Victor Herbert

Victor August Herbert (February 1, 1859 – May 26, 1924) was an American composer, cellist and conductor of English and Irish ancestry and German training. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I. He was also prominent among the Tin Pan Alley composers and was later a founder of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). A prolific composer, Herbert produced two operas, a cantata, 43 operettas, incidental music to 10 plays, 31 compositions for orchestra, nine band compositions, nine cello compositions, five violin compositions with piano or orchestra, 22 piano compositions and numerous songs, choral compositions and orchestrations of works by other composers, among other music.

In the early 1880s, Herbert began a career as a cellist in Vienna and Stuttgart, during which he began to compose orchestral music. Herbert and his opera singer wife, Therese Förster, moved to the U.S. in 1886 when both were engaged by the Metropolitan Opera. In the U.S., Herbert continued his performing career, while also teaching at the National Conservatory of Music, conducting and composing. His most notable instrumental compositions were his Cello Concerto No. 2 in E minor, Op. 30 (1894), which entered the standard repertoire, and his Auditorium Festival March (1901). He conducted the Pittsburgh Symphony from 1898 to 1904 and then founded the Victor Herbert Orchestra, which he conducted throughout the rest of his life.

Herbert began to compose operettas in 1894, producing several successes, including The Serenade (1897) and The Fortune Teller (1898). Some of the operettas that he wrote after the turn of the 20th century were even more successful: Babes in Toyland (1903), Mlle. Modiste (1905), The Red Mill (1906), Naughty Marietta (1910), Sweethearts (1913) and Eileen (1917). After World War I, with the change of popular musical tastes, Herbert began to compose musicals and contributed music to other composers' shows. While some of these were well-received, he never again achieved the level of success that he had enjoyed with his most popular operettas.

Birth and Death Data: Born February 1, 1859 (Dublin), Died May 24, 1924 (New York City)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1896 - 1950

Roles Represented in DAHR: composer, conductor, arranger, cello, orchestrator

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 326-350 of 863 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor C-16975 12-in. 1/7/1916 The Princess Pat waltzes Victor Dance Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor B-16993 10-in. 1/10/1916 Kiss me again Alice Green Female vocal solo, with violin and orchestra composer  
Victor B-17233 10-in. 2/29/1916 On your way Victor Military Band Band composer  
Victor B-17690 10-in. 5/16/1916 When you're away Rosario Bourdon Cello solo, with orchestra composer  
Victor B-17794 10-in. 6/5/1916 Petite valse Maud Powell Violin solo, with piano composer  
Victor B-18067 10-in. 7/6/1916 Baltimore centennial march Conway's Band Band composer  
Victor B-19445 10-in. 4/5/1917 Free trade and a misty moon Greek Evans Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus, harp, and orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor B-19446 10-in. 4/5/1917 The Irish have a great day tonight Scott Welsh Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus, harp, and orchestra conductor, composer  
Victor B-19447 10-in. 4/5/1917 Ireland, my Sireland John McCormack Tenor vocal solo, with harp and orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor B-19448 10-in. 4/5/1917 Eileen John McCormack Tenor vocal solo, with harp and orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor C-19545 12-in. 4/3/1917 Gems from Eileen Victor Light Opera Company Vocal chorus and soloists, with orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor C-19550 12-in. 4/3/1917 Gems from Eileen Victor Light Opera Company Vocal chorus and soloists, with orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor C-19812 12-in. 5/7/1917 American fantasie Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor C-19813 12-in. 5/7/1917 American fantasie Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor C-19814 12-in. 5/8/1917 Eileen : Selection Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor B-19815 10-in. 5/9/1917 The world's progress march Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra composer, conductor  
Victor B-19815 10-in. 5/9/1917 Whispering willows : Intermezzo Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra conductor, composer  
Victor B-19817 10-in. 5/10/1917 Dance of the angels Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra, with celeste conductor  
Victor B-19818 10-in. 5/10/1917 Morning Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra conductor  
Victor C-19819 12-in. 5/10/1917 The American rose Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra conductor, composer  
Victor C-19820 12-in. 5/11/1917 Bridal march Victor Herbert's Orchestra Orchestra conductor  
Victor C-20923 12-in. 10/29/1917 Kiss me again Joseph C. Smith's Orchestra Jazz/dance band composer  
Victor B-21151 10-in. 12/10/1917 The American serenade Joseph M. Knecht ; Waldorf-Astoria Dance Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor B-21456 10-in. 2/19/1918 Gypsy love song William F. Larkin Male vocal solo, with cello and orchestra composer  
Victor B-21900 10-in. 5/2/1918 Gypsy love song Emilio de Gogorza Baritone vocal solo, with violin, bells, and orchestra composer  
(Results 326-350 of 863 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Herbert, Victor," accessed March 28, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102518.

Herbert, Victor. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102518.

"Herbert, Victor." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 28 March 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102518

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