 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Archives Find past shows by date:  Complete archive
Your support makes our online services possible. Contribute Now.
 Your purchase from Public Radio Market helps support the American Composers Forum and Composers Datebook. Your support makes our online services possible. Contribute Now.  |
April 13-19, 2009
Playing audio requires the free RealPlayer from RealNetworks. See Audio Help for instructions.
Monday, April 13
Handel "Recycled" by Zwilich (and Handel himself) ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: George Frederic Handel (1685 - 1759): Sinfoni, fr Messiah Boston Baroque Orchestra; Martin Pearlman, cond. Telarc 80348 & George Frederic Handel (1685 - 1759): Violin Sonata in D, Op. 1, no. 13 Andrew Manze, violin; Richard Egarr, harpsichord Harmonia Mundi 907259 & Ellen Taafe Zwilich (b. 1939): Concerto Grosso 1985 New York Philharmonic; Zubin Mehta, cond. New World 372 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Handel On Zwilich ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1810—French composer Felicien David, in Cadenet, Vaucluse; 1816—English composer Sir William Sterndale Bennett, in Sheffield; 1938—American composer and pianist Frederic Rzewski, in Westfield, Mass.; Deaths: 1756—Burial date of the German composer and keyboard virtuoso Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, age c. 29, in Dresden; 1826—German composer Franz Danzi, age 62, in Schwetzingen; 1944—French composer and pianist Cécile Chaminade, age 86, in Monte Carlo; Premieres: 1742 — Handel: oratorio, "Messiah,"in Dublin (Gregorian date: April 24); 1789 — Mozart: Divertimento in Eb (K. 563) for string trio, in Dresden, by Anton Teiber (violin), Anton Kraft (cello), and the composer (viola); 1943 — Randall Thompson: "A Testament of Freedom" for men's voices and piano, at the University of Virginia; The orchestral version of this work premiered in Boston on April 6, 1945; 1952 — Morton Gould: Symphony No. 4 ("West Point Symphony") for band, during the West Point Military Academy Sesquicentennial Celebration in West Point, N.Y, by the Academy Band, with the composer conducting; 1961 — Luigi Nono: opera "Intolerance 1960," in Venice at the Teatro La Fenice; 1992 — Schnittke: opera "Life with an Idiot," in Amsterdam at the Dutch Opera; 1997 — Morten Lauridsen: "Lux Aeterna"for chorus and chamber orchestra, at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Paul Salamunovich conducting; 2000 — Danielpour: Piano Trio ("A Child's Reliquary"), at Hancher Auditorium at the University of Iowa, by the Kalichstein-Robinson-Laredo Trio; Other: 1823—Franz Liszt, age 11, performs at the Imperial Redoutensaal in Vienna; Legend has it that Beethoven attended this performance and planted a kiss on the young performer's forehead, but in fact Beethoven did not attend the concert; According to Liszt, the incident occurred a few days before at Beethoven's home, after Liszt had performed one of Beethoven's works; See Dec. 1, 1822, for Liszt's Vienna debut; 1896—The American Guild of Organists is founded in New York City; 1958—American pianist Van Cliburn wins the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, the first American to do so.
Tuesday, April 14
Jay Ungar and Roy Harris meet Ken Burns? ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Jay Ungar (b. 1946): Ashokan Farewell Jay Ungar, fiddle; Newman-Oltman Guitar Duo MusicMasters 67145 & Roy Harris (1898-1979): Symphony No. 6 (Gettysburg) Pacific Symphony; Keith Clark, cond. Varese -Sarabande 47245 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Jay Ungar (and Molly Mason) On Roy Harris ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1933—American electronic music composer Morton Subotnik, in Los Angeles; Deaths: 1759—German-born British composer George Frideric Handel, age 74, in London; He is buried in Westminster Abbey (see April 20); 1843—Austrian composer and violinist Josef Lanner, age 42, in Oberdöbling; 1915—Russian composer and pianist Alexander Scriabin (Gregorian date: April 27); Premieres: 1789 — Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 26 in D, K. 537 ("Coronation"), at the Royal Saxon Court in Dresden, with the composer as soloist; Mozart performed this concerto again in Frankfurt on October 15, 1790, at the festivities surrounding the coronation of Emperor Leopold II - hence its nickname; 1883 — Delibes: opera "Lakmé," in Paris at the Opéra-Comique; 1932 — Hindemith: "Philharmonic Concerto" in Berlin, for the jubilee of the Berlin Philharmonic, Wilhelm Furtwängler conducting; 1944 — Roy Harris: Symphony No. 6, by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1951 — Cowell: "Hymn and Fuguing Tune No. 3," for strings, in Los Angeles; 1967 — Penderecki: oratorio "Dies Irae," in Krakow; 1967 — Webern: "Three Pieces "for orchestra, posthumously, by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1972 — Paul Chihara: "Grass" for double-bass and orchestra, at Oberlin College, Ohio; 1972 — Sessions: "Concertino" for small orchestra, in Chicago; 1977 — Leon Kirchner: opera "Lily" (after Saul Bellow's novel, "Henderson, the Rain King"), in New York City; 1996 — Zwilich: "Jubilation" for orchestra, by the University of Georgia (Athens) orchestra, Yoel Levi conducting.
Wednesday, April 15
Bryars and Horner on the Titanic ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Gavin Bryars (b. 1943): The Sinking of the Titanic Gavin Bryars and ensemble Point Music 446 249 & James Horner (b. 1953): Titanic sountrack studio orchesra; James Horner, cond. Sony Classcial 63213 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Gavin Bryars On James Horner More on Horner ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1688—German composer Johann Friedrich Fasch, in Buttelstadt; Premieres: 1738 — Handel: opera "Serse" (Xerxes), in London at the King's Theater in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: April 26); 1739 — Handel: oratorio "Israel in Egypt" (Julian date: April 4); 1902 — Ravel: "Pavane pour une infante défunte" (Pavan for the Dead Princess, or perhaps more accurately: Pavan for a Princess of the Past), in Paris, by Ravel's friend Ricardo Viñes; 1915 — de Falla: ballet "El Amor brujo" (Love the Magician), in Madrid; 1918 — Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No. 3 and "Visions fugitives" Op. 22, in Petrograd (St. Petersburg), by the composer; 1926 — Douglas Moore: opera "The Pageant of P.T. Barnum," by the Cleveland Orchestra, Nikolai Sokoloff conducting; 1927 — Converse: orchestral fantasy "Flivver Ten Million" (celebrating the ten millionth Ford automobile produced), by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1931 — Copland: "A Dance Symphony," by the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Leopold Stokowski; This work incorporates material from Copland's 1923 ballet"Grohg," which had not been produced; The symphony was one the winners of the 1929 Victor Talking Machine Company Competition Prize; The judges of the competition decided that none of the submitted works deserved the full $25,000 prize, so they awarded $5000 each to four composers, including Copland, Ernest Bloch, and Louis Gruenberg, and gave $10,000 to Robert Russell Bennett (who had submitted two works); 1976 — William Schuman: "Concerto on Old English Rounds" for viola, women's chorus and orchestra, in New York City; 1979 — John Harbison: Quintet for Winds, at Jordan Hall in Boston, by the Aulos Quintet; 1980 — Paul Creston: Piano Trio, Op. 112, in Grinnell, Iowa, by the Mirecourt Trio; 1981 — Stanislaw Skrowaczewski: Clarinet Concerto, in Minneapolis, by soloist Joseph Longo and the Minnesota Orchestra, with the composer conducting; 1989 — Andrew Lloyd Webber: musical "Aspects of Love," in London; The musical premiered on Broadway on April 8, 1990; 1994 — Michael Torke: "Bone" for mixed ensemble, at the Rensselaer (N.Y.) Polytechnical Institute, by the Dog of Desire ensemble, David Alan Miller conducting; 1998 — Philip Glass: "digital" opera "Monsters of Grace," at UCLA, by the Philip Glass Ensemble, Michael Riesman conducting, to computer animated images created by Robert Wilson; 2000 — Steve Mackey: "Tuck and Roll" (Concerto for Electric Guitar and Orchestra), in Miami with the composer as soloist with the New World Symphony conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas; Other: 1847—American premiere of Verdi's opera "Ernani," at the Park Theatre in New York City; 1971—Igor Stravinsky's funeral mass held at Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice; Stravinsky is buried on the island of San Michele.
Thursday, April 16
Meyerbeer and Lloyd Webber -- "On Ice" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864): Les Patineurs (The Skaters) Ballet Philadelphia Orchestra/ Eugene Ormandy CBS/Sony 46341 & Andrew Lloyd Webber (b. 1948): Starlight Express Suite Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, cond. Telarc 80405 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Meyerbeer More on Meyerberr On Lloyd Webber ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1893—Spanish composer Federico Mompou, in Barcelona; 1924—American composer Henry Mancini, in Cleveland; Deaths: 1846—Italian composer and double-bass virtuoso Domenico Dragonetti, age 83, in London; Premieres: 1735 — Handel: opera "Alcina," in London at the Covent Garden Theatre; This was Handel's last operatic success in London (Gregorian date: April 27); 1791 — Mozart: Symphony No. 40 (re-scored to include a pair of clarinets) is performed in Vienna at concerts conducted by Antonio Salieri; 1849 — Meyerbeer: opera "Le prophète" (The Prophet), at the Paris Opéra; 1896 — Dvorák: String Quartet in Ab, Op. 105, at the Prague Conservatory, by four students (at the composer's special request, on the first anniversary of his returning home from America); 1909 — Arthur Foote: Suite for Strings in E, by the Boston Symphony with Max Fiedler conducting; 1942 — Barber: "Second Essay" for orchestra, in New York City; 1945 — Leo Sowerby: "Canticle of the Sun" for chorus and orchestra, in New York City; 1956 — Persichetti: Symphony No. 6 ("Symphony for Band"), in St. Louis, by the Washington University Chamber Band, Clark Mitze conducting; 1959 — Ned Rorem: Symphony No. 3, by the New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein conducting; 1967 — Ligeti: Cello Concerto, by the Berlin Radio Symphony conducted by Henryk Czyz, with Siegfried Palm the soloist; 1994 — David Ward-Steinman: "Cinnabar" Concerto for viola and chamber orchestra, at the University of San Diego, Calif., by the San Diego Contemporary Music Ensemble conducted by Lily Hood Gunn, with Karen Elaine as soloist; Other: 1888—American premiere of Verdi's opera "Otello," at the Academy of Music in New York City; 1920—American premiere of Debussy: "Fantasie," by Boston Symphony, Pierre Monteux conducting.
Friday, April 17
Hugo Wolf and the Wagner-Brahms Wars ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Hugo Wolf (1860-1903): Italian Serenade I Solisti Italiani Denon 9150 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Hugo Wolf On the Hugo Wolf Museum An essay on Wolf and Wagner ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1683—German composer Johann David Heinichen, in Krüssuln; 1774—Bohemian composer Jan Václav Tomášek (Johann Wenzel Tomaschek), in Skutec; 1897—Norwegian composer Harald Saeverud, in Bergen; Deaths: 1790—American statesman, scientist, amateur musician and composer Benjamin Franklin, age 84, in Philadelphia; 2002—Canadian composer and conductor Srul Irving Glick, age 67, in Toronto; Premieres: 1918 — Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No. 4 and Two Sonatinas, Op. 54, in Petrograd, by the composer; 1941 — Edward Joseph Collins: ”Lament and Jig"for orchestra, by the Chicago Symphony, Frederick Stock conducting; 1964 — Rozsa: "Notturno Ungherese," by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1965 — Stravinsky: "Variations (Aldous Huxley in memoriam)" and "Introitus (T.S. Eliot in memoriam)" in Chicago, conducted by Robert Craft; 1998 — Libby Larsen: "Songs of Light and Love" (poems by May Sarton), in Philadelphia, by soprano Benita Valente and the Network for New Music; 2003 — Gubaidulina: " The Light of the End"for orchestra, by the Boston Symphony, with Kurt Masur conducting; Other: 1833—American premiere of Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" (sung in English), at the Park Theatre in New York City; 1849—Gottschalk's formal début at the Salle Pleyel in Paris (He had had performed his first recital there on April 2, 1845, with Chopin in the audience); He performs some of his own compositions and is hailed as the first authentic composer of the New World; 1906—On tour in San Francisco with the Metropolitan Opera touring company, the great Italian tenor Enrico Caruso sings a performace of Bizet's "Carmen" the day before the Great San Francisco Earthquake;
Saturday, April 18
Of Mice and Maestros: Leopold Stokowski ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Thomas Canning (b. 1911): Fantasy on a Hymn Tune by Justin Morgan Houston Symphony: Leopold Stokowski, cond. Everest 9004 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Stokowski More on Stokowski ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1819—Austrian opera composer Franz von Suppé, in Spalato, Dalmatia; 1882—British-born American conductor, arranger and new music champion, Leopold Stokowski, in London; 1907 —Hungarian-born American composer Miklós Rósza, in Budapest; Deaths: 1936—Italian composer Ottorino Respighi, age 56, in Rome; Premieres: 1713 — Handel: "Utrecht Te Deum" (Julian date: April 7); 1800 — Beethoven: Horn Sonata, in Vienna, with horn virtuoso Wenzel Punto and the composer at the piano; 1898 — Chausson: Symphony, in Paris; 1909 — Rachmaninoff: "The Isle of the Dead" (Gregorian date: May 1); 1930 — Charles Wakefield Cadman: Violin Sonata, in Los Angeles, with violinist Vera Barstow; 1944 — Bernstein: ballet "Fancy Free," at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City, choreographed by Jerome Robbins, with the Ballet Theater orchestra conducted by the composer; 1958 — Easley Blackwood: Symphony No. 1, in Boston; 1958 — Quincy Porter: "New England Episodes", in Washington; 1977 — Broadway premiere of Sondheim: revue "Side by Side by Sondheim" (compiled from various Sondheim musicals by British singer-actor David Kernan and others); This revue opened in London on May 4, 1976; 1986 — John Harbison: "Music for 18 Winds," in Cambridge, Mass., by the MIT Chamber Players, John Harbison conducting.
Sunday, April 19
"76 Trombones" plus one: Meredith Willson and Wendy Mae Chambers ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Meredith Willson (1902-1984): Symphony No. 1 (A Symphony of San Francisco) Moscow Symphony; William T. Stromberg, cond. Naxos 559006 & Wendy Mae Chambers (b. 1953): A Mass for Mass Trombones trombone ensemble; David Gilbert, conductor Centaur 2263 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Meredith Willson On Wendy Mae Chambers ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1868—German composer Max von Schillings, in Duren; 1892—French composer Germaine Tailleferre, in Pau-St.-Maur; Deaths: 1799—Dutch composer, violinist and organist Pieter Hellendaal, age 78, in Cambridge (England); 1986—Swedish composer Dag Wiren, age 80, in Stockholm; Premieres: 1774 — Gluck: opera "Iphigenia in Aulis," in Paris at the Palais Royale Opéra; 1899 — Franck: String Quartet, in Paris; 1936 — Berg: Violin Concerto, in Barcelona at the Festival of the International Society for Contemporary Music, by the Pablo Casals Orchestra conducted by Hermann Scherchen with Louis Krasner (who had commissioned the work) as the soloist; 1964 — Stravinsky: "Fanfare for a New Theater," at the Inauguration of the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center; 1975 — Rameau: unfinished opera "Les Boréades," in London; This was Rameau's last opera, composed in 1764 and left unfinished at the time of the composer's death; For the 1975 premiére in London, conductor John Eliot Gardiner prepared a performing edition of the score; 2000 — Kernis: "Valentines" for soprano and orchestra, in Minneapolis, with Renée Fleming and the Minnesota Orchestra, Eiji Oue conducting; 2001 — Michael Daugherty: "UFO" for solo percussion and winds, in Denton, Texas, by Evelyn Glennie and the North Texas Wind Symphony, Eugene Migliaro Corporon conducting; 2001 — Poul Ruders: "Paganini Variations" for guitar and orchestra, with soloist David Starobin and the Odense Symphony of Denmark; Other: 1787—Mozart finishes his String Quintet in C (K. 515) in Vienna; Mozart had offered this work on a subscription basis via announcements in the Wiener Zeitung on April 2,5, and 9 of that year; due to the poor response, Mozart extended the offer June 25 through Jan. 1, 1789. 1851 —First documented American performance of Beethoven's "Coriolanus"Overture, at the Melodeon in Boston, during a "Grand Symphony Concert"conducted by C.C. Perkins. |
