérique Jeanne Elisabeth Petronella Mayer, into a luxurious life in Antwerp, Belgium on September 26, 1903, which she later shared with two younger brothers, Jan and Gottfried. She was daughter to Joseph Heinrich Friedrich Mayer, a prominent industrialist and art collector, and Séraphine Sebrechts Mayer, a well-known pianist, composer and teacher at the Royal Conservatory of BrusselsRoyal Conservatory of Brussels
The Royal Conservatory of Brussels is a drama and music college in Brussels, Belgium. An academy for acting and the arts, it has been attended by many of the top actors and actresses in Belgium such as Josse De Pauw, Luk van Mello and Luk De Konink....
, who was also an accomplished painter and photographer.
Growing up, Frédérique ("Riki" to family and friends) and her siblings, had, according to her brother Jan's memoir, written in 1957, a very formal father, in manner and dress, old enough to be their "grand-father" and two "simultaneous mothers" : Séraphine, who attended to their artistic development, and her closest friend since childhood, Jeanne Françoise Schenck, whom they called Godel (Bavarian German for godmother). Godel lived with them and, assisted by their governess, Fraulein Klara, attended to the day-to-day matters. She was also responsible for their schooling, with the result that all three were given high scholastic marks when they eventually entered the German school on Antwerp's rue Grétry, considered one of the best private schools in the city. Jan Mayer wrote this about their father, mother and Godel, "...few people have been so fortunate in the choice of their early associates."
And many days were spent at The Kitchburg (German for Kitsch Castle), the family's country home in Capellenbosch, a suburb of Antwerp. There the children explored the grounds, played with the domesticated and wild animals, invented elaborate games of the imagination; and scouted for swarms of bees to add to their mother's bee hives.
Another aspect of Riki’s upbringing, was the family's isolation. Her father had been born German, and his powerful and aristocratic family (his mother was a von Wittgenstein; his grand-mother a Schaafhausen) disapproved of his marriage to the Belgian musician, Séraphine Sebrechts, and except for his brother, August, ended all communications with him. Also later, with the advent of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, most of the Mayers' Belgian friends were no longer willing to be on good terms with an expatriate German, and turned their backs on him and his family.
All the while, Riki pursued her musical training. She studied violin as one of three private students accepted by Mathieu Crickboom
Mathieu Crickboom
Mathieu Crickboom was a Belgian violinist, who was born in Verviers and died in Brussels.Crickboom was the principal disciple of Eugène Ysaÿe, who dedicated to him his Sonata for Violin Alone No. 5...
, who played second violin in the famed Ysaye
Eugène Ysaÿe
Eugène Ysaÿe was a Belgian violinist, composer and conductor born in Liège. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tzar"...
String Quartet; and she was taught theory and composition by her mother; Sebrechts had been "preparing to compete for the Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Prix de Rome
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
in composition until dissuaded by her conventional parents. It was the waste of her mother’s fine talent, Petrides believes, which motivated her to work for the advancement of women musicians, as she did in the 1930’s and 40’s".
In New York
In 1923, Riki emigrated to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where she enrolled in a conducting class at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, because an orchestra was available to her there on which she could practice. She also gave violin recitals, violin lessons, and coached string players.
Years later, from 1950–1956, at the invitation of a conductor whom she greatly admired, Dimitri Mitropoulos, she would attend his New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
rehearsals, and confer with him, which strengthened her development as a conductor.
The Orchestrette
In 1931, she married journalist, Peter Petrides, who wholeheartedly supported her career, and encouraged her to found the Orchestrette ClassiqueOrchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique, later called Orchestrette of New York was an American chamber orchestra in New York made up of women musicians. Frédérique Petrides , a pioneering woman conductor who led other orchestras in New York, founded it in 1932 and served as its conductor until it ceased in 1943...
, in 1933, of which he became manager and publicist. The Orchestrette, an all-women chamber orchestra, gave five to six concerts annually in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, now Weill Recital Hall. In 1942, the Orchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique, later called Orchestrette of New York was an American chamber orchestra in New York made up of women musicians. Frédérique Petrides , a pioneering woman conductor who led other orchestras in New York, founded it in 1932 and served as its conductor until it ceased in 1943...
was re-named the Orchestrette of New York.
Under Madame Petrides's direction, the programming was notable in combining performances of little-known works by the classical masters with premieres of pieces by then relatively unknown American composers like Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
and Paul Creston
Paul Creston
Paul Creston was an Italian American composer of classical music.Born in New York City to Sicilian immigrants, Creston was self‐taught as a composer. He was an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity, initiated into the national honorary Alpha Alpha chapter...
, and the British Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams OM was an English composer of symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, and film scores. He was also a collector of English folk music and song: this activity both influenced his editorial approach to the English Hymnal, beginning in 1904, in which he included many...
, that have since entered the musical canon.
From 1935 to 1940, with the help of her husband, Frédérique Petrides edited and published the Orchestrette's Women in Music
Women in Music
Women in Music was an American newsletter founded in July 1935 by its publisher and editor, Frédérique Petrides, then the conductor of the Orchestrette Classique – an orchestra based in New York made-up of all women musicians. The publication ran until December 1940...
newsletters; a unique series, it followed the activities of women musicians from ancient times to the then present.
Women musicians in demand
The Orchestrette of New YorkOrchestrette Classique
Orchestrette Classique, later called Orchestrette of New York was an American chamber orchestra in New York made up of women musicians. Frédérique Petrides , a pioneering woman conductor who led other orchestras in New York, founded it in 1932 and served as its conductor until it ceased in 1943...
was made up of extraordinary women instrumentalists, and, because the Second World War's draft caused vacancies, they were suddenly offered positions in the major symphony orchestras. Petrides, not wanting to discourage her players’ advancement, chose to let the Orchestrette come to an end, and its final performance was given in 1943.
Activities
From then on, until the end of her career in 1977, Frédérique Petrides conducted mixed orchestras and continued to unearth not widely known compositions by classical composers, and to introduce works by American composers. In the 1930s, she had founded the Hudson Valley Symphony Orchestra in Tarrytown, New YorkTarrytown, New York
Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line...
, which she headed for seven years. Then, in 1956 and 1957, she conducted concerts in Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park is one of the best-known of New York City's 1,900 public parks. At 9.75 acres , it is a landmark in the Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village, as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity...
; and in 1958, she founded the Carl Schurz Park
Carl Schurz Park
Carl Schurz Park is a 14.9 acre public park on the Upper East Side of New York City, named for German-born Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz in 1910, at the edge of what was then a solidly German-American community of Yorkville....
concert series on Manhattan’s Upper East Side
Upper East Side
The Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
, at which, for five years, she led her Festival Symphony Orchestra, composed primarily of members of the New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
. In 1962, she founded the West Side Community Concerts
West Side Community Concerts
West Side Community Concerts, Inc., renamed West Side Orchestral Concerts, Inc. in 1968, were an American summer classical concert series given by a 40-piece orchestra, The Festival Symphony Orchestra. The series debuted in the summer of 1962 and continued until 1977. Frédérique Petrides was its...
,(renamed West Side Orchestral Concerts in 1968) in Riverside Park
Riverside Park (Manhattan)
Riverside Park is a scenic waterfront public park on the Upper West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, operated and maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. The park consists of a narrow four-mile strip of land between the Hudson River and the gently...
, where she continued to lead her Festival Symphony Orchestra until 1977.
She also established the Student Symphony Society of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, which she conducted for eleven seasons, beginning in 1950, whose members, age nine to nineteen, were selected for their talent.
Reviewers
Petrides’s accomplishments were reviewed by leading critics and writers such as Virgil ThomsonVirgil Thomson
Virgil Thomson was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music...
, H. Howard Taubman, Irving Kolodin, Olin Downes
Olin Downes
Olin Downes was an American music critic.He studied piano, music theory, and music criticism in New York and Boston, and it was in those two cities that he made his career as a music critic—first with the Boston Post and then with the New York Times...
, Robert A. Simon, Jerome D. Bohm, Francis D. Perkins, Theodore Strongin
Theodore Strongin
Theodore Strongin was an American music critic, composer, flautist, and entomologist.-Life and career:Born in New York City, Strongin grew up in Darien, Connecticut. He studied both music and biology at Harvard University and Bard College...
, Raymond Ericson
Raymond Ericson
Raymond Ericson was an American music critic who wrote articles for The New York Times for 30 years.-Life and career:...
, Harold C. Schonberg
Harold C. Schonberg
Harold Charles Schonberg was an American music critic and journalist, most notably for The New York Times. He was the first music critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism...
and Robert Sherman
Robert Sherman (music critic)
Robert Sherman is an American music critic, radio personality, academic, and writer on music. He is the son of pianist Nadia Reisenberg. From 1964-2003 he was a music critic for The New York Times. Since 1969 he has hosted the folk music radio program Woody's Children; for the first 30 years on...
who, in the New York Times of July 3, 1970, describes Petrides as “a prime mover in New York’s cultural affairs since the mid-thirties”.