Browse Items (26 total)

Harold Bauer and Ossip Gabrilowitsch were famous pianists who played solo in Buffalo several times.  Gabrilowitsch has another Buffalo connection--he married Mark Twain's daughter Clara Clemens, a singer.  He also became good friends with Mai Davis…

American opera singer Geraldine Farrar starred in Carmen on stage, and later in the silent movie version. This production was presented by Louise Michael and Genevieve Kraft, successful Buffalo impresarios.

Russian-American violinist Jascha Heifetz is known as one of the greatest violinists of all time. Mai Davis Smith, the first professional impresario in Buffalo, engaged him to play here when he was still a teenager.

John McCormack was a celebrated Irish tenor. This concert was presented by the Buffalo Musical Foundation, an organization established by Mai Davis Smith and continued by her partner, Marian De Forest.

One of several visits to Buffalo by famed conductor Damrosch and the New York Symphony Orchestra. The concert was arranged locally by Mai Davis Smith, the first professional impresario in Buffalo.

Ignacy Jan Paderewski was a Polish pianist and composer, politician, statesman and spokesman for Polish independence. He was a favorite of concert audiences around the world. Mai Davis Smith engaged him to play in Buffalo for her subscription concert…

The Buffalo Civic Orchestra was organized in 1932 by a group of local musicians who named John Ingram their conductor. They performed a series of "Pop" concerts of audience favorites throughout the 1930s.

Rachmaninoff was a famous Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who performed in Buffalo many times.  Bellanca, Michael, and Kraft were some of the first female impresarios in Buffalo.

Famed Russian composer, pianist, and conductor Rachmaninoff performed in Buffalo many times. Zorah Berry was a successful impresario who brought renowned musicians and singers to Buffalo during her 40 year career.

Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini was one of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and of the 20th century. Buffalo Morning Express drama critic and playwright Marian de Forest managed the Buffalo Musical Foundation and presented this…