Tag: history

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On this day: week of January 12, 2015

Fugue for Thought

January 12 Births: 1711 – Gaetano Latilla, Italian composer (d. 1788) 1715 – Jacques Duphly, French organist and composer (d. 1789) 1837 – Adolf Jensen, German pianist and composer (d. 1879) 1876 – Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer (d. 1948) 1916 – William Pleeth, English cellist and educator (d. 1999) 1917 – Walter Hendl, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2007) 1926 – Morton Feldman, American composer (d. 1987) 1944 – Viktoria Postnikova, Russian pianist 1949 – Kentarō Haneda, Japanese composer (d. 2007) Deaths: 1674 – Giacomo Carissimi, Italian composer (b. 1605) 1735 – John Eccles, English composer (b. 1668) 1765 – Johann Melchior Molter, German violinist and composer (b. 1696) 1934 – Paul Kochanski, Polish violinist and composer (b. 1887) 2012 – Rosalind Runcie, … Continue reading On this day: week of January 12, 2015

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On this day: week of January 5, 2015

Fugue for Thought

Only about another month of these left before we start repeating ourselves. Don’t know what to do then… Actually, I think I do…  January 5 Births: 1640 – Paolo Lorenzani, Italian composer (d. 1713) 1679 – Pietro Filippo Scarlatti, Italian organist and composer (d. 1750) Domenico’s brother 1762 – Constanze Mozart, German wife of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (d. 1842) That counts, right? 1871 – Frederick Converse, American composer (d. 1940) Cool name 1879 – Marcel Tournier, French harp player and composer (d. 1951) 1880 – Nikolai Medtner, Russian pianist and composer (d. 1951) 1904 – Erika Morini, Austrian violinist (d. 1995) 1919 – Severino Gazzelloni, Italian flute player (d. 1992) 1920 – Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Italian pianist … Continue reading On this day: week of January 5, 2015

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On this day: January 1-4, 2015

Fugue for Thought

First post of the new year! Also, check out my other venture at ForeigNative for some really good stuff about language learning. January 1, 2015 Births: 1628 – Christoph Bernhard, German composer (d. 1692) 1892 – Artur Rodziński, Polish-American conductor (d. 1958) 1911 – Roman Totenberg, Polish-American violinist (d. 2012) 1920 – Mahmoud Zoufonoun, Iranian-American violinist (d. 2013) 1932 – Giuseppe Patanè, Italian conductor (d. 1989) Deaths: 1981 – Hephzibah Menuhin, American-Australian pianist (b. 1920) Related to the other Menuhin. 2011 – Marin Constantin, Romanian composer and conductor (b. 1925) January 2 Births: 1732 – František Brixi, Czech composer (d. 1771) 1837 – Mily Balakirev, Russian pianist and composer (d. 1910) 1905 – Michael Tippett, English … Continue reading On this day: January 1-4, 2015

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This century Part 1: Modern is relative

Fugue for Thought

Some thoughts that I thought at a very recent concert, the details of which will be shared in part 2 next week   What is modern? What is ‘a long time ago’? What is ‘old’?I got to thinking about similar questions a while back in preparation to see Chopin’s piano concertos performed here in Taipei by the sickeningly talented Ingolf Wunder. The first of those two (well, number one, albeit the second to be written) was completed almost 200 years ago. Almost two whole centuries!That was kind of mind blowing to me, because… I think of Chopin as one of … Continue reading This century Part 1: Modern is relative

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On this day: December 29-31

Fugue for Thought

This will take us right to the end of the year. January 1-4 will be in the first post of the year. Time does fly.  December 29 Births: 1876 – Pablo Casals, Catalan cellist and conductor (d. 1973) 1919 – Roman Vlad, Italian pianist and composer (d. 2013) 1974 – Ryan Shore, Canadian composer and producer; Howard’s nephew Deaths: 1959 – Robin Milford, English composer (b. 1903) 2001 – Takashi Asahina, Japanese conductor (b. 1908) 2013 – Wojciech Kilar, Polish composer (b. 1932) December 30 Births: 1678 – William Croft, English organist and composer (d. 1727) 1853 – André Messager, French pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1929) 1904 – Dmitry Kabalevsky, Russian composer (d. 1987) … Continue reading On this day: December 29-31

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On this day: week of December 22, 2014

Fugue for Thought

It’s the last full week of 2014. December 22 1808 – Ludwig van Beethoven conducts and performs in concert at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna, with the premiere of his Fifth Symphony, Sixth Symphony, Fourth Piano Concerto (performed by Beethoven himself) and Choral Fantasy (with Beethoven at the piano). Hell of a concert…. Births: 1723 – Carl Friedrich Abel, German viol player and composer (d. 1787) 1819 – Franz Abt, German composer and conductor (d. 1870) 1858 – Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer (d. 1924) 1874 – Franz Schmidt, Austrian cellist, pianist, and composer (d. 1939) 1883 – Edgard Varèse, French-American composer (d. 1965) 1901 – Andre Kostelanetz, Russian-American conductor and composer (d. 1980) Deaths: 1992 – Harry Bluestone, English violinist and composer (b. 1907) 2006 … Continue reading On this day: week of December 22, 2014

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The composer and conductor: which comes first?

Fugue for Thought

This is not a piece I’m going to spend lots of time analyzing the history of in preparation for a dissertation on the subject. It was just a passing thought I had based on this week’s music piece for Thursday, and I thought I’d talk about it. It’ll make more sense when you know what that piece is, but for now, it’s at least worth talking about in the context of Mahler.While he seemed to have garnered some praise and recognition in his time for his works, most prominently the eighth symphony, he was known during his lifetime far more … Continue reading The composer and conductor: which comes first?

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On this day: week of December 15, 2014

Fugue for Thought

December 15 Births: 1657 – Michel Richard Delalande, French organist and composer (d. 1726) 1686 – Jean-Joseph Fiocco, Flemish composer (d. 1746) 1928 – Ida Haendel, Polish-English violinist. This woman is something… you should watch some of her master classes, like the one here. She seems like a riot.  Deaths: 1792 – Joseph Martin Kraus, Swedish pianist, violinist, and composer (b. 1756) December 16 Births: 1775 – François-Adrien Boieldieu, French composer (d. 1834) 1882 – Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer, conductor, and musicologist (d. 1967) 1932 – Rodion Shchedrin, Russian pianist and composer 1946 – Trevor Pinnock, English harpsichord player and conductor Deaths: 1783 – Johann Adolph Hasse, German composer and educator (b. 1699) 1921 – Camille Saint-Saëns, French … Continue reading On this day: week of December 15, 2014

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On this day: week of December 8, 2014

Fugue for Thought

December 8 1813 – Premier of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony. Births: 1724 – Claude Balbastre, French organist and composer (d. 1799) 1731 – František Xaver Dušek, Czech pianist and composer (d. 1799) 1865 – Jean Sibelius, Finnish pianist and composer (d. 1957) 1877 – Paul Ladmirault, French composer (d. 1944) 1890 – Bohuslav Martinů, Czech-American composer (d. 1959) 1939 – James Galway, Irish flute player; apparently spent considerable time with the Berlin Philharmonic Deaths: 2013 – Sándor Szokolay, Hungarian composer and academic (b. 1931) December 9  Births: 1721 – Peter Pelham, English-American organist and composer (d. 1805) 1728 – Pietro Alessandro Guglielmi, Italian composer (d. 1804) 1745 – Maddalena Laura Sirmen, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1818) 1837 – Émile Waldteufel, French … Continue reading On this day: week of December 8, 2014

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On this day: week of December 1, 2014

Fugue for Thought

December 1 1948 – Taman Shud Case: The body of an unidentified man is found in Adelaide, Australia, involving an undetectable poison and a secret code in a very rare book; the case remains unsolved and is “one of Australia’s most profound mysteries.” Completely nonrelated, but I’d been reading about it recently and it’s fascinating, and I didn’t realize it was on December 1, so here you are. Back to our regularly scheduled programming.  Births: 1709 – Franz Xaver Richter, Czech singer-songwriter, violinist, and conductor (d. 1789) 1901 – Ilona Fehér, Hungarian-Israeli violinist and educator (d. 1988) 1937 – Gordon Crosse, English composer and academic Deaths: 1755 – Maurice Greene, … Continue reading On this day: week of December 1, 2014

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On this day: week of November 24, 2014

Fugue for Thought

November 24 1690 – Charles Theodore Pachelbel, German organist and composer (d. 1750) Yes, that Pachelbel. Also, interestingly, he was one of the first European composers to relocate to America, and settled in Charleston. My family may even know his descendants. Small world. 1867 – Scott Joplin, American pianist and composer (d. 1917) I know, but it’s Scott Stinking Joplin. I also didn’t realize he was born so long ago.  Deaths: 1615 – Sethus Calvisius, German composer and theorist (b. 1556) 1650 – Manuel Cardoso, Portuguese organist and composer (b. 1566) 1722 – Johann Adam Reincken, Dutch-German organist and composer (b. 1623) 1956 – Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (b. 1920) November 25 … Continue reading On this day: week of November 24, 2014

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On this day: week of November 17, 2014

Fugue for Thought

November 17 1876 – Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky‘s “Slavonic March” is given its premiere performance in Moscow, Russia. Births: 1816 – August Wilhelm Ambros, Austrian composer and historian (d. 1876) 1925 – Charles Mackerras, American-Australian oboe player conductor (d. 2010) Deaths: 1648 – Thomas Ford, English viol player, composer, and poet (b. 1580) 1959 – Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazilian guitarist and composer (b. 1887) 1982 – Eduard Tubin, Estonian composer and conductor (b. 1905) November 18 Births: 1860 – Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Polish pianist, composer, and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland (d. 1941) 1899 – Eugene Ormandy, Hungarian-American violinist and conductor (d. 1985) 1928 – Otar Gordeli, Georgian composer (d. 1994) 1955 – Carter Burwell, American composer Deaths: 2012 – Philip … Continue reading On this day: week of November 17, 2014

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On this day: Week of November 10, 2014

Fugue for Thought

November 10 Births: 1668 – François Couperin, French organist and composer (d. 1733) 1755 – Franz Anton Ries, German violinist (d. 1846) 1850 – Arthur Goring Thomas, English composer (d. 1892) 1873 – Henri Rabaud, French conductor and composer (d. 1949) 1886 – Edward Joseph Collins, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1951) Deaths: — November 11 Births: 1696 – Andrea Zani, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1757) 1883 – Ernest Ansermet, Swiss conductor (d. 1969) 1930 – Vernon Handley, English conductor (d. 2008) 1944 – Jennifer Bate, English organist Deaths: 1974 – Alfonso Leng, Chilean dentist, composer, and academic (b. 1894) 1979 – Dimitri Tiomkin, Ukrainian-American composer and conductor (b. 1894) 1988 – William Ifor Jones, Welsh conductor and organist (b. 1900) … Continue reading On this day: Week of November 10, 2014

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A Mental Inventory

Fugue for Thought

I was thinking the other day who could possibly be the most-featured composer on our little site so far. I started taking a mental tally of what pieces we’d done by each composer (Mozart Monday aside), and I THINK I have come up with the right answer. My thought, though, was that if I’d completely forgotten a piece I’d done by a composer I remember having worked on, then maybe I should go over it again. I’m not going to include links to my referenced posts here; there would be literally dozens of them. They’re terribly interesting though; you should … Continue reading A Mental Inventory

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On this day: week of November 3, 2014

Fugue for Thought

November 3 Births: 1587 – Samuel Scheidt, German organist, composer, and educator (d. 1654) 1656 – Georg Reutter, Austrian organist and composer (d. 1738) 1689 – Jan Josef Ignác Brentner, Czech composer (d. 1742) 1801 – Vincenzo Bellini, Italian composer (d. 1835) 1875 – Emīls Dārziņš, Latvian composer (d. 1910) 1899 – Rezső Seress, Hungarian pianist and composer (d. 1968) Deaths: 1939 – Charles Tournemire, French organist and composer (b. 1870) 1983 – Alfredo Antonini, American conductor and composer (b. 1901) 2008 – Jean Fournet, French conductor (b. 1913) November 4 1737 – The Teatro di San Carlo is inaugurated. 1783 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart‘s Symphony No. 36 is performed for the first time in Linz, Austria. Births: 1640 – Carlo Mannelli, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1697) … Continue reading On this day: week of November 3, 2014

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On this day: week of October 27, 2014

Fugue for Thought

October 27 1827 – Bellini‘s third opera Il pirata is premiered at Teatro alla Scala di Milano Births: 1703 – Johann Gottlieb Graun, German violinist and composer (d. 1771) 1782 – Niccolò Paganini, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1840) 1927 – Dominick Argento, American composer 1958 – Felix Wurman, American cellist and composer (d. 2009) Student of Jacqueline du Pre Deaths: 1949 – Ginette Neveu, French violinist (b. 1919) 2012 – Hans Werner Henze, German composer (b. 1926) October 28 1893 – Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Pathétique, receives its première performance in St. Petersburg, only nine days before the composer’s death. 1915 – Richard Strauss conducts the first performance of his tone poem Eine Alpensinfonie in Berlin. Births: 1733 – Franz Ignaz von Beecke, … Continue reading On this day: week of October 27, 2014

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On this day: week of October 20, 2014

Fugue for Thought

October 20 1973 – The Sydney Opera House opens. Births: 1874 – Charles Ives, American composer (d. 1954) 1958 – Ivo Pogorelić, Croatian pianist Deaths: 1870 – Michael William Balfe, Irish violinist, singer, and composer (b. 1808) October 21 Births: 1775 – Giuseppe Baini, Italian priest, composer, and critic (d. 1844) 1921 – Malcolm Arnold, English composer (d. 2006) Deaths: 1662 – Henry Lawes, English pianist and composer (b. 1595) 1991 – Lorenc Antoni, Albanian composer, conductor, and musicologist (b. 1909) October 22 Births: 1811 – Franz Liszt, Hungarian pianist and composer (d. 1886) 1905 – Joseph Kosma, Hungarian-French composer (d. 1969) Relative of Georg Solti, studied with Bartok 1906 – Kees van Baaren, Dutch composer and educator (d. 1970) 1967 – Salvatore … Continue reading On this day: week of October 20, 2014