Gustav Hinrichs Papers
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Museum of Performance and Design, Performing Arts Library
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Title: Gustav Hinrichs Papers
Dates: 1874-1934
Collection Number: 988.072
Creator/Collector:
Hinrichs, Gustave
Extent: 15 Boxes. 8 linear feet.
Repository:
Museum of Performance and Design, Performing Arts Library
San Francisco, California 94124
Abstract: Gustave Hinrichs (1850-1942) was a German American conductor, composer, and music teacher. In Hamburg, Hinrichs became the
youngest member of the opera orchestra at the Stadt Theater. Between 1870 and 1885, he became a prominent figure in San Francisco
opera where he held positions at the San Francisco Harmonie, the Handel and Haydn Oratorio Society, the Fabbri Italian and
German Opera Company, Locke’s Emily Melville Opera Company, the Tivoli Opera Company, and the Philharmonic Society. In 1885,
he moved to New York where he worked as assistant conductor to Theodore Thomas at the American Opera Company, which he eventually
took over, renamed the National Opera Company, and moved to Philadelphia in 1887. At this theater, he held the American premiers
of “Cavalleria rusticana” and “Pagliacci.” He was regarded as the “Father of Opera in Philadelphia” where he also worked as
manager/conductor at the Grand Opera House. He also held brief positions at the Harlem Opera House, the Metropolitan Opera,
and Columbia University. This collection contains original scores composed by Hinrichs as well as his contemporaries. It also
includes three scrapbooks, correspondence, photographs, and eyeglasses from Hinrichs' career.
Language of Material: English
Entire Collection is open for research.
Reproduction of these materials can occur only if the copying falls within the provisions of the doctrine of fair use. Copyright
varies by item.
[Identification of item]. Gustav Hinrichs Papers. Collection Number: 988.072. Museum of Performance and Design, Performing
Arts Library
The Gustav Hinrichs papers were owned by Hinrichs daughter, Mrs. Irene Watts, and were donated to the Library by Katherine
Clark, one of Hinrichs six grandchildren, after the death of Mrs. Watts.
Biography/Administrative History
Gustav Hinrichs (1850-1942) was a German American conductor, as well as a composer and music teacher. As a young man in Hamburg,
Hinrichs had the opportunity to study composing under Angelo Reisland and Edward Marxsen and became the youngest member of
the opera orchestra at the Stadt theater. In 1870, he left for America, eventually making his way to San Francisco. During
his time there he worked in many theaters including the San Francisco Harmonie, the Handel and Haydn Oratorio Society, the
Fabbri Italian and German Opera Company, the Emily Melville Opera Company, and the Tivoli Opera Company. Hinrich’s most extensive
work in San Francisco, however, was at the Philharmonic Society where he worked for the large part of 15 years. In 1885, he
left for New York and the American Opera Company, later named the National Opera Company, where he gained prominence as the
assistant conductor to Theodore Thomas. His conducting career took him across the United States and briefly in Canada and
England. In 1887, Hinrichs, along with Charles Locke, took the National Opera Company to Philadelphia where he quickly earned
the title of the “Father of Opera in Philadelphia.” The company took various tours across America to spread Hinrich’s idea
of English opera. However, the National Opera Company was failing, and Hinrichs took a position at the Grand Opera House as
manager/conductor for a series of summer opera performances. In 1890, Oscar Hammerstein hired Hinrichs to conduct a season
at the Harlem Opera House in New York. Following his success in New York, his own company had a resurgence as he premiered
“Cavalleria rusticana” with the celebrated Giuseppe Del Puente as Rigoletto and a cast of new singers such as Albert L. Guille,
Selma Koert-Kronold, and Helen Dudley Campbell. In 1892, the company was renamed the Philadelphia Grand Opera Company, and
in 1893, they held the American premiere of “Pagliacci,” which Hinrichs conducted. In 1897, Hinrichs returned to New York
where he took various conducting positions including a few seasons at the Metropolitan Opera and taught at Columbia University.
Scope and Content of Collection
The collection is rich in original scores of operas and the many songs and other compositions by Hinrichs as well as a number
of his contemporaries. The three scrapbooks with material dating from the 1850s are valuable historically for the era as well
as Hinrichs career. There is some correspondence, a few photographs (mostly printed from programs and newspapers and even
his eyeglasses in their original case.
Composers
Conductors (Music)--United States
Opera
Campbell, Helen Dudley
Del Puente, Giuseppe
Guille, Albert L.
Koert-Kronold, Selma
Locke, Charles Edward, 1858-1940
Marxsen, Edward
Reisland, Angelo
Thomas, Theodore, 1835-1905
American Opera Company
Columbia University
Fabbri Italian and German Opera Company
Grand Opera House (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Handel and Haydn Oratorio Society
Harlem Opera House
Emily Melville Opera Company
Metropolitan Opera (New York, N.Y.)
National Opera Company
Philadelphia Grand Opera Company
Philharmonic Society
San Francisco Harmonie
Stadt-Theater
Tivoli Opera Company