1955
In early 1955, Max Neuhaus performed as a percussionist in a production of Johann Strauss II’s operetta The Gypsy Baron (Der Zigeunerbaron) at Pleasantville High School in New York.
Dates: February 25 and 26, with an additional performance on March 5, 1955.
Ensemble: The production featured The Pleasantville Singers.
Role: Neuhaus, then only 15 or 16 years old, provided the percussion for the performances.
Pleasantville Roots: Neuhaus moved to Pleasantville as a young child and began playing drums in the sixth grade.
Early Organization: 1955 was a prolific year for the teenage Neuhaus; in addition to The Gypsy Baron, he organized a "June Fiesta of high school boys" called Maxie's Blue Note Orchestra.
Musical Foundations: These community and school performances under the guidance of local educators, such as Renato Vellutino (who built the PHS performing arts department), provided the groundwork for his admission to the Manhattan School of Music in 1957.
This period represents the very beginning of Neuhaus's professional trajectory, predating his famed collaborations with avant-garde figures like John Cage and Karlheinz Stockhausen by less than a decade.