The making of an American orchestra: U.C. Hill and the Philharmonic in New York, 1815-1848

Thesis

As an institution, the symphony orchestra is rarely evaluated beyond the repertoire it performs and the number and talent of instrumentalists on stage. Yet, every community-based orchestra reflects the broader culture of the place and time in which it first began. Founded in 1842 as a musician-managed cooperative orchestra, the New York Philharmonic reflected the egalitarian ideals of popular democracy associated with Jacksonian America.

The driving force behind this new venture, also its first president and conductor, was the American-born violinist Ureli Corelli Hill (1805–1875). Critically important, Hill was the first American professional musician to travel abroad. Between 1835-1837 he studied with Louis Spohr in Kassel, played in Felix Mendelssohn’s orchestra at the premiere of his Paulus in Düsseldorf, and was hired as third viola in London’s Drury Lane Theatre orchestra. While on this journey, Hill kept a diary, currently unpublished and the inspiration for this study, that captured his reactions to Old World culture along with comparisons to New York.

In addition to deciphering the opinions, politics, and worldview of Hill, for the first time this study provides a more granular accounting of the lives of early nineteenth century working musicians, something that has been recognized as lacking in the literature (Crawford and Root). Through Hill’s experiences, the focus shifts to the musicians, mostly instrumentalists, who formed a distinct musical culture and a close-knit, mutually supportive community in New York City between 1815 and 1848. Along with Hill, many of these men had been involved with earlier musical institutions in the City: the 1824 New York Philharmonic, the García Opera Company orchestra that introduced Italian opera to the United States, the New York Sacred Music Society, and the New York Musical Fund Society. Their shared experiences as New York City became the cultural capital of the country, combined with the ideals of popular democracy, made the New York Philharmonic a uniquely American symphony orchestra.

Authors: Haws, BB

• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: orchestra conductor; Malibran; American musician abroad; Beethoven Symphony No. 9; Italian opera; London musicians 1830s; Mendelssohn St. Paul; suffrage; popular democracy; Jacksonian America; George 'Yankee' Hill; Drury Lane Theatre; New York Philharmonic; Manuel Garcia; Louis Spohr; Ureli Corelli Hill; Felix Mendelssohn; egalitarian ideals; American Psalmody
• Subjects: Travel Literature, 19th century; Kassel Germany musicians; Orchestras; New York, New York 19th Century; Conductors, Orchestral; Culture, United States of America, 19th Century; Hill, Ureli Corelli; London musicians, 1830s; Culture, Europe, 19th Century; Democracy and the arts; New York musicians, 1815-1848; musician diary; New York Philharmonic; Transatlantic voyages