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Archives Find past shows by date:  Complete archive Your purchase from Public Radio Market helps support the American Composers Forum and Composers Datebook.  |
September 10-16, 2007
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Monday, September 10
Berlioz the Parisian prudes ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Hector Berlioz (1803-1869): Benvenuto Cellini & Roman Carnival Overtures Staatskapelle Dresden; Sir Colin Davis, cond. BMG/RCA 68790 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Berlioz ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1714—Italian opera composer Niccolo Jommelli, in Aversa (near Naples); He was known as "the Italian Gluck"; 1866—Swedish violinist and composer Tor Aulin, in Stockholm; 1875—Lithuanian composer Mikolajus Ciurlionis, in Varena (Gregorian date: Sept. 22); His birthday is incorrectly listed as Oct. 4 in many reference works; Deaths: 1680—Italian composer Marco Uccellini, age c. 77, in Folimpopoli; Premieres: 1838 — Berlioz: opera, "Benvenuto Cellini," at the Paris Opera; 1950 — Karl Amadeus Hartmann: "Adagio" (Symphony No. 2), by the Southwest German Radio Orchestra, Hans Rosbaud conducting; 1955 — Cowell: "Hymn and Fuguing Tune" No. 10 for oboe and strings, in the Sunken Gardens of the Spanish Court House in Santa Barbara, Calif., by oboist Bert Gassman and the strings of the 3rd Annual Pacific Coast Music Festival orchestra, Leopold Stokowski conducting; 1971 — Ginastera: opera "Beatrix Cenci" at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; 1989 — Peter Maxwell Davies: Symphony No. 4, at a BBC Proms Concert in London's Royal Albert Hall, by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra conducted by the composer; 1998 — Joan Tower: "Wild Purple," for solo viola, at Lincoln Center in New York, by Paul Neubauer.
Tuesday, September 11
Hanslick & Thomson, critics at large ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Richard Wagner (1813-1883): Act III excerpts, from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg Deutschen Oper Berlin Orchestra; Eugen Jochum, cond. DG 415 281 & Virgil Thomson (1896-1989): Digging (A Portrait of Howard Rea) London Gabrieli Brass Ensemble; Christopher Larkin, cond. Hyperion 66517 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Eduard Hanslick On Virgil Thomson ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1711—Baptismal date of British composer William Boyce, in London; 1786—German-born Danish pianist and composer Friedrich Kuhlau, in Ülzen (near Hanover); 1825—Conservative Viennese music critic Eduard Hanslick, in Prague; 1935 —Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, in Paide; Deaths: 1733—French harpsichordist and composer François Couperin ("le Grand"), age 64, in Paris; 1949—French composer Henri Rabaud, age 76, in Paris; 1985—English composer William Alwyn, age 79, in Southwold; Premieres: 1887 — Dvorák: Mass in D, Op. 86, at a private performance in Luzany; 1924 — Gershwin: musical "Primrose," at the Winter Garden Theater in London; 1936 — Kodály: "Te Deum," in Budapest; 1951 — Stravinsky: opera, "The Rake's Progress," in Venice at the Teatro della Fenice, conducted by the composer; According to Opera America, this is one of the most frequently-produced American operas during the past decade; 1971 — Barber: "Fadograph from a Yestern Scene" (the title is a line from James Joyce's "Finnegans Wake"), by the Pittsburgh Symphony, at the opening concert in Heinz Hall; 1986 — Harbison: "Remembering Gatsby" for orchestra, in Atlanta, with the Atlanta Symphony, Robert Shaw conducting; This music became the prelude to Harbison's 1999 opera, "The Great Gatsby"; Other: 1840—German composer Robert Schumann gives his fiancée, Clara Wieck, his new song-cycle "Liederkreis," as a gift on the eve of their wedding; 1850—Swedish soprano Jenny Lind makes her American debut at the Castle Garden Theatre in New York City, inaugurating a 93-stop American tour arranged by showman and entertainment entrepreneur Phineas "P.T." Barnum; 1950—At a Decca recording session in New York City; Leroy Anderson conducts the premiere performance of his piece entitled "The Waltzing Cat" and also commits to disc six more of his most popular compositions: "Jazz Pizzicato" and "Jazz Legato" (both composed in 1938), "A Trumpeter's Lullaby" and "The Syncopated Clock" (both composed in 1945), and two of his pieces that had premiered at 1947 and 1948 Boston Pops concerts: "Serenata" (Arthur Fiedler's favorite Leroy Anderson composition) and "Sleigh Ride" (which was actually composed in July!); Anderson had conducted the premiere of "Jazz Pizzicato" (his first composition) at a 1938 Boston Pops concert, and "Jazz Legato" was written at the request of Arthur Fiedler as a companion piece for the second side of a 78-rpm recording of "Jazz Pizzicato"; "A Trumpeter's Lullaby" was written at the request of Roger Voison, principal trumpet of the Boston Pops, and "The Syncopated Clock" was popularized when it was used for 25 years as the theme music for "The Late Show" on WCBS-TV in New York City; 1962—At their third recording session at London's Abbey Road studios, The Beatles record one of their early hit songs: "Love me, do!"
Wednesday, September 12
Mahler, Mickey and Masur? ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Gustav Mahler (1860-1911): Symphony No. 8 (Symphony of a Thousand) London Philharmonic; Klaus Tennstedt, cond. EMI Classics 64476 & Aaron Kernis (b. 1960): Second Symphony (Alarm) City of Birmingham Symphony; Hugh Wolff, cond. Argo 448 900 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Mahler On Kernis ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1825—Austrian flautist and conductor Karl Doppler, in Lwow; 1901—German composer Ernst Pepping, in Duisburg; 1906—Soviet composer Dimitri Shostakovich, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: Sept. 25); 1939—American composer Phillip Ramey, in Chicago; Deaths: 1764—French composer Jean Philippe Rameau, age 80, in Paris;. Premieres: 1910 — Mahler: Symphony No. 8 ("Symphony of a Thousand") in Munich, with the composer conducting; 1932 — Villa-Lobos: "Bachianas Brasilieras" No. 1, in Rio de Janerio; 1937 — Milhaud: "Suite Provençale" in Venice, conducted by the composer; 1954 — Bernstein: "Serenade" (after Plato's "Symposium") at Teatro La Fenice in Venice, with composer conducting and Isaac Stern the violin soloist; 1967 — Kokonen: Symphony No. 3, in Helsinki; 1969 — Henri Lazarof: Cello Concerto, in Oslo, Norway; Other: 1840—Marriage of Robert Schumann, age 30, to Clara Wieck, on the day before her 21st birthday.
Thursday, September 13
Bernstein meets Wharton ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Elmer Bernstein (b. 1922-2004): Farewell Dinner, from The Age of Innocence Studio orchestra; Elmer Bernstein, cond. EMI Classics 57451 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Elmer Bernstein ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1819—German pianist, teacher and composer Clara Schumann (née Wieck), in Leipzig; 1874—Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg, in Vienna; 1917—American composer Robert Ward, in Cleveland; 1924—French film composer Maurice Jarre, in Lyons; He won an Academy Award in 1965 for his "Dr. Zhivago" film score; Deaths: 1894—French composer Emmanuel Chabrier, age 53, in Paris; 1977—English-born American conductor, arranger and new music patron, Leopold Stokowski, age 95, in Nether Wallop, Hampshire (England); 1985—French-born American composer, painter and mystical philosopher Dane Rudhyar, age 90, in San Francisco; Premieres: 1948 — Cyril Scott: Oboe Concerto, at Royal Albert Hall in London; 1956 — Stravinsky: "Canticum sacrum ad honorem Sancti Marci nomiminis," at St. Mark's in Venice, with the composer conducting; 1967 — Copland: "Inscape" for Orchestra (commissioned by the New York Philharmonic for its 125th Anniversary Year), at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein; 1986 — Bernstein: Concerto for Orchestra ("Jubilee Games"), at Avery Fisher Hall in New York, by the Israel Philharmonic with composer conducting.
Friday, September 14
Harris in China and Zhou in America ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Roy Harris (1898-1979): Symphony No. 3 Dallas Symphony; Eduardo Mata, cond. Dorian 90170 & Zhou Long (b. 1953): Lan Hua Hua (Shanbei) Shanghai Quartet Delos 3233 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Roy Harris On Zhou Long ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1737—Austrian composer Johann Michael Haydn, in Rohrau; He was the younger brother of Franz Joseph Haydn (b. 1732); 1760—Italian composer Luigi Cherubini, in Florence (although August 14 is occasionally cited as his birthdate); 1910—American composer and eminent theatrical conductor Lehman Engel, in Jackson, Miss.; 1910—Swiss composer Rolf Liebermann, in Zurich; Premieres: 1854 — Bruckner: Mass in Bb ("Missa Solemnis") in St. Florian, Austria; 1952 — Frank Martin: Concerto for Harpsichord, in Venice; 1954 — Britten: opera "The Turn of the Screw," in Venice at the Teatro La Fenice; 1968 — Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 12, in Moscow, by the Beethoven Quartet; 1978 — Barber: Third Essay for Orchestra, by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Zubin Mehta; 1994 — Richard Danielpour: Cello Concerto, commissioned and performed by San Francisco Symphony conducted by Herbert Blomstedt, with soloist Yo-Yo Ma; 1996 — Stockhausen: "Freitag aus Licht" (Friday from Light), at the Leipzig Opera; 1997 — Saariaho: "Graal Théâtre" (chamber version), in Helsinki, by the Avanti Ensemble and violinist John Storgards. 2002 — David Amram: Flute Concerto ("Giants of the Night"), in New Orleans by the Louisiana Philharmonic conducted by Klauspeter Seibel, with James Galway the soloist; 2002 — Colin Matthews, Judith Weir, Poul Ruders, David Sower, Michael Torke, Anthony Payne, and Magnus Linberg: "Bright Cecilia: Variations on a Theme by Purcell," at Royal Albert Hall in London, with the BBC Symphony, Leonard Slatkin conducting; This set of orchestral variations on a Purcell theme was commissioned by BBC Music magazine to celebrate its 10th anniversary; Other: 1731—J.S. Bach performs organ recitals in Dresden on Sept. 14-21; 1741—Handel finishes scoring his famous oratorio, "Messiah," begun on August 22 (The entire work was composed in a period of 24 days); These dates are according to the Julian "Old Style" calendar (Gregorian dates: Sept 2 to Sept. 25); 1914—W. C. Handy copyrights his most famous song, "The St. Louis Blues"; 1973—The Philadelphia Orchestra gives a concert in Beijing, the first American orchestra to perform in Red China; Eugene Ormandy conducts symphonies by Mozart (No. 35), Brahms (No. 1) and the American composer Roy Harris (No. 3).
Saturday, September 15
Mr. Parker and Mr. Ives ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Horatio Parker (1863-1919): Introduction, from Hora Novissima Nebraska Chamber Orchestra; John Levick, cond. Albany TROY-124/5 & Charles Ives (1874-1954): Scherzo, from Symphony No. 1 Chicago Symphony; Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Sony 44939 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Charles Ives ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1863—American composer and teacher, Horatio William Parker, in Auburndale, Mass.; He became chairman of the Yale music department in 1894, where he taught the young Charles Ives; 1890—Swiss composer Frank Martin, in Geneva; 1913—American composer Henry Brant, in Montréal, Canada; Deaths: 1945—Austrian composer Anton von Webern, age 61, accidentally shot by an American soldier in Mittersill, Austria; Premieres: 1946 — Cowell: "Hymn and Fuguing Tune" No. 5 (string orchestra arrangement), at the Saratoga Springs Convention Hall, by the Spa Music Festival Orchestra, F. Charles Adler conducting; This music was originally written for 5 voices, and in that form was premiered on April 14, 1946, at Times Hall in New York by the Randolph Singers directed by David Randolph; 1946 — Ives: String Quartet No. 2, at the Yaddo Music Festival in Saratoga, N.Y., by the Walden Quartet (This music was completed in 1913); 2000 — Sallinen: opera "King Lear," by the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki.
Sunday, September 16
Duke Ellington plays Grace Cathedral ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Edward “Duke” Ellington (1899-1974): Come Sunday Duke Ellington and his orchestra RCA/Bluebird 6641 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Duke Ellington More on Ellington ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1887—French composition teacher Nadia Boulanger, in Paris; Her pupils included a number of famous American composers from Aaron Copland to Philip Glass; 1844—French flutist and composer Paul Taffanel, in Bordeaux; Premieres: 1925 — Broadway premiere of Vincent Youmans' musical, "No, No Nanette," which had opened in Detroit on April 21, 1924, and had successful productions in Chicago and London before reaching New York City; 1965 — Duke Ellington: First Sacred Concert, at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco; 1966 — Barber: opera, "Anthony and Cleopatra" at the opening of the new Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center; 1995 — Harrison Birtwistle: "Panic" for alto sax, drummer, and orchestra, at the "Last Night" of the Centenary Proms at Royal Albert Hall in London, with the BBC Symphony conducted by Andrew Davis, with John Harle (sax) and Oauk Clarvis (dummer); 1999 — Libby Larsen: "Solo Symphony," by the Colorado Symphony, Marin Alsop conducting; Other: 1920—Italian tenor Enrico Caruso makes his last records (selections by Meyerbeer, Lully, Bartlett, and Rossini) for Victor Records in Camden, New Jersey; He would make his last operatic appearance at the old Metropolitan Opera House on Christmas Eve in 1920 (an evening performance of Halevy's "La Juive"), and die the following summer in Naples; 1977—Opera diva Maria Callas dies of a heart attack, age 53, in Paris. |
