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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.  |
October 15-21, 2007
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Monday, October 15
Claude Debussy out to sea? ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Claude Debussy (1862-1918): La Mer New Philharmonia; Pierre Boulez, cond. Sony 68327 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Debussy 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).
Tuesday, October 16
American premieres by Copland and Tower ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Joan Tower (b. 1938): Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman No. 4 Colorado Symphony; Marin Alsop, cond Koch 7469 & Aaron Copland (1900-1990): Rodeo Saint Louis Symphony; Leonard Slatkin, cond. EMI 73653 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Joan Tower On Copland 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.
Wednesday, October 17
Mendelssohn at Starbucks? ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 25 Cyprien Katsaris, piano; Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; Kurt Masur, cond Teldec 8.43681 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Mendelssohn 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
Thursday, October 18
Symphonic Mahler and Moross ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Gustav Mahler (1860-1911): Symphony No. 5 Chicago Symphony; Claudio Abbado, cond. DG 427 254 & Jerome Moross (1913-1983): Symphony No. 1 London Symphony; JoAnn Falletta, cond. Koch 7188 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Mahler On Moross 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.
Friday, October 19
Koussevitzky invests in Mussorgsky ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Modest Mussorgsky (arr. Ravel): Pictures at an Exhibition London Philharmonic; Valery Gergiev, cond. Philips 426 437 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Koussevitzky On Mussorgsky’s “Pictures” ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1903—American composer Vittorio Giannini, in Philadelphia; 1916 —Swedish composer Karl-Birgir Blomdahl, in Växjö; 1943—British composer Robin Holloway, in Leamington Spa; Premieres: 1845 — Wagner: opera "Tannhäuser" (Dresden version), in Dresden at the Hoftheater; 1894 — Chadwick: Symphony No. 3, by the Boston Symphony, Emil Paur conducting; 1901 — Elgar: "Pomp and Circumstance" March No. 1 in D, in Liverpool, by the Liverpool Orchestral Society; 1905 — Sibelius: Violin Concerto (revised version), in Berlin, conducted by Richard Strauss and with Karl Halir the soloist; The first version of this concerto premiered under the composer's director in Helsinki, with Victor Novácek as soloist, on February 8, 1904, but the composer withdrew this version and revised the concerto; 1922 — Mussorgsky: "Pictures at an Exhibition" in the orchestration by Maurice Ravel, in Paris, Serge Koussevitzky conducting; 1928 — Honegger: symphonic movement, "Rugby," in Paris; 1953 — Morton Gould: "Inventions for Four Pianos and Orchestra" by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Mitropoulos; 1964 — Virgil Thomson: "Autumn" (Concertino for harp, strings, and percussion), at the American-Spanish Festival of Music in Madrid, with Nicanor Zabeleta the harp soloist and Enrique Jordá conducting 1967 — Gershwin: public premiere of "Lullaby" for string quartet (composed c. 1919-20), at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., by the Juilliard String Quartet; During his lifetime, Gershwin would occasionally arrange impromptu performances of this piece at parties if sufficient string players were in attendance; 1990 — Shulamit Ran: "Symphony," by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Gary Bertini conducting; This work won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1991; 1996 — John Adams's Clarinet Concerto "Gnarly Buttons" with soloist Michael Collins and the London Sinfonietta conducted by the composer; Other: 1739 —Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in a, Op. 6, no. 4 (see Julian date: Oct. 8); 1933 —German conductor and composer Otto Klemperer leads his first concert with the Los Angeles Philharmonic; The program includes Leo Weiner's transcription of J.S. Bach's "Toccata and Fugue" in d, Stravinsky's "Petrouchka" Ballet Suite, and Beethoven's Symphony No. 5.
Saturday, October 20
Lou Harrison’s Piano Concerto ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Lou Harrison (1917-2003): Piano Concerto Keith Jarrett, piano; New Japan Philharmonic; Naoto Otomo, cond. New World 366 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Lou Harrison A June 2002 interview with Lou Harrison (audio version also available) ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1874—American composer and insurance executive Charles Ives, in Danbury, Connecticut; 1890—American composer and jazz pianist Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton, in New Orleans (In older biographies, his birth date is incorrectly given as September 20, 1885); 1944—American composer William Albright, in Gary, Indiana; Premieres: 1842 — Wagner: opera, "Rienzi," in Dresden at the Hoftheater; 1847 — Lortzing: opera "Undine" (2nd version), in Vienna at the Theater an der Wien; 1860 — Brahms: String Sextet No. 1 in Bb, Op. 18, in Hanover, by violinist Joseph Joachim and his ensemble; 1892 — Rimsky-Korsakov: opera " Mlada," at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, Eduard Napravnik conducting (Gregorian date: Nov. 1); 1923 — Delius: "A Dance Rhapsody," in London, conducted by Sir Henry Wood; 1949 — Hartmann: opera "Simplicius Simplicissimus" (first staged performance) in Cologne at the Theater der Stadt (Kammerspiele); The premiere concert performance of this opera by the Bavarian Radio occurred in Munich on April 2, 1948; 1950 — Hanson: "Pastorale" for Solo Oboe, Strings and Harp, with oboist Marcel Tabuteau, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1952 — Peter Mennin: "Concertanto (Moby Dick)" for orchestra, in Erie, Pa.; 1958 — Hovhaness: "Meditation on Orpheus," by the Houston Symphony, Leopold Stokowski conducting; 1960 — Lukas Foss: "Time Cycle for Soprano and Orchestra" at New York Philharmonic concert conducted by Bernstein, with soprano Adele Addison the vocal soloist; 1974 — Elliott Carter: Brass Quintet, on a BBC broadcast from London, with the American Brass Quintet; The American premiere occurred at the Library of Congress on November 15 that year with the same performers; 1974 — Henze: "Tristan" for piano, orchestra, and tape, by the London Symphony, Colin Davis conducting; 1977 — Michael Colgrass: "Déjà vu" at New York Philharmonic concert conducted by Leinsdorf; 1983 — Menotti: Double-bass Concerto, by the New York Philharmonic, Zubin Mehta conducting, with James VanDemark as soloist; 1985 — Lou Harrison: Piano Concerto, in New York, with Keith Jarrett the soloist. 2004 — Peter Maxwell Davies: "Naxos Quartet" No. 5 ("Lighthouses of Orkney and Shetland"), at Wigmore Hall, London, by the Maggini Quartet; Other: 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in b, Op. 6, no. 12 (Gregorian date: Oct. 31);
Sunday, October 21
Offenbach puts a critic to work ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880): Orpheus in the Underworld English National Opera Orchestra and Chorus; Mark Elder, cond. MCA 6325 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Offenbach ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1879—French composer, pianist, and writer Joseph Canteloube, in Annonay (near Tournon); 1885—Austrian composer and musicologist Egon Wellesz, in Vienna; 1921—English composer (Sir) Malcolm Arnold, in Northampton; 1926—American composer Marga Richter, in Reedsburg, Wisconsin; 1949—Israeli composer Shulamit Ran, in Tel Aviv; Deaths: 1662—English composer Henry Lawes, age 66, in London; Premieres: 1784 — Gretry: opera, "Richard Coeur de Lion" (Richard the Lionhearted), in Paris; 1858 — Offenbach: comic opera, "Orphée aux enfers" (Orpheus in the Underworld), in Paris; 1900 — Rimsky-Korsakov: opera "The Tale of Tsar Saltan," at the Solodovnikov Theatre in Moscow, with Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov conducting (Gregorian date: Nov. 3); 1921 — Third (and final) version of Sibelius: Symphony No. 5, in Helsinki under the composer's direction; Sibelius conducted the first performances of two earlier versions of this symphony in Helsinki on Dec. 8, 1915 and Dec. 14, 1916; 1926 — Nielsen: Flute Concerto (first version), in Paris, conducted by Emil Telmányi (the composer's son-in-law), with Holger Gilbert-Jespersen the soloist; Nielsen revised this score and premiered the final version in Oslo on November 9, 1926, again with Gilbert-Jespersen as the soloist; 1933 — Gershwin: musical "Let 'Em Eat Cake," at the Imperial Theater in New York City; 1941 — Copland: Piano Sonata, in Buenos Aires, by the composer; 1956 — Menotti: madrigal-fable "The Unicorn, the Gordon and the Manticore," at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.; 1984 — Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Double Quartet for strings, at a concert of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, by the Emerson Quartet and friends. 2004 — Danielpour: "Songs of Solitude" (to texts of W.B. Yeats), at the Kimmel Center's Verizon Hall in Philadelphia, by baritone Thomas Hampson and the Philadelphia Orchestra, with Daniel Robertson conducting; Other: 1739—Handel completes in London his Concerto Grosso in D, Op. 6, no. 5 and possibly his Concerto Grosso in F, Op. 6, no. 9 as well (see Julian date: Oct. 10). |
