| Biography | Conductor George Singer (who was also a composer) led the Opera of Prague, as well as the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Prague Spring Festival. He conducted the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra on a regular basis and also the Hebrew National Opera. He contributed to Israeli culture by premiering several works from contemporary, Israeli composers. He spent several months of the year outside Israel appearing in front of important European orchestras like the Berlin Philharmonic and the Suisse-Romande Orchestra (l' Orchestre de la Suisse-Romande). He conducted the Santa Cecilia Orchestra of Rome and spent time in Vienna with the Austrian Symphony Orchestra, in Leipzig with the Radio Orchestra (Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig - MDR - Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk), the Symphony Orchestra of Radio Hamburg (Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Hamburg) and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra (Bamberger Symphoniker). George Singer was the first Israeli conductor to perform in the USSR. He already conducted the Palestine Orchestra (Eretz Israeli Orchestra), long before it became the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. The orchestra was founded by violinist Bronislaw Huberman in 1936 with the support of Arturo Toscanini who conducted the first concert. Of the many concerts of George Singer, one memorable took place on Monday, June 7th, 1943, in the midst of the Second World War, in the so called Edison Hall. On the program was Beethoven's Prometheus Overture and Pastoral Symphony, and after the break pianist Lance Dossor was the soloist in Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat Major. Another memorable concert with George Singer conducting was during the 1963/1964 season. On the program: Paul Ben Haim's 'Dance and Invocation', Brahms's Double Concerto (with Endre Wolf, violin, and Adolfo Odnoposoff, cello), and after the intermission Dvorak's 3rd (7th) Symphony. Singer conducted works of many Israeli composers. Especially known are the performances of the music of Arthur Gelbun (on texts by Leah Goldberg) with the Israel Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra & Choir.
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