Harl McDonald, 1936-1939

One of Mendelssohn Club’s most colorful music directors was certainly Dr. Harl McDonald, who served from 1936-1939. McDonald grew up on a cattle ranch in Colorado, was a violinist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and then took up a career as a concert pianist before coming to Philadelphia, where he became head of choral music at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1939 he launched yet another career, becoming manager of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a post he held for a number of years. McDonald was a prolific composer as well, and his orchestral works were frequently performed by Stokowski and the Orchestra. A choral work, Lament for the Stolen (suggested by the kidnapping of the Lindberg baby) was premiered by Mendelssohn Club. During his brief tenure there were a number of significant concerts with The Philadelphia Orchestra, including a 1937 performance of Honegger’s King David under Fritz Reiner which featured a relatively unknown Risë Stevens, who was to become one of the great sopranos at the Met.