LEWISOHN STADIUM
AUGUST 3, 1943
WITH THE NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA UNDER THE DIRECTION OF MAX STEINER

SWOONER-CROONER
SATELLITES SIGH AND SCREAM AS SINGING SENSATION SINATRA SOLOS WITH SYMPHONY

To help balance their budgets several symphony orchestras recently invited Frank Sinatra, the swooner-crooner who makes every song sound just like every other song, to appear as a soloist. In New York on Aug. 3 the New York Philharmonic counted on the ferocious fanaticism of Sinatra's fans to fill their concert. But the crush of Sinatraffic was not even up to Pons.
While the coloratura Lily drew 12,000, the provocative Frank pulled only 5,000.

Although the idol of the jump-for-joy juveniles was plenty upstage and obnoxious at rehearsal[ At rehearsal with New York Philharmonic, Sinatra sings facing the orchestra, leading them like a three piece band. Max Steiner frowns as he conducts. "More tempo!" says Sinatra to Conductor Steiner.

"I could beat out tempo-why can't you?" "More slowly!" says Singer Sinatra to the Philharmonic. "Who the hell does he think he is?" one of the musicians asked audibly. Stadium cocert at Lewisohn Stadium was not even close to sellout. But teen-age Sinatra fans, turned out in full frenzy to wiggle rapturously to the teasing tones of their idol as he swayed sideways in perfect sychron- ization with the microphone]. Sinatra got under the skin of the orchestra even more at the concert. After concluding his popular numbers[rendered, according to one critic, in "proper uniform Sinatra tempo-LARGO ALLA MARCIA FUNEBRE"], the soloist thanked his under-age followers for showing up on behalf of himself and "the boys in the band."

To prevent a similar fiasco, Los Angeles music critics campaigned militantly against a scheduled Sinatra swoon-fest with the Los Angeles Philaharmonic on Aug. 14. The swooner-crooner was referred to as "a kind of musical drug...an opium of emotionalism."

LIFE magazine
August 23, 1943
Price was 10 cents