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Archives Find past shows by date:  Complete archive
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October 12-18, 2009
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Monday, October 12
Martinu's Third ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Bohuslav Martinu ( 1890 – 1959): Symphony No. 3 National Orchestra of Ukraine; Arthur Fagen, cond. Naxos 8.553350 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Martinu ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1686 —German composer and lutenist Silvius Leopold Weiss, in Breslau; 1713—Baptismal date of German composer Johann Ludwig Krebs, in Butterstedt, Weimar; 1872—English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, in Down Ampney, Gloucestershire; 1880—English-born Canadian composer and organist Healey Willan, in London; Deaths: 1692—Italian composer Giovanni Battista Vitali, in Bologna, age 60; Premieres: 1910 — Vaughan Williams: "A Sea Symphony" (after Walt Whitman) at the Leeds Festival; 1924 — Mahler: Symphony No.10 (1st and 3rd movements only), arranged by Ernest Krenek (with additional retouching by Alexander von Zemlinksy and Franz Schalk), by Vienna Philharmonic, Franz Schalk conducting; The American premiere of these two movements was give on Dec. 6, 1949, by the Erie (Pa.) Philharmonic conducted by the composer's nephew, the Austro-American conductor Fritz Mahler (1901-1973); The English musicologist Deryck Cooke prepared the first performing edition of Mahler's entire Tenth Symphony which received its first performance on August 13, 1964, by the London Symphony conducted by Berthold Goldschmidt; Since then, Cooke has revised his arrangement, and several other musicologists have prepared their own rival performing editions of Mahler's surviving notation for this symphony; 1931 — Rachmaninoff: “Variations on a Theme of Corelli (La Folia)” for solo piano, in Montréal (Canada), by the composer; 1951 — Bizet: opera "Ivan le Terrible" (posthumously), in Bordeaux; 1951 — Dessau: opera "Die Verurteilung des Lukullus" (The Trial of Lucullus) (2nd version), in East Berlin at the Deutsche Staatsoper; 1961 — Douglas Moore: opera "The Wings of the Dove" (after the novel by Henry James), in New York; 1971 — Andrew Lloyd Webber: rock musical "Jesus Christ Superstar," in New York City; A choral version of this musical was performed in Kansas City, Kan. On May 15, 1971, and a touring company was launched to present the musical on July 12, 1971; Prior to any staged presentations, the work was first released as a double LP record album in October of 1970; 1984 — Olly Wilson: "Siinfonia," by the Boston Symphony, Seiji Ozawa conducting; 1984 — Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: "Celebration" for orchestra, by the Indianapolis Symphony, John Nelson conducting; 1997 — Sallinen: "Overture Solennel," in Monaco by the Monte Carlo Philharmonic, James DePreist conducting; 1998 — Philip Glass: opera "The Voyage," at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, Bruce Ferden conducting; 2000 — Rautavaara: Harp Concerto, in Minneapolis with harpist Kathy Kienzel and the Minnesota Orchestra, Omso Vänkä conducting; Other: 1739 —Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in Bb, Op. 6, no. 7 (Gregorian date: Oct. 23).
Tuesday, October 13
Diamond's Second ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: David Diamond (1915 – 2005): Symphony No. 2 Seattle Symphony; Gerard Schwarz, cond. Delos 3093 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On David Diamond ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1864—Russian composer Alexander Grechaninov, in Moscow (Gregorian date: Oct. 25); 1912—Moravian-born American composer Hugo Weisgall, in Ivancice, Czechoslovakia; Deaths: 1694—German composer and trumpeter Johann Christoph Pezel, age c. 55, in Bautzen; 1979—English composer Rebecca Clarke, age 93, in New York City; Premieres: 1855 — Brahms: Piano Trio No. 1 in B (first version, European premiere?), in Danzig (Germany); The American premiere occurred just one month later, on Nov. 27, 1955, at Dodworth's Hall in New York City, with violinist Theodore Thomas, cellist Carl Bergmann, and pianist William Mason; For many years, the American performance was claimed as the first performance anywhere; A recent Grove dictionary cites this earlier Danzig performance, but does not indicate if it was a private reading or public performance; 1917 — Mussorgsky (arr. Cui): opera "The Fair at Sorochinsky," posthumously, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: Oct. 26); 1944 — David Diamond: Symphony No. 2, by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Serge Koussevitzky, conductor; 1945 — Martinu: Symphony No. 3, by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1958 — William Kraft: "Nonet" for brass and percussion, in Los Angeles; 1968 — Allan Pettersson: Symphony No. 7, in Stockholm; 1977 — Andrew Imbrie's "Concerto for Flute" at New York Philharmonic concert with Julius Baker as the soloist. 1982 — Bernstein: opera-house version of "Candide," at Lincoln Center by the New York City Opera; 1991 — Daniel Asia: "Black Light" for orchestra, at Carnegie Hall in New York by the American Composers Orchestra, Dennis Russell Davies conducting; 1994 — James MacMillan: "Memento" for string quartet, at Merkin Hall in New York City, by the Kronos Quartet; 1998 — Kancheli: Piano Quartet ("L'istesso tempo), in Seattle, by the Bridge Ensemble
Wednesday, October 14
An all-star Gershwin premiere ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: George Gershwin (1898 - 1937): Girl Crazy Studio Cast Recording Sony 60704 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On George Gershwin ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1871—Austrian composer and conductor Alexander Zemlinsky, in Vienna; 1935—American composer La Monte (Thorton) Young, in Bern, Idaho; 1952—Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, in Helsinki; Deaths: 1990—American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, age 72, in New York City; Premieres: 1670 — Lully: comedy-ballet, "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme" (to a text by Molière), at the Château de Chambord; 1883 — Dvorák: Violin Concerto, Op. 53, in Prague; 1924 — Schoenberg: opera "Die glückliche Hand" (The Fateful Hand), in Vienna at the Volksoper; 1930 — Gershwin: musical "Girl Crazy," at the Alvin Theater in New York City; This show includes the classic Gershwin songs "Embraceable You" and "I Got Rhythm"; 1956 — Hovhaness: Symphony No. 3, by the Symphony of the Air, Leopold Stokowski conducting; 1960 — Piston: Violin Concerto No. 2, by the Pittsburgh Symphony, William Steinberg conducting, with soloist Joseph Fuchs; 1970 — Lutoslawski: Cello Concerto, in London, by the Bournemouth Symphony conducted by Edward Downes, with Mstislav Rostropovich the soloist; 1971 — Argento: opera "Postcard from Morocco," by the Center Opera at the Cedar Village Theater, in Minneapolis, Minn.; 1995 — George Tsontakis: "The Dove Descending" (No. 3 of "Four Symphonic Quartets" after poems by T.S. Eliot), by the Pasadena Symphony, Jorge Mester conducting; 1999 — Peter Lieberson: Piano Concerto No. 2 ("Red Garuda") by soloist Peter Serkin with the Boston Symphony, Seiji Ozawa conducting;
Thursday, October 15
Nancarrow's Quartet No. 3 ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Conlon Nancarrow (1912 – 1997): String Quartet No. 3 Arditti Quartet Grammavision 79440 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Nancarrow ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1775—Finnish-born Swedish composer Bernhard Crusell, in Nystad (Uusikaupunki), Finland; 1844—German philosopher and occasional composer Friedrich Nietzsche, in Röcken, near Lützen; 1905—Swedish composer Dag Wirén, in Noraberg, Oerebro; Deaths: 1900—Czech composer Zdenek Fibich, age 49, in Prague; 1964—American composer Cole Porter, age 73, in Santa Monica, California; Premieres: 1780 — Haydn: opera "La Fedelta premiata," at Esterházy; 1886 — Mussorgsky: "A Night on Bald Mountain," posthumously, in a re-orchestration by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, in St. Petersburg, by the Russian Symphony conducted by Rimsky-Korsakov (Gregorian date: Oct. 27); 1886 — Dvorák: oratorio "St. Ludmilla," Op. 71, at the Leeds Festival in England; 1905 — Debussy: "La Mer," at a Lamoureux Concert in Paris, conducted by Chevillard;. 1933 — Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 1, by the Leningrad Philharmonic conducted by Fritz Stiedry, with the composer as piano soloist, and the trumpet solos played by Alexander Shmidt; 1938 — R. Strauss: opera, "Daphne," in Dresden at the State Opera, karl Boehm conducting, with vocal soloists Margarete Teschemacher (Daphne), Torsten Ralf (Apollo), Helena Jung (Gaea), and Martin Kremer (Leukippos); 1943 — Britten: "Serenade" for tenor, horn, and strings, in London; 1943 — Lukas Foss: “The Prairie,” by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1946 — first concert performance of Britten: "Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Henry Purcell)", in Liverpool; This music was written for an education film entitled "The Instruments of the Orchestra," which was first shown on November 29, 1946; 1955 — Xenakis: "Metastasis" for 61 instruments, in Donaueschingen, Germany; 1981 — Robert Starer: Violin Concerto, by the Boston Symphony, Seiji Ozawa conducting, with Itzhak Perlman as soloist; 1985 — Christopher Rouse: “Lares Hercii” for violin and harpsichord, in Rochester, N.Y., by Charles Castleman (violin) and Arthur Haas (harpsichord); 1988 — Conlon Nancarrow: String Quartet No. 3, in Cologne, Germany, by the Arditti Quartet; 1997 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "The Jacobite Rising," in Glasgow, with the composer conducting soloists and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Chorus; 2003 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Naxos Quartet" No. 3, at Wigmore Hall, London, by the Maggini Quartet; Other: 1738— London music publisher John Walsh the younger issues Handel's Organ Concertos, Op. 4 (see Julian date: Oct. 4); 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in g, Op. 6, no. 6 (Gregorian date: Oct. 26); 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in F, Op. 6, no. 2 (see Julian date: Oct. 4); 1844—Johann Strauss, Jr., age 18, conducts his own orchestra for the first time, at Dommayer's Casino in Hietzing (just outside Vienna); 1956—Leonard Bernstein named co-principal conductor of the New York Philharmonic (with Dimitri Mitropoulos).
Friday, October 16
Kodaly's obscure and popular opera ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Zoltán Kodály (1882 – 1967): Háry János Suite Budapest Festival Orchestra; Ivan Fischer, cond. Philips 462 824 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Kodály ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1679 —Baptismal date of Bohemian composer Jan Dismas Zelenka, in Lounovice; 1821—Hungarian composer Franz [Ferenc] Doppler, in Lemberg (now Lvov); Deaths: 1621—Dutch composer and organist Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, age c. 59, in Amsterdam; 1750—German composer and lutenist Silvius Leopold Weiss, age 64, in Dresden; 1920—Brazilian composer Alberto Nepomunceno, age 56, in Rio de Janeiro; 1946—British composer Sir Granville Bantock, age 78, in London; Premieres: 1893 — Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: Oct. 28); 1912 — Schoenberg: "Pierrot Lunaire," in Berlin; 1925 — R. Strauss: "Parergon to the Symphonia domestica," for piano left hand and orchestra, in Dresden, with Paul Wittgenstein the soloist; 1926 — Kodály: opera "Háry János," at the Budapest Opera; 1934 — Miaskovsky: Symphony No. 13, in Winterthur (Switzerland), by the Musikkollegium orchestra, Hermann Scherchen conducting; 1938 — Copland: ballet "Billy the Kid," in Chicago by the Ballet Caravan Company, with pianists Arthur Gold and Walter Hendel performing a two-piano version of the score; This Oct. 16 premiere date is persistently but incorrectly listed as Oct. 6 in many standard reference works and Copland biographies; First performance of "Billy the Kid" in New York City occurred on May 24, 1939, with an orchestra conducted by Fritz Kitzinger; 1942 — Copland: ballet "Rodeo," in New York City by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo; 1960 — Messiaen: "Chronochromie," in Donaueschingen, Germany; 1969 — Leon Kirchner: "Music" for orchestra, by the New York Philharmonic, with the composer conducting; 1976 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Five Klee Pictures" for orchestra, in London at St. John's Smith Square, by the Young Musicians' Symphony, James Blair conducting; 1988 — Stephen Paulus: "Five for the Flowers Near the River," for viola and piano, by Cynthia Phelps and Warren Jones, in Minneapolis; A revised version of this piece, re-titled "Seven for the Flowers Near the River," was premiered by the same performers at Alice Tully Hall in New York on October 24, 1988; 1992 — Joan Tower: "Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman" No. 3 (dedicated to conductor JoAnn Falletta), by the Kansas City Symphony, conducted by Bill McGlaughlin; Other: 1891—Inaugural afternoon concert of the Chicago Symphony at the Chicago Auditorium, with Theodore Thomas conducting music of Wagner("Faust" Overture), Beethoven (Symphony No. 5), Tchaikovsky (Piano Concerto No. 1 with soloist Rafael Joseffy), and Dvorák ("Hussite" Overture); The Symphony's first evening concert occurred the following day; 1931—American premiere of Mahler: Symphony No. 9, by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1958—Leonard Bernstein begins his presentation of a "major view of American music" at New York Philharmonic concerts with a Carnegie Hall concert that includes works by Wallingford Riegger, John J. Becker and Carl Ruggles.
Saturday, October 17
Copland's "Letter from Home" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Aaron Copland (1900 – 1990): Letter from Home St. Louis Symphony; Leonard Slatkin, cond. EMI 49766 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Copland ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1892—British composer Herbert Howells, in Lydney, Gloucestershire; Deaths: 1837—German composer and pianist Johann Nepomuk Hummel, age 58, in Wiemar; 1849 —Polish composer Frédéric Chopin, age 39, in Paris; Premieres: 1727 — J.S. Bach: "Trauerode" (Funeral Cantata), at a memorial service for Electress Christiane Eberhardine (who died on Sept. 4); 1761 — Gluck: ballet, "Don Juan," in Vienna; 1831 — Mendelssohn: Piano Concerto No. 1 in g, Op. 25, in Munich, with the composer as soloist; 1905 — Glazunov: Violin Concerto, with soloist Mischa Elman, at Queen's Hall, London; 1941 — Wm. Schuman: Symphony No. 3, by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1944 — Copland: "Letter from Home," on a radio broadcast; 1958 — Stravinsky: "Epitaphium in memory of Prince Max Egon zum Fürstenberg, at the Donaueschingen Festival in Germany; 1988 — Christopher Rouse: “ Artemis” for brass quintet, at Yale University, New Haven, Conn., by The Brass Ring; 1991 — Wayne Peterson: "Face of the Night, The Heart of the Dark" for orchestra, by the San Francisco Symphony, David Zinman conducting; This work won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1992; 1996 — Peter Lieberson: "Fire" at New York Philharmonic concert conducted by Leonard Slatkin. 2000 — John Tavener: "The Bridegroom," at the South Bank Centre in London, by Anonymous 4 and the Chilingirian String Quartet; Other: 1707—Johann Sebastian Bach (age 22) marries his cousin, Maria Barbara Bach (age 23); 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in e, Op. 6, no. 3 (Julian date: Oct. 6); 1978—President Jimmy Carter presents the Congressional Medal of Honor to singer Marian Anderson
Sunday, October 18
Saeverud's "Minnesota Symphony" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Harald Saeverud (1897 – 1992): Symphony No. 8 (Minnesota) Stavanger Symphony; Ole Kristian Ruud, cond. BIS 972 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Harald Saeverud ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1706—Italian composer Baldassare Galuppi, in Burano, near Venice; 1924—Norwegian composer Egil Hovland, in Mysen, near Oslo; 1961—Jazz trumpeter and composer Wynton Marsalis in New Orleans; Deaths: 1545—English composer and organist John Taverner, age 55, in Boston, England; 1817—French composer Etienne Méhul, age 54, in Paris; 1893—French composer Charles Gounod, age 75, in St. Cloud; Premieres: 1873 — Brahms: String Quartet in a, Op. 51, no. 2, in Berlin by the Joachim Quartet; 1887 — Brahms: Double Concerto in a, Op. 102, in Cologne, by the Gürzenich Orchestra, with Joseph Joachim (violin), Robert Hausemann (cello), and the composer conducting; 1881 — Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings (Gregorian date: Oct. 30); 1882 — Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio, Op. 50 (Gregorian date: Oct. 30); 1904 — Mahler: Symphony No. 5, in Cologne, by the Gürzenich Orchestra, with the composer conducting; 1923 — Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 1, in Paris, at a concert conducted by Serge Koussevitsky, with Marcel Darrieux, the concertmaster of Koussevitzky's orchestra, as the soloist; At this same concert, Igor Stravinsky leads members of the orchestra in the premiere of his Octet for Winds; 1943 — Jerome Moross: Symphony No. 1, by the Seattle Symphony, Sir Thomas Beecham conducting; 1946 — Copland: Symphony No. 3 (in memory of Mme. Natalie Koussevitzky), by the Boston Symphony conducted by Serge Koussevitzky; 1953 — Stravinsky: "Preludium" for Jazz Ensemble, at an "Evenings on the Roof" concert in Los Angeles, with Robert Craft conducting; 1957 — Creston: "Toccata" for orchestra, by the Cleveland Orchestra; 1958 — Harald Saeverud: "Minnesota Symphony," by the Minneapolis Symphony. Antal Dorati conducting; 1981 — Pierre Boulez: "Répons" for 30 instruments and electronics, at the Donaueschingen Festival of Contemporary Music in West Germany; 1984 — Harrison Birtwistle: "Secret Theatre" for chamber ensemble, in London at Queen Elisabeth Hall, by the London Sinfonietta, David Atherton conducting; 1990 — Elisabetta Brusa: “Nittemero Symphony,” by the London Chamber Orchestra, Odaline de la Martinez conducting; 2000 — Lukas Foss: "Solo Transformed" for piano and orchestra, in Minneapolis by Peter Serkin with the Minnesota Orchestra, Eiji Oue conducting; Other: 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in c, Op. 6, no. 8 (Gregorian date: Oct. 29); 1961—premiere of United Artists film "West Side Story," based on the musical by Leonard Bernstein. |
