CONDUCTOR

George Szell

1897 - 1970

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George Szell (; June 7, 1897 – July 30, 1970), originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor, composer and pianist. Considered one of the twentieth century's greatest conductors, he was music director of the Cleveland Orchestra of Cleveland, Ohio, and recorded much of the standard classical repertoire in Cleveland and with other orchestras. Szell came to Cleveland in 1946 to take over its respected if undersized orchestra, which was struggling to recover from the disruptions of World War II. By the time of his death he was credited, to quote the critic Donal Henahan, with having built it into "what many critics regarded as the world's keenest symphonic instrument." Through his recordings, Szell has remained a presence in the classical music world long after his death, and his name remains synonymous with that of the Cleveland Orchestra. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. George Szell is the 39th most popular conductor (down from 31st in 2019), the 249th most popular biography from Hungary (down from 214th in 2019) and the 2nd most popular Hungarian Conductor.

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Among CONDUCTORS

Among conductors, George Szell ranks 39 out of 128. Before him are James Levine, Pierre Monteux, John Philip Sousa, Riccardo Chailly, Colin Davis, and John Eliot Gardiner. After him are John Barbirolli, Fritz Reiner, Thomas Beecham, Lovro von Matačić, Charles Munch, and Eliahu Inbal.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1897, George Szell ranks 118. Before him are Vaso Čubrilović, Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, Virginia Henderson, Alexandre Tansman, Fazlollah Zahedi, and Eddie Eagan. After him are Marian Anderson, Michael Lippert, Edmund Heines, Dirk Stikker, Peter Högl, and J. P. Guilford. Among people deceased in 1970, George Szell ranks 93. Before him are Eiji Tsuburaya, Bernd Alois Zimmermann, Albert Lamorisse, Mikhail Mil, Franz Schlegelberger, and Nikolay Shvernik. After him are Benedetto Aloisi Masella, John Barbirolli, Pedro Eugenio Aramburu, Amadeo Bordiga, Pavel Belyayev, and Maud Lewis.

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In Hungary

Among people born in Hungary, George Szell ranks 249 out of 1,077. Before him are Tivadar Soros (1894), László Budai (1928), Joseph Szigeti (1892), Alfréd Schaffer (1893), Dora Pejačević (1885), and András Hegedüs (1922). After him are Jenő Hubay (1858), Géza Maróczy (1870), Miklós Kállay (1887), János Kornai (1928), László Lovász (1948), and Ferenc Plattkó (1898).

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Among CONDUCTORS In Hungary

Among conductors born in Hungary, George Szell ranks 2. Before him are Georg Solti (1912). After him are Fritz Reiner (1888), Antal Doráti (1906), Iván Fischer (1951), and Ádám Fischer (1949).

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