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Albert Spalding

Albert Spalding was one of the most prolific musicians of his time. Not only was he a superb violinist ranking with those of the greatest renown, he was also accomplished in other fields. As a composer, he was the third most productive violinist of his contemporaries. As an author, he published several books. As a patriot, his dedication to his country brought him to active duty in both World Wars. His service in WW II may have contributed to his early demise, making him a war hero who virtually gave his life for his country. I am pleased that A Classical Record is taking pains to bring the memory of Albert Spalding back into focus.

-Albert Spalding Benoist,
Monmouth Beach, NJ April 3, 1997

Albert Spalding was born in Chicago, August 15, 1888. His father was James Walter Spalding, the younger brother of Albert Goodwill Spalding. His mother was Marie Boardman an outstanding contralto, a gifted pianist and harpist. So, it was no surprise that the youthful Albert developed a musical fascination at a very early age. It was Albert  "A.G." who was immortalized in the Cooperstown, NY museum for his contribution to baseball and who founded the famous A. G. Spalding & Brothers sporting goods firm with his brother and brother-in-law.

In 1895, the J. W. Spalding family began spending their winters in Florence, Italy. It was there on Christmas day, at the age of seven years, that Albert received his first "fiddle" – thanks to his Aunt Sally who insisted on this splendid gift, while others thought he should "start with the piano."

He passed with 48 points out of a possible 50. Only once had so young a musician achieved similar success. His name? Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, 133 years before.

Casa Spalding (right), Lungarno Vespucci, Florence, Italy  (circa, 1890), courtesy of Suzanne Spalding Winston

A rare photo of Albert Spalding taken in 1908.

Courtesy of Albert Benoist, son of Andre Benoist, Albert's "lifelong accompanist."

The following two years he studied under LeFort of the National Conservatory in Paris. His Paris debut, at age 16, with an orchestra led by LeFort was a big success. Chief pieces on his program were Saint-Saens Concerto in B minor, Beethoven’s Romance in F and the Bach Chaconne.

While he was in Florence, he undertook serious study of counterpoint and composition with Antonio Scontrino. In the summertime in New Jersey, he studied with Juan Buitrago, a former mentor of Edward MacDowell.

When he was 17, Saint-Saens, who had heard of Albert's superior talent, invited him to visit his apartment in Paris. Upon Albert's mention of his age, Saint-Saens exclaimed,

"Seventeen! That's a coincidence. One and seven, and I am just seven and one. It is an omen. We must have a concert together. Would you like it?" 

Together, they performed in Florence. His success led him to an invitation to perform with the world-renowned London Symphony Orchestra at the Queen's Hall. A tour of the French provinces followed. At this period the veteran composer, Saint-Saens was so impressed with Spalding’s artistry that he appeared with the boy in a joint recital in Florence.  

England was his next tour, arranged by Saint-Saens’ with his friend, the eminent conductor, Hans Richter, for appearances with the London Symphony Orchestra. Then, Spalding visited Joseph Joachim, the foremost violinist of the 19th century after Paganini. The veteran, already past the three-quarter century mark, refused to accept the young man as a pupil. He told him that his course was already charted and that he should proceed as he had begun.

In 1908, Spalding was ready to return to America. He was engaged by Walter Damrosch to be soloist with the New York Symphony Orchestra. Immediately after his debut, Spalding launched his first concert tour of America, over 60 appearances, many of them with symphony orchestras. Thomas A. Edison, after testing it on his scientific equipment, declared his tone to be the purest of any living violinist. Spalding signed a contract to record for Edison that remained in effect 20 years. In this period, he made over 100 records, both on cylinder and flat disc.

Portrait of Albert Spalding, by Violet Oakley (1928), commissioned by the family and now on view at the Music Department of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.

Captain Fiorello La Guardia and Adjutant Lieutenant Albert Spalding

In the following years, his career most successfully launched, Spalding appeared with ever-increasing success in Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria, and in 1910, in Russia. Finland (where he met Jan Sibelius), Norway, Sweden, and Denmark all fell under the violinist’s spell, but the advent of the first World War forced the cancellation of his initially planned South American tour.

Instead, Spalding enlisted in the U.S. Army and was assigned to Lieutenant Fiorello La Guardia, a young congressman. Spalding soon received a commission and served in England, Italy, and the secret service work in Spain with La Guardia. After the end of the hostilities, the virtuoso returned to his violin and played some 20 concerts in Italy. His return to the United States was marked by his marriage to Mary Vanderhoef Pyle of New York City, on July 19, 1919.

Albert Spalding and his betrothed&ldots;. "Mary Pyle. . . has beauty, sense, dignity and great savoir faire. "
Countess de St. Maurice, in Paris

The summer home of James Walter Spalding and his family on Ocean Ave. in Monmouth Beach, New Jersey. It has since been torn down and replaced with three small cottages.

Albert in his World War I uniform (courtesy of Suzanne Winston Spalding, from "Ton Albert qui t'adore," 1988)

From there, he was ordered to Naples where he was attached to the Psychological Warfare Division. Moving with the allied Army to Rome when it was liberated, he became known as "Papa of the Partisans" by a grateful Italian public because of his "Major Sheridan" radio broadcast. Within a short time, the violinist became a national hero and was credited with the saving of thousands of American and Italian lives. During this phase, he completely abandoned the violin, playing only once -- during an aerial bombardment of Naples. Noticing the near panic of the thousands of terror-stricken refugees huddled in a cave, Spalding borrowed a violin from a symphony musician, who he recognized in the crowd. As the first tones of the Beethoven Concerto floated unaccompanied through the shelter, the cries and moans ceased. By the time the concerto was ended, peace, calm and quiet had been brought, if only for a brief space, to the wretched and unhappy people. Persons present on that occasion have written and stated that they had never heard such a great performance nor had they ever witnessed the power of music so convincingly illustrated.

At the end of the war, Spalding returned to his violin. After several years of concertizing, he decided to retire from the taxing routine of a full concert season. More than 20,000 persons attended his farewell public concert with the New York Philharmonic at Lewisohn Stadium. While he had retired as an active concert artist, Spalding made it clear that he had not retired from music, but continued primarily with chamber music and teaching.

Among other activities, he accepted a post as Professor of Violin at Boston University where he directed master classes for three years, plus reaching a master class in the University of Florida at Tallahassee during the winter months. Spalding devoted much time during the summer months to his compositions that, among many other works, resulted in a String Quartet, a violin suite -- etchings -- many songs and violin and piano pieces, and an unaccompanied violin sonata.

He also wrote two books: one an autobiographical memoir, "Rise to Follow" published by Holt in 1943; and, a historical romance "A Fiddle, A Sword, And A Lady" on the life of Giuseppe Tarantini, published by Holt in 1953.

Albert Spalding played Carnegie Hall – it wasn't often that solo recitals (violin and piano) could fill Carnegie Hall, but Spalding and Benoist did it regularly. Courtesy of Albert Benoist (The Accompanist, An Autobiography of Andre Benoist, Paganiniana Publications, Inc., 1978).

As part of his work at Boston University, Spalding played several recitals for faculty and students that were tape-recorded for teaching and reference purposes. Boston critics and invited members of the general public stated that they never heard the great master to better advantage. All the superb musicianship, the unfailing intuition, the phenomenal technique, the warm, rich singing tone, the intelligent and solid interpretations were in evidence for these audiences. It is from these concerts, the last of which came just eleven days before his sudden passing in New York on May 26, 1953, that the present recordings were made. These are the only candid recordings available of the great artist as heard under concert conditions. Boston University and Mary Pyle Spalding have kindly made the tapes available for general distribution. Proceeds from the recordings benefit the Albert Spalding Fellowship, Fund established at Boston University in 1955 by a group of the violinist’s admirers and friends.