Norman M. Schwartz wrote:  

>Do you really believe that the NBC Symphony Orchestra was formed and
>broadcast to homes all over the USA for the purpose of entertaining just
>a small elite audience?

If I conveyed that thought, it was not my intention.  I am cannot
say why the NBC SO was formed.  I have read at least three books which
speak, in part, to its formation.  The orchestra was used for a great
many purposes and was on the air almost daily.  They were used to accompany
popular singers and to provide easy listening in addition to the Symphony
concerts.

As to what the intention for prestige might have been, I do not know,
however I would guess that anything Sarnoff did had something to do with
making money.  I believe that the NBC Symphony did a great deal of good,
but there are other ways of looking at it.  Toscanini was a great musician,
but his repertoire was very conservative.  The summer concerts of the
orchestra offered more variety in terms of repertoire, especially when
conducted by people like Stokowski...and even Reiner.  I believe that
while the NBC Symphony under Toscanini brought many of the great
masterpieces of music, in some of the most magnificent performances,
to the radio audience, those particular broadcasts did not, from my
perspective, give an adequate representation of the literature.

As to whether or not the idea was to pander to an elite, I cannot
say.  I do wonder if there was some intent to create a false
elite...as was much of the marketing of classical music in those
days.  Surely, part of the goal was to sell records...and those
records still sell well!

Karl

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