HENRY LEWIS [ca. 1970] Portrait

Np, [ca. 1970]. Vintage original 10 x 8″ (25 x 20 cm) black-and-white photo, fine.

“Henry Jay Lewis (1932-1996) was an American double-bassist and orchestral conductor whose career extended over four decades. A child prodigy, he joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic at age 16, becoming the first African-American instrumentalist in a major symphony orchestra and, later, the first African-American symphony orchestra conductor in the United States. As musical director of the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra, he supported America’s cultural diplomacy initiatives in Europe after World War II.

“In 1968 Lewis became the conductor and musical director of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra in Newark, and continued as musical director from 1968 until 1976. During this time, he transformed the group from a small community ensemble of largely part-time instrumentalists into a nationally recognized orchestra. Lewis vastly increased the orchestra’s performance schedule from 22 concerts per year to 100 concerts per season and recruited several first tier soloists such as Itzhak Perlman and Misha Dichter. Appearances by the orchestra at premier concert venues including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center soon followed.

“As the first African-American to lead a major symphony orchestra, Lewis also demonstrated a devotion to presenting music to the entire community by increasing the orchestra’s outreach into New Jersey’s ghettos and working class neighborhoods, where performances of classical music were virtually unknown. Always eager to surmount artificial boundaries between people Lewis soon scheduled concert appearances within neighborhoods which had largely been destroyed during the riots of 1968. Audiences were even invited into Symphony Hall in Newark for a modest one dollar admission charge. In order to attract even larger crowds, Lewis scheduled appearances by his wife Marilyn Horne as a bonus. Lewis was determined to shatter the myth that classical music is essentially an elitist art form and patiently scheduled performances at outdoor concert venues as well as local high school auditoriums throughout New Jersey. He was noted for his relaxed and informal style during concert appearances, and even encouraged his audiences to break into wild applause between movements if they were so inclined.” (Wikipedia)