{"product_id":"19731-barber-samuel-signed-photograph-to-ralph-berkowitz","title":"Barber, Samuel. (1910–1981) Signed Photograph to Ralph Berkowitz","description":"Superb early right-facing bust doubleweight photograph of the dashing young American composer and conductor, signed and inscribed \"To my good friend Ralph \/ Sam \/ West Chester \/ March '37.\" The recipient and dedicatee of the photograph was American composer and pianist Ralph Berkowitz, who with cellist Felix Salmond, performed Barber's Cello Sonata on March 7, 1937 at a surprise party arranged by Mary Curtis Bok for Barber's twenty-seventh birthday (Barbara Heyman, \"Samuel Barber: The Composer and His Music,\" p. 115).  Signed photographs of Barber are extremely rare and desirable and this is a particularly early and remarkable example with a wonderful association.  8 x 10 inches. Light wear to margins, overall very fine. \u003cdiv style=\"\"\u003e\u003cbr style=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv style=\"\"\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003eIn 1927, Ralph Berkowitz enrolled at the \u003c\/span\u003eCurtis Institute\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e in \u003c\/span\u003ePhiladelphia\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e where he befriended Barber and later became a member of the teaching staff.  In 1940, a\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e few years after the present inscription, Berkowitz became accompanist for \u003c\/span\u003eGregor Piatigorsky\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e, with whom he appeared until the cellist's death in 1976. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003eFrom 1946 to 1951, Berkowitz served as an executive assistant to \u003c\/span\u003eSerge Koussevitzky\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e at \u003c\/span\u003eTanglewood\u003cspan style=\"\"\u003e and later became Dean of the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood in 1951, a position he held until 1961.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr style=\"\"\u003e\u003cdiv style=\"\"\u003e\u003cbr style=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"\"\u003e\u003cbr style=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Schubertiade Music and Arts","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46093725663391,"sku":"19731","price":3500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/4826\/7423\/files\/19731_Barber_SP_to_Berkowitz.jpg?v=1722189931","url":"https:\/\/www.schubertiademusic.com\/products\/19731-barber-samuel-signed-photograph-to-ralph-berkowitz","provider":"Schubertiade Music and Arts","version":"1.0","type":"link"}