His father, Elias Lifschey, was a violist who was a member of the NBC Symphony Orchestra.
[3] Lifschey played in the Buffalo Philharmonic for a short period of time before being appointed to principal oboe of the National Symphony Orchestra, a post which he held between 1948 and 1950.
[4] Lifschey held this post from 1950 to 1965, with the exception of the 1959-1960 season, during which he played principal oboe for the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
After leaving Cleveland because of a famous personality clash with Szell, Lifschey went to the San Francisco Symphony, where he was co-principal under Josef Krips before being appointed principal in his own right.
[3] In 1984, William Redington Hewlett endowed the Edo de Waart chair for principal oboe, a seat which Lifschey occupied until his retirement from orchestra playing in 1986.