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Archives Find past shows by date:  Complete archive
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May 11-17, 2009
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Monday, May 11
Lloyd-Webber's long-lived "Cats" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644 – 1704): Sonata violino solo representativa Il Giardino Armonico; Giovanni Antonini, cond. Teldec 21464 & Andrew Lloyd Webber (b. 1948): Cats Overture Original Broadway Cast orchestra Geffen 22031 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Biber Andrew Lloyd Webber official Web site More Lloyd Webber links ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1791—Bohemian composer Jan Václav (Johann) Voríšek(Worzischek), in Vamberk; 1855—Russian composer Anatoly Liadov, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: April 29); 1888—American popular song composer Irving Berlin (Isidore Balin) inTemun, Russia (Julian date: April 29); 1895—American composer William Grant Still, in Woodville, Miss.; 1954—Scottish composer Judith Weir, in Aberdeen; Deaths: 1849—German composer Otto Nicolai, age 38, in Berlin; 1916—German composer, Max Reger, age 43, in Leipzig; 1947—Swedish composer Ture Rangström, age 62, in Stockholm; Premieres: 1728 — Handel: opera "Tolomeo, re d'Egitto" (Julian date: April 30); 1917 — Busoni: opera "Arlecchino" (Harlequin) and "Turandot" in Zürich at the Stadttheater; 1945 — Bernstein: "Hashkiveinu" (text from the Sabbath Evening Service) for Cantor, Choir and Organ, at Park Avenue Synagogue in New York City, by Cantor David Puttterman, Max Heffman conducting; 1948 — Cowell: "Hymn, Chorale, and Fuguing Tune" No. 8 for strings, at Florida State University Recital Hall by the School of Music Faculty String Quartet; 1955 — Bliss: Violin Concerto, in London; 1963 — William Grant Still: opera "A Southern Interlude," by the University of Miami Opera; This opera was later revised as "Highway 1, U.S.A."; 1966 — Andrew Imbrie: Symphony No. 1, by the San Francisco Symphony; 1981 — Andrew Lloyd-Webber: musical "Cats" (after T.S. Eliot's "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats") in London at the New London Theatre; This enormously popular and long-running musical opened on Broadway on October 7, 1982; 1984 — John Harbison: "Ulysses' Bow," by the New Haven Symphony, Murry Sidlin conducting; 1995 — John Adams: musical "I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky"at the Zellerbach Playhouse in Berkeley, California, with the Paul Dresher Ensemble conducted by Grant Gershon; 2000 — Colin Matthews: "Pluto The Renewer" (as a new contribution to Gustav Holst's "The Planet"), in Manchester, by the Hallé Orchestra, Kent Nagano conducting; 2002 — Kenneth Frazelle: "Concerto for Chamber Orchestra," in Glendale, Calif., by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Jeffrey Kahane conducting.
Tuesday, May 12
Reich and Korot tell tales ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Steve Reich (b. 1936): Music for Large Ensemble Alarm Will Sound and Ossia; Alan Pierson, cond. Nonesuch 79546 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Reich Web pages at Boosey & Hawkes Reich and Korot on their "Three Tales" More on "Three Tales" ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1739—Bohemian composer Johann Baptist Wanha (Vanhall) in Nechanicz; 1754—German composer and publisher (of Mozart and Beethoven) Franz Anton Hoffmeister, in Rottenburg; 1755—Italian violinist and composer Giovanni Viotti, in Fontanetto da Po; 1842—French composer Jules Massenet, in Montaud, near St.-Etienne, Loire; 1845—French composer Gabriel Fauré, in Pamiers (Ariège); 1903—English composer Sir Lennox Berkeley, in Boar's Hill, near Oxford; 1941—American composer, harpsichordist and organist Anthony Newman, in Los Angeles; Deaths: 1871—French opera composer Daniel-François Auber, age 89, in Paris; 1884—Bohemian composer Bedrich Smetana, age 60, in Prague; 1931—Belgian composer, violinist and conductor Eugene Ysaÿe, age 72, in Brussels; Premieres: 1736 — Handel: opera "Atalanta" in London at the Covent Garden Theater; Handel dedicated the opera to the recently-married Frederick, Prince of Wales (Gregorian date: May 23); 1832 — Donizetti: "L'Elisir d'Amore" (Elixir of Love), in Milan; 1894 — R. Strauss: opera "Guntram," in Weimar , with Strauss conducting; 1917 — Bartók: ballet "The Wooden Prince," in Budapest; 1926 — Shostakovich: Symphony No. 1, by Leningrad Philharmonic, Nikolai Malko conducting; 1937 — Walter Damrosch: "The Man Without a Country," in New York at the Metropolitan Opera; 1938 — Honegger: opera "Joan of Arc at the Stake" (concert performance) in Basel, Switzerland, at the Grosser Musiksaal; The first staged production occurred in Zürich on June 13, 1942; 1938 — Korngold: premiere showing of Warner Brothers' film "The Adventures of Robin Hood"; 1943 — Glière: Concerto for Coloratura Soprano and Orchestra, in Moscow; 1944 — Ginastera: "Overture to the Creole Faust," in Santiago, Chile; 1980 — John Harbison: Concerto for Piano, at Alice Tully Hall in New York, with soloist Robert Miller and the American Composers Orchestra, Gunther Schuller conducting; 1983 — Earle Brown: "Sounder Rounds" for orchestra, in Saarbrücken, Germany; 2002 — Steve Reich & Beryl Korot: multi-media presentation "Three Tales" ("Hindenburg," "Bikini," and "Dolly") at the Vienna Festival in Austria, by members of the Ensemble Moderne and Synergy Vocals, directed by Bradley Lubman.
Wednesday, May 13
Beach at the opera ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Amy Beach (1867 – 1944): Cabildo ensemble; Ransom Wilson Delos 3170 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Amy Beach A recent biography of Beach ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1842—English composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, in Lambeth (London); 1913—American organist and record retailer, William Schwann, in Salem Ill.; In 1949 he began publication of the Schwann Record Catalog, a guide to phonograph records in print; Premieres: 1833 — Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4 ("Italian"), in London, by the Philharmonic Society, with the composer conducting; 1877 — Franck: "Les Eolides," in Paris at a Lamoureux Concert; 1949 — Panufnik: "Sinfonia Rustica," in Warsaw; 1987 — Harbison: Symphony No. 2, by the San Francisco Symphony, Herbert Blomstedt conducting; 1993 — Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Bassoon Concerto, by the Pittsburgh Symphony conducted by Lorin Maazel, with Nancy Groeres the soloist; 1995 — first professional production of Any Beach: opera "Cabildo," at Alice Tully Hall in New York City as a "Great Performances" telecast conducted by Ransom Wilson; The world premiere performance was given on Feb. 27, 1945 (two months after Beach's death), by the Opera Workshop at the University of Georgia in Athens, directed by Hugh Hodgson; 2001 — Harbison: "North and South (Elizabeth Bishop Cycle)," by the Chicago Chamber Musicians; Other: 1862—First concert by the Theodore Thomas Orchestra in New York City; His program includes the American premieres of Wagner's "Flying Dutchman" Overture and Liszt's arrangement for piano and orchestra of Schubert's "Wanderer Fantasy." 1875—American premiere of J.S. Bach's "Magnificat," during the May Festival in Cincinnati, conducted by Theodore Thomas; The Cincinnati Commercial review of May 14 was not favorable: "The work is difficult in the extreme and most of the chorus abounds with rambling sub-divisions. We considering the ‘Magnifcat' the weakest thing the chorus has undertaken . . . possessing no dramatic character and incapable of conveying the magnitude of the labor that has been expended upon its inconsequential intricacies. If mediocrity is a mistake, the ‘Magnifcat' is the one error of the Festival"; Thomas also conducted the next documented performance in Boston on Mar. 1, 1876 (for which composer John Knowles Paine performed as organ accompanist to a chorus of 300).
Thursday, May 14
Rautavaara's Fifth ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Einojuhani Rautavaara (b. 1928): Symphony No. 5 Leipzig Radio Symphony; Max Pommer, cond. BMG 62671 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Rautavaara More on Rautavaara ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1885—German conductor and composer, Otto Klemperer, in Breslau; 1917—American composer Lou Harrison, in Portland, Ore.; Deaths: 1847—German composer Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, age 41, in Berlin; She was the sister of Felix Mendelssohn; Premieres: 1723 — Handel: opera "Flavio, re de' Langobardi" (Flavio, King of the Langobards), in London at the King's Theater in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: May 25); 1832 — Mendelssohn: "Hebrides" Overture ("Fingal's Cave"), in London, conducted by the composer; 1914 — R. Strauss: ballet "Josephslegende," in Paris; 1919 — Debussy: Saxophone Rhapsody (orchestral version by Roger-Ducasse), at a Société Nationale de Musique concert conducted by André Caplet at the Salle Gaveau in Paris; 1923 — Holst: "The Perfect Fool," in London at Covent Garden Opera House; 1941 — Cage: "Third Construction" for four percussionists, in San Francisco; 1942 — Copland: "Lincoln Portrait," by the Cincinnati Symphony conducted by André Kostelanetz, with William Adams the narrator; 1953 — American premiere of Stravinsky's opera, "The Rake's Progress," at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, with the composer conducting; The world premiere performance occurred on September 11, 1951, in Venice, again with the composer conducting; 1966 — Ginastera: "Concerto per Corde," by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1986 — Rautavaara: Symphony No. 5, in Helsinki, by Finnish Radio Symphony, Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting; 1987 — Alvin Singleton: "Shadows" for orchestra. By the Atlanta Symphony, Robert Shaw conducting; 1992 — James MacMillan: "Sinfonietta" at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, by the London Sinfonietta, Martyn Brabbins conducting; 1993 — Philip Glass: opera "Orphée" (based on the Jean Cocteau film), by the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass.; Other: 1719—Handel is commanded by the Lord Chamberlain (Thomas Holles, Duke of Newcastle), to hire singers for the recently established Royal Academy of Music's productions of Italian operas (Gregorian date: May 25); 1974—Final London concert performance by conductor Leopold Stokowski, age 92 conducting the New Philharmonia Orchestra at Royal Albert Hall: The program was Symphony No. 4 by Brahms, the "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis" by Vaughan Williams, the "Merry Waltz" by Otto Klemperer, and the "Rapsodie espagnole" by Ravel; This was not Stokowski's "final" concert appearance, however; He was on the podium again in Venice in July of that year, and continued to make studio recordings; He died on September 13, 1977, at the age of 95 in his house in Nether Wallop, Hampshire, England;
Friday, May 15
Thompson's Third ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Randall Thompson (1899 – 1984): Symphony No. 3 The New Zealand Symphony; Andrew Schenck, cond. Koch 7074 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Thompson On Thompson's choral & vocal music ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1567—Baptismal date of Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi, in Cremona; 1808—Irish composer Michael William Balfe, in Dublin; 1908—Swedish composer Lars-Erik Larsson, in Akarp (near Lund); 1941—American composer and pianist Richard Wilson, in Cleveland; Premieres: 1913 — Debussy: ballet "Jeux" (Games), at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées by the Ballet Russe, Pierre Monteux conducting; 1920 — Stravinsky: ballet "Pulcinella," by Ballet Russe; at the Paris Opéra, with Ernest Ansermet conducting; 1939 — Douglas Moore: opera "The Devil and Daniel Webster," in New York City; 1949 — Hindemith: Concerto for Winds, Harp and Orchestra, in New York; 1949 — Randall Thompson: Symphony No. 3, Columbia University, in New York, Thor Johnson conducting; 1958 — Cage: Piano Concerto, in New York City; 1960 — Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 7, in Leningrad, by the Beethoven Quartet; 1972 — Rochberg: String Quartet No. 3, at Tully Hall in New York City, by the Concord Quartet; 1992 — Stephen Paulus: "Air on Seurat (The Grand Canal)", for cello and piano, at the National Cello Competition at Arizona State University in Phoenix, Ariz.; 1993 — Steve Reich: opera "The Cave," in Vienna at the Wiener Festspielhaus; Other: 1750—First documented report of an audience standing during the "Hallelujah" chorus of Handel's "Messiah"; On May 1 and 15 in 1750, "Messiah" had been performed as a benefit for the Foundling Hospital charity (Gregorian dates: May 12 and 26, respectively).
Saturday, May 16
Tower's "Concerto for Orchestra" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Joan Tower (b. 1938): Concerto for Orchestra Colorado Symphony; Marin Alsop, cond. Koch 7469 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Joan Tower A 1987 interview with Tower ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1931—American composer Donald James Martino, in Plainfield, N.J.; Deaths: 1910—Russian composer Mily Balakirev (Gregorian date: May 29); Premieres: 1726 — Handel: opera "Alessandro" (Julian date: May 5); 1889 — Massenet: opera "Esclarmonde" at the Paris Opéra; 1948 — Quincy Porter: Viola Concerto, in New York City; 1948 — Wallingford Rieger: Symphony No. 3, in New York City; 1966 — Ralph Shapey: "Rituals," in Chicago; 1966 — Villa-Lobos: Sinfonia No. 9, by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1969 — Cage: "HPSCHD," for amplified harpsichord and 51 tapes, in Urbana, Ill.; 1971 — Britten: opera "Owen Wingrave," as a telecast on BBC-TV in England and NET (National Educational Television) in the United States; 1972 — Jaocb Druckman: "Windows" for orchestra, by the Chicago Symphony; This work was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1972; 1974 — Bernstein: ballet "Dybbuk," by the New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center, with choreography by Jerome Robbins and the composer conducting; 1991 — Joan Tower: "Concerto for Orchestra," by the St. Louis Symphony, Leonard Slatkin conducting; Other: 1792—The Teatro la Fenice ("The Phoenix") opens in Venice; 1888—Emile Berliner gives the first public display of his invention, the flat gramophone disk, at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.
Sunday, May 17
Bernstein's Philharmonic "stats" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Leonard Bernstein (1918 – 1990): Symphony No. 2 (The Age of Anxiety) Marc-Andre Hamelin, piano; The Ulster Orchestra; Dmitry Sitkovetsky, cond. Hyperion 67170 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Bernstein ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1866—French composer Erik Alfred-Leslie Satie, in Honfleur; 1901—German composer Werner Egk, in Auchsesheim, near Donauswörth; His original last name was Mayer, and it is said (although denied by the composer) that the he chose the acronym E-G-K because it stood for "ein grosser Komponist" ("a great composer"); 1923—American composer Peter Mennin, in Erie, Pa.; Deaths: 1935—French composer Paul Dukas, age 69, in Paris; Premieres: 1779 — Gluck: opera "Iphigénie en Tauride" (Iphigenia in Taurus), at the Paris Opéra; 1890 — Mascagni: "Cavalleria Rusticana," in Rome at the Teatro Costanzi; 1904 — Ravel: "Schéhérazade," in Paris, with vocalist Jane Hatto and Alfred Cortot, conducting; 1919 — Ravel: "Alborado del gracioso" (orchestral version), in Paris at Pasdeloup Concert; 1929 — Prokofiev: Symphony No. 3, in Paris, by the Orchestre Symphonique de Paris, with Pierre Monteux conducting; 1933 — Cowell: "Reel," for small orchestra, in New York; 1939 — Prokofiev: cantata "Alexander Nevsky," in Moscow; 1946 — Martin: "Petite Symphonie Concertante," in Zurich, Paul Sacher conducting; 1960 — Ned Rorem: "11 Studies for 11 Players," for chamber ensemble, at the State University of Buffalo (N.Y.), conducted by the composers; 1990 — Rautavaara: "Vincent," in Helsinki at the Finnish National Opera; 2000 — Michael Torke: "Corner in Manhattan," by the Minnesota Orchestra, Eiji Oue conducting; 2001 — Christopher Rouse: Clarinet Concerto, by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Christoph Eschenbach, with Larry Combs the soloist; Other: 1922—Music of "The President's Own" reached homes across the nation when the first Marine Band radio program was broadcast; 1969—Leonard Bernstein's last concert as Music Director of the New York Philharmonic, having conducted 939 concerts with the orchestra (831 as its Music Director); Bernstein conducted 36 world premieres with the orchestra; He continued to appear with the Philharmonic as an occasional guest conductor until his death in 1990; 1978—Philips Electronics of The Netherlands announces a new digital sound reproduction system from flat, silver "Compact Discs." |
