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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.  |
June 23-29, 2008
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Monday, June 23
Robert Ward's modern concerto in romantic style ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Robert Ward (b. 1917): Piano Concerto Marjorie Mitchell, p; Stuttgart Radio Symphony; William Strickland, cond. Bay Cities 1001 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Robert Ward ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1824—German pianist and composer Carl Reinecke, in Altona; Deaths: 1956—Soviet composer Reinhold Glière, age 80, in Moscow; Premieres: 1972 — David Ward-Steinman: "Sonata for Piano Fortified," by Gary Wolf at the University of South Florida, Tampa; 1982 — Persichetti: Harpsichord Sonata No. 2, in Cleveland, by harpsichordist Elaine Comparone.
Tuesday, June 24
Havergal Brian writes one for the record books ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Havergal Brian (1876-1972): Symphony No. 1 (Gothic) CSR Symphony & Slovak Philharmonic; Ondrej Lenard, cond. Marco Polo 8.223280/81 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Havergal Brian ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1901—American composer, performer and instrument inventor Harry Partch, in Oakland, Calif.; 1908—German composer and organist Hugo Distler, in Nuremberg; 1935—American composer and performer Terry Riley, in Colfax, Calif.; Deaths: 1882—German composer Josef Joachim Raff, age 60, in Frankfurt, during the night of June 24/25; Premieres: 1854 — Schubert: opera "Alfonso and Estrella," posthumously, in Weimar, with Franz Liszt conducting; Schubert composed this opera in 1822; 1935 — R. Strauss: opera "Die schweigsame Frau" (The Silent Woman, after the play by Ben Jonson), in Dresden, conducted by Karl Boehm, and with soprano Maria Cebotari in the title role; 1943 — Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5, at a Promenade Concert at Royal Albert Hall, with the London Philharmonic conducted by the composer.
Wednesday, June 25
Stravinsky meets Debussy ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971): The Firebird Ballet Russian National Orchestra; Mikhail Pletnev, cond. DG 453 434 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: "Time" magazine Stravinsky profile ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1860—French composer Gustave Charpentier, in Dieuze, Lorraine; 1935—Austrian composer Kurt Schwertsik, in Vienna; Deaths: 1767—German composer Georg Philipp Telemann, age 86, in Hamburg; 1822—German composer, critic and popular Romantic author Ernst Theodor Amadeus ("E.T.A.") Hoffmann, age 46, in Berlin; 1983—Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera, age 67, in Geneva; Premieres: 1840 — For the 400th anniversary of the Gutenberg Printing Press, Mendelssohn presents his Symphony No. 2, "Lobegesang" (Song of Praise) at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig; 1850 — R. Schumann: opera "Genoveva," in Leipzig at the Stadttheater; 1910 — Stravinsky: ballet, "The Firebird," at the Paris Opera, with Gabriel Pierné conducting; 1923 — de Falla: one-act opera "El retablo de maese Pedro" (Master Peter's Puppet Show), first staged performance in Paris at the home of the Princesse de Polignac; This opera was premiered in a concert performance in Seville on March 23, 1923; 1940 — William Grant Still: choral ballad "And They Lynched Him on a Tree," at New York's Lewisohn Stadium by the Schola Cantorum and Wen Talbert Negro Choir with the New York Philharmonic, Arthur Rodzinksi conducting; 1954 — Leroy Anderson: "Sandpaper Baller" at a Decca recording session in New York City, with the composer conducting; Three different grades of sandpaper rubbed together were used to make the vaudeville-style "soft shoe" dancing sound effects for this classic recording; 1955 — Grofé: "Hudson Valley" Suite, in Washington, D.C., by the National Symphony conducted by André Kostelanetz; 1991 — James MacMillan: "Tuireadh" (Lament) for clarinet and string quartet, by James Campbell and the Allegri Quartet at St. Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall (Orkney Islands).
Thursday, June 26
Music for the whirly-birds by Stockhausen and Wagner ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928 - 2007): Helicopter Quartet Arditti String Quartet Montaigne 782097 & Richard Wagner (1813-1883): Ride of the Valkyries, from Die Walküre Berlin Philharmonic; Herbert von Karajan, cond. DG 457 496 or 469 256 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Stockhausen ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1747—Bohemian composer Leopold Kozeluh, (Kotzeluch) in Welwearn; He was the cousin of Johann (Jan) Antonín Kozeluh, who was also a composer; 1928—American composer Jacob Druckman, in Philadelphia; Premieres: 1870 — Wagner: opera "Die Walküre" (The Valkyrie), in Munich at the Hoftheater, with Franz Wüllner conducting; The opera was performed at the Bavarian King Ludwig II's request, but against the composer's wishes; 1912 — Mahler: Symphony No. 9, by Vienna Philharmonic, Bruno Walter conducting; 1986 — Zwilich: Piano Concerto, by the Detroit Symphony with Günther Herbig conducting and soloist Marc-André Hamelin; 2000 — Robert Kapilow: "DC Monuments," by the National Symphony; Other: 1788—Mozart finishes his Symphony No. 39 in E-flat, K.543 in Vienna.
Friday, June 27
Beethoven symphonies and 20th century politics ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827): Symphony No. 5 Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; René Leibowitz, cond. Chesky 17 & Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827): Symphony No. 9 in D minor Multi-national orchestra and chorus; Leonard Bernstein, cond. DG 445 486 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Beethoven ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1922—American composer and pianist George Walker, in Washington, D. C.; 1932—British composer Hugh Wood, in Parbold, near Wigan, Lancashire; 1958—Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg, in Helsinki; Deaths: 1729—French composer and harpsichordist Elizabeth-Claude Jacquet de LaGuerre, age 64, in Paris; 1948—Expatriate American composer and watercolorist George Templeton Strong, age 92, in Geneva; Premieres: 1985 — Dave Brubeck: dramatic scene "Voice of the Holy Spirit (Tongues of Fire)," at the National Association of Pastoral Musicians Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, with Richard Gloyd conducting; 1990 — Michael Torke: "Mass" for baritone, chorus and orchestra, at the New York State Theater, with baritone William Stone, the Trinity Church Choir, and the NY City Ballet Orchestra, Gordon Boelzner conducting.
Saturday, June 28
Passing time with Henry VIII and Richard Rodgers ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Henry VIII: Pastime with Good Company Muscia Antigua de Albequerque Dorian 93175 & Richard Rodgers (1902-1979) arr. Bennett: March of the Siamese Children, fr The King and I Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, cond. Telarc 80278 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On King Henry VIII On Richard Rodgers ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1491—English monarch, instrument collector and part-time composer Henry Tudor(as King Henry VIII he reigned 1509-1547) in Greenwich; 1712—Swiss author, philosopher and composer Jean-Jacques Rousseau, in Geneva; 1831—Hungarian violinist and conductor and composer Joseph Joachim, in Kittsee (now Köpcsény), near Poszony; 1902—American composer Richard Rodgers, in Hammels Station, Long Island, N.Y.; 1913—English composer George Lloyd, in St. Ives, Cornwall; 1946—American composer Robert Xavier Rodriguez, in San Antonio, Texas; Deaths: 1745 —French composer and gamba virtuoso Antoine Forqueray, age 74,in Nantes; 1979 —East German composer Paul Dessau, age 85, in Königs Wusterhausen, near (then) East Berlin; Premieres: 1905 — Leoni: opera, "L'oracolo" (The Oracle), in London; The opera's story of opium and crime is set in San Francisco, and caused protests from that city's Chinese community when it was revived in San Francisco in 1937; 1916 — Hindemith: Cello Concerto, Op. 3, by the Frankfurt Conservatory Orchestra, with the composer conducting and Maurits Frank the soloist; 1951 — Leroy Anderson: "Blue Tango" at a Decca recording session in New York City, with the composer conducting; This recording reached No. 1 on the pops charts and earned Anderson a Gold Record award in 1952 when it became the first instrumental record to sell over one million copies (see also June 29); 1959 — Hovhaness: Symphony No. 4 for wind band, in Pittsburgh.
Sunday, June 29
Paderewski's legacy ... MUSIC PLAYED ON TODAY'S PROGRAM: Ignac Jan Paderewski (1860-1941): Legend No. 1 Waldemar Malicki, piano Adda 581186 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: On Paderewski ALSO ON THIS DATE: Births: 1908—American composer Leroy Anderson, in Cambridge, Massachusetts; 1910—American songwriter and musical composer Frank Loesser, in New York City; 1911—American composer and conductor Bernard Herrmann, in New York City; 1914—Czech-born Swiss conductor and composer, Rafael Kubelik, in Bychiory, near Kolin; 1924—American composer Ezra Laderman, in Brooklyn, New York; Deaths: 1744—French composer André Campra, c. 83, at Versailles; 1941—Polish pianist and composer Ignace Jan Paderewski , age 80, in New York City; Buried at Arlington National Cemetary in Virginia (pending the liberation of Poland during WWII) by order of President Roosevelt; He was reburied with honors in Warsaw on June 30, 1992. Premieres: 1888 — Wagner: "Die Feen" (The Fairies), in Munich at the Hoftheater; Wagner composed this opera in 1834; 1889 — Glazunov: Symphony No. 2, in Paris; 1951 — Leroy Anderson: "Plink, Plank, Plunk!" and "Fiddle-Faddle" at a Decca recording session in New York City, with the composer conducting; (See also June 28); 1962 — first modern professional staging of Monteverdi's opera "L'Incoronazione di Poppea" (The Coronation of Poppea) at the Glyndebourne Festival in England, in a version prepared and conducted by Raymond Leppard; The opera premiered in Venice in the autumn of 1642; The opera's first stagings in the 20th century were both student productions: Smith College in Northampton, Mass, on April 27, 1927 and Oxford University, on Dec. 6, 1927; 1985 — Joan Tower: "Island Rhythms" (commissioned for the opening of Harbour Island in Tampa), by the Florida Orchestra, Irwin Hoffman, conducting; 1997 — Esa-Pekka Salonen: "Giro" (revised version) for orchestra, in Porvoo (Finland), by the Avanti! Chamber Orchestra conducted by the composer; Other: 1729—Handel returns to London after a trip to the continent to recruit new singers for a new season of Royal Academy opera productions directed by Handel and Heidegger (Gregorian date: July 10); Earlier in the month, when in Halle, Germany, Handel had been invited by W.F. Bach to visit J.S. Bach in Leipzig, but Handel declines; 1769—First documented concert in Boston conducted by the Early American composer Josiah Flagg with his militia band. |
