Leo Ornstein
Leo Ornstein (born Лев Орнштейн, Lev Ornshteyn; c. December 11, 1895 – February 24, 2002) was an American experimental composer and pianist of the early twentieth century. His performances of works by avant-garde composers and his own innovative and even shocking pieces made him a cause célèbre on both sides of the Atlantic. The bulk of his experimental works were written for piano. Ornstein was the first important composer to make extensive use of the tone cluster. As a pianist, he was considered a world-class talent. By the mid-1920s, he had walked away from his fame and soon disappeared from popular memory. Though he gave his last public concert before the age of forty, he continued writing music for another half-century and beyond. Largely forgotten for decades, he was rediscovered in the mid-1970s. Ornstein completed his eighth and final piano sonata in September 1990 at the age of ninety-four, making him the oldest published composer in history at the time (a mark since passed by Elliott Carter). |
Birth and Death Data: Born December 2, 1893 (Kremenchuk), Died February 24, 2002 (Green Bay)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1913
Roles Represented in DAHR: piano
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Columbia | 38833 | 10-in. | 5/10/1913 | Butterfly | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38834 | 10-in. | 5/10/1913 | Marche mignonne | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38835 | 10-in. | 5/10/1913 | Impromptu | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38836 | 10-in. | 5/10/1913 | Etude in G flat | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38842 | 10-in. | 5/14/1913 | To the spring | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38843 | 10-in. | 5/14/1913 | March of the dwarfs | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38844 | 10-in. | 5/14/1913 | Nocturne in F sharp major | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38845 | 10-in. | 5/14/1913 | Minute waltz in D flat major | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38864 | 10-in. | 5/20/1913 | Marche grotesque | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38883 | 10-in. | 5/27/1913 | Voices of spring | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38884 | 10-in. | 5/27/1913 | Nightingale | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano | |
Columbia | 38895 | 10-in. | 6/2/1913 | Scherzo in E minor | Leo Ornstein | Piano solo | instrumentalist, piano |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Ornstein, Leo," accessed November 22, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103502.
Ornstein, Leo. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 22, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103502.
"Ornstein, Leo." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Leo Ornstein
Discogs: Leo Ornstein
Allmusic: Leo Ornstein
Grove: Leo Ornstein
IMSLP: Leo Ornstein
IMDb: Leo Ornstein
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Ornstein, Leo, 1892-2002 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n82025125
Wikidata: Leo Ornstein - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1558656
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/115011062
MusicBrainz: Leo Ornstein - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/88e931c0-c22e-45c1-9662-02f52f4ca771
ISNI: 0000 0001 1455 5013 - http://www.isni.org/isni/0000000114555013
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