Pearl Chertok
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Pearl Chertok was an internationally regarded harpist and composer for harp. She was born on June 18, 1918, in Laconia, New Hampshire, and died in White Plains, New York, on August 1, 1981.
After studying ballet, piano and flute as a child, Chertok forwent her senior year of high school to attend the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she studied with Marjorie Tyre and Carlos Salzedo. She then moved to New York City where she was staff harpist with the CBS Television Orchestra for many years, appearing on shows such as "The Arthur Godfrey Show" and Ed Sullivan's "Toast of the Town".
Chertok recorded several albums, both for solo harp as well ensemble work. Her solo work included her own compositions, many of which employed an innovative jazz idiom. On her Audio Fidelity LP, "Strings of Pearl" , she was accompanied by bongo player Willie Rodriguez. Other recordings include transcriptions for harp of music by Loeillet, Purcell and others.
Chertok also convinced contemporary composers, including Elie Siegmeister, Nuncio Mondello, Edmund Haines and William Mayer, to write for the harp. As a result, numerous pieces are dedicated to her.
Chertok was president of the American Harp Society at the time of her death in 1981. Additionally, she was on the faculty of several colleges and universities in the New York City area. Several of her students have gone on to distinguished careers as concert harpists. She served as judge at the International Harp Contest in Israel, and a prize named in her honor was awarded in 1982, 1985, 1988 and 1992.
Discography for Pearl Chertok
Around the Clock Suite -- Cecile Music Co., NY, PC101A Strings of Pearl -- Audio Fidelity, AFLP 1805 American Harp -- Orion Master Recordings, ORS 75207 The Harp in Chamber Music -- Orion Master Recordings, ORS 76227 Ancient and Modern Dances for Harp -- Orion Master Recordings, ORS 76231
Arco & Pizzicato: Music for Strings (Pearl Chertok and others) -- Serenus SRS 12062
Chertok's stunning "Around the Clock" Suite, originally published on red acetate 78s in 1948, later re-released on "Ancient and Modern Dances for Harp" in 1976, includes the following text she wrote to accompany the pieces:
Ten Past Two: "Early afternoon and you walk along the avenue. You look in the shop windows and are fascinated by the glitter and the new styles. You stop at one window and a gown - shimmering with sequins - makes you tingle with delight. Then you walk again - taking in the displays made just for you."
Beige Nocturne: "Evening. You are at your vanity - choosing your perfume from the array of bottles - There is a faint suggestion of a waltz but only for a fleeting instant. The beige melody brings you back to the fragrance of the evening mood."
Harpicide at Midnight: "The dance begins and the rhythm grows more and more insistent. The melody is lost and finally there is only the pulse of dancing feet."
The Morning After: "The alarm clock. You stretch and wish it could be ignored. Then you see the sun striking through the windows and the day begins in clear melody."
