In his history of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, John K. Sherman writes,

"The tours trod familiar itineraries through the South and Midwest, but did not chance New York. The one hundred and eighty pieces of baggage, the $100,000 worth of instruments, the eight trunks bulging with scores were trundled from city to city and town to town: Chicago, Pittsburgh, and New Orleans were the big spots (sometimes the tough ones as regards critics), while Georgia and Florida offered balmier climes for the musical troupers who for a time had left behind their bills and families and Minnesota's subzero blasts."

Fig 3: By early 1936, Ormandy was looking ahead to his move to Philadelphia, but he was still obligated to finish out the season with Minneapolis, including the annual midwinter tour. His wife, Stephanie Goldner Ormandy, was an accomplished harpist and in 1924 had been appointed the first female member of the New York Philharmonic. This photograph, staged by the newspaper photographer, is a good example of how gender roles were depicted in the popular press during this era.