Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians [With CD]

by Virginia Waring

Book Overview

Famous American, chorus leader, showman, glee club pioneer, golf tournament host, and entrepreneur--all that, and he taught America how to sing! Fred Waring held together a major musical organization for sixty-seven years. He was a man at ease on stage but reluctant to sit through meetings, a man so earnest in his patriotism that by the 1980s, many considered him an anachronism.

Virginia Waring, his wife of thirty years, chronicles Fred...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0252074440
• ISBN13: 9780252074448
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press
• Length: 464 Pages
• Weight: 1.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 8.7" x 6.1"

Customer Reviews

Fascinating inside look

This account can't help but be a little one-sided, but on the other hand who more than Virginia Waring could give us the glimpses of Fred Waring "unplugged"? I studied under a former Pennsylvanian, and was fascinated to see his stories come alive, especially in reference to the Chesterfield Hour. If you buy a used version, be sure and ask if the CD comes with it--you'll enjoy hearing for yourself this group's unique sound and how they did their radio broadcasts. Also included, fascinating accounts of the "non-musical" Fred Waring--the Waring Blender, his involvement in the Boy Scouts, his interest in new inventions, his own tinkering with products and ideas.

Interesting, but one sided view of the man

This book is a facinating read about the famous choral conductor and his Pennsylvanians, during the early days of radio, television and film. Many amusing and interesting anectdotes punctuate the book throughout. Written by his wife, so it is a rather one-sided (positive) view of the man who many saw as a cold task master....but in whom no one could argue with the fine product he produced. This man truly "taught America how to sing".