SANDLER OF THE BBC

New Zealand Listener, Volume 19, Issue 482, 17 September 1948, Page 9

SANDLER OF THE BBC

HE life of Albert Sandler, the BBC’s popular violinist, who died suddenly at the end of last month, makes as romantic a story of one man’s progress from poverty to riches as anyone could wish for. It started in 1905, when a poor Russian whose anglicised name was Sandler, landed at a London dock with his wife and three young children. They had been exiled through poverty from their native land. The Russian rented rooms in the Russian émigré colony in the East End, setting up a cobbler’s workshop in one of them, A year later his son Albert was born, and the boy’s musical leanings were so strong that soon he was pestering his family for a violin. His father saved up a few pence each week from his meagre earnings, until one day-the day before Albert’s birth-day-he stopped work earlier than usual. He put on his coat, walked up the street to the local pawnshop, and bought a three-quarter size violin for sixteen shillings. Albert Sandler’s first instruction came from his eldest brother (there were seven children), but soon he was taking lessons from a_ professional teacheran East "End "maestro" who charged ninepence a half-hour, and insisted on cash payment before each lesson started. From this man Sandler passed on. to a higher grade professor ‘whose charge was half-a-crown a lesson, a cost that was met only by all the family clubbing together. Then, through hard saving and the influence of his musical friends, he was able to study at the Guildhall School of Music, until eventually, at the age of 12, he became a professional musician. His earnings were five shillings a week, and his job was "relief" in a cinema orchestra. His next job was as second violin in a Bermondsey cinema at a weekly salary of 50 shillings, and six months later he was offered five pounds a week to be leader of the orchestra in the opposition cinema. By the time he was 18 he was an experienced cinema violinist, and his skilful playing soon brought him to the notice of the managers of a well-

known chain of London restaurants. Beginning as sub-leader of one of their restaurant orchestras, he ended up as leading violinist at the Trocadero. After some years he got another lucky break. The Grand Hotel at Eastbourne had lost their violinist and dance band leader de Groot, who had made the hotel famous by his broadcast concerts. Albert Sandler was recommended by de Groot himself for the job and in this way he took up the position through which he became known to millions of radio listeners. His activities later broadened to include other performances. When he died last month he was only 42, but even in New Zealand he will be remembered for his broadcasts with the Palm Court Orchestra of the Grand Hotel, Eastbourne-broadcasts which established him as one of the few musicians to infuse character and true musicianship into violin playing of this type. Those who did not hear the last recorded series of Grand Hotel broadcasts issued by the Transcription Service of the BBC, will soon be able to hear a second series which arrived here recently. In the meantime, ‘a special programme about Albert Sandler will be broadcast in 2YA’s Morning Star session, at 9.32 a.m. next Wednesday, September 22.