Can you imagine back in the 1860’s when the New York Herald reported…”at least five thousand persons gathered around the performers, while outside of these were stationed an immense number of carriages…filled with the beauty and fashion of New York.” So we fast forward to today to flip flops, shorts and t shirts. Oh well…those were the days… The Naumburg Bandshell is one of New York City’s cultural icons. When I pass it on my walks through the park, my imagination takes me to evenings with a variety of performers from Duke Ellington, Irving Berlin to even The Grateful Dead.
The donation by Elkan Naumburg not only included the bandshell, but he started the series of free, classical concerts in Central Park now known as the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts. Thanks to the many generations of the Naumburg family, the concert series celebrates its 108th anniversary this year. Thank you. Thank you.
If you’re thinking the Bandshell looks a little tattered, well it is. After a four-year battle between park officials who wanted to tear it down and preservationists who wanted to save it, in 1993 a court decision guaranteed the Bandshell would remain, but the money to insure the maintenance and improvements to the facility was not. There’s still hope that the Central Park Conservancy and the Parks Department will assist with the restoration. Hard to say…only time will tell. Let’s hope so.
A beautiful performance tonight by The Knights with Eric Jacobsen as Conductor. If you’re in the area, the next free concerts are on Tuesday, July 9th and 30th and Wednesday on August 21st. Save the date! Oh, and get there early to get a good seat. It fills up fast!
How fun! I hope they come through with the money to maintain it as well. Great post! XXOO MORE!
I LOVE an outdoor concert series. I never caught this one but I’ll have to make a trip back home one of these summers to catch a concert. Great shots!
What a shame it would be to lose such a treasure.
Your photos of New York are filled with the life and moods of the city. You do beautiful work.
Oh, my stars! such a treat I’ve had catching up on your amazing adventures in this awesome place you call home. Taking a cab at 3:45a.m. would be so worth it and all the glorious music and cafes just waiting for you to show up … how devine!
I love travelling through your eyes, and with your sense of a scene. It is a delight to wander these places and dream of the time when I too might sit among these crowds listening to this music
Surely with that kind of audience participation, someone will come through to save/restore this place, Robin. WOW. I love that the concerts are free.
Thank god they saved it! I have faith they will find the money to restore it, because it is such a treasure!