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"A century ago, any American musician who aspired to an international concert career had to first acquire a European education and reputation. So it was with talented Texas-born pianist, Olga Samaroff (1880-1948) who was born in San Antonio and named Lucy Hickenlooper. Stifled by anti-American sentiments against Americans as musicians and Old World prejudices against women in particular, this film traces Lucy Hickenooper's metamorphosis from obscurity to fame. Sixteen-year-old Lucy became the first American woman to be admitted to the prestigious Conservatoire de Musique in Paris. Three years later she continued her studies in Berlin. After a disastrous marriage to a Russian naval attaché who forbade her to perform, she fled to New York, changed her name and pursued her dream to be a concert pianist. On borrowed money she hired the New York Symphony and rented Carnegie Hall for her American debut. Other concerts followed and she became the most successful woman concert pianist of her time. In 1911 she married the legendary conductor, Leopold Stokowski, whose talent she first recognized and career she fostered. The marriage did not survive his notorious womanizing. In 1923, Samaroff became the first American-born piano faculty member at the new Juilliard School. As a beloved artist/teacher for over 20 years, Samaroff launched the careers of many prominent American pianists. Archival footage and dazzling performances create a rich look into the musical world of the early 20th Century and a colorful portrait of a daring and innovative woman."@en
"Samaroff was born Lucy Mary Agnes Hickenlooper in San Antonio, Texas. She would later reinvent herself as Olga Samaroff and become one of America's first and perhaps most famous international female concert artists of the early 20th century. Musically trained by her grandmother, Samaroff later studied in Paris after winning a competition and becoming the first American woman to ever be admitted to the classes at the prestigious Conservatoire de Musique. In 1904, after a disastrous marriage, Samaroff returned to New York, determined to start a new life and begin a concert career. Against her family's advice and on borrowed money, Samaroff hired the New York Symphony and rented Carnegie Hall to give her American debut, a very risky venture in the world of 1905, especially for a woman. A New York promoter also advised her to change her name. Thus against tremendous odds, Samaroff gave an American debut and rose from complete obscurity to become the most successful American woman concert pianist of her time. Overshadowed by her famous husband, Leopold Stokowski, whose talent she first recognized and whose career she fostered, she was at the very center of a vibrant American musical life. Divorced from Stokowski in 1923, Samaroff embarked on yet another career, becoming the only American-born piano faculty member at the new Juilliard School of Music (1924) and commuting faculty member for the Philadelphia Conservatory in 1928. She even launched the first competition for American musicians--the Schubert Memorial--creating for the first time, a venue only for young American musicians to perform and compete. Richard Farrell, William Kapell, Joseph Battista, Rosalyn Tureck, Joseph Bloch, Eugene List, Alexis Weissenberg, and Maurice Hinson are only a few whose talents first found expression under her tutelage."