Synopsis
Music Played in Today's Program
Carl Maria von Weber (1786 - 1826) Der Freischütz Overture Dresden State Orchestra; Sir Colin Davis, cond. Philips 438 497
Anthony Davis (b. 1951) Tania American Music Theater Festival soloists Koch 7467
On This Day
Births
1757 - Austrian-born composer and piano maker Ignaz Joseph Pleyel, in Ruppertsthal, near Vienna; He studied with Haydn and was one of the older composer's favorite pupils;
1904 - Birth of French composer and conductor Manuel Rosenthal, in Paris; His ballet arrangement of Offenbach melodies, "Gaîté Parisienne," is his best-known work;
1843 - Austrian cellist and composer David Popper, in Prague;
1905 - Estonian-born Swedish composer Eduard Tubin, in Kalaste, near Tartu (Dorpat) (Julian date: June 5);
1942 - English singer, composer and former Beatle, Sir Paul McCartney, in Liverpool;
Deaths
1726 - French composer Michel-Richard de Lalande (La Lande, Delalande), age 68, at Versailles;
Premieres
1821 - Weber: opera "Der Freischütz" (The Freeshooter), in Berlin at the Königliches Schauspielhaus;
1923 - Gershwin: musical revue, "George White's Scandals of 1923" at the Globe Theater in New York City;
1958 - Britten: opera "Noye's Fludde," in Orford Church, near Aldeburgh;
1980 - Persichetti: "Three Toccatinas" for Piano, by contestants in the International Piano Festival and Competition at the University of Maryland;
1992 - Anthony Davis: opera "Tania" at the American Music Theater Festival in Philadelphia;
Others
1837 - Mendelssohn finishes his String Quartet in e, Op. 44, no. 2, in Freiburg (Germany), while on his honeymoon.
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About Composers Datebook®
Host John Birge presents a daily snapshot of composers past and present, with timely information, intriguing musical events and appropriate, accessible music related to each.
He has been hosting, producing and performing classical music for more than 25 years. Since 1997, he has been hosting on Minnesota Public Radio's Classical Music Service. He played French horn for the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestra and performed with them on their centennial tour of Europe in 1995. He was trained at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music and Interlochen Arts Academy.