Casals and Copland at the White House

Synopsis

On this date in 1961, cellist Pablo Casals gave a chamber concert at the White House, at the invitation of President John F. Kennedy. The concert was given in honor of Governor Luis Muñoz of Puerto Rico, the home of Pablo Casals. Casals played works of Mendelssohn, Schumann and Couperin, with his own composition, Song of the Birds, as an encore.

While eminent guests raved over the performance, the cellist’s laconic comment was simply, “It went well.” Casals could afford to be blasé. After all, he had played at the White House before — for President Teddy Roosevelt back in 1904!

Aaron Copland was also invited to the November 13th White House concert in 1961. In a diary entry, he noted: “Pierre Salinger and Senator Mike Mansfield were at our table. President Kennedy was in full view the entire time… I was surprised at his reddish-brown hair. No evil in the face, but plenty of ambition there, no doubt. Mrs. K. statuesque … After dinner we were treated to a concert by Pablo Casals. No American music. The next step.”

That “next step” came the following spring. In May of 1962, the Kennedys presented Copland’s ballet Billy the Kid at the White House for the visiting president of the Ivory Coast Republic, with Copland as guest of honor.

Music Played in Today's Program

Pablo Casals (1876-1973): Song of the Birds; Patrick Demenga, cello; Gerard Wyss, piano; Novalis 150117

Aaron Copland (1900-1990): Billy the Kid Ballet; Dallas Symphony; Eduardo Mata, conductor; Dorian 90170

On This Day

Births

• 1854 - American composer George Whitefield Chadwick, in Lowell, Massachusetts

• 1856 - Russian composer Sergei Taneyev, in near Moscow (Gregorian date: Nov. 25)

• 1921 - Finnish composer Joonas Kokkonen, in Iisalmi

Deaths

• 1868 - Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, in Passy, near Paris, 76

• 1951 - Russian composer Nicolas Medtner, 70, in London

Premieres

• 1893 - Sibelius: Karelia Suite, in Viborg, Finland

• 1933 - Ruth Crawford Seeger: String Quartet, at the New School in New York City, by the New World String Quartet

• 1943 - Martinu: Symphony No. 1, by the Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting

• 1953 - Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 5, in Moscow, by the Beethoven Quartet

• 1964 - Yardumian: Symphony No. 2 (Psalms), with vocalist Lili Chookasian, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting

• 1997 - Poul Ruders: Symphony No. 2, at Lincoln Center in New York, by the Riverside Symphony, George Rothman conducting

• 2002 - Tavener: Ikon of Eros for soloists, chorus and orchestra, at the St. Paul (Minnesota) Cathedral, with Jorja Fleezanis (violin), Patricia Rozario (soprano), Tim Krol (baritone), the Minnesota Chorale and Minnesota Orchestra, Paul Goodwin conducting

Others

• 1937 - First official radio broadcast by the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Pierre Monteux conducting; Arthur Rodzinski had conducted a dress rehearsal broadcast on Nov. 2, 1937. Arturo Toscanini’s debut broadcast with the NBC Symphony would occur on Christmas Day, 1937.

• 1940 - Disney releases Fantasia, an animated film based on classical music favorites ranging from Bach to Stravinsky. Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra recorded the soundtrack, and in one famous scene Stokowski shakes hands with Mickey Mouse.