Samuel Sanford

Who was Samuel Sanford?

Samuel Simons Sanford was an American pianist and educator.

He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He studied piano in New York with William Mason. He went to Paris and studied with Alfred Jaëll, Louis Plaidy, Théodore Ritter, and Édouard Batiste. In 1869, he became acquainted with Anton Rubinstein, and later studied with him. He travelled with Rubinstein during his first American tour in 1872-73. Ignacy Jan Paderewski changed his execution of octave playing after hearing Sanford play, and once described Sanford as the most musically gifted person he ever knew.

Sanford brought Sir Edward Elgar's music to American attention through the brothers Walter and Frank Damrosch and Theodore Thomas. He was instrumental in having Elgar awarded an honorary doctorate in music from Yale University in 1905; at the conferral ceremony on 28 June, Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 was played, instituting the tradition of playing noble processional music at graduation ceremonies. Later that year, Elgar returned the compliment by dedicating his Introduction and Allegro to Sanford.