Stoeckel, Carl

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Stoeckel, Carl

Stoeckel, Carl, American music patron, son of Gustave J(acob) Stoeckel ; b. New Haven, Conn., Dec. 7, 1858; d. Norfolk, Conn., Nov. 1, 1925. His contribution to American musical culture was the establishment in 1902 of the summer festivals on his estate in Norfolk. He offered cash prizes to composers who appeared at the festival in performances of their own works. Sibelius composed his tone poem Aallottaret especially for the Norfolk Festival, and conducted its world premiere there in its second version as The Oceanides in 1914. Among other composers represented were J.A. Carpenter, G.W. Chadwick, S. Coleridge-Taylor, H.F. Gilbert, P. Grainger, H.K. Hadley, E.S. Kelly, CM. Loeffler, H. Parker, D.S. Smith, C.V. Stanford, and Deems Taylor.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire