Mendelssohn Glee Club (New York, N.Y.)

The Mendelssohn Glee Club is the oldest singing organization still current and the second oldest musical organization in the United States. Originally, the club began as an amateur singing group of men and women in 1865. The group quickly disbanded in 1866, but the men decided to continue as a male voice group. During the first few years, the club had to endure many challenges. In the fall of 1866, the men decided to lease the rooms above a book trade salesroom in Clinton Hall. The rooms were dimly lit, insufficiently heated, and often wet from leaks in the ceiling, yet the club rehearsed there for ten years and the first three concerts were held in the room. The second season, 1867 - 1869, began with a new conductor, Joseph Mosenthal. His style of conducting was infamous, but the success of the club in the early years was due to Mosenthal's strict approach at rehearsals. He would shout, pound the bare floor with his foot, throw his baton into a corner, and turn his back on the chorus, and after a short while, he would retrieve his baton and rehearsals would begin again. Mosenthal conducted the club for the next twenty-nine years. Beginning in 1871, the club gained popular appeal. They traveled to Boston for a performance and received wide critical acclaim. Shortly after, The Apollo Club, The Boston Symphony, The Orpheus Club, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, formed along the lines of the Mendelssohn Glee Club. Each group commuted to each other's cities, increasing the popularity for male chorus activity. The admissions process became very restrictive at this time. Potential members had to wait ten years to be admitted as an associated member and each active member was only allowed six tickets for each of the three annual concerts. Even dress codes had to be strictly adhered and members or guests were otherwise turned away at the door. The club's success led to the construction of a new concert hall financed by Alfred Corning Clark, with a 1,100-seat auditorium, quarters for the members, a rehearsal hall, committee rooms, library, smoking room, and above the auditorium were three floors of bachelor apartments. The first concert at Mendelssohn Hall was on December 6, 1892. Unfortunately, the club experienced a series of setbacks after the construction of Mendelssohn Hall. In 1896, Joseph Mosenthal and Alfred Corning Clark died. With the passing of Clark, the club was in danger of losing the hall, a scant four years after it was built. Clark's widow permitted the club to use the hall and leased the rooms above the building for revenue, but after her death, the building was sold in 1911. Despite these challenges, the club is still in existence. Over the years, there have been a few notable members, such as Herbert Witherspoon, an operatic and concert basso, who joined the Metropolitan Opera in 1908 and later became the general manager. Also a notable conductor of the MGC was Cesare Sodero (1934 to 1947) who later became the principal conductor of Verdi operas at the Met.

From the guide to the Mendelssohn Glee Club papers, 1856-1970, (The New York Public Library. Music Division.)

Founded in 1865, the Mendelssohn Glee Club (MGC) is the second oldest musical organization and the oldest singing organization still currently active in the United States.

The club originally began as an amateur singing group of men and women, named in tribute to the German composer. The group quickly disbanded in 1866, but the men decided to continue as a male voice group. In 1867, the composer Joseph Mosenthal became the new conductor and under his exacting direction, the Club raised its standard of musical performance and quickly gained a following within New York's most exclusive circles. As much a social club as a musical one, the MGC experienced its greatest period of growth during Mosenthal's twenty-nine year tenure as musical director. In addition to its three regular annual concerts, the MGC also made numerous appearances at cultural and social events, both inside and outside of New York City. Spurred on by these appearances of the Mendelssohn Glee Club in other cities, male choral groups began to be formed along similar lines, first in East Coast cities, but eventually throughout the United States and Canada. The club's success led to the construction of a new concert hall in New York, financed by the Singer Sewing Machine Company heir, Alfred Corning Clark. The lavish Mendelssohn Hall, was designed by Robert H. Robertson, a noted architect who also served as the Club's president. When it opened in 1892, the structure featured an 1,100-seat auditorium, a rehearsal hall, committee rooms, library, smoking room, and three floors of apartments. The Club, however, faced serious setbacks just a few years after the opening of Mendelssohn Hall with the deaths of Mosenthal and Clark in 1896. The MGC did not own the building and eventually was evicted from the property in 1911; it never was able to raise sufficient funds to create a new permanent home. Despite the challenges of declining membership rolls and shifts in musical taste during the latter half of the twentieth century, the club is still in existence. Over the years many professional musicians of note were MGC members, including Richard Crooks, Herbert Witherspoon, and Cesare Sodero, who served as conductor from 1934 to 1947.

From the description of Mendelssohn Glee Club papers, 1856-1970. (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 79413000