Leonard Sharrow (August 4, 1915 – August 9, 2004) was one of most recorded and recognized bassoon players of the 20th century. Sharrow was a founding member of the

NBC Symphony The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra conceived by David Sarnoff, the president of the Radio Corporation of America, the parent corporation of the National Broadcasting Company especially for the conductor Arturo Toscanini. The NBC S ...

, and is best known for his tenure as principal bassoon of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...

under

Fritz Reiner Frederick Martin Reiner (; December 19, 1888 – November 15, 1963) was an American conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century. Hungarian born and trained, he emigrated to the United States in 1922, where he rose to promine ...

Life and Career

Born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Sharrow began his musical studies on violin, switching to bassoon as a teenager. His first instrument was a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

bassoon with 9 keys, and he eventually switched to a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

bassoon in the early 1930's. Sharrow's first position was as principal bassoon of the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930 by cellist Hans Kindler, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The NSO regularly ...

, appointed by

Hans Kindler Johannes Hendrikus Philip Kindler (January 8, 1892 – August 30, 1949) was a Dutch American cellist and conductor who founded the National Symphony Orchestra. He was married to painter Alice Kindler and Persis Chase Myers. Kindler as c ...

at the beginning of the 1935 season. In 1936, Sharrow was recruited by

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orche ...

to join the

in New York, an offer he accepted for the start of the 1937–38 season. Though drafted into the U.S. Army during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Sharrow was able to return to his job with the NBC Symphony and was promoted to principal bassoonist in 1947. In 1951 Sharrow left New York to join the

after being appointed principal bassoon by music director

Rafael Kubelík Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer. The son of a distinguished violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the a ...

. Sharrow decided to retire from the Chicago Symphony in 1964 shortly after the death of

. Upon retirement, he moved to

Bloomington, Indiana Bloomington is a city in Monroe County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. The population was 79,168 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-most populous city in Indiana and ...

to join the bassoon faculty of

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

. He taught for many years at Indiana University, as well as at the

Aspen Music Festival The Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) is a classical music festival held annually in Aspen, Colorado. It is noted both for its concert programming and the musical training it offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded in 1949, th ...

. In 1977, Sharrow came out of retirement to accept appointment as co-principal bassoonist of the

Pittsburgh Symphony The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) is an American orchestra based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The orchestra is resident at Heinz Hall, located in Pittsburgh's Cultural District. Since 2008, the orchestra's music director is Manfred Ho ...

with music director

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

. Sharrow played the majority of his career on Heckel bassoon #8243. It was refinished by Jim Laslie & Paul Nordby in 1998. His first Heckel bassoon was #7620, which he used throughout his time in the NBC Symphony.

Later Life

After retiring from Pittsburgh in 1986 Sharrow returned to Bloomington, eventually relocating to

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

to be near his family. He continued to teach bassoon lessons privately and at the Banff Music Centre throughout the 1980's and 90's. Sharrow died of

Leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

on August 9th, 2004.https://www.chicagotribune.com/2004/08/21/leonard-sharrow-89/

References

1915 births 2004 deaths Deaths from leukemia in Ohio American classical bassoonists Aspen Music Festival and School faculty Musicians from New York City 20th-century American classical musicians Educators from New York City Classical musicians from New York (state) United States Army personnel of World War II Players of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra {{NYC-stub