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An Ensemble of Immigrants

From its first season, the Boston Symphony Orchestra has relied on immigration to fill the chairs in its ensemble. During the orchestra's first 20 years, only 15% of its musicians were U.S.-born. Over the years, immigration patterns have shifted with geopolitical and legal changes. Image Description

Pie chart illustrating the birthplace by region of BSO musicians from 1881 to the present

BSO Musicians by Region of Origin, 1881-present

Note: Because Canada is grouped under "Commonwealth," the North America region is essentially U.S.-born.

The Early Years: 1881-1901

Pie chart illustrating the birthplace of BSO members hired during the first 20 years of the orchestra’s existence, grouped by region, with Western Europe the largest category at 49%

Pie chart illustrating the birthplace of BSO members hired during the first 20 years of the orchestra’s existence, grouped by region

Noticeably absent is any region in Asia or Latin America. While there is no evidence that the BSO made any effort to recruit from these regions during this time period, the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882 (and subsequent legal restrictions) would have made immigration from East Asia to the U.S. nearly impossible. The passing of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 would finally ease entry from East Asia into the U.S. Image Description

Scan of 19th century newspaper clipping entitled "More Musicians for Boston"

Newspaper clipping from the end of the 1885-86 BSO season

The 1885-86 season brought some big changes to personnel, including a new concertmaster. 26 musicians departed at the end of the 1884-85 season, at least six of whom were U.S. born, and were replaced by growing numbers of musicians from Eastern Europe, Austria, and Italy. This newspaper clipping signals uneasily that more changes appear to be on the horizon. (Allen A. Brown Music Collection, Boston Public Library)

Sepia-toned photograph depicting a musician with a mustache holding a violin and bow under one arm, with his other hand in pocket.

Portrait of BSO concertmaster Franz Kneisel (1885- 1903)

Hailing from Bucharest, Romania, Franz Kneisel was recruited by William Gerecke to replace Bernhard Listemann as concertmaster of the BSO in 1885. (John Brook)

Headshot of a man with slightly curly hair and mustache

Portrait of Leandro Campanari (BSO violin, 1884-1886)

Born in Rovigo, Italy, Leandro Campanari toured his native country as a concert violinist at the age of 12. Prior to joining the BSO in 1884, he appeared as soloist with the orchestra during its inaugural season in November 1881. (Pagliano e Ricordi)

A man sits in an ornate chair holding a viola and bow

Louis Svećenski (BSO violist, 1885-1903), born in Osijek, Croatia, November 7, 1862

Svećenski was born Ljudevit Kohn to a Jewish family in what was then the Austrian Empire (now Croatia). As a young adult, he changed his last name, keeping the meaning but switching languages (both Svećenski and Kohn are derived from terms that mean “priest” in Croatian and Hebrew, respectively). He studied violin and viola at the Music Institute in Zagreb and later at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Svećenski came to Boston in 1885 to join the BSO. He was a founding member of the Kneisel Quartet in 1885, remaining with the ensemble until its dissolution in 1917. (Photographer unknown)

Photograph of a man wearing a military style cap and coat

Portrait of Edward N. Lafricain (BSO Principal Trumpet 1887-1893, section trumpet 1896-1897 and 1900-1902)

Trumpet player Edward Lafricain was a native of Montreal, Quebec. (Photographer unknown)

Rudolf Nagel, BSO cello 1894-1920

Postcard depicting the members of the Mischa Elman String Quartet and their instruments, with headshots of the musicians arranged in a collage

Portrait of the members of the Elman String Quartet

Photos of BSO cellist Rudoph Nagel are rare, but he is pictured here with members of the Elman String Quartet. Concert violinist Mischa Elman formed a string quartet with three BSO members: Adolf Bak on 2nd violin, Karl Rissland on viola, and Nagel on cello. (Notman)

Scan of a U.S. Naturalization Paper certifying that Rudolf Nagel is a U.S. citizen

Nagel’s U.S. Naturalization Papers

Born in Germany in 1868, Nagel became a U.S. citizen on March 24, 1913. (Gift of Jonathan Mack, 2013)

Scan of letter with handwritten German text and signature by composer Richard Strauss

Richard Strauss’ recommendation for Nagel (BSO cello, 1894-1920)

BSO musicians brought their connections with them as they immigrated to the U.S. Here, composer and conductor Richard Strauss recommends Nagel’s musicianship to the BSO (transcription by Christoph Wolff):

Herr Nagel, whom I already knew as an excellent musician and skilled pianist, recently presented himself as a very capable cellist by playing a difficult cello concerto by Gustav Gutheil. I wish with all my heart that he may soon find a position corresponding to his excellent abilities.

Richard Strauss

Grand Ducal Capellmeister

Weimar, October 12, 1892

(Gift of Jonathan Mack, 2013)

Paul Cherkassky, BSO violin 1923-1952

A man in a suit and tie holds a violin under his chin with a bow poised above the strings of the instrument

Paul Cherkassky, BSO violinist (1923-1952)

(Photograph by Universal, from the Paul Cherkassky Collection, gift of the Estate of Chloe Curtis Cherkassky, 2014)

Scan of passport depicting a young man in overcoat with collar and buttons, affixed with a red wax seal and a form in Cyrillic

Cherkassky’s Russian passport allowing travel to Finland, 1917

Some of the BSO’s musicians were immigrants twice over, sometimes due to changing geopolitics. Cherkassky was born in Odessa, then part of Russia, in 1891. After graduating from the Imperial Conservatory in St. Petersburg, he became the concertmaster of the Viipuri (Vyborg) Symphony and later the Helsinki Philharmonic. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, Finland declared independence, and Cherkassky needed a Russian passport until he eventually became a Finnish citizen. In 1923, he immigrated to the United States to join the BSO. (From the Paul Cherkassky Collection, gift of the Estate of Chloe Curtis Cherkassky, 2014)

Scan of passport with headshot of a man wearing a suit and tie, with a title page in Finnish facing the portrait

Cherkassky’s Finnish passport, issued June 9, 1930 at the Finnish consulate in New York

Cherkassky arrived in the U.S. in 1923 as a Finnish citizen. The passport on display here was most likely the last Finnish passport issued to Cherkassky, as he appears to have naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1931. (From the Paul Cherkassky Collection, gift of the Estate of Chloe Curtis Cherkassky, 2014)

Early 20th Century Trends

A man in military attire sits on a bench while holding a flute


Photograph of Georges Laurent (BSO principal flute, 1918-1952) in military attire (the lyre cap badge indicates that he was most likely in a band unit).

French-born Georges Laurent immigrated to the U.S. after World War I to join the BSO as its principal flute. He was part of an influx of French musicians who replaced the German-born musicians fired due to anti-German sentiment during the Great War. (Photographer unknown)

Musicians holding brass instruments (trumpets, horns, trombones and tuba) sit and stand in two lines for a group photo

Formal group photograph of the brass players of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from the 1925-1926 season

The brass section of the BSO demonstrates that the high percentage of immigrants in the orchestra continued into the 20th century: for the 1925-26 season, there were six players from Germany, four from France, two from the Netherlands, two from the U.S., one from Belgium, and one from Czechoslovakia. (Carl J. Horner)

1952 magazine photospread in French text with headshots of the 21 BSO members who were born in France

French-language magazine article profiling Charles Munch and Boston Symphony Orchestra musicians

In 1952, when the orchestra toured Europe for the first time, the Paris Match highlighted how many of the musicians, born outside the U.S., experienced a homecoming on the tour. This article features the 21 BSO members who were born in France. (Paris Match, May 17-24, 1952)