Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
JUNE 25, 1927
Nathaniel Finston, Well Known Musical
Director, Joins Robbins Corp. Staff
General Musical Director of the Publix Theatres Signs Three-Year Exclusive Contract
With Firm—To Edit "Famous Fotoplay Series"
"I received my early training in public school
and for a time attended City College of New
York. It was my grandfather's brilliant idea to
have me study the violin to keep me off the
streets, so he went to a pawn shop and bought
my first violin for just $2. Later he got a violin
teacher for me. I was then about eight years
old. I studied about one year, but could not in-
terest myself in music and gave it up.
"After I joined the musical union I started
playing in the orchestra. My first professional
engagement was at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. In
those years, the hotel orchestra played very fine
musical literature, where one could become ac-
quainted with standard overtures, operas, comic
operas, grand operas, grand ballet music, etc. My
next engagement was with the Volpe Orchestra,
an orchestra banded together for training young-
men in symphonic works. During this period, I
played Sam Franko Old Music Concerts. Pales-
trina, Rorao, Mindel, Gretry and Bach were the
composers in the repertory. Then came the
Russian Symphony Orchestra, under Modest
Altschuler, in which organization I played for
five years, a complete Russian repertory. In this
organization I started second violin, and ended
concertmaster.
"After this I played for two years in Boston
opera, during which forty-five operas were per-
formed. Following this, I came to New York
and played for two years with the New York
Symphony, under Walter Damrosch, as as-
sistant concertmaster. In the subsequent two
years, I became a member of the New York
Nathaniel Finston
of the numbers will be written by Mr. Finston, Philharmonic, under Josef Stransky.
"About this time, the motion picture theatre
and the balance selected by him from many
composers who are now under contract to Rob- started making a bid for prominence. Having
bins Music Corp. The "Famous Fotoplay Series" played for eleven consecutive years in sym-
phonic orchestras, opera, quartets, salon orches-
will be edited by Domenico Savino.
Although still in his early thirties, Mr. Fins- tras and similar organizations, I became dis-
ton can boast of a place in the new field of satisfied with the future, and an idea struck me
cinema synchronization that has developed from that I could probably utilize my musical experi-
the piano thumpings of yesteryear's nickelodeons ence, and I applied for a position to Hugo
to the dignity of an art of its own. The motion Riesenfeld. During the first association of Mr.
picture manager had slowly come to realize that Riesenfeld and Mr. Rothaphel, in the Trilby Pic-
good music, and particularly good music well ture, I was engaged as one of the concertmas-
suited to the contents, both emotional and lers. A year and a half later, I was engaged as
physical of the wordless drama, has a definite assistant conductor at the Rialto Theatre.
"Two and a half years later I was engaged
box-office value.
Nathaniel Finston was born on February 24, by the Capitol Theatre, New York, and for the
1892, in New York. His father, a Russian, came first time in the history of the movie theatre, I
of a family of professional people. His mother was given a seventy-four men symphony or-
is of Austrian origin, and her father was a fish- chestra. Here I was in complete musical charge,
erman by trade and a violinist by avocation, during which period we successfully performed
playing often in his native land at peasants' twelve operas in English. From this position,
I went to Chicago, where I remained for five
weddings and local celebrations.
Here is what Nathaniel Finston said of his years with the firm, Balaban and Katz, who
have done so much for the films."
life in a personal interview:
X J A T H A N I E L FINSTON, general musi-
•^ ^ cal director for the Publix Theatres, has
just signed a three-year contract with the
Robbins Music Corp. by which this firm ob-
tains his exclusive services as a composer. The
first work which he will do for this firm will be
the selection of 100 compositions for orchestra
to be issued in a complete series, and known
as the "Famous Fotoplay Series." A great many
Dealers say —
It's the easiest thins
in the world to sell.
WORLD-FAMOUS
McKINLEY
MUSIC
37
The Music Trade Review
With the Wonderful Catalog,
Fine Cabinet, Graded
Counter Portfolios,
Display Signs,
etc.,
IT SELLS
ITSELF!
N
You Can't % Go Wron,
With Any FEI§S_ Song'
\X%^h
A
SUNDOWN
Donaldsorrs Distinctive
and Charming Ballad/
Comedy Fox Trot Sorg ,
MRESATRICK
INNCKIN"
A CHICK-CHICKCHICKEH
i/CHARLlE TOBIAS, C01EMM GOETZ,
ouod ^ RUSSELL
ROBINSON
W DIXIE 1
-VAGABOND
-A Fox ^rot Ballad I
That's Just A Little J
Different/
*[
L
| ^ i y KAHN Mid DONALDSON J£
LEO.FEISZ INC
FEIST
231-5
BLDG.
W. 4O TH ST.,
NEW YORK CITY