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Creator
City Symphony Orchestra of New York
Call number
JPB 03-16
Physical description
4 linear feet (8 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation

City Symphony Orchestra of New York Records, JPB 03-16, Music Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations.

Repository
Music Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Established in 1927 by Leopold Prince the City Symphony Orchestra of New York, a non-profit organization comprised mostly of amateur musicians, gave free concerts throughout New York. The collection contains board minutes, correspondence, financial documents, programs, and ephemera that highlight the organization and financial operations of the orchestra.

Biographical/historical information

In 1927, Leopold Prince, a Municipal Court Judge of New York, established the City Amateur Symphony Orchestra of New York (After 1953 it was referred to as simply the City Symphony Orchestra of New York). The orchestra quickly grew to include between 80 and 110 musicians, the vast majority of whom were amateurs. Leopold Prince, a violinist himself, conducted the orchestra in its first twenty-five years of existence, until his death in 1951. The former assistant conductor, Franz Bibo, succeeded Prince as the new conductor. The City Symphony Orchestra of New York catered to audiences who could not afford entrance fees at typical venues, and frequently gave free concerts at New York hospitals, parks, and museums. Typically, in the 1950s, the orchestra would perform six concerts at the American Museum of Natural History in the winter, and four summer concerts held on the mall of Central Park. The free concerts were generally well attended, with the summer concerts drawing crowds between 5,000 and 20,000 a performance. The orchestra would also perform at benefit concerts throughout the city in an effort to raise money for charitable organizations.

The City Symphony Orchestra existed without any monetary support from the city or state of New York. They survived solely on the philanthropy of individuals. For the first few years, Judge Leopold Prince personally bore all of the expense for the operations of the orchestra. From the beginning of the 1930s until 1951, funds were raised primarily through benefit dinners. Upon Leopold Prince’s death in 1951, the orchestra lost their principal fundraiser and consequently, the orchestra created a Board of Directors whose primary responsible focused on fundraising. The Board of Directors and specifically, the Finance Committee solicited donations from friends, community members, and philanthropic organizations. In 1956, the orchestra incorporated as a non-profit, tax-exempt organization.

It remains unclear what became of the City Symphony Orchestra of New York after the late 1960s. Beginning in the 1940s, several groups began operating under the title of the New York City Symphony and to complicate matters the City Symphony Orchestra of New York was often casually referred to as the New York City Symphony.

Scope and arrangement

The papers in this collection represent the activities of the City Symphony Orchestra of New York from 1927 to 1971. The bulk of the collection falls between 1945 and 1961. The vast majority of the files document the fiscal history of this musical organization. Most of the correspondence and board minutes detail fundraising efforts and their relative successes. This collection provides insight into the operations of a non-profit organization in addition to outlining the history of the City Symphony Orchestra of New York.

The City Symphony Orchestra of New York records are arranged in six series:

  • Series I: Board of Directors Minutes and Correspondence
    1955 - 1961
    6 folders

    The series containing the Board of Directors Minutes and Correspondence highlight the management of the City Symphony Orchestra of New York. The Correspondence largely consists of letters concerning the Board of Directors meetings with proposed dates and matters to be discussed. The minutes contain information regarding upcoming concerts, the recruitment of new donors, and details about the annual budget.

  • Series II: Correspondence
    1944 - 1961
    4 boxes

    The bulk of the correspondence pertains to fundraising drives. Form letters, which served as acknowledgements of recent donations, comprise the majority of the correspondence. Some limited personal correspondence, including letters to Leopold Prince are also found in this series.

  • Series III: Financial Documents
    1953 - 1960
    11 folders

    The Financial Documents series contains deposit books, receipts, tax exemption forms, budgets, and other materials elucidating the fiscal situation of the City Symphony Orchestra of New York. The contributions and disbursement files broadly highlight the orchestra’s annual revenues and expenses.

  • Series IV: Programs
    1936 - 1971
    11 folders

    This series contains programs from City Symphony Orchestra of New York concerts. Most of the programs are from a summer series, which the Orchestra played annually in the 1950s. Also, some programs from other orchestras, such as the New York Philharmonic, are located in this series.

  • Series V: Subject Files
    1927 - 1964
    2 boxes

    The Subject Files series contains topical folders on an array of subjects. Included in this series are personal notes kept by Hiram Gans, a member of the Board of Directors and the Chair of the Finance Committee of the orchestra. Also, files pertaining to several benefit concerts given by the orchestra are located within this series.

  • Series VI: Ephemera, and
    undated
    4 folders

    This series contains photographs, posters, and press releases. The photograph materials include portraits of Franz Bibo, one-time conductor of the Orchestra, and a photograph of a 1947 fundraising dinner held in honor of Leopold Prince.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

The records were received by the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in 1996.

Processing information

Processed by Evan Friss; Machine-readable finding aid created by Evan Friss.

Using the collection

Location

Music Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

For permission to publish, contact the Curator, Music Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.