Enoch Light

Enoch Light
1928 advertisement
Occupation(s)Audio engineer, record label executive and producer
Known forQuadraphonic recordings

Enoch Henry Light (August 18, 1907 – July 31, 1978) was an American classically trained violinist, danceband leader, and recording engineer.[1] As the leader of various dance bands that recorded as early as March 1927 and continuing through at least 1940, Light and his band primarily worked in various hotels in New York. For a time in 1928 he also led a band in Paris. In the 1930s Light also studied conducting with the French conductor Maurice Frigara in Paris.[2]

Throughout the 1930s, Light and his outfits were steadily employed in the generally more upscale hotel restaurants and ballrooms in New York that catered to providing polite ambiance for dining and functional dance music of current popular songs rather than out-and-out jazz.

At some point his band was tagged The Light Brigade and they often broadcast over radio live from the Hotel Taft in New York, where they had a long residency. Through 1940, Light and his band recorded for various labels including Brunswick, ARC, Vocalion and Bluebird. In 1955, Light founded Grand Award Records and served as president and A&R chief.[3] In 1959 he founded a subsidiary label, Command Records. Grand Award and its subsidiary labels were sold to ABC-Paramount Records in October 1959.[4][5] Light's name was prominent on many albums both as musician and producer.

  1. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 253/4. ISBN 1-85227-937-0.
  2. ^ Enoch Light, the Master of Sound. Billboard, 18 February 1967.
  3. ^ Edwards, David; Eyries, Patrice; Callahan, Mike. "Grand Award Album Discography". www.bsnpubs.com. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
  4. ^ Grevatt, Ren (November 6, 1961). "Record Hunter Displays Sell". Billboard Magazine: 15. ISSN 0006-2510.
  5. ^ "From a catalog of 3 LP's: The Rise of Command Records". Billboard Magazine: 13. June 20, 1960.

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