March

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    1 March

    1 March 1620 Thomas Campion dies in London, aged 53 years and 18 days.

    1 March 1643 Girolamo Alessandro Frescobaldi dies in Rome at the age of 59.

    1 March 1753 Le Devin du village, an intermède by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is performed publicly for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  It is enormously successful.  See 18 October 1752.

    1 March 1777 Georg Christoph Wagenseil dies in Vienna, aged 62 years and one month.

    1 March 1782 Thésée, a tragédie lyrique by François-Joseph Gossec (48) to words of Morel de Chéfdeville after Quinault, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    1 March 1788 Le tuteur avare, an opéra bouffon by Giuseppe Cambini (42) to words of Gabiot de Salins, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Comte de Beaujolais, Paris.

    1 March 1803 Héléna, an opéra by Étienne-Nicolas Méhul (39) to words of Bouilly, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Feydeau, Paris.  It is fairly successful.

    1 March 1809 After learning that Beethoven (38) has accepted an offer in Kassel, three young Viennese aristocrats, Prince Joseph Lobkowitz, Prince Ferdinand Johann Nepomuk Kinsky and Archduke Rudolph, agree to pay the composer an annuity for life in return for a promise to remain in Vienna.

    1 March 1810 Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin is born in Zelazowa Wola in the Duchy of Warsaw, 47 km west of the capital, second of four children born to Nicholas Chopin, Alsatian tutor to the children of Countess Ludvika Skarbek, and Tekla Justyna Krzyzanowska, personal attendant to and distant relative of the countess.

    1 March 1817 Muzio Clementi’s (65) Gradus ad Parnassum is published simultaneously in London, Paris and Leipzig.

    1 March 1818 The first public performance of Franz Schubert’s (21) Overture in the Italian Style D.590 takes place in the Gasthof ‘zum römischen Kaiser’, Vienna.  It is the first instrumental work by Schubert to be presented in public.

    1 March 1819 A symphony by Muzio Clementi (67) is performed for the first time, in London.  It is either WO 32 or 33.

    1 March 1830 The Argyll Rooms having been destroyed by fire, the Philharmonic Society gives their first concert in their new temporary home, the King’s Theatre.  They will reside in the King’s Theatre for the next 38 years.

    1 March 1837 Variation on Cavatine du Pirate of Bellini op.8 for piano by Clara Wieck (17) is performed for the first time, by the composer in Berlin.

    1 March 1838 Symphony no.5 by Louis Spohr (53) is performed for the first time, in Vienna to raves from public and press.

    1 March 1844 Traité d’instrumentation by Hector Berlioz (40) is published.

    1 March 1848 Otto Nicolai (37) becomes Kapellmeister at the Berlin Opera.

    1 March 1858 Das verlorene Paradies, a sacred opera by Anton Rubinstein (28) to words of Schlönbach after Milton, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting in the Weimar Hoftheater.

    1 March 1861 Franz Schubert’s (†32) singspiel Die Verschworenen to words of Castelli after Aristophanes is performed for the first time, in a concert setting in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna.  See 29 August 1861.

    1 March 1867 String Quartet D.703 “Quartettsatz” by Franz Schubert (†38) is performed publicly for the first time, by the Vienna Musikverein, 47 years after it was composed.

    1 March 1873 Leos Janácek (18) begins duties as choirmaster of Svatopluk, a men’s society in Brünn (Brno).

    Der Carneval in Rom, an operetta by Johann Strauss (47) to words of Braun after Sardou, is performed for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna to great success.

    1 March 1875 The secretary of the Société National de Musique, Gabriel Fauré (29), is censured by the society for his “deplorable unpunctuality.”

    Richard Wagner (61) conducts a performance of his music in Vienna.  For the first time, Wagner tubas are heard, playing Siegfried’s Funeral Music.  The sound causes a sensation and the audience requires the musicians to play it again.

    1 March 1881 Why so Pale and Wan, a part song, and the march Pas-redouble no.1, both by Edward Elgar (23), are performed for the first time, in Worcester.

    1 March 1883 The choral version of Frühlingstimmen op.410 by Johann Strauss (57) is performed for the first time, in Theater an der Wien, Vienna.

    1 March 1886 Four sacred pieces for chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (45) are performed for the first time, at Moscow Conservatory:  Cherubic Hymn in F, We Sing To Thee, Blessed are They, whom Thou hast Chosen and Let My Prayer Ascend.

    1 March 1889 Petite Suite for piano four hands by Claude Debussy (26) is performed for the first time, privately, in Paris.  See 23 May 1894.

    1 March 1894 The first concert devoted entirely to the works of Claude Debussy (31) takes place in the gallery of La Libre Esthétique in Brussels.

    1 March 1903 Manuel Venegas, an opera by Hugo Wolf (†0) to words of Hoernes after Alarcon, is performed for the first time, in Mannheim, one week after the composer’s death.

    Symphonic Overture to Ekkehard by Franz Schreker (24) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    1 March 1904 In an effort to support his young colleague, Gustav Mahler (44) attends a performance of Arnold Schoenberg’s (29) Verklärte Nacht in Vienna.  Mahler cheers the work loudly, but most of the audience reaction is strongly negative.  Mahler suggests to Schoenberg that he rescore the piece for string orchestra.

    1 March 1905 Variations and Fugue on an Original Theme op.73 for organ by Max Reger (31) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Incidental music to Aristophanes’ play The Clouds by Hubert Parry (57) is performed for the first time, at the University of Oxford.

    1 March 1909 Suite no.1 for orchestra op.3 by Béla Bartók (27) is given its first complete performance, in Budapest.  See 29 November 1905.

    1 March 1910 A Suite in A for orchestra by Antonín Dvorák (†5) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    1 March 1916 With the help of Sophie Tucker, George Gershwin (17) signs his first contract as a composer, with the Harry von Tilzer Publishing Company.

    1 March 1918 Ralph Vaughan Williams (45) embarks for France a second time, from Southampton.  This time, he is assigned to the artillery.

    1 March 1919 Richard Strauss (54) is appointed director of the State Opera of the Austrian Republic (formerly the Vienna Court Opera).  Immediately the entire staff, with a few notable exceptions, demand his withdrawal, charging that his salary is too high for “an impoverished country like the new Austria.”

    1 March 1925 Intégrales for eleven wind players and four percussionists by Edgard Varèse (41) is performed for the first time, at an International Composers’ Guild concert in Aeolian Hall, New York.

    1 March 1927 Karol Szymanowski (44) takes up duties as director of the Warsaw Conservatory.

    1 March 1929 By decree of King George V, Frederick Delius (67) is made a Companion of Honor.

    1 March 1930 Préludes for piano by Olivier Messiaen (21) are performed publicly for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.  See 28 January 1930.

    Bagatelle for violin, viola, and piano by Benjamin Britten (16) is performed for the first time, at Gresham’s School, Holt, Norfolk.  The composer plays the viola part.

    1 March 1931 Diaphonic Suite no.1 for flute solo by Ruth Crawford (29) is performed for the first time, at a League of Composers concert at the Art Center in New York.

    1 March 1932 Rough Wind, a song by Charles Ives (57) to words of Shelley, is performed for the first time, at the New School for Social Research in New York.

    1 March 1933 At a meeting of the Senate of the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin, at which member Arnold Schoenberg (58) is present, President Max von Schillings announces the government’s intention to remove “Jewish elements” from the academy and further, “to break the Jewish stranglehold on western music.”  Schoenberg takes this action as his dismissal.

    Incidental music to Giraudoux’s play Intermezzo by Francis Poulenc (34) is performed for the first time, at the Comédie des Champs-Elysées, Paris.

    1 March 1935 A String Quintet by Arnold Bax (51) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    1 March 1937 Suite for two pianos op.6 by Charles Koechlin (69) is performed for the first time, in Salle Chopin, Paris 41 years after it was composed.

    1 March 1939 Two Interludes for piano by Samuel Barber (28) are performed for the first time, in New York.

    Piano Trio no.1 by Ross Lee Finney (32) is performed for the first time, in the Chamber Music Hall of Carnegie Hall, New York.

    1 March 1942 Lieder nach Worten von Franz Kafka for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (41) are performed for the first time, in Skinner Recital Hall, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York the composer at the piano.

    Imaginary Landscape no.3 for audio-frequency oscillators, variable speed turntables, electric buzzer, amplified marimba, amplified wire, Balinese gongs, and tin cans, by John Cage (29) is performed for the first time, at the Arts Club of Chicago, conducted by the composer.

    1 March 1944 Trio for flute, cello, and piano by Norman Dello Joio (31) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    1 March 1947 Kurt Weill’s (46) most beloved relative, his brother Hans, dies of a blood clot at the age of 48.  The loss precipitates a nervous breakdown by the composer.

    1 March 1950 Sonata for cello and piano op.119 by Sergey Prokofiev (58) is performed for the first time, at Moscow Conservatory.  The soloist is Mstislav Rostropovich.  It has been played three times already, privately for various committees of the artistic establishment.

    Gian Carlo Menotti’s (38) musical drama The Consul to his own words is performed for the first time, in the Shubert Theatre, Philadelphia.  See 15 March 1950 and 1 May 1950.

    Sinfonietta in E by Paul Hindemith (54) is performed for the first time, in Louisville the composer conducting.

    1 March 1953 Symphony no.8 for alto, chorus and orchestra by Henry Cowell (55) is performed for the first time, in Wilmington, Ohio.

    Elliott Carter’s (44) Elegy for string orchestra is performed for the first time, in Cooper Union, New York.  See 21 August 1946.

    1 March 1956 Prelude and Fugue for four percussionists by Charles Wuorinen (17) is performed for the first time, in the Recital Hall of the School of Music, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

    1 March 1961 De profundis for solo double bass and violin, piccolo/flute, oboe/english horn, clarinet/bass clarinet/alto saxophone, and horn by Ralph Shapey (39) is performed for the first time, at the Hartt College of Music of the University of Hartford.

    Four Songs on Poems of James Joyce for voice and piano by David Del Tredici (23) is performed for the first time, in Herz Hall of the University of California, Berkeley.

    1 March 1965 Five Motets for solo voices, double chorus, and 16 players by Peter Maxwell Davies (30) is performed for the first time, in Friends’ House, London.

    1 March 1966 Concerto for piano and orchestra by Donald Martino (34) is performed for the first time, in New Haven, Connecticut.

    1 March 1967 Hankin Booby for winds and percussion by Benjamin Britten (53), composed for the opening of Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, is performed for the first time, conducted by the composer in the presence of the Queen.  See 13 June 1975.

    1 March 1968 Kären, a song by Charles Ives (†13) to words of Ploug (tr. Kappey), is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall of Jonathan Edwards College, Yale University.

    Haiku of Basho for soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, double bass, percussion, piano, and tape by Richard Wernick (34) is performed for the first time, at the University of Chicago.

    1 March 1969 Set of Two for violin and harpsichord by Henry Cowell (†3) is performed for the first time, at Converse College, Spartanburg, South Carolina.

    1 March 1971 Four short studies for cello by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (†0) is performed for the first time.

    1 March 1973 Roses, a cycle for soprano and piano by Sofia Gubaidulina (41) to words of Aigi, is performed for the first time, at the Moscow Youth Musical Club in an evening dedicated to her and her music.

    1 March 1975 Rainbow Rising for orchestra by Robert Erickson (57) is performed for the first time, at the University of California, San Diego.

    1 March 1978 Romeo and Juliet for flute and guitar by Ned Rorem (54) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    1 March 1979 Palintropos for piano and orchestra by John Tavener (35) is performed for the first time, in Birmingham Town Hall.

    1 March 1980 The Cry of Clytaemnestra, an opera by John C. Eaton (44) to words of Creagh after Aeschylus, is performed for the first time, in Bloomington, Indiana.

    1 March 1985 Harriet, the Woman Called Moses, an opera by Thea Musgrave (56) to her own words, is performed for the first time, in Norfolk, Virginia.

    Colors and Contours for band by Leslie Bassett (62) is performed for the first time, in Boulder, Colorado.

    1 March 1994 An Old Times Tune for Merce Cunningham’s 75th Birthday for string quartet and piano by Lou Harrison (76) is performed for the first time, at Lincoln Center, New York.

    Night Fields for string quartet by Joan Tower (55) is performed for the first time, at the University of Iowa, Iowa City.

    1 March 1996 Koïranoï for orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (73) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    1 March 2001 Music for the film Mahamatar for female vocalist, chorus, chimes, and strings by John Tavener (57) is performed for the first time, in Barbican Hall, London.

    1 March 2003 3 Vorspiele zu einer Insel for flute, violin, and percussion by Wolfgang Rihm (50) is performed for the first time, at the Morat-Institut, Freiburg im Breisgau.

    1 March 2004 Adagio (Selbstbildnis) for orchestra by Alexander Goehr (71) is performed for the first time, in the Rosengarten, Mannheim.

    1 March 2007 Concerto no.2 for clarinet and computer by John Melby (65) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    1 March 2010 Metagong for two pianos and two percussionists by Charles Wuorinen (71) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    2 March

    2 March 1759 The Lenten oratorio season begins in London with a performance of Solomon.  It is the last season to be supervised by George Frideric Handel (74).

    2 March 1783 Ludwig van Beethoven (12) receives his first public notice, in a letter from his teacher, Christian Gottlob Neefe (35) to Cramer’s Magazin der Musik.  (This edition is actually published on March 30)

    2 March 1786 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (30) dates the score to his Piano Concerto no.23 K.488 in Vienna.

    2 March 1787 Zalaor, an opera by Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg (27) to words of de la Veaux, is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    2 March 1789 Raoul Barbe-bleue, a comédie mise en musique by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (48) to words of Sedaine after Perrault, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    2 March 1792 Symphony no.98 by Joseph Haydn (59) is performed for the first time, in London.  The audience requires that the first and fourth movements be repeated.  Samuel Wesley (26) is among the listeners.

    2 March 1794 A letter from a local revolutionary leader in Paris is read to the Commune de Paris.  It denounces Le congrès des rois as pro-aristocratic.  The Commune suspends the opera after two performances at the Théâtre Favart.  See 26 February 1794.

    2 March 1795 Symphony no.103 “Drumroll” by Joseph Haydn (62) is performed for the first time, in London.

    Ludwig van Beethoven (24) makes his Vienna debut, at the palace of Prince Lobkowitz.

    2 March 1806 John Field (23) makes his highly successful performing debut in Moscow.  He will live in Moscow and St. Petersburg for some years.

    2 March 1822 Maria Szymanowska (32) departs Warsaw for her first extensive concert tour as pianist, in Russia.

    2 March 1824 10:00  Shrove Tuesday.  Bedrich Smetana is born in Litomysl, Bohemia, 137 km east of Prague, son of Frantisek Smetana, a cooper, barrel binder and master brewer in service to several noblemen, and Barbora Lynkova, daughter of a coachman.  The child is the third of his mother’s ten children and the eleventh of his father’s eighteen children.

    2 March 1826 Johann Simon Mayr (62) steps down as President of the Ateneo, Bergamo.

    2 March 1827 Diabelli and Co., Vienna publishes Franz Schubert’s (30) Mignon songs D.877, to words of Goethe, as his op.62.

    2 March 1839 Pascal et Chambord, a vaudeville by Jacques Offenbach (19) to words of Bourgeois and Brisebarre, is performed for the first time, at the Palais-Royal, Paris.  It is a flop.

    2 March 1864 A Prelude for organ op.19 no.1 by John Knowles Paine (25) is performed for the first time, by the composer, in the Boston Music Hall.

    2 March 1868 The “Dances of the Chambermaids” from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (27) unperformed opera Voyevoda is performed for the first time, in Moscow, directed by the composer.  See 11 February 1869.

    2 March 1873 Petite Suite for orchestra by Georges Bizet (34) is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.  The audience accords it polite applause.

    2 March 1874 Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (29) makes his debut as orchestral conductor in a St. Petersburg concert to benefit famine victims in Samara.

    2 March 1875 Georges Bizet (36) visits César Franck’s (52) organ class at the Paris Conservatoire and gives away two Carmen tickets.  One recipient, Vincent d’Indy (23), later will remember that of the eight members of the class, no one recognized Bizet by sight.  Lamenting the fact that he has only two tickets, Bizet remarks, “Unfortunately that is too few; but you know even the most beautiful girl in the world can give no more than she has.”

    2 March 1878 Three of the Six Etudes op.52 for piano by Camille Saint-Saëns (42) are performed for the first time, at a concert of the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    2 March 1879 Nur fort! op.383, a polka schnell by Johann Strauss (53), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    2 March 1881 The Wolverine March by John Philip Sousa (26) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    2 March 1882 The Realm of Fancy op.36 a cantata by John Knowles Paine (43) to words of Keats is performed for the first time, at the Boston Music Hall.

    2 March 1883 Emilian Schulz and his daughter, Zdenka Janáckova, go to the apartment of Leos Janácek (28) to pick up furniture and other items awarded her by the divorce court.  Schulz and Janácek come to blows and the police are summoned and remain until Zdenka’s things are removed.

    2 March 1884 Prague Carnival for orchestra by Bedrich Smetana is performed for the first time, on the composer’s 60th birthday.

    Two sons of successful Bradford businessmen, Fritz (Frederick) Delius (22) and Charles Douglas, sail from Liverpool for New York.  Their intention is to travel to Florida to an orange grove on which Delius’ father has taken an option.

    2 March 1887 Aus Italien, a symphonic fantasy by Richard Strauss (22), is performed for the first time, in Munich conducted by the composer.  The first three movements are applauded but after the fourth, numerous hisses are heard.  He will later remember, “I felt enormous pride:  the first work which aroused the opposition of the multitude; it cannot be insignificant.”

    2 March 1888 Rosa Papier gives the first public performance of any song by Hugo Wolf (27).

    2 March 1891 At a social gathering in Paris, Carl Nielsen (25) first meets the sculptor Anne Marie Brodersen.  They are both in Paris for study purposes.  She has heard of him before.  The two begin a whirlwind courtship.  See 10 May 1891.

    2 March 1893 A Corsican Dirge for voice and piano by Charles Villiers Stanford (40) to traditional Corsican words translated by Strettell, is performed for the first time, at Cambridge University, the composer at the keyboard.

    2 March 1896 In what is probably the first public performance of any music by Arnold Schoenberg (21), Alexander von Zemlinsky conducts his Notturno in Vienna.

    Zanetto, an opera by Pietro Mascagni (32) to words of Targioni-Tozzetti and Menasci after Coppée, is performed for the first time, at the Liceo Rossini, Pesaro, the composer conducting.  It is well received in Pesaro but will not do as well in Milan when Mascagni takes it there in two weeks.

    Shamus O’Brien, a romantic comic opera by Charles Villiers Stanford (43) to words of Jessop after Le Fanu, is performed for the first time, in the Opera Comique Theatre, London.  It is a smashing success and will enjoy 82 performances.

    2 March 1900 Curt Julian Weill is born in Dessau, the third of four children born to Albert Weill, chief cantor at the Dessau synagogue and composer of sacred music, and Emma Ackerman, daughter of a rabbi.

    Two songs for voice and piano by Edward Elgar (42), After (words by Marston) and A Song of Flight (words by Rossetti) op.31, are performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.

    2 March 1901 Vêpres pour le commun des vierges op.31 for organ by Ernest Chausson (†1) is performed for the first time, in the hall of the Schola Cantorum, Paris.

    2 March 1903 Gabriel Fauré (57) begins his duties as music critic of Le Figaro, a post he will hold until 1921.

    2 March 1904 Sonata no.1 for violin alone op.42/1 by Max Reger (30) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    2 March 1905 Marcus Samuel Blitzstein is born in Philadelphia, second of two children born to Samuel Marcus Blitzstein, a steamship ticket agent at his father’s bank, and Anna Levitt (Lewytski).  Her father is in the clothing business.

    2 March 1906 La Belle Dame sans merci op.12, a ballade for baritone and orchestra by Frederick S. Converse (35) to words of Keats, is performed for the first time with orchestral accompaniment, in  Boston.  See 29 March 1903.

    2 March 1909 Ave atque vale op.114, a choral overture for chorus and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (56) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, conducted by the composer.  It is intended to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of Franz Joseph Haydn and the birth of Alfred, Lord Tennyson.

    2 March 1910 Rondes de Printemps from Images for orchestra by Claude Debussy (47) is performed for the first time, in Paris, conducted by the composer.

    Der Wind, a Tanzallegorie by Franz Schreker (31) to a story by Wiesenthal, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    2 March 1919 Two Male Choruses by Bohuslav Martinu (28) to Lithuanian folk texts are performed for the first time, in Prague.

    A song by George Gershwin (20), O Land of Mine, America, is published in the New York American as one of 15 winners of a patriotic song contest.  Gershwin wins the smallest prize available, $100.

    2 March 1922 Symphony no.2 by Willem Pijper (27) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    2 March 1926 Terzetto for flute, oboe, and viola by Gustav Holst (51) is performed for the first time, in the Faculty of Arts Gallery, Golden Square, London.

    Suite no.1 for orchestra by Igor Stravinsky (43), an arrangement of the Five Easy Pieces for piano four hands, is performed for the first time, in Haarlem conducted by the composer.

    2 March 1927 Royal Palace, a ballet-opera by Kurt Weill to words of Goll, is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Staatsoper unter den Linden, on the composer’s 27th birthday.  As a prelude to Royal Palace, the cantata Der neue Orpheus for soprano, violin, and orchestra by Kurt Weill to words of Goll is performed for the first time.

    2 March 1928 Capriccio for piano-left hand, flute, two trumpets, three trombones, and tuba by Leos Janácek (73) is performed for the first time, in Smetana Hall, Prague.

    2 March 1932 Der Fuchs und der Rabe, a children’s opera by Werner Egk (30), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Bavarian Radio conducted by the composer.

    2 March 1933 Marc Blitzstein marries Eva Goldbeck in Philadelphia City Hall on his 28th birthday.  She is a novelist, reviewer and translator, the daughter of a journalist and a professional singer.  He is a homosexual, a fact of which she is aware.

    2 March 1934 Unfaithful Marijka, a film with music by Bohuslav Martinu (43), is shown for the first time, in Prague.

    2 March 1936 Ballade for orchestra by David Diamond (20) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    2 March 1940 Arthur Honegger’s (47) dramatic oratorio La Danse des Morts, to words of Claudel, is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    2 March 1949 Concertante for Three Wind Instruments by Arnold Bax (65) is performed for the first time, in Royal Albert Hall, London.

    Concerned that President Truman might have to appear at a function with Leonard Bernstein (30), White House official David Niles asks the FBI for evidence of Bernstein’s politics.

    2 March 1952 Die Göttin im Putzzimmer for chorus by Richard Strauss (†2) to words of Rückert, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Nonet for brass op.49 by Wallingford Riegger (66) is performed for the first time, in Urbana, Illinois.

    2 March 1954 Six of the Douze pastorales op.77 for piano by Charles Koechlin (†3) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Paris Inter, 34 years after they were composed.  See 20 June 1982.

    2 March 1956 Symphony no.11 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (68) is performed for the first time, in Boston the composer conducting.  Critics are very positive.

    2 March 1959 Miles Davis records the first of two sessions for Kind of Blue.

    Piano Piece 1952 by Morton Feldman (33) is performed for the first time, at the Circle in the Square Theatre, New York.  Also premiered is Feldman’s Piano Four Hands by the composer and David Tudor.

    2 March 1961 Ariane, an opera by Bohuslav Martinu (†1) to his own words after Neveux, is performed for the first time, in Gelsenkirchen.

    Nonet for Strings by Aaron Copland (60) is performed for the first time, at the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, Washington, conducted by the composer.  It is dedicated to Nadia Boulanger (73) “after forty years of friendship.”

    2 March 1962 Kanon Igor Strawinsky zum 80. Geburtstag for chorus by Ernst Krenek (61), to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Fiesta Hall, Plummer Park, Los Angeles.

    2 March 1965 Diaphonie (I) for chorus, orchestra, and two slide projectors by Mauricio Kagel (33) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo, New York.

    2 March 1966 Night Conjure-Verse for soprano, mezzo-soprano or counter-tenor, and chamber ensemble by David Del Tredici (28) to words of Joyce, is performed for the first time, in San Francisco conducted by the composer.

    2 March 1967 Variations for cello and orchestra by Walter Piston (73) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    2 March 1969 Fancie for chorus and piano by Benjamin Britten (55) to words of Shakespeare is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC Scottish Home Service.

    Part II of Time’s Encomium for synthesized and processed synthesized sound by Charles Wuorinen (30) is performed for the first time, in Newark, New Jersey.  See 16 August 1969 and 8 May 1970.

    2 March 1972 Sonata for strings by William Walton (69), an arrangement of his String Quartet in a minor, is performed for the first time, in the Octagon Theatre, Perth, Australia.

    Black Widow, an opera by Thomas Pasatieri (26) to his own words after Unamuno, is performed for the first time, in Seattle.

    2 March 1975 Four Soundscapes for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (49) is performed for the first time, in Poughkeepsie, New York conducted by the composer.

    2 March 1979 Theatre of the Absurd for live actor, taped actors, electronic tapes, wind quintet, and piano by William Bolcom (40) to his own words is performed for the first time, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

    2 March 1980 Concerto for harpsichord and strings op.40 by Henryk Górecki (46) is performed for the first time, in Katowice.

    2 March 1983 Verticals for piano by Shulamit Ran (33) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    Love, Sweet Animal for chorus and piano-four hands by Arthur Berger (70) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    2 March 1987 The Dream of the Infinite Rooms for cello, orchestra, and electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (52) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    2 March 1989 Concerto for cello and orchestra by Karel Husa (67) is performed for the first time.

    2 March 1990 Concerto no.2 for cello and computer by John Melby (48) is performed for the first time, at the University of Chicago.

    Nor Spell, Nor Charm for chamber orchestra by Jacob Druckman (61) is performed for the first time, in Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles.

    2 March 1994 Set cançons valencianes for viola and piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (92) are performed for the first time, in Madrid.

    2 March 1996 Rapids for orchestra by Joan Tower (57) is performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

    2 March 1998 b Bop in 2 for alto saxophone and two recorders by TJ Anderson (69) is performed for the first time, in Krakow.

    2 March 2000 Two Diversions for piano by Elliott Carter (91) is performed for the first time, in Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, New York.

    Zwiesprache for piano by Wolfgang Rihm (47) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    On an Unwritten Letter for piano by John Harbison (61) is performed for the first time, in Weill Recital Hall, New York.  Also premiered is Dew-Fall-Drops for piano by Tan Dun (42).

    2 March 2002 Nine Bagatelles for piano by George Perle (86) is performed for the first time, in Rockford, Illinois.

    K'in Sventa Ch'ul Me'tik Kwadalupe for string quartet, marimba and tape by Osvaldo Golijov (41) is performed for the first time, in Hancher Auditorium, Iowa City, Iowa.

    2 March 2004 Piano Trio by Joan Tower (65) is performed for the first time, in Tucson, Arizona.

    2 March 2008 Evensong: Of Love and Angels for treble voice, soprano, reader, mixed chorus, and orchestra by Dominick Argento (80) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in the National Cathedral, Washington.

    3 March

    3 March 1760 Francesco Geminiani (72) performs in public for the last time, at the Great Musick Hall in Fishamble Street, Dublin.

    3 March 1766 Gregor Werner, the Esterházy kapellmeister dies, and is succeeded by the vice-kapellmeister, Joseph Haydn (33).  Apparently it is a foregone conclusion, as no record of the appointment survives.

    3 March 1768 Nicola Antonio Porpora dies in Naples, in poverty, aged 81 years, six months and 15 days.

    3 March 1772 Carl Ditters (32) marries Nicolina Trink, a Hungarian soprano, in Johannisberg, near Jauernig (Javorník).

    3 March 1775 Symphonie Concertante in C, C43 by Johann Christian Bach (39) is performed for the first time, in the King’s Theatre in the Haymarket, London.

    3 March 1782 A cantata by Domenico Cimarosa (32), Le tue parole o padre to words of Monti, is performed for the first time, under the name L’ombra, Genio ed Enrico, in the Palace of the French Academy, Rome to celebrate the birth of the Dauphin.

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (26) gives an academy concert at the Burgtheater, Vienna.  It is the high point of the season.  He plays the Piano Concerto K.175 with a new rondo finale, K.382.  This and the entire performance are very successful.

    3 March 1783 A pantomime K.446 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27) is performed for the first time, in the Hofburg, Vienna.

    3 March 1794 The Symphony no.101 “Clock” by Joseph Haydn (61) is performed for the first time, in the Hanover Square Rooms, London.  The audience requires the first and second movements to be repeated.

    3 March 1802 Publication of the piano sonatas opp.26&27 by Ludwig van Beethoven (31) is announced.

    3 March 1805 Louis Spohr (20) gives his first concert in Berlin.  He asks the young virtuoso Jacob Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (13) to take part, thus swelling the audience with interested Jews.

    3 March 1811 In Bamberg, Carl Maria von Weber (24) meets the music director and scene painter of the local theatre, ETA Hoffmann for the first time.

    3 March 1818 Sei gegrüsst, Frau Sonne, mir, a lied by Carl Maria von Weber (31), is performed for the first time, as part of Das Turnier zu Kronstein, oder Die drei Wahrzeichen, a play by Holbein, in the Dresden Hoftheater.

    3 March 1819 An executive meeting of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna, it is decided that Jan Václav Vorísek (27) should henceforth conduct the concerts and have a greater say in the choice of music.  He will conduct the next two performances.

    3 March 1822 Franz Schubert’s (25) song Geist der liebe D.747 to words of Matthesson is performed for the first time, in the Redoutensaal, Vienna.

    3 March 1825 Franz Schubert’s (28) song Die junge Nonne D.828 to words of Craigher de Jachelutta is performed for the first time, in the Vienna home of the singer, Sophie Müller.  See 28 December 1826.

    3 March 1826 On his way to London, Carl Maria von Weber (39) suffers a seizure in Calais due to wet weather.

    3 March 1838 Frédéric Chopin (28), Charles-Valentin Alkan (24), Joseph Zimmermann and Adolphe Gutmann perform Alkan’s eight-hand arrangement of Beethoven’s (†10) Seventh Symphony, in Paris.

    3 March 1842 Bartolomeo Merelli, the producer of Verdi’s (28) Nabucco, insists on a medical examination of Giuseppina Strepponi, held today.  The doctors find “Signora Strepponi to be affected with such laryngo-tracheal inflammation as will lead to consumption unless she at once ceases to exercise her profession and submits herself to similar careful treatment and an uninterruptedly tranquil way of life.”  She will go on anyway.

    After ten triumphant weeks in Berlin, Franz Liszt (30) takes leave of the city, in a coach drawn by six white horses, followed by a procession of thirty more coaches.  Prussian students accompany them to the Brandenburg Gate, while the University of Berlin suspends classes.  Thousands turn out to see him off.

    Symphony no.3 “Scottish” by Felix Mendelssohn (33) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig under the direction of the composer.

    3 March 1853 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (23) premieres his Fragment of the Symphony, “The Battle of Bunker Hill” in Philadelphia.

    3 March 1854 After hearing of Robert Schumann’s (43) condition, Johannes Brahms (20) moves to Düsseldorf to aid Clara (34).

    Harriet Smithson dies at Montmartre attended only by her nurses.  Since her first stroke in 1848, she suffered from progressive paralysis, irregular breathing, skin disease and her mobility and speech were limited.  Her husband, Hector Berlioz (50), visits the apartment in Montmartre and kisses the body before it is taken away for burial, then fetches a protestant pastor for the interment in the cimitière St.-Vincent.  Some important literary figures attend the burial but Berlioz is too distraught to go.  He spends the time in her apartment even though they were estranged since the early 1840s.

    3 March 1858 Mesdames de la Halle, an operetta by Jacques Offenbach (38) to words of Lapointe, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    3 March 1860 Serenade no.1, in the setting for full orchestra by Johannes Brahms (26), is performed for the first time, in the Concert Hall of the Royal Theatre, Hannover.  Reviews are mixed.  See 28 March 1859.

    3 March 1861 By command of Alyeksandr II, Tsar of all the Russias, every one of the 25 million serfs in his domains is forthwith emancipated.  The Musorgsky family is financially devastated and Modest Musorgsky (21) has to think about money for the first time.

    3 March 1862 Wiener Chronik op.268, a waltz by Johann Strauss (36), is performed for the first time, in the Dianabadsaal, Vienna.

    3 March 1864 A Sonata for violin and piano D.574 by Franz Schubert (†35) is performed for the first time, by the Musikverein, Vienna, 47 years after it was composed.

    3 March 1870 Rhapsody for alto, male chorus and orchestra op.53 by Johannes Brahms (36) to words of Goethe is performed for the first time, in the Rosensaal, Jena.

    3 March 1875 Georges Bizet (36) is created a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor.

    Carmen, an opéra comique by Georges Bizet (36) to words of Meilhac and Halévy after Mérimée, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.  Present are Ambroise Thomas (63),Charles Gounod (56), Leo Delibes, Jacques Offenbach (55), Jules Massenet (32) and Vincent d’Indy (23).  The work is not a success but will produce a good reception on the second night.  Reviews are mixed.  Carmen will enjoy 48 performances but the hall will never be filled.

    3 March 1878 A suite from Jules Massenet’s (35) opera Le Roi de Lahore is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 27 April 1877.

    3 March 1883 Gopak from Act I of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (42) unperformed opera Mazepa is performed for the first time.  See 15 February 1884.

    3 March 1888 Auf zum Tanze! op.436, a schnell-polka by Johann Strauss (63), is performed for the first time, in the Strauß-Palais, Vienna.

    3 March 1892 The first all-Wolf (31) recital in Berlin takes place.  It is well received.

    3 March 1893 Dances from the unperformed opera Aleko by Sergey Rakhmaninov (19) are performed for the first time, in Moscow.  See 9 May 1893.

    Suite for piano, violin and cello op.35 by Horatio Parker (29) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    3 March 1899 Ein Heldenleben, a tone poem by Richard Strauss (34), is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main, the composer conducting.

    3 March 1905 The Mystic Trumpeter, a symphonic poem by Frederick S. Converse (34), is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    3 March 1906 Images for piano, Book I, by Claude Debussy (43) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    3 March 1911 The Sacrifice, an opera by Frederick S. Converse (40) to words of Macy and the composer, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    3 March 1918 The Second String Quartet of Béla Bartók (36) is performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    Sonata in b minor for violin and piano by Ottorino Respighi (38) is performed for the first time, in Bologna, the composer at the keyboard.

    The Volunteers, a march by John Philip Sousa (63), is performed for the first time, at the New York Hippodrome.

    3 March 1925 The Coolidge Foundation goes into effect, as the US government accepts a gift of over $400,000 for the Library of Congress by Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge.  It is intended to fund music (especially new chamber music) at the library.

    3 March 1928 Sections of Francis Poulenc’s (29) Airs chantés for voice and piano are performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, Paris along with the premiere of Poulenc’s Vocalise.  See 10 June 1928 and 7 May 1927.

    Prières journalières à l’usage des juifs du Comtat Venaissin op.96 for voice and piano by Darius Milhaud (35) is performed for the first time, in Paris the composer at the piano.

    3 March 1930 Piano Sonata no.1 by Roger Sessions (33) is performed completely for the first time.  See 6 May 1928.

    3 March 1931 President Herbert Hoover signs a law making The Star-Spangled Banner the national anthem of the United States.

    3 March 1934 Ethel Smyth’s (75) Mass in D is performed in Albert Hall, London conducted by Thomas Beecham as part of celebrations marking her 75th birthday.  The composer sits beside Queen Mary in the royal box.

    3 March 1935 Love and Hatred, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (28), is shown for the first time.

    3 March 1943 Dmitri Shostakovich (36) arrives in Moscow to take up permanent residence.  He and his family have finally been granted a Moscow apartment.  They will arrive later this month.

    Variations for orchestra op.30 by Anton Webern (59) is performed for the first time, in Winterthur, Switzerland.  The composer is able to obtain a visa to attend the premiere.  He will never again hear his music in public.

    3 March 1944 Symphony no.2 by Samuel Barber (33) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  It is dedicated to the United States Army Air Forces, of which the composer is presently a member.

    3 March 1946 Coal Scuttle Blues for two pianos by Otto Luening (45) is performed for the first time, in Times Hall, New York.

    Three Pieces for string quartet by Arthur Berger (33) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    3 March 1948 Three Harvest Home Chorales for chorus, brass, timpani, and organ by Charles Ives (73) to words of Burgess, Gurney, and Alford, are performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York, approximately 50 years after they were composed.

    3 March 1950 Piano Concerto no.4 by Darius Milhaud (57) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    3 March 1952 Symphony in One Movement by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (33) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.  See 20 November 1953.

    3 March 1957 Fantasia for string trio by Irving Fine (42) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    3 March 1958 The second orchestral suite from Hans Werner Henze’s (31) ballet Undine is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.  See 27 October 1958 and 10 January 1959.

    George Rochberg’s (39) piano work Sonata-Fantasia is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School, New York.

    3 March 1959 Symphony no.13 “Madras Symphony” by Henry Cowell (61) is performed for the first time, in Madras.

    3 March 1960 A nationally syndicated column by George Sokolsky condemns the opera currently being composed on the Sacco-Vanzetti case by Marc Blitzstein (55) and its sponsors, the Metropolitan Opera and the Ford Foundation.  The piece includes excerpts from Blitzstein’s secret testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee supplied to Sokolsky by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover.

    3 March 1963 Labyrinth, an opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti (51) to his own words, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the NBC television network.

    3 March 1965 From Three Make Seven for orchestra by Ernst Krenek (64) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    3 March 1966 Relata I for orchestra by Milton Babbitt (49) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    3 March 1968 A second extended version of Figures-Doubles-Prismes for orchestra by Pierre Boulez (42) is performed for the first time, in The Hague conducted by the composer.  See 10 January 1964.

    3 March 1970 Lingua I:  Poems and Other Theatres by Kenneth Gaburo (43) is performed for the first time, at the University of California at San Diego in La Jolla, including the following sections:  Poesies for seven or more sculpted humans and tape, Dante’s Joynte for six shouting voices, overhead amber spot, film and tape, Inside for quartet for one double bass player, Mouth-Piece for trumpet and projections, and The Flight of the Sparrow for one actor and tape.

    3 March 1974 In Time of Pestilence:  Six Short Madrigals on Verses of Thomas Nashe for chorus by Ned Rorem (50) is performed for the first time, in All Faiths Chapel, Kansas State University, Manhattan.

    Several works for chamber orchestra by Charles Ives (†19) are performed for the first time, at Yale University, during the centennial year of his birth: Charlie Rutlage from Set no.5, Mists and Evening from Set no.6, Swimmers and The Pond from Set no.7 (realized by Sinclair and Singleton), March no.2 with Son of a Gambolier, Country Band March, and Overture and March 1776.  Also premiered are Ives’ Fugue in Four Keys on The Shining Shore for flute, cornet, and strings, and An Old Song Deranged for chamber ensemble.

    3 March 1977 Cuts and Dissolves for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (24) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    3 March 1979 Palimpsest for eleven players by Iannis Xenakis (56) is performed for the first time, in Aquila, Italy.

    Accelerazioni for flute and computer by John Melby (37) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    3 March 1980 BO for percussion, harp, bass clarinet, and three female voices by Jacob Druckman (51) is performed for the first time, in the Juilliard Theatre, New York.  It is dedicated to the boat people of Southeast Asia.

    3 March 1982 Tutuguri II for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (29) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    3 March 1989 Ceremonies for band by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (49) is performed for the first time, at Florida State University.

    3 March 1992 Movement of Varied Moments for Two for flute and vibraphone by Ralph Shapey (70) is performed for the first time, at the University of Akron, Ohio.

    3 March 1996 Kleine Symphonie for orchestra and Musik für Streichinstrumente by Werner Egk (†12) are performed for the first time, in Ankara 70 years after they were composed.

    3 March 1998 Circles of Fire for two pianos by George Rochberg (79) is performed for the first time, at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

    3 March 2004 Requiem for chorus, didjeridu, and orchestra by Peter Sculthorpe (75) is performed for the first time, in Adelaide Town Hall.

    3 March 2007 ImageE/cello for cello by Roger Reynolds (72) is performed for the first time, in Paris. 

    3 March 2011 Concerto for violin and orchestra by Harrison Birtwistle (76) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    4 March

    4 March 1678 Antonio Vivaldi is born in Venice.

    4 March 1756 Il roveto di Mosè, an oratorio by Georg Christoph Wagenseil (41) to words of Abbate Pizi, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    4 March 1766 Erscheine, Gott der Ehre, a cantata by Georg Philipp Telemann (84) is performed for the first time, for the consecration of G.L. Herrnschmid as pastor of St. Michael’s, Hamburg.

    4 March 1771 The Regio Ducal Teatro Milan commissions a new opera from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (15), sending it to Salzburg today.  It will be Lucio Silla.

    4 March 1773 Le magnifique, a comédie mise en musique by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (32) to words of Sedaine after LaFontaine, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    4 March 1787 Das tartarische Gesetz, a Schauspiel mit Gesang by Georg Benda (64) to words of Gotter after Gozzi, is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.  His last stage work, it is a failure and closes tonight.

    4 March 1791 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's (35) last public performance, in an academy concert by the clarinettist Joseph Bähr, features the premiere of his Piano Concerto no.27 K.595, the composer at the keyboard.  It is the first virtuoso concert in a new hall on the Himmelpfortgasse run by Ignaz Jahn.

    4 March 1792 Gionata, an oratorio by Niccolò Piccinni (64) to words of Sernicola, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.

    4 March 1820 Fanny Mendelssohn (14) begins writing down her compositions in her new music album.

    4 March 1833 Les souvenirs de Lafleur, an opéra comique by Fromental Halévy (33) to words of Carmouche and de Courcy, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Bourse, Paris.

    4 March 1848 At the home of Charlotte Marliani in Paris, Frédéric Chopin (38) accidentally meets George Sand.  They speak politely.  He tells her that her daughter has just given birth.  Sand will remember, “I pressed his trembling and icy hand, I wanted to speak to him; he fled.  It was my turn to say that he no longer loved me.  I spared him that suffering...”  Chopin writes “She asked how I was--I said I was well, and then I called for the concierge to open the door.  I raised my hat and walked back home to the Square d’Orléans...”  Edmond Combes, who was with Chopin will recall that he was “very sad, very depressed.”  Chopin and Sand will never see each other again.

    4 March 1854 Robert Schumann (43) is brought to Dr. Richarz’ asylum at Endenich, near Bonn.  Clara (34) is prevented from seeing him off.  She will not see him again until shortly before his death.

    4 March 1863 Domine salvum fac for chorus and orchestra by John Knowles Paine (24) is performed for the first time, at the inaugural ceremonies of Thomas Hill as President of Harvard University in First Parish Church, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    4 March 1869 Two songs for female chorus and piano from op.44 by Johannes Brahms (35) are performed for the first time, in Basel.  They are Fragen op.44/4 to traditional Slavonic words translated by Grün, and Und gehst du über den Kirchhof op.44/10, to words of Heyse.

    4 March 1875 A Piano Trio in G by Charles Villiers Stanford (22) is performed for the first time, at Cambridge University.

    4 March 1877 Swan Lake, a ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (36) to a scenario by Begichev and Heltser, is performed for the first time, at the Bolshoy Theatre, Moscow.  The work is fairly well received.

    Song of the Sea for chorus by Bedrich Smetana (53) to words of Hálek is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    The three Choral Songs for male voices by Antonin Dvorák (35) to words of Heyduk and Moravian folk poems are performed for the first time, in Prague.

    4 March 1881 James Abram Garfield replaces Rutherford Birchard Hayes as President of the United States.  At the inauguration ceremony, President Garfield’s Inauguration March by John Philip Sousa (26) is performed for the first time.

    4 March 1885 Concerto for horn and orchestra no.1 op.11 by Richard Strauss (20) is performed for the first time, in Meiningen.

    4 March 1889 Benjamin Harrison replaces Grover Cleveland as President of the United States.  As the Marine Band reaches the reviewing stand in the inaugural parade, it gives the first performance of Semper fidelis, a march by the band’s director, John Philip Sousa (34).

    4 March 1890 Richard Strauss’ (25) Concerto for violin and orchestra is performed with orchestra for the first time, in Cologne.  See 5 December 1882.

    4 March 1891 Geleit op.41/3 for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (57) to words of Lemcke is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    4 March 1892 Concert for piano, violin, and string quartet by Ernest Chausson (37) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    4 March 1895 The first three movements of Symphony no.2 by Gustav Mahler (34) are performed for the first time, in Berlin conducted by the composer.  The audience, filling only half of the seats, is extremely enthusiastic.

    4 March 1897 Suite for organ op.16 by Max Reger (23) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    March “Intercollegiate” with “Annie Lisle” for band by Charles Ives (22) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    4 March 1899 König Tejas Begräbnis for male chorus and orchestra by Franz Schreker (20) is performed for the first time, in Döbling.

    4 March 1901 Gustav Mahler (40) undergoes a third operation for hemorrhoids, in Vienna.  It is a success but he is put in a nursing home to convalesce slowly.

    A piano piece, Festive Prelude to the New Century, by Carl Nielsen (35), is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    4 March 1904 Ten Pieces for organ op.69 by Max Reger (30) are performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Richard Strauss (39) conducts Tod und Verklärung with the Philadelphia Orchestra in Philadelphia.

    4 March 1905 The Violin Concerto in A by Alyeksandr Glazunov (39) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg, the composer conducting.

    4 March 1908 String Quartet no.5 op.104 by Charles Villiers Stanford (55) is performed for the first time, in Leeds.

    4 March 1912 A suffragist rally at the London Pavilion is addressed by Ethel Smyth (53) among others.  This precedes a massive demonstration in Parliament Square.  They then move on to Knightsbridge and Kensington to do damage.  Ethel Smyth is arrested after hurling a projectile at the home of Colonial Secretary Lewis Harcourt.  She will be sentenced to two months with hard labor, later reduced to one month.

    4 March 1913 Gabriel Fauré’s (67) drame lyrique Pénélope, to words of Fauchois, is performed for the first time, in Monaco.

    The Cloud Messenger for chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (38), to words of Kalidasa, translated by the composer, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.  On the same program is the premiere of Christmas Eve on the Mountains for orchestra by Arnold Bax (29).

    4 March 1920 Sept pièces brève, for piano by Arthur Honegger (27), is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    4 March 1921 Two movements of the original version of a string quartet by William Walton (18) are performed for the first time, at the Contemporary Music Centre, London.  See 5 July 1923.

    Indian Sketches, for orchestra by Henry Gilbert (52), is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.  The critics like it.

    4 March 1922 Symphony no.2 op.23 by Albert Roussel (52) is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris.  It is not well received.

    4 March 1923 La Primavera, a cantata by Ottorino Respighi (43) for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra, to words of Zarian, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Augusteo, Rome.

    Hyperprism for nine wind instruments and seven percussionists by Edgard Varèse (39) is performed for the first time, at an International Composers’ Guild concert in the Klaw Theatre, New York, conducted by the composer.  The work inspires violent demonstrations and counter-demonstrations.  One supporter of the music jumps on the stage while two others are arrested.  The work has to be repeated in its entirety.  Also premiered is Toys, a song for voice and piano by Carl Ruggles (46).

    4 March 1924 Fanfare for the Vienna Philharmonic for brass and timpani by Richard Strauss (59) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    4 March 1926 Three works by Ottorino Respighi (46) are performed for the first time, in Amsterdam, conducted by the composer:  the Third Suite of Ancient Airs and Dances, for orchestra, a Concerto in Mixolydian Mode for piano and orchestra, and Poema autunnale for violin and orchestra.

    4 March 1927 Concertino for orchestra, including microtonal instruments, by Julián Carrillo (52) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    4 March 1928 Samuel Hans Adler is born in Mannheim, son of Hugo Chaim Adler, a cantor and composer of music for Jewish liturgy, and Selma Rothschild, a singer and pianist.

    4 March 1929 L’Eventail de Jeanne, a ballet to a scenario by Franck and Bourgat, and music by Albert Roussel (59), Florent Schmitt (58), Maurice Ravel (53), Jacques Ibert (38), Roland-Manuel (37), Darius Milhaud (36), Delannoy (30), Francis Poulenc (30), Georges Auric (30) and Pierre-Octave Ferroud (29) is performed publicly for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  See 16 June 1927.

    The Rhapsody no.1 for violin and piano by Béla Bartók (47) is performed for the first time, in London, the composer at the keyboard.

    4 March 1933 Today’s production of Der Silbersee marks the last performance in Germany of any work by Kurt Weill (33) until the end of World War II.  The Nazis close all productions of the play.

    The communist theatrical group Die Truppe 1931, whose composer and pianist is Stefan Wolpe (30), is banned by the Berlin police.

    4 March 1934 Mario Davidovsky is born in Buenos Aires, son of Natalio Davidovsky and Perla Bulanska.

    4 March 1935 Radio-Panoramique for orchestra by Arthur Honegger (42) is performed for the first time, in a concert broadcast live over the airwaves of Radio Geneva.  See 19 October 1935.

    4 March 1940 Chromatic Study on the Name of Bach for organ by Walter Piston (46) is performed for the first time, in Hartford, Connecticut.

    4 March 1942 Song of Freedom for chorus and orchestra by John Alden Carpenter (66) to words of Martin is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    4 March 1943 Three Choruses from Alice in Wonderland by Irving Fine (28) is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theatre, Harvard University.

    4 March 1945 Memorial Fanfare for Henry Wood, a work for orchestra by William Walton (42), is performed for the first time, in the Royal Albert Hall, London.

    4 March 1946 Sonatina canonica on “Capricci” of Niccolò Paganini for piano by Luigi Dallapiccola (42) is performed for the first time, in Perugia.

    4 March 1950 Piano Sonata no.2 op.293 by Darius Milhaud (57) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London.

    Fantasy Suite no.1 by Peter Maxwell Davies (15) is performed for the first time, by the composer over the airwaves of the BBC originating in Manchester.

    4 March 1951 Charles Ives (76) hears a radio rebroadcast of the premiere of his Symphony no.2, at the home of a neighbor in West Redding, Connecticut.  It is the first time he has heard the work which he completed in 1901.  See 22 February 1951.

    4 March 1954 Symphony no.1 by Karel Husa (32) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    Incidental music to Rossin’s play Am stram gram by Benjamin Britten (40) is performed for the first time, in Toynbee Hall Theatre, London.

    Cello Concerto no.1 by Ernst Krenek (53) is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Auditorium, Los Angeles.

    4 March 1955 Dance Rhythms op.58 for orchestra by Wallingford Riegger (69) is performed for the first time, in Albany, Georgia.

    4 March 1960 Tempi concertati for flute, violin, two pianos, and chamber ensemble by Luciano Berio (34) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    4 March 1961 Epigram and Evolution for piano by Roger Reynolds (27) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Robert Ashley (30) at the keyboard.

    4 March 1962 Duo for violin and cello no.2 by Bohuslav Martinu (†2) is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    4 March 1963 Canto for orchestra by Peter Mennin (39) is performed for the first time, in San Antonio.

    4 March 1966 String Quartet no.2 by Gunther Schuller (40) is performed for the first time, in MacBride Auditorium of the University of Iowa, Iowa City.

    Incidental music to Stone’s play The Prince and the Mermaid by William Grant Still (70) is performed for the first time, at San Fernando Valley State College in Northridge, California.

    4 March 1974 La cubana, oder Ein Leben für die Kunst, a vaudeville by Hans Werner Henze (47) to words of Enzensberger after Barnet, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of National Educational Television originating in New York.  See 28 May 1975.

    4 March 1976 Mirage for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (47) is performed for the first time, in St. Louis.

    4 March 1979 Street Song for piano by TJ Anderson (50) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    4 March 1980 Beware!, a song for voice and piano by Benjamin Britten (†3) to words of Longfellow, is performed for the first time, at the University of East Anglia.  The song was composed in the 1920s.

    Fwyynghn, a theatre piece by Pauline Oliveros (47), in collaboration with others, is performed for the first time, at the California Institute for the Arts, Valencia.

    4 March 1983 A concert version of Orpheus for speaker and orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (56) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    Three Voices for three sopranos or soprano and tape by Morton Feldman (57) to words of O’Hara is performed for the first time, at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia.

    4 March 1984 Jubilate Deo in E flat for chorus and organ by Benjamin Britten (†7) is performed for the first time, in Winchester Cathedral, 50 years after it was composed.

    4 March 1985 Prospection for three pianos by Henri Pousseur (55) is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall of the Conservatoire, Liège 33 years after it was composed.

    4 March 1987 Postcards for mezzo-soprano and lute by Robert Erickson (69) to his own words is performed for the first time, at the University of California at San Diego.

    4 March 1988 Te Deum, an oratorio for chorus and orchestra by Dominick Argento (60), is performed for the first time, in Kleinhans Music Hall, Buffalo.

    4 March 1989 Trio for violin, viola, and cello by Sofia Gubaidulina (57) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Déclarations d’Orage for speaker, two solo voices, alto saxophone, tuba, synthesizer, and orchestra by Henri Pousseur (59) and Michel Butor to words of Blake, Neruda, Schiller, and Mai is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    4 March 1993 Midnight for chorus by Thea Musgrave (64) to words of Keats is performed for the first time, in San Antonio, Texas.

    4 March 1998 The Last Discourse for amplified double bass, soprano, bass, and chorus by John Tavener (54) is performed for the first time, in St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.

    4 March 1999 Dracula for soprano and eleven instruments by David del Tredici (61) to words of Corn, is performed for the first time, at the Ethical Culture Society, New York.

    The Suit for male chorus by TJ Anderson (70) to words of Levine is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    4 March 2000 The Miracle, nine madrigals after Giovanni Pascoli for male chorus, woodwind quintet, and percussion by William Bolcom (61) to words of Weinstein, is performed for the first time, in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

    4 March 2007 Duos for two violins by Alexander Goehr (74) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    5 March

    5 March 1762 Der Tag des Gerichts, a sacred oratorio by Georg Philipp Telemann (80) to words of Alers, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    The Sacrifice, or The Death of Abel, an oratorio by Thomas Augustine Arne (51) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Drury Lane Theatre, London.  The work is actually a revival of Arne’s The Death of Abel of 1744.

    5 March 1775 A setting of Misericordias Domini K.222 for chorus, two violins, bass and organ by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (19) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    5 March 1776 Zemire und Azor, a komische Oper by Christian Gottlob Neefe (28) to words of von Thummel after Marmontel, is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    5 March 1778 Thomas Augustine Arne dies in London of a “spasmodic complaint”, 67 years, eleven months and 21 days after his baptism.

    5 March 1784 Théodore et Paulin, a comédie lyrique by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (43) to words of Desforges (pseud. of Choudard), is performed for the first time, at Versailles.

    5 March 1792 One day before the premiere of Adrien, empereur du Rome, an opéra by Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (28) to words of Hoffman, is cancelled by the Commune de Paris (city council).  The censorship is due to the current anti-Austrian sentiment.  The opera shows the ancient Roman emperor in a favorable light and the parallel to the Holy Roman Emperor is too close.

    5 March 1793 Le jugement de Paris, a ballet with music by Christoph Willibald Gluck (†5), Joseph Haydn (60), Ignaz Pleyel (35), Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (29), and Rodolphe Kreutzer (26) to a scenario by Gardel, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    5 March 1809 The Cello Sonata op.69 by Ludwig van Beethoven (38) is performed publicly for the first time, in Vienna.

    5 March 1816 La fête du village voisin, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (40) to words of Sewrin, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Feydeau, Paris.  The performance is a disaster due to the inept libretto and the poet is whistled when he appears at the end.

    5 March 1818 Mosè in Egitto, an azione tragico-sacra by Gioachino Rossini (26) to words of Tottola after Ringhieri, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.  It is an immediate success.

    5 March 1829 Franz Schubert’s (†0) Hymnus an den Heiligen Geist D.964 for male chorus, soloists, chorus and winds to words of Schmidt is performed for the first time, in the Landhaussaal, Vienna.

    5 March 1836 Giuseppe Verdi (22) is appointed maestro di musica in Busseto.

    5 March 1838 Guido et Ginevra, ou La peste de Florence, an opéra by Fromental Halévy (38) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    5 March 1853 Arthur William Foote is born at 44 Warren Street, Salem, Massachusetts, the third of six children (three surviving infancy) born to Caleb Foote, editor of the Salem Gazette and Mary Wilder White, amateur singer and daughter of a judge.

    5 March 1856 04:55  Fire breaks out in the Covent Garden Opera House, London and takes 30 minutes to destroy the building.

    5 March 1864 Fantasia on the “Portuguese Hymn” by John Knowles Paine (25) is performed for the first time, by the composer in the Boston Music Hall.

    5 March 1868 Mefistofele, an opera by Arrigo Boito (26) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The performance is accompanied by warring factions in the audience proclaiming their positions and the relative inferiority of their opponents.

    5 March 1869 Two works for alto, baritone and piano by Johannes Brahms (35) are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Es rauscht das Wasser op.28/3 to words of Goethe, and Der Jäger und sein Liebchen op.28/4 to words of Hoffmann von Fallersleben.

    5 March 1870 In the middle of a conversation with Cosima at Tribschen, the idea occurs to Richard Wagner (56) of placing his opera house halfway between Munich and Berlin, in the city of Bayreuth, as a symbol of German unity.

    5 March 1871 Indigo-Quadrille op.344 by Johann Strauss (45) is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    5 March 1874 Eine gute, gute Nacht op.59/6, a song by Johannes Brahms (40) to Russian words translated by Daumer, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    5 March 1876 Countess Marie d’Agoult, former mistress of Franz Liszt (64) and mother of their three children, dies of heart disease in Paris.  Liszt learns the news by reading it in a newspaper, as does her daughter, Cosima Wagner.

    After eight years of complete paralysis, Francesco Maria Piave, librettist of Rigoletto and La Traviata, dies in Milan.

    Corriere della Sera publishes its first issue in Milan.  It is the first national Italian newspaper.

    Le déluge, an oratorio by Camille Saint-Saëns (40) to words of Gallet, is performed for the first time, in Paris.  In the second part, dueling demonstrations of approval and disapproval erupt in the audience.

    5 March 1880 The Merchant Kalashnikov by Anton Rubinstein (50) to words of Kulikov after Lermontov, is performed for the first time, in the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg.

    5 March 1883 Henry VIII, an opéra by Camille Saint-Saëns (47) to words of Détroyat and Silvestre, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    5 March 1887 Heitor Villa-Lobos is born in the Laranjeiras section of Rio de Janeiro, second of eight children (four surviving) of Raúl Villa-Lobos, holder of several jobs including draughtsman, cello player, artist, and schoolteacher, currently employed by the National Library, and Noêmia Umbelina dos Santos Monteiro, daughter of a fish merchant and amateur composer and piano player.

    5 March 1889 Piano Concerto no.2 by Edward MacDowell (28) is performed for the first time, in New York.  The critic HW Krehbiel will say that it deserves to be put “at the head of all works of its kind produced by either a native or an adopted citizen of America.”

    5 March 1893 Ninetta-Marsch op.447 by Johann Strauss (67) is performed for the first time, in the “Goldene Rose”, Vienna

    5 March 1894 Regina Diaz, an opera by Umberto Giordano (26) to words of Targioni-Tozzetti and Menasci after Lockroy, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Mercadante, Naples.  It will enjoy only two performances.

    5 March 1898 Sites auriculaires for two pianos by Maurice Ravel (22) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  It is Ravel’s debut as a composer.

    5 March 1901 The Heroic Elegy and Triumphal Epilogue, a work for orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (28), is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.

    L’archet op.26 for soprano, viola d’amore, women’s chorus, and piano by Charles Martin Loeffler (40) to words of Cros, is performed for the first time, in a private performance in the home of JM Sears, Boston.  The composer performs on viola d’amore.  See 4 February 1902.

    5 March 1904 Tanssi-Intermezzo op.45/2 for orchestra by Jean Sibelius (38) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki, the composer conducting.

    Maurice Ravel’s (28) String Quartet is performed for the first time, at the Salle de la Schola Cantorum, Paris.

    5 March 1906 Der Einsame op.51/2, a song by Richard Strauss (41) to words of Heine, is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.  The piano part is performed by the composer.

    5 March 1908 Drake’s Drum op.22 for voice and piano by Arthur Farwell (35) to words of Newbolt is performed for the first time, in Omaha.

    5 March 1910 A chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (†16), The Golden Cloud Did Sleep, to words of Lermontov, is performed for the first time, in Moscow, 23 years after it was composed.

    5 March 1912 Alyeksandr Skryabin’s (40) Piano Sonata no.7 op.64 is performed for the first time, in the Great Noblemen’s Hall, Moscow by the composer.

    5 March 1914 Henry Cowell (16) makes his official debut as composer and pianist, in San Francisco.  Adventures in Harmony for piano is performed for the first time.

    5 March 1916 Rondo arlecchinesco op.46 for orchestra by Ferruccio Busoni (49) is performed for the first time, in the Augusteum, Rome.

    5 March 1917 Virgil Thomson (20) joins a field artillery regiment of the Missouri National Guard at Independence.

    5 March 1921 Arthur Honegger (28) signs a contract with the publisher Sénart for three of his works.  Sénart will be Honegger’s chief publisher until 1946.

    At the Abbey Gate op.177 for baritone or male chorus and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (68) to words of Darling is performed for the first time, in Royal Albert Hall, London conducted by the composer.  It is the last time he conducts in public.

    5 March 1927 Double Concerto for violin, horn, and orchestra by Ethel Smyth (68) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    5 March 1928 The Emerson movement from the Sonata for Piano no.2 “Concord, Mass., 1840-1860” by Charles Ives (53) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the Sorbonne Station of the Radio Institute of Paris.

    5 March 1932 Nicolas Slonimsky conducts an all-American program with the Berlin Philharmonic.  Works performed include Three Places in New England by Charles Ives (57), Sun Treader by Carl Ruggles (55), Arcana by Edgar Varese (48) and Synchrony by Henry Cowell (34).  The audience showers the performers with boos and whistles.

    Deux idylles op.44 for voice and piano by Albert Roussel (62) to words of Theocritus and Moskhos (tr. de Lisle) is performed publicly for the first time, in Paris.  See 19 May 1931.

    5 March 1933 A suite from Ernst Krenek’s (32) incidental music Triumph der Empfindsamkeit is withdrawn from a program in Mannheim in an apparent attempt to avoid trouble with the new Nazi government.

    Two works by Samuel Barber (22) are performed publicly for the first time, in New York:  the Cello Sonata op.6, the composer at the piano, and Dover Beach, for solo voice and string quartet to words of Arnold.  See 12 May 1932.

    5 March 1934 Marc Blitzstein (29) and his wife sail for England aboard the SS Champlain.  He has been hired as a composer for the choreographer Kurt Jooss at the Dartington Hall School.

    A Cello Concerto by Arnold Bax (50) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    5 March 1935 Quatre romances sans paroles op.129 for piano by Darius Milhaud (42) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Luxembourg.

    5 March 1936 Several songs by Charles Ives (61) are performed for the first time, in the concert hall of the Schola Cantorum, Paris:  The Innate, Resolution and Majority, all to his own words, Requiem to words of Stevenson, and Paracelsus to words of Browning.  Olivier Messiaen (27) is at the piano.

    5 March 1937 Tarantella for chorus and piano four hands by Elliott Carter (28) to words of Ovid is performed for the first time, at Milton Academy, Boston.  See 17 May 1937.

    5 March 1940 John Henry for small orchestra by Aaron Copland (39) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    5 March 1941 La cheminée du roi René op.205 for wind quintet by Darius Milhaud (48) is performed for the first time, at Mills College, Oakland.  Also premiered is Quartet in C Major for winds by Arthur Berger (28).

    5 March 1942 Symphony no.7 “Leningrad” op.60 by Dmitri Shostakovich (35), written in honor of his besieged native city, is performed for the first time, at the House of Culture, Kuibyshev.  The concert is broadcast across the country and the world.

    5 March 1943 The Wonderful Widow of Eighteen Springs for voice and piano by John Cage (30) to words of Joyce is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    The 15th of 18 patriotic fanfares for brass and percussion commissioned by Eugene Goossens and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Fanfare for the American Soldier by Felix Borowski, is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    5 March 1944 Symphony no.2 by Walter Piston (50) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    5 March 1946 The second part of Ivan the Terrible, a film by Sergey Eisenstein with music by Sergey Prokofiev (54) is banned by the Central Committee of the CPSU because of its “anti-historical and anti-artistic qualities.”  (Morrison 2009, 245)

    Trio d’anches for oboe, clarinet, and bassoon op.206 by Charles Koechlin (78) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of French Radio-National.

    5 March 1947 Alfredo Casella dies in Rome, aged 63 years, seven months, and eight days.

    Piano Sonata by Elliott Carter (38) is performed live for the first time, in New York Times Hall, New York.  See 16 February 1947.

    Facsimilie, a choreographic essay based on the ballet of the same name by Leonard Bernstein (28), is performed for the first time, in Poughkeepsie, New York, the composer conducting.  See 18 April 1944.

    5 March 1952 Kentucky Concerto by Otto Luening (51) is performed for the first time, in Louisville, the composer conducting.

    5 March 1953 21:00  Sergey Sergeyevich Prokofiev dies of a brain hemorrhage, in his Moscow apartment, aged 61 years, ten months, and ten days.  The composer dies only a few hours before the country’s leader, and his nemesis for the last twenty years, Joseph Stalin.

    Concerto for percussion by Ben Johnston (26) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    5 March 1958 On the fifth anniversary of the death of Sergey Prokofiev, memorial plaques are ceremonially unveiled on all the addresses where he lived in Moscow.

    Orchestral Variations by Aaron Copland (57), a transcription of his Piano Variations, is performed for the first time, in Louisville.

    Fantasía para un gentilhombre for guitar and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (56) is performed for the first time, in the War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco.

    5 March 1959 Power Among Men, a film with music by Virgil Thomson (62), is performed for the first time, at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

    5 March 1961 Infanta Marina op.83 for viola and piano by Vincent Persichetti (45) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    5 March 1962 The Swallows of Salangan for chorus, four flutes, alto flute, five trumpets, two tubas, two vibraphones, two pianos, and seven cellos by Morton Feldman (36) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Brussels, directed by Mauricio Kagel.

    5 March 1965 Symphony no.8 by Walter Piston (71) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    5 March 1967 Arden muss sterben, an opera by Alexander Goehr (34) to words of Fried, is performed for the first time, in the Hamburg Staatsoper.

    Cello Concerto by Lukas Foss (44) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    5 March 1968 Reunion by John Cage (55) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.  The work consists of Marcel Duchamp and the composer playing chess.  The position and movement of the chess pieces determines sounds operated by David Tudor, Gordon Mumma (32), and David Behrman.

    5 March 1970 Roscatha for orchestra by Arnold Bax (†16) is performed for the first time, in St. John’s, Smith Square.

    5 March 1971 Sinfonia:  Janiculum op.113 for orchestra by Vincent Persichetti (55) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    5 March 1974 Roscatha for orchestra by Arnold Bax (†20) is performed for the first time, in St. John’s, Smith Square, London, 64 years after it was composed.

    The Seagull, an opera by Thomas Pasatieri (28) to words of Elmslie after Chekhov, is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    An audience at the University of California at Berkeley hears what may be the oldest extant song, accompanied by a reproduction of a Sumerian lyre c.2000 B.C.

    5 March 1977 The first movement of the Narrative in Two Movements for cello and 14 instruments by Ross Lee Finney (70) is performed for the first time, in Urbana, Illinois.  See 27 September 1987.

    5 March 1978 A meeting takes place in the Composers’ Club, Moscow, to mark the 25th anniversary of the death of Sergey Prokofiev.  It is the last public appearance of Aram Khachaturian (74).

    O Jerusalem for soprano and flute by Ralph Shapey (56) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, at Chatham College Theatre, Pittsburgh.

    5 March 1981 American Hymn:  Variations on an Original Melody for band by William Schuman (70) is performed for the first time.  See 30 March 1981.

    5 March 1983 Concerto para una fiesta for guitar and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (81) is performed for the first time, in Ridglea Country Club, Fort Worth, Texas.

    String Quartet no.7 by Samuel Adler (55) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    5 March 1986 Burke and Wills Suite for brass band by Peter Sculthorpe (56) is performed for the first time, in St. Peter’s Cathedral, Adelaide, South Australia.

    Seattle Slew (Dance Suite) for orchestra by William Bolcom (47) is performed for the first time, in Seattle.

    5 March 1989 The Tyger for chorus by John Tavener (45) to words of Blake is performed for the first time, in Plymouth Congregational Church, Minneapolis.

    5 March 1998 String Quartet no.14 by Peter Sculthorpe (68) is performed for the first time, in Novotel, Tasmania.

    5 March 2002 Critical Moments for flute/alto flute, clarinet/bass clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion by George Perle (86) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    5 March 2003 Medusa, a monodrama by William Bolcom (64), is performed for the first time, in a concert setting in Stuttgart.  See 26 June 2003.

    5 March 2009 Cenotaph for chorus and orchestra by Dominick Argento (81) to words of Sassoon, Binyon, Teasdale, and the Bible is performed for the first time, in Civic Center Music Hall, Oklahoma City.

    6 March

    6 March 1760 Le quiproquo, ou Le volage fixé, an opéra comique by François André Danican-Philidor (33) to words of Moustou, is performed for the first time, in the Comédie Italienne, Paris.  The music is a success but the words are a disaster.

    6 March 1769 Le déserteur, a drame en prose mêlée de musique by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny (39) to words of Sedaine, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Bourgogne, Paris.

    6 March 1788 La felicità inaspetata, an azione teatrale by Domenico Cimarosa (38) to words of Moretti, is performed for the first time at the Hermitage, St. Petersburg in the presence of Empress Yekaterina II.  The empress “wouldn’t give you 10 sous” for it, and generally disapproves of the music of her new maestro di cappella.

    6 March 1789 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (33) arrangement of Messiah by George Frideric Handel (†29) is premiered at Count Johann Baptist Esterházy’s residence in Vienna, conducted by the arranger.

    6 March 1791 The Ritterballet by Ludwig van Beethoven (20) to a scenario by Count Waldstein is performed for the first time, in Bonn.  This is a ballet produced by Beethoven’s aristocratic friend count Ferdinand Waldstein.  The name of the composer is not made public.

    6 March 1813 Carl Maria von Weber (26) gives his first performance in Prague since becoming opera director.  He enjoys a good success, but is not without enemies.

    6 March 1822 King Ferdinando attends the last performance of the run of Zelmira by Gioachino Rossini (30).  It is Rossini’s farewell to Naples and he is given resounding expressions of appreciation from the king and audience.

    The first movement of the Piano Concerto no.7 by John Field (39) is performed for the first time.  See 25 December 1832.

    6 March 1823 Franz Schubert’s (26) song Die abgeblühte Linde D.514 to words of Széchérnyi is performed for the first time, in the Vienna Musikverein.

    6 March 1824 Maria Szymanowska (34) gives her first performance in Paris, in a private salon, on her three-year concert tour of Europe.

    6 March 1825 String Quartet op.127 by Ludwig van Beethoven (54) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.  It is not a success.

    I voti dei sudditi, an azione pastorale by Gaetano Donizetti (27) to words of Schmidt, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.

    6 March 1830 Clara Wieck (10) plays publicly outside Leipzig for the first time, in Dresden.  She creates a sensation.

    Gaetano Donizetti’s (32) azione tragico-sacra Il diluvio universale to words of Gilardoni after Byron and Ringhieri is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.  The production does not go well, largely due to staging problems.

    6 March 1831 La sonnambula, a melodramma by Vincenzo Bellini (29) to words of Romani after Scribe and Aumer, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Carcano, Milan, to great success.  A sojourning Russian named Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (26) is in the audience.  “Shterich and I...embraced one another and shed a flood of tears from emotion and joy.”

    6 March 1841 Les diamants de la couronne, an opéra comique by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (59) to words of Scribe and Saint-Georges, is performed for the first time, at Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    6 March 1853 Giuseppe Verdi’s (39) opera La Traviata to words of Piave after Dumas is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  The evening is a disaster.  Critics blame the singers.  Verdi will write, “La Traviata was a grand fiasco, and what is worse, they laughed.”

    Kaiser Franz Josef I. Rettungs-Jubel-Marsch op.126 by Johann Strauss (27) is performed for the first time, in the Sperl Ballroom, Vienna.

    6 March 1868 Fantaisie (III) in C for organ by César Franck (45) is performed for the first time, in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Paris by the composer.

    6 March 1869 The Finnish Fantasy by Alyeksandr Dargomizhsky (†0) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    6 March 1874 Rêverie du soir op.19/1 for piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (33) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    6 March 1875 Quartet for piano and strings op.41 by Camille Saint-Saëns (39) is performed for the first time, at Salle Pleyel, the composer at the keyboard.

    6 March 1881 Liebchen, schwing Dich op.394, a polka mazurka by Johann Strauss (55), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    6 March 1884 Piano sonata in f minor by Ferruccio Busoni (17) is performed for the first time, in the Bösendorfer Saal, Vienna by the composer.

    6 March 1885 Concert Fantasia op.56 for piano and orchestra by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (44) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    6 March 1887 Excerpts from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (46) unperformed opera The Sorceress are performed by students of Moscow Conservatory.  See 1 November 1887.

    6 March 1888 Klage op.105/3, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (54), is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    6 March 1895 Trennung op.14/5, a song by Johannes Brahms (61) to traditional words, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, 37 years after it was composed.

    6 March 1896 Suite in d minor for orchestra op.36 by Arthur Foote (43) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    6 March 1898 Spring Song for voice and piano by Leos Janácek (43) to words of Tichy is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).

    6 March 1900 The Piano Sonata no.3 op.23 by Alyeksandr Skryabin (28) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    6 March 1905 Union and Liberty op.60 for chorus and orchestra or band by Horatio Parker (41) is performed for the first time, in Washington as part of celebrations surrounding the inaugural of President Roosevelt.

    6 March 1908 Two works for cello and piano by Frank Bridge (29) are performed for the first time, in Kensington Town Hall:  Elégie and Scherzo.

    6 March 1910 Piano Sonata no.1 op.1 by Sergey Prokofiev (18) is performed for the first time, by the composer, in Moscow.  Also premiered is Prokofiev’s Four Studies for piano op.2.

    6 March 1911 Interlude d’orgue op.42/6 by Charles Koechlin (43) is performed for the first time, in Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    6 March 1913 The word “jazz” appears for the first time in print, in the San Francisco Bulletin, as a synonym for pep.

    6 March 1917 Sonata no.2 for violin and piano by John Ireland (37) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.  It is an immediate success.

    6 March 1918 Piano Quintet in e minor op.7 by Paul Hindemith (22) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.

    6 March 1921 Le nénuphar op.13/3 for voice and orchestra by Charles Koechlin (53) to words of Haraucourt is performed for the first time, in Théâtre du Chátelet, Paris, 22 years after it was composed.

    6 March 1923 Jardín de Oriente, an opera by Joaquín Turina (40) to words of Martínez Sierra, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Real, Madrid.

    The third movement of The Hour Glass for piano by Frank Bridge (44) is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.

    6 March 1924 Sonata for cello and piano op.66 by Charles Koechlin (56) is performed for the first time, in Salle des agriculteurs, Paris.

    6 March 1925 Incidental music for Act 5 of Micinski’s play Prince Potemkin by Karol Szymanowski (42) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    6 March 1927 Quintet op.39 for oboe, clarinet, violin, viola, and double bass by Sergey Prokofiev (35) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    6 March 1930 Three Piano Pieces op.59 by Carl Nielsen (63) are performed completely for the first time, in Copenhagen.  See 14 April 1928.

    Silently Swaying on the Water’s Quiet Breast for female chorus and strings by George Whitefield Chadwick (75) to words of von Scheffel (tr. Parker), is performed for the first time, in Kilbourn Hall, Rochester, New York.

    6 March 1932 Toccata variata for ten winds, piano, and percussion by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (26) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    John Philip Sousa dies in his room at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Reading, Pennsylvania of a heart attack, aged 77 years and four months.

    6 March 1933 Ionisation for 13 percussionists by Edgard Varèse (49) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  Among the performers are Henry Cowell (35) and William Schuman (22).  On the same program is the premiere of Sacco, Vanzetti, a ricercar for voice and piano by Ruth Crawford Seeger (31) to words of Tsiang.

    6 March 1934 When Arnold Schoenberg (59) gives a “Twelve-Tone Lecture” at Princeton University he meets Albert Einstein.  It is the first time the great Jewish emigres have met.

    Simple Symphony op.4 by Benjamin Britten (20) is performed for the first time, in Stuart Hall, Norwich conducted by the composer.

    Concerto for Orchestra by Walter Piston (40) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts under the baton of the composer.

    6 March 1937 While having lunch with the conductor Trevor Harvey, Benjamin Britten (22) meets a tenor named Peter Pears.

    Queen Mary opens the Holst (†2) Room at Morley College in London.  Money for the project was raised mostly through the influence of Ralph Vaughan Williams (64).

    6 March 1944 Eight British and American Folk Songs for voice and orchestra by Dmitri Shostakovich (37) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    6 March 1948 Two Shorts and a Long for piano by Kenneth Gaburo (21) is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York.

    6 March 1949 Sosi for violin, piano, percussion, and strings by Alan Hovhaness (37) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    6 March 1955 The CBS television network broadcasts a performance of the opera The Mighty Casey by William Schuman (44) and Jeremy Gury on their Omnibus program.  Schuman has encouraged the Broadway producer Alfred de Liagre to watch as an audition for possible stage performance in New York.

    6 March 1956 Tartiniana Seconda for violin and piano by Luigi Dallapiccola (52) is performed for the first time, in Vienna, the composer at the keyboard.  See 15 March 1957.

    6 March 1957 Incidental music to Schochen’s play Tiger Rag by Kenneth Gaburo (30) is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Hall Theatre of the University of Illinois.

    6 March 1959 Four Madrigals for chorus by Jacob Druckman (30) to words of Beaumont, Jonson, Donne, and Herrick, is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School, New York.

    6 March 1961 The World is Discovered for twelve players by Harrison Birtwistle (26) after Isaac is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    6 March 1962 Invention for percussion quintet by Charles Wuorinen (23) is performed for the first time, at the Manhattan School of Music, New York.  The composer plays timpani.

    6 March 1963 Incidental music to Smalley’s play Man with the Oboe by Lejaren Hiller (39) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    6 March 1964 Colloquies, a suite for violin and piano by Norman Dello Joio (51), is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    Symphony no.3 by Ross Lee Finney (57) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    6 March 1965 Empire, a film by Andy Warhol of the Empire State Building, is shown for the first time at the City Hall Cinema.

    6 March 1966 Music for the television documentary Of Heaven and Earth by Hugo Weisgall (53) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the CBS television network.  The composer will organize the music into a collection of eight numbers for various ensembles called Graven Images.

    6 March 1967 Zoltán Kodály dies of a heart ailment in Budapest, aged 84 years, two months, and 18 days.

    6 March 1970 Two works to words of Garcia Lorca by George Crumb (40) are performed for the first time, in Seattle:  Madrigals Book III for soprano, harp, double bass, and percussion, and Madrigals Book IV for soprano, flute/alto flute/piccolo, harp, double bass, and percussion.

    6 March 1971 Parables for chorus and chamber orchestra by Ulysses Kay (54) to anonymous words is performed for the first time, in Kansas City, Missouri.

    6 March 1975 New works are performed for the first time, at the opening of the Mandeville Center for the Arts at the University of California at San Diego:  Crow Two-A Ceremonial Opera for specialized and non-specialized performers by Pauline Oliveros (42), and  My, My What a Wonderful Fall for five dancers/acrobats, text, tape, sculpted light, and gym mat by Kenneth Gaburo (48) to his own words.

    6 March 1976 Bestiarium, Klangfarbeln auf zwei Bühnen by Mauricio Kagel (44), is performed for the first time, in the Musikhochschule, Cologne.

    6 March 1977 Sonata-Song for solo viola by Aram Khachaturian (73) is performed for the first time, in Leningrad Philharmonic Bolshoy Hall.  It is the last work he will compose.

    6 March 1980 Cornelius Cardew (43) is sentenced by a magistrate in London to one week in prison for his part in a fracas last June between police and leftist demonstrators.

    6 March 1982 Meteor Farm for two sopranos, three South Indian performers, two choruses, a West African chorus, jazz band, gamelan, and two percussion ensembles by Henry Brant (68) is performed for the first time, at Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut.

    6 March 1983 Charles Wuorinen’s (44) Divertimento for alto saxophone and piano is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York the composer at the keyboard.

    6 March 1984 Ulysses’ Raft for orchestra by John Harbison (45) is performed for the first time, in New Haven, Connecticut.

    6 March 1989 Three Poems by Viktor Schnittke for baritone and piano by Alfred Schnittke (54) are performed for the first time, in Gorky.

    6 March 1991 Hymn to the Word of God for chorus by Peter Maxwell Davies (56) is performed for the first time, at King’s College, Cambridge.

    6 March 1997 Rhymes with Silver, a dance for violin, viola, cello, piano, and percussion by Lou Harrison (79) is performed for the first time, in Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley, California.

    6 March 1998 Lament for Constantinople for alto flute and baritone by John Tavener (54) to words of Nicetas Chorisatef (tr. Angelou and Davis) is performed for the first time, in the Hellenic Center, London.

    Romance for violin and piano by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (58) is performed for the first time.

    6 March 2001 Raymond Kurzweil receives a US patent for a machine that reads printed material and transforms it into sound.

    6 March 2002 Crossing Kings Reach for instrumental ensemble by Peter Maxwell Davies (67) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London conducted by the composer.

    6 March 2003 Requiem for four vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra by John Harbison (64) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    6 March 2004 Fetzen 4 for viola and accordion by Wolfgang Rihm (51) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    Rituals for five percussionists and orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (64) is performed for the first time, in Germantown, Tennessee.

    6 March 2008 Act I of Quicksand, an opera by Robert Ashley (77), is performed for the first time, in New York.

    6 March 2009 Henri Pousseur dies in Brussels, aged 79 years, eight months, and eleven days.

    6 March 2010 Persephone by Philip Glass (73) is performed for the first time, in Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia.

    7 March

    7 March 1663 Tommaso Antonio Vitali is born in Bologna.

    7 March 1766 The publication of two sets of variations for keyboard by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (10) is announced in The Hague:  Eight Variations on a Dutch Song K.24 and Seven Variations on Willem van Nassau K.25.

    7 March 1785 Giovanni Paisiello (44) is informed that King Ferdinando IV of Naples has awarded him an annual stipend of 1,200 ducats for the rest of his life in return for one opera per year for Teatro San Carlo and other occasional music.

    7 March 1788 A month after Emperor Joseph II declared war, the German war song Ich möchte wohl der Kaiser sein K.539 for bass and orchestra by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (32) to words of Gleim is performed for the first time, in the Leopoldstädtertheater.

    7 March 1809 Johann Georg Albrechtsberger dies in Vienna of kidney stones, aged 73 years, one month and four days.  His mortal remains will be laid to rest in St. Marx Cemetery, Vienna.

    7 March 1814 Luigi Cherugini’s (53)  Chant guerrier is performed for the first time, as part of the patriotic play La Rançon de Du Guesclin by Arnault, in Paris.

    7 March 1820 Three days after his sister Fanny (14), Felix Mendelssohn (10) begins writing down his compositions in his new music album.

    7 March 1821 Two works by Franz Schubert (24), Das Dörfchen D.641, a vocal quartet to words of Bürger, and Gesang der Geister über den Wassern D.714 for male octet to words of Goethe, are performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    7 March 1824 Il crociato in Egitto, a melodramma eroico by Giacomo Meyerbeer (32) to words of Rossi, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  The composer receives his most overwhelming success to date.  It is the last Italian opera he will write.

    Prince Louis-Philippe sponsors a concert by Franz Liszt (12) before a large and illustrious audience in the Théâtre-Italien, Paris.  The reviewer of Le Drapeau writes, “I am convinced that the soul and spirit of Mozart have passed into the body of young Liszt.”

    7 March 1838 Jenny Lind makes her debut in Stockholm in a performance of Carl Maria von Weber’s (†11) Der Freischütz.

    7 March 1842 Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (37) appears before the consistory in St. Petersburg in the matter of his own divorce.  He denies his wife’s charge that he threw her out.  In fact, he left the apartment and gave 3,000 rubles per year for her maintenance.  He produces 13 letters from his wife to her lover, Nikolay Nikolayevich Vasilchikov and reads sections of them into the record.  He flatly refuses to live with her again.

    7 March 1857 A memorial service for Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (†0) fills the Konyushnaya Church, St. Petersburg.

    7 March 1859 Deutsche op.220, a waltz by Johann Strauss (33), is performed for the first time, in the Sperl Ballroom, Vienna.

    7 March 1860 The Catholic consistories of Russia and the Metropolitan of St. Petersburg grant an annulment to Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein from her husband Nicholas.  This should allow her to marry Franz Liszt (48) but the decree is suspended by the Bishop of Fulda.  Weimar lies in his jurisdiction.

    7 March 1866 As part of a charity concert, the septet from Hector Berlioz’ (62) Les troyens is performed before a packed house in the Cirque Napoléon, Paris.  No one sends Berlioz a ticket so he pays three francs admission for a seat very high up.  The septet is encored.  When he is spotted, the crowd begins yelling Vive Berlioz!  Well-wishers mob him and later he receives congratulations at his home.  It is his last triumph in Paris.

    7 March 1868 Mily Balakirev (31) directs a private concert of Russian composers in the hall of the Mikhailov Palace, St. Petersburg, including Alyeksandr Borodin’s (34) First Symphony.  Many mistakes in the parts preclude a favorable reading for Borodin’s work.  See 16 January 1869.

    So willst du des Armen op.33/5, a song by Johannes Brahms (34) to words of Tieck, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    7 March 1875 22:00  Joseph Maurice Ravel is born in Ciboure, Basses-Pyrénées, the first of two children of Pierre Joseph Ravel, a Swiss engineer and amateur pianist, and Marie Delouart, a Basque.

    7 March 1877 Serenade for piano duet by Charles Villiers Stanford (24) is performed for the first time, at Cambridge University.

    7 March 1880 So lass uns Wandern! op.75/3 for soprano, tenor and piano by Johannes Brahms (46) to traditional Czech words translated by Wenzig is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    7 March 1882 Symphony no.2 “Elegiac” by Charles Villiers Stanford (29) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, conducted by the composer.

    7 March 1884 The second movement of the Symphony no.2 by George Whitefield Chadwick (29) is performed for the first time, at the Music Hall, Boston.  See 10 December 1886.

    7 March 1889 Hans Bronsart, intendent in Weimar, concludes secret negotiations with Richard Strauss (24) to bring Strauss to the conducting position in Weimar.

    Escenas sinfónicos for orchestra by Isaac Albéniz (28) is performed for the first time, in Teatro de la Comedia, Madrid.

    7 March 1890 Two songs for voice and piano by Hans Pfitzner (20) to anonymous words are performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main:  Im tiefen Wald verborgen op.2/4, and Zweifelnde Liebe op.6/1.

    7 March 1891 Danza esotica for orchestra by Pietro Mascagni (27) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Mercadente, Cerignola.

    7 March 1894 The Piano Pieces op.118 and 119 by Johannes Brahms (60) are performed completely for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.  See 22 January 1894.

    7 March 1896 The Storm, an overture by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (†2), is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg, 32 years after it was composed.

    The Grand Duke, or The Statutory Duel, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (53) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, London.  The first-night audience is appreciative, the critics are fairly positive, but the work will ultimately fail, with only 123 performances.  It is the last collaboration of Gilbert and Sullivan.

    7 March 1897 Johannes Brahms (63) appears for the last time at a performance of his music, the Fourth Symphony, at the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Vienna.  Every movement is applauded.  Afterwards, the composer stands in the director’s box to thunderous applause.

    7 March 1901 Hubert Parry (53) gives his Inaugural Lecture as professor at Oxford University.  His subject is “Style in Musical Art.”  So many people desire admittance that the lecture is moved from the Sheldonian Theatre to the Town Hall.

    Lola, a scène dramatique by Camille Saint-Saëns (65) to words of Bordèse, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Violin Concerto no.1 by Charles Villiers Stanford (48) is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth conducted by the composer.

    7 March 1904 The orchestral work Symphonic Rhapsody by Ralph Vaughan Williams (31), is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth.

    7 March 1905 Sonata for violin and piano no.5 op.84 by Max Reger (31) is performed for the first time, in Berlin, the composer at the keyboard.

    7 March 1908 Franz Schubert’s (†79) opera Die Bürgschaft D.435 is performed for the first time, in concert, in Vienna, 92 years after it was composed.

    7 March 1912 The Phantastische Ouvertüre op.15 by Franz Schreker (33) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    7 March 1913 Two works by John Ireland (33) are performed for the first time, in Steinway Hall, London, the composer at the keyboard:  Songs of a Wayfarer, a cycle for voice and piano to various authors, and Sonata for violin and piano no.1.

    7 March 1915 Sergey Prokofiev (23) performs abroad for the first time, his Second Piano Concerto, in Rome.  Audience reaction is strongly divided.

    7 March 1917 Robert Erickson is born in Marquette, Michigan, the only child of Charles and Edith Erickson.

    7 March 1922 Des Todes Tod for voice and orchestra by Paul Hindemith (26) to words of Reinacher is performed publicly for the first time, in Berlin.  See 24 January 1922.

    Of a Rose I Sing a Song for chorus, harp, cello, and double bass by Arnold Bax (38) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    Dança frenética for orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (35) is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Municipal, Rio de Janeiro, conducted by the composer.

    7 March 1924 String Quartet no.1 by Karol Szymanowski (41) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    7 March 1925 By the Still Waters op.114 for piano by Amy Cheney Beach (57) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    7 March 1928 At a party celebrating the 53rd birthday of Maurice Ravel in the New York home of Eva Gauthier, George Gershwin (29) meets the French composer for the first time.  When Ms. Gauthier asked Ravel if there was anything he wanted he replied, “to meet George Gershwin.”  Gershwin asks to study with Ravel, but the Frenchman politely declines.  He doesn’t want Gershwin to end up writing “bad Ravel.”

    7 March 1931 An orchestral suite from Sergey Prokofiev’s (39) ballet The Prodigal Son op.46a is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 21 May 1929.

    Henry Cowell (33) gives $200 to Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (34) for the invention and construction of an instrument which will be known as the rhythmicon.

    7 March 1934 Lieutenant Kijé, a film with music by Sergey Prokofiev (42), opens at six theatres in Moscow.

    String Quartet no.1 by Walter Piston (40) is performed for the first time.

    7 March 1937 I Hear an Army, the third of the Three Songs op.10 for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (26) to words of Joyce, is performed for the first time, at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

    7 March 1940 Carnival Song for three male voices, male chorus, and brass by Walter Piston (46) to words of Lorenzo de Medici is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    7 March 1942 Fantasia on a Theme of Handel for piano and orchestra by Michael Tippett (37) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    7 March 1943 The unfinished Mass in E flat for chorus and organ by Leos Janácek (†14) is performed for the first time, in the Church of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Brno-Zidenice.

    An orchestral suite from the ballet Les Animaux modèles by Francis Poulenc (44) is performed for the first time, in the Salle du Conservatoire, Paris.

    7 March 1945 Two Settings from Finnegans Wake for soprano, flageolet, flutes, and kithara by Harry Partch (43) to words of Joyce, is performed for the first time, in Madison, Wisconsin.

    7 March 1947 Song of Songs for soprano and orchestra by Lukas Foss (24) to words from the Bible is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    7 March 1953 A memorial service for Sergey Prokofiev is held in Moscow at the Central Composers’ Home, attended by Dmitri Shostakovich (46), Aram Khachaturian (49) and other prominent Soviet composers and musicians.

    Gurney Kennedy, Chairman of the Composer’s Forum Committee at the University of Alabama, who invited Aaron Copland (52) to take part in the forum, writes to the composer, “I regret to inform you that the recent allegations of Communist sympathies on your part...and the inaugural concert affair in Washington make it inadvisable for us to have you as our guest.”

    7 March 1954 Four Inventions for clarinet, piano, and text by Kenneth Gaburo (27) is performed for the first time, in Dixon Hall of Tulane University, New Orleans, the composer at the keyboard.

    7 March 1957 Harvard Choruses by Leonard Bernstein (38) to words of Lerner, are performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    Sinfonia Concertante for orchestra by David Diamond (41) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    7 March 1958 Symphony no.1 by Charles Wuorinen (19) is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall, Cooper Union, New York.

    Concerto for viola and orchestra by Walter Piston (64) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    7 March 1960 Theatre Piece for 1-8 performers by John Cage (47) is performed for the first time, in the Circle in the Square Theatre, New York.

    7 March 1965 Symphony no.3 by Easley Blackwood (31) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    7 March 1968 Ricercare for orchestra by Walter Piston (74) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by the dedicatee, Leonard Bernstein (49).

    7 March 1971 Seven of the twelve movements of Who are these Children? op.84 for voice and piano by Benjamin Britten (57) to words of Soutar are performed for the first time, in New Hall, University College, Cardiff the composer at the keyboard.  See 4 May 1971 and 26 September 1971.

    The Most Important Man, an opera by Gian Carlo Menotti (59) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at Lincoln Center, New York.

    Two works are performed for the first time, in Kaufmann Concert Hall, 92nd Street Y, New York:  Chamber Concerto for tuba by Charles Wuorinen (32) the composer conducting, and Otto Luening’s (70) Sonata for violin solo no.3.

    7 March 1974 Compass for tenor, bass, cello, double bass, four-track tape, and visual projections by Roger Reynolds (39) to words of Borges is staged for the first time, in the Vanguard Theatre, Los Angeles.  See 16 March 1973.

    7 March 1976 Harlekin no.42 for clarinet by Karlheinz Stockhausen (47) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    7 March 1979 Two Insect Pieces for oboe and piano by Benjamin Britten (†2) are performed for the first time, at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, 44 years after they were composed.

    7 March 1981 Fanfare for brass ensemble and percussion by Karel Husa (59) is performed for the first time, in Portland, Oregon.

    7 March 1983 Song of David op.148 for organ by Vincent Persichetti (67) is performed for the first time, in the Church of the Ascension, New York.

    7 March 1984 Duo Sonata for two pianos by Samuel Adler (56) is performed for the first time, in Cardiff, Wales.

    Jubilee Music for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (58) is performed for the first time, in Memorial Hall, Dayton, Ohio.

    7 March 1987 Five Pieces for Solo Piano by Leon Kirchner (68) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    7 March 1990 Djilile for percussion ensemble by Peter Sculthorpe (60) is performed for the first time, in Elder Hall, Adelaide, South Australia.

    Movement for clarinet and orchestra by Benjamin Britten (†13) is performed for the first time, in Barbican Hall, London, 48 years after it was composed.

    7 March 1991 Rincones de España for guitar and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (89) is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    Violet’s Invention for piano by Larry Austin (60) is performed for the first time.  It was written for his piano teacher Violet Archer in her 75th year.

    Andante tranquillo for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano by George Perle (75) is performed for the first time, in New York.  The name will be changed to Night Song.

    Mirage for flute/amplified alto flute/piccolo, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano by Shulamit Ran (41) is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York.

    7 March 1992 Hill-Song no.1 for string quartet by Peter Sculthorpe (62) is performed for the first time, in Longford, Tasmania.

    Songs in the Forest for flute, violin, piano, vibraphone, and narrator by Lou Harrison (74) to his own words is performed for the first time, in De Young Museum, San Francisco.

    7 March 1993 Dritte Music for violin and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (40) is performed for the first time, in Baden-Baden.

    Trio 1992 for violin, cello, and piano by Ralph Shapey (71) is performed for the first time, in Kathryn Bache Miller Theatre at Columbia University.

    7 March 1995 City Life for 17 players by Steve Reich (58) is performed for the first time, in the Arsenal de Metz.

    7 March 1996 The Concerto for flute or clarinet and orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki (62) is performed for the first time on clarinet, in Prague.  See 11 January 1993.

    Trio-Inventions for three cellos by Leslie Bassett (73) is performed for the first time, in Gainesville, Georgia.

    7 March 1997 Broke Baroque for violin and piano by TJ Anderson (68) is performed for the first time, in Atlanta.

    7 March 2001 Partita for orchestra by John Harbison (62) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    7 March 2002 Crossworlds for flute, piano, and orchestra by Michael Colgrass (69) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    7 March 2003 May-Day for chorus by William Bolcom (64) is performed for the first time, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of Ralph Waldo Emerson.

    7 March 2004 Buckingham Palace announces that Peter Maxwell Davies (69) is named Master of the Queen’s Music for a ten year term.

    Recalling the Yesterdays for soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion by Samuel Adler (76) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    7 March 2010 Seasons: Cycle 1 for various instruments and electronics by Roger Reynolds (75) is performed completely for the first time, in the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

    8 March

    8 March 1714 Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach is born in Weimar.

    8 March 1756 Injured Honour, or The Earl of Westmoreland, a play with music by Thomas Augustine Arne (45) to words of Brooke, is performed for the first time, in Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin.

    8 March 1764 Rose et Colas, a comédie by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny (34) to words of Sedaine after Desfontaines, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre Bourgogne, Paris.

    8 March 1780 L’amant anonyme, a comédie mêlée de ballets by Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (34) after de Genlis, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    8 March 1781 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) dates his concert aria Misera! dove son...Ah! non son io (to words of Metastasio) K.369.  He has composed it in Munich for Countess Josepha von Paumgarten, the mistress of Elector Carl Theodor.  Mozart wants the elector to hire him.

    8 March 1805 The High Police Court of Vienna issues a further finding in the case of Beethoven and Artaria.  Beethoven (34) must publish a retraction of his offending announcement of 22 January 1803 to Artaria and Co.  See 9 September 1805.

    8 March 1813 The first concert of the Philharmonic Society takes place in Argyll Rooms, Regent St., London.  Johann Peter Salomon is the “leader” with Muzio Clementi (61) at the piano.

    8 March 1821 Gruppe aus dem Tartarus D.583, a song by Franz Schubert (24) to words of Schiller is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    8 March 1827 A day after arriving in Vienna on a concert tour, Johann Nepomuk Hummel (48) visits the home of his close friend, Ludwig van Beethoven (56), now on his deathbed.

    Two works by Franz Schubert (30) are performed for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna:  Gott in der Natur D.757, a vocal quartet to words of von Kleist, and Normans Gesang D.846, a song to words of Scott translated by Storck.

    8 March 1832 Nicolò Paganini (49) departs Southampton for Le Havre.  In the last ten months he has given 140 concerts in the British Isles.

    8 March 1838 Le Figaro publishes criticisms of Fromental Halévy (38).  They see conflict in his simultaneous roles as composer and casting director of the Opéra.  He is charged with using the Opéra to promote his own music at the expense of others.  They call for his resignation.

    8 March 1845 Ernani becomes the first opera by Giuseppe Verdi (31) to be performed in England, at Her Majesty’s Theatre, London.

    8 March 1852 Stanislaw Moniuszko’s (32) cantata Nijola after Kraszewski is performed for the first time, in Vilnius.

    8 March 1857 Ruggiero (sic) Giacomo Maria Giuseppe Emmanuele Raffaele Comenico Vincenzo Francesco Donato Leoncavallo is born in Naples, second of three children born to Vincenzo Leoncavallo, a police magistrate, and Virginia D’Auria.  (The birth certificate states that he was born on 23 April 1857.  Leoncavallo often claimed that he was born 8 March 1858.)

    8 March 1861 Der Tanz in der Dorfschenke, the first of the Two Episodes from Lenau’s “Faust” by Franz Liszt (49) is performed for the first time, in Weimar.

    8 March 1862 Un ballo in maschera op.272, a quadrille by Johann Strauss (36), is performed for the first time, in Pavlovsk.

    8 March 1866 At a social gathering in the salon of Princess Pauline Metternich in Paris, Camille Saint-Saëns (30) meets Franz Liszt (54).  They play through a four-hand arrangement of Liszt’s Missa solemnis zur Einweihung der Basilika in Gran which is due to be performed in Paris shortly.  Liszt announces, “It is possible to be as much of a musician as Saint-Saëns; it is impossible to be more of one!”  Saint-Saëns writes “I see again that long pale face casting seductive glances at his audience while from beneath his fingers, almost unconsciously, and with an amazing range of nuances, there murmured, surged, boomed, and stormed the waves of the Legend of St. Francis of Paule walking on the waters.  Never again shall we see or hear anything like it.” (Williams, 408-9)

    8 March 1868 The organ of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Paris is opened by Camille Saint-Saëns (32), Alexandre Guilmant, Charles-Marie Widor and Charles Chauvet.

    8 March 1869 12:30  Louis-Hector Berlioz dies in a partial coma, in Paris, aged 65 years, two months and 25 days.

    8 March 1871 Fantasia in c minor D.48 for two pianos by Franz Schubert (†42) is performed for the first time, by the Vienna Musikverein, 58 years after it was composed.

    There is a Green Hill Far Away, a sacred song by Charles Gounod (52) to words of Alexander, is performed for the first time, in London.

    8 March 1872 Fleurette, oder Näherin und Trompeter, a komische Operette by Jacques Offenbach (52) to words of Hopp and Zell (pseud. of Walzel) after de Forges and Laurencin (pseud. of Chapelle), is performed for the first time, in the Carl-Theater, Vienna.

    8 March 1877 Banditen-Galopp op.378 by Johann Strauss (51) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    8 March 1878 Willst du, daß ich gehen? op.71/4, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (44) to words of Lemcke, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    8 March 1879 Symphony no.1 by Charles Villiers Stanford (26) is performed for the first time, in Crystal Palace, London.

    8 March 1883 La naissance de Venus op.29 for solo voices, chorus and piano by Gabriel Fauré (37) to words of Collin, is performed for the first time, in Paris.  The orchestra part is taken by three pianos, two of which are played by the composer and César Franck (60).

    8 March 1884 The third of the five choruses for mixed chorus In Nature’s Realm op.63, by Antonín Dvorák (42) to words of Hálek, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    8 March 1885 Dumka for violin and piano by Leos Janácek (30) is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno), the composer at the piano.

    8 March 1887 Wandrers Sturmlied op.14 for chorus and orchestra by Richard Strauss (22) to words of Goethe is performed for the first time, in Cologne conducted by the composer.

    8 March 1891 Sergey Rakhmaninov (17) makes his conducting debut at a student concert at the Moscow Conservatory.  He conducts his own Deus meus motet for chorus.  Two string quartet movements by Rakhmaninov are premiered, arranged for string orchestra, a Romance in g minor and a Scherzo in D major.

    8 March 1894 Hulda, an opera by César Franck (†3) to words of Grandmougin after Bjørnson, is performed for the first time, in Monte Carlo.

    8 March 1898 Don Quixote, a tone poem for cello and orchestra by Richard Strauss (33), is performed for the first time, in Cologne.  The reaction of the audience is mixed.  Critics think it too experimental.

    8 March 1899 Fantasy and Fugue in c minor op.29 for organ by Max Reger (25) is performed for the first time, in Willibroddom zu Wesel.

    8 March 1900 Sea Idyll for piano by John Ireland (20) is performed for the first time, in Alexandra House, London, by the composer.

    8 March 1902 Three works by Jean Sibelius (36), the Symphony no.2, Overture in a minor and a work for female chorus and orchestra entitled Impromptu op.19 to words of Rydberg, are performed for the first time, in Helsinki under the baton of the composer.  The symphony receives a triumphant success.

    8 March 1903 The Rumanian Rhapsodies nos.1 and 2 by Georges Enesco (21) are performed for the first time, under the composer’s direction, in Bucharest.

    8 March 1905 Introduction and Allegro op.47 for string quartet and string orchestra and the Pomp and Circumstance March no.3 by Edward Elgar (47) are performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, the composer conducting.  Arnold Bax (21) is in the audience.

    8 March 1907 Three Idylls for string quintet by Frank Bridge (28) is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.  A theme in the second idyll will be used by Benjamin Britten in his Variations on a Theme by Frank Bridge.

    8 March 1908 The overture Song of Destiny op.84 by Alyeksandr Glazunov (42) is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall of St. Petersburg Conservatory.

    8 March 1911 Alan Vaness Chakmakjian is born in Somerville, Massachusetts to Haroutiun Chakmakjian, a chemistry professor, and Madeline Scott.

    The Guarantors’ Committee of the New York Philharmonic Society votes to end negotiations with its present conductor Gustav Mahler (50) under conditions he set forth, and to approach Felix Weingartner to conduct the orchestra next season.

    A revised version of Järnefelt’s play Death takes place in Helsinki.  Jean Sibelius’ (45) music is used with two new numbers:  Canzonetta op.62a and Valse romantique op.62b.

    8 March 1917 Two songs for voice and piano by Frank Bridge (38) are performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London:  Blow, blow thou winter wind to words of Shakespeare and Love went a-riding to words of ME Coleridge

    8 March 1918 Clairières dans le Ciel by Lili Boulanger (24) is performed for the first time, in Paris.  While the premiere proceeds, the composer lies extremely ill in nearby Mézy.

    J’entends dans le lointain, one of the three Ombres op.64 for piano by Florent Schmitt (57) is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 15 February 1930.

    8 March 1920 During an intermission of a play by Max Jacob in the Galéries Barbezanges, Paris, the audience is informed that “furnishing music” (musique d’ameublement) will be played and that they should act as if it does not exist.  The music is a collection of well-known symphonic and operatic tunes played by piano, three clarinets, and trombone under the supervision of Erik Satie (53) and Darius Milhaud (27).  As the audience takes their seats to listen to the music, Satie goes through the hall encouraging everyone to go on talking, keep moving and not listen to the music.

    8 March 1921 Homenaje by Manuel de Falla (44) is performed for the first time in its original guitar setting, in the Teatro de la Comedia, Madrid.  See 24 January 1921.

    8 March 1928 Maurice Ravel (53), in New York, writes to Nadia Boulanger (40) in Paris.  “There is a musician here endowed with the most brilliant, most enchanting, and perhaps the most profound talent:  George Gershwin (29).  His worldwide success no longer satisfies him, for he is aiming higher.  He knows that he lacks the technical means to achieve his goal.  In teaching him those means, one might ruin his talent.”  He asks her to take him on.  She will politely decline.

    Il finto Arlecchino, an opera by Gian Francesco Malipiero (45) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Mainz Stadttheater.

    8 March 1929 A concert version of the first scene from Karol Szymanowski’s (46) unfinished ballet Harnasie is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.  See 11 May 1935.

    8 March 1932 Wassail Song for chorus by Gustav Holst (57) to traditional words is performed for the first time, in the Town Hall, Huddersfield, Yorkshire.

    The mortal remains of John Philip Sousa lie in state, accompanied by an honor guard at the Marine Barracks in Washington.

    8 March 1934 Christian Wolff is born in Nice.

    Sonatina in D for cello and piano by Arnold Bax (50) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    8 March 1936 Russian Funeral for brass and percussion by Benjamin Britten (22) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Theatre, London.

    The Pagan Symphony by Granville Bantock (67) is performed for the first time, in London.

    8 March 1938 Quintet for flute, violin, viola, cello, and piano by David Diamond (22) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    8 March 1941 Evening Piece (no.2 of the Three Pieces for orchestra) by Roy Harris (43) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall.

    8 March 1942 Three Pastels for piano by John Ireland (62) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in Bedford, by the composer.

    8 March 1946 The Third Suite from Sergey Prokofiev’s (54) ballet Romeo and Juliet op.101 is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  See 30 December 1938.

    8 March 1948 The Russian Question, a film with music by Aram Khachaturian (44), is released.

    8 March 1949 In accepting the resignation of Carlos Chávez (49) as director of the Orquesta Sinfónica de México, the managing council announces the dissolution of the orchestra.  “The Symphony Orchestra of Mexico was, in reality, the personal work of Carlos Chávez who founded it in 1928 and directed it uninterruptedly for 21 seasons.”

    The Red Pony, a film with music by Aaron Copland (48), is shown for the first time, in the Mayfair Theatre, New York.  See 30 October 1948.

    8 March 1950 Dmitri Shostakovich (43) wins a Stalin Prize for his Song of the Forests and music to the film The Fall of Berlin.

    8 March 1954 Three Songs from William Shakespeare for mezzo-soprano, flute, clarinet, and viola by Igor Stravinsky (71) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    8 March 1957 Pithoprakta for 50 instruments by Iannis Xenakis (34) is performed for the first time, in Munich.  The orchestra is hostile, the audience is in an uproar.

    Symphony no.6 by David Diamond (41) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    8 March 1958 Ad Majorem Gloriam, Universitatis Illinorum, a tone poem for band by Roy Harris (60) is performed for the first time, in University Auditorium, Urbana.

    8 March 1962 Piano Sonata no.9 op.58 by Vincent Persichetti (46) is performed for the first time, in Madison, Wisconsin.

    8 March 1963 Variations on a Theme by Hindemith for orchestra by William Walton (60) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London the composer conducting.  The work was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society to celebrate its 150th anniversary.

    Six Elizabethan Songs, a cycle for high voice and baroque ensemble by Dominick Argento (30) to words of various authors, is performed for the first time, at the First Unitarian Society, Minneapolis.  See 23 April 1958.

    8 March 1964 Duo for violin and viola by Otto Luening (63) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    8 March 1968 Concerto for orchestra by Thea Musgrave (39) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    8 March 1972 Cello Concerto no.1 by Krzysztof Penderecki (38) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    8 March 1974 Flaschenpost vom Paradies, oder Der englische Ausflug, a television opera by Ernst Krenek (73) to his own words, is screened for the first time, over Austrian television.  29 October 1973.

    String Trio by Walter Piston (80) is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    8 March 1975 Bryce for flute, two harps, marimba, and percussion by Toru Takemitsu (44) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    Child of Tree by John Cage (62) is performed for the first time, in Detroit by the composer.

    8 March 1976 Aphorisms for flute, violin, viola, and cello by Gunther Schuller (50) is performed for the first time.

    8 March 1978 Kyklike kinesis for soprano, cello, chorus, and orchestra by John Tavener (34) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    8 March 1979 Jakob Lenz, a Kammeroper by Wolfgang Rihm (26) to words of Fröhling after Büchner, is performed for the first time, in the Staatstheater, Hamburg.

    8 March 1983 07:00  William Turner Walton dies of a lung hemorrhage at his home on the island of Ischia, aged 80 years, eleven months, and eight days.  The composer has been ill recently but death is sudden.  Within four hours, a thousand of the local villagers arrive at his villa to pay homage.

    8 March 1986 Maske for two pianos by Wolfgang Rihm (33) is performed for the first time, in Badenweiler.

    8 March 1988 Twill by Twilight for orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (56) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.  The work is dedicated to the memory of Morton Feldman (†0).

    8 March 1989 Will You Marry Me?, an opera by Hugo Weisgall (76) to words of Kondek after Sutro, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    8 March 1990 Steps for orchestra by David Del Tredici (52) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    Visions for orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (59) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    8 March 1992 Étude pour Séraphin for brass and percussion by Wolfgang Rihm (39) is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe.

    Ever Since Babylon a cantata by Samuel Adler (64) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    8 March 1997 Jacob’s Prayer for chorus by Gian Carlo Menotti (85) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in the Civic Theatre, San Diego.

    8 March 2006 Two works are performed for the first time, in Holywell Music Rooms, Oxford:  Song of Myself for baritone, double bass, and percussion by Harrison Birtwistle (71) and A Page from A Humument for soprano, two clarinets, viola, cello, and double bass by Robin Holloway (62) to words of Phillips.

    8 March 2007 Cheetah for band by Karel Husa (85) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    8 March 2008 A Bridge to Understanding, a suite for orchestra by Samuel Adler (80), is performed for the first time, in Albany, New York.

    9 March

    9 March 1706 Johann Pachelbel is buried in Nuremberg, 52 years, six months, and eight days after his baptism.

    9 March 1759 Blaise le savetier, an opéra comique by François André Danican-Philidor (32) to words of Sedaine after Lafontaine, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Foire St. Laurent, Paris.  The work, his first complete opera, is an immediate success.

    Gerusalemme sconoscente ingrata, a cantata by Giovanni Battista Sammartini (58), is performed for the first time, in San Fedele, Milan.

    9 March 1792 At a Salomon concert in London, the Sinfonia Concertante I:  105 by Joseph Haydn (59) is performed for the first time.  Also on the program is a new concerto for pedal harp by Jan Ladislav Dussek (32).

    9 March 1796 Publication of Ludwig van Beethoven’s (25) three piano sonatas op.2 is advertised in the Wiener Zeitung.

    9 March 1814 Samuel Wesley’s Organ Concerto in C is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden.  It was intended for a concert on 4 March but was not ready.  Wesley finished it 5 March and he and Vincent Novello spent the night copying parts.  The manuscript date is 8 March.

    9 March 1828 The first performance of the new Société des Concerts du Conservatoire takes place at the Paris Conservatory.  The group has been formed to promote modern symphonic music, particularly Beethoven (†0).  This day marks the first performance of the “Eroica” Symphony in France.  It is these performances this Spring which will introduce Hector Berlioz (24) to Beethoven, to the expressive power of his music, and solidify for him the symphony as a dramatic form, capable of extra-musical associations

    9 March 1831 One day after his arrival in Rome, Hector Berlioz (27) meets Felix Mendelssohn (22).  The two will spend a lot of time in each other’s company over the next few weeks.

    Nicolò Paganini (48) performs in Paris for the first time, at the Opéra to wild enthusiasm.  Present are Luigi Cherubini (70), Friedrich Kalkbrenner (45), Giacomo Meyerbeer (39), Fromental Halévy (31), Adolphe Adam, Heinrich Heine, George Sand and Victor Hugo, in short, most of artistic Paris.

    9 March 1832 King Wilhelm of Hannover (King William IV of Britain) reappoints Heinrich August Marschner (36) as Kapellmeister for five years.  Marschner declines the contract at 1,200 thalers.  When the king offers 100 more, Marschner accepts.

    9 March 1833 Johann Nepomuk Hummel (54) meets Queen Adelaide at Windsor Castle.  He plays the organ for her and plays for her and King William in the evening.

    9 March 1842 Nabucco, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (28) to words of Solera after Cortesi after Anicet-Bourgeois and Cornue, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The work is an unrivalled triumph and secures Verdi’s reputation.  The Gazzetta Privilegiata di Milano calls the production a “clamorous and total success.”

    9 March 1844 Ernani, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (30) to words of Piave after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  Despite a mediocre performance, it is very successful, enjoying a favorable reception.

    9 March 1849 Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor, a komische-fantastische Oper by Otto Nicolai (38) to words of Mosenthal after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at the Royal Opera House, Berlin.

    9 March 1868 Hamlet, an opera by Ambroise Thomas (56) to words of Barbier and Carré after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    9 March 1873 Emperor Franz Joseph II of Austria-Hungary refuses to approve the petition of Josef Ritter von Scherer to bequeath his title to his stepdaughter’s husband, Johann Strauss (47).

    Hymnus:  The heirs of the white mountain, a cantata by Antonin Dvorák (31) to words of Hálek, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    9 March 1877 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (36) symphonic fantasia Francesca da Rimini is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Variations on an air by Bach for piano by Hubert Parry (29) is performed for the first time, at the Hotel de Provence, Cannes.

    9 March 1880 Engelbert Humperdinck (25) meets Richard Wagner (66) for the first time, in Naples.

    9 March 1886 Love’s Philosophy for solo voice and piano by Arthur Foote (33) to words of Shelley is performed for the first time.

    Le Carnival des Animaux, grande fantaisie zoologique for two pianos, two violins, viola, cello, double bass, flute, clarinet, harmonica and xylophone by Camille Saint-Saëns (50) is performed for the first time, at a Shrove Tuesday concert in Paris.

    9 March 1887 String Quartet no.3 by George Whitefield Chadwick (32) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    9 March 1890 Nine months after having completed the composition of Cavalleria rusticana, four days after being chosen as a finalist in the Sozogno competition and two months before its production, Pietro Mascagni (26) writes to Giovanni Verga, the original author, asking permission to use his work.  He will agree, provided he receive all that he is allowed by law from subsequent productions.

    9 March 1893 A suite from the incidental music to Hypatia by Hubert Parry (45) is performed for the first time, in London.  See 2 January 1893.

    9 March 1895 The Wood Nymph for reciter, piano, two horns, and strings by Jean Sibelius (29) to words of Rydberg is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.  See 17 April 1895

    9 March 1897 The third and sixth movements of Symphony no.3 by Gustav Mahler (36) are performed for the first time, in Berlin.  Response to the third movement is mixed.  The sixth causes an uproar.  See 9 November 1896 and 9 June 1902.

    9 March 1898 Hymne op.34/2 for chorus by Richard Strauss (33) to words of Rückert is performed in an open rehearsal in Cologne.  See 18 April 1898.

    9 March 1900 Ballet music to the unperformed opera Azara by John Knowles Paine (61) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  See 7 May 1903.

    9 March 1902 Gustav Mahler (41) marries Alma Margarethe Maria Schindler, daughter of landscape painter Anton Schindler and a composition student (and lover) of Alexander von Zemlinsky, in the sacristy of the Karlskirche, Vienna.  The ceremony is kept private.  Besides the couple, there are only four others in attendance.  The bride is pregnant, but not obviously so.

    9 March 1909 Interlude pour six trombones op.42/5 by Charles Koechlin (41) is performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    Sinfonischer Prolog zu einer Tragodie op.108 by Max Reger (35) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    9 March 1910 Samuel Osmond Barber II is born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, first of two children born to Roy Barber, a physician, and Marguerite McLeod Beatty, daughter of a minister.

    9 March 1917 The Sonata for flute, viola, and harp by Claude Debussy (54) is performed publicly for the first time, in Salle Laurent, Paris.  See 10 December 1916.

    9 March 1918 By a directive of Commissar of Public Education Anatoly Lunacharsky, Alyeksandr Glazunov (52) is saved from having his apartment confiscated by the government.

    9 March 1919 Symphony no.2 op.49 by Darius Milhaud (26) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    9 March 1924 Piano Sonata no.5 op.38 by Sergey Prokofiev (32) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    9 March 1925 Morceau romantique sur un motif de M. Jacob de Julin by Jean Sibelius (59) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki, directed by the composer.

    9 March 1927 Three Rondos on Slovak Folk Tunes for piano by Béla Bartók (45) are performed for the first time, over Budapest Radio by the composer.

    9 March 1930 Siciliana for cello and piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (28) is performed for the first time, in the École Normale de Musique, Paris the composer at the keyboard in a recital of compositions by students of Paul Dukas (64).

    Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny, an opera by Kurt Weill (30) to words of Brecht, is performed for the first time, in the Neues Theater, Leipzig.  Brownshirts carrying signs greet the audience as they arrive.  During the performance shouts and insults are thrown at the stage while fistfights break out in the hall.  Some cast members walk to the edge of the stage and hurl insults back to the audience.  Loud applause and expressions of approval are also heard.

    Suite no.2 for four strings and piano by Ruth Crawford (28) is performed publicly for the first time, in New York.

    9 March 1931 Evening Moscow publishes an attack on Sergey Rakhmaninov (57) for his letter of 12 January.  His music is banned for performance and study in the Soviet Union.  The ban will be lifted in 1933.

    How Old is Song? for voice and piano by Henry Cowell (33) to words of his father Harry Cowell is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    9 March 1934 Piano Quintet no.1 by Bohuslav Martinu (43) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    9 March 1936 Werner Egk (34) becomes Kapellmeister at the Prussian State Opera.

    9 March 1939 Cuatro piezas para piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (37) are performed for the first time, in Paris by the composer.

    9 March 1940 Igor Stravinsky (57) marries his second wife, Vera de Bosset, at the home of Harvard professor Dr. Taracuzio in Bedford, Massachusetts.  It is her fourth marriage.

    9 March 1941 Episode for organ by Aaron Copland (40) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Sandburg Phrases (later called Suite for piano) by Norman Dello Joio (28) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York.

    Symphony no.2 “Anthropos” by Henry Cowell (43) is performed for the first time, at the Brooklyn Museum, conducted by the composer.

    Ode to Truth for orchestra by Roy Harris (43) is performed for the first time, in Memorial Chapel, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

    9 March 1942 While returning to Italy from Hungary by train, Luigi Dallapiccola (38) must stop over in Vienna.  Here he meets Anton Webern (58) at the home of Alfred Schlee.  “A mystic, a short man, who talks with some inflection of the Austrian dialect, kind, but capable of bursts of anger, cordial to the point of treating me like an equal.”

    Two Songs for voice and piano by Richard Strauss (77) to words of Weinheber are performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    9 March 1943 We Will Never Die, a pageant by Hecht with music by Kurt Weill (43), is performed for the first time, in Madison Square Garden, New York.  The work is a collaboration by several prominent Jewish members of the entertainment industry designed to highlight the accomplishments of Jews through history and express solidarity with the Jews of occupied Europe.

    9 March 1947 Images du Canada français for chorus and orchestra by Claude Champagne (55) is performed for the first time, in Montreal.

    9 March 1949 Igor Stravinsky’s (66) case against Leeds Music Corp. is dismissed.  The court rules that the composer entered into a valid contract in full knowledge his music would be used for popular song.  See 29 July 1948.

    9 March 1951 Symphony no.5 “Di tre re” by Arthur Honegger is performed for the first time, in Boston, the day before the composer’s 59th birthday.

    9 March 1952 Tartiniana for violin and orchestra by Luigi Dallapiccola (48) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.

    9 March 1956 Concerto per il Marigny for eight players by Hans Werner Henze (29) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    9 March 1958 Sestina for solo voice and chamber ensemble by Ernst Krenek (57) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the New School for Social Research, New York, the composer conducting.

    9 March 1959 After seven weeks in Washington and Boston, substantial cuts and rewrites, changes in essential personnel, and the involvement of several lawyers, Juno, a musical play by Marc Blitzstein (54) to a book by Stein after O’Casey and his own lyrics, opens in New York at the Winter Palace.  The press goes from disappointed to scathing.  It will close after 16 performances.  See 17 January 1959.

    9 March 1962 Fantasy and Variations for piano and orchestra by Norman Dello Joio (49) is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    Water! Water!, a satirical intermission by Harry Partch (60) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    9 March 1963 An expanded version of Jephtha’s Daughter, a theatre piece with flute, percussion, and other optional instruments by Lou Harrison (45), is performed for the first time, at Cabrillo College, Aptos, California.  See 26 February 1941.

    9 March 1965 American Tryptich:  Three Studies in Texture for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (39) is performed for the first time, in New Orleans, conducted by the composer.

    9 March 1970 In London, Mikis Theodorakis (44) is awarded the Anthony Asquith Prize for the score to the film Z.

    9 March 1973 Two works by Karlheinz Stockhausen (44) are performed for the first time, in London:  Stop (London version) for 19 instruments, and Ylem no.37 for 19 players or singers.

    9 March 1974 Miss Donnithorne’s Maggot, a stage work for soprano, flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, and cello by Peter Maxwell Davies (39) to words of Stow, is performed for the first time, in Adelaide conducted by the composer.

    Jonah and the Whale, an oratorio for solo voices, speaker, chorus, and instruments by Dominick Argento (46) to medieval and other texts, is performed for the first time, in Plymouth Congregational Church, Minneapolis.

    9 March 1976 Two works for solo instruments by Peter Maxwell Davies (41) are performed for the first time, at the University of Surrey, Guilford:  The Door of the Sun for viola, and The Kestrel Paced Round the Sun for flute.

    9 March 1977 Silbury Air for 15 players by Harrison Birtwistle (42) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    9 March 1980 Quartet for oboe, cello, percussion, and piano by Ross Lee Finney (73) is performed for the first time, in Brooklandville, Maryland.

    9 March 1982 Fu for vocal soloists and twelve instruments by Tan Dun (24) is performed for the first time, in Beijing.

    La vera storia, an opera by Luciano Berio (56) to words of Calvino and the composer, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    9 March 1984 “Luzifers Tanz” no.53 for bass and band, an excerpt from Karlheinz Stockhausen’s (55) opera Samstag aus Licht, is performed for the first time, at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.  See 16 May 1984, 25 May 1984, 18 October 1985, and 27 September 1986.

    9 March 1985 Haikai for flute and zoomoozophone by John Cage (72) is performed for the first time, at the Theatre of the Open Eye, New York.

    9 March 1999 Poem of Love and Life for orchestra by Frederick Delius (†64) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC, 81 years after it was composed.

    The Woman and the Hare for soprano, speaker, and ensemble by Harrison Birtwistle (64) to words of Harsent is performed for the first time, in Purcell Room, London.

    9 March 2003 Sonata 1955 for violin and piano by Alfred Schnittke (†4) is performed for the first time, in London 48 years after it was composed.

    9 March 2006 Variance for tape by Pierre Henry (78) is  performed for the first time, at Radio France, Paris.

    9 March 2011 Duo concertante for violin and double bass by Krzysztof Penderecki (77) is performed for the first time, in the Kuppelsaal, Hannover.

    10 March

    10 March 1777 Amour pour amour, a divertissment by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (36) to words of Laujon, is performed for the first time, at Versailles.

    10 March 1785 Piano Concerto no.21 K.467 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (29) is performed for the first time, at the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    10 March 1789 Johann Nepomuk Hummel (10) performs a Mozart (33) piano concerto (perhaps K.503), his Variations on “Lison dormait” K.264 and a set of original variations at a concert in Dresden.  Mozart is in attendance.

    10 March 1813 On his way from Bavaria to Vienna, Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (21) unexpectedly meets his old teacher Georg Joseph Vogler (63) in Linz.  Vogler tells him that Grand Duke Ludwig of Hesse-Darmstadt has appointed Meyerbeer Court and Chamber Music composer.

    10 March 1814 Die Eselshaut, oder Die blaue Insel, a feenspiel by Johann Nepomuk Hummel (35) to words of Geway, is performed for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna.

    10 March 1832 Muzio Clementi dies in Evesham, Worcestershire after a brief illness, aged 80 years, one month and 16 days.

    Des Falkners Braut, a komische Oper by Heinrich August Marschner (36) to words of Wohlbrück after Spindler, is performed for the first time, in Leipzig Stadttheater.  It receives only three performances.

    10 March 1834 The Düsseldorf Theatrical Association constitutes itself to bring theatre and opera to the city.  In charge of directing the operas will be Felix Mendelssohn (25).

    10 March 1842 On the way from Milan to Bologna, Gaetano Donizetti (44), who has been silent during the trip, suddenly shouts, “Oh, that Nabucco!  Beautiful!  Beautiful!  Beautiful!” to the amazement of his companions.

    In Hamburg on his wife’s concert tour, Robert Schumann (31) leaves his “undignified situation” and returns to Leipzig.  Clara Schumann (22) continues on to give performances in Copenhagen.  According to her, this is “the most miserable day of our marriage up to now; we parted, and it seemed to me that I would never see him again.”

    10 March 1843 William Crotch’s (67) anthem for chorus and orchestra The Lord is King is performed for the first time, in Exeter Hall.

    10 March 1859 The cornerstone of the Villa Rossini (67) is laid in Paris.

    10 March 1863 Arthur Sullivan’s (20) Procession March for orchestra is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London on the day of the wedding of the Prince of Wales to Princess Alexandra of Denmark.

    Give the King Thy Judgments for chorus and organ by Samuel Sebastian Wesley (52) is performed for the first time, in Winchester Cathedral to commemorate the wedding of the Prince of Wales, the composer at the keyboard.

    10 March 1864 One of the Three Duets op.20 for soprano, alto and piano by Johannes Brahms (30) is performed for the first time, in Lucerne.

    William A. Pond & Co. publish Beautiful Dreamer, a song by Stephen Foster (†0).  Although composed in 1862, Pond probably publishes it only now because of Foster’s recent death.

    10 March 1866 The “Irish” Symphony of Arthur Sullivan (23) is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London, the composer conducting.  It is well received by all.

    10 March 1867 The instrumental version of the waltz An der schönen blauen Donau op.314 by Johann Strauss (41) is performed for the first time, in the Volksgarten, Vienna.  Also premiered are Strauss’ polka française Postillon d’amour op.317 and the polka schnell Leichtes Blut op.319.

    10 March 1868 The Scherzo from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (27) Souvenir of Hapsal op.2/2 for piano is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    10 March 1869 Vert-vert, an opéra-comique by Jacques Offenbach (49) to words of Meilhac and Nuitter, is performed for the first time, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris.  It is relatively successful.

    10 March 1875 Die Glocken des Strassburger Münsters for mezzo-soprano, baritone, chorus, and orchestra by Franz Liszt (63) to words of Longfellow, is performed for the first time, in Pest.  The work is dedicated by the composer to the poet.

    10 March 1876 Thème original et variations op.19/6 for piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (35) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    10 March 1877 Symphony no.2 by Alyeksandr Borodin (43) is performed for the first time, by the Russian Musical Society, St. Petersburg.

    10 March 1880 Symphony no.2 “Spring” by John Knowles Paine (41) is performed for the first time, at Sanders Theatre, Harvard University.

    10 March 1888 Psyché, a symphonic poem by César Franck (65), is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris, conducted by the composer.

    10 March 1892 Arthur Honegger is born in Le Havre, the first of four children born to Arthur Honegger and Julie Ulrich, both Swiss.  The birth certificate lists the father’s profession as “shop assistant” but he will soon be proprietor of a very successful coffee importing business.

    Trois sonneries de la Rose-Croix, three fanfares by Erik Satie (25), are performed for the first time, at the inauguration of the First Rosicrucian Salon at Galerie Durand-Ruel, in Paris.

    10 March 1894 Rondo op.2 for viola and piano by Jean Sibelius (28) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    10 March 1896 Chatterton, a dramma lirico by Ruggero Leoncavallo (39) to his own words after de Vigny, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Argentina, Rome.  This is a revision of an unperformed opera composed 20 years ago.  It is moderately successful.

    10 March 1900 The piano piece Tarantelle styrienne by Claude Debussy (37) is performed for the first time, at the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    10 March 1901 Brumaire, ouverture pour le drame de Ed. Noël for orchestra by Jules Massenet (58) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    10 March 1902 The Bucolic Suite for orchestra of Ralph Vaughan Williams (29) is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth.

    10 March 1903 Silent Noon, a song by Ralph Vaughan Williams (30) to words of D. Rossetti, is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.

    10 March 1906 Don Procopio, an opera buffa by Georges Bizet (†30) to words of Cambiaggio, is performed for the first time, in Monaco, 47 years after it was composed.

    Sonatine for piano by Maurice Ravel (31) is performed for the first time, in Lyon.

    Salammbô’s Invocation to Tänith, a song for voice and orchestra by Henry F. Gilbert (37) to words after Flaubert, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    10 March 1908 The first lieder recital devoted entirely to the works of Franz Schreker (29) takes place in Vienna.

    10 March 1914 Hymn to Dionysus op.31/2 for female chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (39), to words of Euripedes (tr. Murray), is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, the composer conducting.

    10 March 1915 Maurice Ravel (40) is pronounced fit for duty.  He will be assigned to the French army.

    Variations and Fugue on a Theme of G.P. Telemann op.134 for piano by Max Reger (41) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    10 March 1916 Concertino for piano and orchestra by John Alden Carpenter (40) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.  Percy Grainger is the soloist.

    10 March 1918 In memoriam:  An Irish Elegy by Arnold Bax (34) for english horn, harp, and string quartet is performed for the first time, privately, at the Plough Club, London.  See 13 February 1919.

    We Are Coming, a song for voice and band by John Philip Sousa (63) to words of Linn, is performed for the first time, at the New York Hippodrome.

    10 March 1920 The Hymn of Jesus op.37 for chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (45) to words from the Apocryphal Acts of St. John, is performed for the first time, privately, at the Royal College of Music, London.  See 25 March 1920.

    10 March 1921 Duke Ellington (21) meets his most important musical influence, Willie “the Lion” Smith, in the Capitol Palace, Harlem.

    10 March 1922 Three of the Five Irish Fantasies for voice and orchestra, The Host of the Air, The Fiddler of Dooney and The Song of Caitilin ni Uallachain, by Charles Martin Loeffler (61) to words of Yeats and Heffernan, are performed for the first time, in Boston.  See 7 November 1929.

    10 March 1924 Sergey Rakhmaninov (50) performs at the White House for President Coolidge.

    10 March 1925 Sonatas for piano no.4 op.11 and no.5 op.12 by Alyeksandr Vasilyevich Mosolov (24) are performed for the first time, in Moscow, by the composer.

    Poèmes de Ronsard, a song cycle by Francis Poulenc (26) is performed for the first time, in the Salle des Agriculteurs, Paris, the composer at the piano.

    10 March 1932 A short funeral service in memory of John Philip Sousa takes place in the Marine Band Auditorium in Washington.  The service is broadcast over the airwaves of the Columbia Broadcasting System.  A military procession leads to the Congressional Cemetery, thousands lining the route, where his earthly remains are laid to rest.

    Die Bürgschaft, an opera by Kurt Weill (32) to words of Neher and the composer after Herder, is performed for the first time, at the Städtische Oper, Berlin.  The Städtische Oper has been strongly attacked in the right-wing press.  But the opera is relatively successful.

    Dichotomy op.12 for chamber orchestra by Wallingford Riegger (46) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    In Tall Grass, a song for alto, oboe, percussion, and piano by Ruth Crawford (30) to words of Sandburg, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    10 March 1937 L’aiglon, an opera by Arthur Honegger (45) and Jacques Ibert to words of Cain after Rostand, is performed for the first time, in Monaco.

    10 March 1939 NKVD agents arrest Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (42) at the Hotel Kievskaya in Moscow and take him to Butyrka Prison.  All of his possessions are confiscated.

    10 March 1940 Soliloquy and Dance for viola and piano by Roy Harris (42) is performed completely for the first time, at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.  See 23 April 1939.

    10 March 1941 Sinfonietta for orchestra by Walter Piston (47) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    10 March 1943 Sechs Studien für Pianoforte op.51 by Hans Pfitzner (73) are performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    10 March 1944 Ma-Tovu for tenor, chorus, and organ by David Diamond (28) is performed for the first time, in Park Avenue Synagogue, New York.

    10 March 1946 Werner Egk (44) charges himself with being a Nazi in order to clear his name.  See 2 May 1947.

    10 March 1950 Song of Anguish for baritone and orchestra by Lukas Foss (27) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston the composer conducting.  An earlier incarnation for baritone, dancer, and piano was performed in 1948 as Voice in the Wilderness.

    10 March 1952 Quintet for clarinet, two violas, and two cellos by David Diamond (36) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    10 March 1954 Amidst fears of blacklisting and right-wing pickets, Marc Blitzstein’s (49) English translation of Die Dreigroschenoper, starring Lotte Lenya, opens off-Broadway at the Theatre de Lys, New York.  The audience loves it.  The critics are generally positive.  Intended to run three months, it will not close for seven years.  This, more than anything else, secures the fame of Kurt Weill (†3) and Bertolt Brecht in the United States.

    10 March 1956 Oiseaux exotiques for piano and chamber orchestra by Olivier Messiaen (47) is performed for the first time, in Petit Théâtre Marigny, Paris.

    Sonata for cello and piano by Ralph Shapey (34) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    10 March 1957 Suite modale for flute and piano by Ernest Bloch (76) is performed for the first time, in New York.  See 11 April 1965.

    10 March 1960 Sonata for solo violin op.115 by Sergey Prokofiev (†7) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    10 March 1961 Alas! Alack! for female chorus by Kenneth Gaburo (34) is performed for the first time, in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

    10 March 1963 Il Re Corvo, oder Die Irrfahrten der Wahrheit, an opera by Hans Werner Henze (36) to words of von Cramer after Gozzi, is performed for the first time, in the Staatstheater, Kassel.  The work is a reduction and rewriting of the composer’s König Hirsch.  See 23 September 1956.

    Newcastle Troppo for jazz band by Ben Johnston (36) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    10 March 1964 Sinfonia for violin and orchestra by John Harbison (25) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    Two works for tape by Kenneth Gaburo (37) are performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois:  For Harry, dedicated to Harry Partch (62) and Fat Millie’s Lament.

    10 March 1968 A revised version of Dialoge, concerto for two pianos and orchestra by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (49), is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.  See 5 December 1960.

    Protest and Incarceration, two songs for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by R. Murray Schafer (34), is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    10 March 1969 Pacific Sirens for instrumental ensemble and two-track tape by Robert Erickson (52) is performed for the first time, at the University of Washington, Seattle.

    10 March 1970 ...between... for orchestra and electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (35) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    10 March 1973 Loops for Instruments for flute, clarinet, trumpet, alto saxophone, bassoon, and marimba by Robert Erickson (56) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    10 March 1977 Diotima for orchestra by John Harbison (38) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    10 March 1980 Opus 231 for violin and organ by Ernst Krenek (79) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    10 March 1981 Two Studies for saxophones and piano by Ross Lee Finney (74) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    Symphony no.9 “Sinfonia Capriciosa” by Peter Mennin (57) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    10 March 1984 Sarah was Ninety Years Old for three voices by Arvo Pärt (48) is performed for the first time, in New York.  Also premiered is the first setting of Pärt’s Hymn to a Great City for two pianos.

    The Black Theatre of Hermes Trismegistos for solo voices, chorus, actors, and dancers by R. Murray Schafer (50) is performed for the first time, in Valencia, California.

    Antiphony VIII (Revolution) for percussion and tape by Kenneth Gaburo (57) is performed for the first time, in California.

    10 March 1985 A Carlo Scarpa architetto, ai suoi infinti possibili for orchestra by Luigi Nono (61) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    Few for two-track tape by Kenneth Gaburo (58) in collaboration with the poet Henri Chopin, is performed for the first time, in Coroboree Gallery of the University of Iowa, Iowa City.

    Solstice for string quartet by Robert Erickson (68) is performed for the first time, at the California Institute of the Arts, Valencia.

    10 March 1986 Variations for organ by Ralph Shapey (64) is performed for the first time, in the Church of the Ascension, New York.

    10 March 1987 Awake, Thou Wintry Earth for clarinet and violin by William Schuman (76) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    10 March 1990 String Quartet no.11 by Peter Sculthorpe (60) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Adelaide, South Australia.

    Machaut à ma Manière for orchestra by Harrison Birtwistle (55) after Machaut (†612) is performed for the first time, in the Musikhalle, Hamburg.

    Beyond the Land for orchestra by Samuel Adler (62) is performed for the first time.

    10 March 1999 Concerto for double bass and orchestra by Robin Holloway (55) is performed for the first time, in St. Andrew’s, Fife.

    10 March 2000 A third setting of The Lord’s Prayer for chorus by John Tavener (56) is performed for the first time, in Holy Trinity Church, Guildford.

    10 March 2001 Piano Quintet by William Bolcom (62) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    10 March 2005 Marienhymne for chorus by John Tavener (61) is performed for the first time, in Winchester Cathedral.

    The first setting of Two Other Movements for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (52) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    10 March 2006 Naxos Quartet no.8 for string quartet by Peter Maxwell Davies (71) is performed for the first time, at Canterbury Christ Church University.

    10 March 2008 Ballad in Lavender for piano by David Del Tredici (70) is performed for the first time, in Weill Recital Hall, New York.

    11 March

    11 March 1602 Emilio de' Cavalieri dies in Rome, aged approximately 52 years.

    11 March 1628 Alfonso Ferrabosco the Younger is buried in Greenwich, approximately 53 years after his birth.

    11 March 1757 The Triumph of Time and Truth by George Frideric Handel (72) to words of Morell after Pamphili is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden.

    11 March 1766 The Mozart family are present for the installation of Willem V at The Hague.  For this occasion, Wolfgang (10) composed the Gallimathias musicum K.32 and Seven Variations on Willem van Nassau K.25.

    11 March 1770 Der reumütige Petrus, an oratorio by Michael Haydn (32) to words of Reichssiegel, is performed for the first time.

    11 March 1778 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (22) dates his Duet Sonata for violin and piano K.296 in Mannheim.

    11 March 1781 Anton Philipp Heinrich is born in Schönböchel (Krasny Buk), Bohemia.

    11 March 1791 The first season of the Salomon-Haydn (58) concerts in London begins in the Hanover Square Rooms.  It includes the first performance of Symphony no.96.  The program also features Jan Ladislav Dussek (31) playing his own piano music.  Haydn is escorted into the room “amid universal applause.”

    11 March 1810 Simon Mayr’s (46) Cantata per le nozze di Napoléone con Maria Luisa d’Austria to words of Count Carrara-Spinelli is performed for the first time, in Bergamo.  Ferramondo, another cantata by Mayr to words of Carrara-Spinelli, is performed for the first time, for the marriage of Napoléon and Archduchess Marie Louise of Austria.

    11 March 1816 A joint concert by Nicolò Paganini (33) and Charles Philippe Lafont in Teatro alla Scala, Milan develops into a duel between the two.

    11 March 1829 18:00  Felix Mendelssohn (20) conducts (from the piano) the first performance of Johann Sebastian Bach's (†78) St. Matthew Passion in nearly a century.  This performance, in the Berlin Singakademie, is much more successful than the original.  Among the standing room only audience are King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, Georg Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel, Gaspare Spontini (53), Alexander von Humboldt and Heinrich Heine.  The conductor uses a baton for the first time.  In the alto section of the chorus is Fanny Mendelssohn (23).

    11 March 1830 I Capuleti e I Montecchi, a tragedia lirica by Vincenzo Bellini (28) to words of Romani after Scevola, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  It is very well received.

    11 March 1839 Felix Mendelssohn’s (30) Ruy Blas overture op.95 is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    11 March 1844 Santo Genio dell’Italia terra, a cantata for chorus and orchestra by Gioachino Rossini (52) to words of Marchetti, is performed for the first time, in the Palazzo Carignano, Turin for the tercentenary of Tasso’s birth.

    11 March 1845 A third child is born to Robert (34) and Clara (24) Schumann.  She is named Julie.

    11 March 1848 Johannes Brahms (14) hears Joseph Joachim (17) play for the first time, in Hamburg.  The prodigious violinist performs Beethoven’s (†20) Violin Concerto.  Brahms is enthralled by the music and the performer.

    11 March 1851 Rigoletto, a melodramma by Giuseppe Verdi (37) to words of Piave after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice directed by the composer.  It is a great success and runs for 13 performances.

    11 March 1860 Emperor Napoléon III orders the production of Tannhäuser at the Paris Opéra.  With such backing, the Saxon ambassador in Paris, Baron von Seebach, will gain an amnesty for the composer, Richard Wagner (46), an exile for eleven years.

    11 March 1867 Don Carlos, an opéra by Giuseppe Verdi (53) to words of Méry and DuLocle after Schiller, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  In attendance are Emperor Napoléon III and Empress Eugénie as well as many court and state officials and members of the diplomatic corps.  It is moderately successful.  Reviews are mixed.

    11 March 1868 Two songs by Johannes Brahms (34) are performed for the first time, in Hamburg, the composer at the piano:  Von ewiger liebe op.43/1 to traditional words, and Die Mainacht op.43/2 to words of Hölty.

    11 March 1869 The funeral in memory of Hector Berlioz takes place at L’Église de la Trinité, Paris.  The procession to the church is led by Adolphe Sax who directs the National Guard band in Berlioz’ Symphonie funèbre.  Illustrious attenders include Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (87), Ambroise Thomas (57) and Charles Gounod (50).  The music features works of Christoph Willibald Gluck (†81), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (†77), Ludwig van Beethoven (†41), Luigi Cherubini (†26) and the Hostias from Berlioz’ own Requiem. The mortal remains of Louis-Hector Berlioz are laid to rest in Montmartre next to those of his two wives, Harriet Smithson and Marie Recio.

    11 March 1872 Two songs by Johannes Brahms (38) are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Nicht mehr zu dir zu gehen op.32/2 to traditional words, and Ich schleich umher op.32/3 to words of Platen.

    11 March 1876 Giacomo Puccini (17) and two friends walk from Lucca to Pisa in seven hours to see a performance of Aida.  Three hours before curtain, having no money for tickets, they talk their way into the Teatro Nuovo (Teatro Verdi) under false pretenses and hide until the opera starts.  Puccini will later recall, “When I heard Aida in Pisa, I felt that a musical window had opened for me.”

    Carl Sprague Ruggles is born in East Marion, Massachusetts, second of three children born to Nathaniel Sprague Ruggles, a farmer and Maria Josephine Hodge, daughter of a harness maker.

    11 March 1885 Three songs from op.44 for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (51) to words of Heyse are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Nun stehn die Rose in Blüte op.44/7, Die Berge sind spitz op.44/8, and Am Wildbach die Weiden op.44/9.

    11 March 1888 Symphony no.2 by Antonín Dvorák (46) is performed for the first time, in Prague, 23 years after it was composed.

    11 March 1893 Freiwillige her! op.41/2 for chorus by Johannes Brahms (59) to words of Lemcke is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Tafellied for male chorus by Anton Bruckner (68) to words of Ptak, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Mass in D op.86 by Antonín Dvorák (51) is performed publicly for the first time, in London.

    11 March 1897 08:30  Henry Dixon Cowell is born in Menlo Park, California, second child of Irish immigrant Henry (Harry) Clayton Blackwood Cowell, an aspiring essayist and poet, himself the son of the Dean of Kildare Cathedral, and Clarissa Belknap Dixon, a writer and daughter of a cabinet maker.

    11 March 1906 The Russian Fantasy for balalaika ensemble by Alyeksandr Glazunov (40) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    Two songs for voice and piano by Ottorino Respighi (26) are performed for the first time, in Bologna:  Nebbie, and Nevicata, both to words of Negri.

    11 March 1908 Daniel Chennevière (Dane Rudhyar) (12) undergoes a very serious operation in Paris which results in the loss of a kidney.  His recuperation will be long and will require him to stop piano lessons and lose half of a school year.

    Several works by Charles Koechlin (40) are performed for the first time, in Théâtre des Arts, Paris:  The second two of the Quatre poèmes de “La bonne chanson” de Paul Verlaine op.24 for voice and piano, Berceuse phoque op.18/1, for voice and piano to words of Kipling (tr. Fabulet and d’Humières), Sur la grève op.28/1 for voice and piano to words of d’Humières, the first two of the Trois pièces op.34 for basson and piano, and Trois pièces op.34bis for flute, bassoon and piano.  The composer is at the keyboard for the first, second, and last of these.  See 26 November 1917.

    11 March 1909 Capriccio no.2 for piano by Frank Bridge (30) is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.

    11 March 1911 Albert Roussel’s (41) La ménace op.9 for voice and orchestra, to words of Régnier, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Two piano works in honor of Franz Joseph Haydn (†101) are performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris:  Menuet sur le nom d’Haydn, by Maurice Ravel (36) and Homage à Haydn, by Claude Debussy (48).

    String Quartet “de la guitarra” op.4 by Joaquín Turina (28) is performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    New works by Enrique Granados (43) are performed for the first time, in the Palau de Musica Catalana, Barcelona by the composer:  the piano suite Goyescas (public premiere), Cant de les estrelles for piano, organ, and chorus, to words of Heine translated into Catalan, and Azulejos for piano by Isaac Albéniz (†1) finished by Granados.

    11 March 1912 Edward Elgar’s (54) imperial masque The Crown of India op.66 to words of Hamilton is performed for the first time, in the London Coliseum, the composer conducting.  It is to celebrate the coronation last year of King George V as Emperor of India and the removal of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi.

    11 March 1913 Luigi Russolo (27) writes his The Art of Noises in the form of a letter to Francesco Balilla Pratella.  He claims it came to him while witnessing Pratella’s recent futurist concert in Teatro Costanzi, Rome.

    11 March 1915 At the invitation of Ferruccio Busoni (48), Charles T. Griffes (30) visits him in New York.  They met once before in Berlin in 1907.  Griffes plays through some of his compositions and Busoni is impressed.  He promises to recommend him to the conductor Frederick Stock in Chicago and then writes a recommendation to the publisher G. Schirmer.

    11 March 1917 Heures séculaires et instantanées for piano by Erik Satie (50) is performed for the first time, in Galerie Barbazzanges, Faubourg St. Honoré.

    The Fountains of Rome, a tone poem by Ottorino Respighi (37), is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Augusteo, Rome.  Also premiered is the second set of Impressioni dal vero for orchestra of Gian Francesco Malipiero (34).

    La Ballata di Maggio for solo voice and ensemble, composed for Salvini’s play Dante by Pietro Mascagni (53), is performed for the first time in Teatro Niccolini, Florence.

    11 March 1918 Incidental music to Barber’s play The Cortege by Granville Bantock (49) entitled Music for a Harlequinade is performed for the first time, in London.

    11 March 1920 Machines agricoles op.56, a cycle for voice and chamber ensemble by Darius Milhaud (27), is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    11 March 1925 Silvestre Revueltas (25) departs Chicago for Mexico without his wife.  After six years in the city, he will never return.

    11 March 1927 Concerto Romano for organ, brass, percussion, and strings by Alfredo Casella (43) is performed for the first time, in Wannamaker’s Department Store, New York under the direction of the composer.  It was commissioned by the owner of the store.

    11 March 1929 Irish Suite, a concerto for piano, strings, and chamber orchestra by Henry Cowell, is performed for the first time, in Boston, the composer at the keyboard on his 32nd birthday.

    11 March 1932 The New River, a song by Charles Ives (57) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at the Förster-Dresdner Haus in Dresden.

    11 March 1933 Rapsodia sinfónica for piano and strings by Joaquín Turina (50) is performed for the first time, in Madrid.

    11 March 1935 Tres poemas for voice and piano by Joaquín Turina (52) to words of Bécquer is performed for the first time, in Madrid the composer at the piano.

    11 March 1936 In Los Angeles, Arnold Schoenberg (61) receives the unfinished third act of Lulu, an opera by Alban Berg (†0) to orchestrate.  After realizing that a Jewish character is treated in an unfavorable light, he refuses.

    11 March 1937 Le testament de la tante Caroline, an opéra-bouffe by Albert Roussel (67) to words of Nino, is performed in French for the first time, in Salle Favart, Paris.  See 14 November 1936.

    11 March 1943 Cabin in the Sky, a film with music partly by Duke Ellington (43), is given its premiere in Dallas.  The film was released last month.

    11 March 1945 An orchestral suite of music from the ballet The Limpid Stream op.39a by Dmitri Shostakovich (38) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    11 March 1946 Karl Amadeus Hartmann (40) signs an affidavit for the denazification court about his activities over the last 13 years.  It contains several lies, which are never checked by the judges.

    11 March 1949 Quartet op.109 for three trombones and tuba by Florent Schmitt (48) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    11 March 1950 Three works by Stefan Wolpe (47) are performed for the first time, in New York:  Battle Piece for piano, Saxophone Quartet for trumpet, tenor saxophone, piano, and percussion, and Excerpt from Dr. Einstein’s Address about Peace in the Atomic Era for voice and piano.  The second of these is in honor of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.  The third expresses the composer’s opposition to atomic weapons.

    11 March 1951 Piano Sonata no.5 op.37 by Vincent Persichetti (35) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    11 March 1953 A piano duet version of Samuel Barber’s (43) unperformed ballet Souvenirs is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.  See 12 November 1953 and 15 November 1955.

    A Parable of Death for speaker, tenor, chorus and orchestra by Lukas Foss (30) to words of Rilke and Hecht, is performed for the first time, in Columbia Auditorium, Louisville, Kentucky.

    11 March 1955 Sun, Moon, Stars and Man for unison chorus and strings by Ralph Vaughan Williams (82) to words of Wood, is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Birmingham.

    11 March 1958 The Memnon Overture (Vorspiel zu einer grossen Oper) by Franz Schreker (†23) is performed for the first time, in Baden-Baden.

    11 March 1959 Studies in Sound, Plus for tape by Vladimir Ussachevsky (47) is performed for the first time, in Kaufmann Concert Hall, New York.

    11 March 1962 King Midas, a cantata by Ned Rorem (38) to words of Moss, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York the composer at the piano.

    Studies in Improvisation for clarinet, french horn, cello, percussion, and piano by Lukas Foss (39) is performed for the first time, at the New School, New York.

    11 March 1966 Two books of Madrigals by George Crumb (35) to words of Garcia Lorca, are performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington:  Madrigals Book I for soprano, double bass, and vibraphone; and Madrigals Book II for soprano, flute/piccolo/alto flute, and percussion.

    Theatre Piece for Trombone Player for trombone, hoses, candles, and two-track tape by Pauline Oliveros (33) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    11 March 1967 A funeral for Zoltán Kodály is attended by many thousands.

    Tuyaux sonores for organ by Isang Yun (49) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg-Wellingsbüttel.

    11 March 1968 Schooltime Compositions for indeterminate players by Cornelius Cardew (31) is performed for the first time, at the International Students House, London.

    11 March 1972 This House for male chorus and four pitch pipes by TJ Anderson (43) to his own words is performed for the first time, in Atlanta.

    The Power Within Us, an oratorio by Gunther Schuller (46) to words of Long, is performed for the first time, in Atlanta.

    11 March 1973 Fantasia for violin and orchestra by Walter Piston (79) is performed for the first time, at Dartmouth College.

    Lily for soprano and chamber orchestra by Leon Kirchner (54) to words of Bellow and the composer, from his unperformed opera of the same name, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    11 March 1975 The Promised Land for organ or orchestra by Robert Ward (57) is performed for the first time, in Nashville.

    11 March 1976 Mikka “S” for violin by Iannis Xenakis (53) is performed for the first time, in Orléans.

    11 March 1977 Dream Sequence for symphonic band by Ernst Krenek (76) is performed for the first time, at the University of Maryland, College Park the composer conducting.

    11 March 1978 A letter from the conductor Algis Ziuraitis appears in Pravda. He criticizes the upcoming production of Tchaikovsky’s (†84) Queen of Spades at the Paris Opéra in a revised version by Alfred Schnittke (43).  The Soviet government will bar the travel of the three most responsible, conductor Gennadi Rozhdestvensky, stage director Yuri Lyubimov and Schnittke.  The production will thereupon collapse.

    La Testa d’Adriane for soprano and accordion by R. Murray Schafer (44) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    11 March 1979 Monologue:  The Dissembler for baritone and chamber ensemble by Ernst Krenek (78) to words of the composer and various other authors is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    11 March 1982 Mini-Overture for brass quintet by Witold Lutoslawski (69) is performed for the first time, in the Kunsthaus, Lucerne.

    11 March 1985 Nature’s Breath for chamber orchestra by Tod Machover (31) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre du Rond Point, Paris.

    11 March 1988 Capriccio for cello and piano by William Bolcom (49) is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington.

    11 March 1989 Songs of Joy for soprano and piano by Ralph Shapey is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of radio station WFMT, Chicago on the eve of the composer’s 68th birthday.

    11 March 1992 Hymn to the Senses op.72 for chorus by Robin Holloway (48) to words of Fuller is performed for the first time, at Trinity College, Cambridge.

    11 March 1995 Heavy Metal Alice for brass quintet by David Del Tredici (57) is performed for the first time, in Detroit.

    Tres Piezas Lindas for flute and guitar by William Bolcom (56) is performed for the first time, at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota.

    11 March 1997 Hugo David Weisgall dies from injuries suffered in a fall, in North Shore Hospital, Manhasset, New York, aged 84 years, four months, and 26 days.

    11 March 1999 A revised version of A Dylan Thomas Trilogy for soloists, chorus, and orchestra by John Corigliano (61) is performed for the first time, in Washington.  See 24 April 1976.

    11 March 2008 Lucrezia for five singers and two players by William Bolcom (69) is performed for the first time, in Weill Hall, New York.

    11 March 2012 Monodrama from the opera Jacob’s Room by Morton Subotnick (78) is performed for the first time, in Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco.

    12 March

    12 March 1607 Paul Gerhardt is born in Grafenhainichen, near Wittenberg.

    12 March 1710 Thomas Augustine Arne is born in London.

    12 March 1760 Zimri, an oratorio by John Stanley (48) to words of Hawkesworth, is performed for the first time, in Covent Garden, London.

    12 March 1764 French publisher Jean Baptiste Venier announces in Paris the publication of a series of symphonies.  Among them is the Symphony no.2 of Franz Joseph Haydn (31).  It is Haydn’s first symphony in print.

    12 March 1767 Die Schuldigkeit des ersten und Fürnehmsten Gebots K.35, a sacred drama by three different composers to words of Weiser, is performed for the first time, in the Knight’s Hall of the Archepiscopal Palace, Salzburg.  Part one is composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (11), part two by Michael Haydn (29) and part three by AC Adlgasser.  Part One is performed today, part two a week from now, and part three two weeks hence.

    12 March 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart participate in a gala concert at Count Carl Joseph Firmian’s Palace in Milan in which three of Wolfgang’s arias are performed.  As a result of this performance, Count Firmian grants a contract to the young Mozart for the first opera of the next carnival season.  It will be Mitridate, rè di Ponto.

    12 March 1792 For a second time, the Commune de Paris (city council) forbids tomorrow’s scheduled performance of Adrien, empereur du Rome, an opéra by Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (28) to words of Hoffman.  They cite fears of anti-imperial rioting.

    Symphonie Concertante B.114 by Ignaz Pleyel (34) is performed for the first time, in London.

    12 March 1795 Doria, ou La tyrannie détruite, an opéra héroïque by Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (31) to words of Legouvé and d’Avrigny, is performed for the first time, in Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    12 March 1805 A new music school, Le Lezioni Caritatevoli, is founded in Bergamo, led by Johann Simon Mayr (41).

    Julie, ou Le pot de fleurs, a comédie en prose, mêlée de chants by Gaspare Spontini (30) to words of Jars, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    12 March 1818 Overture in the Italian Style D.597 for two pianos, eight hands by Franz Schubert (21) is performed for the first time, in the Gasthof ‘zum römischen Kaiser’, Vienna.

    12 March 1822 L’esule di Granata, a melodramma semiserio by Giacomo Meyerbeer (30) to words of Romani, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The response is mixed.

    12 March 1825 Der Einsame D.800, a song by Franz Schubert (28) to words of Lappe, is published in the Zeitschrift für Kunst, Vienna.

    12 March 1829 Nicolò Paganini (46) is received at the Mendelssohn residence in Berlin where he meets Felix (20) and Fanny (23).  Wilhelm Hensel draws his portrait.

    12 March 1833 String Quartet D.810 “Tod und das Mädchen” by Franz Schubert (†4) is performed publicly for the first time, in Berlin.  See 1 February 1826.

    12 March 1835 Gaetano Donizetti’s (37) tragedia lirica Marino Faliero to words of Bidèra after Delavigne is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre-Italien, Paris.  The work is accorded a good, if not overwhelming reception.

    12 March 1836 Publication of Die Schule des Fugenspiels op.400 for piano by Carl Czerny (45) is announced in Vienna.

    12 March 1837 Sigismund Thalberg (25) gives a concert at the Paris Conservatoire.  It is a great success.

    12 March 1843 After three years in western Europe, primarily Paris, where he met Chopin (33), Kalkbrenner (57) and Liszt (31), Anton Rubinstein (13) arrives in St. Petersburg.

    12 March 1851 A review of Rigoletto appearing in the Gazzetta di Venezia reads in part, “Yesterday we were almost overwhelmed by its originality...originality in music, in the style, even in the form of the pieces; and we did not comprehend it in its entirety...Never was the eloquence of sound more powerful.”

    12 March 1857 Simon Boccanegra, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (43) to words of Piave and Montanelli after García Gutiérrez, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  The work is a critical success but its failure with the audience precludes financial reward.

    12 March 1859 The prelude to Tristan und Isolde by Richard Wagner (45) is performed for the first time, in Prague, conducted by Hans von Bülow.  This is the version with a concert ending by von Bülow.  See 25 January 1860.

    12 March 1871 Ruhe, schönstes Glück der Erde D.657 for male vocal quartet by Franz Schubert (†42) is performed for the first time, in the Vienna Musikvereinsaal.  Also premiered is Tausend und eine Nacht op.346, a waltz by Johann Strauss (45).

    12 March 1880 Menuet et Valse op.56 for piano by Camille Saint-Saëns (44) is performed for the first time, at the Salle Erard, Paris by the composer.

    12 March 1891 Clara Schumann (71) gives the last public performance of her career, in a chamber music concert at the Frankfurt museum.  She plays the Haydn Variations of Johannes Brahms (57).

    12 March 1892 Chant Saphique op.91 for cello and piano by Camille Saint-Saëns (56) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    12 March 1897 Fervaal, an action musicale by Vincent d’Indy (45) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels.

    12 March 1900 Malinconia op.20 for cello and piano by Jean Sibelius (34) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    12 March 1902 The Rose and the Gardener op.51/1 for voice and piano by Arthur Foote (49) to words of Dobson is performed for the first time, in Boston, by the composer’s daughter Katharine, accompanied by her father.

    12 March 1903 The cantata Willow-wood for solo voice and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams (30) to words of D.G. Rossetti, is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.  See 25 September 1909.

    12 March 1904 Two partsongs op.26 for female chorus by Edward Elgar (46) to words of his wife CA Elgar, are performed for the first time in an orchestral setting, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    12 March 1905 Re Enzo, a comic opera by Ottorino Respighi (25) to words of Donini, is performed for the first time, in Teatro del Corso, Bologna.

    12 March 1907 Le Don Silencieux op.92, a song by Gabriel Fauré (61) to words of J. Dominique (pseud. of Marie Closset), is performed for the first time, in La Libre esthétique, Brussels, the composer at the piano.

    12 March 1908 Six Elegies for piano by Ferruccio Busoni (41) are performed for the first time, in the Beethovensaal, Berlin by the composer.  Most of the material is reworked from earlier compositions.

    12 March 1910 Two Romanian Dances op.8a for piano by Béla Bartók (28) are performed for the first time, by the composer, in Paris.  Also on the program, movements 2 and 3 of the Sonata for cello and piano op.4 by Zoltán Kodály (27) are performed for the first time, Béla Bartók (28) at the piano.  Bartók’s Fourteen Bagatelles are also given their first public performance.  It is a concert of all-Hungarian music unprecedented in the French capital.  See 29 June 1908 and 17 March 1910.

    12 March 1911 A String Sextet op.118 by Max Reger (37) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    12 March 1912 Henry Cowell (15) gives a piano recital before an invited audience at the San Francisco Music Club.  He plays all his own music, including Night Sounds, The Ghouls Gallop and Weird Night.

    12 March 1914 Lili Boulanger (20) moves to the Villa Medici in Rome.  Her departure has been delayed by months because of illness.

    Two works for orchestra by Ferruccio Busoni (47) are performed for the first time, in the Beethovensaal, Berlin conducted by the composer:  Nocturne symphonique op.43 and Red Indian Fantasy op.44.

    12 March 1917 When Sergey Rakhmaninov (43) receives his fee of 1,000 rubles for the recital he gave yesterday, he gives it to benefit released political prisoners and to buy gifts for the army of “my now liberated country.”

    Kammersymphonie by Franz Schreker (38) is performed for the first time, at the Vienna Academy.

    Three Movements for cello and piano op.8 by Paul Hindemith (21) is performed for the first time, in the Kleiner Saalbau, Frankfurt-am-Main.

    12 March 1920 At the meeting of the Rand School for Social Science council in New York, Carl Ruggles (44), already the director of its symphony orchestra, is made director of the school’s chorus.

    12 March 1921 Ralph Shapey is born in Philadelphia, first of two children born to a cabinet maker.  Both parents are immigrants from Russia.

    12 March 1923 Sinfonia sacra op.6 for orchestra by Kurt Weill (23) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Incidental music to Binyon’s play King Arthur by Edward Elgar (65) is performed for the first time, at the Old Vic, London conducted by the composer.

    12 March 1925 Hymn to Life for female chorus by Carl Nielsen (59) is performed for the first time.

    12 March 1928 Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (31) demonstrates his musical device in the Stevens Hotel, Chicago.  Afterwards, he gives a lesson to Frederick Stock, conductor of the Chicago Symphony.

    12 March 1929 Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (32) and Yuri Mikhailovich Goldberg sign an agreement with the Radio Corporation of America.  RCA will pay Goldberg and Sons $100,000 for a two-year option on the patent rights for the Thereminovox, a royalty of 5% on all units sold with a minimum annual royalty of $25,000.  RCA also has the option, at the end of two years, to buy the patent outright for $500,000 or continue the option.

    12 March 1930 Three days after its Leipzig premiere, Augstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny by Kurt Weill (30) and Bertolt Brecht is performed in Kassel and Braunschweig.  The performance in Kassel goes on without incident but in Braunschweig, some Nazi students begin demonstrating during the second act and it turns into a riot.  After one more performance, the opera is withdrawn.

    12 March 1932 The Vatican warns against using music in a modern idiom in church services.

    Four Portraits op.49, a symphonic suite from Sergey Prokofiev’s (40) opera The Gambler, is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 29 April 1929.

    Intercession, the first of the Six Choruses op.53 by Gustav Holst (57) to medieval lyrics translated by Waddell, is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Huddersfield.

    12 March 1933 Chinaman, Laundryman, a ricercar by Ruth Crawford Seeger (31) to words of Tsiang, is performed for the first time, at the MacDowell Club, New York.

    12 March 1934 Mathis der Maler, a symphony based on the unperformed opera of the same name by Paul Hindemith (38), is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  The work is enthusiastically received, despite criticism of Hindemith by top Nazis.  See 28 May 1938.

    12 March 1936 Prelude and Fugue for orchestra by Walter Piston (42) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    12 March 1942 The Defense of Corinth for speaker, male chorus, and piano-four hands by Elliott Carter (33) to words of Rabelais, is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theatre, Harvard University.

    12 March 1943 The 16th of 18 patriotic fanfares for brass and percussion commissioned by Eugene Goossens and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland (42), is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    12 March 1944 Two-Bits for flute and piano by Henry Cowell (47) is performed for the first time, at the Brooklyn Museum.  Otto Luening (43) plays the flute part.  Also premiered is Cowell’s three part songs for female voices American Muse.

    12 March 1945 During a bombing raid by American forces, five bombs fall on the Vienna Staatsoper completely obliterating it.  Conductor Karl Böhm is among those who attempt to save articles from the burning building.  See 30 June 1944 and 5 November 1955.

    12 March 1946 Barcarolle:  A Portrait of Georges Hugnet for violin and piano by Virgil Thomson (49) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  See 29 November 1946.

    12 March 1947 Works for chorus by Ernst Krenek (46) are performed for the first time, at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota:  the motet Aegrotavit Ezechias and excerpts from Santa Fe Timetable, to words taken from the timetable of the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe Railroad.  See 20 February 1961.

    12 March 1948 Frammenti Sinfonici dal Balletto “Marsia” for orchestra by Luigi Dallapiccola (44) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Belgian Radio, originating in Brussels.

    Habeyssée op.110, a suite for violin and orchestra by Florent Schmitt (77), is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Four Transcriptions from Emerson for piano by Charles Ives (73) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York approximately 30 years after it was composed.

    12 March 1949 Sonatine for piano op.59/1 by Charles Koechlin (81) is performed for the first time, in École Normale de Musique, Paris.

    12 March 1953 Schlagquartett no.1/3 by Karlheinz Stockhausen (24) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of NDR, originating in Hamburg.  See 23 March 1953.

    12 March 1954 Acts I and II of Arnold Schoenberg’s (†2) unfinished opera Moses und Aron, to his own words, are performed for the first time, in a concert setting, over the airwaves of Radio Hamburg.  At the concert, Schoenberg’s daughter Nuria meets Luigi Nono (30) for the first time.  They will marry next year.  See 2 July 1951 and 6 June 1957.

    12 March 1955 Prelude on Three Welsh Hymn Tunes for brass band by Ralph Vaughan Williams (82) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.

    12 March 1956 A commission from the Ministry of Culture assembles in the Moscow apartment of Dmitri Shostakovich (49) to hear him play through his revision of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District.  After hearing the entire opera, they vote unanimously not to allow a production.

    Sonata for violin and piano by Bohuslav Martinu (65) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Septet for madrigal singers, clarinet, and keyboard by Henry Cowell (59) is performed for the first time, in the Baltimore Museum of Art.

    12 March 1958 Incidental music to Kerr’s (after Aristophanes) play The Birds by Lejaren Hiller (34) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    12 March 1960 The NBC news program World Wide 60 with music by Ulysses Kay (43) is shown for the first time, over the airwaves of the NBC television network.

    12 March 1962 Reverie for organ by William Grant Still (66) is performed for the first time, in Pasadena Presbyterian Church, California.

    12 March 1964 The final version of Ein Sommernachtstraum by Carl Orff (68) to words of Shakespeare (tr. Schlegel), is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    Symphony for cello and orchestra op.68 by Benjamin Britten (50) is performed for the first time, in Moscow Conservatory Bolshoy Hall, under the baton of the composer.

    12 March 1965 String Quartet by Witold Lutoslawski (52) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    12 March 1967 Janissary Music (Part II) for percussion solo by Charles Wuorinen (28) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.  See 26 October 1966.

    12 March 1971 Turris Campanarum Sonatium--The Bell Tower for solo metal percussion by Peter Maxwell Davies (36) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    The Capitoline Venus, an opera by Ulysses Kay (54) to words of Dvorkin after Twain, is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    12 March 1972 Venetian Journal for tape, tenor, and chamber ensemble by Bruno Maderna (51) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Mail Order Madrigals for chorus by William Schuman (61) to words of the 1897 Sears, Roebuck catalogue, is performed for the first time, in Ames, Iowa.

    12 March 1978 Vignettes de Marseille for piano by Frank Bridge (†37) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio Scotland, 53 years after it was composed.

    Minstrel Man for bass trombone and percussion by TJ Anderson (49) is performed for the first time, at Brown University.

    12 March 1983 To the Edge of Dream for guitar and orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (52) is performed for the first time, in Liège.

    12 March 1985 Lost whale calf for piano by Ross Lee Finney (78) is performed for the first time, at the Hartt School of Music, Hartford, Connecticut.

    12 March 1992 Two for Jan for soprano, mezzo-soprano, oboe/english horn, bass clarinet, and cello by Richard Wernick (58) is performed for the first time.

    12 March 1995 Compass for piano and orchestra by Luciano Berio (69) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.

    Vers une Symphonie fleuve for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Hamburg on the eve of the composer’s 43rd birthday.

    12 March 1999 3 späte Gedichte von Heiner Müller for alto and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Berlin on the eve of the composer’s 47th birthday.

    12 March 2002 Sphäre nach Studie for two percussionists, harp, piano, and two double basses by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe on the eve of the composer’s 50th birthday.

    12 March 2003 Vier Studien zu einem Klarinettenquintett by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Hotel Römerbad, Badenweiler, on the eve of the composer’s 51st birthday.

    12 March 2004 Secret Window, a film with music by Philip Glass (67), is released in the United States.

    Two Pieces for organ by Paul Hindemith (†40) are performed for the first time, in Vienna, 86 years after they were composed.

    12 March 2005 Music in the Garden, an interactive installation by Tod Machover (51) in collaboration with landscape designer Julie Moir Messervy, opens to the public in the Marshall Fields store in Minneapolis.  It remains open until 26 March.

    12 March 2008 Quintet for clarinet and strings by Alexander Goehr (75) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    13 March

    13 March 1753 La reggia de’ Fati, a serenata by Niccolò Jommelli (38) to words of Pascali, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Ducal Palace, Milan, to celebrate the birth of Prince Joseph of Austria.  Two arias are composed by Giovanni Battista Sammartini (52).

    13 March 1766 Padre Antonio Soler (36) signs Carta escrita a un amigo.  It is a second pamphlet rebutting criticisms of his treatise Llave de la modulación.

    13 March 1772 Emperor Joseph II appoints Florian Leopold Gassmann (42) to succeed Georg von Reutter as Hofkapellmeister to the Imperial Court in Vienna, only hours after Reutter’s death.

    13 March 1785 Davidde penitente K.469, an oratorio by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (29) to words by da Ponte, is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me, We Will Go Into The House Of Ye Lord, an anthem by William Billings (38), is performed for the first time, in First Church, Boston.

    13 March 1786 The Scene and Rondo for tenor K.490 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (30) is performed for the first time, as part of a performance of Idomeneo in the Palace of Prince Karl Auersperg in Vienna.

    13 March 1797 Médée, an opéra comique by Luigi Cherubini (36) to words of Hoffman, is performed for the first time, in Théâtre Feydeau, Paris.  It is fairly successful.

    13 March 1832 Gaetano Donizetti’s (34) tragedia lirica Ugo, conte di Parigi to words of Romani after Bis, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  It will receive only four performances.

    13 March 1841 Il proscritto, a melodramma tragico by Otto Nicolai (30) to words of Rossi, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    13 March 1843 Camille Saint-Saëns (7) begins piano lessons with Camille Stamaty, a pupil of Frédéric Kalkbrenner (57).

    13 March 1845 Felix Mendelssohn’s (36) Violin Concerto op.64 is performed for the first time, in the Leipzig Gewandhaus.

    13 March 1851 Two new works by Robert Schumann (40) are performed for the first time, in Düsseldforf:  Nachtlied op.108 for chorus and orchestra to words of Hebbel, and the overture Die Braut von Messina.  The overture is not successful and Schumann’s originally warm reception in Düsseldorf is beginning to erode with criticisms of his conducting.

    13 March 1860 Hugo Filipp Jakob Wolf is born in Windischgraz, Styria (Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia), 70 km southwest of Graz, fourth of eight children born to Philipp Wolf, leather merchant and amateur musician, and Katharina Nussbaumer, daughter of a forge owner.

    13 March 1861 By imperial command, the so-called “Paris” version of Tannhäuser by Richard Wagner (47) to his own words is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  The performers have been subjected to 160 rehearsals, almost all of them personally supervised by the composer.  The performance is disrupted by the Jockey Club, a group of young aristocrats who object to Wagner’s decision not to place the ballet at the beginning of the second act, as is customary in French opera.  The conductor, Pierre Dietsch, is completely inept, conducting from a violin part.  See 1 August 1847, 19 October 1848 and 1 August 1867.

    13 March 1869 Arthur Sullivan (26) is formally presented to Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace.

    13 March 1872 The music publisher Georges Hartmann brings his young protégé Jules Massenet (29) to the home of the famous conductor Étienne Pasdeloup.  Massenet plays for him his new opera Mari-Magdeleine.  Pasdeloup declines to perform it.

    13 March 1875 Muzydalnyi listok, St. Petersburg, advertises as “just published” the song cycle Sunless by Modest Musorgsky (35).

    13 March 1878 Maître Péronilla, an opéra-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (58) to words of Nuitter, Ferrier, and the composer, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    13 March 1881 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (40) is in the company of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich in Naples when news arrives of the killing of the Grand Duke’s uncle, Tsar Alyeksandr II.  The murder will close all theatres in Russia, interrupting the run of Tchaikovsky’s The Maid of Orléans in St. Petersburg.

    13 March 1882 Am Strande op.66/3 for soprano, alto and piano by Johannes Brahms (48) to words of Hölty is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    13 March 1884 The slow movement from Charles Villiers Stanford’s (31) Cello Concerto is performed for the first time, in Cambridge with the composer playing a piano reduction.

    13 March 1890 The first complete performance of the Three Motets op.110 for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (56) to words of Eber, anonymous, and the Bible, takes place in Cologne.

    13 March 1891 Ghosts, a play by Henrik Ibsen dealing with venereal disease, opens in London to adverse criticism.

    13 March 1897 Die Göttin der Vernunft, an operetta by Johann Strauss (71) to words of Willner and Buchbinder, is performed for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna.  One audience member, Johannes Brahms (63), is so weak that he must be carried home after the second act.  It is the last public appearance Brahms will ever make.

    13 March 1898 Soir de fète, a symphonic poem by Ernest Chausson (43), is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    13 March 1899 Richard Strauss (34) meets Kaiser Wilhelm II for the first time.  The Kaiser tells him that he does not care for modern music and prefers Der Freischütz.  Strauss tells the monarch that he agrees with him.

    13 March 1902 Das hohe Lied, for two tenors, baritone, male chorus, and orchestra, by Anton Bruckner (†5) to words of von der Mattig, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    13 March 1910 The Fairy-Tale for cello and piano by Leos Janácek (55) is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).

    13 March 1912 Two songs for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (44) to words of Samain are performed for the first time, in Salle Gaveau, Paris:  L’île ancienne op.31/3 and Le repas préparé op.31/5.

    Enchanted Summer for two sopranos, chorus, and orchestra by Arnold Bax (28), to words of Shelley, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    13 March 1916 Summer for orchestra by Frank Bridge (37) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, the composer conducting.

    13 March 1918 Erik Satie (51) is almost killed by a German air raid in the Place de la Concorde, Paris.

    13 March 1919 The Violin Sonata op.82 by Edward Elgar (61) is performed for the first time, privately, at the British Musical Society.  See 21 March 1919.

    13 March 1922 Owasco Memories op.8 for piano, violin, and cello by Arthur Farwell (49) is performed for the first time, in Pasadena, California 21 years after it was composed.

    13 March 1924 Ballad of the Bear op.47 for voice and piano by Carl Nielsen (58) to words of Berntsen after Almquist, is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    13 March 1925 Arbetichor for bass, chorus, and orchestra by Franz Liszt (†38) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.  The work was withdrawn by the composer during the revolutions of 1848.  This is a transcription by Anton Webern (41).

    13 March 1926 Alikeness for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (60) to words of Runeberg is performed for the first time, in Turku.

    Sonata casi-fantasía for seven players by Julián Carrillo (51), a microtonal piece, is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    13 March 1928 Two of the Walt Whitman Songs for voice and piano by Marc Blitzstein (22), O Hymen, O Hymenee! and As Adam, are performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    13 March 1929 Sea Shanty Suite for baritone, male chorus, two pianos, and timpani by Colin McPhee (28) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    13 March 1930 Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes for cello and orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (57) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    13 March 1934 Excerpts from Fate, an opera by Leos Janácek (†5) to words of Bartosová and the composer, are heard for the first time, broadcast over Brno Radio

    13 March 1936 Two works by Benjamin Britten (22) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC National:  Suite for violin and piano (first complete), and The Birds, a song for voice and piano to words of Belloc.  See 17 December 1934 and 21 April 1936.

    13 March 1938 Jean-Claude Risset is born in Le Puy, France.

    13 March 1944 Bachianas Brasileiras no.7 for strings by Heitor Villa-Lobos (57) is performed for the first time, in Rio de Janeiro under the baton of the composer.

    13 March 1949 Extinguish My Eyes, a song for voice and piano by Leonard Bernstein (30) to words of Rilke (tr. Lemont), is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  Also premiered is Fantasy for piano by Arthur Berger (36).

    13 March 1950 Tre Poemi for soprano and chamber ensemble by Luigi Dallapiccola (46) to words of Joyce, Michelangelo, and M. Machado is performed for the first time, in Teatro Verdi, Trieste.

    Four Piano Blues by Aaron Copland (49) are performed completely for the first time, in Carl Fischer Hall, New York.

    Five Czech Madrigals for chorus by Bohuslav Martinu (59) to traditional words are performed for the first time, in New York.

    Assobio a jato for flute and cello by Heitor Villa-Lobos (63) is performed for the first time, in the Auditório do Ministério da Educação e Cultura, Rio de Janeiro.

    13 March 1952 Wolfgang Rihm is born in Karlsruhe.

    13 March 1953 Medea, a dramatic monologue for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by Ernst Krenek (52) to words of Jeffers after Euripedes, is performed for the first time, in the Philadelphia Academy of Music.  It achieves great success.

    13 March 1954 Metamorphosen, music from the film for chamber orchestra by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (35), is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    13 March 1956 Organ works by Charles Koechlin (†5) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of French Radio:  Four of the 24 chorals sur de thèmes anciens op.82 and the second and twelfth of the 12 chorals sur des thèmes anciens op.136.

    13 March 1960 Sonata no.1 for solo violin by George Perle (44) is performed for the first time, in Davis, California.

    13 March 1961 From Marion’s Book, a cycle for voice and piano by Marc Blitzstein (56) to words of Cummings, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    13 March 1962 Magnificat and Nunc dimittis for chorus and organ by Michael Tippett (57) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge.

    The NBC news program The Land with music by Ulysses Kay (45) is shown for the first time, over the airwaves of the network.

    13 March 1963 Alceste, an opera by Ton de Leeuw (36) to his own words after Euripides, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Dutch television.

    When My Soul Touches Yours, a song for voice and piano by Leonard Bernstein (44) to words of Rilke (tr. Lemont), is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, New York.

    Densities no.1 for clarinet, harp, vibraphone, and double bass by Gunther Schuller (37) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    The Long Christmas Dinner, an opera by Paul Hindemith (67) to words of Wilder, is performed for the first time in the original English version, at the Juilliard School of Music, New York, conducted by the composer.  See 17 December 1961.

    13 March 1965 Autumn Leaves by Terry Riley (29) is performed for the first time, privately at Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz, California.

    13 March 1966 Sun Music for voices and percussion by Peter Sculthorpe (36) is performed for the first time, in Elder Hall, Adelaide, South Australia.

    The Piano Sonata of Sofia Gubaidulina (34) is performed for the first time, by the composer in Moscow.

    Presidential Suite for orchestra by Ulysses Kay (49) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston the composer conducting.

    Scenes from the Louvre for band by Norman Dello Joio (53) is performed for the first time, at Baldwin Wallace College, Berea, Ohio conducted by the composer.

    13 March 1968 The sentence of life in prison for Isang Yun (50) for espionage is commuted to fifteen years by the South Korean government.

    13 March 1972 Introduction and Allegro for trumpet and piano by Otto Luening (71) is performed for the first time, at the Manhattan School of Music, New York.

    13 March 1973 Statisch und ekstatisch for orchestra by Ernst Krenek (72) is performed for the first time, in Zürich directed by the composer.

    13 March 1976 Concerti for violin, small orchestra, and tape by Milton Babbitt (59) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Eight Etudes for piano by Ned Rorem (52) is performed for the first time, in the Kennedy Center, Washington.

    13 March 1977 Four Winds Suite for organ by Ernst Krenek (76) is performed for the first time, in the Johanneskirche, Düsseldorf.

    Quatrain II for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano by Toru Takemitsu (46) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    13 March 1980 Immediately upon his release from prison, Cornelius Cardew (43) is again before a magistrate in London, who fines him £200 plus £200 court costs for a previous offense of obstructing the police.

    13 March 1981 Interlude and Ecstatic Alice from In Memory of a Summer Day for amplified soprano and orchestra by David Del Tredici (43) is performed for the first time, in Bovard Auditorium, Los Angeles.  See 23 February 1980.

    13 March 1982 For John Cage (69) for violin and piano by Morton Feldman (56) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York during a 14 hour tribute entitled Wall-to-Wall John Cage and Friends during the 70th anniversary year of his birth.

    13 March 1983 Concerto no.1 for viola and computer by John Melby (41) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    13 March 1984 Festival Psalms for baritone and chorus by Ulysses Kay (67) is performed for the first time, in Holland Michigan.

    13 March 1986 Symphony no.5 by George Rochberg (67) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago for the 150th anniversary of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

    Three Sisters, an opera by Thomas Pasatieri (40) to words of Elmslie after Henry James, is performed for the first time, in Columbus, Ohio.

    13 March 1987 Swimming to Cambodia, a film with music by Laurie Anderson (39), is shown for the first time, in New York.

    Fourth Symphony for medium voice and orchestra by William Bolcom (48) to words of Roethke is performed for the first time.

    13 March 1988 Trois esquisses pour orgue by Jean-Claude Risset is performed for the first time, in Abbaye de Saint Victor, Marseille on the composer’s 50th birthday.

    13 March 1990 Karel Husa’s (68) Music for Prague 1968 is performed in Smetana Hall in Prague.  It is the first time that the work has been heard in the composer’s native land.

    13 March 1992 Two works by Peter Maxwell Davies (57) are performed for the first time, in City Halls, Glasgow, the composer conducting:  Strathclyde Concerto no.6 for flute and orchestra, and Ban:  Vanitas arranged for string orchestra.

    13 March 1993 Music to accompany the Alfred Hitchcock film Blackmail for seven players by Jonathan Lloyd (44) is performed for the first time, at the Louvre, Paris.

    13 March 1995 The Intercourse of Fire and Water for cello and orchestra by Tan Dun (37) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    13 March 2000 Im Anfang for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Bremen on the composer’s 48th birthday.

    13 March 2003 Dance Patterns for two xylophones, two vibraphones, and two pianos by Steve Reich (66) is performed for the first time, in the Palais des Beaux Arts, Brussels.

    13 March 2005 En plein air for flute, clarinet, harp, and string quartet by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Hotel Römerbad, Badenweiler, on the composer’s 53rd birthday.

    Voyage initiatique for tape by Pierre Henry (77) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    13 March 2012 Vers une symphonie fleuve VI for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm is performed for the first time, in Badisches Staatstheater, Karlsruhe, on the composer’s 60th birthday.

    Fantasia Upon all the Notes for seven instruments by Harrison Birtwistle (77) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    14 March

    14 March 1681 Georg Philipp Telemann is born in Magdeburg.

    14 March 1758 Les Israëlites à la Montagne d’Oreb, an oratorio by Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville  (46), is performed for the first time, in Paris.  It causes a sensation.

    14 March 1760 Johann Anton Fils dies in Mannheim, aged 26 years, five months and 21 days.

    Della passione di Gesù Cristo, a cantata by Giovanni Battista Sammartini (59), is performed for the first time, in San Fedele, Milan.

    14 March 1772 Hieronymous Joseph Franz de Paula, Count Colloredo, Bishop of Gurk is elected Prince Archbishop of Salzburg on the 49th ballot, and becomes the employer of Leopold (52) and Wolfgang Amadeus (16) Mozart and Michael Haydn (34).

    14 March 1787 Andromeda e Perseo, an opera seria by Michael Haydn (49) to words of Varesco, is performed for the first time, in Salzburg.

    14 March 1800 Epicure, an opéra composed by Luigi Cherubini (39) and Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (36) to words of Demoustier, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.  The hostility of the audience is heard even before the final curtain.  The poetry is found faulty, the music praised.

    14 March 1812 Cirio in Babilonia, ossia La caduta di Baldassare, a dramma con cori by Gioachino Rossini (20) to words of Aventi, is performed, probably for the first time, in the Teatro Comunale, Ferrara.  It is a flop.

    14 March 1819 Overture in e D.648 by Franz Schubert (22) is performed for the first time, in Josef Müllerscher Kunstsaal am Rothen Thurm, Vienna.

    14 March 1821 Incidental music to Wolff’s play Preciosa by Carl Maria von Weber (34) is performed for the first time, in the Königliche Hofbühne, Berlin to great success with the public.

    14 March 1824 Franz Schubert’s (27) String Quartet D.804 is performed for the first time, in the Hall of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Vienna.

    14 March 1828 Three songs by Franz Schubert (31) to words of Scott are published by Diabelli, Vienna:  Lied der Anne Lyle and Gesang der Norna as his op.85 and Romanze des Richard Löwenherz as his op.86.

    14 March 1840 Franz Liszt (28) and Robert Schumann (29) arrive in Dresden on the same day.  Liszt is there to give some concerts, Schumann to meet Liszt and review his concert.

    14 March 1846 After hearing a performance of Mendelssohn’s (37) A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Breslau (Wroclaw), Hector Berlioz (42) writes to the composer, “I’ve never heard anything so profoundly Shakespearean in my life.”

    14 March 1847 Macbeth, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (33) to words of Piave and Maffei after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, in Teatro della Pergola, Florence directed by the composer.  The work proves to be a great success and Verdi is called on stage dozens of times.

    14 March 1852 Robert Schumann’s (41) overture Manfred is performed for the first time, in Weimar.  See 13 June 1852.

    14 March 1854 Anton Rubinstein (24) conducts the premiere of his Symphony in B flat in Lichtenthal Hall, St. Petersburg.  The first movement of this will become his Concert Overture op.60 while the second and third will be appended to the Symphony no.2.

    14 March 1857 Stephen Foster (30) sells all the copyrights he currently holds to his publisher Firth, Pond & Co. for $1,872.28.

    14 March 1863 The Princess of Wales’s March, a collection of Danish airs arranged by Arthur Sullivan (20) in honor of Princess Alexandra of Denmark, is performed for the first time, at the Crystal Palace.  The Prince of Wales and his new wife, Princess Alexandra, are present.

    14 March 1864 Petite messe solennelle by Gioachino Rossini (72) is performed for the first time, with piano accompaniment, in the Paris home of Countess Louise Pillet-Will.  The work was commissioned for the consecration of her private chapel.  Although ordered to bed by his doctors, Giacomo Meyerbeer (72) attends, along with Auber (82).  See 24 February 1869.

    14 March 1874 Sulima op.33/13, a song by Johannes Brahms (40) to words of Tieck, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Alone Without Comfort for male chorus by Leos Janácek (19) to a traditional Moravian text, is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno), conducted by the composer.

    14 March 1875 Vysehrad, a symphonic poem from Ma Vlast by Bedrich Smetana (51) is performed for the first time, in Prague.  The audience calls for the entire work to be repeated.

    14 March 1876 String Quartet no.3 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (35) is performed for the first time, privately, in the Moscow home of Nikolay Rubinstein.

    14 March 1880 At a performance of Tristan und Isolde in Munich, Vincent d’Indy (28) sits quietly waiting for the prelude to begin, when “we hear soft sobbing close to us, all the more spasmodic for wanting to be suppressed.”  It is Emmanuel Chabrier (28).  “Oh! this is silly...Can’t help myself...Ten years of my life that I have waited for the cello A!...”

    14 March 1881 String Quartet no.2 by Richard Strauss (16) is performed for the first time, in the Museumssaal, Munich.

    14 March 1885 The Mikado, or The Town of Titipu, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (42) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, London conducted by the composer.  It is an enormous success with the audience, among whom are the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg.  As is his custom, the librettist walks the streets of London during the premiere.  The work is phenomenally successful and will see 672 performances.

    14 March 1889 Two songs by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Vom Strande op.69/6, to anonymous words, and Das Mädchen op.95/1 to traditional words.

    14 March 1891 After writing to his fiancee from Berlin that he has had an operation to remove a kidney stone, Jean Sibelius (25) reveals to his friend Robert Kajanus that he is suffering from venereal disease.

    As a result of a personality dispute with the new director of the Budapest Opera, Count Zichy, Gustav Mahler (30) resigns, receiving 25,000 florins for the breaking of his contract.

    Serenata española op.181 for piano by Isaac Albéniz (30) is performed probably for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London by the composer.

    14 March 1894 Symphony no.1 by Carl Nielsen (28) is performed for the first time, in the Concert Palace, Copenhagen.  The audience, which includes King Christian IX, Queen Louise, and other members of the royal family, is very appreciative.

    14 March 1897 Joaquín Turina (14) performs on the piano for the first time in public, in the Sala Piazza, Seville.

    14 March 1899 Hymne à Astarté op.39/1 for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (31) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de la Bodinière, Paris.  See 29 January 1918.

    14 March 1901 The complete Symphony no.6 by Anton Bruckner (†4) is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.  See 11 February 1883 and 26 February 1899.

    String quartet in B flat by Frank Bridge (22) is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.  It won the Sullivan Prize.

    14 March 1904 Today begins a three-day festival of the music of Edward Elgar (46) at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.  Never before has such an honor been accorded a living English composer.

    14 March 1910 Séguidille, one of the Trois mélodies for voice and piano by Manuel de Falla (33) to words of Gautier, is performed for the first time, at the Schola Cantorum, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.  See 4 May 1910.

    14 March 1911 Déjanire, a drame lyrique by Camille Saint-Saëns (75) to his own words and Gallet after Sophocles, is performed for the first time, in Monaco.  See 28 August 1892.

    14 March 1912 Mona op.71, an opera by Horatio Parker (48) to words of Hooker, is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera, New York.  It is the winner of the Metropolitan Opera Prize.  The audience is enthusiastic but the critics are disappointed.  It will receive only three more performances and will not become part of the permanent repertory of the Metropolitan.

    14 March 1914 Piano Quartet no.2 op.133 by Charles Villiers Stanford (61) is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.

    14 March 1915 Vers la flamme op.72, a piano work by Alyeksandr Skryabin (43), is performed for the first time, in Kharkov, the composer at the keyboard.

    14 March 1916 Der Trompeter op.25/1, for chorus and orchestra by Hans Pfitzner (46) to words of Kopisch, is performed for the first time, in Strasbourg.

    Clarinet Sonata op.129 by Charles Villiers Stanford (63) is performed for the first time, in Steinway Hall, London.

    14 March 1918 Hundreds of police are stationed in and around Carnegie Hall, New York as the Boston Symphony Orchestra gives a concert directed by Karl Muck.  Dr. Muck has been criticized for refusing to conduct The Star-Spangled Banner (which is untrue) and demands have been made to prove that he is not a German citizen.  Muck does conduct The Star-Spangled Banner followed by the Third Symphony of Johannes Brahms (†20).  Founder of the BSO, Henry Higginson, then appears on stage and presents the audience with proof of Muck’s Swiss citizenship.

    14 March 1919 The Ballade for piano and orchestra by Gabriel Fauré (73) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    14 March 1921 A Suite for piano op.45 by Carl Nielsen (55) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    14 March 1926 A setting of Psalm 112 for two choruses and orchestra by Anton Bruckner (†29) is performed for the first time, in Vöcklabruck, 63 years after it was composed.

    14 March 1927 Dances of Marosszéki for piano by Zoltán Kodály (44) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Hungarian Radio.  See 28 November 1930.

    14 March 1928 Manuel de Falla (51) is invested with the Legion of Honor in Paris.  Two works by Joaquín Rodrigo (26) are performed for the first time at the occasion, the composer at the piano:  Preludio al gallo mañanero for piano and Cantiga “Muy graciosa es la doncella” for voice and piano to words of Vicente.

    14 March 1929 An Entr’acte and a Finale for Erwin Dressel’s opera Der armer Columbus by Dmitri Shostakovich (22) are performed for the first time, in the Malyi Opera Theatre, Leningrad.

    14 March 1930 Symphony no.3 by Arnold Bax (46) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    New works by Heitor Villa-Lobos (43) are performed for the first time, in the Salle Chopin, Paris:  Quinteto em forma de chôros for woodwind quintet, three of the cycle for voice and orchestra Canções típicas brasileiras (Mokocê-cê-maká, Nozani-ná and Xangô), Poème de l’enfant et de sa mère for solo voice, flute, clarinet, and cello to words of Vallalba Filho (pseud. of Villa-Lobos), Saudades das selvas brasileiras for piano, Chôros bis for violin and cello, and Canções indígenas for voice and orchestra to words of Valalocê conducted by the composer.

    14 March 1936 After being condemned in Pravda by high Soviet officialdom, and suffering the acquiescence in this of his peers, Dmitri Shostakovich (29) is strongly defended in a speech by the theatre director Vsevolod Emilyevich Meyerhold in Leningrad.  His audience responds with strong and prolonged applause.

    14 March 1938 Trio for flute, violin, and bassoon by Bohuslav Martinu (47) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Hark! From the Pit a Fearsome Sound for voice and piano by Henry Cowell (41) is performed for the first time, in the Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles.

    14 March 1939 Romance, a song by Claude Debussy (†20) to words of Bourget, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    14 March 1940 Violin Concerto by Paul Hindemith (44) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    München, an “occasional waltz” for orchestra by Richard Strauss (75), is performed publicly for the first time, in Munich.  The waltz was written to accompany a film about the city’s cultural heritage.  See 24 May 1939.

    14 March 1943 String Quartet no.1 by Vincent Persichetti (27) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    14 March 1944 The Primavera Quintet for flute, violin, viola, cello, and harp op.156 by Charles Koechlin (76) is performed publicly for the first time, at the École Normale de Musique, Paris.  See 10 June 1943.

    Suite for violin and piano by William Grant Still (48) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    14 March 1947 Habeyssée for violin and orchestra by Florent Schmitt (76) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Pastorela for violin and piano by William Grant Still (51) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    14 March 1950 Music for Claudel’s play Le repos du septième jour by Darius Milhaud (57) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio France originating in Paris conducted by the composer.

    14 March 1951 Seven Pieces for Three Pianos by Stefan Wolpe (48) is performed for the first time, at Yale University, along with his lecture “Spatial Relations, Harmonic Structures, and Shapes.”

    14 March 1952 King Oedipus for solo voices, chorus and original instruments by Harry Partch (50) to his own words after Yeats after Sophocles, is performed for the first time, at Mills College, Oakland, California.  It is a popular and critical triumph.  See 28 November 1951.

    14 March 1954 Symphony no.9 by Henry Cowell (57) is performed for the first time, in West High School Auditorium, Green Bay, Wisconsin.

    14 March 1955 Night for baritone, female chorus, and chamber ensemble by Ben Johnston to words of Robinson Jeffers is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, on the eve of the composer’s 29th birthday.

    14 March 1956 Assistant Secretary of State Robinson McIlvaine tells a committee of the US House of Representatives that a tour of the Middle East by the Symphony of the Air has been cancelled because they suspect 30 members of the orchestra are communists.

    De vives voix op.131 for chorus of three equal voices by Florent Schmitt (85) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    14 March 1959 Différences for five instruments and tape by Luciano Berio (33) is performed for the first time, in Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    Gambit, music for dancers and orchestra by Ben Johnston is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois on the eve of the composer’s 33rd birthday.

    14 March 1961 Aubade op.387 for orchestra by Darius Milhaud (68) is performed for the first time, in Oakland.

    14 March 1962 Three of the 15 études pour alto saxophone et piano op.188 by Charles Koechlin (†11) are performed for the first time, in Brussels.  See 18 February 1963.

    Serenade for flute, clarinet, harp, viola, and cello by Thea Musgrave (33) is performed for the first time, in London.

    14 March 1964 Mots for five solo voices and eight instruments by Betsy Jolas (38) to her own words is performed for the first time, in Geneva.

    14 March 1965 Requiem for soprano, mezzo-soprano, chorus, and orchestra by Györgi Ligeti (41) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.  The effect is so overwhelming, one critic will say, “for a while all other music seemed impossible.”

    Threnody:  In Memory of Jan Sibelius by William Grant Still (69) is performed for the first time, at the University of Miami, Florida.

    14 March 1968 Grandma’s Footsteps for five groups of players and five music boxes by John Tavener (24) is performed for the first time, at St. Pancras Town Hall, London the composer conducting.

    The Sun, the Soaring Eagle, the Turquoise Prince, the God, a cantata for chorus, brass, and percussion by William Bergsma (47), is performed for the first time, in Tacoma, Washington.

    14 March 1970 Six Profiles for orchestra by Ernst Krenek (69) is performed for the first time, in the Center for the Arts Auditorium, Fargo, North Dakota.

    14 March 1971 Overture no.2 “A Buoyant Music” for orchestra by David Diamond (55) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    Whether This Nation for chorus and band by Roy Harris (73) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Schoenberg Hall, UCLA.

    14 March 1973 Voice and Instruments, a vocalise for soprano and orchestra by Morton Feldman (47), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Sender Freies Berlin.

    14 March 1974 Four choruses from The Song of Solomon by Gustav Holst (†39) is performed for the first time, in St. John’s, Smith Square, London.

    Parts of The W. of Babylon, an opera by Charles Wuorinen (35) to words of Bruce, are performed for the first time, in Borden Auditorium, Manhattan School of Music.  See 20 January 1989.

    14 March 1975 Quintet Concerto for two trumpets, french horn, trombone, tuba, and orchestra by Ulysses Kay (58) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    14 March 1977 Chiaroscuro for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (48) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    14 March 1978 Adieu, Robert Schumann for alto, orchestra, piano, and tape by R. Murray Schafer (44) is performed for the first time, in Ottawa.

    14 March 1981 Tutuguri I for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (29) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Three Moravian songs for chorus by Karel Husa (59) to folk texts are performed for the first time, in Holland, Michigan.

    14 March 1982 Lord, Who Hast Formed Me for chorus and organ by Leslie Bassett (59) to words of Herbert is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    I Hate and I Love, a cycle for chorus and percussion by Dominick Argento (54) to words of Gaius Catullus, is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis.

    14 March 1986 Earth Dances for orchestra by Harrison Birtwistle (51) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    14 March 1989 Eve Dreams of Paradise op.49 for mezzo-soprano, tenor, and orchestra by Alexander Goehr (56) to words of Milton is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Birmingham.

    14 March 1991 Caroline Mathilde, a ballet by Peter Maxwell Davies (56) to a scenario by Flindt, is performed for the first time, in the Kongelige Theater, Copenhagen.  See 12 July 1991.

    Trois études en duo for a pianist by Jean-Claude Risset (53) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    14 March 1996 Mikis Theodorakis (70) is appointed Officier of the Légion d’Honneur by the ambassador of France to Greece.

    Piano Sonata no.3 by Alfred Schnittke (61) is performed for the first time, in Tel Aviv.

    14 March 1997 Jackie O, a chamber opera by Michael Daugherty (42) to words of Koestenbaum, is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    14 March 1999 Sonata for violin and piano by Richard Wernick (65) is performed for the first time, at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

    14 March 2004 Verwandlung for trombone, saxophone quartet, cello, double bass, and tam-tam by Sofia Gubaidulina (72) is performed for the first time, in Turku, Finland.

    Nach-Schrift for 17 players by Wolfgang Rihm (52) is performed for the first time, in the Funkhaus, Cologne.

    14 March 2008 Tapizdos for piano four hands by Gordon Mumma (72) is performed for the first time, in La Casa Encendida, Madrid.

    14 March 2009 Lyre of Orpheus for string sextet by Shulamit Ran (59) is performed for the first time, Rose Lehrman Arts Center, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

    14 March 2010 Sonnet 144 (Two Loves I Have) for two solo voices and piano by Ned Rorem (86) to words of Shakespeare is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    Bernard Rose’s film Mr. Nice, with music by Philip Glass (73), is shown for the first time, at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas.

    14 March 2011 Frauenliebe for viola and piano by Betsy Jolas (84) is performed for the first time, at Teatro La Fenice, Venice.

    15 March

    15 March 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart depart Milan for Lodi, Parma, Bologna and Florence.  Wolfgang dates his String Quartet in G K.80 this day from Lodi.

    15 March 1773 Karl Theodor, Elector Palatine, provides Georg Joseph Vogler (23) with the financial means to pursue musical studies in Italy.

    15 March 1777 Telemaco, an opera seria by Tommaso Traetta (49) to words of de Seriman, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    15 March 1778 The mortal remains of Thomas Augustine Arne are laid to rest in the churchyard of St. Paul’s, Covent Garden.

    15 March 1779 The soprano Luigia Polzelli and her husband, violinist Antonio Polzelli, are hired by Prince Nicholas Esterházy.  Soon, she will become the mistress of Franz Joseph Haydn (46), a position she will hold until her departure in 1790.

    15 March 1784 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) gives the first performance of a piano concerto, either K.449 or 450, at the Esterházy residence in Vienna.  See 17 March 1784 and 24 March 1784.

    15 March 1786 Amphitryon, an opéra by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (45) to words of Sedaine after Molière, is performed for the first time, at Versailles.

    15 March 1825 Gaetano Donizetti (27) is engaged as maestro di cappella at Teatro Carolino in Palermo.

    15 March 1838 Clara Wieck (18) is named Royal and Imperial Virtuosa by the Emperor of Austria in Vienna.

    15 March 1842 Luigi Carlo Zanobi Salvadore Maria Cherubini dies in Paris, aged 81 years, six months and between one and seven days.

    15 March 1843 Charles VI, an opéra by Fromental Halévy (43) to words of Delavigne and Delavigne, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  Critics are mostly positive.  The public loves it.

    15 March 1847 Hector Berlioz (43) gives the first of five concerts in St. Petersburg at the Assembly Hall of the Nobility.  At intermission he is presented to Tsarina Alyeksandra (the Tsar is too ill to attend).  Berlioz is so successful with the audience that he nets 12,000 French francs.

    Felix Mendelssohn’s (38) concert aria On Lena’s Gloomy Heath for voice and orchestra to words of Ossian is performed for the first time, in London.

    Clara Schumann (27) writes from Berlin:  “I have really taken a liking to Frau Hensel (41) and feel particularly drawn to her musically; we are almost always in accord, and her conversation is always interesting.  The only slight problem is that at first one has to get used to her rather abrupt way of behaving.”

    15 March 1863 Der Entfernten D.331 for male vocal quartet by Franz Schubert (†34) to words of Salis-Seewis is performed for the first time, in the Redoutensaal, Vienna, 47 years after it was composed.

    15 March 1875 The second and final version of César Franck’s (52) symphonic poem Rédemption for soprano, female chorus, speaker, and orchestra to words of Blau is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.

    15 March 1878 The definitive version of The Two Widows, a comic opera by Bedrich Smetana (54) to words of Züngel after Mallefille, is performed for the first time, in the Provisional Theatre, Prague.  See 27 March 1874.

    15 March 1879 Guillem de Cabestanh, an overture by Hubert Parry (31), is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London.

    15 March 1881 Rébecca, scéne biblique for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by César Franck (58) to words of Collin, is performed for the first time, by the Société Chorale d’Amateurs Guillot de Sainbris, with piano accompaniment.  See 16 May 1911.

    15 March 1882 Nocturne for clarinet and piano by Ferruccio Busoni (15) is performed for the first time, in Bologna.

    15 March 1885 Three works are performed for the first time by the Société National de Musique in the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris:  Les Djinns, a symphonic poem by César Franck (62); Symphony no.2 op.40 by Gabriel Fauré (39); and La sulamite, a scène lyrique for mezzo-soprano, female chorus and orchestra by Emanuel Chabrier (44) to words of Richepin.

    15 March 1886 The Holberg Suite op.40 for string orchestra by Edvard Grieg (42) is performed for the first time, in Bergen, conducted by the composer.

    15 March 1887 Proserpine, a drame lyrique by Camille Saint-Saëns (51) to words of Gallet after Vacquerie, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    Suite in d minor for piano op.15 by Arthur Foote (34) is performed for the first time, by the composer.

    15 March 1892 A setting of Vexilla regis for chorus by Anton Bruckner (67) is performed for the first time, at St. Florian.

    15 March 1893 Fantasia op.116/6 for piano by Johannes Brahms (59) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.

    15 March 1896 Es war so wunderschön op.467, a march by Johann Strauss (70), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    15 March 1900 Colin Carhart McPhee is born in Montreal, first child of Alexander McPhee, who worked in sales for the Bell Telephone Company, and Lavinia Carhart.

    The oratorio La terre promise, words from the Bible, music by Jules Massenet (57) is performed for the first time, at the church of St. Eustache, Paris.

    Fragments of the incomplete romantic opera Viola by Bedrich Smetana (†15) to words of Krásnohorská after Shakespeare, are performed for the first time, in a concert setting in Prague.  See 11 May 1924.

    15 March 1901 An Irish Idyll op.77, a cycle for voice and piano by Charles Villiers Stanford (48) to words of O’Neill, is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.

    15 March 1906 The Impromptu op.12/1, Poème satanique op.36, two Preludes op.37/1, 4, Prelude op.39/3, Etudes op.42/1, 5, and Poème op.32/1 by Alyeksandr Skryabin (34) are performed for the first time, in Moscow by his estranged wife, Vera.

    15 March 1908 Maurice Ravel’s (33) Rapsodie espagnole for orchestra is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris.

    15 March 1910 Four songs by Charles T. Griffes (25) are performed for the first time, at Elmira College School of Music, Elmira, New York, the composer at the piano:  Auf dem Teich, dem Regungslosen and Auf geheimen Waldespfade, both to words of Lenau, and Wohl lag ich einst in Gram and Zwei Könige sassen auf Orkadahl, both to words of Geibel.

    15 March 1911 Prométhée, le poème du feu, for orchestra, piano, organ, chorus, and light machine by Alyeksandr Skryabin (39), is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  The composer is at the piano while Sergey Koussevitzky conducts.  This performance is without the light machine.  See 20 March 1915.

    15 March 1913 The premiere of Franz Schreker’s (34) opera Das Spielwerk und die Prinzessin, to his own libretto, takes place simultaneously at the Vienna Hofoper and in Frankfurt-am-Main.  Critics like the music but not the words.

    15 March 1914 Movements 2-4 of Études antiques op.46 for orchestra by Charles Koechlin (46) are performed for the first time, in Théâtre du Chatelet, Paris.

    15 March 1915 Paraphrases of the National Anthems of the Allied Nations, by Alyeksandr Glazunov (49) is performed for the first time, at one of the “patriotic concerts” at Petrograd Conservatory, directed by the composer.

    15 March 1918 Ernst Krenek (17) reports for military service and is posted to the 13th Imperial-Royal Heavy Field Artillery Regiment of the Austro-Hungarian army.

    Edward Elgar (60) undergoes a tonsillectomy in London.  The operation is a success but recovery will be slow.  While hospitalized, Elgar will write down the opening theme of his Cello Concerto.

    After receiving the last rights of the Roman Catholic Church, Lili Boulanger dies in Mézy-par-Meulan at the age of 24 years, six months, and 22 days.

    15 March 1920 Incidental music to Barrie’s play, The Truth about the Russian Dancers by Arnold Bax (36) is performed for the first time, in the London Coliseum.  It is a great success.

    15 March 1926 Benjamin Burwell Johnston, Jr. is born in Macon, Georgia, the first of two children born to Benjamin Burwell Johnston, Sr., a journalist, and Janet Ross.

    Impressions of a Rainy Day for string quartet by Roy Harris (28) is performed for the first time, in the Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles.

    15 March 1927 String Quartet no.2 by Arnold Bax (43) is performed for the first time, in Grotrian Hall, London.  Critics are mixed.

    15 March 1928 A Trio for piano, viola, and heckelphone or tenor saxophone op.47 by Paul Hindemith (32), is performed for the first time, in Wiesbaden, the composer as violist.

    15 March 1929 Two songs by Charles Ives (54) are performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York:  Serenity, to words of Whittier, and The Things Our Fathers Loved to his own words.

    15 March 1931 Ronde burlesque op.78 for orchestra by Florent Schmitt (60) is performed for the first time, in Paris.  The composer says that its subject is “a battle of sub-marine airplanes.”

    Music for the films H2O and Mechanical Principles by Colin McPhee (30) is performed for the first time, at the last Copland (30)-Sessions (34) Concert, in the Broadhurst Theatre, New York.  Also premiered is Marc Blitzstein's (26) music for the film Surf and Seaweed.

    15 March 1933 The director of Radio Berlin issues a directive forbidding the broadcast of black jazz.

    Incidental music to Sophocles’ play Philoctetes by Elliott Carter (24) is performed for the first time, in Lowell House Dining Hall, Harvard University.

    Concertino for pianoforte and orchestra by Frederick S. Converse (62) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    15 March 1934 Three of the Vingt chansons bretonnes op.115 for cello and piano by Charles Koechlin (66) are performed for the first time, in the Salle de l’École Normale, Paris.

    15 March 1936 After the announced engagement of Wilhelm Furtwängler as conductor of the New York Philharmonic causes loud protests due to his affiliation with the Nazi government, the conductor releases the management from the contract.

    15 March 1938 Howard Hanson’s (41) Symphony no.3 is performed completely for the first time, over the airwaves of the NBC radio network under the baton of the composer.  See 18 September 1937.

    15 March 1939 Two Symphonic Interludes from Macbeth by Ernest Bloch (58) is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth.

    15 March 1941 Sergey Prokofiev (49) leaves his wife and children to live with his mistress Mariya (Mira) Abramovna Mendelson, first in Leningrad, then in Moscow.

    15 March 1942 Quatre poèmes de Ronsard op.100 for voice and orchestra by Florent Schmitt (71) are performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Concertino for piano and strings by Ross Lee Finney (35) is performed for the first time, at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota.

    15 March 1945 Pastorale for orchestra by Virgil Thomson (48) is performed for the first time, in the New York Center for Music and Dance, conducted by the composer.

    Ode for orchestra by Lukas Foss (22) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    15 March 1948 Czinka Panna, a singspiel by Zoltán Kodály (65) to words of Balázs, is performed for the first time, at the Hungarian State Opera in Budapest.  The work wins the Kossuth Prize today.

    Sinfonietta no.2 for orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (61) is performed for the first time, in Rome conducted by the composer.

    15 March 1949 Suite no.2 for strings by Lou Harrison (31) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre, Columbia University.

    15 March 1950 Gian Carlo Menotti’s (38) musical drama The Consul, to his own words, is performed for the first time on Broadway, in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.  See 1 March 1950 and 1 May 1950.

    15 March 1952 Extensions I for violin and piano by Morton Feldman (26) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre of Columbia University.

    15 March 1957 Tartiniana Seconda for violin and chamber orchestra by Luigi Dallapiccola (53) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Italian Radio originating in Turin.  See 6 March 1956.

    Sonata for solo cello by George Crumb (27) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    15 March 1958 Variations I for any number of players by John Cage (45) is performed for the first time, at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro.

    15 March 1959 Symphony no.7 by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (53) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of NDR originating in Hamburg.

    Music for the documentary Burma Road by Darius Milhaud (66) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of CBS television, originating in New York.

    15 March 1960 Aaron Copland (59) leaves the United States heading for the USSR where he and Lukas Foss (37) will represent the United States as part of a cultural exchange program.

    15 March 1962 The Abbot of Drimock, a comic opera by Thea Musgrave (33) to words of Lindsay, is staged for the first time, at Morley College, London.

    15 March 1963 Five Bagatelles for oboe, violin, and harpsichord by TJ Anderson (34) is performed for the first time, at the University of Oklahoma.

    San Fernando Sequence by Ernst Krenek (62) is performed for the first time, at San Fernando State College, California.

    15 March 1964 Te Deum op.93 for chorus and orchestra by Vincent Persichetti (48) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    15 March 1965 The Most Valiant of Knights, a children’s opera by Krzysztof Penderecki (31) to his own words after Szelburg-Zarembina), is performed for the first time, in Poznan.

    Let the Word Go Forth for chorus, brass, strings, and harp by Robert Ward (47) to words of Kennedy is performed for the first time, in the Hunter College Playhouse, New York.

    Four songs by Charles T. Griffes (†44) are performed for the first time, at West Chester State College, Pennsylvania:  Am Kreuzweg wird begraben, An den Wind, Pierrot, and So halt’ ich endlich dich umfangen.

    15 March 1968 Cantos de amor y de guerra for soprano and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (66) to anonymous words, are performed for the first time, at the Ministry of Information and Tourism, Madrid.

    15 March 1969 Dream Music no.2 for harpsichord and percussion by William Bolcom (30) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    15 March 1970 Symphony no.4 by Samuel Adler (42) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    15 March 1972 Soliloquy I for guitar and tape by Thea Musgrave (43) is performed for the first time, at the German Institute, London.

    15 March 1973 Concerto for two pianos and orchestra by Luciano Berio (47) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by Pierre Boulez (47).

    15 March 1976 Three new chamber works are performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York:  Quintet for piano and string quartet by George Rochberg (57), String Quartet no.3 by Lukas Foss (53) and String Quartet no.3 by Ben Johnston on the composer’s 50th birthday.

    15 March 1977 Cantilena e Scherzo, quintet for harp and strings by Gian Carlo Menotti (65) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    Hearing, an opera by Ned Rorem (53) to words of Holmes and Koch, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Christ and St. Stephen’s Church, New York.

    15 March 1978 The USSR announces that the citizenship of cellist and conductor Mstislav Rostropovich and his wife, soprano Galina Vishnevskaya, are revoked for “anti-Soviet activity.”  The couple has been living abroad since 1974.

    15 March 1981 Donnerstag aus Licht, an opera by Karlheinz Stockhausen (52) to his own words, is staged incompletely, for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The critics are scathing.

    15 March 1985 Ritual for orchestra by Alfred Schnittke (50) is performed for the first time, in Novosibirsk.

    15 March 1986 Risonanze erranti a Massimo Cacciari for mezzo-soprano, flute, percussion, and electronics by Luigi Nono (62) to words of Melville and Bachmann is performed for the first time, in the Großer Rheinsaal der Kölner Messe, Cologne.

    Cántico de San Francisco de Asís for chorus and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (84) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    Fanfare for the Houston Symphony by Charles Wuorinen (47) is performed for the first time, in Jones Hall, Houston.

    15 March 1989 Valis Music for piano, keyboards, percussion, and tape by Tod Machover (35), based on the music of his opera Valis, is performed for the first time, in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

    15 March 1990 Symphony no.1 by John Corigliano (52) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    15 March 1991 The fifth piece from ...in real time op.50 for piano by Alexander Goehr (57) is performed for the first time, at Harewood House, Leeds.

    15 March 1992 What Ever Happened to the Big Bands? for alto saxophone, trumpet and trombone by TJ Anderson (63) is performed for the first time, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

    15 March 1994 A Hoy Calendar for chorus by Peter Maxwell Davies (59) is performed for the first time, at St. Edward’s College, Liverpool.

    15 March 1997 Mavis in Las Vegas for orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (62) is performed for the first time, at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester conducted by the composer.

    Levertov Breviary for voice and piano by Mel Powell (74) is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    15 March 2000 Mr. Tambourine Man:  Seven Poems of Bob Dylan for soprano and piano by John Corigliano (62) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    15 March 2005 Gotham Glory for piano by David Del Tredici is performed for the first time, in Zankel Hall, New York on the eve of the composer’s 68th birthday.

    15 March 2006 Ragged Edge for chamber orchestra by TJ Anderson (77) is performed for the first time, in the Harris Theatre for Music and Dance, Chicago.

    15 March 2007 Les Flûtes de Pan:  Hommage à Debussy for flute, octophonic computer music, and optional dancers by Larry Austin (76) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    15 March 2012 Samothrake for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (60) is performed for the first time, in the Gewandhaus, Leipzig.

    Five Songs for Spring for voice and piano by Thea Musgrave (83) to words of Burns are performed for the first time, at Aberdeen University.

    Absolute Jest for string quartet and orchestra by John Adams (65) is performed for the first time, in Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco.

    16 March

    16 March 1736 Giovanni Battista Pergolesi dies in Pezzuoli, near Naples, aged 26 years, two months and 12 days.

    16 March 1765 Le tonnelier, an opéra comique by seven composers including François-André Danican-Philidor (38) and François-Joseph Gossec (31), to words of Quétant and Audinot, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    16 March 1772 Squire Badger, a burletta by Thomas Augustine Arne (62) to his own words after Fielding, is performed for the first time, in the Little Theatre, Haymarket.

    16 March 1822 In the sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of the Pillar, in her villa at Castenaso, near Bologna, the coloratura Isabella Colbran marries the opera composer Gioachino Rossini (30).  The couple are traveling from Naples to Vienna.

    16 March 1827 Johann Nepomuk Hummel (48) is elected a chavalier of the Legion of Honor.

    16 March 1828 Nicolò Paganini (45) arrives in Vienna from Italy for his first concertizing in the city.

    16 March 1833 Felix Mendelssohn (24) is named director of the Lower Rhine Festival.

    Beatrice di Tenda, a tragedia lirica by Vincenzo Bellini (31) to words of Romani after Tedaldi-Fores, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  It is not successful and Bellini is faulted.  Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (28) remembers “Despite all Pasta's efforts in the part of Beatrice, the work was not a success.”

    16 March 1834 While Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (29) is in Berlin with his sister, they receive word that their father has died.  They immediately return to Russia.  It is Glinka’s first return to his homeland in almost four years.

    16 March 1840 Robert Schumann (29) hears Franz Liszt (28) perform in Dresden, then accompanies him to Leipzig.  The concert takes place before several members of the royal family.

    16 March 1842 Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (37) petitions the Director of Imperial Theatres in St. Petersburg to produce Ruslan and Lyudmilla.  He forwards the music and promises the libretto soon.  The director, Alyksandr Mikhailovich Gedeonov, immediately accepts and orders its production.

    16 March 1845 While Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (40) is visiting Paris, Hector Berlioz (41) performs a selection from A Life for the Tsar and one from Ruslan and Ludmilla at one of his concerts at the Cirque Olympique.  Critical reaction is mixed.

    16 March 1857 Bedrich Smetana (33) conducts his first performance as director of the Harmonic Society in Göteborg.

    16 March 1864 Les géorgiennes, an opéra-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (44) to words of Moinaux, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    16 March 1866 The second version of the Overture in F by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  It is the first time he is paid for a performance of his music.

    16 March 1869 Eljen a Magyar! op.332, a schnell-polka by Johann Strauss (43), is performed for the first time, in Pest.  Also premiered is the instrumental version of Strauss’ waltz Wein, Weib und Gesang! op.333.

    16 March 1870 The first version of Romeo and Juliet, a fantasy-overture by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (29), is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  The music is a failure with the public but Nikolay Rubinstein arranges for its publication.  See 17 February 1872 and 1 May 1886.

    16 March 1874 Des toten Dichters Liebe, a melodrama for reciter and piano by Franz Liszt (62) to words of Jókai translated by Dux, is performed for the first time, in Budapest, the composer at the keyboard.

    16 March 1877 Franz Liszt (65) performs in a concert in Vienna to mark 50 years since the death of Beethoven.  He plays the Choral Fantasy and the Emperor Concerto.  In the audience is a very excited Gustav Mahler (16).

    16 March 1879 A setting of Psalm 149 for male chorus and orchestra by Antonin Dvorák (37) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    16 March 1881 Three songs for voice and piano by Richard Strauss (16) to words of Geibel are performed for the first time, in Munich:  Waldgesang, O schneller mein Ross, and Die Lilien glühn in Düften.

    16 March 1891 Act III of Mlada, an opera by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, is performed for the first time, in the Club of the Nobility, St. Petersburg, two days before the composer’s 47th birthday.  See 1 November 1892.

    Le mage, an opéra by Jules Massenet (48) to words of Richepin, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  It is not very successful.

    Fantasy Pieces op.2 for oboe and piano by Carl Nielsen (25) are performed for the first time.

    16 March 1894 Thaïs, a comèdie lyrique by Jules Massenet (51) to words of Gallet after France, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  Some critics find it immoral, but it is a hit with the public.

    16 March 1896 The orchestral setting of Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, a cycle for voice and orchestra by Gustav Mahler (35) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    16 March 1899 Adstant angelorum chori op.45, a motet by Horatio Parker (35) to words of Thomas a Kempis, is performed for the first time, in New York.  It wins first prize in a contest sponsored by the Musical Art Society of New York.

    16 March 1900 Sandels for male chorus and orchestra by Jean Sibelius (34) to words of Runeberg, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.  The work celebrates Swedish General Johan Sandels and his defeat of the Russians north of Iisalmi, Finland in 1808.

    16 March 1901 Two of the Seven Danish Songs by Fritz (Frederick) Delius (39), to words of Jacobsen, for solo voice and orchestra are performed for the first time, at the Société National de Musique, Paris, conducted by Vincent d’Indy (49).  See 30 May 1899.

    16 March 1904 In the South overture op.50 by Edward Elgar (46) is performed for the first time, in the Royal Opera House, London, conducted by the composer.

    16 March 1905 Edward Elgar (47) gives the first of his Birmingham Lectures entitled “A Future for English Music.”  He attacks some current English composers such as Charles Villiers Stanford (52) although not by name, and claims that current English music is held in no regard abroad.  Formerly friends, Elgar and Stanford cease communication.

    The dramma Amica by Pietro Mascagni (41) to words of Bérel (tr. Targioni-Tozzetti), is performed for the first time, in the Opera de Monte Carlo, the composer conducting.  The press and the public are enthusiastic.

    Nadia Boulanger (17) makes her public performing debut in Paris.

    16 March 1906 The first public demonstration of the Telharmonium, is given in Holyoke, Massachusetts.  Selections of mostly classical music, with some popular, are sent by telephone from the Cahill factory to the Hotel Hamilton ballroom, about a kilometer away.  This first important electronic instrument was developed over the last ten years by Thaddeus Cahill.

    16 March 1911 The third group of Choral Hymns from the Rig-Veda by Gustav Holst (36) to his own translation, for female chorus, harp, and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Blackburn.

    16 March 1912 The Lover op.14 for strings by Jean Sibelius (46) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki, conducted by the composer.

    16 March 1914 Dance poem for orchestra by Frank Bridge (35) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, the composer conducting.

    16 March 1917 The new Società Nazionale di Musica gives its first concert in the Accademia Santa Cecilia in Rome.  The society is organized by Alfredo Casella (33) and includes Ottorino Respighi (37) and Gian Francesco Malipiero (34).  It will soon change its name to Società Italiana di Musica Moderna.

    16 March 1921 String Quartet no.1 “Rispetti e strambotti” by Gian Francesco Malipiero (38) is performed for the first time, in Rome.

    16 March 1923 Concerto for piano and orchestra op.31 by Hans Pfitzner (53) is performed for the first time, in Dresden.

    16 March 1926 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play The Tempest (tr. Lembcke) op.109 by Jean Sibelius (60) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    16 March 1927 Nouvelle sonatine op.87/4 for piano by Charles Koechlin (59) is performed for the first time, in the Salle des Concerts de l’Hôtel Majestic, Paris.

    16 March 1928 Nocturne for orchestra by Henry F. Gilbert (59) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.  Reviews range from mixed to very positive.

    16 March 1931 Incidental music to Chlumberg’s play Miracle at Verdun by Aaron Copland (30) is performed for the first time, at the Martin Beck Theatre, New York.

    16 March 1932 Albert Roussel’s (62) setting of Joyce’s A Flower Given to My Daughter for voice and piano is performed for the first time, in London.

    Watching the Needleboats for voice and piano by Arnold Bax (48) to words of Joyce is performed for the first time, at the College of Nursing, London.  Also premiered is Tutto e sciolto for voice and piano by John Ireland (52) to words of Joyce.

    The mystery play Maria egiziaca by Ottorino Respighi (52) to words of Guastalla after Cavalca, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York, the composer conducting a semi-staged production.  See 10 August 1932.

    Symphony no.4 by Arnold Bax (48) is performed for the first time, in Civic Auditorium, San Francisco.

    16 March 1933 A concert to be directed by Jewish conductor Bruno Walter in Leipzig is cancelled by authorities who claim that his appearance might endanger “public order and security.”

    Benjamin Britten’s (19) Sinfonietta op.1 is played at the Royal College of Music, London the only one of his works performed there during his college days.

    16 March 1934 Arnold Schoenberg (59) makes his US conducting debut in a program of his works in Boston.

    An all-Aaron Copland (33) concert takes place at the Degeyter Club in New York associated with the American Communist Party.  Before the performance, Copland informs his audience that today’s composer needs to identify “with the great masses of the proletariat.”  He also informs them, however, that none of his music is revolutionary in that sense.

    16 March 1935 String Quartet no.2 by Walter Piston (41) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    16 March 1937 David Walter Del Tredici is born in Cloverdale, California.

    16 March 1938 Julietta, an opera by Bohuslav Martinu (47) to his own words after Neveux, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    William Schuman’s (27) Choral Etude for chorus is performed for the first time, in New York.

    To Music for soprano and chorus by Elliott Carter (29) to words of Herrick is performed for the first time, in Federal Music Theatre, New York.

    16 March 1939 The synagogue in Jihlava, Czechoslovakia, where Gustav Mahler (†27) grew up, is burned to the ground by the Germans.

    16 March 1940 Carlos Chávez (40) begins a series of concerts of Mexican music at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.  The series is commissioned by Nelson Rockefeller.

    16 March 1941 The announcement that Dmitri Shostakovich (34) has won the Stalin Prize for his Piano Quintet is published in Pravda.

    16 March 1942 Benjamin Britten (28) and Peter Pears board the Swedish cargo ship Axel Johnson in New York bound for Great Britain.  US Customs agents confiscate sketches for a clarinet concerto and a choral Hymn to Saint Cecilia in case they are messages in code.

    Sinfonietta giocosa by Bohuslav Martinu (51) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    16 March 1943 La rosa del sogno, a ballet by Alfredo Casella (59), is performed for the first time, at the Rome Opera.

    16 March 1947 Voyage for voice and piano by Elliott Carter (38) to words of Crane, is performed for the first time, in the Museum of Modern Art, New York.  Also premiered is String Quartet no.3 by David Diamond (31).  See 8 August 1974.

    16 March 1949 After a telephone conversation with Dmitri Shostakovich (42) about three weeks ago, Comrade Stalin personally issues Order no.3197 of the Council of Ministers of the USSR.  It declares the blacklist of 14 February 1948 illegal and reprimands the State Repertoire Committee (Glavrepertkom) for issuing such a decree.

    The Meeting on the Elbe, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (42), is shown for the first time.

    16 March 1950 Kammer-Sonate for piano, violin, and cello by Hans Werner Henze (23) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    Bidule en ut for tape by Pierre Schaeffer (40) and Pierre Henry (22) is performed for the first time, in Amphithéâtre Richelieu at the Sorbonne.

    Music divinas laudes for three voices and optional brass by Paul Hindemith (54) to words of Griselius is performed for the first time, at Harvard University conducted by the composer.

    Symphony no.5 by Ernst Krenek (49) is performed for the first time, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

    16 March 1951 Sergey Prokofiev (59) wins a Stalin Prize for his suite Winter Bonfire and the oratorio On Guard for Peace.

    16 March 1952 Three Traditional Rhymes op.17 for voice, clarinet, bass clarinet, violin and viola by Anton Webern (†6) to anonymous words, is performed completely for the first time, in New York.  On the same program is the first performance of Webern’s Three Songs on Poems by Hildegard Jone op.25 for voice and piano.  See 8 May 1951.

    16 March 1955 Night Creature for jazz orchestra and symphony orchestra by Duke Ellington (55) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    16 March 1958 Doubles for orchestra by Pierre Boulez (32) is performed for the first time, in Paris, conducted by the composer.  See 10 January 1964.

    16 March 1963 Il capitan Spavento, an opera by Gian Francesco Malipiero (80) to his own words after Ruzante and de Fatouville, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.

    16 March 1965 In memoriam:  Die Weisse Rose for twelve players by Hans Werner Henze (38) is performed for the first time, in Bologna.

    16 March 1966 La Divina, a comic opera by Thomas Pasatieri (20) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School, New York.

    16 March 1968 Night and Morning for unaccompanied chorus by György Ligeti (44) to words of Weöres are performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    16 March 1969 John Barry, a reporter for the London Sunday Times publishes an article which says that he has visited Mikis Theodorakis (43) in Zatouna where the composer is being held by the Greek Security Police.  He has returned with tapes of new songs performed by Theodorakis and letters for U Thant, Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Subcommission on Human Rights of the Council of Europe.  They are published in his paper today, to be excerpted in periodicals throughout the world.

    Paragraph 2 of The Great Learning for singers and drummers by Cornelius Cardew (32), to words of Confucius, (tr. Pound), is performed for the first time, at the Leeds College of Art.

    16 March 1971 Songs in Praise of Krishna for soprano and piano by George Rochberg (52) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana the composer at the keyboard.

    16 March 1972 Works by Anton Webern (†26) are performed for the first time at the Fifth International Webern Festival in Vienna:  Eight Orchestra Fragments (1911-1913) and a String Trio Movement (1927).

    Three Clarinets, Cello, and Piano for the instrumentation found in the title by Morton Feldman (46) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London.

    Windows for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (43) is performed for the first time, in Chicago, conducted by Bruno Maderna (51).  The work will win the Pulitzer Prize.  See 1 May 1972.

    16 March 1973 Satyricon, an opera by Bruno Maderna (52) to words of Strasfogel and the composer after Petronius, is performed for the first time, in Scheveningen, Netherlands.

    Compass for tenor, bass, cello, double bass, four-track tape, and visual projections by Roger Reynolds (38) to words of Borges is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.  See 7 March 1974.

    16 March 1976 Two piano works by Carlos Chávez (76) are performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York:  Cinco Caprichos and Estudio a Rubinstein.

    16 March 1978 An exhibition of etchings and worksheets by John Cage (65) opens at the Carl Solway Gallery in New York.

    The first movement of the Orchestral Set no.3 by Charles Ives (†23), realized by Porter, is performed for the first time, at California State University at Fullerton.

    16 March 1979 An orchestral suite from the ballet Salomé by Peter Maxwell Davies (44) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    16 March 1982 Passacaglia for solo cello by William Walton (79) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    16 March 1983 Improvistation for AC, a birthday piece for Aaron Copland (82) for piano by Arthur Berger (70), is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    16 March 1984 Liriche su Verlaine for voice and piano by Bruno Maderna (†10) is performed for the first time, in Bonn, 37 years after it was composed.

    16 March 1985 Roger Sessions dies of a cerebral hemorrhage in Princeton, New Jersey aged 88 years, two months, and 16 days.

    16 March 1986 The original version of Symphony no.4 for four vocal soloists and chamber orchestra by Alfred Schnittke (51) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  See 12 April 1984.

    16 March 1988 Pasiphae for piano and percussion by Samuel Adler (60) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    16 March 1994 Chat Moss for school orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (59) is performed for the first time, at St. Edward’s College, Liverpool.

    Symphony no.1 by John Melby (52) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    16 March 1995 Akhmatova Songs for soprano and string quartet by John Tavener (51) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.

    16 March 1997 Kofi Annan pays tribute to Henry Cowell (†31) in a special address for his “contributions to intercultural music.”

    16 March 2000 Nine Settings of Lorine Niedecker for soprano and cello by Harrison Birtwistle (65) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.

    16 March 2001 From the Diary of Sally Hemings for voice and piano by William Bolcom (62) to words of Seaton is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington.

    16 March 2002 Das Lesen der Schrift, four pieces for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (50), is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    St. John Easter for solo voices, two choruses, organ and orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (70) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    16 March 2004 Taking Lives, a film with music by Philip Glass (67), is released in the United States.

    16 March 2005 Two works are performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London:  Mosaic for eight instruments by Elliott Carter (96), and Cantus Iambeus for 13 instruments by Harrison Birtwistle (70).

    16 March 2007 Deus ex Machina for piano and orchestra by Michael Daugherty (52) is performed for the first time, in Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, Charlotte, North Carolina.

    17 March

    17 March 1520 Jehan Tabourot (Thoinot Arbeau) is born in Dijon.

    17 March 1665 Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre is baptized in Paris.

    17 March 1763 Johann Christian Bach (27) publishes his first set of harpsichord concertos (op.1) dedicated to Queen Charlotte of Great Britain.

    17 March 1776 Empress Yekaterina II grants a monopoly to Prince Urusov to operate a theatre in Moscow.  This is the beginning of the Bolshoy Theatre.

    A rondo, duet and aria buffa by Luigi Cherubini (15) are performed for the first time, at the Accademia degli Ingegnosi, Florence.

    17 March 1784 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) gives the first public performance of a piano concerto, probably K.449, in the Trattner Saal, in the first of three lenten subscription concerts attended by the height of Viennese society.

    17 March 1789 André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry’s (48) opéra Aspasie to words of Morel de Chédeville, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    17 March 1790 A meeting of the Lesergesellschaft in Bonn decides that the music they commissioned for a memorial to the late Emperor Joseph II will not be performed.  The Funeral Cantata for Joseph WoO 87 by Ludwig van Beethoven (19) is not finished, and what is already composed can not be played by the available musicians.

    17 March 1804 Aline, reine de Golconde, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (28) to words of Vial and de Favières, is performed for the first time, in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

    17 March 1806 Tout le monde a tort, a vaudeville by Gaspare Spontini (31), is performed for the first time, in Malmaison.

    17 March 1811 A setting of the 98th Psalm for chorus by Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (19) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    17 March 1813 Samuel Wesley’s (47) Organ Concerto in B flat is performed for the first time, in London, the composer at the keyboard.

    17 March 1824 The first part of Franz Schubert’s (27) song cycle Die schöne Müllerin, to words of Müller, is published.

    17 March 1830 Fryderyk Chopin (20) makes his official debut performance in Warsaw, in the National Theatre, playing his f minor Piano Concerto publicly for the first time and the premiere of his Fantasia on Polish Airs op.13.

    17 March 1833 Gaetano Donizetti’s (35) melodramma Parisina, to words of Romani after Byron is performed for the first time, at Teatro della Pergola, Florence to an enthusiastic reception.

    17 March 1835 Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (30) proposes marriage to Maria Petrovna Ivanovna.  She accepts.

    17 March 1840 After months of dazzling successes in Vienna, Pest, Prague and Dresden, Franz Liszt (28) receives whistles from a Leipzig audience for his transcription of the Sixth Symphony of Beethoven (†12).  Friedrich Wieck, who sees Liszt as a friend of Robert Schumann (29), has been savaging Liszt in the Leipzig newspapers.  Clara (20) takes her father’s side.  The Leipzigers also blame him for raising ticket prices and canceling complimentary tickets.

    17 March 1846 Attila, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (32) to words of Solera and Piave after Werner, is performed for the first time, at Teatro La Fenice, Venice directed by the composer.  Verdi reports that the work “enjoyed a very good success.”

    17 March 1858 La magicienne, an opéra by Fromental Halévy (58) to words of Saint-Georges, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  The work is well received by the public, though the critical reaction is mixed.

    17 March 1861 Neue Melodien-Quadrille op.254 by Johann Strauss (35) is performed for the first time, in the Dianabadsaal, Vienna.

    17 March 1862 Afternoon.  Jacques-François-Fromental-Elie Halévy dies in Nice, aged 62 years, nine months and 18 days.

    Anton Rubinstein (32) is named director of the new St. Petersburg Conservatory.

    The faculty of Harvard University vote to hire John Knowles Paine (23) as organist and music instructor.

    17 March 1867 Five of the waltzes op.39 by Johannes Brahms (33) arranged for two pianos are performed for the first time, in the Redoutensaal Vienna.  See 23 November 1866 and 16 November 1868.

    17 March 1868 Rolnická for male chorus by Bedrich Smetana (44) to words of Trnobransky is performed for the first time, in New Town Theatre, Prague.

    17 March 1877 Sárka, a symphonic poem from Ma Vlast by Bedrich Smetana (53), is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    17 March 1884 A Soldier’s Song op.5 for male chorus by Edward Elgar (26) to words of Hayward is performed for the first time, in Worcester.  The work will be renamed A War Song.

    17 March 1887 Excerpts from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (46) unperformed opera The Sorceress, along with two songs, I’ll Tell You Nothing op.60/2 to words of Fet, and Sleepless Nights op.60/6 to words of Apukhtin, are performed in St. Petersburg, conducted by the composer.  See 1 November 1887.

    Music by Erik Satie (20) appears in print for the first time.  His salon piece Valse-ballet is published in his father’s La Musique des familles.  See 7 May 1979.

    17 March 1892 Incidental music to Tennyson’s play The Foresters by Arthur Sullivan (49) is performed for the first time, in Daly’s Theatre, New York.

    17 March 1893 Les drames sacrés, incidental music to eleven tableaux of Silvestre and Morand by Charles Gounod (74), is performed for the first time at the Vaudeville, Paris.

    17 March 1898 A String Quartet in D by Arnold Schoenberg (23) is performed for the first time, by the Tonkünstlerverein, privately, in Vienna.  See 20 December 1898.

    17 March 1899 Sou bois op.4/2 for voice, female chorus and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (31) to words of Gille is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.

    17 March 1900 Chansons de Bilitis for solo voice and piano, words by Louÿs and music by Claude Debussy (37) is performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    17 March 1901 The Wild Duck, for mixed chorus, by Leos Janácek (46), is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).

    17 March 1905 Incidental music to Maeterlinck’s (tr. Gripenberg) play Pelléas et Mélisande by Jean Sibelius (39) is performed for the first time, at the Swedish Theatre, Helsinki, directed by the composer.

    17 March 1907 Prelude and Fugue op.93 for organ by Alyeksandr Glazunov (41) is performed for the first time, at St. Petersburg Conservatory.

    17 March 1910 An evening devoted to the music of Zoltán Kodály (27) takes place in Budapest, including the String Quartet no.1 op.2, Piano Music (9 pieces) op.3 and a Sonata for cello and piano op.4 (first complete).

    Mese Mariano, an opera by Umberto Giordano (42) to words of Di Giacomo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Massimo, Palermo.

    17 March 1911 Aretusa for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by Ottorino Respighi (31), to words of Shelley, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Comunale, Bologna.

    17 March 1913 Béla Bartók (31) completes almost two weeks of collecting Romanian folk music in the Maramures district of Transylvania.  He has discovered the “long song” of “highly elaborate and extended vocal lines,” a connection to Asian music.  Bartók will go to Algeria to hear Arab music and prove his theory.

    17 March 1917 La Société Française de Musicologie is founded in Paris.

    George Gershwin (18) leaves his job as a song plugger at Jerome A. Remick’s music publishing to seek a career in musical theatre, but without immediate prospects.

    The first jazz recording is issued by the Victor Company.  Livery Stable Blues is on one side, Dixieland Jazz Band One Step is on the other.

    Snow for piano by Bohuslav Martinu (26) is performed for the first time, in Policka by the composer.

    17 March 1919 Sergey Rakhmaninov (45) records nine rolls of recordings for the American Piano Co. (Ampico).  These are his first recordings of any kind.

    17 March 1922 The Symphony no.1 of Ernst Krenek (21) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  It proves an “immense success.”

    Le Bestiaire, a cycle for voice, flute, clarinet, bassoon, and string quartet by Francis Poulenc (23) is performed for the first time, in the Salle du Conservatoire, Paris.

    17 March 1923 Movements three and four of the Suite infantil for piano by Heitor Villa-Lobos (36) are performed for the first time, in São Paulo.

    17 March 1924 Two movements of Napoli for piano by Francis Poulenc (25) are performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 2 May 1926.

    17 March 1927 Duo no.1 for violin and cello by Bohuslav Martinu (36) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Gustav Holst’s (52) choral ballet The Morning of the Year, to words of Wilson, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in the Royal Albert Hall, the composer conducting.  See 1 June 1927.

    17 March 1932 La donna serpente, an opera fiaba by Alfredo Casella (48) to words of Lodovici after Gozzi, is performed for the first time, in the Rome Opera.  Audience reaction is mixed.  Critics are disappointed.

    17 March 1933 String Trio no.2 by Paul Hindemith (37) is performed for the first time, in Antwerp, the composer performing the viola part.

    17 March 1941 Hanya Holm Music, dance music by Henry Cowell (44) to a scenario by Holm, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Sonata for cello and piano by Norman Dello Joio (28) is performed for the first time, at the MacDowell Club, New York the composer at the keyboard.

    17 March 1943 The People’s Land, a film with music by Ralph Vaughan Williams (70) is shown for the first time, privately, at the British Ministry of Information.

    Secrets, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (51), is shown for the first time, in Paris.

    Septuor à vent op.165 for flute, oboe, english horn, clarinet, alto saxophone, horn, and bassoon by Charles Koechlin (75) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    The last three movements of String Quartet no.1:  From the Salvation Army by Charles Ives (68) are performed for the first time, in a broadcast performance originating in New York.  See 24 April 1957.

    17 March 1944 Knickerbocker Holiday, a film with music by Kurt Weill (44), is released in the United States.

    Pages from Negro History for orchestra by William Grant Still (48) is performed for the first time, at Western Maryland College, Westminster.

    17 March 1949 The University of Wisconsin Press publishes Genesis of a Music by Harry Partch (47).

    17 March 1956 Incidental music to Sutherland’s play Junius on Horseback by Peter Sculthorpe (26) is performed for the first time, in the Playhouse, Hobart, Tasmania.

    17 March 1957 Four little pieces for strings by Karel Husa (35) is performed for the first time, at Fürsteneck Castle, West Germany.

    Seek the Highest op.78 for chorus and piano by Vincent Persichetti (41), to words of Adler, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    The Bell-Tower, an opera by Ernst Krenek (56) to his own words, after Melville, is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Hall Theatre at the University of Illinois, Urbana.  The work is well received.

    17 March 1961 ...Out of “Last Pieces” for orchestra by Morton Feldman (35) is performed for the first time, in Cooper Union Great Hall, New York.

    17 March 1962 Fanfare for a Great Occasion for brass by William Walton (59) is performed for the first time, in Centennial Hall, Wayville, Australia.

    17 March 1963 Sonata for unaccompanied violin by Lou Harrison (45) is performed for the first time, in Aptos, California, 27 years after it was composed.

    17 March 1967 Ricorda cosa ti hanno fatto in Auschwitz for tape by Luigi Nono (43) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Lirico, Milan.

    Four songs by Charles Ives (†12) are performed for the first time, in the high school auditorium in Danbury, Connecticut:  Elégie, to words of Gallet, Songs my mother taught me to words of Heyduk (tr. Macfarran), The World’s Wanderers to words of Shelley, and Omens and Oracles.

    Sound effects for Levy’s opera Mourning Becomes Electra by Vladimir Ussachevsky (55) are performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera, New York.

    17 March 1968 Votre Faust, an opera by Henri Pousseur (38) with four alternate endings from which the audience chooses, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Buffalo.  See 15 January 1969.

    Fanfares for massed trumpets, horns, and trombones by George Rochberg (49) is performed for the first time, at Settlement Music School, Philadelphia.

    Concerto for alto saxophone and band by Karel Husa (46) is performed for the first time, in Ithaca, New York, conducted by the composer.

    17 March 1972 Vox Balaenae for electric flute, electric cello, and amplified piano (all masked) by George Crumb (42) is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington.

    17 March 1973 Notre Dame des fleurs, a “mini-opera” for soprano, mezzo-soprano, counter-tenor, flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, and cello by Peter Maxwell Davies (38) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London the composer conducting.  Also premiered is Davies’ Song of the Forest Bird after Wagner for flute/piccolo and celesta.

    Version 3 of Algorithms I for nine instruments and tape by Lejaren Hiller (49) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    17 March 1976 Cantilena IV for soprano and trombone by Kenneth Gaburo (49) to words by Manley Hopkins is performed for the first time, in the Centre Culturel Americain, Paris.

    17 March 1977 Orfeo, a ballet by Thea Musgrave (48), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC television.

    Phrygian Gates and China Gates for piano by John Adams (31) are performed for the first time, in Hellman Hall, San Francisco.

    17 March 1978 Deaï for three orchestras and eight voices by Gunther Schuller (52) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.  The composer is one of the three conductors.

    Sounds, Shapes, and Symbols for band by Leslie Bassett (55) is performed for the first time, at the University of Michigan.

    17 March 1979 Orpheus, a ballet by Hans Werner Henze (52) to a scenario by Bond, is performed for the first time, in the Württembergische Staatsoper, Stuttgart.  The composer considers it a “brilliant success.”

    17 March 1981 Como una fantasía for cello by Joaquín Rodrigo (79) is performed for the first time, in Sala Netzahuacoyotl, Mexico City.  Later, a fire breaks out in the Mexico City hotel where the composer and his wife are staying.  They manage to make it to the elevator but find it not working.  Finally, two maids arrive in a freight elevator and guide them to safety.  They lose most of their belongings but are unhurt.

    17 March 1984 The Desert Music for chorus and orchestra by Steve Reich (47) to words of Williams is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, originating in Cologne.  See 10 January 1986.

    The four Ragtime Dances for small orchestra by Charles Ives (†29) are given their first complete performance, in New York 80 years after they were composed.  Also premiered is the original version of The Unanswered Question.  See 11 May 1946.

    17 March 1985 Expo ‘85 for multiple synthesizers by Lejaren Hiller (61), Charles Ames and John Myhill is performed for the first time, in Tsukuba, Japan.

    17 March 1986 Return:  The Triumph of Reason for computer generated sound by Morton Subotnick (52), composed in celebration of the return of Halley's Comet, with planetarium show, is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    17 March 1989 Pedal Sonata for organ by Lou Harrison (71) is performed for the first time, at the Central United Methodist Church in Stockton, California.

    17 March 1991 Piano Sonata no.1 by Henryk Górecki (57) is performed completely for the first time, in Helsinki.  See 28 July 1984.

    17 March 1993 Lament:  Autumn Wind for any six instruments and any voice by Tan Dun (35) is performed for the first time, in Aberdeen, Scotland directed by the composer.

    17 March 1995 Candyman:  Farewell to the Flesh, a film with music by Philip Glass (58), is released in the United States.

    17 March 1998 Kanon Pokajanen for chorus by Arvo Pärt (62) is performed for the first time, in the Cologne Cathedral.  It is followed by the premiere of Pärt’s Gebet nach dem Kanon.

    17 March 2000 Ende der Handschrift, a cycle for voice and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (48) to words of Müller, is performed for the first time, in Badenweiler.

    17 March 2001 Die Stücke des Sängers for harp and chamber ensemble by Wolfgang Rihm (49) is performed for the first time, in Cité de la musique, Paris.

    17 March 2002 Slavery Documents 2, a cantata by TJ Anderson (73), is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    18 March

    18 March 1657 Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni is born in Rieti.

    18 March 1762 Prince Paul Anton Esterházy, employer of Joseph Haydn (29), dies in Vienna.  He is succeeded by his brother, Nicholas.

    18 March 1768 The paymaster for the Archbishop of Salzburg orders that if Leopold Mozart (48) does not report to the office by April he shall receive no more salary.

    18 March 1811 Johann Friedrich Reichardt’s (58) singspiel Der Taucher, to words of Bürde after Schiller, is performed for the first time, in the Nationaltheater, Berlin.

    18 March 1816 Gli amori di Teolinda, a dramatic cantata for soprano, clarinet, chorus and orchestra by Giacomo Meyerbeer (24) to words of Rossi is performed for the first time, in Verona.

    18 March 1825 The Senate of the University of Cambridge votes to grant Samuel Wesley (59) the right to publish any part of the collection of manuscripts bequeathed to it by Lord Fitzwilliam in 1816.  He must do it at his own expense and risk.

    18 March 1830 Robert Schumann (19), for the first time, mentions thoughts of suicide in his diary.  He desires to throw himself into the Rhine.

    18 March 1831 Der Bayerische Schützen-Marsch, a cantata for four singers and brass by Giacomo Meyerbeer (39) to words of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    18 March 1838 Overture in D D.26 by Franz Schubert (†9) is performed publicly for the first time, in the Vienna Musikvereinsaal.

    18 March 1840 Franz Liszt (28) cancels his second concert in Leipzig scheduled for today.  He suffers an attack of “violent shuddering” in the afternoon.  He is attended by Felix Mendelssohn (31), Robert Schumann (29) and Ferdinand Hiller.

    18 March 1841 Giacomo Meyerbeer (49) writes from Baden to August Freiherr von Lüttichau, director of the Dresden Opera, recommending Richard Wagner (27) and Rienzi.

    18 March 1842 Gioachino Rossini’s (50) Stabat mater is performed for the first time in Italy at the Archiginnassio in Bologna, directed by Gaetano Donizetti (44) in the presence of the composer.  It is an unqualified triumph.  After the last rehearsal, 500 people followed Rossini to his house shouting their approval.

    18 March 1844 Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov is born in Tikhvin, Novgorod government, 175 km east of St. Petersburg, of a military family.

    18 March 1849 Incidental music to Böhm’s Vier Wochen in Ischl, oder Der Geldausleiher in Tausend Aengsten by Albert Lortzing (47), is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    18 March 1865 Euterpe, an organization formed by two Norwegians and three Danes to promote contemporary Scandinavian music, gives its first performance in Copenhagen.  The two Norwegians are Edvard Grieg (21) and Rikard Nordraak.  A prologue, written by Hans Christian Andersen, is recited by the actor Alfred Finck.  Andersen is the guest of honor.

    18 March 1875 Eve, a mystère by Jules Massenet (32) to words of Gallet is performed for the first time, at the Cirque d’Été, Paris.

    18 March 1876 Quintet for strings op.77 by Antonin Dvorák (34) is performed for the first time, in Prague.  See 25 November 1889.

    18 March 1882 Gian Francesco Malipiero is born in Venice, the first of three children born to Luigi Malipiero, a pianist and conductor, and Countess Emma Balbi.

    18 March 1883 The instrumental version of Frühlingstimmen op.410 by Johann Strauss (57) is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    18 March 1889 Ferruccio Busoni (22) attends a charity banquet in Helsinki.  There he dines with a student and three young women, one of whom is Gerda Sjöstrand.  Within a week, he will ask her to marry him.  She will accept.

    18 March 1902 Three Mazurkas op.25/1, 3, 4 by Alyeksandr Skryabin (30) are performed for the first time, in Moscow, by the composer.

    The string sextet setting of Verklärte Nacht op.4 by Arnold Schoenberg (27) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.  A gymnasium student named Anton Webern (18) is in the audience.

    18 March 1903 Leos Janácek (48) completes the composition of his opera Jenufa.  He composed it throughout the final illness of his daughter Olga.

    18 March 1905 Béla Bartók (23) meets Zoltán Kodály (22) for the first time at the home of Emma Gruber (the future Mrs. Kodály) in Budapest.

    18 March 1910 The Pipe of Desire by Frederick S. Converse (39) becomes the first opera by an American to be performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

    18 March 1911 Anton Bruckner’s (†14) Abendzauber op.57 for baritone, male chorus, three yodelers, and four horns, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    18 March 1912 Two Pieces for two violas by Frank Bridge (33) are performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London, the composer playing one of the parts.

    18 March 1914 The Fourth Set of Choral Hymns from the Rig-Veda op.26, for male chorus, brass, strings, and percussion by Gustav Holst (39) to his own translation, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    18 March 1915 The Orquesta Filarmónica de Madrid gives its inaugural performance.

    18 March 1917 The Irish Rhapsody no.5 op.147 by Charles Villiers Stanford (64) is performed for the first time, in London.

    18 March 1918 One of the Hymns from the Rig-Veda for solo voice and piano op.24/8 by Gustav Holst (43) to his own translation is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    18 March 1919 Gaudeamus:  szenen aus dem deutschen Studentenleben, a spieloper by Engelbert Humperdinck (64), to words of Misch, is performed for the first time, in the Landestheater, Darmstadt.

    18 March 1920 The first of the five Nocturnes for piano by Erik Satie (53) is performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris.  See 7 June 1920.

    18 March 1922 Paul Hindemith’s (26) Sonata for unaccompanied viola op.25/1 is performed for the first time, by the composer in Cologne.

    Sonata for oboe and piano op.58 by Charles Koechlin (54) is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.

    18 March 1924 A concert of new music is given in Moscow by the Association for Contemporary Music.  It includes the Sonata for cello and piano and Three Dances for violin and piano by Nikolay Roslavets (43).

    During the centennial of the composer’s birth, the first, second, and fourth movements of Anton Bruckner’s (†27) Symphony in f minor are performed for the first time, at Klosterneuberg, 61 years after they were composed.

    The Second Violin Sonata by Charles Ives (49) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, New York.

    18 March 1927 Piano Concerto no.4 by Sergey Rakhmaninov (53) is performed for the first time, at the Academy of Music, Philadelphia, the composer at the keyboard.  The critics are unanimous in their scorn.  Also on the program is the premiere of Rakhmaninov’s Three Russian Songs op.41 for chorus and orchestra which fares much better.

    18 March 1928 Log Cabin Ballads for chamber orchestra by William Grant Still (32) is performed for the first time, in Booth Theatre, New York.

    18 March 1929 The New Babylon, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (22) is shown for the first time at the Piccadilly cinema in Leningrad.  After the composition of the score, censors required the filmmakers to introduce substantial re-editing which left the composer to make last minute changes.  The result is a disaster and Shostakovich’s music will be removed within two or three days.

    18 March 1932 Les Rondes for oboe, clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, two violins, and piano by Bohuslav Martinu (41) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    18 March 1933 Arnold Schoenberg (58) and Franz Schreker (54) attend a meeting of the music section of the Prussian Academy of the Arts in Berlin for the last time.  They are soon told that they will not remain in their present positions at the Academy.

    18 March 1934 Lyric Movement, for viola and chamber orchestra by Gustav Holst (59), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.  The composer is too ill to attend at the studio and listens on a radio provided by Adrian Boult.

    Hungarian Peasant Songs for orchestra by Béla Bartók (52) are performed for the first time, in Szombathely.

    18 March 1935 John Cage (22) begins studies with Arnold Schoenberg (60) in Los Angeles.

    18 March 1937 The Comedy on the Bridge, a radio opera by Bohuslav Martinu (46) to his own words after Klicpera, is performed for the first time, over Czechoslovak Radio originating in Prague.

    Vocalise for soprano, flute, and piano by Henry Cowell (40) is performed for the first time, at Town Hall, New York.  The dedicatees, Ethel and Otto Luening (36), perform the voice and flute parts respectively.

    18 March 1940 Violin Concerto by Walter Piston (46) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    18 March 1941 Aria and Hymn for orchestra by David Diamond (25) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    18 March 1942 Cello Sonata no.2 by Bohuslav Martinu (51) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    18 March 1947 Willem Pijper dies in Leidschendam, the Netherlands of cancer, aged 52 years, six months, and ten days.

    18 March 1948 Partita for piano by Arthur Berger (35) is performed for the first time, at Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, New York.

    18 March 1949 Symphony no.4 “The Cycle” by Peter Mennin (25) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    18 March 1950 In the first public concert devoted to electronic music, in the École normale de musique, Paris, Symphonie pour un homme seul by Pierre Schaeffer (39) and Pierre Henry (22) is performed for the first time.  It is the first major work of musique-concrète.  In the audience are Irving Fine (35) and his wife.

    18 March 1951 The second part of Emblems for male chorus and piano by Elliott Carter (43) to words of Tate is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    Symphony no.4 “Autochthonous” by William Grant Still (55) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the Mutual Radio Network, originating in Oklahoma City.

    18 March 1953 Orb and Sceptre March by William Walton (50) is performed for the first time, in a recording session in Kingsway Hall, London conducted by the composer.  See 2 June 1953.

    Snow and the Willow, two madrigals for chorus by Kenneth Gaburo (26), are performed for the first time, in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

    18 March 1956 A Piece for Tape Recorder by Vladimir Ussachevsky (44) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Preamble and Fugue op.61 for orchestra by Wallingford Riegger (70) is performed for the first time, in Oklahoma City.

    18 March 1957 Trio for flute, violin, and soprano by Otto Luening (56) without words is performed for the first time, in New York 33 years after it was composed.

    18 March 1959 Incidental music to Leckel’s “electric theatre fantasy” by Lejaren Hiller (35) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    18 March 1960 Concertino for cello and orchestra op.132 by Sergey Prokofiev (†7), completed by Mstislav Rostropovich and Dmitri Kabalevsky, is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  See 29 December 1956.

    Paper Doll, a song by Henryk Górecki (26), is performed for the first time, in a production of Miller’s play A View from the Bridge, in Katowice.

    18 March 1961 Cease your Raging, Waterfall for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (†3) to words of the Kalevala, completed by Bergman, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    18 March 1966 Two Dunbar Lyrics for chorus by Ulysses Kay (49) is performed for the first time, at West Virginia State College, Institute.

    Pousse Cafe, a musical by Duke Ellington (66) to words of Barer and Weidman, is performed for the first time in New York, at the 46th Street Theatre.  The critics are scathing.

    18 March 1967 Canti della lontananza, a cycle for voice and piano by Gian Carlo Menotti (55) to his own words is performed for the first time, at Hunter College, New York.

    After study with Nadia Boulanger (79) in Paris and four months travelling through the Himalayas, Philip Glass (30) reacquaints himself with Steve Reich (30) at a concert of Reich’s music at the Park Place Gallery, New York.  Afterwards they discuss their recent compositions at Reich’s apartment.

    18 March 1970 Rhapsody for orchestra by Roger Sessions (73) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    18 March 1972 Darius Milhaud’s (79) opera-oratorio Saint Louis, Roi de France to words of Claudel and Doublier is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of RAI.  See 14 April 1972.

    18 March 1986 Famine for four amplified voices and computer generated sound by Tod Machover (32) is performed for the first time, in St. Peter’s Chapel, New York.

    18 March 1989 Der heisse Ofen, a comic opera by Peter Maxwell Davies (54), Hans Werner Henze (62), and others, is performed for the first time, at the Kassel Staatstheater.

    18 March 1990 Konturen for orchestra by Isang Yun (72) is performed for the first time, in Brunswick.

    The Kunstpreis Berlin 1990 is awarded to Luigi Nono (66).  He is too ill to receive it in person.

    18 March 1994 William Lawrence Bergsma dies in Swedish Hospital, Seattle where he is being treated for a broken hip, aged 72 years, eleven months, and 17 days.

    18 March 1997 Festival Dance for two pianos by Lou Harrison (79) is performed for the first time, at Cooper Union College, New York, 46 years after it was composed.

    18 March 1999 Akrodha for percussion by Kevin Volans (49) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    18 March 2001 Betty Freeman:  Her Tango for piano by Harrison Birtwistle (66) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    18 March 2003 Missa Parvula for treble chorus and organ by Peter Maxwell Davies (68) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Cathedral.

    18 March 2004 Anthem of St. John the Baptist for chorus and organ by Arvo Pärt (68) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford.

    Yawawot for violin and electroacoustic sounds by Gordon Mumma (69) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    18 March 2006 Variations for Vibes, Pianos, and Strings, a dance piece by Steve Reich (69), is performed for the first time, in the Philharmonie, Cologne.

    18 March 2009 Quartettino 3 for string quartet by Robin Holloway (65) is performed for the first time, in West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge.

    18 March 2011 Kommilitonen! (Young Blood!), an opera by Peter Maxwell Davies (76) to words of Pountney, is performed for the first time, at the Royal Academy of Music, London.

    19 March

    19 March 1661 Francesco Gasparini is born in Camaiore near Lucca.

    19 March 1753 La pastorale offerta, a serenata by Niccolò Jommelli (38) and Giovanni Battista Sammartini (52) to words of Pascali, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Ducal Palace, Milan, to celebrate the birth of Prince Joseph of Austria.

    19 March 1755 Two oratorios by Georg Philipp Telemann (74) are performed for the first time, in Hamburg:  Betrachtung der neunten Stunde an dem Todestag Jesu, to words of Zimmermann, and Der Tod Jesu, to words of Ramler.

    19 March 1760 Domine ad adiuvandum in G for soprano, alto, chorus, and orchestra, and Confitebor tibi Domine for four vocal soloists, chorus and orchestra by Johann Christian Bach (24) are performed for the first time, in Milan.

    19 March 1761 This is the date thought by some historians to be when Franz Joseph Haydn (28) begins to organize the musical establishment for Prince Paul Anton Esterházy.

    19 March 1799 Die Schöpfung, an oratorio by Franz Joseph Haydn (66) to words of the Bible and van Swieten after Milton, is performed publicly for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna, to tumultuous applause.  See 29 April 1798.

    19 March 1802 François-Adrien Boieldieu (26) marries Clotilde Mafleuray, a dancer, in Paris.

    19 March 1808 I pittagorici, a dramma by Giovanni Paisiello (67) to words of Monti, is performed for the first time, at Teatro San Carlo, Naples.

    19 March 1819 The Sinfonia “L’incendio” by Gaetano Donizetti (21) is performed for the first time, in Bergamo.

    19 March 1827 A group of Viennese music-lovers, including Franz Schubert (30), visit the ailing Ludwig van Beethoven (56) on his deathbed.  For the two composers, who have shared the same city for the last 30 years, it is their first and only meeting.

    19 March 1837 Franz Liszt (25) hires the Paris Opéra, fills it with an audience of 3,000 and proceeds to enthrall the listeners.  This is in response to Thalberg’s (25) success of 12 March.

    Johann Nepomuk Hummel (58) conducts his last orchestral concert at Weimar.

    19 March 1838 Richard Wagner’s (24) Overture Rule Britannia is performed for the first time, probably in the Schwarzhäuptersaal, Riga, the composer conducting.

    19 March 1842 2,000 people, including many notables, attend the funeral mass for Luigi Cherubini at the Church of St. Roch, Paris at which his second Requiem is performed.  Because he was a member of the Legion of Honor, his earthly remains are laid to rest in the Cemetery of Père La Chaise with full military honors.  Among the pallbearers are Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (60) and Fromental Halévy (41).

    19 March 1856 Le Berceau, a cantata by Jacques Offenbach (36) to words of Dupeuty, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    19 March 1857 Military Overture by Stanislaw Moniuszko (37) is performed for the first time, in Vilnius.

    19 March 1859 Faust, an opéra dialogué by Charles Gounod (40) to words of Barbier and Carré after Goethe, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre-Lyrique, Paris.  Among the onlookers are Hector Berlioz (55), Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (77) and Eugène Delacroix.  The critics are undecided, but it does establish Gounod’s reputation.

    19 March 1863 Patrioten-Polka op.274 by Johann Strauss (37) is performed for the first time, in the Sophiensaal, Vienna.

    19 March 1864 Mireille, an opéra dialogué by Charles Gounod (45) to words of Carré after Mistral, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre-Lyrique, Paris.  The first act is well received but the rest is a disaster.  Hector Berlioz (60) is there but leaves before the fifth act (which begins after 24:30).

    19 March 1870 Il Guarany, an opera-ballo by Carlos Gomes (33) to words of Scalvini and d’Ormeville after de Alencar, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  It brings him international fame.

    The Liebeslieder Waltzes op.52 by Johannes Brahms (36) are performed for the first time in the setting for voices and orchestra, in Berlin.  See 5 January 1870 and 14 November 1874.

    19 March 1871 Gabriel Fauré (25) is employed as organist at Saint-Honoré-d’Eylau but will soon be forced to flee the Commune.

    19 March 1872 A board of Russian censors recommends the performance of Modest Musorgsky’s (32) opera Boris Godunov, the only objection being an 1837 edict prohibiting the operatic representation of a Tsar.  See 17 April 1872.

    19 March 1873 Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilan Reger is born in Brand, Upper Palatinate, Bavaria, the son of Joseph Reger, a schoolmaster and author of a harmony textbook, and Philomena Reichenberger.

    Szózat und Hymnus for orchestra by Franz Liszt (61) is performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    19 March 1874 The adagio movement of a Violin Sonata in a minor by Antonin Dvorák (32) is performed for the first time, in Prague.  See 22 January 1875.

    19 March 1882 Der Klügere giebt nach op.401, a polka mazurka by Johann Strauss (56), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    Scènes alsaciennes, the seventh suite for orchestra by Jules Massenet (39) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    19 March 1883 Josef Matthias Hauer is born in Wiener Neustadt.

    Tamara, a symphonic poem by Mily Balakirev (46), is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg.  He also conducts the premiere of Second Overture on Greek Themes op.6 by Alyeksandr Glazunov (18).

    19 March 1884 Tsar Alyeksandr III invests Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (43) with the Order of St. Vladimir (4th class) in the Palace at Gatchina outside St. Petersburg.  He also has a separate audience with the Tsarina, who desires to meet him.  It is possible that the Tsar takes this occasion to commission the Cherubic Hymns.  See 1 March 1886.

    19 March 1892 A suite from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (51) unperformed ballet The Nutcracker is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    Le fils des étoiles, a pastorale kaldéenne by Erik Satie (25) to a story by Péladan, is given a public dress rehearsal, in Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris.  See 22 March 1892.

    19 March 1895 Alyeksandr Skryabin (23) gives his debut professional performance, under the patronage of the millionaire music publisher Mitrofan Belayev, at the Petrov School of Commerce, St. Petersburg.  He plays the first performance of the tenth of his 24 Preludes op.11.

    19 March 1896 Concerto for cello and orchestra op.104 by Antonín Dvorák (54) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, conducted by the composer on his last trip to that city.

    19 March 1898 Promenade galante op.5/1 for voice and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (30) to words of Banville is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    19 March 1900 Richard Strauss (35) and Hans Pfitzner (30) begin their rivalry at a joint concert in Berlin.

    19 March 1903 At a party celebrating the 59th birthday of Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov in St. Petersburg, Igor Stravinsky (20) meets the master for the first time.

    19 March 1904 A cantata for the 60th birthday of Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (60) by Igor Stravinsky (21) is performed for the first time, in the master’s St. Petersburg apartment, conducted by the composer.  Also premiered is Stravinsky’s song Conductor and Tarantula.

    19 March 1907 Edward Elgar (49) makes his first professional appearance in New York, conducting The Apostles in Carnegie Hall.

    19 March 1910 At his first “composer’s evening”, in Budapest, Béla Bartók’s (28) String Quartet no.1 is heard for the first time.  This concert and the all-Kodály evening two days ago will be known as “the double birthday of modern Hungarian music.”

    Walter Damrosch and the New York Symphony read through the last three movements of Charles Ives’ (35) First Symphony in New York.  Unable to negotiate the three against two in the second movement, Damrosch advises Ives to “make up your mind.”  See 26 April 1953.

    19 March 1915 The Piano Sonata no.6 by Alyeksandr Skryabin (40) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    The orchestral suite Adventures of a Perambulator by John Alden Carpenter (39) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.  It is instantly popular.

    19 March 1918 A funeral in memory of Lili Boulanger takes place in L’Église de la Trinité, Paris.  Following this, her mortal remains are laid to rest in Montmartre.

    Violin Sonata no.1 by Arthur Honegger (26) is performed completely for the first time, at the Théâtre du Vieux Colombier, Paris.  Also on the program is the premiere of Poèmes sénégalais for voice and string quartet by Francis Poulenc (19).  See 19 January 1918.

    19 March 1921 Surging the Wave Rushes Forward for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (55) to words of Schybergson is performed for the first time, in Turku.

    19 March 1925 Six chants populaires hébraïques op.86 for voice and piano by Darius Milhaud (32) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    19 March 1927 Rêves for voice and piano by Maurice Ravel (52) to words of Fargue, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, Paris the composer at the keyboard.

    19 March 1929 Danse villageoise for violin and piano by Claude Champagne (37) is performed for the first time, in Montreal.

    19 March 1930 A suite from The Golden Age, a yet to be performed ballet by Dmitri Shostakovich (23), is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, Leningrad.  See 26 October 1930.

    29 Short Preludes for organ op.51 by Carl Nielsen (64) are performed completely for the first time, in the church of St. Johannes in Copenhagen.  See 23 January 1930.

    19 March 1931 Funeral Music op.111/2 for organ by Jean Sibelius (65) is performed for the first time, for the funeral of Akseli Gallén-Kallela in Helsinki.

    19 March 1936 Two Lullabies for two pianos by Benjamin Britten (22) are performed for the first time, privately at Broadcasting House, London by Adolph Hallis and the composer.  See 22 June 1988.

    Solemn Prelude for orchestra by Vladimir Ussachevsky (24) is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York conducted by Howard Hanson (39).  It is the composer’s master’s thesis.

    19 March 1940 Amy Beach (72) plays the piano part in her Piano Trio at the Neighborhood Club in Brooklyn.  Unknown to all present, it is her last public performance.

    19 March 1944 A Child of Our Time, an oratorio for four vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra by Michael Tippett (39) to his own words is performed for the first time, in the Adelphi Theatre, London.  The work was inspired by the murder of Ernst von Rath by Herschel Grynszpan and the pogroms which followed.  See 7-9 November 1938.

    Passacaglia and Fugue op.34a for orchestra by Wallingford Riegger (58) is performed for the first time, in Washington.  See 16 June 1943.

    19 March 1950 After Kurt Weill’s (50) condition, diagnosed as coronary thrombosis, worsens, he is transported by ambulance to Flower-Fifth Avenue Hospital, New York, and put in an oxygen tent.

    19 March 1951 Flourish for Three Trumpets by Ralph Vaughan Williams (78) is performed for the first time, in Stafford.

    19 March 1956 Otello, a film with music by Aram Khachaturian (52), is released.

    A subcommittee of the United States Congress holds that Leonard Bernstein (37), identified only as “no.5”, and several members of the Symphony of the Air are risks to the security of the United States.

    Piano Sonata no.8 op.41 by Vincent Persichetti (40) is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Conservatory.

    19 March 1958 Windsong, a film with music by Harry Partch (56), is shown for the first time, over the airwaves of WTTW-TV, Chicago.

    19 March 1959 Green Mansions, a film with some music by Heitor Villa-Lobos (72), is shown for the first time, in New York.

    19 March 1962 TWO for mezzo-soprano, double bass, and alto flute by Kenneth Gaburo (35) to words of Hommel, is performed for the first time, at Yale University.

    19 March 1965 Ring a Dumb Carillon for soprano, clarinet, and percussion by Harrison Birtwistle (30) to words of Logue is performed for the first time, in London.

    The Emperor of Ice Cream for eight voices, percussion, piano, and double bass by Roger Reynolds (30) to words of Stevens is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by Gunther Schuller (39).  See 27 April 1965.

    19 March 1967 Five Etudes for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (41) is performed for the first time, in Woolsey Hall, Yale University the composer conducting.

    Suite for two pianos and tape by Lejaren Hiller (43) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    19 March 1971 Stille und Umkehr for orchestra by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (†0) is performed for the first time, in Nuremberg.

    19 March 1972 Sonata quasi una fantasia for clarinet and piano by George Perle (56) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo, the composer at the keyboard.

    19 March 1974 String Quartet no.7 by George Perle (58) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    19 March 1976 A Birthday Hansel op.92 for voice and harp by Benjamin Britten (62) to words of Burns is performed publicly for the first time, in Cardiff.  See 11 January 1976.

    19 March 1977 MM 51, music for a film by Mauricio Kagel (45), is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    Instrumental Studies by Frederick Rzewski (38) is performed for the first time, in Paris, directed by the composer.

    19 March 1982 Brass Quintet by Peter Maxwell Davies (47) is performed for the first time, privately in Morse Auditorium, Boston.  See 20 March 1982.

    19 March 1983 Beachcombers, a ballet for voice, electronics, cheng, and violin by Larry Austin (52) to a choreography by Cunningham, is performed for the first time, in New York City Center.  The vocal part is chanted by John Cage (70).

    Harpsichord Sonata no.7 op.156 by Vincent Persichetti (67) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    19 March 1985 Ned Rorem’s (61) Organ Concerto is performed for the first time, in Portland, Maine.

    19 March 1989 Sextet for piano and winds by George Perle (73) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    19 March 1990 Le Livre des morts égyptien for tape by Pierre Henry (61) is performed for the first time, at the Louvre, Paris.

    19 March 1991 The Death of Klinghoffer, an opera by John Adams (44) to words of Goodman, is performed for the first time, at Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels.  The work proves controversial due to its anti-Israel sentiments.

    E.A., petite suite variée for trumpet and vibraphone by Betsy Jolas (64) is performed for the first time, at Opéra Bastille, Paris.

    19 March 1993 Microsymphony by Charles Wuorinen (54) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    Wind Quintet by Thea Musgrave (64) is performed for the first time, at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

    19 March 1996 “Holding a Daisy” from No Longer Very Clear:  a Suite for Piano by Joan Tower (57) is performed for the first time, in Miller Theatre of Columbia University.

    19 March 2005 Fifth Quartet for string quartet by Donald Martino (73) is performed for the first time, in Slosberg Recital Hall of Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.

    19 March 2006 But Mary Stood (Sacred Symphony) for soprano, chorus and strings by John Harbison (67) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    19 March 2009 Ah! Haydn for piano trio by Betsy Jolas (82) is performed for the first time, in the Auditorium du Louvre, Paris.

    19 March 2011 WTC 9/11 for string quartet and tape by Steve Reich (74) is performed for the first time, at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

    20 March

    20 March 1756 The Pincushion, a farce by Thomas Augustine Arne (46) to words attributed to Gay, is performed for the first time, in Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin.

    20 March 1768 Luigi Boccherini (25), along with Filippo Manfredi, makes his Parisian debut at the Salle des Suisses in the Tuileries.  The evening is very successful for both.

    20 March 1774 Johann Herbst (38) is ordained a deacon in the Moravian Church in Barby, south of Magdeburg.

    20 March 1775 François-André Danican-Philidor’s (48) opéra-comique Les femmes vengées, ou Les feintes infidélités to words of Sedaine is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.  The reviews are mixed, but the work is generally successful.

    20 March 1778 Georg Benda (55) resigns as Kapelldirector to Duke Ernst II of Saxe-Gotha.

    20 March 1787 This is the approximate date that Ludwig van Beethoven (16) departs Bonn to study, supposedly with Mozart (31), in Vienna.

    20 March 1797 The Oracle of London announces the publication of Joseph Haydn’s (64) Piano Trios XV:  27-29.

    20 March 1812 Jan Ladislav Dussek dies of gout at either St. Germain-en-Laye or Paris, aged 52 years, one month and eight days.  The place of burial is not now known.

    20 March 1825 Franz Schubert’s (28) vocal quartet Flucht D.825 to words of Lappe is performed for the first time, in the Landhaussaal, Vienna.

    20 March 1836 The University of Leipzig confers an honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree on Felix Mendelssohn (27).

    20 March 1841 Albert Lortzing’s (39) Kantate zur Säkularfeier der Loge ‘Minerva zu den drei Palmen’ to words of Mothes is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    20 March 1842 Clara Schumann (22) arrives in Copenhagen for a stay of almost a month.  She will meet the Danish royal family, Hans Christian Andersen, Niels Gade and will give seven successful performances.

    20 March 1843 Albert Lortzing (41) becomes musical director of the Tunnel Society in Berlin, a working class group.

    20 March 1852 Peter Cornelius (27) seeks out Franz Liszt (40) at his home, the Altenburg, near Weimar.  The famous virtuoso greets the unknown hopeful graciously.  Cornelius will become a full-time resident in Weimar next year.

    20 March 1856 Stanislaw Moniuszko’s (36) Madonna for baritone, chorus and orchestra to words of Petrarch is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    20 March 1864 Hector Berlioz’ (60) retirement as music critic of the Journal des débats is announced in La France musicale.

    20 March 1866 Rikard Nordraak, who along with Edvard Grieg (22) provided the vanguard of Norwegian composition, dies in Berlin.

    20 March 1875 Barcarolle op.7/3 for solo voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (29) to words of Monnier is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    20 March 1876 The Berlin premiere of Tristan und Isolde takes place in the presence of the imperial family.  Kaiser Wilhelm speaks to Richard Wagner (62) during the first intermission and promises to travel to Bayreuth for the opening Ring festival in August.  He also promises the proceeds from the Tristan performance will go to the festival fund.

    20 March 1887 An Angel Cried Out for chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (46) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Two works for piano by Isaac Albéniz (26) are performed for the first time, in Salón Romero, Madrid:  Estudio impromptu and Suite ancienne no.2.

    20 March 1892 Blessed is He Who Smiles for male chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (51) to words of Grand Duke Konstantin Romanov is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    20 March 1894 Richard Strauss (29) concludes a contract to conduct at the Munich opera beginning 1 October.

    20 March 1895 Symphony no.5 “L’Allegro ed il Pensieroso” by Charles Villiers Stanford (42) is performed for the first time, in London.

    20 March 1896 Regenlied op.59/3, a song by Johannes Brahms (62) to words of Groth, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, 26 years after it was composed.

    20 March 1898 The Wild Dove, a symphonic poem by Antonín Dvorák (56), is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno), conducted by Leos Janácek (43).  On the same program, the epilogue to Amarus, a cantata by Leos Janácek to words of Vrchlicky, is performed for the first time.  See 2 December 1900.

    20 March 1901 The Nocturne no.7, op.74 for piano, by Gabriel Fauré (55) is performed for the first time, at the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    Cantique à lépouse from Deux mélodies op.36 for voice and piano by Ernest Chausson (†1) to words of Jounet is performed for the first time.

    20 March 1902 Menuet op.5/4 for voice and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (34) to words of Gregh is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    20 March 1907 The Edward MacDowell (46) Memorial Association is incorporated in New York as a combination of the Mendelssohn Glee Club and the MacDowell Club of New York.  The purposes include to further all the arts and to develop the home of Edward and Marian MacDowell in Peterborough, New Hampshire towards that purpose.

    20 March 1908 Incidental music to Holstein’s play Tove by Carl Nielsen (42) is performed for the first time, at the Dagmarteatret, Copenhagen.

    Penthesilea op.18 for soprano and orchestra by Karol Szymanowski (25), to words of Wyspianski, is performed for the first time, in Lvov.  Critics are mixed.

    20 March 1914 The first complete performance of the Four Orchestral Sketches by Arnold Bax (30) takes place in Queen’s Hall, London.  See 23 September 1913.

    20 March 1915 Prométhée, le poème du feu, for orchestra, piano, organ, chorus, and light machine by Alyeksandr Skryabin (39), is performed for the first time with the light machine, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  The composer is at the piano.  See 15 March 1911.

    20 March 1917 The Sanguine Fan op.81, a ballet by Edward Elgar (59) to a story by Lowther, is performed for the first time, at Chelsea Palace.

    20 March 1918 Bernd Alois Zimmermann is born in Bliesheim, near Cologne, the third of five children born to Jakob Zimmermann, a farmer and Katharina Broichheuser, daughter of farmers.

    20 March 1920 Suite de Ballet for flute and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams (47) is performed for the first time, privately, at the home of Mrs. Hammersley, London. See 9 April 1962.

    20 March 1925 Several works by Dmitri Shostakovich (18) are performed in the Moscow Conservatory Malyi Hall:  Three Fantastic Dances op.5 for piano, Suite in f# minor op.6 for piano duet, and Three Pieces for cello and piano op.9.  The composer performs at the keyboard.  His music is overshadowed by his playing partner for the evening, Vissarion Shebalin.  Three Fantastic Dances and Suite in f# minor have been played before, in private circumstances, as early as 1923.

    20 March 1927 Arthur Honegger (35) presents his opera Antigone to the Opéra-Comique.  They reject it almost immediately.  See 28 December 1927.

    William Grant Still’s (31) orchestral suite From the Black Belt is performed for the first time, in the Henry Miller Theatre, New York.

    Four Episodes for chamber orchestra by Ernest Bloch (46) is performed for the first time, in the Plaza Hotel, New York.

    20 March 1931 Tre Pezzi for orchestra by George Whitefield Chadwick (76) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    20 March 1939 In a Moscow prison, Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (42) is forced to sign a confession that he belonged to a fascist organization and spied for foreign countries.  See 15 August 1939.

    20 March 1941 Major Barbara, a film with music by William Walton (38), is shown for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, Nassau, Bahamas, in the presence of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor.

    Words for Music, Perhaps, a cycle for voice and piano by Arthur Berger (28) to words of Yeats, is performed for the first time, in San Francisco, the composer at the keyboard.

    20 March 1947 Two Acappella Choruses op.111 by Arthur Farwell (74) are performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    20 March 1948 Partita for double string orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (75) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.  The work is a revision of his Double Trio.  See 21 January 1939.

    The first television broadcast of a major symphony orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy, takes place, followed one hour later by the NBC Symphony Orchestra under Arturo Toscanini.

    20 March 1950 They Have a Native Country, a film with music by Aram Khachaturian (46), is released.

    20 March 1953 Four Madrigals for chorus by Thea Musgrave (24) to words of Wyatt are performed for the first time, in St. Andrews, Fife.

    20 March 1954 Rhapsodic Variations for orchestra and electronic tape by Otto Luening (53) and Vladimir Ussachevsky (42) is performed for the first time, in Louisville.

    20 March 1955 Concerto for clarinet and chamber group by Ralph Shapey (34) is performed for the first time, in Kaufman Auditorium of the 92nd Street Y, New York conducted by the composer.

    Transitions for orchestra by Colin McPhee (55) is performed for the first time, in Vancouver and broadcast throughout Canada.

    20 March 1956 Summer Music for wind quintet by Samuel Barber (46) is performed for the first time, at the Detroit Institute of the Arts.

    20 March 1959 Carols of Death for chorus by William Schuman (48) to words of Whitman, is performed for the first time, in Canton, New York.

    20 March 1963 Antithèse for electronic and environmental sounds by Mauricio Kagel (31) is performed for the first time, in Munich.  See 23 June 1963 and 1 April 1966.

    Incidental music to Dumas’ play The Lady of the Camelias by Ned Rorem (39) is performed for the first time, in Winter Garden Theatre, New York.

    20 March 1964 Royal Invitation, or Homage to the Queen of Tonga, a ballet by Dominick Argento (36) to a scenario by Olon-Scrymgeour, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting at Central High School, St. Paul, Minnesota.

    20 March 1968 Tabuh Tabuhan for wind quintet and percussion by Peter Sculthorpe (38) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Adelaide, South Australia.

    String Quartet no.8 op.167 by Charles Villiers Stanford (†43) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio Three.  See 21 November 1968.

    20 March 1970 Pole für zwei no.30 for two players and two shortwave receivers by Karlheinz Stockhausen (41) is performed for the first time, in Osaka.

    Eleven Songs for voice and piano by George Rochberg (51) to words of Paul Rochberg, is performed for the first time, in Oberlin, Ohio.

    20 March 1972 Olivier Messiaen (63) makes his North American debut as organist in the premiere of his Méditations sur la mystère de la Sainte Trinité at the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington.

    A Cenotaph for two pianos by Lejaren Hiller (48) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    20 March 1975 Turbae ad passionem gregorianam for tenor, baritone, bass-baritone, boys’ chorus, chorus, and orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (58) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    20 March 1982 Brass Quintet by Peter Maxwell Davies (47) is performed publicly for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  See 19 March 1982.

    20 March 1984 Peter Maxwell Davies’ (49) music theatre work The No. 11 Bus, to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    Figures for nine instruments by Betsy Jolas (57) is performed for the first time, in Evreux, France.

    Sonata for harpsichord by Samuel Adler (56) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    20 March 1985 Concerto for violin, English horn and computer by John Melby (43) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    20 March 1987 Ikon of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne for chorus by John Tavener (43) to words of Mother Thekla is performed for the first time, in Durham Cathedral.

    20 March 1998 Bahia, Bahia for chamber orchestra by TJ Anderson (69) is performed for the first time.

    20 March 2007 Odyssey, a song cycle by Mikis Theodorakis (81) to words of Cartelias, is performed for the first time, in the Pallas Theatre, Athens, the composer at the piano.

    20 March 2008 Pleins jeux for tape by Pierre Henry (80) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    20 March 2009 Tu ne sais pas for mezzo-soprano, strings, and timpani by John Tavener (65) is performed for the first time, in Perelman Theatre in the Kimmel Center, Philadelphia.

    20 March 2011 Rag Latino for piano by William Bolcom (72) is performed for the first time, in Kerrytown Concert House, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    20 March 2012 Trio for oboe, violin, and piano by Robin Holloway (68) is produced for the first time, at Trinity College, Cambridge.

    21 March

    21 March 1685 Johann Sebastian Bach is born in Eisenach.

    21 March 1764 The vestry of All Hallows the Great and the Less Parish decides to dismiss William Boyce (52) as organist.

    21 March 1781 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) dates is Rondo for horn, wind and strings K.371.

    21 March 1787 Alcandro, lo confesso...Non sò d’onde viene K.512, a recitative and aria for bass by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (31) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    21 March 1789 The Wiener Zeitung announces the publication of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (33) Lieder K.523 and 524 and Six German Dances K.536.

    21 March 1799 Dankgefühl einer Geretteten, a monodrama by Johann Nepomuk Hummel (20) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    21 March 1816 All four children of Abraham and Lea Mendelssohn, Fanny (10), Felix (7), Rebecka and Paul, are secretly baptized into the Lutheran faith in the Jerusalemkirche, Berlin.  Felix is given the added names Jakob Ludwig.  Fanny is baptised Cäcilie.

    21 March 1826 String Quartet op.130 (with the Grosse Fuge) by Ludwig van Beethoven (55) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.  The response is mixed.  See 22 April 1827.

    21 March 1830 Kantate zu Ehren von Josef Spendou D.472 by Franz Schubert (†1) to words of Hoheisel, for solo voices, chorus and orchestra is performed for the first time, in the Landhaussaal, Vienna.

    21 March 1831 Giacomo Meyerbeer (39) hosts a dinner in Paris for Nicolò Paganini (48).  Among the guests are Luigi Cherubini (70), François-Adrien Boieldieu (55), Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (49), and Gioachino Rossini (39).

    21 March 1834 Le Tribunal de Première Instance de la Seine orders that the annuity promised to Gioachino Rossini (42) by King Charles X be paid in perpetuity.

    21 March 1839 Modest Petrovich Musorgsky is born in Karevo, Pskov district south of St. Petersburg, the fourth and youngest child of Pyotr Alyekseyevich Musorgsky, a well-to-do landowner and Yulia Ivanovna Chirikova, daughter of a middle-class landowner.

    Symphony in C major “Great” D.944 by Franz Schubert (†10) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig, conducted by Felix Mendelssohn (30).  The score was found three months ago when Robert Schumann (28) visited Schubert’s brother Ferdinand in Vienna.  See 1 January 1839.

    Clara Wieck (19) makes her Paris debut in the Salle Erard.  The same evening she plays for Paris society at the home of Pierre Zimmerman, a professor of piano at the Conservatoire.  She creates a “sensation.”

    21 March 1848 In London, Hector Berlioz (44) signs the preface to his Mémoires.

    21 March 1852 Großfürsten-Marsch op.107 by Johann Strauss (26) is performed for the first time, in the Esterhazy Palace.

    21 March 1860 Joseph Joachim writes to Robert Franz (44) asking him to join in a protest against the “New German School”, particularly Richard Wagner (46) and Franz Liszt (48).  Franz will decline.

    Ballades op.10/2-3 for piano by Johannes Brahms (26) are performed for the first time, in Vienna by Clara Schumann (40).

    21 March 1871 At a low ebb in his career and on the anniversary of his mother’s death, Mily Balakirev (34) is, in his own words, “converted to religion” at home in St. Petersburg.

    21 March 1873 The Seniority (governing body) of Cambridge University votes to offer Charles Villiers Stanford (20) the post of assistant organist at Trinity College.  He will accept.

    21 March 1874 Salvator Rosa, an opera seria by Carlos Gomes (37) to words of Ghislanzoni, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa.

    21 March 1887 Isaac Albéniz (26) gives a concert devoted to his own music at the Salón Romero, Madrid.  Works performed for the first time are Piano Sonata no.3, Piano Sonata no.4, Seis mazurkas de salón (nos. 2 and 6), No. 1 (En El Mar) of Recuerdos de viaje, Rapsodia española for piano and orchestra and Concerto for piano and orchestra no.1.  The composer is at the keyboard for the last two.

    21 March 1889 Valse-caprice op.4 by Amy Cheney Beach (21) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    21 March 1890 Ascanio, an opéra by Camille Saint-Saëns (54) to words of Gallet after Meurice, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    21 March 1899 Regina, a revolutionary opera by Albert Lortzing (†48) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    21 March 1901 Tritons for orchestra by John Ireland (21) is performed for the first time, in Alexandra House, London, conducted by Charles Villiers Stanford (48).

    21 March 1904 On his first visit to the United States, Richard Strauss (39) conducts the premiere performance of his Symphonia Domestica in Carnegie Hall, New York.  The audience calls him to the stage eight times.  Critics are mixed.  See 16 April 1904.

    21 March 1905 After being told that his position as second violinist in the Royal Chapel Orchestra will remain unchanged, Carl Nielsen (39) resigns to devote himself to composition.  He was hoping that his stint as a deputy conductor would lead to a conducting position.

    Sleep op.18, a work for chorus and orchestra by Carl Nielsen (39) to words of Jørgensen, is performed for the first time, at Copenhagen, directed by the composer.

    21 March 1907 Two songs by Nadia Boulanger (19) are given their first public performance, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  They are Soleils couchants, to words of Verlaine and Elégie, to words of Samain.

    21 March 1908 Three songs by Frederick Delius (46) for solo voice and orchestra are premiered in Liverpool.  They are Twighlight Fancies, to words of Bjørnson, The Bird’s Story, to words of Ibsen, and The Violet, to words of Holstein.

    21 March 1910 Gustav Mahler (49) conducts his farewell performance at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.  It is Tchaikovsky’s (†16) Queen of Spades.

    Ballade in f minor op.69 for violin and piano by Arthur Foote (57) is performed for the first time, in Boston, the composer at the keyboard.

    21 March 1912 Two Eastern Pictures for female chorus and harp by Gustav Holst (37) to words of Kalidasa, translated by the composer, is performed for the first time, in Blackburn Town Hall.

    Ode for One Who Fell in Battle for chorus by Charles Martin Loeffler (51) to words of Parsons is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.  This is a reworking of his 1906 work For One Who Fell in Battle.

    21 March 1914 Trois poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé by Claude Debussy (51), for voice and piano, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    At a gathering of the Finley Club, a literary society connected to the City College of New York, George Gershwin (15) appears in public as pianist and composer for the first time, performing a tango of his own composition.

    21 March 1916 Pastoral, for women’s chorus by Gustav Holst (41) to anonymous words, is performed for the first time, in New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

    21 March 1917 Three songs for voice and piano by Charles Martin Loeffler (56) are performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston:  A une femme, to words of Verlaine, Ton souvenir est comme un livre bien-aimé to words of Samain, and Boléro triste to words of Kahn.

    21 March 1919 Part I of Erik Satie’s (52) drame symphonique Socrate, to words of Plato translated by Cousin, is performed at La Maison des Amis des Livres in Paris before a prestigious audience.  The composer is at the piano.  See 3 April 1918, 24 June 1918 and 14 February 1920.

    The Violin Sonata op.82 by Edward Elgar (61) is given its first public performance, in Aeolian Hall, London.  The critics are “cautious and reserved.”  See 13 March 1919.

    21 March 1920 The Ballad of Blanik, a symphonic poem by Leos Janácek (65), is performed for the first time, in Brno.  The response is mixed.

    21 March 1921 A Dangerous Maid, a musical comedy by George Gershwin (22) to a book by Bell and lyrics by Ira Gershwin, is performed for the first time, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.  It will never make it to New York.

    21 March 1924 Trois nocturnes for piano trio by Ernest Bloch (43) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, New York.

    21 March 1925 Maurice Ravel’s (50) fantaisie lyrique L’enfant et les sortilèges to words of Colette is performed for the first time, in Monaco.

    Sonata for flute and piano by Willem Pijper (30) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    21 March 1928 At the Budapest premiere of Ernst Krenek’s (27) Jonny spielt auf, a stink bomb is thrown.

    Filomela e l’infatuato, a dramma musicale by Gian Francesco Malipiero (46) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Deutsches Theater, Prague.

    Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (31) gives a concert on his Thereminovox in Orchestra Hall, Detroit.  Tomorrow, the front page of the Detroit Free Press will be devoted entirely to the event.

    21 March 1929 Sir John in Love, an opera by Ralph Vaughan Williams (56) to his own words (after Shakespeare), is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.

    21 March 1931 Bohuslav Martinu (40) marries a French woman, Charlotte Quennehen, at the Paris Registry Office near Porte d’Auteuil.  She is a successful dressmaker.

    21 March 1932 Songs of Farewell, for chorus and orchestra by Frederick Delius (70) to words of Whitman, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    21 March 1933 Kurt Weill (33) is driven from Berlin to the French border by Caspar and Erika Neher.

    21 March 1934 Early morning.  Franz August Julius Schreker dies of a heart attack in Berlin, two days before his 56th birthday.  He has been bedridden since suffering a stroke last December.

    21 March 1935 Still hobbled by the accident of last September, Vaura Honegger moves in with her husband Arthur (43) in Paris.  It is the first time they have cohabitated in nine years of marriage.

    Concertino de printemps op.135 for violin and orchestra by Darius Milhaud (42) is performed for the first time, in Paris conducted by the composer.

    21 March 1936 Alyeksandr Konstantinovich Glazunov dies in Paris of uremic poisoning, aged 70 years, seven months, and eleven days.  His mortal remains will be buried in Neuilly, near Paris.  See 13 November 1972.

    Music for the film Peace of Britain by Benjamin Britten (22) is recorded.

    21 March 1937 Some works by Charles Koechlin (69) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Tour-Eiffel, originating at the Schola Cantorum, Paris:  La divine vesprée op.67, a ballet to his own story, in a concert setting, and the first three of Quelques choeurs réligieux a cappella, de style modal op.150.

    21 March 1942 Saluste du Bartas, a cycle for voice and piano by Arthur Honegger (50) to words of de Montlaur, is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    A suite for orchestra from Hugo Weisgall’s (29) ballet Quest is performed for the first time, in New York.  See 17 May 1938.

    21 March 1946 Trio in B flat for violin, cello, and piano by Arnold Bax (62) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    String Quartet no.7 by Paul Hindemith (50) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    21 March 1948 Papagaio do moleque for orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (61) is performed for the first time, in the Maison Gaveau, Paris, under the baton of the composer.

    21 March 1955 On the 270th birthday of Johann Sebastian Bach, Olivier Messiaen (46) plays the French premiere of his Livre d’orgue at the Trinité, Paris.  The organizer of the concert, Pierre Boulez (29), expected only about 50 people to attend and planned for them to enter through a small door on the side of the church.  A large number of people showed up and Messiaen gains admittance to the building only with great difficulty.  Among those taking part in the crush is the Paris chief of police, there purely as a music lover.

    21 March 1958 Sonata per Archi for chamber orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (31) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.

    21 March 1963 Symphony no.16 “Icelandic” by Henry Cowell (66) is performed for the first time, at the University of Iceland in Reykjavik.

    Two new works for chorus and strings are performed for the first time at the Museum of Modern Art, New York: Choral Triptych by Ulysses Kay (46) to words of the Bible and The Prayer of Jonah by Charles Wuorinen (24).

    21 March 1965 Hans Werner Henze’s (38) Lucy Escott Variations for piano is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Kitty Hawk (An Antigravity Piece) by Robert Ashley (34) to his own words is performed for the first time, in St. Louis.

    21 March 1966 Mr and Mrs Discobbolos, a chamber opera by Peter Westergaard (34) after Lear, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Sequenza V for trombone by Luciano Berio (40) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    21 March 1968 Fra Angelico, a symphonic poem by Alan Hovhaness (57), is performed for the first time, in Detroit.

    21 March 1970 Expo für drei no.31 for three players and three shortwave receivers by Karlheinz Stockhausen (41) is performed for the first time, in Osaka.

    Y estonces comprendió for six female voices, chorus, tape, and electronics by Luigi Nono (46) to words of Falqui, is performed for the first time, in a broadcast by RAI originating in Rome.

    Cérémonie II for tape by Pierre Henry (42) is performed for the first time, in Royan along with the premiere of his Fragments pour Artaud.

    21 March 1975 Duo for violin and piano by Elliott Carter (66) is performed for the first time, in Cooper Union, New York.

    21 March 1976 Hyperion for twelve instruments by Charles Wuorinen (37) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Adelaide, South Australia.

    21 March 1977 Concerto grosso no.1 for two violins, harpsichord, prepared piano, and strings by Alfred Schnittke (42) is performed for the first time, in Leningrad.

    21 March 1982 The Musical House that Max Built, a documentary about Peter Maxwell Davies (47), is shown for the first time, over London Weekend Television.

    21 March 1984 Concerto for violin and orchestra by Roy Harris (†4) is performed for the first time, in Asheville, North Carolina, 35 years after it was composed.

    21 March 1985 Harmonielehre for orchestra by John Adams (38) is performed for the first time, in Davies Hall, San Francisco.

    21 March 1987 Ragtime (wohltemperiert) for orchestra by Paul Hindemith (†23) is performed for the first time, in Berlin, 66 years after it was composed.

    21 March 1988 Preludio de añoranza for piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (86) is performed for the first time, in Escuela Superior de Canto, Madrid.

    21 March 1992 Luraï for celtic harp and synthesized sounds by Jean-Claude Risset (54) is performed for the first time, at Radio-France, Paris.

    21 March 2008 Adoremus for solo voices, male chorus, chorus, and organ by John Tavener (64) is performed for the first time, in Winchester Cathedral.

    22 March

    22 March 1630 Richard Dering is buried in London, approximately 50 years after his birth.

    22 March 1687 Jean-Baptiste Lully dies in Paris, aged 54 years, two months and 22 days.

    22 March 1727 Francesco Gasparini dies in Rome, aged 76 years and three days.

    22 March 1770 Gioas, re di Giuda, an oratorio by Johann Christian Bach (34) to words after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.  The work is well received.

    22 March 1784 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) premieres one of his piano concertos, probably K.451, at the Esterházy residence in Vienna.  See 31 March 1784.

    22 March 1817 Mennone e Zemira, a dramma per musica by Simon Mayr (53) to words of Rossi, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.

    22 March 1825 Abraham and Felix Mendelssohn (16) arrive in Paris to accompany Abraham’s sister Henriette back to Berlin.  While in Paris, Felix will come in contact with and perform for many of the composers and virtuosos of the city including Hummel (46), Auber (43), Kalkbrenner (39), Rossini (33), Halévy (25), Liszt (13) and Kreutzer.

    22 March 1839 This is the date inscribed on the first composition by Camille Saint-Saëns (3), a piano piece.

    22 March 1840 Clara Wieck (20) writes to Robert Schumann (29) from Berlin, “When I heard Liszt (28) for the first time, at Graf’s in Vienna, I was overwhelmed and sobbed aloud, it so shook me.  Don’t you feel the same, that it is as though he wanted to be absorbed by the piano?  And then again, how heavenly it is when he plays tenderly...”  (Williams, 126)

    22 March 1851 Ambroise Thomas (39) is elected to Gaspare Spontini’s (†0) chair at the Institute.  Hector Berlioz (47) comes in third.

    22 March 1862 Le voyage de MM. Dunanan père et fils, an opéra-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (42) to words of Siraudin and Moinaux, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    22 March 1868 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (27) first published music criticism, an appraisal of Rimsky-Korsakov’s (24) Fantasia on Serbian Themes, appears in the Contemporary Chronicle.

    22 March 1869 Symphony no.2 “Antar” by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (25) is performed for the first time, by the Russian Musical Society in St. Petersburg.

    La diva, an opéra-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (49) to words of Meilhac and Halévy, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.  It is a failure.

    22 March 1873 Two songs for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (27) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Mai op.1/2 to words of Hugo, and Hymne op.7/2 to words of Beaudelaire.

    22 March 1874 String Quartet no.2 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (33) is performed publicly for the first time, in Moscow.

    22 March 1882 Italienischer Walzer op.407 by Johann Strauss (56) is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    Three Cavalier Songs op.17 for baritone, male chorus and piano by Charles Villiers Stanford (29) to words of Browning is performed completely for the first time, in Cambridge.  See 8 May 1894.

    22 March 1883 Il sabato del villaggio, a cantata by Ferruccio Busoni (16) to words of Leopardi, is performed for the first time, in Teatro comunale, Bologna.

    22 March 1884 As Princess Ida appears to be waning in the public interest, Richard D’Oyly Carte writes to both Arthur Sullivan (41) and WS Gilbert invoking their contract with him.  He gives them six months notice of the need for a new opera.

    Antonín Dvorák (42) conducts his Scherzo capriccioso and Nocturne in B flat at the Crystal Palace, London.  This event secures Dvorak’s fame in England.

    22 March 1887 Bitteres zu sagen denkst du op.32/7, a song by Johannes Brahms (53) to words of Hafis, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, 23 years after it was composed.

    22 March 1888 Joseph Joachim writes to Ethel Smyth (29) telling her that the compositions he sent her are “unnatural, far-fetched, overwrought and not good as to sound.”  (Collis, 43)

    22 March 1891 Ode à la musique for soprano, chorus, and orchestra by Emanuel Chabrier (50) to words of Rostand is performed publicly for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.

    22 March 1892 Le fils des étoiles, a pastorale kaldéenne by Erik Satie (25) to a story by Péladan, is officially performed for the first time, in Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris.  It is the first titled work that Satie wrote for the Salon de la Rose-Croix of Joseph-Aimé Péladan, whose goal is “to ruin realism, reform Latin taste and create a school of idealist art.”  See 19 March 1892.

    22 March 1893 Die Liebende schreibt op.47/5, a song by Johannes Brahms (59) to words of Goethe, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    22 March 1894 Richard Strauss (29) asks the parents of Pauline de Ahna for her hand.  They agree and the two are engaged.  This will remain secret until May.

    22 March 1900 Sergey Rakhmaninov’s (26) song Fate, for voice and piano to words of Apukhtin, is performed publicly for the first time, in the Hall of the Nobility, Moscow, the composer at the keyboard.  The audience calls for it to be encored.

    22 March 1902 Three songs for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (34) to words of Banville are performed for the first time, in Paris:  La terre op.14/6, L’automne op.14/7, and Les étoiles op.14/8.  Also premiered is Koechlin’s Juin op.15/1 to words of Leconte de Lisle.

    22 March 1904 Think of Me, a song by Ralph Vaughan Williams (31) to anonymous words (tr. Ferguson), is performed for the first time, in Steinway Hall, London.

    22 March 1907 Marian MacDowell donates the property owned by her and her husband Edward (46) to the Edward MacDowell Memorial Association in Peterborough, New Hampshire.  The property consists of 81 hectares of land, their house, and two secondary buildings.  The intention is that an artist colony be built as soon as the MacDowell’s are both dead, but Mrs. MacDowell will invite the first colonists in the summer of 1908.

    22 March 1908 Albert Roussel’s (38) Symphony no.1 “Le poème de la forêt” op.7 is given its first complete performance, at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels.  See 15 December 1904 and 10 November 1907.

    Piano Trio op.102 by Max Reger (35) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig, the composer at the keyboard.

    22 March 1911 The second group of Choral Hymns from the Rig-Veda by Gustav Holst (36) to his own translation, for female chorus and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    22 March 1915 Klage op.25/2 for chorus and orchestra by Hans Pfitzner (45) to words of Eichendorff is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    Airs populaires flamands, an organ work by Nadia Boulanger (27), is performed for the first time, in Paris by the composer.

    22 March 1919 Three Poems of Fiona MacLeod op.11 for voice and piano by Charles T. Griffes (34), is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, New York the composer at the piano.  Sergey Prokofiev (27) appears in the same concert accompanying three songs by Griffes.  See 24 March 1919.

    22 March 1927 Canto a Sevilla for voice and orchestra by Joaquín Turina (44) is performed for the first time, in Madrid.

    22 March 1931 Andantino for orchestra by Roy Harris (33) is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Auditorium, Los Angeles.

    22 March 1933 Kurt Weill (33) is driven across the border from Germany into France by Caspar and Erika Neher.  They go to Paris.

    22 March 1936 Dance of Liberation for piano by David Diamond (20) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    22 March 1940 Amy Beach (72) is stricken with what she calls “terrific bronchitis” leaving her gasping for breath.  She is diagnosed with a serious heart condition.

    22 March 1943 Joseph Schwantner is born in Chicago.

    22 March 1945 Concerto for strings, piano, and percussion by Alfredo Casella (61) is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    Kurt Weill’s (45) operetta The Firebrand of Florence, to words of Mayer and Ira Gershwin, is performed for the first time in New York, in the Alvin Theatre.  The lead role is played by Lotte Lenya.  Critics are unimpressed and the run will close after 43 performances.  See 23 February 1945.

    22 March 1946 Scherzo a la Russe by Igor Stravinsky (63) is performed for the first time in an orchestral version, in San Francisco, conducted by the composer.

    Henry Cowell’s (49) Hymn for strings is performed for the first time, in Denton Texas, directed by the composer.

    22 March 1952 Three songs from Kurt Weill’s (†1) unfinished musical Huckleberry Finn, to words of Anderson, orchestrated by Bennett, are performed for the first time, in New York.

    22 March 1953 Williams Mix for eight single-track or four double-track tapes by John Cage (40) is performed for the first time, in a private setting at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    22 March 1959 Sonatine for piano op.354 by Darius Milhaud (66) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    22 March 1964 An arrangement of the music of Jean Sibelius (†6) by Igor Stravinsky (81) called Canzonetta, done in gratitude for his winning the Wihuri-Sibelius Prize in 1963, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the Finnish Broadcasting Company.

    Diptych for brass quintet and concert band by Gunther Schuller (38) is performed for the first time, at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

    Five Bagatelles for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (38) is performed for the first time, in the Central High School of Fargo, North Dakota, conducted by the composer.

    22 March 1967 A Piano Concerto by Mikis Theodorakis (41) is performed for the first time, in Piraeus.

    Lemon Drops for tape by Kenneth Gaburo (40) is performed for the first time, in Darmstadt.

    22 March 1970 Memento vitae (homage to Beethoven) for orchestra by Thea Musgrave (41) is performed for the first time, in Glasgow.

    22 March 1973 String Quartet no.2 by Lejaren Hiller (49) is performed for the first time, in Zagreb, 22 years after it was composed.

    Piano Concerto no.2 by Alberto Ginastera (56) is performed for the first time, in Indianapolis.

    22 March 1975 Chamber Music for percussion and electronics by Lukas Foss (52) and Joel Chadabe is performed for the first time, in Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo.

    22 March 1979 Miss Havisham’s Fire, an opera by Dominick Argento (51) to words of Olon-Scrymgeour after Dickens, is performed for the first time, in State Theatre, Lincoln Center, New York.  Reviews vary widely but the work will fail.  See 3 June 2001.

    22 March 1980 The first compact disc system is marketed by RCA.

    22 March 1984 Symphony no.1 by John Harbison (45) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    22 March 1985 Twighlight Music for horn, violin and piano by John Harbison (46) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    22 March 1987 Diversions for piano by Irving Fine (†24) is performed for the first time, in New York, 28 years after he completed it.

    22 March 1990 As Karlheinz Stockhausen (61) and his musicians land at Sheremetovo II Airport in Moscow, they are greeted by local musicians playing various small percussion instruments and flutes.  As they play tunes from his works, he drops his bags and begins to conduct them.  Stockhausen invites them all to his hotel in the evening.

    22 March 1996 Feast of Feasts for vocal soloists, chorus, and percussion by John Tavener (52) to words of the Orthodox liturgy is performed for the first time, in the Grand Hall, Balamand Abbey, Lebanon.

    22 March 1997 Peanuts® Gallery for piano and orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (57) is performed completely for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  The performance marks the premiere of two sections:  Lullaby for Linus and Snoopy Does the Samba.

    22 March 2001 Sofia Gubaidulina (69) is awarded the Goethe Medal in Weimar.

    Epistle of Love for soprano and piano by John Tavener (57) to Serbian poetry is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Smith Square, London.

    Marvelous Invention (Songbook for a New Century) for mezzo-soprano and piano by John Corigliano (63) to words of Adamo is performed for the first time, in Kaye Playhouse, New York.

    Rhyme, a song for voice and piano by William Bolcom (62) to words of Tillinghast, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    The Axe Manual for piano and percussion by Harrison Birtwistle (66) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    22 March 2003 Celestial Excursions, an opera by Robert Ashley (72) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Hebbel Theatre, Berlin.

    A Few Words About Chekhov, a cycle for two solo voices and orchestra by Dominick Argento (75) to words of Chekhov and Knipper, is performed for the first time, in Ordway Music Theatre, St. Paul, Minnesota.  See 12 October 1996.

    22 March 2005 Cantus Mysticus for soprano, clarinet, and strings by John Tavener (61) is performed for the first time, in Iglesia de San Miguel, Madrid.

    23 March

    23 March 1761 La halte des Calmouckes, a ballet by Christoph Willibald Gluck (46) to a choreography by Angiolini, is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    23 March 1771 An organizational meeting of the Tonkünstler-Societät takes place in the Vienna apartment of Florian Leopold Gassmann (41).

    23 March 1774 The Fall of Egypt, an oratorio by John Stanley (62) to words of Hawkesworth, is performed for the first time, in Drury Lane Theatre, London.

    23 March 1776 Baldassare Galuppi (69) leaves the service of the Ospedale degli incurabili in Venice.

    Emperor Joseph II gives instructions about the management of the Nationaltheater, Vienna.  Only one composer is mentioned by name:  Antonio Salieri (25).  He is to be paid an annual salary of 200 ducats.

    23 March 1779 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (23) dates his Mass in C K.317 in Salzburg.

    23 March 1783 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27) gives a benefit concert for himself before an overflow crowd, including Emperor Joseph II, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.  The program includes the Symphony K.385, an aria from Idomeneo, Piano Concerto K.415, the concert aria Misera! dove son...Ah! non son io (to words of Metastasio) K.369, movements three and four from the Serenade in D K.320, Piano Concerto K.369 including the rondo-finale K.382, an aria from Lucio Silla, improvised variations on a theme of Paisiello (42) K.398 (encored), improvised variations on a theme of Gluck K.455, and the Recitative and Rondo K.416.  Among the audience is Christoph Willibald Gluck (68).  It is a gigantic success.

    23 March 1784 Parts of the Serenade for 13 winds K.361 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) are performed for the first time, at the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    23 March 1792 Symphony no.94 “Surprise” by Joseph Haydn (59) is performed for the first time, in London.

    23 March 1827 With great difficulty, Ludwig van Beethoven (56) signs a will.  He leaves his entire estate to his nephew Karl.  During the final visit of Johann Nepomuk Hummel (48), Beethoven tells him that he expects death soon.

    23 March 1828 String Quartet op.135 by Ludwig van Beethoven (†0) is performed for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna.

    23 March 1838 Luigi Cherubini’s (77) second setting of the Requiem is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.

    23 March 1841 Anton Rubinstein (11) gives his first major performance in Paris, at the Salle Pleyel.

    23 March 1844 Le lazzarone, ou Le bien vient en dormant, a grand opéra by Fromental Halévy (44) to words of Saint-Georges, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    23 March 1847 Frédéric Chopin (37) and August Franchomme perform Chopin's Sonata in g minor for cello and piano op.65 for the first time in a semi-public setting, at a reception in his Paris apartment.  See 17 February 1847.

    23 March 1848 Bedrich Smetana (24) writes to Franz Liszt (36) pleading poverty, sketching his ideas for a music institute in Prague, asking Liszt to accept the dedication of his opus 1 (6 characteristic pieces), asking Liszt to find a publisher for it, and requesting a loan of 400 gulden.

    23 March 1856 By this date, Richard Wagner (42) has completed the full score of Die Walküre.

    23 March 1861 Le pont des soupirs, an opéra-bouffon by Jacques Offenbach (41) to words of Crémieux and Halévy, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    23 March 1863 The first version of Cantico del Sol di San Francesco by Franz Liszt (51) is performed for the first time, in Palazzo Altieri, Rome.

    23 March 1864 Richard Wagner (50) escapes from Vienna ahead of his creditors making for Switzerland via Munich.

    23 March 1878 Franz August Julius Schrecker is born in Monaco, oldest of four surviving children of Ignaz (Isak) Schrecker, Jewish Imperial and Royal Court Photographer, and Eleonore von Clossmann, descended from Austrian Catholic nobility.

    23 March 1882 A Trio for piano and strings “To the Memory of a Great Artist” op.50 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (41) is performed for the first time, in a private performance at the Moscow Conservatory.  It is in honor of Nikolay Rubinstein to commemorate the first anniversary of his death.  See 30 October 1882.

    23 March 1884 The first of the five choruses for mixed chorus In Nature’s Realm op.63, by Antonín Dvorák (42) to words of Hálek, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    23 March 1886 The Manfred Symphony by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (45) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  A would-be composer named Sergey Rakhmaninov (12) attends.

    23 March 1889 The following announcement appears in the French periodical La Lanterne Japonaise:  M. Erik Satie, musical composer, received the following letter, which he has asked us to print:  “Sir, For eight years I have suffered from a polyp in the nose, complicated by a liver disorder and rheumatic pains.  On hearing your Ogives my condition showed a clear improvement.  Four or five applications of your Gymnopédie no.3 cured me completely.  I hereby authorize you, Monsieur Erik Satie, to make any use of this testimonial you may wish.  In the meantime please accept the thanks of your grateful  Femme Lengrenage, Day worker at Précigny-les-Balayettes.  As for us, our opinion of M. Erik Satie, whom we do not have the honor of knowing personally, can be summed up in four words:  he’s a hot rabbit!”

    23 March 1895 Daniel Chennevière (Dane Rudhyar) is born in Paris, the second of two children born to Leon and Lucie Chennevière.  The father owns a small factory producing zinc ornaments.

    23 March 1899 In the Berlin suburb of Pankow, Richard Strauss (34) meets Hugo von Hofmmansthal for the first time at the home of Richard Dehmel.

    23 March 1901 Five Songs op.69 and Five Songs op.70 for voice and piano by Edvard Grieg (57) to words of Benzon are performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.  The critics are not impressed.

    23 March 1903 The piano work Variations, interlude et final sur un thème de Rameau by Paul Dukas (37) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    23 March 1906 Gabriel Fauré’s (60) Piano Quintet no.1 op.89 is performed for the first time, at the Cercle Artistique, Brussels.  The piano part is performed by the composer.

    23 March 1908 Gabriel Fauré (62) accompanies American vocalist Susan Metcalfe in a recital of his songs before Great Britain’s Queen Alexandra and Russian Empress Maria Fyodorovna, at Buckingham Palace.

    23 March 1912 Cartak on the Solan, a cantata by Leos Janácek (57) to words of Kurt, is performed for the first time, in Prostejov.

    23 March 1913 Bocetos:  Colección de obras fáciles for piano by Enrique Granados (45) is performed for the first time, in Barcelona.  Also premiered is Granados’ En el jardin from Libro de horas for piano.

    23 March 1914 The Phantasy Quintet, for five stringed instruments by Ralph Vaughan Williams (41), is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    Suite for piano op.8 by Darius Milhaud (21) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    23 March 1915 All Night Vigil op.37, for chorus by Sergey Rakhmaninov (41), is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall of the Nobility, Moscow.

    23 March 1916 Néère op.23/2 for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (48) to words of André Chéniers is performed for the first time, at the home of Mme Herscher, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    23 March 1917 Ernest Bloch’s (36) orchestral work Trois poèmes juifs is performed completely for the first time, in Boston, conducted by the composer.  See 28 February 1914.

    23 March 1918 The Paris Opéra cancels its evening performance due to the bombardment of the city by Big Bertha, a gigantic long-range artillery piece used by the Germans.  It was so christened by the French, who named it after the wife of the German arms manufacturer Krupp.  Twenty-two shells hit the city today, killing 16 people and injuring 29.

    The ballet pantomime The Dance in Place Congo by Henry F. Gilbert (49) is performed for the first time, in the Metropolitan Opera House, New York.

    23 March 1921 Ernest MacMillan (27) receives his first important notices as a conductor when he directs his Eaton Memorial Choir in Brahms’ (†23) German Requiem in Toronto.

    23 March 1922 A Requiem for soprano, baritone, chorus, and orchestra by Frederick Delius (60) to words of Simon, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    23 March 1923 El retablo de maese Pedro, a puppet opera by Manuel de Falla (46) to his own words after Cervantes, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting at the Teatro San Fernando, Seville.  See 25 June 1923 and 24 October 1924.

    23 March 1926 Two works for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (60) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki:  Humoresque op.108/1, and Wanderers on the Long Way.

    23 March 1928 Symphonic Piece for orchestra by Walter Piston (34) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    23 March 1932 Pinotta, an idillio by Pietro Mascagni (68) to words of Targioni-Tozzetti, is performed for the first time, at the Casino, San Remo 52 years after it was composed.  The composer conducts.

    23 March 1933 Symphony op.36a by Hans Pfitzner (63) is performed for the first time, in Munich.  It is an orchestration of his String Quartet op.36.  See 6 November 1925.

    Kurt Weill (33) arrives in Paris after crossing the frontier from Germany.

    Hymne au Saint-Sacrement for orchestra by Olivier Messiaen (24) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris.

    23 March 1934 The mortal remains of Franz Schreker are laid to rest in Dahlem Cemetery, Berlin, on what would have been his 56th birthday.  Not many people attend.

    23 March 1937 Incidental music to Molière’s play Le médecin volant by Darius Milhaud (44) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre Scaramouche, Paris.

    23 March 1939 Béla Bartók’s (57) Violin Concerto (no.2) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.  The press is ecstatic.

    23 March 1941 Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis op.8 for chorus and organ or piano by Vincent Persichetti (25) is performed for the first time, in Arch Street Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia.

    23 March 1944 Concerto for cello and orchestra op. 52 by Hans Pfitzner (74) is performed for the first time, in Solingen.

    Henry Cowell’s (47) Hymn and Fuguing Tune no.2 for string orchestra is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of station WEAF, New York.

    23 March 1945 Variations on a Theme by Goosens is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.  The theme is followed by variations from Paul Creston, Aaron Copland (44), Deems Taylor, Howard Hanson (48), William Schuman (34), Walter Piston (51), Roy Harris (47), Bernard Rogers (52), Ernst Bloch (64) and Eugene Goosens.

    23 March 1946 Introduction and Fugue for two pianos by Ralph Vaughan Williams (73) is performed for the first time, at Wigmore Hall, London.

    23 March 1950 Aaron Copland (49) wins an Academy Award® for his score to the film The Heiress, in Los Angeles.

    23 March 1952 Choeurs monodiques op.169 for male chorus by Charles Koechlin (†1) is performed publicly for the first time, in a production of Alceste by Euripedes (tr. Marchand) over the airwaves of French Radio III.  See 10 December 1943.

    23 March 1953 Schlagquartett no.1/3 by Karlheinz Stockhausen (24) is performed for the first time before a live audience, in Munich.  See 12 March 1953.

    23 March 1955 Four Dialogues for soprano, tenor, and two pianos by Ned Rorem (31) to words of O’Hara, is performed for the first time, at the Palazzo of Contessa Mimi Pecci-Blunt, in Rome, the composer at the keyboard.

    23 March 1962 Fragment for ten players by Györgi Ligeti (38) is performed for the first time, in Munich.  The composer conducts, one of only three times in his life.

    Symphony (1962) by Irving Fine (47) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    String Quartet no.2 by George Rochberg (43) is performed for the first time, privately in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.  See 30 March 1962.

    23 March 1965 Benjamin Britten (51) receives the Order of Merit.

    23 March 1966 Quatuor II for soprano and string trio by Betsy Jolas (39) is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.

    Configurations for flute and piano by Ralph Shapey (45) is performed for the first time, in Kaufman Auditorium of the 92nd Street Y, New York.

    23 March 1968 Set of Five Take-Offs for piano by Charles Ives (†13) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York 62 years after it was completed.  Also premiered are Ives’ piano studies nos.1-2, 5-7, 15, 20, and 23 over 40 years after they were composed.

    23 March 1969 Collect for chorus and tape by Leslie Bassett (46) is performed for the first time, in East Orange, New Jersey.

    23 March 1970 The first two of the Three Weöres Songs for soprano and piano by György Ligeti (46) to words of Weöres are performed for the first time, in Junsele.

    Clio, a symphonic ode by Carlos Chávez (70), is performed for the first time, in Jones Hall, Houston the composer conducting.

    23 March 1973 American Standards for orchestra by John Adams (26) is performed for the first time, at San Francisco Conservatory.  Also on the program is the premiere of Adams’ Christian Zeal and Activity for speaker and orchestra.  Both are conducted by the composer.

    23 March 1976 Sun for piano by Tod Machover (23) is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School of Music, New York.

    23 March 1977 A Mirror of Whitening Light for 14 players by Peter Maxwell Davies (42) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London the composer directing.

    23 March 1980 Several world premieres take place in Alice Tully Hall, New York to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Da Capo Chamber Players, founded by Joan Tower (41):  Joan’s for flute, clarinet in A, violin, cello, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (41), Private Game for clarinet and cello by Shulamit Ran (30), Scherzo by George Perle (64), Modern Love Waltz by Philip Glass (43), and Petroushskates by Joan Tower.

    23 March 1981 Dances and Fanfares for a Festive Occasion for orchestra by Vladimir Ussachevsky (69) is performed for the first time, at Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield.

    23 March 1982 Sonata à tre for clarinet, violin and piano by Karel Husa (60) is performed for the first time, in Hong Kong.

    Two works for solo piano by Lukas Foss (59) are performed for the first time, in the American Center, Paris:  Solo and Four Two-Part Inventions.  The latter was composed in 1938.  See 7 June 1982.

    23 March 1984 Trois duos for tuba and piano by Betsy Jolas (57) is performed for the first time, in Lugano.

    23 March 1989 Talkshow by Paul Lansky (44) is performed for the first time, in Troy, New York.

    Brangle for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (60) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    23 March 1990 Der Kuhhandel, an operetta by Kurt Weill (†39) to words of Vambery, is performed for the first time, in a concert performance in the Tonahalle, Dusseldorf 56 years after it was composed.  A revised version of it called A Kingdom for a Cow was performed in London on 28 June 1935.

    23 March 1992 Bariolage for harp, part of Trilogy by Elliott Carter (83), is performed for the first time, at Salle Patino, Geneva.  See 30 June 1992.

    23 March 1994 Idyll no.3:  Frost at Midnight op.78 for orchestra by Robin Holloway (50) is performed for the first time.

    23 March 1996 Knastgesänge, three music-theatre pieces for puppet players, singers, and instrumentalists by Hans Werner Henze (69) to words of Treichel, is performed for the first time, in Theater Basel.

    23 March 2004 After a campaign by residents of the island of Ikaria, the farmhouse to which Mikis Theodorakis (78) was exiled during the Greek Civil War is now a listed building.  Local authorities begin investigating the possibility of funds from the Ministry of Culture to restore the building.

    23 March 2005 Darkbloom, Overture for an Imagined Opera for orchestra by John Harbison (66) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    24 March

    24 March 1654 Samuel Scheidt dies in Halle, 66 years, four months and 21 days after his baptism.

    24 March 1762 Georg Christoph Wagenseil’s (47) serenata Prometeo assoluto to words of Migliavacca is performed for the first time, in the Hoftheater, Vienna, in honor of Archduchess Isabel of Austria.  The overture is actually Wagenseil’s Symphony no.13.

    24 March 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart reach Bologna, where they meet Padre Giovanni Battista Martini (63).

    24 March 1773 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (17) dates his Divertimento K.166 in Salzburg.

    24 March 1781 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) dates his Violin Sonata K.372.

    24 March 1784 In the second of three Lenten subscription concerts, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) gives the first public performance of a piano concerto, probably K.450.  See 15 March 1784.

    24 March 1792 The “official” debut of John Field (9) takes place in a “spiritual concert” in the Rotunda Assembly Rooms, Dublin.  He plays a pedal harp concerto on the piano, astonishing the audience with his ability.

    24 March 1820 Gioachino Rossini’s (28) Messa di gloria is performed for the first time, in San Ferdinando, Naples.

    Marche funebre et De profundis for chorus and orchestra by Fromental Halévy (20) is performed for the first time, in the rue Sainte-Avoye synagogue, Paris.  The work is part of nationwide mourning over the murder of the Duc de Berry.

    24 March 1825 Der Berggeist, an opera by Louis Spohr (40) to words of Döring, is performed for the first time, in the Kassel Hoftheater as part of celebrations surrounding the marriage of the daughter of Elector Wilhelm II of Hesse-Kassel to Duke Bernhard Erich of Saxe-Meiningen.

    24 March 1828 Incidental music to the play Die Hochfeurer, oder Die Veteranen by Albert Lortzing (26) is performed for the first time, in Münster.

    24 March 1833 A setting of the Stabat mater D.383 (translated by Klopstock) for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Franz Schubert (†4) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    24 March 1847 Camille Saint-Saëns (11) plays before Hélène, duchesse d’Orléans at the Tuileries Palace, Paris.  She is the daughter-in-law of King Louis-Philippe.

    24 March 1851 A Piano Trio op.15/1 by Anton Rubinstein (21) is performed for the first time, in Bernadaki Hall, St. Petersburg, the composer at the keyboard.

    24 March 1852 The first performance of the New Philharmonic Society takes place in Exeter Hall, London under the direction of Hector Berlioz (48).  It is seen by all critics as a new era in English music making.

    24 March 1856 The new Théâtre de la Monnaie opens in Brussels.  See 21 January 1855.

    24 March 1859 Six days after finishing Act II of Tristan und Isolde, Richard Wagner (45) is obliged to leave Venice due to the impending war between Sardinia, France and Austria.  Afraid of being cut off from Switzerland, he goes to Lucerne and eventually to Paris.

    24 March 1862 A funeral procession in memory of Fromental Halévy travels from the Institute Palace to the Place de la Concorde to the cemetery of Montmartre.  An estimated 15,000 people attended some part of the proceedings.  Music includes the Marche funèbre from La Juive. There are eight funeral orations.

    24 March 1864 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (34) performs in Willard’s Hall, Washington before an audience including President and Mrs. Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward.

    24 March 1867 Jules Massenet’s (24) First Suite for Orchestra is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    24 March 1871 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play Hamlet by Stanislaw Moniuszko (51) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    24 March 1875 The Board of Overseers of Harvard University makes it possible for the attainment of a Doctor of Philosophy degree in music.  However, this degree will not be conferred for another 30 years.

    24 March 1878 Piano Concerto op.33 by Antonin Dvorák (36) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    24 March 1889 Jules Massenet (46) meets Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) in Paris.

    24 March 1897 Enoch Arden, a melodrama for reciter and piano by Richard Strauss (32) to words of Tennyson translated by Strodtmann, is performed for the first time, in Munich the composer at the piano.

    24 March 1902 The cantata Spring, for baritone, chorus, and orchestra, by Sergey Rakhmaninov (28) to words of Nekrasov, is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    24 March 1904 La copla, a zarzuela sevillana by Joaquín Turina (21) to words of Labios and Luciux, is performed for the first time, in Seville.

    24 March 1906 Jean Sibelius' (40) dance intermezzo Pan och Echo is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    Noël des jouets, a song by Maurice Ravel (31) to his own words, is performed for the first time, with the composer at the keyboard, in the Salle Fourcroy, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.  See 26 April 1906.

    24 March 1915 Idyll:  The Maiden with the Daffodil for piano by Arnold Bax (31) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    24 March 1916 Enrique Granados and his wife board the British mail boat SS Sussex for the channel crossing at Folkestone.  At 15:00 the boat is torpedoed by German submarine UB-29.  A panicked telegraph operator gives the wrong location.  The ship does not sink and 138 passengers are saved but 50 are lost including Granados and his wife.  International pressure will force Germany to pay an indemnity of 666,000 pesetas to their children and issue an official apology.  Granados was aged 48 years, seven months, and 26 days.

    24 March 1917 A Cello Sonata by Claude Debussy (54) is performed for the first time, in Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    24 March 1919 Three Poems of Fiona MacLeod op.11 in an arrangement for voice and orchestra by Charles T. Griffes (34), is performed for the first time, in Wilmington, Delaware.  See 22 March 1919.

    24 March 1923 Nursery Songs, three songs for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (13) from Mother Goose, are performed for the first time, in West Chester, Pennsylvania, the composer accompanying his sister.

    24 March 1924 Symphony no.7 by Jean Sibelius (58) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm, the composer conducting.  It is presented under the name Fantasia sinfonica.

    24 March 1925 Prelude et blues for four harps by Arthur Honegger (32) is performed for the first time, in Salle des agriculteurs, Paris.

    24 March 1926 Tre commedie goldoniane, a triptych by Gian Francesco Malipiero (44) to his own words after Goldoni, is performed for the first time, in the Hessisches Landestheater, Darmstadt.

    Chanson de Fagus for voice, string quartet, and piano by Arthur Honegger (34) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    24 March 1927 A suite from Zoltán Kodály’s (44) singspiel Háry János, in a version for brass band, is performed for the first time, in Barcelona.  See 15 December 1927.

    Poème for horn and orchestra op.70bis by Charles Koechlin (59) is performed for the first time, in Salle Gaveau, Paris.  See 15 May 1925.

    24 March 1934 Suite for Jazz Orchestra no.1 by Dmitri Shostakovich (27) is performed for the first time, in Leningrad.

    24 March 1935 Music for a Scene from Shelley for orchestra by Samuel Barber (25) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    24 March 1937 Concerto for violin and orchestra no.1 by David Diamond (21) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by the composer.  Also premiered is Diamond’s Sonata in a minor for piano.  This concert is a production of the New York City Composers’ Forum Laboratory of the Federal Music Project.

    24 March 1939 Imaginary Landscape no.1 by John Cage (26) for muted piano, cymbal, and two variable speed turntables, is performed for the first time, in Seattle to accompany Jean Cocteau’s Marriage at the Eiffel Tower.  The work is produced in two studios by the composer, his wife Xenia, Doris Dennison, and Margaret Janson, and broadcast to the theatre.  It is, perhaps, the first electroacoustic composition.  Also premiered is Henry Cowell’s (42) music for the same play.

    24 March 1941 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play King Lear by Dmitri Shostakovich (34) is performed for the first time, in the Gorky Bolshoy Dramatic Theatre, Leningrad.

    24 March 1944 Cantata for Wartime for female chorus and orchestra by Ernst Krenek (43) to words of Melville is performed for the first time, in Northrop Memorial Auditorium, Minneapolis.

    24 March 1949 Concertino for cello, brass, piano, and percussion by Bohuslav Martinu (58) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    Dmitri Shostakovich (42) arrives in New York as part of a three-man Soviet delegation to the “Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace” held under the auspices of the National Council of Arts, Sciences, and Professions.  Aaron Copland (48) is the only composer allowed to meet him at the airport.  During the conference, Shostakovich delivers a speech (actually by an interpreter in his name) attacking the west.

    24 March 1950 Concerto for cello and orchestra by Virgil Thomson (53) is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    24 March 1952 While Aaron Copland (51) and his sister Laurine are having lunch in another part of the city, their brother Ralph leaps from the 16th story of a Manhattan office building.  The two were meeting to discuss Ralph’s personal problems.  Copland will support Ralph’s widow for the rest of her life.

    24 March 1956 Prelude for organ by Thea Musgrave (27) is performed for the first time, in St. James’s, Picadilly, London.

    24 March 1958 Gruppen no.6 for three orchestras by Karlheinz Stockhausen (29) is performed for the first time, in Cologne, conducted by Pierre Boulez (32), Bruno Maderna (37), and the composer.  Cornelius Cardew (21) plays glockenspiel.  Despite the open hostility of the musicians and the great difficulty of coordinating three orchestras with three conductors, the evening is a smashing success.

    24 March 1961 Fanfare II for the 25th anniversary of the High School of Music and Art by Leonard Bernstein (42) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Variations II for any number of players with any means of producing sounds by John Cage (48) is performed for the first time, at the New School for Social Research, New York.

    24 March 1965 A Year is Like a Lifetime, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (54), is shown publicly for the first time, in the Rossiya Cinema, Moscow.  There was a screening for the press on 18 March.

    Sargasso, a ballet to Symphonic Elegy by Ernst Krenek (64), is performed for the first time, in the New York State Theatre, New York.  See 3 September 1946.

    24 March 1967 Quintet for Groups for orchestra by Ben Johnston (41) is performed for the first time, at Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis.

    24 March 1968 Prometheus desmotes, an opera by Carl Orff (72) to his own words after Aeschylus, is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    24 March 1969 Images for flute, oboe, violin, and cello by Isang Yun (51) is performed for the first time, at Mills College, Oakland, California.

    24 March 1971 Incidental music to a play after Purdy, The Nephew by Ned Rorem (47) is performed for the first time, in Arena Theatre, Buffalo.

    24 March 1972 Aura for orchestra by Bruno Maderna (51) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    24 March 1975 Family Portrait for brass quintet by Virgil Thomson (78) is performed for the first time, in the Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    24 March 1976 Musique de jour for organ by Betsy Jolas (49) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    24 March 1979 String Quartet no.1 by Sofia Gubaidulina (47) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    24 March 1984 Akhnaten, an opera by Philip Glass (47) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Stuttgart State Opera House.

    24 March 1989 Ikon of the Crucifixion for solo voices, chorus, brass, percussion, and strings by John Tavener (45) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC television.

    24 March 1992 Roáï for orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (69) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    24 March 1994 Let Evening Come, a cycle for soprano, viola, and piano by William Bolcom (55) to words of Angelou, Dickinson, and Kenyon, is performed for the first time, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

    24 March 2000 A second setting of Wolfgang Rihm’s (48) rhapsody for trumpet, percussion, and orchestra Marsyas is performed for the first time, in Lucerne.  See 1 November 1998.

    24 March 2002 Viola Concerto no.2 by Wolfgang Rihm (50) is performed for the first time, in Pester Redoute, Budapest.

    24 March 2003 Innocence by David Del Tredici (66) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    24 March 2004 Music for the Same Sea, a theatre piece by Paul Lansky (59) is performed for the first time, in Princeton, New Jersey.

    24 March 2005 Piano Concerto no.4 by Charles Wuorinen (66) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    24 March 2010 ImagE/contrabass&imAge/contrabass by Roger Reynolds (75) are performed for the first time, in Honolulu.

    24 March 2012 Fragmenta passionis for chorus by Wolfgang Rihm (60) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in the Sophienkirche, Berlin.

    25 March

    25 March 1699 Johann Adolph Hasse is baptized in Bergedorff, near Hamburg.

    25 March 1756 The cantata Jauchzet ihr Himmel TWV 1:  958 by Georg Philipp Telemann (75) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    25 March 1779 Enea e Lavinia, an opera seria by Antonio Sacchini (48) to words of Bottarelli, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    25 March 1781 Nachdem die Kinder for chorus and strings by Johannes Herbst (45) is performed for the first time.

    25 March 1782 A Clarinet Concerto by Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint Georges (36) is performed for the first time, at the Tuileries, Paris.

    25 March 1783 Le patriotisme, a grand opera by Georg Joseph Vogler (33), is performed for the first time, at Versailles.

    Also hat Gott die Welt for chorus and strings by Johannes Herbst (47) is performed for the first time.

    25 March 1784 Der Herr dein Gott wird sich for chorus and strings by Johannes Herbst (48) is performed for the first time.

    25 March 1812 Samuel Wesley (46) and his wife Charlotte Louisa Martin Wesley execute a deed of separation.

    25 March 1823 Drang in die Ferne D.770, a song by Franz Schubert (26) to words of Leitner, is published in the Zeitschrift für Kunst, Vienna.

    25 March 1826 Samuel Sebastian Wesley (15) is appointed organist at St. James’ Chapel, Hampstead Road, London.

    25 March 1851 The Pleyel piano factory in Paris suffers a devastating fire, throwing hundreds of people out of work.  A benefit concert for the workers will be organized by Louis Moreau Gottschalk (21).

    La belle voyageuse for female chorus and orchestra by Hector Berlioz (47) to words of Gounet after Moore is performed for the first time, at Salle Ste.-Cécile, Paris along with the premiere of Berlioz’ La menace des Francs for double chorus and orchestra to anonymous words.  Both are conducted by the composer

    25 March 1860 The board of directors of the Russian Musical Society resolves to found a conservatory.

    Symphony no.2 by Camille Saint-Saëns (24) is performed for the first time, at Salle Pleyel in Paris.

    25 March 1865 Marche religieuse by Ambroise Thomas (53) is performed for the first time, in Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris.

    25 March 1874 Variations on a Hungarian Song op.21/2 for piano by Johannes Brahms (40) is performed for the first time, in London.

    25 March 1875 Excerpts from Götterdämmerung by Richard Wagner (61) are performed for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna, conducted by the composer.

    Trial By Jury, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (32) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, at the Royalty Theatre, London conducted by the composer.  It is actually the third work on the program being preceded by a one-act farce called Cryptoconchoidsyphonostomata and a complete performance of La Périchole by Jacques Offenbach (55).  Despite the programming, it is an immediate success and runs for 131 performances.  The part of the judge is played by the composer’s brother, Frederic.

    25 March 1877 Charles Villiers Stanford (24) is officially appointed organist at Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge.

    25 March 1879 Symphony no.5 by Antonin Dvorák (37) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    25 March 1881 Béla Viktor János Bartók is born in Nagyszentmiklós, Torantál District, Hungary (Sînnicolau Mare, Timis District, Romania), first of two children born to Béla Bartók, director of the local agricultural school, and Paula Voit, schoolteacher, both amateur musicians.

    Symphony no.6 by Antonín Dvorák (39) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    25 March 1882 The Smugglers, an operetta by John Philip Sousa (27) to words of Vance after Burnand, is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Hall, Washington.

    25 March 1886 Paula Voit Bartók gives her son Béla his first piano lesson on his fifth birthday at their home in Nagyszentmiklós (Sînnicolau Mare).

    A setting of Ave regina caelorum for unison chorus and organ by Anton Bruckner (61) is performed for the first time, in Klosterneuberg.

    Charles Villiers Stanford (33) gives his first concert as conductor of the Bach Choir.

    25 March 1887 At a party in Moscow celebrating the birthday of Nikolay Zverev, students of the honoree perform at the piano for the guests, including Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (46).  Zverev’s students feature Sergey Rakhmaninov (13).  Tchaikovsky gives kisses to all the performers.

    25 March 1895 Silvano, a dramma marinaresco by Pietro Mascagni (31) to words of Targioni-Tozzetti after Karr, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The public is positive, and Mascagni is called ten times, but it is not the success of his earlier efforts.

    25 March 1898 Arnold Schoenberg (23) is baptized into the Protestant Dorotheer Community in Vienna.

    25 March 1904 Antonín Dvorák’s (62) opera Armida, to words of Vrchlicky after Tasso, is performed for the first time, at the National Theatre, Prague.  The composer is present but is forced to leave early, complaining of a pain in the side.  It is an illness from which he will not recover.

    25 March 1905 Francesca from the Three Dante Rhapsodies op.92 for piano by Charles Villiers Stanford (52) is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.  See 13 February 1905.

    25 March 1906 Claude Debussy (43) and Richard Strauss (41) meet for the first and only time, at the home of Jacques Durand.  Strauss has asked for the meeting to discuss organizations to distribute royalties.  Since Debussy knows little of the subject, Strauss is probably disappointed.

    25 March 1911 Claude Debussy’s (48) orchestration of his Children’s Corner Suite is performed for the first time, in Paris, the composer conducting.

    25 March 1914 The Seventy Thousand, for male chorus by Leos Janácek (59) to words of Bezruc, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    25 March 1917 Sept Improvisations for organ op.150 by Camille Saint-Saëns (81) are performed for the first time, at Théâtre des nations, Marseille by the composer.

    25 March 1918 22:00  During the German bombardment Achille-Claude Debussy dies in Paris of cancer, aged 55 years, seven months, and three days.

    On his return from concertizing in New York, Boston Symphony Orchestra conductor Karl Muck is arrested by Boston police and federal agents as an enemy alien.  He claims Swiss citizenship.

    25 March 1919 A Song of Agincourt for orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (66) is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.

    25 March 1920 The Hymn of Jesus op.37 for chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (45) to words from the Apocryphal Acts of St. John, is performed publicly for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, the composer conducting.  See 10 March 1920.

    25 March 1931 Suite en quatuor op. 55 for flute, violin, viola and piano by Charles Koechlin (63) is performed for the first time, in Salle de l’École Normale, Paris.  Also premiered is La mort du nombre for soprano, tenor, violin, and piano by Olivier Messiaen (22) to his own words, the composer at the keyboard.

    25 March 1932 In his first experiment with twelve-tone technique, Ernst Krenek’s (31) Gesänge des späten Jahres, a cycle of eleven songs for voice and piano to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Dresden.

    25 March 1935 Vier kleine Männerchöre for alto and male chorus by Ernst Krenek (34) to words of Hölderlin, are performed for the first time, in the Vienna Ehrbar-Saal.

    25 March 1938 The third program in the radio feature Lines on the Map entitled “Communication by Wireless” with music by Benjamin Britten (25) is broadcast for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.

    Who is Like Unto Thee for solo voice, chorus, and organ by Hugo Weisgall (25) to Hebrew liturgical words, is performed for the first time, in Temple Emanu-El, New York.

    25 March 1939 The aria from Bachianas Brasileiras no.5 for soprano and eight cellos by Heitor Villa-Lobos (52) is performed for the first time, in Rio de Janeiro.  See 10 October 1947.

    25 March 1942 Iannis Xenakis (19) takes part in a march in which students from Athens University parade through the capital to celebrate Greek independence day.

    Mikis Theodorakis (16) is arrested for hitting an Italian officer during a demonstration in Tripolis at the grave of Theodoros Kolokotronis, hero of the Greek war of independence.  While in prison he will be tortured and introduced to communism.

    Tree of Sorrow, an arrangement of Spanish folksongs for chorus by Carlos Chávez (42), is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    25 March 1945 Twelve Russian Folk Songs op.104 for voice and piano by Sergey Prokofiev (53) are performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Figure Humaine, a cantata by Francis Poulenc (46) to words of Eluard, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC, originating in London.

    25 March 1946 Sonatina no.2 for 16 winds by Richard Strauss (81) is performed for the first time, in Winterthur, Switzerland.

    Ebony Concerto for clarinet and jazz band by Igor Stravinsky (63) is performed for the first time, by Woody Herman and his band, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    25 March 1957 Eleven Chorale Preludes for organ by Virgil Thomson (60) are performed for the first time, in New Orleans.

    25 March 1958 Artikulation for four-track tape by György Ligeti (34) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, Cologne.  Also premiered is Bruno Maderna’s (37) tape work, Continuo.

    25 March 1959 Two FBI agents visit Marc Blitzstein (54) at his New York home.  He tells them that he has nothing to add to his testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee and that they are invading his privacy.  They do not press the matter.

    25 March 1960 Sextet for (A) clarinet, horn, and string quartet by John Ireland (80) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Square, London, 62 years after it was composed.

    String Quartet no.2 by Elliott Carter (51) is performed for the first time, in Juilliard Concert Hall, New York.  See 2 May 1960.

    Four Declamations with Return for violin and piano by Henry Cowell (63) is performed publicly for the first time, at the New School, New York.  Also premiered is Durations 2 for cello and piano by Morton Feldman (34).

    25 March 1962 Six Pieces for clarinet and chamber orchestra by TJ Anderson (33) is performed for the first time, in Oklahoma City.

    25 March 1964 Two works by Lejaren Hiller (40) are performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana:  a suite from his music to the film Time of the Heathen for chamber orchestra, and Nightmare Music for monaural tape.  Also premiered is Concerto for brass for brass ensemble and timpani by Ben Johnston (38).  It was performed in a version for piano four-hands in 1951.

    25 March 1966 String Quartet no.11 op.122 by Dmitri Shostakovich (59) is performed for the first time, privately, in a meeting of the USSR Composers’ Club, Moscow.  See 28 May 1966.

    Christian Wolff in Cambridge, a vocalise for chorus by Morton Feldman (40), is performed for the first time, at Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts directed by Alvin Lucier (34).

    Processional:  Let There Be Light for chorus and various instruments by Charles Ives (†10) to words of Ellerton, is performed for the first time, in Danbury, Connecticut.  Also premiered is Ives’ They are There! for unison chorus and orchestra, in a piano reduction, and the song Allegro to his own words.  See 16 October 1967.

    25 March 1970 At the urging of her friend, the pianist Maria Venianimovna Yudina, Sofia Gubaidulina (38) is baptized into the Russian Orthodox Church in the Church of the Prophet Elijah, Moscow.

    25 March 1971 Sound effects for the musical Flibbertygibbet by Vladimir Ussachevsky (59) are performed for the first time, at Weber State College, Ogden, Utah.

    25 March 1973 The Dreamer that Remains:  a Study in Loving, a film with music by Harry Partch (71) is shown for the first time, at the Unicorn Cinema in La Jolla, California.  The film is a documentary about Partch.

    25 March 1974 Calmo for mezzo-soprano and 22 players by Luciano Berio (48) to words of various authors is performed for the first time, in Milan conducted by the composer.  See 16 October 1990.

    25 March 1976 Concerto for cello and orchestra by Isang Yun (58) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    25 March 1979 Maddalena, an incomplete opera by Sergey Prokofiev (†26) after Lieven, orchestrated by Downes, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London 68 years after it was composed.

    25 March 1984 Duets for Storab for two flutes by Harrison Birtwistle (49) is performed for the first time, in Rosslyn Hill Chapel, London.

    The “Rome section” of The CIVIL warS:  “A Tree is Best Measured When it is Down”, a music theatre piece by Philip Glass (47) and Robert Wilson to words of Niscemi from Seneca and others, is performed for the first time, in Rome.  It was commissioned by the Rome opera.

    25 March 1987 Two works for soprano and eight players by Sofia Gubaidulina (55) is performed for the first time, in Cologne:  Hommage à T.S. Eliot and Ein Walzerspass nach Johann Strauss.

    25 March 1993 The third version of Steps for orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (61) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.  See 22 June 1989 and 19 December 1990.

    Piano Quintet by Hans Werner Henze (66) is performed for the first time, at the University of California, Berkeley.

    25 March 1994 Trio for clarinet, violin, and piano by William Bolcom (55) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    25 March 1995 Appassionatamente for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (68) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    25 March 1997 A 12-Tone Morning After to Amuse Henry for piano by Lou Harrison (79) is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York, 52 years after it was composed.  This is the centennial year of its dedicatee, Henry Cowell (†31).

    25 March 2000 Auf einem anderen Blatt for piano by Wolfgang Rihm (48) is performed for the first time, in London.

    25 March 2001 Tan Dun (43) wins an Academy Award® for his score to the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

    25 March 2010 Trail of Tears for flute and orchestra by Michael Daugherty (55) is performed for the first time, in the Holland County Performing Arts Center, Omaha, Nebraska.

    25 March 2011 Fantasy on a Cherished Named (In memoriam Andrew Imbrie) for piano by David Del Tredici (74) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.  Andrew Imbrie (†3) was one of the composer’s teachers at the University of California, Berkeley.

    26 March

    26 March 1517 Heinrich Isaac dies in Florence, aged somewhere between 62 and 67 years.

    26 March 1566 Antonio de Cabezón dies in Madrid, aged approximately 56 years.

    26 March 1755 Der Tod Jesu, a passion cantata by Karl Heinrich Graun (51) to words of Ramler after Princess Amalia, is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Cathedral.  The continuo part is played by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (41).  His brother, Johann Christian Bach (19), is in the audience.

    26 March 1776 Christian Gottlob Neefe’s (28) drama Heinrich und Lyda to words of “B.C. d’Arien”, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    26 March 1778 Ludwig van Beethoven (7) appears in concert for the first time, with his father and another child-student of his father, in the Academy Room on the Sternengasse, Cologne.

    26 March 1789 La prêtresse du soleil, a drame by Giuseppe Cambini (43) to words of Gabiot de Salins, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Comte de Beaujolais, Paris.

    26 March 1791 The newly rebuilt King’s Theatre officially opens in London, although free performances have occurred there over the last month.  The Prince of Wales is in attendance.

    26 March 1796 A new version of Die sieben letzten Worte unseres Erlösers am Kreuze, an oratorio by Joseph Haydn (63) to words possibly by Friebert and van Swieten, is performed for the first time, in the Vienna palace of Prince Joseph Schwarzenberg.

    26 March 1810 Mathilde von Guise, an opera by Johan Nepomuk Hummel (31) after Mercier-Dupaty is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    Der Fischer und das Milchmädchen, oder Viel Lärm um einen Kuss, a divertissement by Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (18) to words of Lauchery, is performed for the first time, at the Royal Theatre, Berlin.

    26 March 1813 A Triumphal March for Kuffner’s play Tarpeja by Ludwig van Beethoven (42) is performed for the first time.

    26 March 1827 Late afternoon.  Ludwig van Beethoven dies in Vienna, of liver failure caused by cirrhosis, aged 56 years, three months and ten days, and 49 years to the day after his first public performance.  True to his turbulent life and the disruptive impact he will exert on the tonal art, the day is marked by a snowfall followed by a thunderstorm at the time of his passing.

    Moïse et Pharaon, ou Le passage de la Mer rouge, an opera by Gioachino Rossini (35) to words of Balocchi and de Jouy after Tottola, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra, to a wildly enthusiastic reception.

    26 March 1828 The first concert consisting entirely of the works of Franz Schubert (31) takes place in Vienna.  Originally planned for 21 March it is changed to coincide with the first anniversary of Beethoven’s death.  Songs performed for the first time are Auf dem Strom D.943 to words of Rellstab, Fischerweise D.881 to words of Schlecht, Der Kreuzzug D.932 to words of Leitner and Die Sterne also to words of Leitner.  Other premieres include the Schlachtlied D.912 for double male chorus to words of Klopstock and the first movement of the String Quartet D.887.  See 8 December 1850.

    26 March 1832 The mortal remains of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe are laid to rest in Weimar.  Music for the event is composed and directed by Johann Nepomuk Hummel (53).

    26 March 1836 Daniel-François-Esprit Auber’s (54) opéra comique Les chaperons blanc to words of Scribe is performed for the first time, at Théâtre de la Bourse, Paris.

    26 March 1844 La sirène, an opéra comique by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (62) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    26 March 1855 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (25) goes aloft in a hot air balloon piloted by one Godard.  They ascend from New Orleans and float north for only six minutes, landing on the tracks of the Pontchartrain Railroad.  He is perhaps the first composer to fly.  See 1 April 1855.

    26 March 1861 Anton Bruckner (36) completes his studies in canon and fugue with his Vienna instructor Simon Sechter, largely through correspondence.

    26 March 1870 Bitterly and Sweetly op.6/3, a song for voice and piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (29) to words of Rostopchina, is performed for the first time.

    26 March 1872 Introduction et variations for ten players by Jules Massenet (29) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    26 March 1874 Excerpts from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (31) unperformed opera Oprichnik are performed for the first time, in Moscow.  See 24 April 1874.

    26 March 1875 The first act of Camille Saint-Saëns’ (39) unstaged opera Samson et Dalila, to words of Lemaire, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Paris.  It is not well received.  See 2 December 1877.

    26 March 1881 In Paris, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (40), Jules Massenet (38), Eduard Lalo and Ivan Turgenyev are among the many who oversee the placing of the body of Nikolay Rubinstein in a lead coffin to be transported to Moscow.  He died recently of intestinal tuberculosis.

    Festmarsch in E flat op.1 by Richard Strauss (16) is performed for the first time, in the Augsburger Hof hotel, Munich.

    26 March 1887 O liebliche Wangen op.47/4, a song by Johannes Brahms (53) to words of Flemming, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    26 March 1897 Clear and Cool op.5 for chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (22) to words of Kingsley is performed for the first time, in the Athenaeum, London.  This is part of a choral and dramatic evening featuring Holst’s chorus, the Hammersmith Socialist Choir.  Following the choral program, a one-act play is presented, The Anarchist by Fritz Hart, wherein Holst takes a leading role.

    26 March 1904 Romance in C op.42 for strings by Jean Sibelius (38) is performed for the first time, in Turku, conducted by the composer.

    26 March 1906 The Free Lance, an operetta by John Philip Sousa (51) to words of Smith, is performed for the first time, at the Court Square Theatre in Springfield, Massachusetts.

    26 March 1909 Symphony no.1 op.15 by Karol Szymanowski (26) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    Four Old English Carols op.20b by Gustav Holst (34) for chorus and piano, are given their first complete performance, in Blackburn, Lancashire.  See 20 February 1909.

    26 March 1910 Finnish Fantasy op.88 for orchestra by Alyeksandr Glazunov (44) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    26 March 1917 Elegiac Trio for flute, viola and harp by Arnold Bax (33) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    26 March 1919 The sixth of the Six Songs op.3 by Arnold Schoenberg (44) is performed for the first time, in the Mozartsaal, Vienna.  See 26 January 1907.

    26 March 1922 Sancta Susanna op.21, an opera by Paul Hindemith (26) to words of Stramm, is performed for the first time, at the Opernhaus, Frankfurt-am-Main.

    26 March 1925 Pierre Boulez is born in Montbrison, in the Loire region, third of four children born to Léon Boulez, engineer and technical director of a steel factory, and Marcelle Calabre.

    26 March 1926 Fünf Lieder op.19 for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (25) to words of Krzyzanowski and Klopstock, are performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    26 March 1927 Trois chansons de la petite Sirène for voice, flute, and string quartet by Arthur Honegger (35) to words of Morax (after Andersen), are performed for the first time, for a marionette show at the Salle Pleyel, Paris directed by the composer.

    26 March 1933 Mouvement symphonique no.3 by Arthur Honegger (41) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  Owing to the new cultural atmosphere in Germany, the work is not received well.

    An Alla Marcia for string quartet by Benjamin Britten (19) is performed for the first time, privately, at the home of the composer’s teacher, Frank Bridge (54), in Friston, Sussex.  Bridge plays the viola part.  The work will be withdrawn and used in Les Illuminations.

    26 March 1936 The publishers Heugel in Paris notify Kurt Weill (36) that they will end their contract with him effective 31 December.  They can’t make enough money off of him.

    Piano Sonata no.1 by Lou Harrison (18) is performed for the first time, at the California School of Fine Arts, San Francisco.

    26 March 1938 String Quartet no.2 by William Schuman (27) is performed for the first time, in New York.  This concert is a production of the New York City Composers’ Forum of the Federal Music Project.

    26 March 1939 A Set of Three Pieces for two pianos, four hands by Lukas Foss (16) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    26 March 1943 William Schuman’s (32) cantata A Free Song (Secular Cantata no.2) to words of Whitman for chorus and orchestra is performed for the first time, in Boston.  See 3 May 1943.

    Sergey Rakhmaninov (69) passes into a coma, in Los Angeles.

    26 March 1945 Vingt regards sur l’enfant Jesus for piano by Olivier Messiaen (36) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    26 March 1946 A large demonstration takes place in Athens against the elections scheduled for 31 March.  They are attacked by soldiers and police and many are injured in the beatings, including Mikis Theodorakis (20).  He is knocked unconscious and awakes lying in a morgue surrounded by corpses.  See 27 March 1946.

    26 March 1947 Khamma, a ballet by Claude Debussy (†29) to a scenario by Courtney and Allan, is staged for the first time, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris 35 years after it was composed.  See 15 November 1924.

    The Minotaur, a ballet by Elliott Carter (38) to a scenario by George Ballanchine, is performed for the first time, in the Central High School of Needle Trades, New York.

    26 March 1949 Mikis Theodorakis (23) is one of 35 political prisoners left out of an original number of 30,000 on the island of Makronissos.  They refuse to sign a loyalty document and are beaten for ten hours.  Theodorakis is tortured until his right leg is broken and his jaw dislocated.  He is shortly transferred to a military hospital in Athens where he will remain for two months.

    26 March 1955 Canti per 13 for 13 instruments by Luigi Nono (31) is performed for the first time, in Paris, conducted by Pierre Boulez on the conductor’s 30th birthday.

    26 March 1956 Haut Voltage by Pierre Henry (28) is performed for the first time, at l’Opéra de Metz.  It is one of the first examples of electro-acoustic music, combining musique-concrète, electronic sound generators, voices, and instruments.

    26 March 1957 The Bewitched, a dance satire by Harry Partch (55) to his own story, is performed for the first time, in Urbana, Illinois.  Partch finds the choreographey utterly useless.

    26 March 1958 Musique Funèbre by Witold Lutoslawski (45) is performed for the first time, in Katowice.  It is dedicated to the Poles who resisted the Nazi occupation.

    Incidental music to Shaw’s play Back to Methuselah by Otto Luening (57) and Vladimir Ussachevsky (46) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Duo for viola and piano by Ralph Shapey (37) is performed for the first time, at the Third Street Music School Settlement, New York.

    Henry Cowell’s (61) orchestral work Ongaku is performed for the first time, in Columbia Auditorium, Louisville.

    26 March 1960 Concerted Piece for tape recorder and orchestra by Otto Luening (59) and Vladimir Ussachevsky (48) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by Leonard Bernstein (41).  This is a taped “Young People’s Concert” which will be aired tomorrow.  The official premiere will take place on 31 March.

    Evocation no.1 for violin with piano and percussion by Ralph Shapey (39) is performed for the first time, at the Third Street Music School Settlement, New York.

    26 March 1961 Durations 3 for violin, tuba, and piano by Morton Feldman (35) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    26 March 1962 The first four of the Eight Instrumental Miniatures by Igor Stravinsky (79) are performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.  See 29 April 1962.

    26 March 1963 Three Inventions for bassoon by George Perle (47) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    26 March 1965 In memoriam:  Die weiße Rose for small orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (38) is performed for the first time, in Bologna.

    Eclat for 15 instruments by Pierre Boulez is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles, the composer conducting on his 40th birthday.  See 21 October 1970.

    26 March 1970 A parliamentary delegation from Scandinavia arrives in Athens with a Danish lung specialist.  They are intent on giving medical treatment to Mikis Theodorakis (44), currently imprisoned by the Greek military government.  They are not allowed out of the airport.

    26 March 1972 The last of the 53 Young People’s Concerts by Leonard Bernstein (53) and the New York Philharmonic is broadcast over the CBS television network.

    Spaces for orchestra by Ross Lee Finney (65) is performed for the first time, in Fargo, North Dakota.

    26 March 1976 Theraps for double bass by Iannis Xenakis (53) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    String Quartet no.3 by Lejaren Hiller (50) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo 23 years after it was composed.

    Monodrama:  Portrait of an Artist, a ballet by Karel Husa (54) based on the thoughts of James Baldwin, is performed for the first time, in Indianapolis.

    26 March 1980 String Quartet no.4 by Leslie Bassett (57) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    26 March 1981 The Turfan Fragments for orchestra by Morton Feldman (55) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Swiss-Italian Radio.

    26 March 1982 Nekuïa for chorus and orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (59) to words of Richter and the composer, is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    26 March 1983 Temperaments for solo guitar by Leslie Bassett (60) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    26 March 1984 Requies for chamber orchestra by Luciano Berio (58) is performed for the first time, in Lausanne.  See 13 August 1985.

    26 March 1987 Not for You for voice and piano by Witold Lutoslawski (74) to words of Illakowicz is performed for the first time, in Kraków.  Also premiered is Were You but a Dream? for voice and piano by Krzysztof Penderecki (53) to words of Przerwy-Tetmajer.

    26 March 1988 Narcissus for clarinet with digital delay by Thea Musgrave (59) is performed for the first time, in Norfolk, Virginia.

    Easter Day, an anthem for chorus by Dominick Argento (60) to words of Crashaw, is performed for the first time, in Plymouth Congregational Church, Minneapolis.

    26 March 1989 Easter Day for chorus by Dominick Argento (61) to words of Crashaw is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    26 March 1991 I Will Breathe a Mountain, a cycle for medium voice and piano by William Bolcom (52) to various American women poets, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    26 March 1992 Études aperçues for vibraphone and five cowbells by Betsy Jolas (65) is performed for the first time, in a recording session in Paris.  See 28 January 1995.

    Fanfares and Reflection for two violins by John Harbison (53) is performed for the first time, in Renée Weiler Concert Hall, New York.

    26 March 1993 Troorkh for trombone and orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (70) is performed for the first time, in Berwald Hall, Stockholm.

    26 March 1998 Hans Werner Henze (71) is awarded the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art in Munich.

    Concerto for violin and orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (58) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    26 March 1999 Placid Mobile for 36 muted trumpets by Harrison Birtwistle (64) is performed for the first time, in London.

    26 March 2000 Die Harmonie der Welt, an opera by Paul Hindemith (†36) to his own words, is performed completely for the first time, in Berlin.

    Ostinato with Melody for piano by Harrison Birtwistle (65) is performed for the first time, in the South Bank Center, London.  Also premiered is Retrouvailles for piano by Elliott Carter (91).

    John Corigliano (62) wins an Academy Award® for his score to the film, The Red Violin.

    26 March 2001 The Mannheim Rocket for orchestra by John Corigliano (63) is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.

    26 March 2006 Für Lennart in memoriam for string orchestra by Arvo Pärt (70) is performed for the first time, in Tallinn.  It was commissioned by former Estonian President Lennart Meri for his own funeral.

    26 March 2007 The French ambassador in Athens confers the honor of Commander of the Legion of Honor on Mikis Theodorakis (81) in a ceremony at the French embassy.

    Voices of Power and Protest for chorus by Thea Musgrave (78) to her own words is performed for the first time, in the Hall for Ethical Culture, New York.

    26 March 2008 Double Sextet for twelve players or six players and tape by Steve Reich (71) is performed for the first time, at the University of Richmond, Virginia.

    27 March

    27 March 1753 Silla, an opera by Karl Heinrich Graun (49) to words of King Friedrich II, translated by Tagliazucchi, is performed for the first time, in the Berlin Opera House.

    27 March 1754 Semiramide, an opera by Karl Heinrich Graun (50) to words of Tagliazucchi after Voltaire, is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Opera.

    27 March 1756 La Merope, an opera by Karl Heinrich Graun (52) to words of King Friedrich II after Voltaire, translated by Tagliazucchi, is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Opera.  Due to the impending war, this is the last opera produced in the Berlin Opera House until 17 December 1764.

    27 March 1767 Gioas, an oratorio by Antonio Sacchini (36), is performed for the first time, in Rome.

    27 March 1783 I vecchi burlati, a dramma giocoso by Pasquale Anfossi (55), is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    27 March 1808 Franz Joseph Haydn (75) makes his last public appearance at a performance of The Creation conducted by Antonio Salieri (57), in an auditorium of the University of Vienna.  The performance is attended by several notables, including Prince Lobkowitz, Princess Esterházy and Ludwig van Beethoven (37).  In fact, the crowd is so large that police are brought in.  Haydn is carried into the hall on a litter.  At the words “and there was light”, the assembled multitude bursts into applause.  As the emotion of the day becomes too much for him, doctors order that the composer be carried out just as the second part is about to begin.

    27 March 1819 Ermione, an azione tragica by Gioachino Rossini (27) to words of Tottola after Racine, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.  The audience reaction is tepid.

    27 March 1831 Samuel Sebastian Wesley (20) resigns his position as organist at St. John, Waterloo Road, London.

    27 March 1841 The wife of Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (36), from whom he has separated but not divorced, marries Nikolay Nikolayevich Vasilchikov, nephew of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers.

    In his first concert back from the British Isles, Franz Liszt (29) appears in the Salle Erard, Paris.  One Russian audience member, Anton Rubinstein (11), is overwhelmed.

    27 March 1847 Slaven-Potpourri op.39 by Johann Strauss (21) is performed for the first time, in the Sperl Ballroom, Vienna.

    27 March 1850 Three orchestral works by Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (45) are performed for the first time, in the Hall of the Nobility, St. Petersburg:  Capriccio brillante (on the Jota aragonesa), Kamarinskaya and Recuerdos de Castilla.  They are all a result of his recent journey to Spain.  The audience is so delighted they require the repetition of Kamarinskaya.

    27 March 1851 Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d’Indy is born in Paris, the first child born to Antonin d’Indy, a wealthy aristocrat, and Matilde de Chabrol-Crousol, also of an aristocratic family.  Matilde, age 21, does not survive the birth.  Antonin d’Indy will marry again in 1855, a union which will produce three more children.

    27 March 1860 Daphnis et Chloé, an operetta by Jacques Offenbach (40) to words of Nicolaie (pseud. of Clairville) and Cordier (pseud. of de Vaulabelle), is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    27 March 1866 The jury seeking an authentic Czech opera awards first prize (the Harrach Prize) to Bedrich Smetana (42) for The Brandenburgers in Bohemia.

    27 March 1870 The Mémoires of Hector Berlioz (†1) are advertised for sale in Le Ménestrel, Paris.

    27 March 1874 The Two Widows, a comic opera by Bedrich Smetana (50) to words of Züngel after Mallefille, is performed for the first time, at the Prague Provisional Theatre.  The audience response is warm but the critics are mixed.

    27 March 1879 Maria Tudor, an opera seria by Carlos Gomes (42) to words of Praga after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    27 March 1882 Alla gioia, a cantata by Pietro Mascagni (18) to words of Schiller translated by Maffei, is performed for the first time, in Teatro degli Avvalorati, Livorno.

    27 March 1883 Gabriel Fauré (37) marries Marie Fremiet, daughter of a sculptor, in the town hall of the 16th arrondissement, Paris.

    27 March 1884 The Characteristic Suite op.9 for orchestra by Alyeksandr Glazunov (18) is performed for the first time, in the Great Hall of the Peter-Paul School, St. Petersburg, conducted by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (40).

    27 March 1885 Allegretto on GEDGE for violin and piano by Edward Elgar (27) is performed for the first time, in Malvern.

    27 March 1890 The Wreck of the Hesperus op.17 for chorus and orchestra by Arthur Foote (37) to words of Longfellow is performed for the first time to orchestral accompaniment, in Boston.  See 26 January 1888.

    27 March 1892 Seid umschlungen Millionenen op.443, a waltz by Johann Strauss (66), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    27 March 1897 One day after the 70th anniversary of the death of Beethoven, Johannes Brahms (63) takes to his bed with liver cancer.

    Symphony no.1 by Sergey Rakhmaninov (23) is performed for the first time, in the Hall of the Nobility, St. Petersburg, conducted by Alyeksandr Glazunov (31).  The work is a disaster, partly due to the performance, partly due to the music.  Rakhmaninov can not force himself to enter the auditorium, hiding on the stairs to the balcony and pressing his fists to his ears, finally running out into the street.  He will later blame the conductor.  “…all my hopes, all belief in myself, had been destroyed; abject misery had taken the place of my former arrogance.”  (Scott, 48)

    27 March 1898 Pietro Mascagni (34) conducts a symphonic concert for the first time in an important house, at La Scala, Milan.  His conducting ability is warmly received.

    27 March 1903 The Piano Fantasy I by Béla Bartók (22) is performed for the first time, in Budapest, by the composer.

    27 March 1909 New compositions are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique in Salle Erard, Paris: Quintet for piano and strings op.51 by Florent Schmitt (38), and Four piano pieces by Manuel de Falla (32), Aragonesa, Cubana, Montañesa, and Andaluza.  These are known collectively as Cuatro piezas españolas.

    27 March 1911 Crépuscule/Twilight op.62, a concert aria for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by Horatio Parker (47) to words of de Beaufort (tr. Whitney), is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.  It wins first prize in a contest sponsored by the National Federation of Music Clubs.

    27 March 1912 Festival Overture for orchestra by Arnold Bax (28) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    27 March 1913 The Bard op.64, a symphonic poem by Jean Sibelius (47), is performed for the first time, in Helsinki directed by the composer.

    27 March 1914 The Symphony no.2 “A London Symphony” by Ralph Vaughan Williams (41) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.  Also on the program is the premiere of Three Songs with Orchestra by Arnold Bax (30), to words of Fiona Macleod, anonymous, and the composer.

    27 March 1916 Otto Luening (15) makes his concert debut as a flutist, in Munich.

    27 March 1917 The Dallapiccola family (including Luigi (13)) arrive in Graz from their home in Pisino d’Istria to be interned by Austrian authorities who suspect them of Italian nationalism.

    La Rondine, a commedia lirica by Giacomo Puccini (58) to words of Adami after Willner and Reichert, is performed for the first time, at the Monte Carlo Opéra.  The composer calls it a “true success.”  See 9 April 1915.

    27 March 1921 Five Songs Without Words for voice and piano op.35 by Sergey Prokofiev (35) are performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 March 1923 An arrangement of Modest Musorgsky’s opera Sorochintsy Fair by Nikolay Nikolayevich Tcherepnin is performed for the first time, at the Monte Carlo Opéra on the eve of the 42nd anniversary of his death.

    Cantique de Pâques, a cantata by Arthur Honegger (31) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Toulouse.

    27 March 1924 Irrelohe, an opera by Franz Schreker (46) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Cologne.  Despite the glittering event, the critical response is tepid.

    27 March 1925 Several works for voice and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams (52) are performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London:  Two Poems by Seamas O’Sullivan (pseud. of James Starkey), Three Songs from Shakespeare and Four Poems by Fredegond Shove.

    27 March 1926 Der Protagonist, an opera by Kurt Weill (26) to words of Kaiser, is performed for the first time, at the Dresden Staatsoper.  It is a tremendous success.  The dedicatee, Lotte Lenja (Frau Weill) will remember forty curtain calls.

    27 March 1927 Chamber Concerto for piano, violin, and 13 winds by Alban Berg (42) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  The composer based this work on the names of Schoenberg (52), Webern (43), and himself.

    27 March 1928 In Paris, Armand Givelet demonstrates an instrument similar to the Thereminovox but with more accurate intonation.

    27 March 1929 Piano Sonata no.2 by Ernst Krenek (28) is performed for the first time, in the Grotrian-Steinweg Saal, Berlin.

    Frau Musica op.45/1, a cantata for chorus and orchestra by Paul Hindemith (33) to words of Luther, is performed for the first time, in Nuremberg.  Also performed is Hindemith’s Ein Jäger aus Kurpfalz op.45/3 for strings and winds.

    27 March 1932 Girl Crazy, a film with music by George Gershwin (33), is released in the United States.

    27 March 1933 Two Songs for voice and piano by Ruth Crawford Seeger (31) to words of Tsiang are performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.  The critics are very negative.

    27 March 1935 Das Weib des Intaphernes, a melodrama by Franz Schreker (†1), is performed for the first time, at a memorial concert in Vienna.

    Incidental music to Claudel’s (after Aeschylus) play Les choëphores by Darius Milhaud (42) is staged for the first time, in Brussels.

    27 March 1936 William Schuman (25), having secured employment at Sarah Lawrence College, marries Frances Prince, daughter of a businessman in the wine and liquor trade, at her family’s apartment at 41 West 96th Street, New York.  In the afternoon, the wedding party and guests walk to the West Side piers where the couple boards ship for Virginia Beach.

    From the Revelation of St. John the Divine for male chorus, three trumpets, two pianos, and timpani by Colin McPhee (36) is performed for the first time, in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York.

    Farewell to Pioneers by Roy Harris (38) is performed for the first time, in the Philadelphia Academy of Music conducted by Carlos Chávez (36).

    27 March 1941 Béla Bartók (60) begins transcribing the recordings of Serbo-Croatian folk music held in the Milman Parry Collection of Harvard University.  He is doing his work in New York at Columbia University.

    Symphony no.3 by Alfredo Casella (57) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    27 March 1942 La Duchesse de Longeais, a film with music by Francis Poulenc (43), is shown for the first time, in Paris.

    27 March 1943 Michael Tippett’s (38) String Quartet no.2 is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    A cable arrives at Sergey Rakhmaninov’s (69) Beverly Hills home congratulating him on his 70th birthday.  It is signed by several notable Soviet composers.

    27 March 1945 A symphonic allegro by Peter Mennin (21) is performed for the first time, in New York conducted by Leonard Bernstein (26).  See 27 November 1945.

    27 March 1946 After awakening in a morgue following a brutal beating by police, friends of Mikis Theodorakis (20) get him transferred to a more secure hospital where he is diagnosed with a fractured skull and operated on.  He will be hospitalized for two months.  The beating causes permanent impairment of the vision in his left eye.  See 26 March 1946.

    Marche nuptiale op.108 for organ by Florent Schmitt (75) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Tricks and Trifles for orchestra by Ernst Krenek (45) is performed for the first time, in Northrop Auditorium, Minneapolis.

    27 March 1949 Aaron Copland (48) addresses the Waldorf Peace Conference in New York on “The Effect of the Cold War on the Artist in the United States.”  He laments the current practice of having to choose between “the mass-appeal music of a Shostakovich (42) and the musical radicalism of a Schoenberg (74).”

    Before 18,000 people in Madison Square Garden, New York, Dmitri Shostakovich (42) plays a piano reduction of the scherzo from his Fifth Symphony, thus bringing the Waldorf Peace Conference to a close.

    Symphony no.7 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (62) is performed for the first time, in London the composer conducting.

    27 March 1950 String Quartet no.2 by Ralph Shapey (29) is performed for the first time, in Times Hall, New York.

    27 March 1952 In the Concert Hall of the Juilliard School of Music in New York, John Cage (39) first reads the “Juilliard Lecture.”

    27 March 1955 Mottete zur Opferung, zür das ganze Kirchenjahr for chorus by Ernst Krenek (54) is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    From a Lost Continent for chorus and orchestra by William Grant Still (59) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Flemish Belgian Radio, originating in Brussels.  See 22 May 1953.

    Three Pieces After Blake for soprano and orchestra by Ulysses Kay (38) is performed for the first time, at Cooper Union, New York.

    Music for Orchestra op.50 by Wallingford Riegger (69) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 March 1961 Symphonia sacra for tenor, baritone, bass, two violins, two oboes, double bass, and organ by Charles Wuorinen (22) to words from the Bible is performed for the first time, in St. Thomas’ Church, New York.

    27 March 1962 Hymn and Celebration for orchestra by Robert Ward (44) is performed for the first time, in Phoenix, Arizona.

    27 March 1968 Introit for March 27 for soprano, alto, chorus, and orchestra by John Tavener (24) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.  The performance is to honor the London Bach Society.  Tavener chose as his text the liturgy for St. John Damascene, on whose feast day the concert happens to fall.

    27 March 1969 Age of Consent, a film with music by Peter Sculthorpe (39), is shown for the first time, in the Odeon Theatre, Brisbane.

    27 March 1973 Suite in Old Style for violin and piano by Alfred Schnittke (38) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    27 March 1974 Two works for violin and piano by Alfred Schnittke (39) are performed for the first time, in Moscow: Gratulations Rondo and Suite in Old Style.

    27 March 1978 A la busca del más allá for orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (76) is performed for the first time, in Jones Hall, Houston.  The work was composed to honor the NASA astronauts and the bicentennial of American independence.

    27 March 1979 In croce for cello and organ by Sofia Gubaidulina (47) is performed for the first time, in Kazan.

    27 March 1987 Song of Cherubim for chorus by Krzysztof Penderecki (53) to Old Slavonic words is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    27 March 1989 Brass Quintet by Leslie Bassett (66) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    27 March 1992 Concerto for violin and orchestra op.70 by Robin Holloway (48) is performed for the first time, in Manchester.

    In Theresienstadt for mezzo-soprano and piano by Alexander Goehr (59) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio 3.

    Festival Alleluia for chorus by Ned Rorem (68) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    27 March 1993 Death and Fire:  Dialoque with Paul Klee for orchestra by Tan Dun (35) is performed for the first time, in Glasgow.

    27 March 1997 Petite symphonie concertante for violin and orchestra by Betsy Jolas (70) is performed for the first time, in the Grand Théâtre de Besançon.

    27 March 2002 ...around Stravinsky op.72 for violin, oboe, english horn, clarinet in A, and bassoon by Alexander Goehr (69) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.

    27 March 2003 Lavant-Gesänge, a cycle for alto and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (51) to words of Lavant, is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.

    27 March 2004 The Mallet Concerto by Ned Rorem (80) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 March 2005 Sea Soaring and Music Garden for prerecorded flute, electronics, and audience-interactive hyperinstruments by Tod Machover (51) is performed for the first time, in Marshall Fields, Minneapolis.  It was commissioned by Marshall Fields for their annual garden show.

    27 March 2006 Another Life for nine instruments and electronics by Tod Machover (52) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    27 March 2008 The Stars Have Not Dealt for voice and piano by Ned Rorem (84) to words of Houseman is performed for the first time, at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

    28 March

    28 March 1563 Heinrich Glarean dies in Freiburg, aged 74 years and about ten months.

    28 March 1778 Le jugement de Midas, an opéra-comique by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (37) to words of d’Hèle after O’Hara, is performed for the first time, in the apartments of Mme de Montesson in the Palais Royal, Paris.  See 27 June 1778.

    28 March 1780 Das tartarische Gesetz, a singspiel by Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg (20) to words of Gotter, is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    28 March 1782 A Bassoon Concerto by Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint Georges (36) is performed for the first time, at the Concert Spirituel, Paris.

    28 March 1785 Domenico Cimarosa (35) is promoted to the post of second organist at the Royal Chapel, Naples.  He now receives a salary.

    28 March 1793 François-André Danican-Philidor (66) is placed by the National Convention on a list of emigrés who will be killed upon their return to France.  He will not discover this until the war between France and Great Britain ends in 1795.

    Le jeune sage et le vieux fou, a comédie mêlée de musique by Etienne-Nicolas Méhul (29) to words of Hoffman, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.  It is not an immediate success but it will remain in the repertoire.

    28 March 1800 Franz Joseph Haydn’s (67) Trumpet Concerto is performed for the first time, in the Vienna Burgtheater, by Anton Weidinger, inventor of the “organisierte Trompete”, for whom Haydn composed the work.

    28 March 1801 The Creatures of Prometheus, a ballet by Ludwig van Beethoven (30), is performed for the first time, in the Hofburgtheater, Vienna.  An approving Joseph Haydn (68) is in the audience.

    28 March 1820 Six Antiphons for the consecration of Palms on Palm Sunday D.696 for mixed choir by Franz Schubert (23) are performed for the first time, in the Alt-Lerchenfelder Kirche, Vienna.  They were all composed two days ago in the space of 30 minutes.

    28 March 1835 Le cheval de bronze, an opéra-féerie by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (53) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    28 March 1837 Felix Mendelssohn (28) marries Cécile Charlotte Sophia Jeanrenaud, daughter of a pastor in the French Reformed Church, in the French Reformed Church of Frankfurt-am-Main.  Mendelssohn’s mother and two sisters are absent.  His mother is ill and his sisters are both pregnant.

    28 March 1842 Maria Petrovna Glinka denies under oath that she ever married Nikolay Nikolayevich Vasilchikov and that she ever received letters from him.  She says that her husband, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (37), bribed “the serf girl” to lie for him.  She does not want a divorce.

    28 March 1854 After the Requiem mass for the funeral of Michael Arneth, prior of St. Florian and friend of Anton Bruckner (29), Bruckner’s Vor Arneths Grab for chorus and three trombones and Libera me, Domine (II) for chorus, three trombones, cello, double bass and organ are heard for the first time.

    28 March 1859 Serenade in D op.11 by Johannes Brahms (25) is performed for the first time, in the version for small orchestra, in the Wörmerscher Saal, Hamburg.  See 3 March 1860.

    28 March 1862 Richard Wagner (48) is pardoned by King Johann of Saxony and allowed to reenter the country after an exile of 13 years.

    28 March 1870 Excerpts from Undina, an opera by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (29) to words of Sollogub after de la Motte Fouqué, are performed for the first time, in the Bolshoy Theatre, Moscow.

    28 March 1871 New works by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (30) are performed for the first time, in Moscow:  String Quartet no.1, Nature and Love for female chorus and piano to his own words, To Forget So Soon, a song for voice and piano to words of Apukhtin, and two works for piano solo, Rêverie op.9/1 and Mazurka de salon op.9/3.  The performance is very successful.

    28 March 1874 Variations on a Theme of Beethoven op.35 for two pianos by Camille Saint-Saëns (38) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    28 March 1881 05:00  Modest Petrovich Musorgsky dies in Nikolayevsky Military Hospital, St. Petersburg of the cumulative effects of alcoholism, aged 42 years and seven days.

    28 March 1882 Catalanes de Gracia, a zarzuela by Isaac Albéniz (21) to words of Palomino de Guzmán, is performed for the first time in the Salón Eslava, Madrid.  It is enthusiastically received by the audience.

    28 March 1884 Arthur Sullivan (41) writes to Richard D’Oyly Carte that he can no longer collaborate with Gilbert.

    Etude en forme de variations for piano by Ferruccio Busoni (17) is performed for the first time, in Vienna by the composer.

    28 March 1885 The Spectre’s Bride, a dramatic cantata by Antonín Dvorák (43) to words of Erben, is performed for the first time, in Pilsen (Plzen), conducted by the composer.

    Amy Marcy Cheney (17) plays with a major orchestra for the first time, performing Chopin’s (†35) f minor concerto with the Boston Symphony.

    28 March 1896 Andrea Chénier, a dramma istorico by Umberto Giordano (28) to words of Illica, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  It is extremely successful and secures his fame.

    28 March 1897 Heut’ ist heut’ op. 471, a waltz by Johann Strauss (71), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    28 March 1914 Croquis et agaceries d’un gros bonhomme en bois for piano by Erik Satie (47) is performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    28 March 1916 Jerusalem, a choral song for chorus and orchestra by Hubert Parry (68) to words of Blake, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    A concert version of Manuel de Falla’s (39) ballet El Amor brujo is performed for the first time, at the Sociedad Nacional de Musica, Madrid.  See 15 April 1915.

    28 March 1918 The body of Claude Debussy is laid to rest in the cemetery of Père-Lachaise, Paris, in the presence of the Minister of Education and about 25 others.  50 began the procession, but many drifted off along the way.

    28 March 1919 Incidental music to Larronde’s play La Danse macabre by Arthur Honegger (27) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.

    28 March 1921 The board of directors of the American Socialist Society meets and votes to tell the Rand School Symphony Orchestra that if it can not raise its own funds, the orchestra will be discontinued.  This effectively ends the association of its conductor, Carl Ruggles (45), with the Rand School for Social Science.

    28 March 1930 Robert Reynolds Ashley is born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, first child of Ward Ashley, a post office clerk, and Nancy Reynolds.

    Konzertmusik op.48 for viola and chamber orchestra by Paul Hindemith (34) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg, the composer as soloist.

    Suite for orchestra by Walter Piston (36) is performed for the first time, in Boston the composer conducting.

    28 March 1934 Fanfare sobre el nombre de E.F. Arbós for trumpet, trombone, and percussion by Manuel de Falla (57) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Calderón, Madrid.

    28 March 1937 Just before midnight.  Karol Maciej Szymanowski dies of throat cancer at Lausanne, aged 54 years, five months, and 25 days.  The death certificate will read fifteen minutes past midnight on the 29th.

    28 March 1940 Benjamin Britten’s (26) Violin Concerto op.15 is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    28 March 1942 British planes attack Lübeck using a new technique where a second wave of bombers is guided by the fires set by the first wave.  Sir Arthur Harris, head of Bomber Command, explains the choice:  “Lübeck was not a vital target, but it seemed to me better to destroy an industrial town of moderate importance than to toil to destroy a large industrial city.  I wanted my crews to be ‘blooded’ as they say in fox hunting, to have a taste of success for a change.”  312 people are killed, 15,000 left homeless.  2,000 buildings (80% of the city) are destroyed including the great organ of the Marienkirche where Dietrich Buxtehude (†234) gave his Abendmusiken and to which Johann Sebastian Bach (†191) walked 320 km to hear in 1705.

    Hymn for chorus and orchestra by Hugo Weisgall (29) to words of the Yom Kippur liturgy, is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    28 March 1943 01:30  Sergey Vasilyevich Rakhmaninov dies of cancer at his home in Beverly Hills, California, four days before his 70th birthday.

    28 March 1950 Five Piano Pieces by Peter Mennin (26) are performed for the first time, in New York.

    Two songs by Charles Ives (75) are performed for the first time, at the Milwaukee Art Institute:  At Parting to words of Peterson, and Ich grolle nicht to words of Heine.

    28 March 1951 Notturno for strings and harp by Irving Fine (36) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston, conducted by the composer.

    28 March 1952 Chants Alizés op.125 for woodwind quintet by Florent Schmitt (81) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    28 March 1954 Wisconsin Suite for orchestra by Otto Luening (53) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    28 March 1955 Sonata for violin by Peter Sculthorpe (25) is performed for the first time, in Assembly Hall, Melbourne.

    Dirge in Woods for voice and piano by Aaron Copland (54) to words of Meredith, written for Nadia Boulanger (67) on the occasion of her 50th anniversary year as a teacher, is performed publicly for the first time, in Carnegie Hall.

    28 March 1958 Symphony no.1 by George Rochberg (39) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    28 March 1960 Jeux des Tritons, an excerpt from Hans Werner Henze’s (33) ballet Undine for piano and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Zürich.

    Symphony no.12 by Henry Cowell (63) is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    28 March 1963 Symphony no.15 “Silver Pilgrimage” by Alan Hovhaness (52) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    28 March 1968 Symphony by Ulysses Kay (51), commissioned to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the State of Illinois, is performed for the first time, in Macomb, Illinois.

    28 March 1972 Variations on A Happy Birthday for orchestra by Thea Musgrave (43), Peter Maxwell Davies (37), and four other British composers is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.  The variations are in honor of the 70th birthday of William Walton.

    Merlino, mastro d’organi, a dramma musicale by Gian Francesco Malipiero (90) to his own words, is staged for the first time, in Palermo, 45 years after it was composed.  See 1 August 1934.

    28 March 1973 Trio no.3 for flute, cello, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (34) is performed for the first time, in the New York Cultural Center, the composer at the keyboard.

    28 March 1975 Musik im Bauch no.41 for six percussionists by Karlheinz Stockhausen (46) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    28 March 1976 Sofia Gubaidulina (44) appears on stage in the Concert Hall of the House of Scientists in Moscow, along with Vyacheslav Petrovich Artyomov and Viktor Yevseyevich Suslin in a group which will one day have the name Astraea.  They improvise on traditional instruments.

    Voices for mezzo-soprano, harpsichord, harp, piano, and percussion by Peter Mennin (52) to words of Dickinson, Melville, Thoreau, and Whitman, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Orfeo II for flute and 15 strings by Thea Musgrave (47) is performed for the first time, in the Ambassador College Auditorium, Pasadena, California the composer conducting.

    28 March 1979 The first version of Chorale from a Toy Shop for flute, oboe/clarinet, clarinet/english horn, horn, trombone, and trombone/tuba by Harrison Birtwistle (44) is performed for the first time, in All Saints Church, Lewes.  See 19 May 1978.

    28 March 1980 Celebration 1980 for electronic valve instrument, string orchestra, and tape by Vladimir Ussachevsky (68) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre, Columbia University, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Columbia University Graduate School.

    28 March 1981 Back to Life for counter-tenor and double bass by Ned Rorem (57) to words of Gunn, is performed for the first time, in Trinity Episcopal Church, Hartford, Connecticut.

    Wizard Oil and Indian Sagwa for speaker and clarinet by R. Murray Schafer (47) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    The Trojan Women, a ballet by Karel Husa (59), is performed for the first time, in Louisville, Kentucky conducted by the composer.  See 28 October 1988.

    28 March 1983 Soliloquy II for guitar, flute/piccolo, two oboes, bassoon, and strings by Thea Musgrave (54) is performed for the first time.

    28 March 1986 Two Traditional Japanese Songs for voice and piano by Samuel Adler (58) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    28 March 1987 Images for two pianos and orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (47) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    28 March 1989 Panorama for orchestra by Robin Holloway (45) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    28 March 1991 Personae for violin, chamber ensemble, and electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (56) is performed for the first time, in Kathryn Bache Miller Theatre, New York.

    28 March 1993 Les quatre élémens for chorus by Franz Liszt (†106) to words of Autran is performed completely for the first time, in Budapest, 149 years after it was composed.  See 6 August 1844.

    The third movement of the Sonata for viola by Györgi Ligeti (69) is performed for the first time, in Geneva.  See 18 November 1991 and 23 April 1994.

    28 March 1994 The World is Burning for chorus and tam-tam by John Tavener (50) to words of Mother Thekla is performed for the first time, in Guildhall, London.

    28 March 1999 Two movements of Litany--for a ruined chapel between sheep and shore for trumpet by Peter Maxwell Davies (64) are performed for the first time, at the Royal Academy of Music, London.  See 23 June 1999.

    Motet III “Hunc igitur terrorem” for chorus and baroque orchestra by Betsy Jolas (73) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    28 March 2000 Trio sopra “et sola facta” for clarinet, violin, and piano by Betsy Jolas (73) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    28 March 2001 Rhapsodic Musings (for Robert Mann) for violin by Elliott Carter (92) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Hall, New York.

    28 March 2003 Day of Kindness, an opera by Bohuslav Martinu (†43) to words of Ribemont-Dessaignes after Ehrenburg, is performed for the first time, in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic 72 years after it was composed.

    A second version of Gejagte Form for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (51) is performed for the first time, in Graz.  See 13 April 1996.

    Cello Concerto by Ned Rorem (79) is performed for the first time, in Kansas City.

    United States for string quartet by Ned Rorem (79) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York.

    A suite from the film The Hours by Philip Glass (66), in the form of a piano concerto, is performed for the first time, in Uihlein Hall, Milwaukee.

    28 March 2006 Crystal for flute, alto flute, and piano by Michael Daugherty (51) is performed for the first time, in Rackham Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    28 March 2009 The Transylvanian Horn Courtship for Stroh instruments by Terry Riley (73) is performed for the first time, at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana.

    29 March

    29 March 1759 Two oratorios by Georg Philipp Telemann (78) are performed for the first time, in the Drillhaus, Hamburg:  Der Messias to words of Klopstock, and Das befreite Israel to words of Zacharias.

    29 March 1763 Florian Leopold Gassmann (33) arrives in Vienna, having been hired by the Burgtheater to compose operas.

    29 March 1772 La Betulia liberata, an oratorio by Florian Leopold Gassmann (42) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in Vienna for one of the first concerts of the Tonkünstler-Sozietät.  Gassmann is musical director of the society, ex officio.

    29 March 1792 Luigi Cherubini (31) signs a contract to become music director of the Opéra-Comique, Paris.

    29 March 1795 The Piano Concerto no.2 op.19 by Ludwig van Beethoven (24) is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna, the composer at the keyboard.  This is Beethoven’s public debut in Vienna.  He finished composing the work only two days ago.  The Wiener Zeitung will report that the audience gave him “undivided acclaim.” (Skowroneck, 143)  (some think that Beethoven played the Piano Concerto no.1 op.15 at this occasion)

    29 March 1803 Proserpine, a tragédie lyrique by Giovanni Paisiello (62) to words of Guillard after Quinault, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  It is not well received.

    29 March 1806 The second version of Ludwig van Beethoven’s (35) opera Leonore (Fidelio) to words of Sonnleithner after Bouilly, with the Leonore Overture no.3, is performed for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna.  This version has a much better reception with critics and public than the first.  See 20 November 1805 and 23 May 1814.

    29 March 1807 Responses to the Litany for chorus by Samuel Wesley (41) is performed for the first time, in St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.  They were intended for last Christmas but were postponed until Easter, today.

    29 March 1827 A large crowd gathers around the Schwarzspanierhaus in Vienna where the body of Beethoven lies.  Among the spectators are many children, as school has been cancelled for the day.  The authorities feel it necessary to call in soldiers to control the large number of people.  Inside, nine priests bless the body and a chorale is sung.  At 15:00 the procession to the church begins.  A military band plays an arrangement of Beethoven’s funeral march from the Piano Sonata op.26.  15-20,000 people watch the procession take one and a half hours to go a little more than a block to Trinity Church of the Minorities.  Johann Nepomuk Hummel (48), Carl Czerny (36) and Franz Schubert (30) are among the mourners.  A carriage takes the coffin to Währing Cemetery where a funeral oration by Franz Grillparzer is read by Heinrich Anschütz, and the earthly remains of Ludwig van Beethoven are laid to rest.

    29 March 1828 According to his mother’s wishes, and against his own, Robert Schumann (17) matriculates in law at the University of Leipzig.

    Nicolò Paganini (45) makes his Viennese debut at the Redoutensaal.  This first concert is not well attended, but word-of-mouth accounts of his wizardry soon attract the multitude.  The Wiener Theaterzeitung says “His expression seemed to mirror an inner conflict; the most unspeakable pain, the most ardent longing, the cruelest jest, even the most cutting scorn became discernible...”  He will end up giving 14 concerts in the city over the next four months.

    Der Vampyr, a grosse romantishce Oper by Heinrich August Marschner (32) to words of Wohlbrück after Nodier, Carmouche, de Jouffroy, Planché, and Ritter, is performed for the first time, in Leipzig Stadttheater.

    29 March 1829 Incidental music to Crabbe’s play Don Juan und Faust by Albert Lortzing (27) is performed for the first time, in Detmold.

    29 March 1832 After a funeral service, the mortal remains of Muzio Clementi are laid to rest in the Cloisters of Westminster Abbey.  The Abbey is packed with mourners, among them are many musicians including Clementi’s most famous pupil, John Field (49).

    29 March 1836 Richard Wagner’s (22) grosse komische Oper Das Liebesverbot, oder Die Novize von Palermo to the composer’s words after Shakespeare is performed for the first time, in the Magdeburg Stadttheater, conducted by the composer.  On the same day, an anonymous article appears in Robert Schumann’s (25) Neue Zeitschrift für Musik in support of Wagner’s opera.  It is written by Wagner.

    29 March 1844 A setting of Psalm 22 for solo voices and chorus by Felix Mendelssohn (35) is performed for the first time, in Berlin along with the first performance of his Um unserer Sünden for double chorus.

    29 March 1871 The Royal Albert Hall opens in London.  Queen Victoria is overcome with emotion and the Prince of Wales fulfills the ceremonial duties.

    Die Allmacht von Franz Schubert for tenor, male chorus, orchestra and organ by Franz Liszt (59) is performed for the first time, in Budapest, directed by the composer.

    29 March 1872 Oto drzewo krzyza (Ecce lignum crucis) for baritone, chorus and organ by Stanislaw Moniuszko (52) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    29 March 1874 Symphony no.3 by Antonin Dvorák (32) is performed for the first time, in Prague conducted by Bedrich Smetana (50).

    29 March 1879 Yevgeny Onyegin, lyric scenes by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (38) to words of Shilovsky and the composer after Pushkin, is performed probably for the first time, at the Malyi Theatre, Moscow by students of Moscow Conservatory.  See 28 December 1878 and 23 January 1881.

    String Quartet in e minor by Bedrich Smetana (55) is performed for the first time, in Konvikt Hall, Prague.

    Mazurek op.49 for violin and piano by Antonin Dvorák (37) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    29 March 1880 Two waltzes for strings op.54 by Antonin Dvorák (38) are performed for the first time, in Prague.

    The complete score of the incidental music to Tennyson’s play Queen Mary op.6 by Charles Villiers Stanford (27) is performed for the first time, in Manchester.

    29 March 1881 A Requiem mass in memory of Modest Musorgsky takes place in the church of the Nikolayevsky Military Hospital, St. Petersburg.  Most Russian musical notables are there, including Vladimir Stasov, Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (37) and Alyeksandr Borodin (47).

    29 March 1882 Symphony no.1 by Alyeksandr Glazunov (16) is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg, conducted by Mily Balakirev (45).  It is very well received.

    29 March 1888 Valentin Alkan (Charles-Valentin Morhange) dies in Paris, aged 74 years, three months and 29 days.  Accounts vary as to how he actually died, although the most accepted is that he was crushed by a falling bookcase in his home.

    29 March 1889 Two works for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Hamburg:  Nachtwache op.104/2 to words of Rückert, and Im Herbst op.104/5 to words of Groth.  See 3 April 1889.

    29 March 1891 Gustav Mahler (30) performs for the first time as First Conductor of the Stadttheater, Hamburg.  The work produced today is Richard Wagner’s (†8) Tannhäuser.  The critics are very impressed.

    29 March 1892 At a student concert at Moscow Conservatory, the first movement of Sergey Rakhmaninov’s (18) First Piano Concerto is premiered.  The composer interrupts the conductor, Vasily Ilyich Safonov several times to instruct him in its correct interpretation.

    29 March 1894 Gustav Mahler (39) attends the funeral service for Hans von Bülow in Hamburg.  He hears The Resurrection by Klopstock and from this finds the inspiration for the conclusion of his Second Symphony.

    29 March 1895 Cáhal Mór of the Wine-red Hand, a rhapsody for baritone and orchestra by Horatio Parker (31) to words of Mangan, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    29 March 1896 Anton Bruckner (71) makes his last public appearance, at a Palm Sunday concert in Vienna.

    29 March 1899 Ruggero Leoncavallo (42) plays excerpts from his La Bohème and Pagliacci for Queen Victoria and her companions at the Hotel Regina in Cimiez.  She finds his music “charming.”

    29 March 1900 An Andante for orchestra (from the Symphony in a minor op.1) by Franz Schreker (22) is performed for the first time, in Vienna, directed by the composer.

    29 March 1901 The First Symphony of Alyeksandr Skryabin (29) is given it’s first complete performance, in Moscow.  See 24 November 1900.

    29 March 1902 William Turner Walton is born in Oldham, England, second of four children born to Charles Alexander Walton, choirmaster, grammar school music teacher, and voice teacher, and Louisa Maria Turner, singer and daughter of an upholsterer.

    29 March 1903 La Belle Dame sans merci op.12, a ballade for baritone and orchestra by Frederick S. Converse (32) to words of Keats, is performed for the first time, with piano accompaniment, in a private setting at St. Botolph’s Club, Boston.  See 2 March 1906.

    29 March 1905 The Imperial authorities try to reopen St. Petersburg Conservatory.  Striking students attempt to physically keep the school closed.  Police use force to end the blockade.

    29 March 1910 The Oceanographic Museum at Monaco is formally inaugurated.  During the ceremonies, Ouverture du fête op.133 for orchestra by Camille Saint-Saëns (74) and La Nef triomphale for chorus and orchestra by Jules Massenet (67) to words of Aicard are performed for the first time.  29 March 1911 A prelude and parts of Acts I and II of Sorochintsy Fair, an opera by Modest Musorgsky (†30), orchestrated by Lyadov and edited by Karatigin, are performed for the first time, privately, in St. Petersburg.  See 30 December 1911.

    Four of the Préludes Book I by Claude Debussy (48) are performed for the first time, in Paris by the composer:  Les Sons et les Parfums, Le Vent dans la plaine, Des Pas sur la neige, and Minstrels.

    The Suite Symphonique by George Whitefield Chadwick (56) is performed for the first time, in the Philadelphia Academy of Music, conducted by the composer.  Reviews are generally favorable.

    29 March 1912 Scènes historiques Suite II for orchestra by Jean Sibelius (46) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    29 March 1913 Igor Stravinsky (30) completes The Rite of  Spring in Paris.

    29 March 1914 El pelele for piano by Enrique Granados (46) is performed for the first time, in Terrassa, Spain by the composer.

    Notte di maggio op.20 for voice and orchestra by Alfredo Casella (30) to words of Carducci is performed for the first time, in Paris directed by the composer.

    29 March 1922 San Francesco d’Assisi, a mistero by Gian Francesco Malipiero (40) to words of St. Francis and Jacopo da Todi, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting in Carnegie Hall, New York.  See 22 September 1949.

    29 March 1923 Werner Joseph Meyer marries Elisabeth Karl.  Henceforth, he takes the professional name Werner Egk (21).

    29 March 1924 Charles Villiers Stanford dies in London twelve days after suffering a stroke.  He is aged 71 years, five months, and 29 days.

    29 March 1928 Kammermusik no.6 op.46/1 for viola d’amore and chamber orchestra by Paul Hindemith (32) is performed for the first time, in Cologne, the composer as soloist.

    29 March 1936 Partita for oboe, bassoon, and piano by David Diamond (20) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    29 March 1941 Sinfonia da Requiem op.20 by Benjamin Britten (27) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  The work was composed on commission from the government of Japan to celebrate the 2,600th anniversary of the Japanese dynasty but was rejected as insulting.

    29 March 1947 An arrangement for string orchestra of the Fugue and Romance from Hugo Weisgall’s ballet One Thing is Certain is performed for the first time, in Prague.  See 25 February 1939.

    29 March 1955 Eve in the Future, a ballet for magnetic tape by Toru Takemitsu (24), is performed for the first time, in Roppongi Haiyuza, Tokyo.

    29 March 1956 Seven Haiku for piano by John Cage (43) is performed for the first time, at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.

    29 March 1957 String Quartet no.1 by Gunther Schuller (31) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

    29 March 1960 Symphony no.9 by Darius Milhaud (67) is performed for the first time, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

    29 March 1963 Composition in Three Parts for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (37) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    29 March 1967 Incidental music to Seneca’s play Medea by Iannis Xenakis (44) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de l'Odéon, Paris.

    29 March 1969 Pieces for violin and piano and El Mar la Mar for two sopranos and five instruments by Luciano Berio (43) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    Duo, from the film Schnebel:  visible music I by Mauricio Kagel (37), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of NDR television, Hamburg.

    Songs, Drones and Refrains of Death for baritone, electric guitar, electric contrabass, amplified piano, and percussion by George Crumb (39) to words of Garcia Lorca is performed for the first time, at the University of Iowa, Iowa City.

    29 March 1972 Prime Minister Edward Heath officiates at a dinner honoring the 70th birthday of William Walton.  The composer is in attendance as is Queen Elizabeth and her mother, Benjamin Britten (58), Arthur Bliss, Kenneth Clark, Herbert Howells, Henry Moore and Laurence Olivier.  The first three of the Five Bagatelles for guitar by William Walton are performed for the first time today, over the airwaves of BBC television originating in London.  See 27 May 1972.

    Dirige (Antiphonae) in memory:  Igor Stravinsky (†0) for chorus by Kenneth Gaburo (45) is performed for the first time, at the University of Pittsburgh.

    29 March 1974 Voices and Cello, a vocalise for two female voices and cello by Morton Feldman (48) is performed for the first time, in La Rouche-Courbon.

    29 March 1976 Piano Sonata in E by Thea Musgrave (47) is performed for the first time, in Jordan’s Music Club near London.

    29 March 1977 Hölderlin-Fragmente for voice and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (25) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    29 March 1982 Carl Orff dies in Munich, of cancer, aged 86 years, eight months, and 19 days.

    Shadowed Narrative for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano by Roger Reynolds (47) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    29 March 1983 Deowa for soprano and clarinet by Harrison Birtwistle (48) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    29 March 1989 Piano Sonata no.3 by Charles Wuorinen (50) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    Computer Suite for Little Boy for synthesized sounds by Jean-Claude Risset (51) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia, 21 years after it was composed.

    29 March 1991 Of Rage and Remembrance for mezzo-soprano, boy soprano, chorus, percussion, eight cellos, and four double basses by John Corigliano (53) to words of Hoffman is performed for the first time, in Seattle.

    29 March 1994 Versions/Stages I-V for electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (59) is performed for the first time, in La Jolla, California.

    29 March 1998 Ernster Gesang mit Lied for voice and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (46) to words of Büchner is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    29 March 2003 Labyrinthe! for tape by Pierre Henry (75) is  performed for the first time, at Radio France, Paris.

    29 March 2005 Da pacem domine for voices by Arvo Pärt (69) is performed for the first time, in St. Gerold.

    29 March 2007 Four Prayers for flute and piano by Ned Rorem (83) is performed for the first time, in Weill Hall, New York.

    29 March 2009 A Clear Midnight for soprano, male chorus, and string quintet by John Harbison (70) is performed for the first time, at Indiana University.

    Seasons Id: a mind of winter for flute, cello, percussion, and real time computer sound processing, and The Angel of Death for piano, chamber orchestra, and computers by Roger Reynolds (74) are performed for the first time, in Isabel Bader Theatre, Toronto.

    29 March 2010 Contre-Allées by Betsy Jolas (83) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    29 March 2011 I in U/Eu em Tu, a multimedia exhibit by Laurie Anderson (63), opens a the Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil in São Paulo.  It will run through 26 June.  It will attract over 500,000 visitors.

    30 March

    30 March 1727 Tommaso Michele Francesco Saverio Traetta is born in Bitonto, near Bari.

    30 March 1757 The mortal remains of Johann Wenzel Anton Stamitz are laid to rest in Mannheim, 39 years, nine months and eleven days after his baptism.  It is officially recorded:  “Buried, Jo’es Stainmiz, director of court music.  So expert in his art that his equal will hardly be found.”

    30 March 1764 Pietro Antonio Locatelli dies in Amsterdam, aged 68 years, six months and 27 days.

    30 March 1770 Christoph Willibald Gluck (55) withdraws his financial stake in the shady theatrical management of Giuseppe d’Afflisio.  He does not lose money, but his standing at court is damaged.

    30 March 1773 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (17) completes his Symphony no.26 K.184.

    30 March 1774 A setting of Psalm 50, Miserere by Niccolò Jommelli (59) is performed for the first time, at the home of Saverio Mattei in Naples on the Wednesday of Holy Week.  The composer is at the harpsichord.

    30 March 1780 String Quartet in C by Samuel Wesley (14) is performed for the first time, at a Wesley family concert at their London home.

    30 March 1786 Il Giulio Sabino, an opera seria by Luigi Cherubini (25) to words after Giovanni, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.  It receives only one performance, and Cherubini will shortly leave for Paris.

    30 March 1799 Hymne pour la fête de la Jeunesse for tenor and chorus by Luigi Cherubini (38) to words of Parny is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    30 March 1801 Jery und Bätely, a singspiel by Johann Friedrich Reichardt (48) to words of Goethe, is performed for the first time, at the Nationaltheater, Berlin.

    30 March 1811 Franz Schubert (14) completes his earliest extant work, the song Hagars Klage to words of Schücking.

    30 March 1832 A Benedictus by Samuel Sebastian Wesley (21) is performed for the first time, in London.

    30 March 1836 A second performance of Richard Wagner’s (22) Das Liebesverbot has to be cancelled when fist fights break out among the cast on stage before curtain.  One combatant produces a knife but no one is seriously injured.  See 11 April 1836.

    30 March 1838 Le perruquier de la régence, an opéra comique by Ambroise Thomas (26) to words of Planard and Dupont, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Nouveautés, Paris.

    30 March 1848 Franz Liszt (36) writes to Bedrich Smetana (24) acknowledging his dedication of opus 1, promising to recommend Smetana’s op.1 for publication, and expressing a desire to meet him, all of which he will do.

    30 March 1853 La Tonelli, an opéra comique by Ambroise Thomas (41) to words of Sauvage, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    After an eleven-year absence, Louis Moreau Gottschalk (23) arrives home in New Orleans having traveled from Louisville, Kentucky aboard a paddle-wheeler.  Since the boat arrives eight hours early, there is no one there to meet him.

    30 March 1858 Joseph Joachim and his Hannover orchestra run through the Piano Concerto no.1 of Johannes Brahms (24), the composer at the piano, at a private rehearsal in Hannover.

    30 March 1861 Panne-aux-Airs, a spoof on Wagner’s (47) Tannhäuser, opens at the Théâtre-Déjuzet, Paris.

    30 March 1862 The Free School of Music opens in St. Petersburg in opposition to the official conservatory.  Leaders are Director Gavril Lomakin and Assistant Director Mily Balakirev (25).

    30 March 1866 Richard Wagner (52), Cosima von Bülow, and her daughter Daniela arrive in Lucerne looking for a place for him to settle.  During this stay, while boating on Lake Lucerne, they will see Tribschen and decide on the spot to obtain it.

    30 March 1867 John Knowles Paine (28) participates in the Inaugural Concert of the New England Conservatory of Music.  He will soon join the faculty.

    30 March 1873 Three Nocturnes for orchestra by Antonin Dvorák (31) are performed for the first time, in Prague.

    30 March 1875 Minister Agoston Trefort confers on Franz Liszt (63) the title of President of the proposed Academy of Music in Budapest.

    30 March 1876 String Quartet no.3 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (35) is performed publicly for the first time, in Moscow.

    30 March 1881 The earthly remains of Modest Musorgsky are laid to rest in the Nevsky Cemetery, St. Petersburg.  Attending are the other members of the Kuchka, Alyeksandr Borodin (47), Cesar Cui (46), Mily Balakirev (44), and Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (37), along with many musicians and music students.

    Symphony in d minor by Richard Strauss (16) is performed for the first time, in the Odeonsaal, Munich.

    30 March 1885 The second and third movements of Piano Concerto no.1 by Edward MacDowell (24) are performed for the first time, in New York.  See 3 April 1888.

    30 March 1886 Queen Regent María Cristina appoints Isaac Albéniz (25) assistant professor of piano at the Real Conservatorio, Madrid.

    30 March 1887 Terzetto for two violins and viola op. 74 by Antonín Dvorák (45) is performed for the first time, in Prague, along with the premiere of Romantic Pieces for violin and piano op.75.

    30 March 1889 A contract is agreed to to make Richard Strauss (24) Kapellmeister in Weimar.  Officially he begins 1 August but is given leave to be part of the Bayreuth Festival.

    30 March 1893 Dream-King and his Love op.31, a cantata by Horatio Parker (29) to words of Geibel translated by Whitney, is performed for the first time, in Madison Square Garden, New York.  It wins the prize in cantata offered by the National Conservatory of Music.  The critics are pleased.

    30 March 1904 Antonín Dvorák (62) takes a walk to the Prague railroad station to look at some locomotives.  He catches a cold which will confine him to bed.

    String Quintet no.2 op.86 by Charles Villiers Stanford (51) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    The Boston Evening Transcript reports that an incorporation bill has been introduced in the Massachusetts legislature for the Cahill Telharmonic Company of New England.  A new statute is needed since Massachusetts law has no provision for a firm to produce electric musical instruments.  It is the first widespread, public description of the Telharmonium and its service.  (The company will be incorporated in New Jersey)

    Koanga, a lyric drama by Frederick Delius (42) to words of Keary, after Cable, is staged for the first time in the Elberfeld Stadttheater.  See 30 May 1899.

    30 March 1905 Striking students manage to get into St. Petersburg Conservatory.  They ransack the place and set off a stink bomb.  Faculty and students inside are forced to flee.  Russian Bulletin publishes a letter written by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (61).  He attacks the Imperial Russian Musical Society for not suspending classes until September, leaving the school and its students “to the tender mercies of the police; while those who have not gone on strike are guarded by the same police.”  He questions the competence of the board of the IRMS, calling them a “circle of dilettantes” who are “utterly indifferent to the fate of its pupils.”

    30 March 1909 Two piano pieces by Gabriel Fauré (63), Barcarolle no.9 op.101 and Impromptu no.5 op.102, are performed for the first time, at the Salle Erard, Paris.

    30 March 1912 Erik Satie (45) writes to Ricard Viñes asking to dedicate one of his Pièces froides to him.  “Don’t imagine that my work is music.  That’s not my line.  I do, to the best of my ability, phonometry.  Nothing else.  Am I anything else than an acoustician without great knowledge?”

    30 March 1913 La Procesión del Rocío op.9, a symphonic poem by Joaquín Turina (29), is performed for the first time, in Teatro Real, Madrid.

    30 March 1914 Two Poems op.9 for voice and piano by Sergey Prokofiev (22) to words of Balmont and Apukhtin are performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    Two works for soprano and strings by Jean Sibelius (48) are performed for the first time, in Turku:  Arioso, to words of Runeberg, and Sunrise, to words of Hedberg.  See 18 September 1913.

    30 March 1916 Two Pieces for violin or cello and orchestra op.77 by Jean Sibelius (50) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki directed by the composer.

    30 March 1919 Chanson bas op.44, a cycle for voice and piano by Darius Milhaud (26) to words of Mallarmé, is performed for the first time, at Théâtre du Vieux Colombier, Paris.  Also premiered is Milhaud’s Trois poèmes de Léo Latil op.2 for voice and piano.

    Four Pieces op.32 for piano by Sergey Prokofiev (27) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    30 March 1928 The Philharmonic Society of New York merges with the New York Symphony Society to form the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Society.

    30 March 1929 Maurice Martenot receives a French patent for his Ondes Martenot.

    30 March 1930 Cantata for the 50th Anniversary of the Danish Cremation Union by Carl Nielsen (64) to words of Michaelis is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Danish Radio.

    30 March 1932 Leonard Bernstein (13) makes his first public performance as pianist, in a recital of the pupils of Susan Williams in Boston.

    30 March 1933 Arnold Schoenberg (58) tenders his resignation from the Prussian Academy of Arts.

    30 March 1935 Gordon Mumma is born in Framingham, Massachusetts.

    John Charles Eaton is born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.

    30 March 1936 Musica per tre pianoforti (Inni) by Luigi Dallapiccola (32) is performed for the first time, in Geneva.

    30 March 1938 The Second Suite from Façade by William Walton (36) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  See 24 January 1922, 12 June 1923 and 3 December 1926.

    30 March 1940 Night of Frost in May, a song by Charles Ives (65) to words of Meredith, is performed for the first time, at the Dalcroze School of Music in New York.

    30 March 1943 A funeral mass in honor of Sergey Rakhmaninov takes place in the Los Angeles Russian Orthodox Church.  His earthly remains will be buried in Kensico Cemetery near Valhalla, New York.

    30 March 1947 Concertino for piano and orchestra by Bohuslav Martinu (56) is performed for the first time, in Bratislava.

    30 March 1951 Primavera for voice and piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (49) to words of Fernández Shaw is performed for the first time, in Teatro Gran Via, Salamanca.

    Symphony no.4 by Walter Piston (57) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    30 March 1953 Werner Egk (51) leaves his position as Professor of Composition and Director of the Hochschule für Musik in West Berlin.

    30 March 1957 Little Red Schoolhouse for orchestra by William Grant Still (61) is performed for the first time, at Redlands University, Redlands, California.  This is a revision of Pages from a Mother’s Diary.  See 28 January 1954.

    30 March 1959 Five Appalachian Ballads for voice and guitar by Lejaren Hiller (35) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    30 March 1962 String Quartet no.2 by George Rochberg (43) is performed publicly for the first time, in Harrison Auditorium at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.  See 23 March 1962.

    30 March 1963 Sonata for violin and piano in D by Bohuslav Martinu (†3) is performed for the first time, in Prague, 37 years after it was composed.

    30 March 1966 When Mikis Theodorakis (40) goes to a studio in Athens to record his song cycle Romiosini, he learns that the Prime Minister’s office has forbidden it because it has not received the approval of the censorship committee.  He will record it in Amsterdam.

    Sofia Guaidulina’s (34) Five Etudes for harp, double bass, and percussion is performed before the Commission for Chamber and Symphonic Music in Moscow.  Arguments on both sides are heard but the result is generally favorable.  See 21 April 1966.

    Krzysztof Penderecki’s (32) oratorio Passio et mors domini nostri Jesu Christi secundum Lucam (St. Luke Passion) for solo voices, speaker, boys’ chorus, chorus, and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Münster Cathedral.  This introduces a much broader audience to Penderecki.

    Soldier Songs, a cycle for voice and orchestra by Hugo Weisgall (41) to eight different authors, is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.  See 26 April 1954.

    30 March 1974 Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) for two amplified pianos and two percussionists by George Crumb (44) is performed for the first time, at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.  See 12 June 1980.

    30 March 1976 Ines de Castro, an opera by Thomas Pasatieri (30) to words of Stambler, is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    Parable XIX op.134 for piano by Vincent Persichetti (60) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    30 March 1979 The Immurement of Antigone for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by John Tavener (35) to words of McLarnon is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    30 March 1980 Quatre chansons françaises for voice and orchestra by Benjamin Britten (†3) to words of Hugo and Verlaine are performed publicly for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC Radio 3 52 years after they were composed.

    Two works by Pauline Oliveros (47) for any number of performers are performed for the first time, at the Cornish School, Seattle:  Anarchy Waltz and Angels and Demons.

    30 March 1981 Embellie for viola by Iannis Xenakis (58) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    American Hymn for brass quintet by William Schuman (70) is performed for the first time, in New York.  See 5 March 1981.

    30 March 1984 The first movement of the Concerto for violin and orchestra no.2 by Isang Yun (66) entitled “Festliches Präludium” is performed for the first time, in Siegen.  See 8 July 1983 and 20 January 1987.

    30 March 1985 Ned Rorem’s (61) Violin Concerto is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Springfield, Massachusetts.

    30 March 1987 Die Hamletmaschine, a Musiktheater by Wolfgang Rihm (35) to his own words after Müller, is performed for the first time, in the Nationaltheater, Mannheim.

    Twelve New Etudes for Piano by William Bolcom (48) is performed completely for the first time, at Temple University in Philadelphia.  It will win the Pulitzer Prize.  See 41 March 1988.

    30 March 1989 Roger Reynolds (54) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Whispers Out of Time.  See 11 December 1988.

    Symphonic Fantasia no.5 by Otto Luening (88) is performed for the first time, in Milwaukee, directed by Lukas Foss (66).

    30 March 1990 For Us:  Happy Birthday To You! in the version for piccolo/alto flute, clarinet, mandolin, guitar, harp, percussion, violin, and double bass by Mauricio Kagel (58) is performed for the first time, in the Rotterdam.  See 29 April 1987.

    Quest for guitar, soprano saxophone, harp, contrabass, and percussion by George Crumb (60) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    30 March 1995 Hoquetus Petrus for two flutes/piccolo and piccolo trumpet by Harrison Birtwistle (60) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Center, Chicago.

    Esprit rude/Esprit doux II for flute, clarinet, and marimba by Elliott Carter (86) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.  It was composed to honor Pierre Boulez (70) on his 70th birthday.

    30 March 2000 A Tempest for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (73) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Birmingham.

    Phantasmagoria, a suite for orchestra from The Ghosts of Versailles by John Corigliano (62), is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    30 March 2003 Five Kurpian Songs op.75 for chorus by Henryk Górecki (69) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.  At the performance, Górecki receives the Polish Radio Music Award.

    Faits divers for tape by Pierre Henry (75) is performed for the first time, at Radio France, Paris.  Also premiered is Henry’s Duo for piano and tape, performed by the composer.

    30 March 2008 SolTierraLuna, a triple concerto for two guitars, violin, and chamber orchestra by Terry Riley (72), is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    31 March

    31 March 1732 Franz Joseph Haydn is born in Rohrau, Lower Austria.

    31 March 1747 Johann Abraham Peter Schulz is born in Luneburg.

    31 March 1757 De danske, norske og tydske undersaatters glaede, a cantata for the birthday of King Frederik V of Denmark by Georg Philipp Telemann (76), is performed for the first time, in Christaneum, Altona.

    31 March 1770 Les filles pourvues, a compliment de clôture by André-Ernest-Modest Grétry (29) to words of Anseaume, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    31 March 1776 Litaniae de venerabili altaris sacramento K.243 for solo voices, chorus, orchestra and organ by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (20) is performed for the first time, in Salzburg.

    31 March 1780 King Louis XVI bans Italian comic opera from the Théâtre Italien, recognizing French works and composers as the true voice of comic opera in the country.

    31 March 1784 The third and last of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (28) lenten subscription concerts takes place in Vienna.  It includes premieres of his Piano Concerto no.16 K.451 and the Quintet for piano and winds K.452.  See 22 March 1784.

    31 March 1794 The Symphony no.100 “Military” by Joseph Haydn is performed for the first time, in the Hanover Square Rooms, London on the composer’s 62nd birthday.  The Morning Chronicle will report on 9 April of this symphony:  “Another new Symphony, by Haydn, was performed for the second time and the middle movement was again received with absolute shouts of applause.  Encore! Encore! Encore! resounded from every seat:  The Ladies themselves could not forbear.”

    31 March 1795 Ludwig van Beethoven (24) performs a Mozart (†3) piano concerto at a production of La Clemenza di Tito to benefit Mozart’s widow, Constanze.

    31 March 1800 Johann Friedrich Reichardt’s (47) liederspiel Lieb’ und Treue to his own words is performed for the first time, in the Nationaltheater, Berlin.

    31 March 1804 Ludwig van Beethoven (33) publishes the closest thing to a retraction in the Wiener Zeitung, admitting that Artaria and Co. were not involved in any way with the publication of his quintet.  See 8 March 1805.

    31 March 1821 Erlkönig D.328, a song by Franz Schubert (24) to words of Goethe, is published by Cappi and Diabelli to great success.

    31 March 1824 Franz Schubert (27) writes to Leopold Kupelweiser that he is “the most wretched and unhappy creature in the world.”  He despairs over his health which “will never be right again,” his hopes which “have come to nothing” and his “passion for beauty” which “threatens to forsake” him.  “...every night, when I go to bed, I hope I may not wake again, and every morning only recalls yesterday’s grief.”  He also writes, “The latest news in Vienna is that Beethoven (53) is to give a concert at which he is to produce his new symphony, three movements from the new mass, and a new overture…” (Sachs, 13)

    31 March 1828 Tonight marks the probable first meeting of Robert Schumann (17) and the Wieck family, at a musical evening at the home of Dr. Ernst August Carus in Leipzig.  Clara Wieck (8) plays the piano.  Schumann asks her father for piano lessons.

    31 March 1835 This is the last performance of I Puritani because the opera season in Paris ends today.  Every performance since 31 January has been sold out.  Vincenzo Bellini (33) will write “it was impossible for me to show my face in the stalls without the audience applauding me, and so many people turned around to look at me that I had to remain in hiding.”  (Galatopoulos, 387)

    31 March 1837 At the Paris home of Prince Belgiojoso, Franz Liszt (25) and Sigismund Thalberg (25) perform a duel on the keyboards organized by Princess Cristina Belgiojoso-Trivulzio.  Thalberg plays his Moses fantasia while Liszt selects his Niobe fantasia.  It is generally considered a draw.

    31 March 1839 An extremely laudatory review of César Franck’s (16) performance of 24 March appears in the Revue musicale written by Hector Berlioz (35).

    31 March 1841 Symphony no.1 “Spring” by Robert Schumann (30) is performed for the first time, in the Leipzig Gewandhaus, directed by Felix Mendelssohn (32).  Also premiered today is Mendelssohn’s Allegro brillant op.92 for piano duet, and a song by Clara Schumann, Am Strande to words of Burns.  Overshadowing all the music is the return to the Leipzig stage of Clara Schumann (21) for the first time since her marriage.  She receives thunderous and lasting applause after each piece.  And she is four months pregnant.

    31 March 1842 Stephen Foster (15), along with his brother William, makes the acquaintance of Charles Dickens during a triumphant visit of Dickens to Pittsburgh.

    31 March 1850 Robert Schumann (39) writes to Düsseldorf, accepting the post of director of subscription concerts.

    31 March 1873 Fisch-Ton-Kan, an operetta by Emanuel Chabrier (32) to words of Verlaine and Viotti, is performed for the first time, at the Cercle de l’Union Artistique, Paris.

    31 March 1878 The Munich Hoftheater, directed by King Ludwig II, agrees to pay off the Bayreuth Festival’s debt based on receipts of royalties from the production of Richard Wagner’s (64) works.  The Munich Hoftheater receives the right to perform Parsifal free after the Bayreuth premiere.  Bayreuth is finally solvent.

    31 March 1883 Ernest Chausson’s (28) symphonic poem Viviane is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, in the Salle Erard, Paris.  The work arouses no interest on the part of the public.  Also on the program is the premiere of César Franck’s (60) symphonic poem Le chasseur maudit.

    31 March 1884 Tsar Alyeksandr III eliminates the office of Inspector of Bands for the Navy Department.  The post was held by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (40).

    31 March 1889 Two works for chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) are performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg:  Legend to words of Pleshcheyev, and The Nightingale to words of the composer.

    31 March 1901 The lyric fairy tale Rusalka, with words by Kvapil after de La Motte Fouqué, and music by Antonín Dvorák (59), is performed for the first time, at the National Theatre, Prague.

    31 March 1905 Enrique Granados (37) makes his first Paris appearance as a mature artist at the Salle Pleyel.

    31 March 1909 Gustav Mahler (48), suffering from influenza, conducts the New York Philharmonic Orchestra for the first time, in Carnegie Hall.

    31 March 1913 A concert in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna is planned to include Anton von Webern’s (29) Six Pieces for large orchestra op.6 (premiere), Four Orchestral Songs by Alexander von Zemlinsky, the Chamber Symphony op.9 by Arnold Schoenberg (38), two of the Five Orchestral Songs op.4 by Alban Berg (28) to words of Altenberg, and the Kindertotenlieder of Gustav Mahler (†1).  During and following the Webern, opposing parties applaud and hiss.  After the Schoenberg, whistles on door keys are added to the din, as are fights in the second balcony.  Berg’s work elicits laughter from some audience members.  Schoenberg, who is conducting at this point, stops Berg’s music, turns to the audience and threatens that all demonstrators will be evicted by force.  This announcement causes the fighting to begin anew, including several demands for satisfaction on the field of honor.  Webern shouts from his box that “all the baggage should be thrown out.”  Opponents of the music suggest that proponents would best be served by a term in the Steinhof insane asylum.  The President of the Academic Association for Literature and Music pleads with the audience to at least honor the memory of Mahler by listening to his Kindertotenlieder.  He is forced to withdraw under a barrage of insults.  Several audience members then storm the stage, causing the musicians to end the performance for the sake of their wellbeing.  The riot continues for another thirty minutes, as several differences of artistic opinion are settled in the street.  See 24 January 1953.

    31 March 1919 Sarabande and Cortège op.51 for orchestra by Ferruccio Busoni is performed for the first time, in Zürich Tonhalle, on the eve of the composer’s 53rd birthday.

    31 March 1923 Incidental music to Rolland’s play Liluli by Arthur Honegger (31) is performed for the first time, in Salle des fêtes de Suresnes.

    31 March 1926 The symphonic poem Hercule et Omphale by Claude Champagne (34) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    31 March 1932 Caballos de Vapor, a ballet by Carlos Chávez (32), is performed for the first time, in the Metropolitan Grand Opera House, Philadelphia.  See 4 December 1931.

    31 March 1933 Acciaio, a film with music by Gian Francesco Malipiero (51), is released in Italy.

    31 March 1939 Two works for chorus are performed for the first time, in Temple Emanu-El, New York:  Heart not so Heavy as Mine, by Elliott Carter (30) to words of Dickinson, and Chorale Fanfare by Roy Harris (41) to words of Taggard.

    31 March 1940 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play The Tempest by Lukas Foss (17) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    31 March 1941 Bohuslav Martinu (50) and his wife reach New Jersey from Lisbon aboard the Exeter.

    31 March 1943 Magnificat for chamber orchestra by Norman Dello Joio (30) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  It wins the Town Hall Composition Award of $250.

    31 March 1945 Anton Webern (61) and his wife leave their home near Vienna on foot, hoping to reach their house in Mittersill some 300 km to the west.  They reach Neulengbach, on the rail line to Salzburg.

    31 March 1947 A Short Overture for orchestra by Ulysses Kay (30) is performed for the first time, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Leonard Bernstein (28) conducting.

    31 March 1948 WH Auden hands over to Igor Stravinsky (65) the completed libretto to The Rake’s Progress in Washington, DC.  At the same time, Stravinsky meets Robert Craft, the man who will champion his music for the rest of his life.

    31 March 1949 Troubled Island, an opera by William Grant Still (53) to words of Hughes and Arvey, is performed for the first time, in the City Center of Music and Dance, New York.  The audience is very appreciative.  Critics are generally negative, as has been predicted to Still by Howard Taubman of the New York Times.  Taubman has warned Still that the critics have decided “the colored boy has gone far enough.”

    31 March 1950 Symphony no.3 by Robert Ward (32) is performed for the first time, at Dumbarton Oaks, Washington, conducted by the composer.

    31 March 1951 Dmitri Shostakovich (44) plays twelve of his 24 Preludes and Fugues at the Composers’ Union, Moscow.  He has just finished composing them and has not had time to learn them.  He is nervous, especially about the political atmosphere, and does not play well.  Those who speak are not complimentary.  The same thing happens with the second twelve tomorrow.  See 18 November 1951.

    München:  ein Gedächtniswalzer by Richard Strauss (†1) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Speaking in Los Angeles, US Ambassador-at-large John Foster Dulles explains the outlines of a peace treaty with Japan.

    Los cuatro soles, a ballet by Carlos Chávez (51) to his own scenario, is staged for the first time, in the Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City.  See 22 July 1930.

    Fairy Tale op.48 for orchestra by Vincent Persichetti (35) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    31 March 1954 Incidental music to Lindsay and Grouse’s play Life with Father by Peter Sculthorpe (24) is performed for the first time, in the National Theatre, Launceston, Tasmania.

    Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play Hamlet by Dmitri Shostakovich (47) is performed for the first time, in the Pushkin Theatre, Leningrad.

    31 March 1956 Comoedia de Christi Resurrectione by Carl Orff (60) to his own words, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Munich Radio.  See 21 April 1957.

    31 March 1958 Pentagramm for woodwind quintet by Ernst Krenek (57) is performed for the first time, in Schoenberg Hall at the University of California at Los Angeles.

    31 March 1961 Compositions 1960 #10 and Compositions 1961 by LaMonte Young (25) are performed for the first time, in Paine Hall of Harvard University.

    31 March 1962 Several of the 20 sonneries pour trompes de chasse opp.123 and 142 by Charles Koechlin (†11) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of French Radio III.

    31 March 1964 Umbrian Scene, a symphonic poem by Ulysses Kay (47) is performed for the first time, in New Orleans.

    31 March 1965 Incidental music to Schochen’s play The Hydrogen Jukebox by Kenneth Gaburo (38) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    31 March 1967 Diptych for brass quintet and orchestra by Gunther Schuller (41) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    31 March 1968 Six Pieces for cello by Roger Sessions (71) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Estudios sinfónicos op.35 for orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (51) is performed for the first time, in Vancouver.

    31 March 1974 Sonata for violin and piano by Karel Husa (52) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    Two ballades for flutes and piano by Ross Lee Finney (67) are performed for the first time, in Dumbarton Oaks, Washington.

    31 March 1976 Seven Pious Pieces for chorus and optional organ or piano by Donald Martino (44) to words of Herrick is performed for the first time, at the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston.

    Love Songs, a cycle for voice and piano by Leslie Bassett (53) to words of various authors, is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    Violin Concerto no.2 by Ross Lee Finney (69) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    31 March 1981 Quodlibets II for flute by Donald Martino (49) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    31 March 1985 Esprit rude l’esprit doux for flute and clarinet by Elliott Carter (76) and dedicated to Pierre Boulez (60), is performed for the first time, in the Weinbrenner-Saal, Baden-Baden.  On the same program is the premiere of A Pierre.  Dell’azzurro silenzio, inquietum for contrabass flute, contrabass clarinet and electronic sound generators by Luigi Nono (61), and Fusées for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (33).

    Klavierstück XIV no.57 1/2, a version for keyboard of Evas Zweitgeburt by Karlheinz Stockhausen (56) is performed for the first time.  See 7 April 1988.

    O Domina Nostra op.55 for soprano and organ by Henryk Górecki (51) is performed for the first time, in Poznan.

    Sonnekus2 for voice by John Cage (72) is performed for the first time, in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum, Bonn.

    The Fox Trots Again for chamber Ensemble by Lejaren Hiller (61) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    31 March 1986 End of Summer:  Remembrance of Things Past for clarinet, violin, and piano by Ned Rorem (62) is performed for the first time, in Patkar Hall, Bombay.

    31 March 1987 Der mündliche Verrat, a Hörspiel version of La trahison orale by Mauricio Kagel (55), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR 3.  See 27 October 1983.

    31 March 1988 William Bolcom (49) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Twelve New Etudes for Piano.  See 30 March 1987.

    To the Young for chorus and orchestra by Vladimir Ussachevsky (76) to words of Levertov and Rilke is performed for the first time, at Pomona College, Claremont, California.

    31 March 1994 With Bells On for winds and percussion by Jacob Druckman (65) is performed for the first time, in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles.

    31 March 1998 Luimen for trumpet, trombone, harp, vibraphone, mandolin, and guitar by Elliott Carter (89) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    31 March 2001 A Dream of Snow for children’s voices by Peter Maxwell Davies (66) to words of George Mackay Brown is performed for the first time, at The Maltings, Farnham.

    31 March 2004 Ayre for soprano and chamber ensemble by Osvaldo Golijov (43), to various texts, is performed for the first time, in Zankel Hall, New York.

    31 March 2006 Four Preludes on Jewish Melodies for organ by William Bolcom (67) is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    Fragments of Prophecy for chorus by Richard Wernick (72) is performed for the first time, in Bloomington, Indiana.

    Submerged Memories for narrator, clarinet, violin, electric guitar, percussion, electroacoustic processing, and visual projections by Roger Reynolds (71) to words of Sebald (tr. Hulse), is performed for the first time, in Project Artaud Theatre, San Francisco.

    ©2004-2012 Paul Scharfenberger

    3 December 2012

    Last Updated (Monday, 03 December 2012 07:20)

     

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