Stanley Chapple papers, 1938-1985

British conductor Stanley Chapple began his career in Europe, first as assistant conductor for the British National Opera, then as conductor and musical director for the Vocalion Gramaphone Company in London.

In 1920, at the age of nineteen, Chapple was hired as director of the City of London School's opera. Two years later he was invited to appear as a guest conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra, and shortly thereafter was made head director. In 1930, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra invited Chapple to appear as guest conductor, and by the end of the decade he had become one of the most coveted guest conductors on the European Philharmonic circuit, traveling to Vienna, the Hague, and Warsaw. Chapple also pioneered special concerts for children, conducting over 500 of them throughout Europe.

In 1929, Chapple made his first visit to the United States, at the invitation of the Music Teachers' National Association, which led to annual summer visits as lecturer and guest conducter.

In 1939, the outbreak of war in Europe prolonged Chapple's stay in America, as Chapple's planned tour of Russia was cancelled. The English ambassador in Washington D.C. then asked Chapple to stay in America to "promote good will". Chapple was then a guest conductor at many top symphony orchestras throughout the eastern United States and Canada, including conducting the Water Gate concerts in Washington D.C., and serving as director of opera and symphony at the Peabody Conservatory of Music.

Serge Koussevitzky, conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, then invited Chapple to join him in starting a Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood, as an associate conductor and teacher. There Chapple taught several notable young composers, including Leonard Bernstein, Lukas Foss, Thor Johnson, and Eleazar de Carvalho.

After hearing Chapple speak at Tanglewood, the Dean of the University of Washington's School of Music invited Chapple to join the School of Music as director, which he did in 1948.

From 1950 to 1954 Chapple was also resident conductor of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, where he inaugurated the Family Concerts, conducted the Standard Hour coast-wide broadcasts, and conducted many special children's concerts. During his tenure, Chapple virtually remodeled Seattle's culture, using the Symphony as a means of introducing the opera, ballet, and the theater to Seattle.

In 1962, Chapple became director of symphony and opera at the University of Washington, where he remained until he retired in 1971.

Despite his hopes of spending his retirement years writing symphony and opera music, Chapple was instead approached by Seattle Mayor Wes Uhlman to create a senior music program through the newly established Mayor's Office for Senior Citizens, which was the beginning of The Seattle Senior Symphony (aka Musicians Emeritus), a program providing "encouragment and help to former music-makers wishing to resume their participation in music-making". For the next fourteen years, Chapple was the much beloved conductor of Musicians Enmeritus Symphony Orchestra and Thalia Symphony Orchestra.

Stanley Chapple passed away in 1987.

(Original Source: http://www.mesoseattle.org/about.html, but website is no longer active. Secondardy Source: Biography found in program in accession 003.)