Genre | Classical music |
---|---|
Country of origin | United States |
Language(s) | English |
Syndicates | NBC, Mutual, CBS |
Announcer | Frank Knight |
Directed by | Macklin Marrow, Mishel Piastr (conductors) |
Original release | 1941 | –1958
Opening theme | Beethoven's Fifth Symphony |
Sponsored by | Longines |
The Longines Symphonette was an American radio program that aired from 1941 through 1958 broadcasting classical music. A related brand, the Longines Symphonette Society, was a record label active from the early 1960s into the 1970s. Symphonette refers to "a symphony orchestra that plays light music in addition to the standard classical repertoire." [1]
Sponsored by the Longines watch company, [2] mentions of the program can be found in newspaper listings as early as April 1941, [3] broadcast on stations of the NBC Radio Network. [4] By June 1941, Longines was selling records under The Longines Symphonette branding via newspaper advertisement. [5]
The Longines Symphonette program was pre-recorded and broadcast nightly on many Mutual Broadcasting System radio stations from 1943 to 1949. The program later moved to CBS Radio, where it was heard on Sundays at 2 pm from 1949 through December 1958. [6]
The program's introductory theme was the final movement of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony . The program's initial conductor was Macklin Marrow (1900–1953), [7] followed for most of the run by Mishel Piastro (1891–1970), one-time concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic. [8] Frank Knight (1894–1973) was the program's announcer. [9]
A spin-off program, The Wittnauer Choraliers, aired on CBS from 1949 [10] through 1954. [11] The Wittnauer brand was owned by Longines during this era.
Longines Symphonette Society was a record label that specialized in releasing classic radio programs and multiple-record boxed sets. [12] It was active by 1964, when it was originally known as the Longines Symphonette Recording Society. [13]
Boxed sets released by the label include Bing Crosby's Treasury – The Songs I Love (1966, 6 albums) and Burl Ives Presents America's Musical Heritage (1963, 6 albums). Evolution Records, a popular-music subsidiary, had a US hit single with "One Fine Morning" by Lighthouse in 1971.
The Longines watch company sold its record business to Warner Music Group.[ when? ] Re-issues of the Longines recordings since the 1990s have been credited to the "Symphonette Society" and no longer have any reference to the watch company.
In November 1965, The Symphonette Shop, a retail store featuring "the best selling Longines Symphonette recordings", was opened in Larchmont, New York. [14] [15]
Longines Symphonette was used as the trade name of some electronic devices, including transistor radios, [16] [17] televisions, [18] and electronic calculators [19] [20] produced by Texas Instruments.
During the 1970s, a number of commemorative coins were produced by the Wittnauer Mint and marketed under the Longines Symphonette brand. [21] [22]
Longines Symphonette was referenced in the lyrics of "Birdhouse in Your Soul", a 1989 single by the American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. The reference was reportedly about the record label rather than the radio program. [23]
Longines Symphonette is the name of a contemporary family of ladies' watches offered by Longines. [24]
An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics.
Electronics is a scientific and engineering discipline that studies and applies the principles of physics to design, create, and operate devices that manipulate electrons and other electrically charged particles. It is a subfield of physics and electrical engineering which uses active devices such as transistors, diodes, and integrated circuits to control and amplify the flow of electric current and to convert it from one form to another, such as from alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) or from analog signals to digital signals.
The history of computing hardware spans the developments from early devices used for simple calculations to today's complex computers, encompassing advancements in both analog and digital technology.
An integrated circuit (IC), also known as a microchip, computer chip, or simply chip, is a small electronic device made up of multiple interconnected electronic components such as transistors, resistors, and capacitors. These components are etched onto a small piece of semiconductor material, usually silicon. Integrated circuits are used in a wide range of electronic devices, including computers, smartphones, and televisions, to perform various functions such as processing and storing information. They have greatly impacted the field of electronics by enabling device miniaturization and enhanced functionality.
Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American multinational semiconductor company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. It is one of the top 10 semiconductor companies worldwide based on sales volume. The company's focus is on developing analog chips and embedded processors, which account for more than 80% of its revenue. TI also produces digital light processing (DLP) technology and education technology products including calculators, microcontrollers, and multi-core processors.
The history of computing is longer than the history of computing hardware and modern computing technology and includes the history of methods intended for pen and paper or for chalk and slate, with or without the aid of tables.
Morton Gould was an American composer, conductor, arranger, and pianist.
Braun GmbH is a German consumer products company founded in 1921 and based in Kronberg im Taunus. The company is known for its design aesthetic from the 1960s through the 1980s, which included products such as electric shavers, radiograms and record players, movie cameras, slide projectors, clocks, and small kitchen appliances for which "Braun became shorthand for reliable, no-nonsense modernist goods."
Martha Tilton was an American popular singer during America's swing era and traditional pop period. She is best known for her 1939 recording of "And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman.
Philco is an American electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased by Ford and, from 1966, renamed "Philco-Ford". Ford sold the company to GTE in 1974, and it was purchased by Philips in 1981. In North America, the Philco brand is owned by Philips. In other markets, the Philco International brand is owned by Electrolux.
Compagnie des Montres Longines, Francillon S.A., or simply Longines, is a Swiss luxury watchmaker based in Saint-Imier, Switzerland. Founded by Auguste Agassiz in 1832, the company has been a subsidiary of the Swiss Swatch Group and its predecessors since 1983. Its winged hourglass logo, registered in 1889, is the oldest unchanged active trademark registered with WIPO.
Friden Calculating Machine Company was an American manufacturer of typewriters and mechanical, later electronic calculators. It was founded by Carl Friden in San Leandro, California, in 1934.
Vaughn De Leath was an American female singer who gained popularity in the 1920s, earning the sobriquets "The Original Radio Girl" and the "First Lady of Radio." Although very popular in the 1920s, De Leath is obscure in modern times.
Burl Ives Presents America's Musical Heritage, released in 1963 by the Longines Symphonette Society, is a six-album box set by folk singer Burl Ives. It is subtitled 114 Best Loved Songs & Ballads for Listening, Singing, and Reading and includes a 168-page book, titled The Burl Ives Sing-Along Song Book, which presents the lyrics for all of the songs and historical background about some of the songs.
A transistor is a semiconductor device with at least three terminals for connection to an electric circuit. In the common case, the third terminal controls the flow of current between the other two terminals. This can be used for amplification, as in the case of a radio receiver, or for rapid switching, as in the case of digital circuits. The transistor replaced the vacuum-tube triode, also called a (thermionic) valve, which was much larger in size and used significantly more power to operate. The first transistor was successfully demonstrated on December 23, 1947, at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey. Bell Labs was the research arm of American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T). The three individuals credited with the invention of the transistor were William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain. The introduction of the transistor is often considered one of the most important inventions in history.
The IBM 608 Transistor Calculator, a plugboard-programmable unit, was the first IBM product to use transistor circuits without any vacuum tubes and is believed to be the world's first all-transistorized calculator to be manufactured for the commercial market. Announced in April 1955, it was released in December 1957. The 608 was withdrawn from marketing in April 1959.
Evolution Records was a record label operated by the Stereo Dimension Records subsidiary of the Longines Symphonette Society, a unit of the Longines watch company. It was founded in 1969 as the retail arm of the mail-order Longines Symphonette Society, which typically issued box sets of old radio shows, such as a two-record set of Orson Welles's 1938 Mercury Theatre on the Air production of "The War of the Worlds", or traditional pop songs. Loren Becker was the president of the label. In 1973 the label made a concerted effort to break into the soul music genre.
A record club was a mail-order music subscription service. It was adopted and implemented by the major record labels in the 1950s for selling phonograph records and prerecorded reel-to-reel tapes. The labels later expanded their offerings to 8-track tapes, cassette tapes, and compact discs. The clubs dwindled to a close by 2010.
Bing Crosby's Treasury – The Songs I Love is an LP set recorded in 1965 and issued by a mail-order firm, The Longines Symphonette Society, an educational service of the Longines-Wittnauer Watch Company.
Bing Crosby's Treasury - The Songs I Love is an LP set by Bing Crosby, issued in both mono and stereo formats by a mail-order firm, The Longines Symphonette Society, which was an educational service from the Longines-Wittnauer Watch Company. A similar LP set had been issued in 1966, and this updated version had a total of thirty-six Crosby vocals.