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Archives Find past shows by date:  Complete archive
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March 13-19, 2006
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Monday, March 13
Adamo at the opera ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Charles Ives (1874 – 1954): The Alcotts, fr Concord Sonata Anthony de Mare, piano CRI 837 & Mark Adamo (b. 1962): Little Women Houston Grand Opera; Patrick Summers, cond. Ondine 988 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Mark Adamo PBS "Little Women" Web site ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1700—French composer and flutist Michel Blavet, in Besançon; 1860—Austrian composer and music critic Hugo Wolf, in Windisch-Graz; Deaths: 1842—Italian-born composer Luigi Cherubini, age 81, in Paris; 1918—French composer Lili Boulanger, age 24, in Mézy; Premieres: 1744 — Handel: oratorio "Joseph and his Brethren" (Julian dater: March 2); 1797 — Cherubini: opera "Médée" (Medea), in Paris; 1845 — Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in e, Op. 64, by the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra conducted by Niels Gade, with Ferdinand David the soloist; 1861 — Wagner: opera "Tannhäuser" (Paris version), at the Théâtre Imperial de l'Opéra; 1947 — Messiaen: "Hymne" for orchestra, by the New York Philharmonic, Leopold Stokowski conducted; 1954 — Schoenberg: (unfinished) opera "Moses and Aaron," in a concert performance by the Hamburg Radio; The first staged performance took place in Zürich, Switzerland, on June 6, 1957); 1964 — Ernst Toch: Symphony No. 5 ("Jeptha - Rhapsodic Poem"), in Boston; 1976 — Babbitt: Concerti for Violin, Small Orchestra and Tape, in New York City; 1986 — George Rochberg: Symphony No. 5 (Commissioned for the sesquicentennial celebration of the city of Chicago), by the Chicago Symphony, with Sir Georg Solti conducting; 1992 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Strathclyde Concerto" No. 5 for violin, viola and strings, at Glasgow's City Hall, by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra conducted by the composer, with soloists James Clarke and Catherine Marwood; 1998 — Mark Adamo: opera "Little Women" at Houston Opera Studio, with Christopher Larkin conducting; Other: 1970—George Crumb completes his "Black Angels" for electric string quartet, percussion and water-tuned musical glasses; The score is inscribed: "finished on Friday the Thirteenth, March 1970 in tempore belli" (in time of war).
Tuesday, March 14
The Amazing Mr. Ornstein ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Leo Ornstein (1892? – 2002): Piano Sonata No. 7 Janice Weber, piano Naxos 559104 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Leo Ornstein An interview with Ornstein ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1681—German composer Georg Philipp Telemann, in Magdeburg; 1727—Baptism of German composer and keyboard virtuoso Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, in Danzig (now Gdansk); 1804—Austrian composer and conductor Johann Strauss, Sr., in Vienna; Premieres: 1734 — Handel: anthem "This is the day which the Lord hath made" in London at the French Chapel of St. James's Palace, for the wedding of Princess Anne and Prince Willem, the Prince of Orange (Gregorian date: March 25); 1824 — Schubert: String Quartet in a (D. 804) in Vienna, by the Schuppanzigh Quartet; Published the following September, this was the only chamber work of Schubert's published in his lifetime; 1847 — Verdi: opera "Macbeth," in Florence at the Teatro della Pergola; 1885 — Gilbert & Sullivan: operetta "The Mikado," at the Savoy Theatre in London; 1963 — Simpson: Symphony No. 3, in Birmingham, England; 1975 — Ulysses Kay: Quintet Concerto for brass and orchestra, in New York City; 1976 — Paul Creston: "Hyas Illahee" for chorus and orchestra, in Shreveport, La.; 1986 — Harrison Birtwistle: "Earth Dances" for orchestra, at Royal Festival Hall in London by the BBC Symphony, Peter Eotvos conducting; 1996 — Leo Ornstein: Piano Sonata No. 6, at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco, by pianist Marvin Tartak; 2000 — David Maslanka: Wind Quintet No. 3, in Columbus, Mo., by the Missouri Quintet; 2001 — Danielpour: Cello Concerto No. 2 ("Through the Ancient Valley"), by the New York Philharmonic, Kurt Masur conducting, with soloist Yo-Yo Ma; 2002 — Previn: Violin Concerto, by the Boston Symphony with the composer conducting and soloist Anne-Sophie Mutter; 2003 — Jim Mobberley: "Vox Inhumana" for live and prerecorded sounds, in Kansas City, by the NewEar ensemble.
Wednesday, March 15
Beethoven's Fourth ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827): Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 Chamber Orchestra of Europe; Nikolaus Harnoncourt, cond. Teldec 46452 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: More on Beethoven ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1835—Austrian composer and conductor Eduard Strauss, in Vienna; He was the youngest son of Johann Strauss, Sr.; 1864—Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist Johan Halvorsen, in Drammen; 1901—American composer Colin McPhee, in Montréal, Canada; 1926—American composer Ben Johnston, in Macon, Ga.; 1928—American composer Nicolas Flagello, in New York City; Deaths: 1842—Italian composer Luigi Cherubini, age 81, in Paris; 1918—French composer Lili Boulanger, age 24, in Mezy; 1942—Austrian composer Alexander von Zemlinsky, age 70, in Larchmont, N.Y.; Premieres: 1807 — Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 (first public performance), in Vienna, at a benefit concert conducted by the composer; 1885 — Franck: symphonic poem "Les Dijinns" (The Genies), in Paris; 1897 — Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 1 (Gregorian date: Mar. 27); 1908 — Ravel: "Rapsodie espagnole" (Spanish Rhapsody), in Paris; 1911 — Scriabin: Symphony No. 5 ("Prometheus: Poem of Fire"), in Moscow, conducted by Serge Koussevitzky and with the composer performing the solo piano part (Julian date: Mar. 2); 1981 — Stockhausen: opera "Donnerstag, aus Licht" (Thursday, from Light), in Milan at the Teatro alla Scala; This is one of a projected cycle of seven operas, each named after a day of the week; 1994 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Chat Moss" (the name of a quagmire in Lancashire) for orchestra, in Liverpool by the orchestra of St. Edward's College, John Moseley conducting; 2000 — Corigliano: "Mr. Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan," at Carnegie Hall, by soprano Sylvia McNair and pianist Martin Katz; An orchestrated version of this song-cycle premiered in Minneapolis on October 23, 2003, with soprano Hila Plitmann and the Minnesota Orchestra conducted by Robert Spano; Other: 1895—Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, age 22, makes his operatic debut at the Teatro Nuovo in Naples, singing the lead tenor role in Domenico Morelli's comic opera "L'Amico Francesco."
Thursday, March 16
Massenet's "Meditation" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Jules Massenet (1842 – 1912): Meditation, fr Thais Nigel Kennedy, violin; English Chamber Orchestra EMI 57330 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Massenet ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1937—American composer David Del Tredici, in Cloverdale, Calif.; Deaths: 1736—Italian composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, age 26 (of consumption), in Pzzuoli; 1881—Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky (Gregorian date: Mar. 28) 1968—Italian-born American composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, age 62, in Los Angeles; 1985—American composer Roger Sessions, age 88, in Princeton, N.J.; Premieres: 1735 — Handel: Organ Concertos Op. 4, nos. 2-3 (Julian date: March 5); 1750 — Handel: oratorio "Theodora," in London at the Covent Garden Theater; At the same event, the possible premiere of Handel's Organ Concerto Op. 7, no. 5, as well (Gregorian date: March 27); 1751 — Handel: oratorio "The Choice of Hercules" in London at the Covent Garden Theater; At the same event, Handel's Organ Concerto Op. 7, no. 3 premieres following Act II of a revival performance of Handel's cantata "Alexander's Feast" on the same program (Gregorian date: March 27); 1833 — Bellini: opera "Beatrice di Tenda" in Venice at the Teatro la Fenice; 1870 — Tchaikovsky: fantasy-overture "Romeo and Juliet," in Moscow, with Nicolas Rubinstien conducting (Julian date: Mar. 4); 1871 — Tchaikovsky: String Quartet in D, Op. 11, in Moscow, by members of the Russian Musical Society (Gregorian date: Mar. 28); 1879 — Dvorák: choral setting of Psalm No. 149, Op. 79, in Prague; 1888 — American premiere of the revised version of Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 ("Romantic"), with New York Philharmonic-Society conducted by Anton Seidl; In the preface to a book on Bruckner, the elderly conductor Walter Damrosch claimed he conducted the American premiere of this symphony (His memory played him false: Damrosch led the first American performance of Bruckner's THIRD Symphony; 1894 — Massenet: opera "Thaïs," at the Paris Opéra; 1938 — Martinu: opera "Julietta," in Prague at the National Theater; 1942 — Martinu: "Sinfonietta giocosa," for piano and chamber orchestra, in New York City; 2002 — Paul Schoenfield: "Nocturne" for solo cello, oboe and strings, by cellist Peter Howard, with oboist Kathryn Greenbank and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Gilbert Varga conducting.
Friday, March 17
(St. Patrick's Day)
Moby Crumb? ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: George Crumb (b. 1929): Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale) Zizi Mueller, flute; Fred Sherry, cello; James Gemmell, piano New World 357 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On George Crumb ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1839—German composer Josef Rheinberger, in Vaduz, Liechtenstein; 1920—American composer John LaMontaine, in Chicago; Deaths: 1862—French opera composer Jacques François Halévy, age 62, in Nice; Premieres: 1733 — Handel: oratorio "Deborah" in London at the King's Theater in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: March 28); 1846 — Verdi: opera "Atilla," in Venice at the Teatro La Fenice; 1867 — Brahms: Waltzes, Op. 39, for piano, in Vienna; 1879 — Tchaikovsky: opera "Eugene Onegin," in Moscow (Gregorian date: Mar. 29); 1882 — Glazunov: Symphony No. 1, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: Mar. 29); 1892 — Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 1 (first movement only) (Gregorian date: Mar. 29); 1945 — Miakovsky: Cello Concerto, in Moscow; 1951 — Dessau: opera "Die Verhör des Lukullus" (The Sentencing of Lucullus), in East Berlin at the Deutsche Staatsoper (Berlin State Opera); This opera was revised as "Die Verurteilung des Lukullus" (The Judgement of Lucullus) at the same theater on October 12, 1851; The libretto is by the German poet and playwright Bertold Brecht; 1954 — Quincy Porter: "Concerto Concertante" for two pianos and orchestra, in Louisville, Ky.; This work won that year's Pulitzer Prize for Music; 1967 — Levy: opera "Mourning Becomes Electra" (after the play by Eugene O'Neill) at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City; 1972 — Crumb: "Vox balaenae" for three masked musicians, in Washington, D.C.; 2002 — Paul Schoenfield: "Partita" for violin and piano, at a Chamber Music Society of Minnesota concert in St. Paul, by violinist Young-Nam Kim, with the composer at the piano; Other: 1830—Frederic Chopin makes his concert debut in Warsaw, performing his own Piano Concerto in f-minor.
Saturday, March 18
Rachmaninoff makes the cut ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 – 1943): Piano Concerto No. 4 Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano; Cleveland Orchestra; Vladimir Ashkenazy, cond. London 458 930 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Sergei Rachmaninoff ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1844—Russian composer Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, in Tikhvin (Julian Date: Mar. 6); 1882—Italian composer and first editor of the collected works of Monteverdi and Vivaldi, Gian Francesco Malipiero, in Venice; Deaths: 1994—American composer Williams Bergsma, age 72, in Seattle; Premieres: 1902 — Schoenberg: "Verklärte Nacht" (Transfigured Night) for string sextet, in Vienna, by the Rosé Quartet and two extra players; 1904 — Liadov: symphonic poem "Baba Yaga," in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Mar.5); 1927 — Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 4,Op. 40 (original version) in Philadelphia, with the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Leopold Stokowski and the composer as soloist; On the same program was the premiere performance of Rachmaninoff's "Three Russian Songs" for chorus and orchestra (dedicated to Stokowski); A revised (and much shortened) version of this concerto premiered in Philadelphia on October 17, 1941, with Eugene Ormandy conducting and the composer again as soloist; 1949 — Peter Mennin: Symphony No. 4 ("The Cycle"), in New York City; 1965 — Broadway premiere of Richard Rodgers: musical "Do I Hear a Waltz?," with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; The musical had its trail-run premiere in New Haven on Feb. 1, 1965; 1970 — Roger Sessions: "Rhapsody" for orchestra, in Baltimore. 1994 — James Mobberley: Piano Concerto, at the Lyric Theater in Kansas City, Mo., by the Kansas City Symphony, with Richard Cass the soloist and Bill McGlaughlin conducting.
Sunday, March 19
Carpenter perambulates ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: John Alden Carpenter (1876 –1951): Adventrues in a Perambulator National Symphony of Ukraine; John McLaughlin Williams, cond. Naxos 8.559065 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On John Alden Carpenter ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1872—Russian ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev (Gregorian date: Mar. 31); 1873—German composer Max Reger, in Brand (near Bayreuth); 1907—English composer (of Irish descent) Elizabeth Maconchy, in Broxbourne; 1929—American composer Robert Muczynski, in Chicago; Premieres: 1859 — Gounod: opera "Faust," in Paris at the Théâtre-Lyrique; 1864 — Gounod: opera "Mireille," in Paris at the Théâtre-Lyrique; 1870 — Gomes: opera "Il Guarany" (The Guarani), in Milan at the Teatro alla Scala; 1892 — Tchaikovsky: "The Nutcracker" Suite, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Mar. 7); The first staged performance of the complete "Nutcracker" Ballet occurred later that same year in St. Petersburg on Dec. 6 (Julian)/Dec. 18 (Gregorian); 1896 — Dvorák: Cello Concerto in b, Op. 104, at London's Queens Hall by the London Philharmonic conducted by the composer, with Leo Stern as soloist; 1910 — Bartók: String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7, in Budapest, by the Waldbauer Quartet; 1915 — John Alden Carpenter: "Adventures in a Perambulator," by the Chicago Symphony, Frederick Stock conducting; 1919 — Gabriel Fauré's "Fantasie" for piano and Orchestra, at a Société Nationale de Musique concert at the Salle Gaveau in Paris, with Alfred Cortot as the soloist, 1944 — Tippett: oratorio, "A Child of Our Time," in London; 1972 — George Perle: "Sonata quasi una fantasia" for clarinet and piano, in Buffalo, N.Y.; 1991 — John Adams: opera "The Death of Klinghoffer," in Brussels at the Théatre Royal de la Monnaie; 1998 — Robert X. Rodriguez: "Sinfonia a la Mariachi," by the San Antonio Symphony, Christopher Wilkins conducting; Other: 1931—American premiere of Alban Berg's opera "Wozzeck" in Philadelphia, with Leopold Stokowski conducting. |
