Szell is a child of the Empire austro-hongrois, been born to Budapest, it realizes its studies to Comes. Among its professors, one raises the names of the composers Max Reger and Eusebius Mandyczewski, a friend of Brahms and as well as pianist Richard Robert. In the class of the latter, it meets Rudolf Serkin with which it secures himself of a friendship that leads to many collaborations. Szell is then a child prodigy adulated through Europe. At the age of eleven years, it undertakes a turn of Europe; the English press the qualifies of “new Mozart”. It plays the pieces of the catalog but also its own compositions. For its fourteen years, the prestigious house of edition Universal of Coming offers him a contract of exclusivity rights of 10 years. Two years later, it does its beginnings of boss of before being invited orchestra, for its ten seven years, to the philharmonie of Berlin. Piano virtuoso, Szell nevertheless irreparably is attracted by the direction podium. In 1915, it is engaged by the imperial opera of Berlin where it meets Richard Strauss that recognizes for him an undisputable talent and a big quality of interpreter of his music. Szell takes besides leaves for the first recording of the symphonic poem Gift Juan.
During the years 1920 and 1930, it traverses the pits of the principal operas of the Old continent: Berlin, Strasburg, Prague, Darmstadt, Glasgow before becoming principal boss of the Staatsoper of Berlin in 1924. In 1930, it crosses the Atlantic and carries out its beginnings with the symphonic orchestra of Holy Louis. While the war threatens again Europe, it installs himself in 1939 to New York with his family. It divides then his time between the teaching and the direction of the orchestras of the city: the NBC Symphony Orchestrated Toscanini as early as 1941, then Philharmonie of New York from 1943. The Metropolitan Opera invites it then descend in his pit. In 1946, it is naturalizeed American citizen while the Cleveland Orchestrated proposes him the post of musical director. Although directed by of big names as Nikolai Sokolof (1918-1933), the fantastic but unequal Arthur Rodzinski (1933-1943) then Eric Leinsdorf (1943-1946), the Orchestra of Cleveland is considered as a phalanx of second row behind the orchestras of Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and New York. Holding a dreamed occasion to forge an orchestra, Szell accepts the suggestion and will remain in post until his death in 1970. To alongside this very long reign, it transforms this formation in the elite of the American orchestras to the price of an iron discipline and of an intransigence of all the instants. Formed to the school austro-hongroise, the boss never pleasing with the work and its repetitions are known for the unbelievable intensity that results from its high requirements. A day that a journalist questions it on the secrets of the level of his orchestra, it replies, breaking, that when its colleagues stop working, him and its musicians begin only. Hoisting the orchestra to an unequaled level of perfection, it signs a contract with Columbia that leads to complete Beethoven, Brahms and Schumann that mark their era and that continue to do the happiness of the music-loving while its interpretations of the symphonies of Mozart or its concerto accompaniments remain of the models of clarity and of attention. Nevertheless wanting all check and squeezing its musicians of a fearsome iron hand, the boss forgets sometimes to leave the music to abandon itself. Virtuoso, conquering but supple and concerned of the balance between the lines mélodiques and the desks, the style of Szell meets thus critics for his emotion absence. But triumphant turns in Europe, Asia and even in USSR export on of other shores the know-how house. Szell does not forget to rub itself to eminent others orchestras. Frequently invited Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, Symphonic one of London and Philharmonie of Coming, the boss marks of his impression the Festival of Salzbourg.
His catalog covers essentially the classical Haydn or Mozart and the Germanic catalog of Brahms to Strauss and Bruckner with a big interest for the contemporary music: this is him that orders to Henri Dutilleux its Métaboles to the occasion of the forty years of his orchestra. Very interested by the new talents, it invites Rock Roll of which it had heard to speak, one knows the continuations of special relation of the French boss with the American musicians.
Gotten married to two returns, Szell is outside of his musical life, a fine gourmet and a highly skilled driver refusing often the services of the driver of the orchestra to return at his place to the flying one of his imposing Cadillac. Having abandoned a pianist career, the boss produces himself occasionally to the piano in room music.
George Szell is the one of the first American artists of international stature to have returned in Europe after the second World War and in particular to the festival of Salzbourg. In 1949, it does its beginnings in the Rosenkavalier and in concert with the Philharmonie of Coming. As early as 1952, it is an uniform guest of the demonstration assuring the world-wide creation of three operas of Rolf Liebermann (Penelope and Said Schule der Frauen) and of Werner Egk (Irische Legende) all while driving productions of Says Entführung air dem Serail and of Says Zauberflöte. Between 1949 and 1969, it produces himself at the head of the philharmonie of Coming, but also to the desk of the numerous invited orchestras on the shores of the Salzach of the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam to the orchestra of the RTF. The present and massive casket proposes us therefore a concert selection that comes to complete certain edited bands with Sony, Andante and Orfeo.
This is well évidement with Mozart that the boss attains a perfection out norms. If the two symphonies of Mozart at the head of the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam are models, this the accompaniment of the two concertos that touches here to the sublimates. Helped by soloists all so grandiose, the artist does to shine this music with the brightness of the light of a sunny spring. The symphony “Oxford” of Haydn is taken by an aesthete, but the valiant orchestra of the RTF has not hardly the silky one of the ropes of Coming, Amsterdam or Dresde; anything to repeat symphony n°3 of sculptured Beethoven in the granit by an attentive boss to the content and to the content. In terms of concertos of the big deaf one and in spite of a Clifford Curzon highly inspired, one will remain faithful to two other associations of the boss with soloists: Emil Gilels for the concerto n°3 (live to Salzbourg with Orfeo equally) and concerto n°5 (concert to Comes with Gulda edited by Andante). Only the concerto n°4 chiseled one with a poetry all romantic one imposes as a big reference.
The symphony n°7 of Bruckner is licked hyper and served by an ideal orchestra, but it lacks to this version, just as to the other testimonies brucknériens of the boss, an abandonment and a mysticism that transcend the simple orchestral perfection. The symphony domesticates Strauss is she taken by an insane rage just as the concert 100% XX century that opposes Von Einem, Walton and Prokofiev. In these three scores of orchestral parade, the boss rouses an incandescent Concertgebouw.
Precious Jallon of a discography of a big wealth, this casket completes judiciously the famous available recordings henceforth with Sony in economical collections. The aficionados of the boss will find on the canvas an exhaustive discography of the musician to the address www.szell.co.uk
Mélodiste and distinguished sayer in the art of the lied, the French mezzo Sophie Koch, student of Jane Berbié to the Cnsm of Paris (after a passage flash to the school of the Opera), asserts itself today on the European scenes, while diversifying its psychological portraits, dress up (The Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos, that the revealed to the TCE to Paris in 2001), or feminine (Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte of … Margared in The King of There of Lalo, October 2007, Capitole of Toulouse). Ample and powerful voice, to the again perfectible joint, the singer seizes nevertheless listens it thanks to his dramatic engagement. This is this vocal implication that him permit to begin his career to London, to the Covent Garden from 1998 (Rosine of the Barber of Seville of Rossini. ..). The future productions elaborated by the next director of the Opera of Paris, to the horizon 2009, Nicolas Joel, we should allow hearing it uniformly… 
