Frederick Fennell (July 2, 1914 – December 7, 2004) was an internationally recognized conductor, and one of the primary figures in promoting the wind ensemble as a performing group.
Fennell was born in Cleveland, Ohio and chose percussion as his primary instrument. Following studies at the Interlochen Arts Camp (then the National Music Camp, Dr. Fennell entered college. His first choice had been the Oberlin Conservatory, however at the time Oberlin did not offer a degree in percussion. However, no school at that time offered a degree in percussion. Maestro Fennell was the first person ever to be awarded a degree in percussion performance. He found a compatible and fruitful relationship at the Eastman School of Music. There he completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees (in 1937 and 1939), after which he immediately went on to teach conducting at his alma mater. In 1952 he founded the Eastman Wind Ensemble.
While with the Eastman Wind Ensemble, the Tokyo Kosei Wind Ensemble, and various other groups, he recorded many of the standards of the wind band repertoire; he remains one of America's most-recorded conductors. He made the first symphonic digital recording in the United States, with the Cleveland Symphonic Winds, in 1978.
Dr. Fennell (who received an honorary doctorate from Eastman in 1988) made frequent appearances guest conducting such ensembles as the Boston Pops Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Interlochen Arts Academy, and the Interlochen Arts Camp.
He remained highly active in the world of conducting until a few months before his death, at which time he was holding the positions of principal conductor of the Tokyo Kosei Wind Ensemble, principal guest conductor of the Dallas Wind Symphony, and professor emeritus of the University of Miami Frost School of Music.
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