SYNOPSIS:
John Williams, tree-hugger? ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
John Williams (b. 1932): Treesongs
Gil Shaham, violin; Boston Symphony; John Williams, cond.
DG 471 326

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On composer and conductor John Williams

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1882—Australian-born American composer and pianist Percy Aldrich Grainger, in Melbourne; He became a USA citizen in 1919
1900—American composer George Antheil, in Trenton, N.J.

Deaths:
1839—Spanish composer Fernando Sor, age 61, in Paris

Premieres:
1940 — Randall Thompson: "Allelujah" at the opening of the Berkshire Music Center in Lenox, Mass.
1942 — Sir Lenox Berkeley: Symphony No. 1 in London, conducted by the composer
1987 — Judith Weir: opera "A Night at the Chinese Opera" in Cheltenham, England
1988 — Philip Glass: opera "The Making of the Representative for Planet 8" (after a sci-fi novel by Doris Lessing), by Houston Grand Opera
2000 — John Williams: "TreeSong" for Violin and Orchestra, at Tanglewood with Gil Shaham and the Boston Symphony, composer conducting

Other:
1588—English composer and lutenist John Dowland receives B. Mus. Degree from Christ Church, Oxford

SYNOPSIS:
Diamond arrives, Thompson departs ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
David Diamond (b. 1915): Rounds
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra; Gerard Schwarz, cond.
Nonesuch 79002
&
Randall Thompson (1899 - 1984): Alleluia
Dale Warland Singers; Dale Warland, cond.
MPR 201

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On composer David Diamond
and Randall Thompson

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1879—Italian composer Ottorino Respighi, in Bologna
1915—American composer David Diamond, in Rochester, N.Y.
1938—Japanese-American composer Paul Chihara, in Seattle

Deaths:
1747—Italian opera composer, Giovanni Bonocini, age 76, in Vienna; He was the famous (and unsuccessful) rival of Handel's for the favor of the opera-loving public in London
1960—American composer Edward Burlington Hill, age 87, in Francesrtown, New Hampshire
1984—American composer and teacher Randall Thompson, age 85, in Boston

Premieres:
1957 — Hartmann: opera "Simplicius Simplicissimus" (revised version), in Mannheim at the Nationaltheater; This opera was premiered in a concert version in Munich by the Bavarian Radio on April 2, 1948
1969 — Lennox Berkeley: Symphony No. 3, in Cheltenham, England
2001 — Steven Stucky: "Three Little Pieces for David," for piano (written for the 65th birthday of conductor David Zinman), by Yefim Bronfman at the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado.

July 10 - Leonard Bernstein U.S. postage stamp.

SYNOPSIS:
MacDowell goes "modern" ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
Edward MacDowell (1860 - 1908): First Modern Suite, Op. 10
James Barbagallo, piano
Naxos 559011

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On composer Edward MacDowell
and The MacDowell Colony

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1836—Brazilian opera composer Antonio Carlo Gomes, in Campinas

Deaths:
1937—American composer George Gershwin, age 38, in Hollywood, following an operation on a cystic brain tumor

Premieres:
1882 — MacDowell: "Modern Suite" No. 1 for Piano, in Zurich, with composer as soloist
1921 — Gershwin: musical revue, "George White's Scandals of 1921," at the Liberty Theater in New York City
1996 — James MacMillan: "The World's Ransoming" (English horn Concerto), at the Barbican in London, by soloist Christine Pendrill with the London Symphony, Kent Nagano conducting
2003 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Naxos Quartet" No. 2, at the Pittville Pump Room, Cheltenham (UK), as part of the Cheltenham International Festival by the Maggini Quartet;

Other:
1798—In the nation's capital of Philadelphia, President John Adams signed an Act of Congress establishing the United States Marine Band (The original "32 drummers and fifers" assisted in recruiting and entertained residents)
1885 —First concert of the Boston "Promenade" Orchestra (later dubbed the Boston "Pops") at the old Music Hall in Boston; Adolf Neuendorff conducts;
1922—Opening concert of the Hollywood Bowl, with German conductor Alfred Hertz at the podium
1940—Leonard Bernstein's first appearance as conductor of a professional orchestra, leading a performance of Wagner's Act I Prelude to "Die Meistersinger" with the Boston Pops at an open-air Esplanade Concert
1998—"The President's Own" U.S. Marine Band, America's oldest professional musical organization, marks its 200th anniversary

SYNOPSIS:
Lyricist and musical mentor Oscar Hammerstein II ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
Richard Rodgers (1902-1979): excerpts fr Oklahoma!
Broadway cast and orchestra
RCA RCD1-3572
&
: excerpts fr Carousel
Broadway cast and orchestra
Angel 55199

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On Oscar Hammerstein II
and

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1861—Russian composer Anton Arensky, in Novgorod; Under the Julian "Old Style" calendar still in use in Russia in that year, this date would be listed as June 30
1885—English composer George Butterworth, in London; As a British soldier, he was killed during battle of Pozieres in 1916
1895—American musical theater lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, in New York; He provided lyrics for Rudolf Friml's "Rose Marie" (1924), Siegmund Romberg's "The Desert Song" (1926), and Jerome Kern's "Show Boat" (1926); He collaborated with Richard Rodgers on several Broadway classics such as "Carousel" (1945), "South Pacific" (1949), and "The King and I" (1951); He was also the principal mentor of American composer Stephen Sondheim

Deaths:
1773—German composer and flutist, Johann Joachim Quantz, age 76, in Postdam
1953—Belgian composer Joseph Jongen, age 79, at Sart-lez-Spa

Premieres:
1716 — Handel: Concerto Grosso in F, Op. 3, no. 4a (Julian date: July 1);
1900 — Fauré: "Requiem," (orchestrated version) in Paris, at the Paris World Exhibition
1922 — Hindemith: "Kleine Kammermusik" for winds, Op. 24, no. 2, in Cologne (Germany), by the Frankfurt Chamber Winds
1940 — Ginastera: ballet "Pananbi," in Buenos Aires
1946 — Britten: opera "The Rape of Lucretia" at the Glyndebourne Festival in England
1972 — Peter Maxwell Davies: opera, "Taverner," in London at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
1976 — Henze: opera, "We Come to the River," in London at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
1992 — Christopher Rouse: Violin Concerto, at the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado, by the Aspen Festival Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin, with soloist Cho-Liang Lin
1993 — Andrew Lloyd-Webber: musical "Sunset Boulevard," in London; The musical opened in Los Angeles on December 2, 1993, and on Broadway on November 17, 1994

Other:
1971—A touring production of Andrew Lloyd-Webber's rock musical "Jesus Christ Superstar" starts a cross-country American run; The musical would open on Broadway on October 12, 1971

SYNOPSIS:
Mendelssohn and Porter see double ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
Felix Mendelssohn (1811 - 1835): Double Concerto
Güher and Süher Pekinel, pianos; Philharmonia Orchestra; Sir Neville Marriner, cond.
Chandos 9711
&
Quincy Porter (1897 - 1966): Concerto for Two Pianos
Joshua Pierce and Dorothy Jonas, duo pianists; Moravian Philharmonic; David Amos, cond.
Helcion 1044

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On composer Quincy Porter

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1932—Danish composer Per Norgaard, in Gentofte (near Copenhagen);

Deaths:
1951—Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg, in Los Angeles, on a Friday the 13th; He was superstitiously obsessed with the number 13 and, ironically, was 76 years old at the time of his death (7+6 = 13)

Premieres:
1829 — Mendelssohn: Double Concerto (in e) for two pianos and orchestra, in London at a benefit concert, with the composer as Ignaz Moscheles as the soloists
1995 — Corigliano: "Soliloquy" for clarinet and string quartet, in Portland, Oregon, by Chamber Music Northwest

Other:
1937—The first Pan-American Chamber Music Festival is held in Mexico City

July 14 - American composer Ingram Marshall. Photo: Photo: courtesy New Albion Records.