Blue Danube in NYC

Synopsis

Today we note the American premiere of just one of dozens of symphonic masterworks introduced to these shores by German-born conductor Theodore Thomas, arguably the most important figure in the development of American symphony orchestras in the 19th century.

In 1864, Thomas began a series of summer concerts, first in New York City, and later in Philadelphia, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Milwaukee and Chicago. It was in New York City, on today’s date in 1867, that Thomas gave a concert at Terrace Gardens, a brand-new entertainment complex that included a five-story hotel, a concert hall, ballroom, banquet rooms, and big, beautifully-planted outdoor gardens, all located on East 58th Street, between Lexington and Third Avenue. In 1867, this address was still relatively green and quiet, perfect for an open-air garden concert, so under a blue July 4 sky the Blue Danube Waltz by Johann Strauss, Jr., was performed for the first time in America — and less than five months after its world premiere performance in Vienna!

The price for a ticket to the Terrace Garden concert was 25 cents — and alongside the new music by Johann Strauss Jr., audiences would have heard pieces by Weber, Gounod, Suppe, Offenbach and Verdi among others.

Music Played in Today's Program

Johann Strauss Jr. (1825-1899): By the Beautiful Blue Danube; New York Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein, conductor; Sony 46710

On This Day

Births

• 1694 - French composer and organist, Louis Claude Daquin, in Paris

• 1826 - American song composer Stephen Collins Foster, in Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania

• 1903 - Belgian composer and organist and teacher Flor Peeters, in Thielen

Deaths

• 1623 - English composer William Byrd, 80 (the exact date of his birth is not known) in Stondon, Essex

Premieres

• 1831 - The patriot hymn “America” (to the tune of the British patriotic song “God Save the King/Queen” with new words supplied by Samuel Francis Smith) sung by a children’s choir at a Fourth of July service at the Park Street Church in Boston. This premiere performance is commonly (but incorrectly) listed as 1832.

• 1900 - final version of Sibelius: Symphony No. 1, in Stockholm by the Helsinki Philharmonic on tour, with Robert Kajanus conducting. An earlier version of the symphony had been premiered in Helsinki on April 26, 1899, with the same orchestra conducted by the composer.

• 1923 - R. Vaughan Williams: English Folk Song Suite, in London, by the band of the Royal Military School of Music

• 1964 - Piston: Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra, at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire

• 1983 - David Amram: Honor Song for Sitting Bull for cello and orchestra, by the Long Island Philharmonic, Christopher Keene conducting, and William Da Rosa the soloist

Others

• 1827 - Opening of Niblo’s Gardens, an important 19th century American concert venue, at Broadway and Prince Street in New York City

• 1828 - The U.S. Marine Band first performed Hail to the Chief for a living President at the ground-breaking ceremony for the excavation of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal attended by President John Quincy Adams

• 1986 - Amid fireworks and celebration, the Marine Band performed in New York City for the rededication of the Statue of Liberty, recreating the band’s performance under John Philip Sousa for the original dedication ceremonies 100 years earlier