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Johann Friedrich Ludwig “Fritz” Scheel (7 November 1852 – 13 March 1907) was a German conductor, and the first musical director of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
He was born in Fackenburg, in present-day
The Civic Club Bulletin
' (March 1908) p. 5.
Biography-West Laurel Hill Cemetery web site
* 1852 births 1907 deaths People from Ostholstein German conductors (music) German male conductors (music) Musicians from Philadelphia 19th-century German musicians 19th-century conductors (music) German emigrants to the United States American conductors (music) Music directors of the Philadelphia Orchestra American male conductors (music) 19th-century American musicians Classical musicians from Pennsylvania {{germany-conductor-stub
Johann Friedrich Ludwig “Fritz” Scheel (7 November 1852 – 13 March 1907) was a German conductor, and the first musical director of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
He was born in Fackenburg, in present-day Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sc ...
. He emigrated to the United States in early 1893, and conducted concerts in New York City. He was hired to conduct the Trocadero Orchestra at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...
in Chicago, and later assembled a symphony orchestra in San Francisco.
In 1900, Scheel became the first conductor and music director of the newly formed Philadelphia Orchestra. He conducted rehearsals in German, and played mostly German music. After its first season, he fired half the musicians and replaced them with European players.
He was known for his concerts of military music, and one of his trademarks was military attire.
Scheel continued as the Philadelphia Orchestra's music director until his death at age 54, in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
in 1907. He is buried in West Laurel Hill Cemetery
West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869, is 200 acres in size and contains the burials of many notable people. It is affiliated with Laurel Hill Cemetery in neighboring P ...
, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.
A bas-relief portrait in bronze memorial tablet was created by Philadelphia sculptor Charles Grafly
Charles Allan Grafly, Jr. (December 3, 1862May 5, 1929) was an American sculptor, and teacher. Instructor of Sculpture at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for 37 years, his students included Paul Manship, Albin Polasek, and Walker Hanc ...
, having been commissioned by the Women's Committee for the Philadelphia Orchestra as a tribute to Scheel in 1908.The Civic Club Bulletin
' (March 1908) p. 5.
References
Sources
* *External links
Biography-West Laurel Hill Cemetery web site
* 1852 births 1907 deaths People from Ostholstein German conductors (music) German male conductors (music) Musicians from Philadelphia 19th-century German musicians 19th-century conductors (music) German emigrants to the United States American conductors (music) Music directors of the Philadelphia Orchestra American male conductors (music) 19th-century American musicians Classical musicians from Pennsylvania {{germany-conductor-stub