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July 28-August 3, 2008

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Monday, July 28
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Photo
J. S. Bach
SYNOPSIS:
The legacy of J.S. Bach ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
J. S. Bach (1685 - 1750): Capriccio, S. 992
Angela Hewitt, piano
Hyperion 67306

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On Bach's life and music
On Bach's bible

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1893—Danish composer Rued Langgaard, in Copenhagen

Deaths:
1750—German composer Johann Sebastian Bach, age 65, in Leipzig; He died "a little after" 8:15 p.m. and was buried at St. John's cemetery on either July 30 or 31; In 1894 his body was exhumed, examined, and reburied in the Leipzig's St. Thomas Church, where he had served as Kantor
1838—Finnish composer Bernard Henrik Crusell, age 62, in Stockholm
1969—American songwriter and musical composer Frank Loesser, age 59, in New York City

Premieres:
1717 — Handel: "Water Music" on the river Thames (Julian date: July 17)
1823 — Spohr: opera "Jessonda," in Kassel
1840 — Berlioz: "Symphonie funebre et triomphale," in Paris, with the composer conducting (with a sword) over 200 marching musicians

Other:
1741—In Vienna, burial of Italian composer and violinist Antonio Vivaldi
1850—To mark the centenary of the composer's death, The Bach Gesellschaft is founded in Leipzig; Their goal is to publish a complete edition of Bach's works
1954 —Premiere of Columbia Pictures film "On the Waterfront," with a score by Leonard Bernstein
1997—Ligeti: opera "La Grand Macabre" (revised version), in Salzburg at the Grosses Festpielhaus


Tuesday, July 29
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Photo
Gene Gutchë
SYNOPSIS:
Gene Gutche ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
Gene Gutchë (1907 - 2001): Symphony No. 5, Op. 34
Cincinnati Symphony; Max Rudolf, cond.
CRI 825

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On Gene Gutchë

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1865 —Russian composer Alexander Glazunov, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: August 10)
1887 —Hungarian born American operetta composer Sigmund Romberg, in Nagy Kanizsa; He came to the U.S. in 1909, and settled in New York City, where his over 70 operettas were produced from 1914-1945
1900 —Soviet composer Alexander Mosolov, in Kiev (Gregorian date: August 10)
1925 —Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis, in Chios; He achieved international fame for his score for the 1965 film "Zobra the Greek"

Deaths:
1856 —German composer Robert Schumann, age 46, at an insane asylum in Endenich (near Bonn

Premieres:
1879 — Dvorák: String Quartet in Eb, Op. 51, in Berlin, by the Joachim Quartet
1962 — Gene Gutchë: Symphony No. 5 for strings, in Chautauqua, N.Y.


Wednesday, July 30
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Photo
SYNOPSIS:
Jon Leifs of Iceland ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
Jón Leifs (1899 -1968): Hekla
Helsinki Philharmonic; Leif Segerstam, cond.
Ondine 894

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On Jón Leifs
On the film "Tears of Stone"

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Deaths:
1968—Icelandic composer Jon Leifs, age 68, in Reykjavik

Premieres:
1965 — Duke Ellington: "The Golden Broom and the Golden Apples," by the New York Philharmonic, with the composer conducting, on the same concert as the belated premiere of Ives: "From the Steeples and the Mountains," with Lukas Foss conducting
1983 — Michael Torke: "Ceremony of Innocence," for chamber quintet, at the Tanglewood Music Center in Lenox, Mass., by fellows of the Tanglewood Center, Gunther Schuller conducting

Other:
1829—On a visit to Edinburgh, Mendelssohn visits Holyrood Palace and writes down the first measures of his "Scottish" Symphony


Thursday, July 31
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Photo
Composer and bandleader John Philip Sousa
SYNOPSIS:
Sousa leaves the Marine Band ...

MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM:
John Philip Sousa (1854 - 1932): Manhattan Beach
Dallas Wind Symphony; Jerry Junkin, cond.
Reference 94

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
On Sousa and the U.S. Marine Band

ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Deaths:
1886—Hungarian composer and pianist Franz Liszt, age 74, in Bayreuth

Premieres:
1922 — Hindemith: "Kammermusik" No. 1, Op. 42a, at Donaueschingen, Germany, with Hermann Scherchen conducting
1938 — Morton Gould: "Second American Sinfonietta," at a New York Philharmonic concert at Lewisohn Stadium conducted by the composer
1982 — Rochberg: opera "The Confidence Man" (after the novel by Hermann Melville), at the Sante Fe Opera in New Mexico
2004 — Jennifer Higdon: "Loco," at the Ravinia Festival, by the Chicago Symphony, Christoph Eschenbach conducting

Other:
1750—Probable date of J.S. Bach's burial in Leipzig (see July 28).


Friday, August 1
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ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1779—Baltimore lawyer Francis Scott Key, who in 1814 wrote the words of "The Star-Spangled Banner," setting his text to the tune of a popular British drinking song of the day, "To Anacreon in Heaven," written by John Stafford Smith; The text and the tune became the official national anthem by and Act of Congress in 1931;
1858—Austrian composer Hans Rott, in Vienna;
1913—American composer Jerome Moross, in Brooklyn;
1930—British pop song and musical composer Lionel Bart, of "Oliver!" fame, in London;

Deaths:
1973—Gian-Francesco Maliperio, Italian composer and first editor of collected works of Monteverdi and Vivaldi, age 91, in Treviso;

Premieres:
1740 — Thomas Arne: masque, “Alfred” (containing “Rule, Brittania”), in Clivedon (Gregorian date: August 12);
1921 — Hindemith: String Quartet No. 3, Op. 16, by the Amar Quartet (which included the composer on viola) in Donaueschingen, Germany;
1968 — Webern: "Rondo" for string quartet, written in 1906, at the Congregation of the Arts at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire;
1993 — Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Concerto for Horn and String Orchestra, at the Bravo! Music Festival in Vail, Colo., by soloist David Jolley with the Rochester Philharmonic, Lawrence Leighton Smith conducting;

Other:
1892—John Philip Sousa , age 37, quits the U.S. Marine Corps Band to form his own 100-piece marching band;
1893—In Spillville Iowa, Antonin Dvorák finishes his String Quintet in Eb, Op. 97 ("The American") during his summer vacation at the Czech settlement.


Saturday, August 2
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ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1891—English composer Sir Arthur Bliss, in London;
1905—German composer Karl Amadeus Hartmann, in Munich;
1936—British composer Anthony Payne, in London;

Deaths:
1827—English-born early American composer James Hewitt, age 57, in Boston;
1945—Italian opera composer Pietro Mascagni, age 81, in Rome;
1945—Austrian composer Emil Nikolaus von Reznicek, age 85, in Berlin;
1978—Mexican composer and conductor Carlos Chavez, age 79, in Mexico City;

Premieres:
1774 — Gluck: opera, "Orphee" (2nd version) in Paris at the Academie Royale; This is the French version of his Italian opera "Orfeo ed Euridice," which had premiered in Vienna in 1762;
1964 — Persichetti: Piano Concerto, at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire;
1990 — David Matthews: Romanza for cello and small orchestra (Mstislav Rostropovich, soloist); Patrick Gowers: Suite for solo violin and chamber orchestra (José-Luis Garcia soloist) and Patrick Doyle "The Thistle and the Rose" (soprano Maria McLaughlin soloist), at the ballroom of Buckingham Palace in London, by the English Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Raymond Leppard; All three works were specially written for a concert celebrating the 90th birthday of HM Queen Elisabeth (aka the Queen Mother);
1993 — John Harbison: "Three City Blocks" for symphonic band, in Fort Smith, Ark., by the U.S. Air Force Band, Lt. Col. Alan Bonner conducting;

Other:
1921—Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, age 48, dies in Naples;
1923—First festival of the International Society for Contemporary Music in Salzburg, Austria, offering chamber music by Schönberg, Berg and Bartók; Even though the Berg String Quartet, Op. 3 had premiered it Vienna on April 24, 1911, it was the 1923 Salzburg performance by the Havemann Quartet that established Berg's worldwide reputation in musical circles.


Sunday, August 3
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ALSO ON THIS DATE:
Births:
1884—Russian-born American composer Louis Gruenberg, near Brest-Litovsk (Julian date: July 22);
1896—Russian inventor Lev Sergeivitch Termen (anglicized to Leon Theremin) in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: August 15)

Deaths:
1784—Italian composer and teacher Giovanni Battista Martini, age 78, in Bologna; His students included Gluck, Mozart, Grétry, and Jommelli;

Premieres:
1829 — Rossini: opera, "Guillaume Tell" (William Tell), at the Paris Opéra;
1941 — Robert Russell Bennett: Symphony in D ("For the Dodgers"), in New York;
1961 — John Cage: "Atlas Eclipticalis," at the "International Week of Today's Music," in Montréal;
1967 — Lalo Schifrin: cantata, "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" (adapted from the composer's filmscore) by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, with Lawrence Foster conducting;

Other:
1668—German composer Dietrich Buxtehude marries the daughter of Franz Tunder, retiring organist at St. Mary's Church in Lübeck, as a condition to succeed Tunder in his position at St. Mary's; It is thought that both Handel and J.S. Bach were both interested in the position - but not in Tunder's daughter;
1778—Milan’s famous Teatro alla Scala (La Scala) opens with a performance of “L’Europa riconosciuta” by Italian opera composer Antonio Salieri, a work written specially for the occasion; The theater took its name from the site previously occupied by the church of Santa Maria della Scala (named after Bernabo Visconti’s wife, Beatrice della Scala); This same opera, conducted by Riccardo Muti, was performed on Dec. 7, 2004 at the Gala reopening of La Scala after three years of major renovation;
1779—Mozart finishes in Salzburg his "Posthorn" Serenade;
1795—The Paris Conservatory of Music is founded by the National Revolutionary Convention.