Fateful anniversaries for Lully and Shostakovich

Synopsis

Today’s date marks two rather macabre anniversaries in the history of music.

The first was a fatal moment for Jean-Baptiste Lully, the 17th-century Superintendent of Music for King Louis XIV of France. In late 1686, King Louis became gravely ill, but surprised everybody by recovering completely. To celebrate, Lully wrote a choral “Te Deum,” praising God for the miracle. Ironically, it would lead to his own demise.

At the performance, on today’s date in 1687, Lully got carried away while beating time with his cane and accidentally smashed his toe. He continued conducting, but an abscess soon developed, followed by gangrene which spread through his lower leg. Lully died a few weeks later.

On today’s date in 1972 another somewhat morbid musical event took place—the world premiere of the 15th and last symphony by the Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich. At that time, he was already ill with the heart disease and lung cancer that would eventually kill him.

Although his symphony has no stated programmatic content, Shostakovich fueled speculation by including cryptic musical quotations from familiar classics like the “William Tell” Overture and “Siegfried’s Funeral March” in his dark and brooding new work.

Many listeners come away with the unmistakable impression that Shostakovich’s last symphony is meant as an ironic commentary on his own life and work, written under the shadow of death.

Music Played in Today's Program

Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687) Galliarde, from Trios pour le coucher du Roi Chicago Baroque Ensemble Cedille 043

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) Symphony No. 15 in A, Op. 141 London Symphony; Maxim Shostakovich, cond. Collins 1206

On This Day

Births

• 1792 - American composer and educator Lowell Mason, in Medford, Massachusetts;

• 1812 - Swiss composer and pianist Sigismond Thalberg, in Pâquis, near Geneva;

• 1896 - Czech composer Jaromir Weinberger, in Prague;

• 1899 - Russian-born American composer Alexander Tcherepnin (Gregorian date: Jan. 21);

• 1905 - Italian composer Giacinto Scelsi, in La Spezia;

• 1924 - Russian-American composer Benjamin Lees (née Lysniansky), in Harbin, Manchuria;

• 1924 - Austrian-born American composer Robert Starer, in Vienna;

• 1935 - The charismatic rock 'n' roll performer Elvis Presley is born in Tupelo, Miss.;

• 1937 - American composer Robert Moran, in Denver;

Deaths

• 1713 - Italian composer and violinist Arcangelo Corelli, age 59, in Rome;

• 1831 - Moravian-born composer and violinist Franz Krommer, age 71, in Vienna;

• 1998 - British composer Sir Michael Tippett, age 93, in London;

Premieres

• 1705 - Handel: opera "Almira" in Hamburg; This was Handel's first opera (see also Dec. 5 & 30 for related contemporary incidents);

• 1720 - Handel: opera "Radamisto" (2nd version), in London (Julian date: Dec. 28, 1720);

• 1735 - Handel: opera "Ariodante" in London at the Covent Garden Theater (Gregorian date: Jan. 19);

• 1843 - Schumann: Piano Quintet in Eb, Op. 44, at Leipzig Gewandhaus with pianist Clara Schumann;

• 1895 - Brahms: Clarinet Sonata, Op. 120, no. 1 (first public performance), in Vienna, by clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld, with the composer at the piano, as part of the Rosé Quartet's chamber music series; The first performance ever of this work occurred on September 19, 1894, at a private performance in the home of the sister of the Duke of Meiningen at Berchtesgaden, with the same performers; Brahms and Mühlfeld also gave private performances of both sonatas in Frankfurt (for Clara Schumann and others) on November 10-13, 1894; at Castle Altenstein (for the Duke of Meiningen) on Nov. 14, 1894; and on Jan. 7, 1895 (for members of the Vienna Tonkünstler Society);

• 1911 - Florent Schmitt: "La tragédie de Salomé" for orchestra, in Paris;

• 1927 - Berg: "Lyric Suite" for string quartet, in Vienna, by the Kolisch Quartet;

• 1928 - Hindemith: "Kammermusik" No. 7, Op. 46, no. 2, in Frankfurt, with Ludwig Rottenberg conducting and Reinhold Merten the organist;

• 1940 - Roger Sessions: Violin Concerto, by the Illinois Symphony conducted by Izler Solomon, with Robert Gross as soloist; The work was to have been premiered by Albert Spalding with the Boston Symphony under Koussevitzky in January of 1937, but did not take place);

• 1963 - Shostakovich: opera "Katerina Izmailova" (2nd version of "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District"), in Moscow at the Stanislavsky-Nemirovich-Dachenko Music Theater;

• 1971 - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 15, in Moscow, by the All-Union Radio and Television Symphony, with the composer's son, Maxim, conducting;

• 1987 - Christopher Rouse: "Phaethon" for orchestra, by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Riccardo Muti conducting;

• 1988 - Schwantner: "From Afar . . . " (A Fantasy for Guitar and Orchestra), by guitarist Sharon Isbin with the St. Louis Symphony, Leonard Slatkin conducting;

Others

• 1923 - First broadcast in England of an opera direct from a concert hall, Mozart's "The Magic Flute" via the BBC from London;