André Kostelanetz (December 22, 1901, St. Petersburg, Russia - January 13, … Read Full Bio ↴André Kostelanetz (December 22, 1901, St. Petersburg, Russia - January 13, 1980) was a popular orchestral music conductor and arranger, one of the pioneers of easy listening music.

Kostelanetz was known for arranging and recording light classical music pieces for mass audiences, as well as orchestral versions of songs and Broadway show tunes. He made numerous recordings over the course of his career, which had sales of over 50 million and became staples of Beautiful Music radio stations.[citation needed] For many years, Kostelanetz also conducted the New York Philharmonic in pops concerts and recordings, in which they were billed as "Andre Kostelanetz and His Orchestra".

Kostelanetz is best known to modern audiences for a series of easy listening instrumental albums on Columbia Records from the 1940s until 1980. Kostelanetz actually started making this music before there was a genre called "easy listening", and he continued until after some of his contemporaries, including Mantovani, had stopped recording.

Toward the end of his recording career, his name was more of a brand than a true representation of who actually made the music, because nearly all of his output in the 1970s was arranged by others.[citation needed] Some of the arrangers credited on 1970s Kostelanetz albums include Teo Macero, Torrie Zito, Hank Levy, Luther Henderson, Jack Cortner, Eddie Sauter, Claus Ogerman, Jack Pleis, Tommy Newsom, Harold Wheeler, Bobby Scott, Homer Dennison, James Tyler, Jr., Byron Olson, Dale Oehler, Ben Lanzarone, LaMont Johnson, Wade Marcus, Patrick Williams, Sammy Nestico, Warren Vincent, Dick Hyman, Jorge Calandrelli, James J. Wisner, Al Capps and Don Sebesky.

Kostelanetz's last concert was "A Night in Old Vienna" concert with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in the War Memorial Opera House on December 31, 1979.

The Nearness Of You
Andre Kostelanetz Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

It's not the pale moon that excites me
That thrills and delights me, oh no
It's just the nearness of you

It isn't your sweet conversation
That brings this sensation, oh no
It's just the nearness of you

When you're in my arms and I feel you so close to me
All my wildest dreams come true

I need no soft lights to enchant me
If you'll only grant me the right

To hold you ever so tight
And to feel in the night the nearness of you

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Andre Kostelanetz's song "The Nearness of You" express the feelings that arise when being close to someone special. The singer begins by saying that it's not the romantic images that others may think of like the pale moon that excites him, instead, it's just the feeling of being close to the person he loves. The second verse emphasizes the fact that it's not necessarily what the person is saying that brings the special sensation, but again it's just the fact of being close to them.

When the singer has his loved one in his arms, he explains that all his wildest dreams come true. This could be interpreted as feeling complete, safe, or whole. The final verse shows that the singer needs no special atmosphere to be enchanted, just the nearness of his loved one is enough. The singer requests the right to hold his love tightly and enjoy the feeling of being close to them in the night. This craving for intimacy and intimacy's power to make everything perfect is what lies beneath the lyrics of "The Nearness of You."

Line by Line Meaning

It's not the pale moon that excites me
I am not impressed by the pale moon

That thrills and delights me, oh no
It does not excite me as much as you do

It's just the nearness of you
Your presence alone is enough for me to feel excited

It isn't your sweet conversation
Our conversations are not the reason for my feelings

That brings this sensation, oh no
Our conversations are not what makes me feel this way

It's just the nearness of you
Just being close to you is what makes me feel this way

When you're in my arms and I feel you so close to me
When I am holding you close to me

All my wildest dreams come true
I feel complete and satisfied

I need no soft lights to enchant me
I do not need a romantic atmosphere to feel enchanted

If you'll only grant me the right
If you allow me

To hold you ever so tight
To hold you very close to me