Angels making music

Of saxophones and angels . . . and music by Tanaka and Rautavaara

Karen Tanaka (b. 1961): Night Bird
Claude Delangle, sax; tape
Bis 890
&
Einojuhani Rautavaara (b. 1928): Violin Concerto
Elmar Oliveira, vn; Helsinki Philharmonic; Leif Segerstam, cond.
Ondine 881

Speaking of saxophones, one enterprising American saxophonist, Elisa Hall (1853-1924), set out to enlarge the repertory for her instrument by commissioning no less than 22 works between 1900 and 1920 - among them Debussy's "Rapsodie" for Saxophone and Orchestra A recent CD on the Swedish BIS label titled "A Saxophone for a Lady" (#1020 - distributed by Qualiton Imports) includes some of the pieces she commissioned.

Births:
1753 - French composer and cellist Jean-Baptiste Bréval, in Paris;
1854 - American composer and bandmaster John Philip Sousa, in Washington, D.C.

Deaths:
1893 - Russian composer Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky, in St. Petersburg, age 53;
1965 - Franco-American composer Edgard Varèse, in New York City, age 81

Premieres:
1883 - Chabrier: rhapsody, "España," in Paris;
1927 - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 2, "October," in Leningrad;
1936 - Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 3, Leopold Stokowski conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra

Sergei Rachmaninov

Past and present premieres by Rachmaninov and Lazarof

Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943): Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Artur Rubinstein, p; Chicago Symphony; Fritz Reiner, cond.
RCA RCD1-4934
&
Henri Lazarof (b. 1932): Divertimento No. 3
Ani Kavafian, vn; Seattle Symphony; Gerard Schwarz, cond.
JVC 8512

Here's a revealing quote from Rachmaninov on composing: "It is my own pet belief that, if you have something important to say, you don't need a new language in which to say it . . . A composer can use all the accepted tools of composition and produce a work far different in style and subject matter from any ever produced, because he has put into music his own personality and experiences." [From "Composers on Music: Eight Centuries of Writings," edited by Jonathan Fisk; Northeastern University Press; ISBN: #I-55553-279-9] The American conductor Gerard Schwarz has championed Lazarof's music via three all-Lazarof compact discs featuring the Seattle Symphony. In addition to the JVC title included on today's program, there are two more discs on the Delos label (CD #3069 and #3133)

Births:
1810 - Hungarian composer Ferenc [Franz] Erkel, in Gyula;
1905 - English composer William Alwyn, in Northampton;
1931 - American composer and conductor Gerald Humel, in Cleveland

Other:
1785 - The first American musical society founded at Stoughton, Massachusetts

"A Garland for Linda" and a Sinfonietta by Paulus

Paul McCartney (b. 1942): My Love
Loma Mar Quartet
EMI Classics 56897
&
Stephen Paulus (b. 1949): Symphony for Strings
Atlanta Symphony; Yoel Levi, cond.
New World 80363

EMI Classics has released a complete recording of "A Garland for Linda" (CD #56961) which includes musical contributions by the following composers: Sir Paul McCartney, John Tavener, Judith Bingham, John Rutter, David Matthews, Roxana Panufnik (the daughter of the late Polish composer Andrzej Panufnik), Michael Berkeley (the son of the late British composer Sir Lennox Berkeley), Giles Swayne and Richard Rodney Bennett.

A new disc of chamber works by American composer Stephen Paulus titled "A Chamber Fantasy" has been released on the innova label (CD #539).

Births:
1770 - German composer Friedrich Witt, in Niederstetten, Württemberg;
1882 - Russian-American composer and conductor Lazare Saminsky, in Vale-Hotzulovo, Ukraine;
1883 - English composer Arnold Bax, in Streatham

Deaths:
1599 - Spanish composer Francisco Guerrero, in Seville, age 71;
1890 - Belgian-French composer César Franck, in Paris, age 67

The most famous guitar concerto ever . . . and a Lukas Foss première on tour in Europe

Joaquin Rodrigo (1902-1999): Concierto de Aranjuez
Manuel Barrueco, g; Philharmonia Orchestra; Plácido Domingo, cond.
EMI Classics 56175
&
Lukas Foss (b. 1922); American Landscapes
Sharon Isbin, g; St. Paul Chamber Orchestra; Hugh Wolff, cond.
Virgin Classics 55083

Amazingly for a composer with such a sympathetic understanding for the instrument, Joaquin Rodrigo did not play guitar himself, and once said he never bothered to learned lest "it might interfere with my fantasy."

The central theme of Rodrigo's "Concierto Aranjuez" has been adapted as a French pop song titled "Mon Amour" and was arranged by Gil Evans for the classic jazz album, "Sketches of Spain" featuring trumpeter Miles Davis (Columbia CD #65142).

Births:
1907 - American composer Burrill Phillips, in Omaha, Nebraska

Premieres:
1881 - Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2, in Budapest, Brahms at piano;
1926 - Hindemith: opera, "Cardillac," in Dresden

Other:
1878 - Leopold Damrosch conducts first concert of the New York Symphony Society Orchestra (one ancestor of the New York Philharmonic) in Steinway Hall

Portrait of Giuseppina Verdi (née Strepponi)

Subzero Verdi and Harbison . . . opera with and without words

Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) La Forza del Destino Overture
Berlin Philharmonic; Herbert von Karajan, cond.
DG 453 058
&
John Harbison (b. 1938): Remembering Gatsby
Baltimore Symphony; David Zinman
Argo 444 454

Giuseppina Strepponi (1815-1897) whose letter we quote in today's program was the second Mrs. Verdi. Giuseppe and Giuseppina married in 1859 after living together for many years (which scandalized some in the 19th century). Giuseppina was the daughter of an opera conductor, and studied voice at the Milan Conservatory. She became famous as a dramatic soprano, and her sensational performance of the role of Abigaile in Verdi's early opera "Nabucco" brought her to the composer's attention. "Nabucco" was Verdi's first successful opera, and was completed in 1842 following a period of depression after the death of the composer's first wife in 1840.

Births:
1668 - French composer, organist and harpsichordist François Couperin, in Paris;
1873 - French composer Henri Rabaud, in Paris

Deaths:
1976 - American composer Walter Piston, in Belmont, Massachusetts, age 82

Premieres:
1872 - Bizet: suite, "L'Arlèsienne," in Paris;
1910 - Elgar: Violin Concerto, at Queen's Hall, London, soloist Fritz Kreisler;
1932 - Bernard Wagenaar: Symphony No. 2, Arturo Toscanini conducting the New York Philharmonic;
1994 - Stephen Albert: Symphony No. 2, Hugh Wolff conducting the New York Philharmonic, which commissioned it

Other:
1888 - Fritz Kreisler, age 13, makes American debut in recital at Old Steinway Hall in New York City;
1900 - Russian pianist Ossip Gabrilowitsch makes his Carnegie Hall debut in New York City during his first American tour; In 1909 he married contralto Clara Clemens, the daughter of the American writer Samuel Clemens/Mark Twain (see also listing for Nov. 16)