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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.  |
February 18-24, 2008
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Monday, February 18
Music by and about telephones ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Gian Carlo Menotti (b. 1911): excerpt, from The Telephone New York Chamber Ensemble; Stephen Rogers Radcliffe, cond. Albany 173 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Menotti On Golan Levin’s “Dialtones: A Telesymphony”: ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1632—Italian composer Giovanni Battista Vitali, in Bologna; 1864—American music publisher Gustave Schirmer, Jr., in New York City, son of the German-born music publisher Gustave Schirmer, Sr. 1915—French composer Marcel Landowski in Prêt L'Abbé (Finistère); 1939—Brazilian composer, conductor and pianist Marlos Nobre, in Recife; Deaths: 1956—French composer French composer Gustave Charpentier, age 95, in Paris; Premieres: 1743 — Handel: oratorio “Samson,” at Covent Garden Theatre in London, and possibly the premiere of Handel’s recently-completed Organ Concerto Op. 7, no. 2 at the same concert (Gregorian date: Mar. 1); 1874 — Rimsky-Korsakov: Symphony No. 3, in St. Petersburg (Gregorian date: Mar. 2); 1893 — Berlioz: "La Damnation de Faust" (as a staged opera), in Monte Carlo with a cast headed by tenor Jean de Reske; Berlioz conducted the first concert performance of this work (as an oratorio) at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on Dec. 6, 1946; 1893 — Brahms: Intermezzo No. 1, for piano, from Op. 117, in Vienna; 1895 — Loeffler: Quintet for three violins, viola and cello, at Boston's Union Hall by the Kneisel Quartet joined by violinist William Kraft; 1916 — Daniel Mason: First Symphony (first version), by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Leopold Stokowski conducting; 1919 — Deems Taylor: chamber suite "Through The Looking Glass," by the New York Chamber Music Society; 1947 — Menotti: one-act opera "The Telephone," in New York City at the Heckscher Theater; 1952 — Prokofiev: Sinfonia Concertante, Op. 125 (as "Cello Concerto" No. 2), in Moscow, with Sviatoslav Richter conducting and Mstislav Rostropovich the soloist; 1955 — Hanson: Symphony No. 5 ("Sinfonia Sacra"), the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1965 — Ginastera: Harp Concerto, by harpist Nicanor Zabaleta , with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting; 1998 — Thea Musgrave: "Phoenix Rising," at the Royal Festival Hall in London, by the BBC Symphony, Andrew Davis conducting.
Tuesday, February 19
Morton Gould's "Spirituals" ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Morton Gould (1913-1996): Spirituals for Strings I Musici de Montreal; Yuli Turovsky, cond. Chandos 9848 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Morton Gould ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1743—Italian composer and cellist Luigi Boccherini, in Lucca; 1880—American composer Arthur Shepherd, in Paris, Idaho; 1906—Welsh composer Grace Williams, in Barry, Glamorganshire; 1912—American band leader and arranger Stan Kenton, in Wichita, Kan.; 1926—Rumanian-born Hungarian composer György Kurtág, in Lugoj; Deaths: 1605—Italian composer Orazio Vecchi, age 54, in Modena; 1941—Irish composer and arranger Sir Hamilton Harty, age 61, in Brighton; 1975—Italian composer Luigi Dallapiccola, age 71, in Florence; Premieres: 1736 — Handel: cantata “Alexander’s Feast,” at Covent Garden Theatre (Gregorian date: Mar. 1) ; Also on the program were Handel’s Concerto grosso in C (HWV 318), Harp Concerto, Op. 4, no. 6 (HWV 294) and Organ Concerto, Op. 4, no. 1; 1914 — Zandonai: opera "Francesca da Rimini," in Turin; 1923 — Sibelius: Symphony No. 6, in Helsinki, with composer conducting; 1929 — Bartók: String Quartet No. 3, in London, by the Waldbauer Quartet; 1932 — Copland: "Symphonic Ode," commissioned for the 50th Anniversary of the Boston Symphony and conducted by Serge Koussevitzky; For the 75th Anniversary of the Boston Symphony, Copland revised this score and dedicated it to the memory of Koussevitzky; The revised version was premiered by the Boston Symphony conducted by Charles Munch on February 3, 1956; 1941 — Morton Gould: "Spirituals for Orchestra," in New York City, conducted by the composer; 1949 — Irving Fine: Partita for winds, in New York City, by the New Art Wind Quintet; 1949 — Douglas Moore: opera "The Emperor's New Clothes," in New York; 1961 — Stravinsky: Anthem ("The dove descending breaks the air)", in Los Angeles, Robert Craft conducting; 1985 — Peter Maxwell Davies: Symphony No. 3,at Manchester's Free Trade Hall, by the BBC Philharmonic, Edward Downes conducting; 1990 — Daniel Asia: Symphony No. 1, by the Seattle Symphony, Christopher Kendall conducting; 1999 — John Adams: "Naïve and Sentimental Music," at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, with Esa-Pekka Salonen, conducting.
Wednesday, February 20
Lincoln at the opera ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901): Act II Prelude, from Un ballo in maschera La Scala Philharmonic; Riccardo Muti, cond. Sony 62373 & Charles Gounod (1818-1893): Soldiers' Chorus, from Faust Paris Opera Chrous & Orch; Andre Cluytens, cond. EMI 63733 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On music at the White House ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1749—Baptism of German composer, violinist and famous London impresario Johann Peter Salomon, in Bonn; 1770—Italian composer and guitarist Ferdinando Carulli, in Naples; 1791—Austrian composer and pianist Carl Czerny, in Vienna; 1802—Belgian composer and violinist Charles-Auguste de Bériot, in Louvain; 1911—American composer Robert McBride, in Tucson, Arizona; 1929—Japanese composer Toshiro Mayuzumi, in Yokohama; Deaths: 1961—Australian-born American composer and pianist Percy Grainger, age 78, in White Plains, N.Y.; Premieres: 1722 — first concert performance of Handel: “Water Music” (Julian date: Feb. 9); 1724 — Bach: Sacred Cantata No. 22 ("Jesus nahm zu sich die Zwölfe") and No. 23 ("Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn" performed on Estomihi Sunday as part of Bach's first annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig (1723/24); 1724 — Handel: opera “Giulio Cesare (Julius Ceasar)” in London at The King’s Theatre in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: Mar. 2); 1816 — Rossini: opera, "The Barber of Seville," in Rome at the Teatro Argentina, with the composer conducting; 1827 — Mendelssohn: "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Overture, in Stettin (first public performance), with Carl Loewe conducting; 1877 — Tchaikovsky: ballet “Swan Lake,” in Moscow (Gregorian date: Mar. 4); 1881 — Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 ("Romantic"), with Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Hans Richter; This was the second (revised) version of Bruckner's original 1874 score; 1897 — Kalinnikov: Symphony No. 1 in g, in Kiev (Julian date: Feb. 8); 1907 — Rimsky-Korsakov: opera “Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh,” in St. Petersburg at the Mariinsky Theater, Blumenfeld conducting (Julian date: Feb. 7); 1910 — Debussy: orchestral suite, "Ibéria," at a Colonne Concert in Paris, conducted by Pierné; 1937 — Prokofiev: "Lt. Kijé" Suite (first public performance)in Paris, with composer conducting; A radio performance of this film music suite was broadcast in Moscow on December 21, 1934; 1942 — Menotti: one-act opera "The Island God," at the Metropolitan Opera in New York; 1943 — Orff: opera "Die Kluge" (The Clever Girl), in Frankfurt at the Städtische Bühnen; 1962 — Henri Lazaroff: Viola Concerto, in Monaco; 2003 — Tan Dun: "The Map," multi-media concerto for cello and orchestra, by the Boston Symphony, with the composer conducting and Yo-Yo Ma the soloist; Other: 1626—English composer and lutenist John Dowland, age c. 63, is buried in London; This date suggests Dowland most likely died in mid-February, although some older sources improbably cite Jan. 20 as his death date (That was the day Dowland's son assumed his father's post as a royal court musician).
Thursday, February 21
Milhaud and Frisell write for silent screen comedians ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Darius Milhaud (1892-1974): Le boeuf sur le toit Paris Orchestra; Semyon Bychkov, cond. Philips 432 993 & Bill Frisell (b. 1951): Go West filmscore Bill Frisell Band Nonesuch 79350 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Milhaud On Bill Frisell ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1801—Czech composer Johann Wenzel Kalliwoda, in Prague; 1836—French composer Léo Delibes, in St. Germain du Val, Sarthe; 1844—French composer and organist Charles Marie Widor, in Lyons; Deaths: 1996—American composer and conductor Morton Gould, age 82, in Orlando, Fla. Premieres: 1727 — Bach: Sacred Cantata No. 52 ("Ich habe genug") performed on the Feast of the Purification as part of Bach's third annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig (1725/27); 1744 — Handel: oratorio “Semele,” in London (Julian date: Feb. 10); 1749 — Handel: oratorio “Susanna” in London (Julian date: Feb. 10); 1886 — Mussorgsky (arr. Rimsky-Korsakov): opera “Khovanschchina,” posthumously, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Feb. 9); 1907 — Delius: opera, "A Village Romeo and Juliet," in Berlin; 1909 — Liadov: “Enchanted Lake” for orchestra, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Feb. 8); 1917 — Rachmaninoff: “Etudes-tableaux,” Op. 39 (Gregorian date: March 6); 1920 — Milhaud: ballet "Le Boeuf sur la toît," in Paris; 1929 — Respighi: orchestral suite, "Roman Festivals," by the New York Philharmonic, Toscanini conducting; 1946 — Roy Harris: "Memories of a Child's Sunday," by the New York Philharmonic with the composer conducting; 1948 — Cowell: Suite for Woodwind Quintet, by an ensemble at the McMillan Theater of Columbia University in New York City; This work was written in 1933 for the French flutist Georges Barrère, but the score and parts remained lost until 1947.
Friday, February 22
Bernstein conducts Ives ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Charles Ives (1874-1954): Symphony No. 2 New York Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein, cond. DG 429 220 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Charles Ives ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1810—Polish composer and pianist Frederic Chopin, in Zelazowa Wola (This is the date contained in the composer's baptismal certificate; Chopin himself gave March 1, 1810, as his birthdate); 1817—Danish composer Niels W. Gade, in Copenhagen; 1961—American composer Lowell Liebermann, in New York City; Deaths: 1903—Austrian composer Hugo Wolf, age 42, in Vienna; Premieres: 1878 — Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4, in Moscow, with Nikolai Rubinstein conducting (Julian date: Feb. 10); 1881 — Bruch: "Scottish Fantasy," Op. 46, in Liverpool, with the composer conducting and Joseph Joachim as soloist; 1890 — Brahms: Piano Trio No. 1 in Bb, Op. 8 (revised version), in Vienna, at one of the Rosé Chamber Concerts, with the composer at the piano; The first version of this Trio, composed in 1854, received one of its first public performances ever in New York City on November 27, 1855; 1907 — Ravel: "Introduction and Allegro," in Paris; 1938 — Kabalesvky: opera "Colas Breugnon," in Leningrad; 1941 — Paul Creston: Symphony No. 1, in New York City; 1941 — Morton Gould: "Latin American Symphonette," in Brooklyn, N.Y.; 1945 — Virgil Thomson: "Symphony on a Hymn Tune," in New York City, with the composer conducting; 1962 — Benjamin Lees: "Concerto for Orchestra" No. 1, in Rochester, N.Y.
Saturday, February 23
Deems Taylor and David Del Tredici in Wonderland ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Deems Taylor (1885-1966): Through The Looking Glass Suite Seattle Symphony; Gerard Schwarz , cond. Delos 3099 & David Del Tredici (b. 1937): In Memory of A Summer Day St. Louis Symphony; Leonard Slatkin, cond. Nonesuch 79043 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Deems Taylor On David Del Tredici ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1648—(or possibly 1649) Baptismal date of English composer and organist John Blow, in Newark, Nottinghamshire; 1685—German-born British composer George Frideric Handel, as "Georg Friedrich Händel," in Halle (Saxony); 1905—American composer Elinor Remick Warren, in Los Angeles; 1920—American composer Hall Overton, in Bangor, Michigan; Deaths: 1704—Austrian composer and organist Georg Muffat, age 50, in Passau, Germany; 1934—English composer Sir Edward Elgar, age 76, in Worcester; 1983—English composer Henry Howells, age 90, in London; Premieres: 1732 — Handel: oratorio “Esther” in London at the Crown and Anchor Tavern, by an ensemble including the Children of the Chapel Royal, on the occasion (in England) of Handel’s 47th birthday (Gregorian date: Mar. 5); 1835 — Halévy: opera "La Juive" (The Jewess), at the Paris Opéra; 1854 — Liszt: symphonic poem, "Les Préludes," in Weimar, conducted by the composer; 1882 — Chadwick: Symphony No. 1, by the Boston Symphony; 1903 — Rachmaninoff: Piano Preludes Nos. 1, 2, and 5, from Op. 23 and “Variations on a Theme of Chopin,” Op. 22, in Moscow, by the composer (Julian date: Feb. 10); 1913 — Schoenberg: "Gurre-Lieder," in Vienna; 1916 — Griffes: "White Peacock" for piano, by Winifred Christie in New York City; 1923 — Ernest Schelling: "A Victory Ball," by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Leopold Stokowski conducting; 1945 — Villa-Lobos: Choros No. 12 for orchestra, by the Boston Symphony with the composer conducting; 1956 — Leon Kirchner: Piano Concerto No. 1, in New York City, composer at the piano; 1962 — Stravinsky: "A Sermon, A Narrative and A Prayer," in Basle(Switzerland), conducted by Paul Sacher (to whom the work is dedicated).
Sunday, February 24
Monteverdi and Carlisle Floyd opera premieres ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643): excerpt, from L'Orfeo Monteverdi Choir; English Baroque Soloists; John Eliot Gardiner, cond. Erato 88032 & Carlisle Floyd (b.1926): excerpts, from Susannah Cheryl Studer, sop.; Lyons Opera Orchestra; Kent Nagano, cond. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Monteverdi On Carlisle Floyd ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1766—English composer and organist Samuel Wesley, in Bristol England; He was the nephew of John Wesley (1703-1791), the founder of the Methodist Church; 1842—Italian opera composer and librettist Arrigo Boito, in Paudua; 1846—Italian song composer Luigi Denza, in Castellammare; His most famous song is "Funiculi, Finicula." Deaths: 1704—French composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier, age 78, in Paris; 1929—French composer André Messager, age 75, in Paris; Premieres: 1607 — Monteverdi: opera "Orfeo," at the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua; 1711 — Handel: opera, “Rinaldo, ”in London at the Queen’s Theater in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: Mar. 7); This was the first Handel opera produced in London, and the first Italian opera written specifically composed for the London stage; 1725 — Handel: opera “Rodelinda,” in London (Julian date: Feb. 13); 1730 — Handel: opera “Partenope,” in London at the King’s Theater in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: Mar. 7); 1745 — Rameau: comedy-ballet "La Princesse de Navarre" (to a text by Voltaire, for the wedding of the Dauphin with Maria Teresa of Spain), at Versailles; 1876 — Grieg: incidental music for Ibsen's play "Peer Gynt, "as part of a staged production in Christiania (Oslo), Norway; 1935 — Miaskovsky: Symphony No. 14, in Moscow; 1939 — Roy Harris: Symphony No. 3, by the Boston Symphony, Koussevitzky conducting; 1955 — Carlisle Floyd: opera "Susannah" at Florida State University in Tallahassee; According to Opera America, this is one of the most frequently-produced American operas during the past decade; 1956 — Piston: Symphony No. 5, in New York City; 1976 — Bernstein: musical "1700 Pennsylvania Avenue," in Philadelphia as a trial run at the Forrest Theater, conducted by Roland Gagnon; The show opened in New York City at the Mark Hellinger Theater in New York City on May 4, 1976, also conducted by Gagnon; 1979 — Berg: opera "Lulu" (first staging of complete version as arr. by Friedrich Cerha), at the Paris Opéra, with Pierre Boulez conducting; 1985 — Andrew Lloyd-Webber: "Requiem," in New York City at St. Thomas Episcopal Church; The London premiere occurred on April 21, 1984, in Westminster Abbey; The soloists in both cases were soprano Sarah Brightman and tenor Placido Domingo, with Lorin Maazel conducting; 2000 — Joan Tower: "The Last Dance," at Carnegie Hall, by the Orchestra of St. Luke's; Other: 1727—Handel applies for British citizenship (Julian date: Feb. 13); 1894 —First documented American performance of Handel's Concerto Grosso in D Minor (op. 6, no.10), by the Boston Symphony, Emil Paur conducting. |
