Search - Artist/Band: André Kostelanetz

• Name: André Kostelanetz
• Birthday: 12/22/1901
• Birth Place: St. Petersburg, Russia
• Died: 01/13/1980
• Decades Active: 1950,1960,1970
• Genre: Easy Listening
• Styles: Classical Pop, Orchestral Pop, Instrumental Collections
• Moods: Refined/Mannered, Soothing, Springlike, Innocent, Precious, Amiable/Good-Natured, Cheerful, Earnest, Poignant, Reflective, Gentle, Sentimental, Elegant, Lush, Romantic, Carefree, Theatrical

Title	Release
Scarborough Fair and Other Great Movie Hits/Traces	07/29/2008
Stereo Wonderland of Golden Hits/I Wish You Love	07/29/2008
Today's Golden Hits/The Shadow of Your Smile	07/29/2008
Andre Kostelanetz Plays Music of Richard Rodgers	01/22/2008
Only the Best of Andre Kostelanetz	11/27/2007
Last Tango in Paris/Plays Greatest Hits of Today WA	08/23/2005
Murder on the Orient Express/Never Can Say Goodbye	03/29/2005
The Lure of France/The Lure of Paradise WA	03/29/2005
Wonderland of Sound: Broadway's Greatest Hits/Plays the Hits from Funny Girl, Finian's WA	03/29/2005
For the Young at Heart/I'll Never Fall in Love Again	03/09/2004
Sounds of Today/Today's Greatest Movie Hits	03/09/2004
The Kostelanetz Touch	04/23/2002
Scenarios for Orchestra WA	07/10/2001
The Music of Fritz Kreisler, Richard Rodgers & Jerome Kern	03/13/2001
Carnival Tropicana/Lure of the Tropics WA	01/30/2001
Music of Cole Porter/Music of Vincent Youmans	01/30/2001
The Music of Irving Berlin	11/14/2000
At His Very Best WA	10/17/2000
Music of George Gershwin	11/09/1999
Music of Jerome Kern	11/09/1999
I Wish You Love WA	1996
Moon River	12/01/1995
Columbia Album of Richard Rodgers	1991
Carmen Without Words	1990
Greatest Hits of Broadway	1989
Opera without Words	1989
Stars & Stripes Forever	1989
Plays Great Hits of Today	1973
16 Most Requested Songs	1972
Plays Hits from Funny Girl, Finian's Rainbow & Star!	1968
Scarborough Fair and Other Great Movie Hits	1968
Joy to the World: Music for Christmas WA	1967
Stereo Wonderland of Golden Hits	08/1963
Lure of Paradise	1959
Strauss Waltzes	1959
Lure of the Tropics	1954
Last Tango in Paris
Most Requested

André Kostelanetz arranged classical pieces as easy listening numbers, bringing the music to a broad, middle-brow audience that wouldn't normally have listened to the music. In the process, he inadvertently invented easy listening music. Kostelanetz grasped the power of radio and he adapted his arrangements to fit the conventions of mass communications.

Kostelanetz began performing music in his childhood as a member of the Petrograd choir. He would eventually become leader of the choir. In 1922, he moved to the United States. Initially, he didn't find jobs as a conductor/arranger, so he had to perform as an accompanist. In 1924, Kostelanetz made his radio debut, conducting an orchestra.

In the '30s, he assembled a 65-piece orchestra, which happened to be the largest orchestra broadcast on radio, for the national show Andre Kostelanetz Presents. By the mid-'30s, he was one of the most popular radio stars in the U.S., as evidenced by the sheer amount of awards he won and polls he topped. In 1943, a poll of U.S. and Canadian audiences commended him for his support for popular and serious music.

Not only was he popular, he was quite innovative as well. Kostelanetz understood the potential of recording as a way to expose mass audiences to music. Consequently, he also grasped the technological necessities of recording, and helped promote the value of recording engineers. But his most noteworthy technological advance was his invention of a mechanical tuning instrument that told musicians whether they were in pitch or not. The device was adapted by the military and used as a way to track submarines.

Kostelanetz never lost his popularity, even as musical styles shifted dramatically over the next four decades. Over the course of his career, he sold over 52 million records. The arranger continued to interpret classical pieces, as well as show tunes and popular songs until his death in 1980. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide