Frederick William Gaisberg

Frederick William Gaisberg (1 January 1873 – 2 September 1951) was an American musician, recording engineer and one of the earliest classical music producers for the gramophone. He himself did not use the term 'producer', and was not an impresario like his protégé Walter Legge of EMI or an innovator like John Culshaw of Decca. Gaisberg concentrated on talent-scouting and persuading performers to make recordings for the newly invented Gramophone.

Gaisberg began working in the recording industry in America as a young man, becoming a pioneer of early recording, and also worked as piano accompanist for the Berliner Gram-O-Phone Company, the inventors of the practical lateral-groove disc and associated playback apparatus, the Berliner Gramophone. In 1898, he joined the Gramophone Company in England as its first recording engineer. In 1902, he recorded music sung by the tenor Enrico Caruso and the recordings became a sensation. By 1921, Gaisberg was artistic director of HMV's 'international artistes' department. After 1925, he concentrated on artist management. In 1939, he retired from his position but continued as a consultant in the industry through the 1940s.

Birth and Death Data: Born January 1, 1873 (Washington, D.C.), Died September 2, 1951 (Hampstead)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1892 - 1920

Roles Represented in DAHR: recordist, composer, piano

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 101-125 of 1229 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Gramophone 553aj 12-in. 2/18/1913 Tornami a dir che m'ami Salvatore Salvati ; Serafina Scalfaro Vocal duet (soprano and tenor) recordist  
Gramophone 553f 12-in. Dec. 1905 The last rose of summer Adelina Patti Soprano vocal solo, with piano recordist  
Gramophone 556f 12-in. ca. Dec. 1905 On parting Adelina Patti Soprano vocal solo, with piano recordist  
Gramophone 557f 12-in. ca. Dec. 1905 Within a mile of Edinboro' town Adelina Patti Soprano vocal solo, with piano recordist  
Gramophone 561aj 12-in. 2/21/1913 O mio Fernando Ida Zizolfi Female vocal solo recordist  
Gramophone 561c 12-in. ca. 1905 In mia mano alfi tu sei Ida Giacomelli ; Gino Martinez-Patti Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 563c 12-in. approximately 1905 Manca un foglio Antonio Pini-Corsi Baritone vocal solo, with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 569aj 12-in. 2/24/1913 Gioconda : Fantasia Orchestra (unidentified; Gramophone Co., Milan, Italy) Orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 575½aj 12-in. 2/25/1913 Deh, non volermi vittima Elvira Barbieri ; Vincenzo Bettoni ; Fausto Castellani Vocal trio (soprano, tenor, and bass), with chorus recordist  
Gramophone 577c 12-in. Fall 1905 Non hai compreso un cor fedel Giuseppina Piccoletti ; Ivo Zaccari Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 582aj 12-in. 2/27/1913 Qual cor tradisti Elvira Barbieri ; Fausto Castellani Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with chorus recordist  
Gramophone 586aj 12-in. 2/28/1913 Brindisi libiam nei lieti calici Franco de Gregorio ; Serafina Scalfaro Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with chorus recordist  
Gramophone 590aj 12-in. 3/1/1913 Coro degli zingari Teatro alla Scala Coro Chorus, with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 604½c 12-in. approximately May 1906 Sola nei miei prim'anni Emilia Corsi Soprano vocal solo, with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 606aj 12-in. 3/7/1913 Splendon le sacri faci Malvina Pereira Soprano vocal solo recordist  
Gramophone 607aj 12-in. 3/8/1913 Verranno a te Malvina Pereira ; Salvatore Salvati Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 608c 12-in. ca. May 1906 Racconto del Graal Pietro Lara Tenor vocal solo, with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 610aj 12-in. 3/8/1913 Maledizione : Quartetto Vincenzo Bettoni ; Franco de Gregorio ; Giuseppe Maggi ; Malvina Pereira Vocal quartet (soprano, tenor, baritone, and bass), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 615aj 12-in. 3/10/1913 Parigi, o cara Noemi Casini ; Franco de Gregorio Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with chorus recordist  
Gramophone 618aj 12-in. 3/13/1913 Alfredo, Alfredo, di questo core Giorgina Caprile ; Franco de Gregorio Vocal trio (soprano, tenor, and baritone), with chorus and orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 618c 12-in. ca. May 1906 Quasi vinti da stanchezza Renzo Minolfi ; Teatro alla Scala Coro Baritone vocal solo, with vocal chorus and orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 619aj 12-in. 3/13/1913 Libiamo, libiamo Frederick William Gaisberg Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with chorus and orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 620c 12-in. approximately May 1906 Parigi, o cara Fernando De Lucia ; Josephina Huguet Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 621c 12-in. approximately May 1906 Non hai compreso un cor fedel Fernando De Lucia ; Josephina Huguet Vocal duet (soprano and tenor), with orchestra recordist  
Gramophone 622c 12-in. May 1906 Dei miei bollenti spiriti Fernando De Lucia Tenor vocal solo, with piano recordist  
(Results 101-125 of 1229 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Gaisberg, Frederick William," accessed May 3, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/116625.

Gaisberg, Frederick William. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved May 3, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/116625.

"Gaisberg, Frederick William." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 3 May 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/116625

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