Fennell, Frederick
Fennell, Frederick
Fennell, Frederick, noted American conductor and teacher; b. Cleveland, July 2, 1914. He first began conducting at the National Music Camp in Interlochen, Mich, (summers, 1931–33), and then studied at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y. (B.M., 1937; M.M., 1939), where he subsequently conducted various ensembles (1939–65). He also was founder-conductor of the Eastman Wind Ensemble (from 1952), which he developed into one of the premier groups of its kind. After serving as conductor-in-residence at the Univ. of Miami School of Music in Coral Gables (1965–80), he was conductor of the Kosei Wind Orch. in Tokyo from 1984 to 1989, and thereafter was its conductor emeritus. He publ. Time and the Winds (Kenosha, Wise., 1954) and The Drummer’s Heritage (Rochester, N.Y., 1956).
Bibliography
R. Rickson, Fortissimo: A Bio-Discography ofF. F.: The First Forty Years, 1953 to 1993 (Cleveland, 1993).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire