Fritz Reiner
Music Director, 1953–1962
Musical Adviser, 1962–1963
Fritz Reiner made his debut with the CSO in August 1937 and began his tenure as its sixth music director in the fall of 1953. Under his baton, recordings by the Orchestra were the first recognized by the Recording Academy, with Bartók’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta receiving the orchestra's first Grammy Award in 1961.
