April

    PDF | Print | E-mail

    1 April

    1 April 1629 Jean Henry d'Anglebert is baptized in Bar-le-duc.

    1 April 1755 Karl Heinrich Graun’s (51) opera Ezio to words of Metastasio is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Opera.

    1 April 1765 Carl Ditters (25) becomes Kapellmeister to Adam Patachich, Bishop of Grosswardein (Oradea, Romania), succeeding Michael Haydn (27).

    1 April 1768 Due to his prolonged absence from Salzburg, Archbishop Siegmund III Christoph ends Leopold Mozart’s (48) salary but not his position.

    1 April 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart are presented to Grand Duke Leopold (later Emperor Leopold II) in the Palazzo Pitti, Florence.  Earlier they meet Franz Xaver Wolfgang Orsini-Rosenberg who will later be opera overseer in Vienna.

    1 April 1780 Le sacrifice d’Abraham, an oratorio by Giuseppe Cambini (34), is performed for the first time, at a concert spirituel, Paris.

    1 April 1781 Die Pilgrime auf Golgotha, an oratorio by Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (45) to words of Zachariä, is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    1 April 1793 Amor rende sagace, a dramma giocosa by Domenico Cimarosa (43) to words of Bertati, is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    1 April 1796 After being closed for a month, the Théâtre Feydeau reopens with the approval of the Directory.

    1 April 1804 Johann Nepomuk Hummel (25) enters upon duties as Konzertmeister to Prince Nikolas Esterházy at Eisenstadt.  Effectively, he performs the duties of Kapellmeister, although Franz Joseph Haydn (72) still holds the title.

    Franz Joseph Haydn (72) is made an honorary citizen of Vienna because of his charitable work.

    1 April 1810 Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (18) goes to Darmstadt to study with Georg Joseph Vogler (60) accompanied by his brother and tutor.

    Emperor Napoléon, in person, marries Archduchess Marie Louise, daughter of the Emperor Franz I of Austria, in a civil ceremony at Saint Çloud.  A cantata for the occasion by Johann Nepomuk Hummel (31) is performed.

    1 April 1814 The heirs of Ambrosius Kühnel (he died last 13 August) sell his Leipzig music publishing house, the Bureau de Musique, to a bookseller named Carl Friedrich Peters, who appends his name to the firm’s title.

    1 April 1823 Omaggio pastorale, a cantata by Gioachino Rossini (31), is performed for possibly the first time, for the unveiling of a memorial bust of Antonio Canova in Treviso.

    1 April 1825 Felix Mendelssohn (16) hears Franz Liszt (13) for the first time, at a Concert Spirituel at the Académie Royale, Paris.

    1 April 1831 Worried about the lack of correspondence from his fiancee, Hector Berlioz (27) leaves Rome making for Paris and jeopardizing his Prix de Rome grant.

    1 April 1837 Richard Wagner (23) is appointed as music director of the city theatre in Königsberg (Kaliningrad).

    1 April 1838 Deuxième Trio Concertant for violin, cello and piano by César Franck (15) is performed for the first time, in Salle Chantereine, Paris.

    1 April 1839 Le lac des fées, an opéra by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (57) to words of Scribe and Mélesville, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    1 April 1846 The Triumph of Bacchus, a cantata by Alyeksandr Sergeyevich Dargomizhsky (33) after Pushkin, is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.  See 23 January 1867.

    1 April 1847 Eugène Delacroix takes Frédéric Chopin (37) and George Sand to see his work on the ceiling of the Palais de Luxembourg.  Delacroix has painted Dante in the likeness of Chopin and Aspasia in the likeness of Sand.

    1 April 1849 Richard Wagner (35) conducts his last concert in Dresden in a performance including the Ninth Symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven (†22).  Michael Bukunin, a wanted Russian revolutionary, approaches Wagner afterwards and tells him that “when everything else is destroyed in the flames of the future, that work of art must be preserved, even at the cost of our lives.”

    1 April 1855 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (25) ascends in a hot air balloon over New Orleans for a second time.  He brings with him a harmonicon, a small keyboard instrument.  The balloon takes the same trajectory as the flight of 26 March but this time, Gottschalk composes Pensée poétique.  This is the first recorded instance of composition in mid-air.  See 26 March 1855.

    1 April 1857 Marco Spada, ou La fille du bandit, a ballet by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (75) to a story by Scribe and Delavigne, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  This is a rewriting of his 1852 opéra-comique Marco Spada.

    1 April 1864 After two and a half years, John Knowles Paine (25) resigns his position at West Church in Boston, for Harvard University.

    1 April 1865 Edvard Grieg (21) conducts an orchestra in public for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    Louis Moreau Gottschalk (35) gives his last concert in New York.  In the evening, he boards ship for San Francisco by way of the Isthmus of Panama.

    1 April 1866 Ferruccio Dante Michelangelo Benvenuto Busoni is born in Empoli, near Florence, the only child of Ferdinando Busoni, a clarinetist and Anna Weiss, a pianist, the daughter of a grain merchant.  Though the parents live in Rome, Ferdinando brings his wife to his sister’s house for the birth so that it might take place in his family’s ancestral home town.

    1 April 1873 Sergey Vasilyevich Rakhmaninov is born on the Oneg estate, near Semyonova, in the Russian province of Novgorod, the fourth of six children born to Vasily Arkadyevich Rakhmaninov, a retired army officer, and Lyubov Petrovna Butakova, daughter of a general.  Both parents are descended from wealthy landowners.

    String Quartet in e minor by Giuseppe Verdi (59) is performed for the first time, in the Albergo delle Crocelle before friends of the composer mysteriously invited for the event.  It is Verdi’s only work of chamber music.  Of his string quartet, the composer later remarked, “I don’t know whether this quartet is beautiful or ugly, but I do know that it’s a quartet.”

    1 April 1880 Leos Janácek (25) arrives in Vienna from Leipzig to attend the Conservatory of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde.

    1 April 1881 Le tribut de Zamora, an opéra by Charles Gounod (62) to words of d’Ennery and Brésil, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra, conducted by the composer.  The work is a success with the audience which includes President Jules Grévy.

    1 April 1885 Gustav Mahler (24) formally requests to be released from his contract as conductor in Kassel.  “My heart is bleeding from many wounds.”

    1 April 1888 The mortal remains of Valentin Alkan (Charles-Valentin Morhange) are laid to rest in Montmartre Cemetery on Easter Sunday.  Beyond the immediate family, only four people attend.  An obituary appearing today in Le Ménéstrel says “Charles Valentin Alkan has just died.  It was necessary for him to die in order to suspect his existence.”

    1 April 1892 George Whitefield Chadwick’s (37) operetta A Quiet Lodging to words of Bates is performed for the first time, privately, in Boston.

    1 April 1894 The Rock, a symphonic poem by Sergey Rakhmaninov, is performed for the first time, in Moscow on the composer’s 21st birthday.

    1 April 1901 Readers of the Parisian La revue blanche are treated to the first music criticism of Monsieur Croche.  It is the nom de plume of Claude Debussy (38).

    Gustav Mahler (40) resigns as conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic.

    1 April 1904 Deux Impromptus op.14 for piano by Alyeksandr Skryabin (32) are performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    1 April 1905 The board of the Imperial Russian Musical Society accepts the resignation of A.R. Berngard as director of St. Petersburg Conservatory, expels all the student protesters, and dismisses Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (61) from the faculty because of his letter of 30 March.

    1 April 1907 Max Reger (34) enters into duties as director of music at the University of Leipzig.

    1 April 1909 Modest Musorgsky’s (†28) incomplete comic opera The Marriage, to words of Gogol, is performed for the first time, at the Suvorin Theatre School, St. Petersburg.  See 6 October 1868.

    1 April 1911 Songs of Sunrise, a cycle for chorus by Ethel Smyth (52) to her own words and Hamilton, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, conducted by the composer.  The suffragists in the audience like it, the critics do not.

    1 April 1913 The lyric drama La Vida breve by Manuel de Falla (36), to words of Fernández Shaw, is performed for the first time, at the Casino Municipal, Nice.

    1 April 1917 Edgard Varèse (33) makes his American conducting debut at the Hippodrome on Sixth Avenue in New York.  He conducts the Requiem of Hector Berlioz (†48) in honor of all those who have died in the Great War.  Varèse, and the concert, are a smashing success.

    1 April 1921 William Laurence Bergsma is born in Oakland, California.

    1 April 1922 Amadis, an opéra légendaire by Jules Massenet (†9) to words of Claretie, is performed for the first time, at the Opéra de Monte Carlo.

    1 April 1923 On Easter Sunday, Alban Berg (38) has dinner with Arnold Schoenberg (48) and his wife at Schoenberg’s home in Mödling near Vienna.  There, Schoenberg unfolds to Berg the concepts of his new twelve-tone method of composition.

    1 April 1924 Giacomo Puccini (65) travels to Florence to see Arnold Schoenberg (49) conduct his Pierrot Lunaire.  “Who can say that Schoenberg will not be a point of departure to a goal in the distant future?  But at present--unless I understand nothing--we are as far from a concrete artistic realization of it as Mars is from Earth.”  Also present, and quite overwhelmed, is a conservatory student named Luigi Dallapiccola (20).

    1 April 1927 Scenes from The Miraculous Mandarin for orchestra by Béla Bartók (46) are performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.  These will be worked into an orchestral suite by Bartók.  See 15 October 1928.

    1 April 1932 16 performers take part in the Theremin Electrical Symphony Orchestra in a concert by Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (35) at Carnegie Hall.  Although not suspected at the time, it is his last important public performance.

    1 April 1933 A cable is sent from the United States to German Chancellor Adolf Hitler protesting the treatment of Jewish musicians in Germany.  It is signed by Arturo Toscanini, Walter Damrosch, Frank Damrosch, Serge Koussevitzky, Artur Bodanzky, Harold Bauer, Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Alfred Hertz, Charles Martin Loeffler (72), Fritz Reiner, and Rubin Goldmark.

    1 April 1934 Incidental music to Sukhotin’s (after Balzac) play The Human Comedy op.37 by Dmitri Shostakovich (27) is performed for the first time, in the Vakhtangov Theatre, Moscow.

    1 April 1935 A decree by King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy creates the General Administration for Theatre and Music to oversee all issues “touching upon the subject of theatre censorship, government vigilance, and directives relating to all forms of theatrical and musical activity.”

    Escape Me Never, a film with music by William Walton (33), is shown for the first time, at the London Pavilion.

    1 April 1937 Flourish for a Coronation for chorus and orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (64) to words of various authors is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.  On the same program, Frederick Delius’ (†2) orchestra suite Florida (omitting no.3) is performed publicly for the first time.  The work was performed privately in 1888.

    Amelia Goes to the Ball, an opera buffa by Gian-Carlo Menotti (25) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    1 April 1938 Recordings of music by Jewish musicians and composers are banned in Germany.

    1 April 1939 Durch Einsamkeiten for male chorus by Richard Strauss (74) to words of Wildgans is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Flourish for Wind Band by Ralph Vaughan Williams (66) is performed for the first time, in Royal Albert Hall, London.

    1 April 1940 Symphonic Set op.17 by Henry Cowell (43) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    1 April 1942 Fantasia on a Gregorian Theme for violin and piano by Norman Dello Joio (29) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    1 April 1945 Roy Harris’ (47) motet Alleluia for chorus and brass is performed for the first time, in Grace Episcopal Church, Colorado Springs.

    1 April 1946 The Airborne Symphony for chorus and orchestra of Marc Blitzstein (41) to his own words is performed for the first time, at the City Center, New York conducted by Leonard Bernstein (27).  The audience is very appreciative, the critics mixed.

    1 April 1948 Symphony no.1 by Witold Lutoslawski (35) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Polish Radio, originating in Katowice.  See 6 April 1948.

    1 April 1949 Symphony of Freedom for orchestra by Howard Hanson (52) is performed for the first time, in Memorial Hall, Cleveland directed by the composer.

    1 April 1950 Three of the Melodies passagères for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (40) to words of Rilke, are performed for the first time, in Washington.  See 21 January 1952.

    1 April 1952 The Romanian Concerto by György Ligeti (28) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Budapest Radio.

    1 April 1954 The Tender Land, an opera by Aaron Copland (53) to words of Everett, is performed for the first time, at the New York City Center.

    1 April 1957 Le Travail du peintre, a cycle for voice and piano by Francis Poulenc (58) to words of Eluard, is performed for the first time, in the École normale de musique, Paris the composer at the keyboard.  See 5 September 1957.

    1 April 1958 The Radiophonic Workshop opens at the Maida Vale Studios of the BBC in London.  It is created to electronically produce sound for radio dramas, science programs, and other radio and television programs.

    1 April 1959 Variations for violin and orchestra op.71 by Wallingford Riegger (73) is performed for the first time, in Louisville.

    1 April 1964 The Plague for speaker, chorus and orchestra by Roberto Gerhard (67) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    Spring Cantata op.94 for female chorus and piano by Vincent Persichetti (48) is performed for the first time, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    1 April 1965 String Quartet no.6 by Peter Sculthorpe (35) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, Sydney.

    La branche des oiseaux op.374, a ballet by Darius Milhaud (72) to a story by Chamson, is staged for the first time.  See 18 May 1962.

    1 April 1966 A filmed version of Antithèse for actor, electronic and environmental sounds by Mauricio Kagel (34) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of NDR television.  See 20 March 1963 and 23 June 1963.

    1 April 1967 Fantasia für Streicher by Hans Werner Henze (40) is performed for the first time, in Berlin as music for the film Der junge Törless.

    1 April 1969 Pierre Boulez (44) receives an official request from the New York Philharmonic Orchestra to become its music director.  He thinks it is an April Fool’s joke.

    1 April 1970 A revised version of Moralities, scenic cantatas by Hans Werner Henze (43) to words of Auden after Aesop, is performed for the first time, in Saarbrücken Kongresshalle.  See 18 May 1968.

    1 April 1971 Apotheosis of this Earth for band by Karel Husa (49) is performed for the first time, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor conducted by the composer.  Also premiered is Summer in Valley City for band by Ross Lee Finney (64).  See 12 April 1973.

    String Quartet no.4 by William Bergsma is performed for the first time, at the University of Alabama on the composer’s 50th birthday.

    1 April 1975 A Ceremony of Sounds for audience by Pauline Oliveros (42) is performed for the first time, at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.

    1 April 1976 Fanfare for the National for brass by William Walton (74) is performed for the first time, in DeLane Studios, Wembley.

    Concerto for violin and orchestra no.3 by David Diamond (60) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by Leonard Bernstein (57).

    1 April 1977 Königliches Thema for violin by Isang Yun (59) is performed for the first time, in Düsseldorf-Benrath.

    1 April 1978 Two parts of Leonard Bernstein’s (59) orchestral work CBS Music are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of CBS television.  The work was commissioned by the network for its 50th anniversary.

    1 April 1980 Incidental music to Pushkin’s play Yevgeny Onegin op.71 by Sergey Prokofiev (†27) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London.

    1 April 1981 Night Music for John Lennon for brass quintet by Lukas Foss (58) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.  See 8 December 1980.

    Beauty and the Beast for alto and string quartet by R. Murray Schafer (47) is performed for the first time, in Montreal.

    1 April 1982 Five songs for voice and piano by Charles T. Griffes (†61) are performed for the first time,  at State University College, Cortland, New York:  Das ist ein Brausen und Heulen and Wo ich bin, mich rings umdunkelt to words of Heine, and Des müden Abendlied, Das sterbende Kind, and Mein Herz ist wie die dunkle Nacht to words of Geibel.

    1 April 1984 The Big Turtle Fanfare from the South China Sea for solo trumpet by György Ligeti (60) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    1 April 1989 Voyage absolu des Unari vers Andromede for computer-generated stereo tape by Iannis Xenakis (66) is performed for the first time, in Temple Kamejama Hontokuji, Osaka.

    Silk Road for piano and percussion by Tan Dun (31) to words of Sze, is performed for the first time, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

    1 April 1993 Stepping Stones, a ballet by Joan Tower (54) to a choreography by Posin, is performed for the first time, in Milwaukee.

    1 April 1998 Not an Anfang for piano by Louis Andriessen (58) is performed for the first time, in Korzo Theater, The Hague, the Netherlands.

    1 April 2004 Turbulent Landscapes for orchestra by Thea Musgrave (75) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    1 April 2006 Concerto for Bass Viol by John Harbison (67) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    1 April 2010 Oros for piano by Charles Wuorinen (71) is performed for the first time, at John Knowles Paine Concert Hall, Harvard University.

    2 April

    2 April 1703 Johann Christoph Bach is buried in Eisenach, 60 years, three months, and 25 days after his baptism.

    2 April 1755 The Tejo Theatre, designed to make the Portuguese court an operatic center, opens in Lisbon.

    2 April 1756 The Painter’s Breakfast, a play with music by Thomas Augustine Arne (46), is performed for the first time, in Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin.

    2 April 1768 Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (54) begins duties as director of sacred music in Hamburg on Easter Sunday.  He will not be officially inaugurated until 19 April.

    2 April 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart perform at the Villa Poggio Imperiale in Florence before Duke Leopold.

    2 April 1775 Il ritorno di Tobia, an oratorio by Joseph Haydn (43) to words of Giovanni Gastone Boccherini, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, directed by the composer.

    2 April 1776 The Burgtheater, Vienna is proclaimed a national theatre by Emperor Joseph II.

    2 April 1785 La finta principessa, an opera buffa by Luigi Cherubini (24) to words of Livigni, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    2 April 1788 Publication of three string quintets K.406, 515, 516 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (32) is advertised in the Wiener Zeitung.

    2 April 1800 Ludwig van Beethoven (29) gives the first public concert for his benefit, at the Burgtheater, Vienna.  The program includes a Mozart (†8) symphony, an aria and duet from Haydn’s (68) The Creation, a piano concerto and improvisations by Beethoven, and the first performance of the Septet op.20 and the Symphony no.1.  The Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung calls it “the most interesting concert in a long time.”

    2 April 1810 Emperor Napoléon marries Archduchess Marie Louise, daughter of the Emperor Franz I of Austria, in a religious ceremony at the Louvre.  At night, Cantate pour le mariage de l’Empereur by Étienne-Nicolas Méhul (46) to words of Arnault is performed for the first time, at the Tuileries Palace in the presence of the honorees.

    2 April 1826 A concert to benefit Valentin Alkan (12) takes place in the Pape showroom, Paris.  It is his debut as pianist and composer.

    2 April 1830 L’Armonica cetra del nume, a cantata for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Gioachino Rossini (38) in honor of Marchese Sampieri is performed for the first time, in the dedicatee’s Bologna home.

    2 April 1833 In a program organized by Hector Berlioz (29) in Paris to benefit Harriet Smithson, Frédéric Chopin (23) and Franz Liszt (21) play Liszt’s Sonata for four hands op.22.  Nicolò Paganini (50), however, refuses to take part.

    2 April 1838 The Serenade und Allegro giojoso op.43 for piano and orchestra by Felix Mendelssohn (29) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig, the composer at the keyboard.  He wrote the work in two days, leaving out the last 15 measures of the piano part.  Those he composed during the concert.

    2 April 1841 Gaspare Spontini (66), accused of insulting King Friedrich Wilhelm IV, appears to conduct a performance of Mozart’s (†49) Don Giovanni in Berlin.  There is a riot in the hall and he is forced to withdraw after the overture.

    2 April 1843 Le Moine bourru ou les Deux Poltrons, a duo bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (23) to words of Plouvier, is performed for the first time, in Salle Herz, Paris.

    2 April 1845 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (15) gives his first performance in Paris at the Salle Pleyel.  He plays Chopin’s (35) e minor piano concerto and two unaccompanied works:  Thalberg’s (33) transcription of airs from Rossini’s (53) Semiramide and Liszt’s (33) Fantasy on Meyerbeer’s Robert le diable.  The performance is very successful.  Chopin (35) and Kalkbrenner (59) are present.  After the performance, Chopin meets the precocious American but no two people agree on exactly what he said to him.

    Solo de piano avec accompagnement de quintette op.10 by César Franck  (22) is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.

    2 April 1848 Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein leaves her estate at Woronice for the last time.  She has cast her lot with her lover, Franz Liszt (36) and is traveling to join him in Kryzanowicz.

    2 April 1856 La Paix du monde, a cantata by Jacques Offenbach (36) to words of Halévy, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffe-Parisiennes, Paris.

    2 April 1861 César Franck’s (38) incomplete Messe à 3 voix for chorus and orchestra is performed for the first time, in Ste.-Clothilde, Paris, conducted by the composer.  The reception is “universally hostile.”  The orchestration will be reduced to organ, harp, cello and bass.

    2 April 1875 Agnes op.59/5, a song by Johannes Brahms (41) to words of Mörike, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    2 April 1877 At a meeting in Leipzig of members from various Wagner (63) Societies, the General Patrons Association for the Maintenance and Preservation of the Stage Festivals in Bayreuth is created.  Its goal is to provide a sound financial foundation for the Bayreuth festival.

    A demonstration of long distance music is given in Steinway Hall, New York by Elisha Gray, almost-inventor of the telephone.  Pianist Frederick Boscovitz plays on Gray’s “telegraphic reed transmitter” in the Western Union office in Philadelphia.  Signals are sent over telegraph wire to New York where they activate 16 wooden tubes.

    2 April 1891 The Pilgrims for chorus and orchestra by George Whitefield Chadwick (36) is performed for the first time, in the Music Hall Boston, conducted by the composer.

    2 April 1892 Cinq mélodies “de Venise” op.58 for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (46) to words of Verlaine, is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    2 April 1895 Der arme Heinrich, a music drama by Hans Pfitzner (25) to words of Grun and the composer after von Aue, is performed for the first time, in Mainz.

    2 April 1898 Quartet for piano and strings op.30 by Ernest Chausson (43) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.  The premiere is very successful.

    Three Compositions for violin and piano op.40 by Amy Cheney Beach (30) are performed for the first time, in Boston.

    2 April 1903 After  six months in North America, a bankruptcy, a lawsuit, a house arrest, and many angry musicians and opera-goers later, Pietro Mascagni (39) boards ship in New York making for Le Havre.

    2 April 1909 A Piano Trio by Leos Janácek (54) is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).

    A scheduled performance of Richard Strauss’ (44) opera Salome in Boston is banned by Mayor Hibbard.

    2 April 1911 The First Suite from Maurice Ravel’s (36) yet to be performed ballet Daphnis et Chloé is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 8 June 1912.

    2 April 1915 Guirlandes op.73/1 for piano by Alyeksandr Skryabin (43) is performed for the first time, at Petrograd Conservatory by the composer.

    Sergey Diaghilev, Sergey Prokofiev (23), and Leonide Massine arrive in Milan where the meet Igor Stravinsky (32).  Prokofiev’s former negative opinion of Stravinsky’s music has changed over the last two years.  The two get along and Stravinsky invites Prokofiev to Switzerland.

    2 April 1916 Choses vues à droite et à gauche for violin and piano by Erik Satie (49) is performed for the first time, at École Lucien de Flagny, Paris.  Also premiered are Satie’s Trois Poèmes d’amour for voice and piano to his own words.

    2 April 1919 Two Pieces for string quartet by Charles T. Griffes (34) is performed for the first time, in a second all-Griffes concert sponsored by the Modern Music Society of New York.  It is an early version of the Two Sketches for string quartet based on Indian Themes.  See 24 November 1920.

    2 April 1921 A review by A. Walter Kramer of the private publication by Charles Ives (46) of his Second Pianoforte Sonata “Concord, Mass. 1840-1860” and Essays Before a Sonata appears in Musical America. “And it is without doubt the most startling conglomeration of meaningless notes that we have ever seen engraved on white paper...”

    2 April 1924 Magic Nights, three songs by Bohuslav Martinu (33) to Chinese texts, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    2 April 1925 Two choral works for high voices by Zoltán Kodály (42), The Straw Guy and See the Gypsy Munching Cheese, both to traditional texts, are performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    2 April 1927 Concerto for flute, cello, and strings by Vincent d’Indy (76) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    2 April 1928 Ode à la France for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Claude Debussy (†10) to words of Laloy, and finished by Marius François Gaillard, is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris along with the premiere of Debussy’s Printemps for female chorus and orchestra to words of the comte de Ségur, and Invocation for male chorus and orchestra, both composed in 1882.

    2 April 1932 The original version of Anton Bruckner’s (†35) Symphony no.9 is performed for the first time, in Munich.  See 11 February 1903.

    2 April 1933 The first suite from the ballet Bacchus et Ariane by Albert Roussel (63) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  See 22 May 1931.

    Two new chamber works are performed for the first time, on the same program in New York:  Soli I for oboe, clarinet, trumpet, and bassoon by Carlos Chávez (33) and Elegies for violin and viola by Aaron Copland (32).

    2 April 1936 Month’s Mind for piano by John Ireland (56) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London, by the composer.

    2 April 1941 Two plays with incidental music by Arthur Honegger (49) are performed for the first time, in Théâtre Monceau, Paris:  La Mandragore by Machiavelli and L’Ombre de la ravine by Synge.

    Sonata for Two Pianos op.13 by Vincent Persichetti (25) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York, by the composer and his future wife, Dorothea Flanagan.

    2 April 1943 The 17th of 18 patriotic fanfares for brass and percussion commissioned by Eugene Goossens and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Fanfare for the Signal Corps by Howard Hanson (46), is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    2 April 1948 Des simplicius simplicissimus Jugend, a chamber opera by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (42) to words of Scherchen, Petzet, and the composer after von Grimmelshausen, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting in Munich.  Also premiered is Hartmann’s Symphony no.4 for strings.  See 20 October 1949 and 9 July 1957.

    2 April 1949 Spalicek, a ballet by Bohuslav Martinu (58) to his own story after Czech fairy tales, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    2 April 1950 Symphony no.5 by Peter Mennin (26) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    2 April 1951 Aeschylus and Sophocles, a song for solo voice, piano, and string quartet by Charles Ives (76) to words of Landor, is performed for the first time, at Wilshire Ebell Chamber Music Hall in Los Angeles.

    2 April 1952 Incidental music to Gregor’s play Fire by Ben Johnston (26) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    2 April 1956 Leonard Bernstein (37) signs his first contract with Columbia Records.

    2 April 1958 In the third concert of Sannin-no-kai (the group of three) in Tokyo, Toshiro Mayuzumi’s (29) Nirvana Symphony (Nehan kokyokyoku) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.

    Symphony no.9 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (85) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    2 April 1959 Five motets for voice and piano by Paul Hindemith (63) to words from the Bible are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Cum natus esset, In Principio erat Verbum, Pastores loquebantur, Nuptiae factae sunt, and Defuncto Herode.

    2 April 1961 While stepping out of his New York home, Wallingford Riegger tries to separate his two combating dogs.  He trips on a leash and falls to the pavement causing a blood clot which requires emergency surgery.  The composer dies shortly after the surgery is performed, aged 75 years, eleven months, and four days.

    2 April 1963 Prophecy of Isaiah for chorus and orchestra by Bohuslav Martinu (†3) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in Jerusalem.

    2 April 1970 An episode of the British television series Making Out is broadcast.  The series is about the achievements of young people in various walks of life.  This episode is about John Tavener (26).

    Fifty Caprice Variations for solo violin by George Rochberg (51) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of station WBAI, New York.

    2 April 1973 Six Choruses for women’s or children’s voices with piano op.15 by Sergey Rakhmaninov (†30) are performed for the first time, in Moscow, 77 years after they were composed, during the centennial year of the composer’s birth.

    2 April 1975 Rituel:  In memoriam Bruno Maderna for orchestra by Pierre Boulez (50) is performed for the first time, in London, conducted by the composer.

    Parable XV op.128 for english horn by Vincent Persichetti (59) is performed for the first time, in Tempe, Arizona.

    2 April 1977 Rose Moon for chorus and marathon runners by Pauline Oliveros (44) is performed for the first time, at Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut.

    2 April 1978 Ikhoor for string trio by Iannis Xenakis (55) is performed for the first time, at the Palais Garnier in Paris.

    2 April 1987 Symphonie Concertante for orchestra by Ralph Shapey (66) is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    2 April 1993 Frauenleben, nine songs for alto and orchestra by Betsy Jolas (66), is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio France originating in Paris.

    2 April 1997 Phantasyplay for piano by George Perle (81) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    2 April 2009 Roddy’s Reel for bass clarinet and audience by Harrison Birtwistle (74) is performed for the first time, in Raasay Community Hall on the Isle of Raasay.

    Three Songs for contralto and piano by Robin Holloway (65) to words of Waller are performed for the first time, in Kings Place, London.

    2 April 2013 Orbit for cello by Philip Glass (76) is performed for the first time, at Poisson Rouge in New York.

    3 April

    3 April 1639 Alessandro Stradella is born in Nepi, near Viterbo.

    3 April 1759 Les fureurs de Saül, a motet français by Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville (47), is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    3 April 1764 The mortal remains of Pietro Locatelli are interred in the English Church of Begijnhof in Amsterdam.

    3 April 1775 The first recorded appearance by Muzio Clementi (23) as a pianist in London takes place at the Hickford Rooms.

    3 April 1781 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) performs publicly in Vienna for the first time since he was a boy, at the Kärntnertortheater.  A symphony is performed, probably K.297 as well as the Variations on Je suis Lindor K.354.  “I had to start all over again, because there was no end to the applause.”  Among the audience is Emperor Joseph II.

    3 April 1814 The name of the Académie Impériale de Musique (Paris Opéra) is changed to the Académie de Musique.

    3 April 1815 Luigi Cherbini (54) conducts the premiere of his Overture in G with the Royal Philharmonic Society in London.

    3 April 1824 Morning and Evening Service for chorus and organ by Samuel Wesley (58) is performed completely for the first time, in St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.

    3 April 1827 A memorial service for Ludwig van Beethoven takes place in the Church of St. Augustin, Vienna.  The Requiem of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (†35) is performed.

    3 April 1834 Robert Schumann’s (23) periodical Neue Leipziger Zeitschrift für Musik is published for the first time.

    3 April 1843 Leipzig Conservatory opens for business.  The man chiefly responsible for its existence, Felix Mendelssohn (34), is an instructor.

    3 April 1845 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (15) calls at the home of Frédéric Kalkbrenner (59) in Paris.  Kalkbrenner compliments his technique but criticizes his choice of music.

    3 April 1850 Václav Jan Krtitel Tomásek dies in Prague, aged 75 years, eleven months and 17 days.  His mortal remains will be buried in the cemetery of Prague-Kosire.

    3 April 1851 Hector Berlioz (47) writes in the Journal des débats, “Monsieur Gottschalk (21) is one of the few now living who possess all the different elements which make a pianist of sovereign power.”

    3 April 1856 Scherzo no.1 in b minor by Mily Balakirev (19) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg, the composer at the keyboard.

    Trombalcazar, ou Les criminels dramatiques, a bouffonerie musicale by Jacques Offenbach (36) to words of Dupeuty and Bourget, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    3 April 1859 Franz Schubert’s (†30) Gebet D.815 for vocal quartet and piano to words of Fouqué is performed for the first time, at the Redoutensaal, Vienna.

    3 April 1860 Anton Bruckner (35) passes a course in advanced counterpoint with his Vienna instructor Simon Sechter, largely through correspondence.

    3 April 1861 Today is the effective date of Bedrich Smetana’s (37) resignation as conductor of the Choral and Harmonic Societies in Göteborg.

    3 April 1866 In the church of Sainte-Clotilde, Paris, Franz Liszt (54) hears improvisations by the church’s organist, César Franck (43) and is very impressed.

    3 April 1867 La grand’ tante, an opéra comique by Jules Massenet (24) to words of Adénis and Granvallet, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.  It is warmly received by the audience.  Reviewers find fault with the libretto.

    3 April 1869 The Board of Directors of the Russian Musical Society vote not to elect Mily Balakirev (32) to the board.

    Concerto for piano and orchestra in a minor by Edvard Grieg (25) is performed for the first time, in the Casino, Copenhagen, in the presence of Queen Louise and Anton Rubinstein (39).  A wildly appreciative audience interrupts the performance with applause between movements and after the first movement cadenza.  The composer is in Christiania (Oslo).

    3 April 1876 Choral Elegy for male chorus by Leos Janácek (21) to words of Celakovsky is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno) conducted by the composer.

    3 April 1880 Piano Concerto in F sharp by Hubert Parry (32) is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London.

    Four months after the New York premiere, The Pirates of Penzance by WS Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan (37) opens in London at the Opéra-Comique.  It will run 363 performances.

    3 April 1884 Barcarolle op.37a/6 for solo piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (43) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    3 April 1886 Richard Strauss (21) is informed that King Ludwig II of Bavaria has appointed him third conductor at the Munich Court Opera.

    Franz Liszt (74) arrives in England for a performance of his Die Legende von der heiligen Elisabeth in honor of his 75th birthday.  A reception in his honor tonight at Westwood House is attended by leading English political and artistic figures such as Arthur Sullivan (43).

    La naissance de Venus for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Gabriel Fauré (40) to words of Collin is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  Also on the program is the premiere of the Polonaise op.77 for two pianos by Camille Saint-Saëns (50) played by the composer and Fauré.  See 8 March 1883.

    3 April 1887 Le nuit de mai, a “Grand Poème symphonique” for tenor, and orchestra by Ruggero Leoncavallo (30), to words of Musset, is performed for the first time, in Salle de Kriegelstein, Paris.

    3 April 1888 Piano Concerto no.1 by Edward MacDowell (27) is performed completely for the first time, in Boston.  See 30 March 1885.

    3 April 1889 The Five Songs op.104 for unaccompanied choir by Johannes Brahms (55) to words of Groth, Kalbeck, Rückert, and anonymous are performed completely for the first time, in Vienna.  See 29 March 1889.

    3 April 1892 Sergey Rakhmaninov (19) receives the subject of his graduation exercise from Moscow Conservatory, the libretto to a one-act opera named Aleko by Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko after a poem by Pushkin.  Rakhmaninov is so excited he runs all the way home to get started on the music.

    3 April 1897 08:30  Johannes Brahms dies of liver cancer at his Vienna home, aged 63 years, ten months and 27 days.

    Two works by Gabriel Fauré (51) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Barcarolle no.6 op.70 for piano, and Prison op.83 for voice and piano to words of Verlaine.  On the same program, two works by Ernest Chausson (42) are performed for the first time:  Serres chaudes op.24 for voice and piano to words of Maeterlinck, and Quelques danses op.26 for piano.

    3 April 1901 The producer for the Gilbert and Sullivan (†0) operettas, Richard D’Oyly Carte, dies in London.

    3 April 1911 The Symphony no.4 by Jean Sibelius (45) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki directed by the composer.  Reaction to the symphony is confused.  There is no applause until garlands are brought on stage.

    3 April 1913 Le festin de l’araignée, a ballet pantomime by Albert Roussel (43) to a scenario of Voisins after Fabre, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre des Arts, Paris.

    3 April 1914 The Lake at Evening op.5/1, a piano work by Charles T. Griffes (29), is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York.  See 19 December 1916 and 4 June 1920.

    3 April 1917 Aglavaine et Sélisette, an overture by Arthur Honegger (25), is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire, conducted by the composer.  See 1 June 1920.

    3 April 1918 Erik Satie (51) writes of Claude Debussy, “My poor friend!  What a sad end.  Now people will discover that he had enormous talent.  But that's life!”

    Erik Satie’s (51) drame symphonique Socrate, to words of Plato translated by Cousin, is performed for the first time, privately, at the Paris home of the Princesse de Polignac, the composer at the piano.  See 24 June 1918 and 14 February 1920.

    3 April 1923 The Rainbow, a musical comedy with book by de Courville, Scott, and Wallace, lyrics by Grey and Hooker and music by George Gershwin (24), is performed for the first time, at the Empire Theatre, London.

    3 April 1924 A funeral service in memory of Charles Villiers Stanford takes place in Westminster Abbey.  His ashes are buried in the north choir aisle of Westminster Abbey, next to the remains of Henry Purcell (†229).

    3 April 1925 At the Boar’s Head op.42, an opera by Gustav Holst (50) after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at the Manchester Opera House.  It is not a success.

    3 April 1930 Concerto for two violins and orchestra by Gustav Holst (55) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.  During the intermission, Holst is presented with the gold medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society.

    A revised version of the symphonic poem Summer Evening by Zoltán Kodály (47) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Suite sugestiva for soprano, baritone, and chamber orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (43) is performed for the first time, in the Paris home of Mme Frédéric Moreau.  See 26 August 1929.

    3 April 1931 Konzertmusik op.50 for strings and brass by Paul Hindemith (35) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    3 April 1933 Richard Strauss (65) is scheduled to conduct a concert today by the Berlin Philharmonic that should have been conducted by Bruno Walter.  Walter has been removed because he is Jewish.  So many subscribers return their tickets after hearing of the treachery of Strauss that the performance is cancelled.

    3 April 1935 Cinq poèmes d’Eluard for voice and piano by Francis Poulenc (36) are performed for the first time, in L’École normale de musique, Paris.  This is the first formal recital by the duo of Francis Poulenc and Pierre Bernac.

    3 April 1936 Geigenmusik for violin and orchestra by Werner Egk (34) is performed for the first time, in Baden-Baden.

    3 April 1938 Mass in G for chorus by Francis Poulenc (39) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    3 April 1941 Scapino overture by William Walton (39) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.  It was commissioned to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

    3 April 1943 Concierto heroico for piano and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (41) is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlos, Lisbon.  It is a popular and critical success.

    Und was bekam des Soldaten Weib? for voice and piano by Kurt Weill (43) to words of Brecht is performed for the first time, at Hunter College, New York sung by Lotte Lenya.

    3 April 1947 Introduzione e Passacaglia “Lauda Sion Salvatorem” for orchestra by Bruno Maderna (26) is performed for the first time, in Florence.

    3 April 1948 John Cage (35) makes his first visit to Black Mountain College in North Carolina.  Here he will perform music to accompany dances by Merce Cunningham.

    3 April 1949 Symphony no.1 by Wallingford Riegger (63) is performed for the first time, in New York.  It will subsequently be withdrawn by the composer.

    3 April 1950 Two piano works by Charles Ives (75) are performed for the first time, in New York:  The Anti-Abolitionist Riots and Some Southpaw Pitching (studies nos.9 and 21), over 40 years after they were composed.

    19:00  After a period of recovery, Kurt Weill (50) suffers a relapse of his heart ailment and dies of a cerebral embolism at Flower-Fifth Avenue Hospital, New York, aged 50 years, one month, and one day.

    3 April 1951 Two songs for voice and piano by Otto Luening (50) to words of Byron are performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York:  The Harp the Monarch Minstrel Swept and She Walks in Beauty.

    3 April 1957 Incidental music to Strindberg’s play A Dream Play by Lejaren Hiller (33) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    3 April 1959 Elegy for small orchestra by Kenneth Gaburo (32) is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by Leonard Bernstein (40).

    3 April 1960 Greeting Overture for orchestra by Aram Khachaturian (56) is performed for the first time, in Moscow Conservatory Bolshoy Hall.

    Mostly About Love, four songs for voice and piano by Virgil Thomson (63) to words of Koch, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.  Also premiered are eight songs by Ned Rorem (36) to words of Roethke:  Orchids, I Strolled Across an Open Field, The Waking, Root Cellar, Snake, Night Crow, Memory, and My Papa’s Waltz.

    3 April 1966 Romiosini (Hellenism), a song cycle by Mikis Theodorakis (40) to words of Ritsos, is performed for the first time, in the Diana Theatre in Athens at an evening of protest against the presence of missile bases in Greece.

    Terrêtektorh, for 88 players seated in the audience by Iannis Xenakis (43), is performed for the first time, in Royan, France.

    Composition for oboe and piano by Charles Wuorinen (27) is performed for the first time, at the Gardner Museum, Boston the composer at the keyboard.

    Easter Cantata for alto, chorus, two trumpets, two trombones, glockenspiel, chimes, harp, and strings by Lou Harrison (48) to words of St. Luke is performed for the first time, at Hartnell College, Salinas, California.

    3 April 1967 D’un opéra de voyage for 22 instruments by Betsy Jolas (40) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    Karlheinz Stockhausen (38) marries his second wife, the artist Mary Bauermeister, the daughter of a college professor, in San Francisco.  She is pregnant with their second child.

    3 April 1970 Night of the Four Moons for alto, alto flute, banjo, electric cello, and percussion by George Crumb (40) to words of Garcia Lorca, is performed for the first time, in Springfield, Pennsylvania.  The work was composed exclusively during the flight of Apollo 11, 16-24 July 1969.

    3 April 1975 Dybbuk Suite no.1 for tenor, bass-baritone, and orchestra by Leonard Bernstein (56) to words of various Jewish texts, is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York conducted by the composer.

    3 April 1977 Lichtzwang for violin and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (25) is performed for the first time, in Royan.  Also premiered is Rihm’s Im Innersten for string quartet.

    3 April 1981 Li sao for bamboo flute and orchestra by Tan Dun (23) is performed for the first time, in Beijing.

    Donnerstag aus Licht, an opera by Karlheinz Stockhausen (52) to his own words, is staged completely for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    3 April 1982 The mortal remains of Carl Orff are laid to rest in the Schmerzhafte Kapelle of the monastery church in Andechs.

    Harpsichord Sonata no.4 op.151 by Vincent Persichetti (66) is performed for the first time, at Shippensburg State College, Pennsylvania.

    3 April 1984 Smetana fanfare for band by Karel Husa (62) is performed for the first time, in San Diego, California, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of Bedrich Smetana.

    3 April 1986 A Mini Song Cycle for Gina for soprano and piano by John Tavener (42) to words of Yeats is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Church, Ladbroke Grove, London.

    Three Movements for orchestra by Steve Reich (49) is performed for the first time, in St. Louis.

    3 April 1987 Inquietus op.66 for orchestra by Robin Holloway (43) is performed for the first time, at Friends’ House, London.

    Now sleeps the crimson petal for tenor, horn, and strings by Benjamin Britten (†10) to words of Tennyson, is performed for the first time, in London, 44 years after it was composed.

    I Hear the Water Dreaming for flute and orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (56) is performed for the first time, in Circle Theatre, Indianapolis.

    3 April 1989 Djilie for cello and piano by Pete Sculthorpe (59) is performed for the first time, in the Museum of Contemporary Art, Brisbane.

    Desires for orchestra by Tod Machover (35) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    3 April 1990 Jupiter Landing, a music theatre piece by Peter Maxwell Davies (55), is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    Piano Trio by Lou Harrison (72) is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    3 April 1993 From Saibai for violin and piano by Peter Sculthorpe (63) is performed for the first time, in Penrith, Australia.

    I, II, III, IV, V:  Fantasia on a Ground for strings by John Harbison (54) is performed for the first time, at the Music School at Rivers, Weston, Massachusetts.  Also premiered are Harbison’s shorter setting of O Magnum Mysterium for chorus, the first three of the Inventions for a Young Percussionist, the theme and two variations of Variations (in first position) for string quartet, and the first three of the Inventions for a Young Pianist.

    3 April 1995 The Beltane Fire, a choreographic poem for orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (60), is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston, conducted by the composer.

    3 April 1998 Concerto for Six for bass clarinet, electric guitar, prepared piano, percussion, cello, and double bass by Tan Dun (40) is performed for the first time, in Durham, North Carolina.

    Hallelujah Junction for piano duo by John Adams (51) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    3 April 2003 Boston Concerto for orchestra by Elliott Carter (94) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    3 April 2004 Tell My Fortune for chamber orchestra by Michael Daugherty (49) is performed for the first time, in Southern Theatre, Columbus, Ohio.

    The octaphonic “surround sound” version of Iridescence by Hubert Howe (62) is performed for the first time, in Gainesville, Florida.

    3 April 2005 Comme une symphonie, envoi à Jules Verne for tape by Pierre Henry (77) is  performed for the first time, in Amiens to celebrate the centennial of Jules Verne.

    3 April 2011 Dyade for violin and double bass by Wolfgang Rihm (59) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    3 April 2013 Robert Eugene Ward dies at his home in Durham, North Carolina, aged 95 years, six months, and 21 days.

    4 April

    4 April 1774 Thamos, König in Ägypten, a play by Tobias Philipp Baron von Gebler, is performed in the Kärntnerthortheater, Vienna, probably for the first time, with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (18).

    4 April 1778 La Clemenza di Scipione, an opera seria by Johann Christian Bach (42) to words of an unknown author, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    4 April 1779 The Mass in C “Coronation” K.317 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (23) is performed for the first time, in the Salzburg Cathedral.

    4 April 1787 The Massachusetts Centinel reports as “just published” William Billings’ (40) Anthem for Easter and a Hymn for Good Friday.

    4 April 1810 Carl Maria von Weber (23) arrives in Darmstadt for studies with Georg Joseph Vogler (60).

    4 April 1812 Jean de Paris, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (36) to words of Saint-Just, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Feydeau, Paris, his first production since returning to Paris from St. Petersburg.

    4 April 1819 Zemire und Azor, an opera by Louis Spohr to words of Ihlee after Marmontel, is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main, on the eve of the composer’s 35th birthday.

    4 April 1832 Lowell Mason (40) reaches agreement with the Boston Handel and Haydn Society, allowing him to publish whatever he wants independent of the society.

    4 April 1838 Some excerpts from the unperformed opera Ruslan y Lyudmila by Mikahail Ivanovich Glinka (33) are performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    4 April 1843 Kirchliche Fest-Ouvertüre über den Choral “Ein feste Burg is unser Gott” op.31 for chorus, orchestra and organ by Otto Nicolai (32) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    4 April 1854 A week after declaration of war, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (49) leaves Paris for Russia.

    4 April 1859 Le pardon de Ploërmel, an opéra comique by Giacomo Meyerbeer (67) to words of Barbier and Carré, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.  Critics are enthusiastic.

    4 April 1861 Perpetuum mobile, op.257, a musical joke by Johann Strauss (35), is performed for the first time, in Schwender’s Coliseum, Vienna.

    4 April 1862 Three songs by Johannes Brahms (28) are performed for the first time, in Hamburg:  Vor dem Fenster op.14/1 and Ein Sonnett op.14/4, to anonymous words, and Keinen hat es noch gereut op.33/1 to words of Tieck.

    4 April 1867 Two works by Camille Saint-Saëns (31) are performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées conducted by the composer:  Concerto for violin and orchestra no.1 op.20 and Introduction et Rondo Capriccioso for violin and orchestra op.28.

    4 April 1868 The conclusion of Act 3 to Die Meistersinger by Richard Wagner (54) is performed for the first time, in Linz, conducted by Anton Bruckner (43).  Also on the program is the premiere of Bruckner’s own Vaterlandslied O könnt’ ich dich beglücken for tenor, bass and male chorus to words of Silberstein.

    4 April 1869 Könisgslieder op.334, a waltz by Johann Strauss (43), is performed for the first time, in the Gartenbau, Vienna.

    Louis Moreau Gottschalk’s (39) Piano Septet is performed for the first time, in Montevideo.

    4 April 1875 Vltava (Die Moldau), a symphonic poem from Ma Vlast by Bedrich Smetana (51) is performed for the first time, before a Prague audience which includes Leos Janácek (20).  “My memory of Smetana is like that of a child’s imagining God:  in the clouds.”  (Tyrrell I, 94)

    4 April 1876 The Chorus of Praise from Alyeksandr Borodin’s (42) unperformed opera Prince Igor is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg, directed by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (32).

    4 April 1878 This is the probable date of Friedrich Nietzsche’s visit to his doctor, Otto Eiser, in Frankfurt.  After his examination, Eiser, a fervent Wagnerite, shows Nietzsche a letter from Richard Wagner (54) wherein the composer accuses the philosopher of homosexuality.  Nietzsche explodes.  “Why Nietzsche broke with Wagner is something that I alone know, for the break took place under my roof, in my surgery...Nietzsche was beside himself--the words that he found for Wagner are unrepeatable.”  (Köhler, 526).

    4 April 1892 Sonata for violin and piano op.3 by Max Reger (19) is performed for the first time, in Wiesbaden, the composer at the keyboard.

    4 April 1894 The Münchener Neueste Nachrichten announces that the Bavarian regent Prince Luitpold has approved of the engagement of Richard Strauss (29) by the Munich Opera.

    4 April 1900 Antonín Dvorák (58) makes his last appearance as conductor, directing the Czech Philharmonic in Prague.

    The Woodman’s Song op.18/5 for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (34) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    4 April 1901 The Serenade for small orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (28) is performed for the first time, at the Winter Gardens, Bournemouth.

    4 April 1902 Piano trio in d minor by Frank Bridge (23) is performed publicly for the first time, in Steinway Hall, London.  See 14 November 1900.

    4 April 1905 Alyeksandr Glazunov (39) resigns his position as professor at St. Petersburg Conservatory to protest the dismissal of Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (61).

    A Connemara Revel for orchestra by Arnold Bax (21) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, at a student concert of the Royal Academy of Music.  It is the first performance of an orchestral work by Bax.

    4 April 1906 A setting of Psalm 114 for chorus and three trombones by Anton Bruckner (†9) is performed for the first time, in Linz.

    4 April 1908 King Estmere op.17 for chorus and orchestra by Gustav Holst (33) to anonymous words is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    4 April 1910 Pietro Mascagni (46) and Anna Lolli, a 22-year-old chorus member at the Teatro Costanzi, Rome, fall in love.  They will continue their liaison until his death 35 years from now.

    4 April 1912 Ethel Smyth (53) is released from Holloway Prison after three weeks.  She broke the window of Colonial Secretary Lewis Harcourt.

    4 April 1914 Enrique Granados (46) performs his piano suite Goyescas in a very successful all-Granados concert at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  His Serenade for two violins and piano is performed for the first time, Granados at the keyboard.  For this performance he is awarded the Medal of the Legion of Honor.

    Two works for orchestra by Daniel Chennevière (Dane Rudhyar) (22) are performed for the first time, in New York:  Poèmes ironiques and Vision végétale.

    4 April 1915 A Nunc dimittis for chorus by Gustav Holst (40) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Cathedral, London.

    4 April 1920 Hymn of the Earth op.95, a cantata by Jean Sibelius (54) to words of Leino, for chorus and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    Mass in Eight Voices by Charles Villiers Stanford (67) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Cathedral.

    4 April 1922 Fantasia fugata op.87 for piano by Amy Cheney Beach (54) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    4 April 1924 Sonata for cello and piano by John Ireland (44) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    4 April 1930 Serranilla for voice and piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (28) to words of the Marqués de Santillana is performed for the first time, in Ville de Chatellerault, France.

    William Schuman (19) attends a performance of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Arturo Toscanini.  He is so enthralled that decides on music as a profession.

    4 April 1931 Incidental music to Grundtvig’s play Easter Eve by Carl Nielsen (65) is performed for the first time, at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen.

    About 22:00  George Whitefield Chadwick dies suddenly at his Boston home from complications due to arteriosclerosis, aged 76 years, four months, and 22 days.

    Improvisation for carillon by Gian Carlo Menotti (19) is performed for the first time, at Lake Wales, Florida.

    4 April 1934 Amidst rumors that he is Jewish, and attacks by the Nazis, Béla Bartók’s (52) Vienna publisher, Universal Edition, writes to the composer requesting he send a copy of his baptismal certificate and documents establishing his ethnic origin.  See 28 April 1934.

    Czech Nursery Rhymes for female chorus by Bohuslav Martinu (43) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    4 April 1938 Finlandia Hymn op.113/12 for male chorus and harmonium by Jean Sibelius (72) to words of Sola is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    Piano Trio no.3 by John Ireland (58) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London the composer at the keyboard.  See 20 June 1938.

    4 April 1941 Four Songs op.13 by Samuel Barber (31) are performed for the first time, in Philadelphia:  A Nun Takes the Veil, to words of Hopkins, The Secrets of the Old, to words of Yeats, Sure on This Shining Night, to words of Agee, and Nocturne, to words of Prokosch.

    Concertino in Stilo Classico for piano and orchestra by Norman Dello Joio (28) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Slow Piece for orchestra by Ross Lee Finney (34) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    4 April 1942 Requiescat for female chorus by William Schuman (31) is performed for the first time, in New York under the baton of the composer.

    4 April 1943 Excerpts from Lamentatio Jeremiae prophetae for chorus by Ernst Krenek (42) are performed for the first time, in Bridgman Hall, Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota.  See 5 October 1958.

    4 April 1948 Duett-Concertino for clarinet, bassoon, strings, and harp by Richard Strauss (83) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio-Svizzera-Italiana originating in Lugano.

    4 April 1949 The issue of Life magazine dated today includes an article on the Waldorf Peace Conference, including photos of Aaron Copland (48) and Dmitri Shostakovich (42).  The magazine tells its readers that the sponsoring group, the National Council of the Arts, Sciences, and Professions is “dominated by intellectuals who fellow-travel the communist line.”  Copland’s picture is placed under the words “Dupes and Fellow Travelers Dress Up Communist Fronts.”

    Concerto in modo galante for cello and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (47) is performed for the first time, in Palacio de la Música, Madrid.

    Trio for violin, viola, and cello by Ernst Krenek (48) is performed for the first time, in Wilshire-Ebell Theatre, Los Angeles.

    4 April 1951 Kállai kettos for chorus and small orchestra by Zoltán Kodály (68) is performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    4 April 1955 Two of the 12 petites pièces très faciles op.208 for piano by Charles Koechlin (†4) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio 3.

    Igor Stravinsky’s (72) Greeting Prelude for orchestra, composed to celebrate the 80th birthday of Pierre Monteux, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    Pensée amicale op.342 for strings by Darius Milhaud (62) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    4 April 1956 Symphony for trombone and orchestra by Ernest Bloch (75) is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    4 April 1957 Symphony no.10 “Sinfonia amerindia” for tenor, baritone, bass, chorus, and orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (70) to words of de Anchieta, commissioned to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the founding of São Paulo, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris under the baton of the composer.

    4 April 1960 Consort of Four Trombones by Charles Wuorinen (21) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    Chamber Music for 13 Players by Arthur Berger (47) is performed for the first time, in Fiesta Hall, Los Angeles.

    4 April 1961 Soli II for woodwind quintet by Carlos Chávez (61) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    Symphony no.10 by Darius Milhaud (68), commissioned to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the State of Oregon, is performed for the first time, in Portland.

    4 April 1963 Aventures for three singers and seven instrumentalists by György Ligeti (39) is performed for the first time, over NDR, Hamburg.  See 16 October 1970.

    Andromache’s Farewell op.39 for soprano and orchestra by Samuel Barber (53) to words of Euripides (tr. Creagh) is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    4 April 1966 The Internationale becomes the first Earth music broadcast from lunar orbit as the Soviet space probe Luna 10 beams it to a meeting of the 23rd Party Congress.

    4 April 1967 Telemanniana for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (40) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    4 April 1969 Nomos gamma for orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (46) is performed for the first time, in Royan, France.  Also premiered is Quadrivium for orchestra by Bruno Maderna (48).

    4 April 1971 Concordanza for chamber ensemble by Sofia Gubaidulina (39) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    4 April 1972 Between 13:15-13:30 Stefan Wolpe dies in his New York apartment from choking on food.  However, he is a long-time sufferer of Parkinson’s Disease.  Wolpe is aged 69 years, seven months, and ten days.

    4 April 1974 Show-Tellies for video by Kenneth Gaburo (47) is performed for the first time, in La Jolla, California.

    4 April 1975 Al gran sole carico d’amore, a scenic action by Luigi Nono (51) to words of various authors, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    Violin Concerto by George Rochberg (56) is performed for the first time, in Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh.

    4 April 1977 Symphony no.3 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs) op.36 for soprano and orchestra by Henryk Górecki (43) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    4 April 1980 Mercure--Poses Plastiques for 14 players by Harrison Birtwistle (45) after Satie (†54) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    4 April 1982 Eight Pieces in Hunan Accent, pieces for young pianists by Tan Dun (24), is performed for the first time, in London.

    From One to Another II for viola and 15 strings by Thea Musgrave (53) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis, the composer conducting.

    4 April 1986 Abkehr for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (34) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.

    Concerto for harmonica and orchestra by Henry Cowell (†20) is performed for the first time, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, conducted by Lukas Foss (63), 24 years after it was composed.

    Tromba lontana for orchestra by John Adams (39) is performed for the first time, in Jones Hall, Houston.

    4 April 1987 Whoe’er She Be for treble voices and piano by Leslie Bassett (64) to words of Crashaw is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    4 April 1990 Schliemann, an opera by Betsy Jolas (63) to words of Bayen and the composer, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Paris.  See 3 May 1995.

    Casino Paradise, a musical theatre opera by William Bolcom (51) to words of Weinstein, is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    4 April 1992 Cayuga Lake (Memories) for chamber orchestra by Karel Husa (70) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.  The work celebrates the centennial of Ithaca College and marks Husa’s retirement from the faculty.

    4 April 1993 One10 for violin by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    4 April 1994 Equinox for guitar by Toru Takemitsu (63) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.

    4 April 1998 Drei Gedichte von Monique Thoné for voice and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (46) is performed for the first time, in Borgerbout.

    4 April 2001 Echoes of Time Past for english horn, trumpet, and strings by Thea Musgrave (72) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    4 April 2004 Otter Island for children’s chorus and piano by Peter Maxwell Davies (69) to his own words is performed for the first time, at the United Reform Church, Enfield, London.

    Piano Concerto no.3 by Samuel Adler (76) is performed for the first time, in Weston, Massachusetts.

    4 April 2006 A Guy Walks Into a Modal Bar for five laptops by Paul Lansky (61) is performed for the first time, at Princeton University.

    4 April 2014 Concerto for Orchestra:  Zodiac Tales by Bright Sheng (58) is performed for the first time, in Detroit.

    5 April

    5 April 1595 John Wilson is born in Faversham, Kent.

    5 April 1759 Carl Friedrich Abel (35) gives his first public concert in London, not long after arriving there from the continent.

    5 April 1773 Die Jubelhochzeit, a comsiche Oper by Johann Adam Hiller (44) to words of Weisse, is performed for the first time, in the Behrenstrassetheater, Berlin.

    5 April 1784 Ludwig Spohr is born in Braunschweig, first of six children born to Karl Heinrich Spohr, a physician, and Juliane Ernestine Luise Henke.

    5 April 1785 Hellsteigenter Tag, a cantata by Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (49) to words of Petrack, is performed for the first time, in Melk.

    5 April 1793 Samuel Wesley (27) marries Charlotte Louisa Martin in St. Paul’s, Hammersmith.  She is the daughter of a surgeon (now deceased), and an assistant teacher at a private school in Marylebone where Samuel gives piano lessons.  The two object to marriage, having lived out of wedlock since October, but are driven to it by Charlotte’s unexpected pregnancy.  The wedding is in Hammersmith presumably because neither are known there.  None of the Wesley family are present.

    5 April 1801 The Venetian government publishes a medical report that asserts that Domenico Cimarosa died of cancer, not poison as has been rumored.  See 11 January 1801.

    5 April 1802 Une folie, a comédie mêlée de chants by Étienne-Nicolas Méhul (38) to words of Bouilly, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Feydeau, Paris.  It is a great success and will be performed more than 200 times during the composer’s life.

    5 April 1803 Three new works by Ludwig van Beethoven (32) are performed for the first time, at the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna:  the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives to words of Huber, the Symphony no.2 and the Third Piano Concerto, all on a program with the composer’s First Symphony.  The composer is soloist in the concerto.  Critics are mixed, but the concert is a great financial success.   

    5 April 1811 Heinrich Baermann performs the premiere of Carl Maria von Weber’s (24) Clarinet Concerto J.109 in Munich.  It is well received and King Maximilian, in attendance, orders two clarinet concertos from the composer.

    5 April 1814 The name of the Académie de Musique (Paris Opéra) is changed to the Académie Royale de Musique.

    5 April 1820 A setting of the Agnus Dei by Carl Maria von Weber (33) is performed for the first time, as part of Carlo, a play by von Blankensee, in Berlin.

    5 April 1826 Seven Songs to Words of Scott op.52 by Franz Schubert (29) are published by Artaria.

    5 April 1833 Robert Schumann (22) writes to a friend reporting “I have a numb, broken finger on my right hand…I can hardly use the hand at all for playing.”  The situation has been getting worse for over a year and may be the result of using a homemade device for strengthening certain fingers, or the ingestion of mercury, the treatment for syphilis.

    A setting of the Stabat mater for solo voices, chorus and orchestra, with music partly by Gioachino Rossini (41) is performed for the first time, in the Chapel of San Felipe el Real, Madrid.  See 7 January 1842.

    5 April 1847 As the city of Mobile, Alabama celebrates the victory at Buena Vista, Henri Herz (44) presents his Variations brillantes et grande fantaisie sur des airs nationaux américains to the delighted citizenry.   It is billed as a first performance, but throughout his tour of the southern states, it will always be billed as a first performance.  In Vicksburg it will be called the Victory of Vera Cruz, in St. Louis The Battle of Buena Vista and in Nashville The Return of the Volunteers, A Heroic National Fantasia.

    5 April 1855 Agnès Street-Klindworth departs Weimar for Brussels.  She has been in Weimar since the Autumn of 1853, coming as a promising piano pupil of Franz Liszt (43).  Agnès’ true mission was as an intelligence gatherer for her father, Georg Klindworth, spymaster for Prince Metternich of Austria.  During her stay she managed to begin a flaming love affair with Liszt, which they will continue by letter after her departure.

    5 April 1862 A performance of Arthur Sullivan’s (19) incidental music to The Tempest at the Crystal Palace wins universal approval and catapults Sullivan into the public consciousness.  “It is no exaggeration to say that I woke up the next morning and found myself famous.”  See 6 April 1861.

    5 April 1869 Albert Charles Paul Marie Roussel is born in Tourcoing, 15 km north of Lille on the Belgian border, the only child of Albert Roussel and Louise (née) Roussel, wealthy industrialists.

    5 April 1874 Die Fledermaus, an operetta by Johann Strauss (48) to words of Haffner and Genée after Meilhac and Halévy, is performed for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna.  The reviews are mixed but the public is ecstatic.  It will see over 300 performances to become, perhaps, the most popular operetta in German.

    5 April 1877 Cinq Mars, an opéra dialogué by Charles Gounod (58) to words of Poirson and Gallet after de Vigny, is performed for the first time, at the Salle Favart, Paris.  The work proves a success.

    5 April 1879 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (38) estranged wife appears at his brother’s apartment in St. Petersburg where the composer is staying, protesting her undying love and devotion.  Tchaikovsky gives her 100 rubles and sends her back to Moscow saying that they can not live together.  This gets her out of the apartment, but not before she hands him a list of her boyfriends.  She will not go to Moscow however, and will continue to dog him, even taking a room in the same building.

    The Mountain Thrall op.32 for baritone, two horns, and strings by Edvard Grieg (35) to words of Landstat, is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    5 April 1884 Quartet for piano and strings no.1 op. 15 by Gabriel Fauré (38) is performed for the first time with a new finale, by the Société National de Musique, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.  See 14 February 1880.

    5 April 1885 Noé, an opéra by Fromental Halévy (†23), completed by Georges Bizet (†9) to words of Saint-Georges, is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe.

    5 April 1891 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (50) conducts a wildly successful program of his own works in Paris.  It includes the presumed premiere of his song Tears op.46/3 to words of Tyutchev.

    5 April 1902 Two piano works by Maurice Ravel (27), Jeux d’eau and Pavane pour une infante défunte, are performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  See 27 February 1911.

    Le flambeau vivant, a song for voice and piano by Charles Martin Loeffler (41) to words of Beaudelaire, is performed for the first time.

    5 April 1903 Gabriel Fauré (57) is created an Officier de la Légion d’honneur.

    5 April 1913 Three of the Préludes, Book II (Les fées sont d’exquises danseuses, La terrasse des audiences du clair de lune, Feux d’artifice) for piano by Claude Debussy (50), are performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Véritables Préludes flasques (pour un chien) for piano by Erik Satie (46) are performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    5 April 1915 Selections from Canciones amatorias for voice and piano by Enrique Granados (47) are performed for the first time, in Barcelona.

    The first of the three Myths op.30 for violin and piano, La Source d’Arethuse, by Karol Szymanowski (32) is performed publicly for the first time, at the Kupicki Club, Kiev.

    5 April 1917 Dmitri Shostakovich (10) and his family take part in a massive funeral procession through Petrograd for 184 victims of the February (March) Revolution.  At the Field of Mars, the mourners sing the revolutionary hymn “You Fell a Victim”, a tune he will use several times in his career.  In the evening, he reproduces the song at the piano.

    5 April 1919 Outside, the Storm is Raging for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (53) to words of Schybergson is performed for the first time, in Viipuri.

    A concert in the Salle Huyghens, Paris features all six of “les nouveaux Jeunes” for the first time.  Premiered is the String Quartet no.4 by Darius Milhaud (26) and Sonata for two clarinets by Francis Poulenc (20).

    5 April 1920 An operation on Charles T. Griffes (35) takes place in New York Hospital.  His chest is drained and a medical instrument, lost during a previous operation, is removed.  The operation has no effect on his condition.

    Oo, how I love to be loved by you, a song by George Gershwin (21) to words of Ira Gershwin, is performed for the first time as part of the revue Ed Wynn’s Carnival in the New Amsterdam Theatre, New York.

    5 April 1921 Alphons Johannes Maria Diepenbrock dies in Amsterdam, aged 58 years, seven months, and three days.  His mortal remains will be laid to rest in RK Begraafplaats Buitenveldert, Amsterdam.

    5 April 1930 A concert at Barn Theatre, Oxted, features the first public performance of any music by Michael Tippett (25), including a Concerto in D for chamber orchestra, Three Songs for voice and piano to words of Mew, Variations on Jockey to the Fair for piano, String Quartet in F and Psalm in C for chorus and orchestra to words of Fry.  Tippett designed the program himself, but forgot to include his own name.

    5 April 1933 Introduzione, aria e toccata for orchestra by Alfredo Casella (49) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Augusteo, Rome.

    5 April 1936 Three Male Choruses by Richard Strauss (71) to words of Rückert are performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    5 April 1938 Trio no.2 for violin, viola, and cello op.58 by Albert Roussel (†0) is performed for the first time, in the École Normale, Paris on what would have been his 69th birthday.

    5 April 1939 Ballad of Heroes op.14 for solo voice, chorus, and orchestra by Benjamin Britten (25) to words of Auden and Swingler, is performed for the first time, at a concert of the Festival of Music for the People in Queen’s Hall, London.  The work was composed in honor of the men of the British Battalion of the International Brigade who fell combating fascism in Spain.

    5 April 1941 Verklungene Feste, a ballet by Richard Strauss (76) to a choreography by Pia and Pino Mlaker, is performed for the first time, in the Bayerische Staatsoper, Munich.

    5 April 1942 The Leningrad Radio Orchestra, reconstituted since ceasing operations 3 January, gives a performance in the Pushkin Theatre.  Without heat, the temperature in the theatre hovers between -7° and -8° C but the standing room only audience is not deterred.

    Stefan Wolpe’s (39) ballet The Man from Midian to a scenario by Palmer is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    5 April 1944 Several works for prepared piano by John Cage (31) are performed for the first time, at the Studio Theatre, New York to dances by Merce Cunningham:  The Perilous Night, Tossed as it is Untroubled, Root of an Unfocus, Spontaneous Earth, The Unavailable Memory of, Triple-Paced No.2.  It is the first complete evening of Cage/Cunningham collaborations.

    5 April 1945 The first bombs fall on Bayreuth, some hitting Wahnfried, the home of Richard Wagner (†62).  Much of the main house is destroyed.

    Incidental music to Shkvarkin’s play The Last Day by Aram Khachaturian (41) is performed for the first time, in Vakhtangov Dramatic Theatre, Moscow.

    5 April 1946 Samuel Barber’s (36) Cello Concerto is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    Symphony no.3 “The Camp Meeting” for small orchestra by Charles Ives (71) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York, conducted by Lou Harrison (28) 44 years after it was composed.  The work will win the 1947 Pulitzer Prize.  Also premiered is Harrison’s Motet for the Day of Ascension for chamber orchestra conducted by the composer.

    Labyrinth, a ballet by David Diamond (30) to a story by Marchowsky, is performed for the first time, in Times Hall, New York.

    5 April 1948 Romance del Comendador de Ocaña for soprano and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (46) to words of Lope de Vega, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Español, Madrid.

    5 April 1949 Kentucky Spring for orchestra by Roy Harris (51) is performed for the first time, in Columbia Auditorium, Louisville conducted by the composer.

    5 April 1950 Incidental music to Hay’s play God, Caesar, and Peasant by Witold Lutoslawski (37) is performed for the first time, in Teatr Polski, Warsaw.

    The earthly remains of Kurt Weill are laid to rest at Mount Repose Cemetery, Haverstraw, New York attended by a small group of family and friends.

    The Ballad of the Railroads for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (49) to his own words is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    5 April 1951 Symphony in B flat for winds by Paul Hindemith (55) is performed for the first time, in Washington, conducted by the composer.

    5 April 1954 Music for Five Instruments for flute, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, and piano by Kenneth Gaburo (27) is performed for the first time, at the University of Texas, Austin.

    5 April 1956 Los meridos de mamá, a film with music by Alberto Ginastera (39), is released in Argentina.

    5 April 1960 Monody for Corpus Christi for soprano, flute, horn, and violin by Harrison Birtwistle (25) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    Leonard Bernstein (41) conducts the New York Philharmonic at the White House before President Eisenhower, playing Mozart (†168) and Gershwin (†22).  Eisenhower tells Bernstein that he enjoyed Rhapsody in Blue.  “It’s got a theme.  I like music with a theme, not all them arias and barcarolles.”

    String Quartet 1959 by Gottfried Michael Koenig (33) is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    5 April 1964 The Geography of Eros for soprano and chamber orchestra by R. Murray Schafer (30) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    5 April 1966 The Cantata for the Twentieth Anniversary of October op.74 for two choruses, band, accordions, and percussion by Sergey Prokofiev (†13) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  This work was composed in 1937 but was withheld for ideological reasons.  For this performance, the texts by Stalin have been removed.  See 19 June 1937

    Incidental music to Rhode’s play The Pagoda Fugue by Peter Maxwell Davies (31) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC Third Programme.  The broadcast was pre-recorded on 27 January, and 1, 4, and 8 February at the BBC’s Maida Vale studios.

    5 April 1968 Olly Wilson (30) wins the first competition devoted to electronic music, at Dartmouth College with his composition Cetus.  The three judges are Milton Babbitt (51), Vladimir Ussachevsky (56), and George Balch Wilson.

    Wind Quintet no.3 by George Perle (52) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    5 April 1971 Sonate à 12 for twelve solo voices by Betsy Jolas (44) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    5 April 1972 Music for harpsichord and percussion from the Collection of Mark Pekarski by Sofia Gubaidulina (40) is performed for the first time, in the October Concert Hall, Leningrad.

    5 April 1973 Persian Surgery Dervishes by Terry Riley (37) is performed for the first time, at the Whitney Museum, San Francisco.

    5 April 1975 Amen op.35 for chorus by Henryk Górecki (41) is performed for the first time, in Poznan.

    An der Schwelle for baritone, female chorus, organ, flute, oboe, trumpet, trombone, and percussion by Isang Yun (57) to words of Haushofer is performed for the first time, in Kassel.

    5 April 1977 Misterioso for seven percussionists by Sofia Gubaidulina (45) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    5 April 1982 The Pleiades for violin by Robert Erickson (65) is performed for the first time, at the University of California at San Diego.

    5 April 1983 Dialogues for violin, cello, and orchestra by Robert Ward (65) is performed for the first time, in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

    5 April 1984 The Mask of Time for vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra by Michael Tippett (79) to his own and others’ words, is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.  The work was commissioned to celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

    5 April 1985 On Taoism for voice, bass clarinet, contrabassoon, and orchestra by Tan Dun (27) is performed for the first time.

    5 April 1986 Aus dem Nachlass for viola, cello, and bass by Mauricio Kagel (54) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, Cologne.

    5 April 1987 Haikai for gamelan by John Cage (74) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    Concerto for violin and orchestra by Philip Glass (50) is performed for the first time.

    5 April 1991 Facing Death for amplified string quartet by Louis Andriessen (51) is performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

    5 April 1994 Zyia for soprano, male chorus, flute, and piano by Iannis Xenakis (71) is performed for the first time, in Evreux, 42 years after it was composed.

    5 April 1999 Über die Linie for cello by Wolfgang Rihm (47) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    5 April 2008 Scherzo for piano by Charles Wuorinen (69) is performed for the first time, in the 92nd Street YMHA, New York.

    6 April

    6 April 1660 Johann Kuhnau is born in Geising, Erzgebirge.

    6 April 1759 L’Addolorata Divina Madre, a cantata by Giovanni Battista Sammartini (58), is performed for the first time, in San Fedele, Milan.

    After the final concert of the oratorio season, a performance of Messiah, George Frideric Handel (74) is confined to his bed by illness.

    6 April 1768 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (12) and his sister perform in Vienna during celebrations surrounding the wedding of Archduchess Maria Carolina to King Ferdinando of Naples.

    6 April 1772 Johann Christian Bach’s (36) serenata Endimione to words after Metastasio is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    6 April 1774 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (18) dates his Symphony no.29 K.201 in Salzburg.

    6 April 1779 Tommaso Michele Francesco Saverio Traetta dies in Venice, aged 52 years and seven days.  His mortal remains will be buried near the Ospedaletto.

    6 April 1785 Leopold Mozart (65) is initiated into the Freemasons at the Lodge “Zur wahren Eintracht” in Vienna.

    6 April 1797 The Quintet for piano, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn op.16 by Ludwig van Beethoven (26) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    6 April 1813 Les abenceráges, ou L’étendard de Grenade, an opéra lyrique by Luigi Cherubini (52) to words of Jouy after Florian, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  The premiere is attended by the Emperor with his wife, shortly before departing for the east.  It is moderately successful.

    6 April 1826 The Philharmonic Society elects Carl Maria von Weber (39) its first honorary member.

    Three songs by Franz Schubert (29) are published by Weigl as his op.57:  Der Schmetterling and Die Berge to words of von Schlegel, and the first setting of An den Mond to words of Hölty.  Weigl also publishes three of Schubert’s songs to words of Schiller as his op.56 (later corrected to op.58):  Hektors Abschied, An Emma and the second setting of Des Mädchens Klage.

    6 April 1835 Two duets from Richard Wagner’s (21) romantic opera Das Liebesverbot to his own words are performed for the first time, in the Magdeburg Stadttheater, conducted by the composer.  See 29 March 1836.

    6 April 1840 At the first London performance of Louis Spohr’s (56) Symphony no.5, the work is hissed by the audience.  See 1 March 1838.

    6 April 1856 After graduating from the Academy of Physicians, Alyeksandr Borodin (22) is appointed “medical practitioner” at the Second Military Hospital, St. Petersburg.  In this capacity he will meet a young duty officer assigned to the hospital from the Preobrazhensky Regiment:  Modest Musorgsky (17).

    6 April 1861 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play The Tempest by Arthur Sullivan (18) is performed for the first time, directed by the composer at a graduation concert for the Leipzig Conservatory.  See 15 October 1864.

    6 April 1866 In Rome, Edvard Grieg (22) receives the news of the death of Rikard Nordraak, “the saddest news that could strike me.”  He marks the date with a black cross in his diary and composes a funeral march.

    6 April 1872 Romance for flute and orchestra op.37 by Camille Saint-Saëns (36) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris, conducted by the composer.

    6 April 1873 Vom Donaustrande op.356, a polka schnell by Johann Strauss (47), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    6 April 1879 The fourth of the Four Choruses op.29 by Antonin Dvorák (37) to a Moravian folk poem is performed for the first time, in Olmütz (Olomouc).

    6 April 1883 Hugo Wolf (23) plays through some of his songs for Franz Liszt (71), now visiting Vienna.  The older master pronounces delight in what he hears.

    6 April 1886 Charles Martin Loeffler (25) becomes engaged to Elise Fay, member of a wealthy family who are important patrons of music in Boston.  She is an excellent amateur pianist and met Loeffler by playing chamber music with him.

    6 April 1892 The Symphony no.4 by Antonín Dvorák (50) is performed completely for the first time, in Prague, conducted by the composer.  See 25 May 1874.

    6 April 1893 The Boat Journey op.18/3 for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (27) to words of the Kalevala, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    6 April 1896 Ghiselle, a drame lyrique by César Franck (†5) to words of Thierry, is performed for the first time, in Monte Carlo.

    6 April 1897 After an elaborate funeral in the Protestant church of Vienna, including many musical figures from throughout Europe and thousands of mourners, the earthly remains of Johannes Brahms are laid to rest in the Zentral Friedhof of Vienna near those of Beethoven (†70) and Schubert (†68).  In Hamburg, the composer’s birthplace, ships lower their flags to half-mast.

    Thaddeus Cahill receives a US patent for the “art of and apparatus for generating and distributing music electrically.”  It is the first version of what will be known as the Telharmonium.

    6 April 1903 A zarzuela by Enrique Granados (35), Follet, to words of Mestres, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting at the Liceu, Barcelona.  Some critics are positive but it is a failure.

    6 April 1906 A ballet to the music of Chopin (†56) entitled Chopiniana is performed for the first time, at the Imperial Opera House, St. Petersburg.  It will be produced in Paris by Dyaghilev as Les Sylphides.  See 2 June 1909.

    6 April 1908 Saga Dream op.39, an orchestral work by Carl Nielsen (42), is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen the composer conducting.

    Two works for violin and piano by Frank Bridge (29) are performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall:  Gondoliera and Morceau characteristique.

    6 April 1910 Incidental music to Lybeck’s play The Lizard by Jean Sibelius (44) for violin and string quintet, is performed for the first time, at the Swedish Theatre, Helsinki, directed by the composer.

    A Somerset Rhapsody op.21/2 for orchestra by Gustav Holst (35) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London conducted by the composer.

    6 April 1911 The Fantasiestücke op.2 for oboe and string quartet by Gustav Holst (36) are performed for the first time, at the Oxford and Cambridge Musical Club.

    Rincones Sevillanos op.5 for piano by Joaquín Turina (28) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    6 April 1916 A Quintet for clarinet and strings op.146 by Max Reger (43) is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    6 April 1918 Karl Muck, conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is transported from the East Cambridge, Massachusetts jail to Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia where is interned for the rest of the war as an enemy alien.

    6 April 1919 Impromptu for harp op.21 by Albert Roussel (50) is performed for the first time, at the home of Mlle. Goupil, Paris.  See 14 December 1919.

    6 April 1921 Kaspar Rucky, for soprano soloist and female chorus by Leos Janácek (66) to words of Praházka, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    Andrew Welsh Imbrie is born in New York, son of Andrew C. Imbrie and Dorothy West.

    6 April 1922 Maurice Ravel’s (47) Sonata for violin and cello is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris.  Also premiered is the String Quartet no.5 by Darius Milhaud (29).

    Two orchestrations of piano pieces by Jean Sibelius (56) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki:  Valse lyrique and Suite mignonne for two flutes and strings.

    6 April 1925 Tell Me More, a musical comedy with a book by Thompson and Wells, lyrics by DeSylva and Ira Gershwin and music by George Gershwin (26), is performed for the first time in Atlantic City.  See 13 April 1925.

    6 April 1928 California for orchestra by Frederick S. Converse (57) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    6 April 1930 Africa for orchestra by William Grant Still (34) is performed for the first time, in a reduced orchestra setting, in the Guild Theatre, New York.

    New works by American composers are performed for the first time, at a League of Composers’ Concert in New York: Five Songs on Poems by Carl Sandburg (first public) by Ruth Crawford (28), Piano Sonata by Roy Harris (32), and Three Poems by ee cummings for voice and piano by Marc Blitzstein (25).

    6 April 1935 Sei cori di Michelangelo Buonarroti il Giovane (Set II) for chorus and 17 instruments by Luigi Dallapiccola (31) is performed for the first time, in Rome.  See 26 April 1938.

    6 April 1940 Izaht, an opera by Heitor Villa-Lobos (53) to words of Azevedo, Júnior, and the composer, is performed completely for the first time, in a concert setting, in the Teatro Municipal, Rio de Janeiro under the baton of the composer.  See 13 December 1958.

    6 April 1941 Music for Auden and Stern’s (after Lawrence) play The Rocking-Horse Winner by Benjamin Britten (27) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the CBS radio network originating in New York.

    6 April 1943 William Walton’s (41) ballet The Quest, to a scenario by Moore, is performed for the first time, in the New Theatre, London.  See 3 June 1961.

    6 April 1945 Concerto for french horn and orchestra by Gunther Schuller (19) is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati, the composer as soloist.

    6 April 1947 The first Antoinette Perry awards are given in New York.  Kurt Weill (47) receives a special award for his contributions to theatre.

    6 April 1948 Symphony no.1 by Witold Lutoslawski (35) is performed before a live audience for the first time, in Katowice.  See 1 April 1948.

    Sonatas and Interludes for piano by John Cage (35) is performed completely for the first time, at Black Mountain College in North Carolina.  See 11 January 1949.

    6 April 1953 At his first recording session with Capitol Records, Duke Ellington (53) introduces Satin Doll.

    6 April 1954 Fantasy for cello and piano by Ernst Krenek (53) is performed for the first time, in Lucerne, the composer at the keyboard.

    6 April 1958 Mutations I for piano by Ralph Shapey (37) is performed for the first time, in Nonagon Gallery, New York.  Also premiered is Shapey’s Sonata Variations for piano.

    6 April 1963 Cánticos nupciales for three sopranos and organ by Joaquín Rodrigo (61) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in the Church of the City University, Madrid.

    6 April 1964 Elegy for JFK for baritone and three clarinets by Igor Stravinsky (81) to words of Auden is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    6 April 1967 Los Caprichos for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (40) is performed for the first time, in Duisburg.

    6 April 1971 Early morning.  Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky dies in his sleep at his Fifth Avenue apartment in New York, of heart failure, aged 88 years, nine months, and 20 days.

    Two works by Iannis Xenakis (48) are performed for the first time, in Royan, France:  Synaphaï for piano and orchestra and Charisma for clarinet and cello.  Also premiered is Remember for english horn or viola and cello by Betsy Jolas (44).

    6 April 1972 On the first anniversary of the death of Igor Stravinsky, two works in his honor are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio 3 England:  Threnody I (originally Threnody Igor Stravinsky:  In memoriam) for flute and string trio by Aaron Copland (71), and Canon in memoriam Igor Stravinsky (recorded 20 March 1972) for flute, clarinet, harp, and string quartet by Peter Maxwell Davies (37).  See 17 June 1972.

    6 April 1973 Parable IX op.121 for band by Vincent Persichetti (57) is performed for the first time, in Des Moines, Iowa.

    6 April 1976 Two Sacred Songs op.30 for baritone and orchestra by Henryk Górecki (42) to words of Skwarnicki is performed for the first time, in Poznan.

    Three works by William Schuman (65) are performed for the first time, in Washington:  Symphony no.10 “American Muse”, Casey at the Bat, a cantata for soprano, chorus and orchestra revised from his opera, and The Young Dead Soldiers for soprano, horn, woodwinds and strings, to words of MacLeish.  See 4 May 1953.

    6 April 1979 Two songs for voice and piano by Leonard Bernstein (60) are performed for the first time, in Buffalo as part of the musical Mad Woman of Central Park West:  My New Friends to words of the composer, and Up! Up! Up! to words of Comden and Green.

    6 April 1983 Maria Elena, an opera by Thomas Pasatieri (37) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Tucson, Arizona.

    6 April 1984 Concerto Lirico for trombone and orchestra by Leslie Bassett (61) is performed for the first time, in Toledo, Ohio.

    6 April 1986 Suite no.1 for violin by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (†22) is performed for the first time, in Spokane, Washington, 59 years after it was composed.

    6 April 1987 Fantasy for violin and piano by Ralph Shapey (66) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    6 April 1988 New works are performed for the first time at Pennsylvania State University:  Dialogues for oboe and piano by Leslie Bassett (65), and Echoes for oboe and bassoon by TJ Anderson (59).

    6 April 1989 Windows of Order (String Quartet no.8) by George Perle (73) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    101 for large orchestra by John Cage (76) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    6 April 1991 Der verwunschene Wald for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (64) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt.

    One5 by John Cage (78) is performed for the first time, in First Unitarian Meeting House, Madison, Wisconsin.

    6 April 1992 Now Sleep the Mountains, All for chorus, percussion, and two pianos by Lou Harrison (74) is performed for the first time, at San Jose State University.

    6 April 1994 Sonata for two pianos in one movement by William Bolcom (55) is performed for the first time, at Purdue University.

    6 April 1997 He’s Our Dad for soprano, keyboard, and computer generated sound by Tod Machover (43) to words of Julie Anderson Machover is performed for the first time, at the Boston Computer Museum, the composer taking the vocal part.

    6 April 2001 Dream Dancer, fantasy of a soul moving between two cultures for alto saxophone and wind orchestra by Michael Colgrass (68) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    Song for band by William Bolcom (62) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    6 April 2006 …and bells remembered for percussion by John Luther Adams (53) is performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls.

    6 April 2014 The Right to Pleasure, a cycle for mezzo-soprano and string quintet by John Harbison (75), to words of Fisher, is performed for the first time, at the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia.

    7 April

    7 April 1761 Vanbrugh and Cibber’s play The Provok’d Husband, or a Journey to London with music by  Thomas Augustine Arne (51), is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden, London.

    7 April 1768 William Boyce (56) resigns his position at St. Michael’s, Cornhill after the church wardens complain that “the playing of the Organ did not give the Satisfaction to the Parish which they had a Right to expect.”

    7 April 1770 Christoph Willibald Gluck’s (55) Orfeo ed Euridice opens in London with seven arias contributed by Johann Christian Bach (34).

    7 April 1783 Ignaz Holzbauer dies in Mannheim, aged 71 years, six months and 21 days.

    7 April 1786 Piano Concerto no.24 K.491 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (30) is performed for the first time, at a Vienna subscription concert, the composer at the keyboard.  This is Mozart’s last concert in the Burgtheater.

    7 April 1787 Ludwig van Beethoven (16) arrives in Vienna from Bonn.  He is in the city for a two-week stay, during which he is supposed to receive instruction from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (31).  (There is no hard evidence that he ever met Mozart or what their relationship was)

    7 April 1791 Two pieces for Giovanni Paisiello’s (50) Il tamburo notturno by Luigi Cherubini (30) are performed for the first time, in Théâtre De Monsieur, Paris.

    7 April 1794 Due to court intrigues against him, Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (54) is given one week to leave the Johannisberg Palace by his employer, Prince-Bishop Schaffgotsch.

    7 April 1805 Fleeing debts, Lorenzo da Ponte boards ship in London bound for America.

    Ludwig van Beethoven’s (34) Symphony no.3 “Eroica” is performed publicly for the first time, in the Theater-an-der-Wien, Vienna.  It was performed privately last summer at the residence of the dedicatee, Prince Franz Joseph von Lobkowitz.  The work leaves the critics confused.

    7 April 1820 An overture by Franz Schubert (23), probably D.648, is performed in Graz.  This is the first time a composition by Schubert is heard outside Vienna.

    7 April 1824 Mass in D “Missa Solemnis” for soloists, chorus and orchestra by Ludwig van Beethoven (53) is performed completely for the first time, in St. Petersburg.  See 25 October 1821.

    7 April 1828 Gaetano Donizetti’s (30) Inno reale to words of Romani is performed for the first time, for the inauguration of Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa.  The first production in the new theatre is the premiere of Bianca e Fernando (second version), a melodramma by Vincenzo Bellini (26) also to words of Romani after Gilardoni after Roti.  See 30 May 1826.

    7 April 1834 Felix Mendelssohn’s (25) overture Melusine, or the Mermaid and the Knight is performed for the first time, in London.  It will become known as Die schöne Melusine.

    7 April 1842 After 30 months of economic destitution, Richard Wagner (28) and his wife Minna leave Paris for Dresden.

    7 April 1856 The newly orchestrated Molitva for voice, chorus and orchestra by Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (51) to words of Lermontov is performed for the first time, in Malyi Theatre, Moscow.

    7 April 1858 Minna Wagner intercepts a letter from her husband to Mathilde Wesendonck wrapped in the first sketch of the Prelude to Tristan und Isolde.  She then confronts Mathilde with it, thus ending the “arrangement” between Wagner (44) and the Wesendoncks and bringing the affair into the open.

    7 April 1867 An die Heimat op.64/1 for vocal quartet and piano by Johannes Brahms (33) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    7 April 1870 None but the Lonely Heart op.6/6, a song for voice and piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (29) to words of Lev Mei after Goethe, is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    7 April 1871 On Good Friday in Bremen Cathedral, Johannes Brahms (37) conducts a complete performance of Ein deutsches Requiem and the premiere of the first part of Triumphlied for baritone, chorus and orchestra to words from the Bible.  The music is dedicated in mourning and triumph following the Franco-Prussian War.

    7 April 1877 After the success for the Violin Sonata no.1 in January, Camille Saint-Saëns (41) publishes an article in the Journal de musique praising the rising talent of Gabriel Fauré (31).

    7 April 1878 Two works by Engelbert Humperdinck (23) are performed for the first time, in the Musikschule, Munich:  the first version of Die Wallfahrt nach Kevlaar for alto, tenor, chorus, and orchestra to words of Heine, and Herbstlied for chorus and piano.

    7 April 1881 Franz Liszt (69) travels with an entourage of 16 coaches to his birthplace of Raiding where a plaque is unveiled in his honor.  He tours the town with hundreds of its citizens.

    7 April 1886 Franz Liszt (74) plays for Queen Victoria in a private audience at Windsor Castle.  The last time they met was 41 years ago.  The Pall Mall Gazette reports, “By the time he got to Windsor, the streets were crowded as for a Royal progress, and on his appearance everyone took off his hat.  The Queen sent a royal carriage to meet him--a compliment seldom bestowed upon anyone under a Minister of State.  At the Castle, the whole of the Royal household and servants turned out to meet him.” (Williams, 666)

    7 April 1893 Spanish Serenade for chorus and small orchestra by Edward Elgar (35) to words of Longfellow is performed for the first time, in Hereford.  On the same program is the premiere of the second movement of Elgar’s Serenade in e minor op.20 for string orchestra.

    7 April 1897 Chant for english horn and piano by Charles Koechlin (29) is performed for the first time, in Paris.  Koechlin will orchestrate it as Au loin.  See 23 February 1908.

    7 April 1898 Three of the Quattro pezzi sacri by Giuseppe Verdi (84) are performed for the first time, in Paris:  Laudi alla Vergine Maria for female voices to words of Dante, Te Deum for double chorus and orchestra, and Stabat mater for chorus and orchestra.  It is one of the few times that Verdi is not present for the premiere of one of his works.  He has been ordered by his doctor to stay home.

    7 April 1899 A Northern Ballad op.46, a tone poem by Horatio Parker (35), is performed for the first time, in New Haven.

    7 April 1900 Piano Concerto in c# minor op.45 by Amy Cheney Beach (32) is performed for the first time, in the Music Hall, Boston, the composer at the keyboard.  Critics are disappointed.  There was an open rehearsal yesterday.

    7 April 1903 Das Thal op.51/1 for baritone and orchestra by Richard Strauss (38) to words of Uhland is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Schwanengesang for chorus and orchestra by Franz Schreker (25) to words of Leen is performed for the first time, in Vienna, conducted by the composer.

    7 April 1905 Sylvania:  A Wedding Cantata op.46 for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Amy Cheney Beach (37) to words of Bancroft after Bloem is performed for the first time, in Chickering Hall, Boston.  Present are George Whitefield Chadwick (50) and John Knowles Paine (66) who consider it a triumph.

    7 April 1906 Suite im alten Stil op.93 for violin and piano by Max Reger (33) is performed for the first time, in Berlin, the composer at the keyboard.

    7 April 1907 Song of the Siskin for SAT choir by Carl Nielsen (41) to words of Aarestrup, is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    7 April 1911 Symphony no.2 op.19 by Karol Szymanowski (28) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.  The press is positive.

    7 April 1913 The Second Violin Sonata op.35 by Carl Nielsen (47) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    Elegy in A flat for organ by Hubert Parry (65) is performed for the first time, in Wilton for the funeral of the 14th Earl of Pembroke.

    7 April 1915 Incidental music to Martínez Sierra’s play Amanecer by Manuel de Falla (38) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Lara, Madrid.

    7 April 1917 Sergey Rakhmaninov (44) gives a charity concert at the Bolshoy Theatre performing three concertos:  his own second, Tchaikovsky (†23), and Liszt (†30).  The proceeds to go to army relief.  It is his last performance in Moscow.

    El corregidor y la molinera, a pantomime by Manuel de Falla (40) to words of Martínez Sierra after Alarçón, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Eslava, Madrid conducted by Joaquín Turina (34).  It is wildly popular.  See 22 July 1919.

    7 April 1919 Incidental music to Bennet’s play Judith by Granville Bantock (50) is performed for the first time, in Devonshire Park, Eastbourne.

    Piano Sonata in a minor op.11 and Three Miniatures op.12 for piano by Howard Hanson (22) are performed for the first time, at the College of the Pacific, San Jose, California.

    7 April 1920 18:10  Alice Elgar, the wife of Edward Elgar (62), dies of cancer in her husband’s arms at their London home.  “With her died a part of Elgar’s creativity.”

    In a recital of the piano students of William Hatton Green in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Samuel Barber (10) performs two of his own compositions:  At Twighlight and Lullaby.

    7 April 1923 Chant de joie, an orchestral work by Arthur Honegger (31), is performed for the first time, in Victoria Hall, Geneva.

    7 April 1927 Napoléon, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (35), is shown for the first time, during a glittering evening at the Paris Opéra.

    The orchestration of Francis Poulenc’s (28) Trois mouvements perpétuels is performed for the first time, in Salle Huygens, Paris.  See 9 February 1919.

    The Duke Ellington (27) band records Black and Tan Fantasy in New York.  This will bring them their first great fame.

    7 April 1931 A funeral in memory of George Whitefield Chadwick takes place in Trinity Church, Boston.  Among the honorary pallbearers are Frederick S. Converse (60) and Charles Martin Loeffler (70).

    7 April 1932 Estate for male chorus by Luigi Dallapiccola (28) to words of Alcaeus (tr. Romagnoli) is performed for the first time, in Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Rome.

    7 April 1933 In Germany, the Law for the Restoration of the Civil Service bars Jews and opponents of the regime from the civil service, including state-run orchestras.  All Jewish professors of music at German universities are sacked.  They are also prohibited from being commercial judges or serving on juries.

    Songs of a Fairy-tale Princess for voice and orchestra by Karol Szymanowski (50), to words of Szymanowska, is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    7 April 1937 A funeral in memory of Karol Szymanowski takes place in Warsaw.  The body lies in state in the Conservatory and is then taken through the streets, past the opera house and Philharmonic before throngs, to the railroad station.  The coffin is then taken to Krakow where it is interred in the crypt of the Skalka church.  His heart, intended to be placed beside that of Chopin (†87), will be unintentionally destroyed during the Warsaw Uprising.

    7 April 1940 Heitor Villa-Lobos’ (53) piano work New York Skyline Melody, is performed for the first time, in a broadcast from Rio de Janeiro to the opening of the Brazilian pavilion at the New York World’s Fair.

    7 April 1943 Suite Concertante for violin and orchestra by Bohuslav Martinu (52) is performed for the first time, in New York.  This is done with piano accompaniment.  See 27 May 2000.

    Serenade no.3 op.17 for piano trio by Vincent Persichetti (27) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    7 April 1945 Psalm 150 op.5 for chorus and orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (28) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires.

    7 April 1953 Mutability, a cycle for voice and piano by Irving Fine (38) to words of Orgel, is performed for the first time, in the (old) John Hancock Building, Boston the composer at the keyboard.

    7 April 1954 A revised version of Paul Hindemith’s (58) lustige Oper Neues vom Tage to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Naples, conducted by the composer.

    7 April 1957 Little Fantasy for chamber orchestra by Gunther Schuller (31) is performed for the first time, in Englewood, New Jersey.

    7 April 1965 Der junge Lord, a comic opera by Hans Werner Henze (38) to words of Bachmann after Hauff, is performed for the first time, at the Deutsche Oper, Berlin.

    7 April 1966 De natura sonoris I for orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki (32) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    Summer Seascape II for viola and string quartet by Howard Hanson (69) is performed for the first time, in the Library of Congress, Washington.  See 20 April 1966.

    7 April 1968 Nuits for twelve voices by Iannis Xenakis (45) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    Concerto for piano by John Corigliano (30) is performed for the first time, in San Antonio, Texas.

    Peace Piece 1:  Invocation for the Health of all Beings for chorus and chamber orchestra to Buddhist words, and Peace Piece 2 for tenor and chamber orchestra to words of Duncan, both by Lou Harrison (50) are performed for the first time, in the First Unitarian Church, Berkeley, California.

    7 April 1971 Calvary, a chamber opera by Thomas Pasatieri (25) after Yeats, is performed for the first time, in St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Seattle.

    7 April 1972 Dies natalis (II) for concert band by Howard Hanson (75) is performed for the first time, in Eastman Theatre, Rochester, New York.

    7 April 1974 In memoriam Malcolm X for soprano and orchestra by TJ Anderson (45) to words of Hayden is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    7 April 1975 Chants Parallèles for tape by Luciano Berio (49) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    7 April 1978 The second version of Variations VIII for any number of musicians using objects found at the performance place by John Cage (65) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    North Star:  Mark di Suvero, a film with music by Philip Glass (41), is shown for the first time, at the New York Directors and New Films Festival.

    7 April 1988 Two excerpts from Karlheinz Stockhausen’s (59) unperformed opera Montag aus Licht to his own words, are performed for the first time, in Cologne:  Evas Erstgeburt no.56 for three sopranos, three tenors, and bass, and Evas Zweigeburt no.57 for seven choirboys, basset-horn with three female players, piano, chorus, and orchestra,.  See 7 May 1988.

    7 April 1989 Popul Vuh for orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (†5) is performed for the first time, in Powell Symphony Hall, St. Louis.  Only seven of the eight movements were completed at the composer’s death.

    7 April 1992 String Quartet no.6 by Isang Yun (74) is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    7 April 1994 Concerto for cello by John Harbison (55) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    Antiphon for brass by John Corigliano (56) is performed for the first time, at Lehman College, New York City.

    7 April 2001 Ein Walfahrtslied for tenor and string quartet by Arvo Pärt (65) to words of the Psalms is performed for the first time, in Tallinn.

    7 April 2002 In Memory for chorus by John Tavener (58) to words of Mother Thekla and the Orthodox liturgy is performed for the first time, at The Rivers Music School, Weston, Massachusetts.

    7 April 2003 John Adams (56) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his On the Transmigration of Souls.  See 19 September 2002.

    7 April 2008 Figment III for double bass by Elliott Carter (99) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    Youth Without Youth, a suite from the film soundtrack by Osvaldo Golijov (47), is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    7 April 2011 Trio for violin, cello, and piano by Harrison Birtwistle (76) is performed for the first time, in the Schlosstheater, Celle, Germany.

    8 April

    8 April 1533 Claudio Merulo is born in Correggio.

    8 April 1692 Giuseppe Tartini is born in Pirano, Istria (Istra, Slovenia).

    8 April 1779 A Quartet for keyboard, oboe,violin and cello B67 by Johann Christian Bach (43) is performed for the first time, in the Hanover Square Rooms, London.

    8 April 1781 Archbishop Colloredo of Salzburg forbids Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) to perform for Emperor Joseph II at the home of Countess Thun.  Mozart would have earned an amount equal to half his annual salary.  In the evening, new works by Mozart are performed for the first time for the Archbishop, including the Concerto-Rondo for solo violin, two oboes, two horns and strings K.373, Sonata for violin and piano K.379 and the Rondo for soprano and orchestra A questo seno deh vieni…Or che il ciel K.374.  The Concerto-Rondo was completed six days ago.  The Sonata was composed last night, with Mozart writing down only the violin part.  He plays the piano part from memory.

    8 April 1786 Giobbe, an oratorio by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (46) to words of Pintus, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, to benefit the Tonkünstler-Societät.

    8 April 1794 Andrew Law (45) receives a US copyright for the Art of Singing Part I and the Art of Singing Part II otherwise known as the Christian Harmony.

    8 April 1820 The Imperial Royal Court of Appeal of Lower Austria overturns a lower court decision and rules that Karl van Beethoven be taken from the care of his mother and placed under the joint guardianship of his uncle Ludwig (49) and Karl Peters.

    8 April 1840 Felix Mendelssohn (31) writes to Minister Baron Johann Paul von Falkenstein asking that the estate left by the lawyer Heinrich Blümner to be disposed of by the King of Saxony, be used to found a music school.  It will become Leipzig Conservatory.

    8 April 1848 17:00  Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti dies in Bergamo of meningovascular syphilis, aged 50 years, four months and ten days.

    8 April 1849 Richard Wagner (35) publishes an inflammatory article, “The Revolution”, in the Volksblätter.

    8 April 1876 La Gioconda, an opera by Amilcare Ponchielli (43) to words of Gorria (pseud. of Boito (34)) after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    8 April 1878 Three songs by Johannes Brahms (44) are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Tambourliedchen op.69/5, to words of Candidus, Es liebt sich so lieblich im Lenze! op.71/1 to words of Heine, and An den Mond, op.71/2 to words of Simrock.

    Much to the dismay of his parents, Charles Villiers Stanford (25) marries a singer, Jennie Anna Maria Wetton, daughter of an adventurer and land speculator, at Ockley parish church, Surrey.

    8 April 1882 Trio for piano and strings op.3 by Ernest Chausson (27) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    Piano Trio op.5 by Arthur Foote (29) is performed for the first time, in Boston, the composer at the piano.

    8 April 1892 String Quartet no.2 by Carl Nielsen (26) is performed publicly for the first time, in Copenhagen.  See 18 December 1890.

    8 April 1893 Claude Debussy’s (30) poème lyrique La damoiselle élue for soprano, female chorus, and orchestra to words of Rossetti translated by Sarrazin is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique in the Salle Erard, Paris.  It is the first orchestral composition by Debussy to be publicly performed.  The work receives a good response, including this review in Le Figaro :  It has, all by itself, more life than the compositions preceded...It is so good, a breath of youth...Here is new blood...

    8 April 1894 The “Schalk” version of Symphony no.5 by Anton Bruckner (69) is performed for the first time, in Graz.  The composer is too ill to attend.  See 20 April 1887.

    8 April 1897 The Wiener Abendpost announces that Gustav Mahler (36) has been engaged as a conductor at the Vienna Opera.

    John Philip Sousa (42) directs the Sousa Band in the last performance arranged by his business partner, David Blakely, who died last November.  Sousa considers his contract with Blakely now terminated and stops splitting profits with Blakely’s heirs.  Mrs. Blakely will take him to court and, after three years of litigation, will largely fail.

    8 April 1898 At a musical evening in the home of Mily Balakirev (61), the host and Sergey Mikhailovich Lyapunov play through a two-piano version of his “new” symphony to several invited guests, including Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (54), Vladimir Stassov, and Alyeksandr Glazunov (32).  At the conclusion there is silence.  Only with difficulty do the guests find anything positive to say, and Rimsky never does.  See 23 April 1898.

    8 April 1904 Enrico Caruso sings the song Mattinata in the Grand Hotel, Milan, accompanied by the composer, Ruggero Leoncavallo (47) in a recording session by the Gramophone and Typewriter Company.  The song was composed at the request of G&T specifically for the purpose of recording.

    8 April 1907 Gustav Holst (32) is hired as a teacher at Morley College in London.

    8 April 1908 Incidental music to Strindberg’s play Swan White op.54 by Jean Sibelius (42) is performed for the first time, at the Swedish Theatre, Helsinki, under the composer’s direction.

    8 April 1913 The Romance in D op.23 for violin and piano by Karol Szymanowski (30) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    8 April 1915 Evangelio op.12, a symphonic poem by Joaquín Turina (32), is performed for the first time, in Teatro Real, Madrid.

    8 April 1920 Early Morning.  Charles Tomlinson Griffes dies in New York Hospital on West 16th St. of empyema caused by influenza, aged 35 years, six months, and 22 days.

    Serenade op.12 for two violins and viola by Zoltán Kodály (37) is performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    8 April 1921 The first five of the six movements of The Bard of the Dimbovitza for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by Arnold Bax (37) to words of Vacaresco, are performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.  See 9 November 1918.

    8 April 1927 Arcana for orchestra by Edgard Varèse (43) is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    8 April 1928 Incidental music to Lania’s play Konjunktur by Kurt Weill (28) to words of Gasbarra, is performed for the first time, in the Lessing Theater, Berlin.

    8 April 1930 Begleitungsmusik zu einer Lichtspielszene op.34 for orchestra by Arnold Schoenberg (56) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Südwestfunk, Frankfurt.  See 6 November 1930.

    8 April 1931 The Bolt, a ballet by Dmitri Shostakovich (24) to a scenario by Smirnov, is performed for the first time, in the Academic (Kirov) Theatre of Opera and Ballet, Leningrad.  It is a failure.  See 17 January 1933.

    The first two movements of the Diaphonic Suite no.4 for viola (or oboe) and cello by Ruth Crawford (29) are performed for the first time, in Berlin.  It is the only work of Crawford’s to be performed during her European journey under a Guggenheim fellowship.

    8 April 1935 The original version of Gustav Mahler’s (†23) cantata Das klagende Lied to his own words is performed completely for the first time, in a broadcast from Vienna, 65 years after it was composed.  See 17 February 1901 and 28 November 1934.

    Works for keyboard instruments by Charles Koechlin (67) are performed for the first time, at the Schola cantorum, Paris:  Choral en fa mineur op.90bis for organ, the second and third of the Trois réalisations op.107/1 for organ, and seven of the twelve movements of L’ancienne maison de campagne op.124 for piano. Olivier Messiaen (26) is the organist.  See 18 February 1939 and 1 July 1947.

    String Quartet no.5 by Béla Bartók (54) is performed for the first time, in the Library of Congress, Washington.

    8 April 1936 After a third rehearsal of Alban Berg’s (†0) Violin Concerto in Barcelona, Anton Webern (52), upset by what he sees as the inability of the Catalan musicians to follow his directions, takes the score and locks himself in his hotel room.  He gives up the score only when Helene Berg, widow of the composer, on her knees, pleads through tears for his permission to perform the work.  Hermann Scherchen will take over tomorrow.

    8 April 1937 Arthur William Foote dies at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, aged 84 years, one month, and three days.  His earthly remains will be buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge.

    8 April 1938 Symphony no.1 by Walter Piston (44) is performed for the first time, in Boston, under the baton of the composer.

    8 April 1940 Piano Sonata no.6 op.82 by Sergey Prokofiev (48) is performed for the first time, by the composer over the airwaves of Radio Moscow.  See 26 November 1940.

    8 April 1943 The Morning Cometh for chorus by Henry Cowell (46) to words of Furness is performed for the first time, at St. Peter, Minnesota.

    8 April 1945 Toccata for piano by Stefan Wolpe (42) is performed for the first time, at the Settlement Music School, Philadelphia by the composer’s wife, Irma Schoenberg Wolpe.

    8 April 1949 Partita pour orchestre de chambre op.205 by Charles Koechlin (81) is performed for the first time, in Strasbourg.

    Symphony no.2 “The Age of Anxiety” for piano and orchestra by Leonard Bernstein (30) is performed for the first time, in Boston, the composer at the keyboard.

    Music for Brass Choir by Wallingford Riegger (63) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    8 April 1951 John Cage (38) meets Earle (24) and Carolyn Brown for the first time, in Denver.

    8 April 1952 Youth for chorus by György Ligeti (28) is performed for the first time, in Budapest.

    Cuatro estampas andaluzas for piano by Joaquín Rodrigo (50) are performed for the first time, in Valencia.

    8 April 1956 The Trial at Rouen, a television opera by Norman Dello Joio (43) to his own words, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of NBC.  See 16 April 1959.

    8 April 1957 Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights for narrator, clarinet, saxophone, bassoon, cello, percussion, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (18) is performed for the first time, in the Rooftop Theatre, New York.

    8 April 1959 Brass Music for trumpet, horn, trombone, tuba, and piano by Leonard Bernstein (40) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    Wind Quintet no.1 by George Perle (43) is performed for the first time, in Berkeley, California.

    8 April 1960 Two works by Gunther Schuller (34) are performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York:  Curtain Raiser for flute, alto clarinet, horn, and piano, and Quartet for four doublebasses.  The composer plays horn in Curtain Raiser.

    8 April 1961 Rotate the Body in All Its Planes by Harry Partch (59) is performed for the first time, at the National Collegiate Gymnastics Championships at the University of Illinois in Ubana.

    8 April 1962 Evolutio Organ for organ solo by Charles Wuorinen (23) is performed for the first time, at the Church of the Advent, Boston.  The work is dedicated to the memory of Lili Boulanger (†44) in gratitude for the presentation of the Lili Boulanger Award to the composer on 13 March 1961.  The dedicatee’s sister, Nadia Boulanger (74), is in the audience.

    8 April 1963 For 5 or 10 Players by Christian Wolff (29) is performed presumably for the first time, at the University of Illinois.

    8 April 1967 Treatise for any number of musicians playing any number of instruments by Cornelius Cardew (30) is performed completely for the first time, at the Commonwealth Institute in London.

    8 April 1968 Concerto for cello and orchestra en forme de “pas de trois” by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (50) is performed for the first time, in Strasbourg.  See 12 May 1968.

    8 April 1970 The Laying in the Tomb, the first part of Utrenia for solo voices, two choruses, and orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki (36) is performed for the first time, in Altenburg, West Germany.  See 28 May 1971.

    8 April 1979 An Adagietto for orchestra from Paradise Lost by Krzysztof Penderecki (45) is performed for the first time, in Osaka.  See 29 November 1978.

    The Klickitat Ride for chorus and/or instruments and caller by Pauline Oliveros (46) is performed for the first time, in Vancouver.

    8 April 1980 De profundis for bayan by Sofia Gubaidulina (48) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    8 April 1982 Segmente 1-7 for piano by Gottfried Michael Koenig (55) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    8 April 1983 String Quartet no.10 by Peter Sculthorpe (53) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    Ear for EAR for voices by John Cage (70) is performed for the first time, in St. Bartholomew’s Church, New York.

    8 April 1987 In Balance for harp by Isang Yun (69) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    Movement for String Quartet by Kevin Volans (37) is performed for the first time, at Durban Art Gallery.

    8 April 1993 From Nourlangie for piano quartet by Peter Sculthorpe (63) is performed for the first time, in Purcell Room, London.

    8 April 2001 Luce for two pianos and solo voice by Osvaldo Golijov (40), to words of Fellini,  is performed for the first time, at Columbia University.

    8 April 2002 Henry Brant (88) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his orchestral work Ice Field.  See 12 December 2001.

    8 April 2006 Threads for percussion quartet by Paul Lansky (61) is performed for the first time, at Princeton University.

    8 April 2010 Double Concerto for violin, cello, and orchestra by John Harbison (71) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    8 April 2011 An arrangement of Shanghai Overture by Bright Sheng (55) for band is performed for the first time, in Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    9 April

    9 April 1598 Johannes Crüger is born in Gross-Breesen, near Guben, Lower Lusatia.

    9 April 1627 Johann Kaspar Kerll is born in Adorf.

    9 April 1717 Matthias Georg Monn is born in Vienna.

    9 April 1759 After 18 months of service, Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (23) leaves his position as organist at the pilgrimage church of Maria Taferl near Melk.

    9 April 1765 An announcement appears in the Public Advertiser, London.  Wolfgang Amadeus (9) and Nannerl Mozart will be at home from 12-2 each day if anyone wishes to come and test their musical ability.

    9 April 1786 Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (72) gives the last of his public (unofficial) concerts in Hamburg, including some movements from J.S. Bach (†35) and Handel (†26) as well as his own Magnificat, Heilig for double choir H778 and a symphony.

    9 April 1791 Guillaume Tell, a drame mise en musique by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry (50) to words of Sedaine after Lemierre, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    9 April 1806 Publication of the Piano Sonata op.54 by Ludwig van Beethoven (35) is announced.

    9 April 1832 Clara Wieck (12) gives the second of two concerts in Paris, on a program with others, at Stöpel’s Music School.  Her father originally reserved the larger Hôtel de Ville but the cholera epidemic has sent many Parisians fleeing the city.  The small audience is impressed that all of her music not improvised is performed from memory.

    9 April 1833 Two choruses for male voices for Immermann’s (after Calderón de la Barca) play Der standhafte Prinz by Felix Mendelssohn (24)are performed for the first time, in Düsseldorf.

    9 April 1835 A joint performance by Franz Liszt (23) and Hector Berlioz (31) at Salle St. Jean, Hôtel de Ville, Paris includes the premiere of Liszt’s Grande fantaisie symphonique on themes from Berlioz’ Lelio, for piano and orchestra.  At the end, as he plays Grosses Konzertstück über Mendelssohns Lieder ohne Worte with Mlle Vial, Liszt collapses and is carried off.

    9 April 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.

    9 April 1855 Giacomo Meyerbeer (63) is awarded the Commander’s Cross of the Order of the Ernestine House (first class with star) by Duke Ernst II of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha personally.  He then takes a train for Weimar to see Robert Schumann’s (44) opera Genoveva there.  He tries to go to the theatre incognito in order to avoid meeting Franz Liszt (43) but is discovered by Peter Cornelius (30) who tells Liszt.  He is obliged by his old nemesis to view the opera in the box of Princess Wittgenstein.  He finds Genoveva “totally without melodies, badly written for the voices, unclear and ponderous; and yet with many interesting harmonic and orchestral details, and occasional flashes of genial conception.”

    9 April 1857 Le Docteur Miracle, an operetta by Georges Bizet (18) to words of Battu and Halévy, is performed for the first time, for a competition sponsored by Jacques Offenbach (37) and the Bouffes-Parisiens at their theatre in Paris.

    9 April 1859 Huldigungsmarsch by Franz Liszt (47) is performed for the first time, in Weimar conducted by the composer.

    9 April 1860 Concerto for violin and orchestra no.2 op.58 by Camille Saint-Saëns (24) is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.

    9 April 1870 Edvard Grieg (26) writes from Rome to his parents, describing a recent meeting with Franz Liszt (58).  Liszt sight-read Grieg’s Piano Concerto and told him “Hold to your course.  Let me tell you, you have the talent for it, and--don’t get scared off!”  Grieg considers this a “sacred mandate.”

    9 April 1871 Indigo-Marsch op.349 by Johann Strauss (45) is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

    9 April 1886 All meine Herzgedanken op.62/5 for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (52) to words of Heyse is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    Enrique Granados (18) makes his first public appearance as pianist at the Barcelona Athenaeum in a concert by students of Joan Baptista Pujol.

    9 April 1887 Florence Beatrice Smith (Price) is born in Little Rock, Arkansas, the third and last child born to James H. Smith, a dentist and Florence Irene Gulliver, an elementary school music teacher.

    9 April 1888 Incidental music to Wennerberg’s play Näcken (The Water Sprite) by Jean Sibelius (22) and his teacher Martin Wegelius is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    9 April 1891 Now the Powers of Heaven for chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (50) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    9 April 1894 Sursum corda op.11 for strings, brass, and organ by Edward Elgar (36) is performed for the first time, in Worcester Cathedral, for a visit by George, Duke of York.

    9 April 1896 Max Reger (23) sends his Suite in e minor for organ op.16 to Johannes Brahms (62) in the hope of receiving encouraging words.  He also asks for Brahms’ permission to dedicate a symphony to him.  Brahms responds favorably to both.

    9 April 1897 While in a Vienna restaurant with Engelbert Humperdinck (42) and Frau Humperdinck, Hugo Wolf (37) shows the first signs of his impending illness.  He seems irritable and changes his seat several times so that he will not be seen by acquaintances.

    9 April 1898 Richard Strauss (33) concludes a one-year contract with the Berlin opera to begin 1 November.

    9 April 1902 The Origin of Fire, for baritone, male chorus and orchestra, words from the Kalevala and music by Jean Sibelius (36), is performed for the first time, under the direction of the composer, for the inauguration of the new Finnish National Theatre in Helsinki.

    Der Wald, a Musik-Drama by Ethel Smyth (43) to words of Brewster and the composer, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Opera House, Berlin.  (There is considerable confusion about this date.  Some think it is 21 April, and Smyth herself couldn’t recall for sure)

    9 April 1903 Endymion’s Narrative, a symphonic poem by Frederick S. Converse (32), is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    9 April 1905 After Alyeksandr Glazunov (39) conducts a student performance of Rimsky-Korsakov’s (61) Kashchey, a political demonstration in favor of Rimsky-Korsakov breaks out.  Thereafter, the police temporarily forbid the performance of his music.

    Leos Janácek’s (50) Spring Song for solo voice and piano to words of Tichy (pseud. of Rypacek) is performed for the first time, at the Friends of Art Club, Brünn (Brno).

    Romance WoO.2 for voice and piano by Alyeksandr Skryabin (33) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    9 April 1907 Azara, a grand opera by John Knowles Paine (†0) to his own words, is performed almost completely for the first time, in a concert setting in Symphony Hall, Boston.  See 7 May 1903.

    9 April 1909 Trois chansons de Charles d’Orléans for acappella chorus by Claude Debussy (46) is performed for the first time, in Paris, the composer conducting.

    Four sections from Sappho for voice and orchestra by Granville Bantock (39) to words of Sappho (tr.Wharton) are performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London, conducted by the composer.  The four sections are Prelude, Stand Face to Face, Friend, The Moon Has Set, and Bridal Song.

    9 April 1913 The second of the Two Russian Tone Pictures for piano by Arnold Bax (29) entitled Gopak, is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.

    9 April 1916 Noches en los jardines de España, a symphonic suite for piano and orchestra by Manuel de Falla (39), is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Real, Madrid.

    Noël des enfants qui n’ont plus de maison, for voice and piano by Claude Debussy (53) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    9 April 1917 Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (Lenin) and about 30 followers depart Zürich for Russia from the main railroad station.  As a small crowd jeers them they sing the Internationale. Among another group of onlookers is an American music student, Otto Luening (16).

    Igor Stravinsky’s (34) orchestral arrangement of The Song of the Volga Boatman, composed as a replacement to the Tsarist anthem, is performed for the first time, at a Ballets Russes performance in Rome.

    9 April 1918 A second production of Molière’s Le bourgeois gentilhomme with incidental music by Richard Strauss (53) is performed for the first time, in the Deutsches Theater, Berlin.  Strauss has composed some new music for this production.  Unfortunately, it is a failure.

    9 April 1924 The first complete performance of the Suite for violin and piano by Heitor Villa-Lobos (37) takes place in the Salle des agriculteurs, Paris.  Also on the program is the premiere of the Trio for oboe, clarinet and bassoon by Villa-Lobos.  See 23 October 1923.

    9 April 1926 Henry Cowell (29) gives a performance of his works in Brno at the invitation of the Club of Moravian Composers.  While in Brno, Cowell makes the acquaintance of Leos Janácek (71) and the two have long conversations.  Cowell will tell Janácek “that you are without doubt one of the very greatest of living composers, without reservations.”

    Amériques, an orchestral work by Edgard Varèse (42), is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    9 April 1934 La bella dormente nel bosco, a fiaba musicale by Ottorino Respighi (54) to words of Bistolfi after Perrault, is performed for the first time in the version for child mimes, in Turin.  See 13 April 1922.

    9 April 1936 The three-minute film Peace of Britain, with music by Benjamin Britten (22), is released.

    The American Guild of Musical Artists is incorporated in New York.  It is the first musicians’ union in the United States.

    9 April 1939 Contralto Marian Anderson gives an open air concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to an audience of 75,000 on Easter Sunday.  She uses this venue after she is denied use of the DAR Constitution Hall because she is of African descent.  The incident causes Eleanor Roosevelt to resign from the DAR.  The last offering on her program is Florence Price’s arrangement of My Soul’s Been Anchored in the Lord. Today is Ms. Price’s 52nd birthday.

    9 April 1940 Gestapo agents visit the offices of Universal Edition in Vienna.  They carry off 33,000 copies of 45 separate publications, all music of Kurt Weill (40), Hanns Eisler, and Anatol Rathaus.

    Stereophonic reproduction of recorded music from sound film is demonstrated in public for the first time by Bell Laboratories in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    9 April 1941 The Jealous Man for male chorus by Leos Janácek (†12) is performed for the first time, in Vizovice.

    The Berlin Opera unter den Linden is destroyed by bombs.

    9 April 1942 Circus Polka by Igor Stravinsky (59), in its original scoring for wind band and percussion, is performed for the first time, at the Barnum and Bailey Circus, Madison Square Garden, New York.  The ballet is danced by 50 elephants in pink tutus.  See 13 January 1944.

    9 April 1943 Festmusik für den Trumpetercorps der Stadt Wien by Richard Strauss (78) is performed for the first time, from the tower of the Vienna Rathaus under the direction of the composer.

    9 April 1946 Les demons de l’aube, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (54) is performed for the first time, in Madeleine-Cinema, Paris.

    9 April 1948 Knoxville:  Summer of 1915 for voice and orchestra by Samuel Barber (38) to words of Agee, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    9 April 1953 Trip on the Galaxy Train, a ballet by Toru Takemitsu (22), is performed for the first time, in Hibiya Public Hall, Tokyo.

    9 April 1954 In the first complete performance of Charles Ives’ (79) Holidays Symphony, Thanksgiving or Forefather’s Day is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis, 50 years after it was composed.

    9 April 1957 Song of Democracy for chorus and orchestra by Howard Hanson (60) to words of Whitman, is performed for the first time, in Washington, the composer conducting.

    9 April 1960 Dmitri Shostakovich (53) is elected First Secretary of the new Composers’ Union of the RSFSR.

    Dimensioni II/Invenzione su Una Voce for tape by Bruno Maderna (39) is performed for the first time, in Milan.

    9 April 1962 Suite de Ballet for flute and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams (†3) is performed publicly for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC Home Service.  See 20 March 1920.

    9 April 1964 A revised version of Hans Werner Henze’s (37) Symphony no.1 is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  See 25 August 1948.

    Boxing, a sound-producing dance by Robert Ashley (34) is performed for the first time, in Detroit.

    9 April 1965 Winter Cantata op.97 for female chorus, flute, and marimba by Vincent Persichetti (49) to haiku (tr. Stewart) is performed for the first time, in Troy, New York.

    9 April 1966 Orange Dessert, an electronic music theatre by Robert Ashley (36) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    9 April 1967 Water Music for clarinet, violin, and orchestra by Ned Rorem (43) is performed for the first time, in Oakland.

    9 April 1969 A tryout of four scenes from Virgil Thomson’s (72) new opera Lord Byron takes place in a rehearsal room of the Metropolitan Opera in New York before more than 100 invited guests.  The performance goes well and is well received.  See 14 April 1969.

    9 April 1970 The 13-member advisory board to Columbia University on the Pulitzer Prize meets to decide a music recipient.  While weighing the recommendation of the Pulitzer music jury, Charles Wuorinen’s (31) Time’s Encomium, one member queries “whether a computer can compose.”  The board votes in favor of Wuorinen after Vermont C. Royster, editor and vice-president of the Wall Street Journal, hums a few bars from the work.  Time’s Encomium was composed on an RCA Mark II synthesizer.

    9 April 1972 Rothko Chapel for soprano, alto, chorus, viola, percussion, and celesta by Morton Feldman (46) is performed for the first time, in Houston.

    9 April 1974 The Scratch Orchestra is renamed the Red Flame Proletarian Propaganda Team.  Its orientation, and that of Cornelius Cardew (37), have taken on a Marxist inspiration.

    9 April 1975 Concerto for solo percussionist and orchestra by Lukas Foss (52) is performed for the first time, in Fine Arts Building Auditorium, Rutgers University, Camden, New Jersey.

    9 April 1977 A suite from the musical Candide by Leonard Bernstein (58) for vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Frederic Mann Auditorium, Tel Aviv.

    9 April 1979 ...agm... for 16 voices and three instrumental ensembles by Harrison Birtwistle (44) to words of Sappho is performed for the first time, in Paris conducted by Pierre Boulez (54).

    9 April 1983 Monolog for bass clarinet by Isang Yun (65) is performed for the first time, in Melbourne.

    9 April 1988 Young Caesar, an opera by Lou Harrison (70) to words of Gordon and the composer, is performed as a stage opera for the first time, at the Portland (Oregon) Center for the Performing Arts.  See 5 November 1971.

    9 April 1991 Shulamit Ran (41) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in music for her Symphony. See 19 October 1990.

    9 April 1992 The Song of Majnun, an opera by Bright Sheng (36) to words of Porter, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    9 April 1999 Huh! (What did you say?) for two violins, viola, cello and clarinet by TJ Anderson (70) is performed for the first time.  Also premiered is Anderson’s Aurelia, In Memoriam for violin.

    Concert Suite for alto saxophone and band by William Bolcom (60) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    9 April 2001 Chaconne for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano by John Harbison (62) is performed for the first time, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

    9 April 2005 22 for 5.1 computer processed and spatialized sound, bass clarinet, percussion, real-time processing for coordination with motion capture system, digital graphics, and dancer by Roger Reynolds (70) and others is performed for the first time, at Arizona State University.

    9 April 2006 Das Namenlose for soprano, clarinet, and soprano by Wolfgang Rihm (54) is performed for the first time, in Heidelberg.

    Ode to Man for chorus by Ned Rorem (82) to words of Sophocles (tr. Barnes) is performed for the first time, in Graham Chapel, Washington University, St. Louis.

    9 April 2008 Piano Concerto:  The Fire by Tan Dun (50) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    9 April 2009 Trumpet Vibe Cello Piano for the instruments in the title, by Kevin Volans (59) is performed for the first time, in Dublin.

    9 April 2011 Silent Voices for 14 players and speaker ad.lib. by Shulamit Ran (61) is performed for the first time, in Tel Aviv Museum.

    9 April 2012 John Tavener’s (68) second setting of Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis for chorus is performed for the first time, in the Royal Albert Hall, London.

    10 April

    10 April 1545 Costanzo Festa dies in Rome, aged approximately 55-60 years.

    10 April 1758 Giovanni Battista Sammartini (57) is among the founders of the Accademia Filarmonica, Milan, an orchestra of amateur players.

    10 April 1760 Nicola Porpora (73) takes up his duties at the Conservatorio di Santa Maria di Loreto, Naples.

    10 April 1763 Florian Leopold Gassmann (33) assumes his post at the harpsichord of the Burgtheater, Vienna for the first time.

    10 April 1766 Rebekka als Braut, a singpiel by Michael Haydn (28) to words after Reichssiegel, is performed for the first time, in Salzburg.

    10 April 1773 Gelobet sey der Herr, gross von Rath for chorus and strings by Johannes Herbst (37) is performed for the first time.

    10 April 1802 Johann Friedrich Reichardt’s (49) melodram Hercules Tod, after Sophocles, is performed for the first time, in the Nationaltheater, Berlin.

    10 April 1804 About this date, Giovanni Paisiello (63) obtains release as maître de chappelle to Napoléon.

    10 April 1820 The Symphony no.2 by Louis Spohr (36) is performed for the first time, in London under the direction of the composer.  Spohr “conducts” the Philharmonic Society by waving his bow at them.

    10 April 1823 Johann Baptist Jenger proposes his friend Franz Schubert (26) as an honorary member of the Styrian Music Society at Graz in spite of his youth.  The proposal is accepted.

    Franz Schubert (26) writes to his publisher Cappi and Diabelli accusing them of shady practices and severing relations.

    Three songs by Franz Schubert (26) are published by Sauer and Leidesdorf, Vienna as his op.20:  Sei mir gegrüsst to words of Rückert, Frühlingsglaube, to words of Uhland, and Hänflings Liebeswerbung to words of Kind.

    Franz Liszt (11) writes the following in Ludwig van Beethoven’s (52) conversation book, “I have often expressed the wish to Herr von Schindler to make your lofty acquaintance, and am rejoiced now to be able to do so.  As I will give a concert on Sunday the 13th I most humbly beg you to grant me your exalted presence.”  Contrary to Liszt’s own report, Beethoven does not attend.  Now almost totally deaf, he does not appear at concerts.  (approximate date)

    10 April 1825 Der Alpenjäger D.588, a song by Franz Schubert (28) to words of Schiller, is performed for the first time, in the Vienna Musikverein.

    10 April 1828 Incidental music to Ozaneaux’ play Le dernier jour de Missolonghi by Ferdinand Hérold (37) is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.

    10 April 1829 Hector Berlioz (25) sends a copy of Huit scènes de Faust to Goethe.  The author, after receiving a negative reaction of the work from Carl-Friedrich Zelter, does not write back.

    Charles Valentin Alkan (15) is appointed repetiteur at the Paris Conservatoire.  He will soon be appointed assistant professor of solfège.

    10 April 1840 Les Martyrs, a grand opéra by Gaetano Donizetti (42) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, in the Paris Opéra.  The work, which is a second version of the composer’s Poliuto, is given a lukewarm reception.

    10 April 1853 Meditation sur le Ier prélude de Bach (Ave Maria) by Charles Gounod (34) is performed for the first time.  The composer-arranger calls it a “mischievous prank.”

    10 April 1859 Emperor Franz Joseph II inducts Franz Liszt (47) into the Order of the Iron Crown, third class.  This gives him the right to petition the Emperor for a knighthood.  As soon as the news reaches Liszt in Weimar later this month, he will.

    10 April 1861 Arthur Sullivan (18) receives a diploma from Leipzig Conservatory.  He will soon return home.

    Bedrich Smetana (37) debuts before King Carl XV of Sweden at the Stockholm Court Theatre.

    10 April 1865 Hans von Bülow conducts the first rehearsal for Tristan und Isolde in Munich a few hours after his wife, Cosima, gives birth to the daughter of the composer of the music, Richard Wagner (51).  The child is named Isolde Ludowika Josepha.

    10 April 1866 Lindes Rauschen in Wipfeln op.3/6, a song by Johannes Brahms (32) to words of Eichendorff, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    10 April 1868 Movements from Ein deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms (34) are performed in Bremen Cathedral conducted by the composer.  Sections 4, 6 and 7 are heard for the first time.  Many eminent musicians from around Europe attend including Clara Schumann (48), Joseph Joachim and Max Bruch. The performance is a universal success.  See 18 February 1869.

    10 April 1872 Incidental music to Bjørnson’s play Sigurd Jorsalfar by Edvard Grieg (28) is performed for the first time, in Christiania (Oslo).  Criticism is mixed but the public is appreciative.

    Two songs by Antonin Dvorák (30) are performed for the first time, in Prague:  The Reason, to words of Krásnohorská, and The Orphan to words of Erben.

    10 April 1873 Rédemption, a symphonic poem for soprano, female chorus, speaker, and orchestra by César Franck (50), is performed for the first time, in Paris.  Many of the audience walk out.

    10 April 1875 Two songs for vocal duet and piano by Gabriel Fauré (29) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Puisq’ici-bas toute âme op.10/1 to words of Hugo and Tarantelle op.10/2 to words of Monnier.

    10 April 1881 Henry Lee Higginson signs a contract with Charles Martin Loeffler (20) for Loeffler to play in his newly founded Boston Symphony Orchestra.  Loeffler will move to Boston in September from New York.  “It was the only member of the orchestra whom he personally and independently hired, ‘and it was the best.’”

    10 April 1886 Gwendoline, an opéra by Emmanuel Chabrier (45) to words of Mendès, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels.

    10 April 1891 Prelude op.21/1 for piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (50) is performed for the first time, in Tiflis (Tbilisi).

    10 April 1894 Snefrid, a melodrama by Carl Nielsen (28) to words of Drachmann, is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    10 April 1897 A bill of complaint is filed in Philadelphia against John Philip Sousa (42) by the widow of his business partner David Blakely.  She claims that the contract between Sousa and Blakely is still in force and applies to Blakely’s heirs.

    10 April 1904 During the performance of a Beethoven (†77) symphony in the Cirque d’été, Paris, Erik Satie (37) exchanges words with his arch-enemy, the critic Henri Gauthier-Villars (pseud. Willy).  Not satisfied with the responses he is receiving, Satie begins to beat Willy, who responds with his walking stick.  The composer is removed to a nearby police station.

    10 April 1906 Divertissement op.6 for wind quintet and piano by Albert Roussel (37) is performed for the first time, at the Salle des Agriculteurs, Paris.

    Four songs for voice and piano by Charles Martin Loeffler (45) are performed for the first time, in Boston:  A Dream within a Dream and To Helen, to words of Poe, Sudden Light to words of DG Rossetti, and Sonnet to words of Lodge.

    10 April 1909 Incidental music to Brieux’s play La foi by Camille Saint-Saëns (73) is performed for the first time, in Monaco.

    10 April 1911 Four Pieces for piano op.3 by Sergey Prokofiev (19) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.  The music of Arnold Schoenberg (36) is heard in Russia for the first time, when Prokofiev (19) plays the Klavierstücke op.11 on the same program.

    10 April 1913 Through the Rushes, By the River for women’s chorus and piano by Arthur Foote (60) to words of Coates, is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    10 April 1919 The comédie musicale Masques et bergamasques by Gabriel Fauré (73), to words of Fauchois, is performed for the first time, in Monaco.  See 16 November 1919.

    10 April 1920 The Violin Sonata op.11/2 by Paul Hindemith (24) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.

    Suite en ut for piano by Francis Poulenc (21) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique.

    A funeral for the memory of Charles Tomlinson Griffes takes place at Community Chapel of the Church of the Messiah at 34th and Park Streets, New York.  His earthly remains are laid to rest in Bloomfield Cemetery, Bloomfield, New Jersey.

    10 April 1923 Divertimento op.5 for small orchestra and male chorus by Kurt Weill (23) is performed completely for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, Berlin.  See 7 December 1922.

    10 April 1924 Incidental music to Borras’ play La anunciación by Joaquín Turina (41) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Español, Madrid.

    10 April 1927 Entflieht auf leichten Kähnen op.2 for chorus by Anton Webern (43) to words of George, is performed for the first time, in Fürstenfeld, Austria.

    10 April 1931 Durch die Nacht, a cycle of seven songs for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (30) to words of Kraus, is performed for the first time, in the Dresden Künstlerhaus, the composer at the piano.  See 19 June 1932.

    10 April 1932 Fantasy for woodwinds, horn, and piano by Roy Harris (34) is performed for the first time, in Pasadena Community Playhouse, Pasadena, California.

    10 April 1934 Hommage à Satie for chamber orchestra by David Diamond (18) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    10 April 1935 Symphony no.4 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (62) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    Mass for Two-Part Chorus and Percussion by Virgil Thomson (38) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    10 April 1937 Paul Hindemith (41) makes his first performing appearance in the United States, playing his own Sonata for viola solo at the Library of Congress, Washington.  On the same program, Hindemith’s Piano Sonata no.3, Sonata for flute and piano, and the first four of the Sechs Lieder for tenor and piano to words of Hölderlin, are performed for the first time.  Also premiered are the first two movements of Concerto for Horns by Carlos Chávez (37).  See 4 November 1964.

    10 April 1940 Les musiciens du ciel, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (48), is shown for the first time, in Paris.

    The first song of Canti di Prigiona by Luigi Dallapiccola (36) to words of Queen Mary Stuart for accompanied chorus is heard for the first time, over the airwaves of Belgian Radio, Brussels.  See 11 December 1941.

    10 April 1944 Arnold Schoenberg’s (69) organ work Variations on a Recitative is performed for the first time, in New York.

    10 April 1945 William Schuman’s (34) ballet Undertow, to a story by Tudor, is performed for the first time, in the Metropolitan Opera House, New York.

    10 April 1951 Lilting Fancy for chorus by Henry Cowell (54) is performed for the first time, in Saugerties, New York.

    10 April 1952 Le candélabre à sept branches op.315 for piano by Darius Milhaud (59) is performed for the first time, in Ein-gev, Israel.

    10 April 1958 Spectrum for solo violin, brass quintet, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (19) is performed for the first time, in the Barkley Hotel, Philadelphia.

    An orchestral suite from Aaron Copland’s (57) opera The Tender Land is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.

    10 April 1959 Two Piano Pieces by Gottfired Michael Koenig (32) are performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    10 April 1961 Psalmus 1961 for electronic sound generators by Krzysztof Penderecki (27) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    10 April 1963 Sonata for clarinet and piano by Francis Poulenc (†0) is performed for the first time, in New York by Benny Goodman and Leonard Bernstein (44).

    Variations on a Medieval Tune for band by Norman Dello Joio (50) is performed for the first time.

    10 April 1972 Antiphony VI (Cogito) for string quartet, slides, and tape by Kenneth Gaburo (45) to words of Hommel is performed for the first time.

    A service in memory Stefan Wolpe is held at The Riverside Funeral Home, Amsterdam Avenue, New York.  Among the speakers are Milton Babbitt (55), John Cage (59), and Elliott Carter (63).  Wolpe’s earthly remains are cremated.

    10 April 1977 Fresh Spring for baritone and chamber ensemble by Tod Machover (23) to words of Spenser is performed for the first time.

    10 April 1978 Octet for clarinet, bassoon, horn, and string quintet by Isang Yun (60) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    A Dip in the Lake by John Cage (65) is performed for the first time, at New York University.

    Sweet Was the Song the Virgin Sung:  Tristan Revisited for viola and orchestra by William Bergsma (57) is performed for the first time, in Seattle.

    10 April 1981 Winter Variations for chamber ensemble by Tod Machover (27) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York the composer conducting.

    10 April 1984 La Ville for tape by Pierre Henry (54) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, Cologne.

    Mass for six solo voices by Jonathan Lloyd (35) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    Prologue and Variations for string orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (44) is performed for the first time, in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

    10 April 1986 The Murder of Comrade Sharik, an opera by William Bergsma (65) to his own words after Bulgakov, is performed for the first time, in Brooklyn.

    10 April 1987 Kontraste, two pieces for violin by Isang Yun (69) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    A Celebration of Some 100x150 Notes for orchestra by Elliott Carter (78) is performed for the first time, at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, Houston.  See 5 October 1989.

    10 April 1988 Ivesiana for violin, cello, and piano by TJ Anderson (59) is performed for the first time, in Weston, Massachusetts.

    Clarinet Concerto by Joan Tower (49) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    10 April 1989 Sonata for violin and piano by George Rochberg (70) is performed for the first time, in Ambassador Auditorium, Los Angeles.

    10 April 1995 Summer for voice and piano by Györgi Ligeti (71) after Friedrich Hölderlin is performed for the first time, at the University of Oregon.

    10 April 1997 Toshiro Mayuzumi dies of liver failure in Kawasaki, aged 68 years, one month, and 21 days.

    Zythos for trombone and six percussionists by Iannis Xenakis (74) is performed for the first time, in Birmingham.

    10 April 2000 Utah Fanfare for brass and percussion by John Corigliano (62) is performed for the first time, at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

    10 April 2003 Spring Music op.96 for two or more instruments by Robin Holloway (59) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    Inventing Flight for orchestra by William Bolcom (64) is performed for the first time, in North Carolina.

    10 April 2012 Melodies of a Flute for flute/alto flute, marimba/cymbals, violin, and cello by Bright Sheng (56) is performed for the first time, in Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    10 April 2014 O where, tell me where? for chorus and tubular bells by John Tavener (†0), to words of Burns, Boulton, and traditional texts, is performed for the first time, in the Oriental Arts Centre, Shanghai.

    Crash, an opera by Robert Ashley (†0), is performed for the first time, at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.

    11 April

    11 April 1753 The Lord chamberlain, Charles, Duke of Grafton, informs theatre owners that no theatrical productions may take place during Lent, whether sacred or secular.  Thomas Arne (43) has been trying to pass off an unstaged revival of his Alfred as an oratorio.

    11 April 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart arrive in Rome during a thunderstorm, on the Wednesday of Holy Week.  In the afternoon, they go to the Sistine Chapel where they hear Gregorio Allegri’s (†118) Miserere, which Wolfgang will later note down from memory.

    11 April 1779 Louise Reichardt is born in Berlin, daughter of Johann Friedrich Reichardt (26) and Juliane Benda.

    11 April 1807 Spanish soprano Isabella Angela Colbran (22) performs in Bologna.  It is the first time that Gioachino Rossini (15) sets eyes on his future mistress and wife.

    11 April 1814 The Piano Trio “Archduke” op.97 by Ludwig van Beethoven (43) is performed for the first time, in the Saal des Hotels zum Römischen Kaiser, Vienna, the composer at the keyboard.

    “Germania,” the finale of a pasticcio called Die gute Nachricht, by Ludwig van Beethoven (43), is performed for the first time.  The overture, a quartet, duet and trio are by Johann Nepomuk Hummel (35).

    11 April 1830 Acts I & II of Lazarus, oder Die Feier der Auferstehung D.689, an oratorio by Franz Schubert (†1) to words of Niemeyer, is performed for the first time, in the Anna-Kirche, Vienna.

    While in Frankfurt, Robert Schumann (19) witnesses a performance by Nicolò Paganini (47) for the first time.  Schumann is impressed, but wonders if Paganini might “lack that great, noble, priestly serenity characteristic of the genuine artist.”

    11 April 1834 Concerto da camera op.10/2 by Valentin Alkan (30) is performed for the first time, in Bath.

    11 April 1836 Das Liebesverbot by Richard Wagner (22) is given a second performance in Magdeburg but the fiasco of 30 March has caused a scandal and only three people show up to form an audience.

    11 April 1844 After almost four years of haggling between Church authorities and the heirs of Nicolò Paganini (†3), the City of Genoa gives permission for the composer’s mortal remains to enter their territory.

    11 April 1847 A Piano Trio by Fanny Mendelssohn (41) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    11 April 1848 The city of Bergamo gives an elaborate funeral for its most famous son, Gaetano Donizetti.  Eight doctors perform an autopsy in the toolshed of the Valtesse Cemetery and the earthly remains of the composer are then placed in the vault of the Pezzoli family.

    11 April 1853 Le roi des halles, an opera by Adolphe Adam (49) to words of Leuven and Brunswick, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre-Lyrique, Paris.

    11 April 1855 La cour de Célimène, an opéra comique by Ambroise Thomas (43) to words of Rosier, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    11 April 1858 During a visit to Pest, Franz Liszt (46) is admitted to the Franciscan order as a confrater in a monastery nearby.

    11 April 1864 Verbrüderungs-Marsch op.287 by Johann Strauss (38) is performed for the first time, in the Königliches Schauspielhaus, Berlin.

    11 April 1873 On Good Friday, Marie-Magdaleine, a drame sacré by Jules Massenet (30) to words of Gallet, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris, to great success.  See 9 February 1903.

    11 April 1874 Poème nocturne for orchestra by Henri Duparc (26) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    11 April 1878 Mein wundes Herz verlangt op.59/7, a song by Johannes Brahms (46) to words of Groth, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    Großes Duo for two pianos by Hubert Parry (30) is performed for the first time, in London.

    11 April 1886 Trösterin Musik for male chorus and organ by Anton Bruckner (61) to words of Seuffert is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    11 April 1891 Trio for piano and strings “Dumky” op.90 by Antonín Dvorák (49) is performed for the first time, in Prague, the composer at the keyboard.

    11 April 1902 Two works by Charles Martin Loeffler (41) are performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston:  Poem for orchestra and La villanelle du Diable for orchestra and organ.

    11 April 1906 Edvard Grieg records six of his piano pieces onto rolls on a “Phonola electric piano” at Ludwig Hupfeld’s piano factory in Leipzig.

    11 April 1911 Lied et Scherzo op.54 for horn or cello, nine winds, and piano by Florent Schmitt (40) is performed for the first time, in Salle des Agricultueurs, Paris (cello solo).

    11 April 1916 Alberto Evaristo Ginastera is born in Buenos Aires.

    In the Moonlight for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (50) to words of Suonio is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    11 April 1919 Le Tombeau de Couperin for piano by Maurice Ravel (44) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.  See 28 February 1920 and 8 November 1920.

    The New Symphony Orchestra, founded and conducted by Edgard Varèse (35), makes its debut in New York.

    11 April 1920 Ballata delle Gnomidi, a symphonic poem by Ottorino Respighi (40), is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Augusteo, Rome.

    11 April 1922 The New York Philharmonic makes its first recording, for the Victor Company.  It is Beethoven’s (†95) Coriolan Overture on two twelve-inch single-faced discs.

    11 April 1924 The Third Symphony op.27 “The Song of the Night” for tenor, chorus and orchestra of Karol Szymanowski (41), to words of Rumi (tr. Micinski), is performed in Warsaw for the first time.  The chorus is left out.  In the audience is President Stanislaw Wojciechowski, as well as Witold Lutoslawski (11) who will remember the music as “spellbinding”, leaving him overwhelmed for weeks, as if he “had taken a large dose of a drug.”  The evening is a resounding success with public and press.  See 26 November 1921 and 3 February 1928.

    11 April 1929 The first and third movements of Albert Roussel’s (60) Little Suite op.39 for orchestra are performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris.  See 6 February 1930.

    Quartet for strings in one movement op.89 by Amy Beach (61) is performed for the first time, at the American Academy in Rome.

    11 April 1930 Fiedellieder, a cycle of seven songs for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (29) to words of Storm and Mommsen, is performed for the first time, in Dresden.

    11 April 1932 Gustav Holst (57) is released from Deaconess Hospital and taken to the Boston home of Archibald T. Davison.

    11 April 1936 Music for Children op.65 for piano by Sergey Prokofiev (44) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Two Symphonic Interludes for orchestra by Otto Luening (35) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  Press and public are very pleased.

    11 April 1941 Arnold Schoenberg (66) becomes a citizen of the United States.

    11 April 1942 Published today is the announcement that Dmitri Shostakovich (35) has won a Stalin Prize for his Seventh Symphony.

    11 April 1947 The Santa Fe Timetable for chorus by Ernst Krenek (46) is performed completely for the first time, at the University of Chicago on a program with the premiere of Krenek’s Viola Sonata.

    11 April 1948 Orchestersonate no.1 by Werner Egk (46) is performed for the first time, in Darmstadt, conducted by the composer.

    11 April 1953 Two works by Ernest Bloch (72) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in London:  Sinfonia breve and Concerto Grosso no.2.

    Ideas of Order for orchestra by Arthur Berger (40) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    11 April 1954 Robert Ashley (24) marries Mary Tsaltas, a student at the Massachusetts College of Art, in New York.  It is a double wedding with their friends painter George Manupelli and Mary’s art school friend Betty Johnson.  The women have taken a bus down to New York, get married on a Sunday, and take the bus back to Boston to be in class on Monday.

    11 April 1957 The first five of the ten Brigand Songs for male chorus by Bohuslav Martinu (66) to Slovak folk texts are performed for the first time, in Prague.

    11 April 1958 Van Cliburn plays the Third Piano Concerto of Sergey Rakhmaninov at the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition at Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Moscow.  His performance meets with uproarious applause.  Through the competition he has become the idol of the city.

    11 April 1961 Revelation in the Courthouse Park for solo voices, speakers, chorus, dancers, and a large ensemble by Harry Partch (59) after Euripides, is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    11 April 1962 Abide with Me, a song by Charles Ives (†7) to words of Lyte, is performed for the first time, at the National Institute of Arts and Letters in New York.

    In Two Parts for 6 Players by Stefan Wolpe (59) is performed for the first time, in the YMHA, New York, conducted by Ralph Shapey (41).

    11 April 1963 Sept répons des Ténèbres for boy soprano, boys’ chorus, male chorus, and orchestra by Francis Poulenc (†0) is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, New York.

    11 April 1964 The Orchestra Song by William Schuman (53) is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    11 April 1965 Three Pieces op.18 for piano by Alexander Goehr (32) are performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    Suite modale for flute and strings by Ernest Bloch (†5) is performed for the first time, at the College of Marin, Kentfield, California.  See 10 March 1957.

    11 April 1968 From Byron’s “Don Juan” for tenor and orchestra by Virgil Thomson (71) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    11 April 1969 The Rainbow for small orchestra by Charles Ives (†14) is performed for the first time, in Danbury, Connecticut, 55 years after it was composed.

    11 April 1970 Day after day, a song for voice and piano by Frank Bridge (†29) to words of Tagore, is performed for the first time, at the Royal College of Music, London.

    11 April 1979 Three Songs for tenor and piano by Charles Wuorinen (40) to words of Britton is performed for the first time, in the studios of WFMT, New York the composer at the piano.

    11 April 1980 Check to the King, a jazz-ballet by Bohuslav Martinu (†20) to a story by Coeuroy, is performed for the first time, in Brno, 50 years after it was composed.

    11 April 1981 Peter Quince at the Clavier for chorus and piano concertante by Dominick Argento (53) to words of Stevens, is performed for the first time, in Schwab Auditorium, Pennsylvania State University, College Park.  It was commissioned to celebrate the tercentenary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

    11 April 1984 Self Portrait--from “Death and Fire” for strings by Tan Dun (26) is performed for the first time, in Beijing.

    Songs of Innocence and Experience, a Musical Illumination of the Poems of William Blake, a stage work by William Bolcom (45), is performed for the first time, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

    11 April 1988 Two works for high voice and orchestra by Arnold Bax (†34) are performed for the first time, in a recording session in All Saints’ Church, Tooting:  Eternity to words of Herrick, and A Lyke-Wake to anonymous 15th century words.  This is one of the Three Songs for high voice and orchestra.

    11 April 1991 Byzantium for solo voices and orchestra by Michael Tippett (86) to words of Yeats, is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.

    11 April 1992 Due Libri for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble by John Harbison (53) is performed for the first time, in the Nauraushaun Presbyterian Church, Pearl River, New York.

    11 April 1995 Plane-Song for string quartet and tape by Kevin Volans (45) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC2.

    11 April 1996 Quaternion for four cellos by Sofia Gubaidulina (64) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Gaea for two pianos-left hand and orchestra by William Bolcom (57) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    Watershed IV for percussion and electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (61) is performed for the first time, in the Mandeville Center for the Arts, La Jolla, California.

    11 April 1997 George Whitefield Chadwick’s (†66) tragic opera The Padrone to words of Stevens after the composer is staged for the first time, at New England Conservatory, Boston 85 years after it was composed.  See 6 December 1961 and 29 September 1995.

    11 April 1998 In the Still of the Night for viola by Thea Musgrave (69) is performed for the first time, in Odessa.

    11 April 2000 The Bremen Town Musicians, a children’s entertainment for speaker and orchestra by Dominick Argento (62) to words of the Brothers Grimm, is performed for the first time, in the Kennedy Center, Washington.

    11 April 2006 Minor Alterations for electric guitar, violin, bassoon, and drums by Paul Lansky (61) is performed for the first time, at Princeton University.

    11 April 2007 Three High Places for violin by John Luther Adams (54) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    11 April 2014 The complete Piano Etudes, Book I by Roger Reynolds (79) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    At the Royal Majestic for organ and orchestra by Terry Riley (78) is performed for the first time, in Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, conducted by John Adams (67).

    12 April

    12 April 1684 Nicolò Amati dies in Cremona, aged 87 years, four months, and nine days.

    12 April 1756 Laudate Dominum quoniam bonus, a grand motet with organ accompaniment by Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville (44), is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    12 April 1757 Titles and ermine fall behind, an ode by William Boyce (45), is performed for the first time, at Drury Lane Theatre, London.

    12 April 1781 Archbishop Colloredo orders his servant, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25), to leave Vienna on 22 April and return to Salzburg with all the court musicians.  Mozart will not leave Vienna on 22 April.

    12 April 1787 Die Liebe im Narrenhause, a komische Oper by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (47) to words of Stephanie, is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    12 April 1791 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (35) dates the score to his String Quintet K.614 in Vienna.

    12 April 1794 Luigi Cherubini (33) marries Anne Cécile Tourette, daughter of a countertenor, first in a civil ceremony and then a religious ceremony in the basement of a house in Paris by a priest in hiding.

    12 April 1801 The Théâtre Feydeau, Paris ceases operations.

    12 April 1811 Ludwig van Beethoven (40) writes to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe for the first time.

    12 April 1813 Caspar Carl Beethoven, seriously ill with tuberculosis, signs a document appointing his brother Ludwig (42) guardian over his son Karl, in the event of his death.

    12 April 1815 Ferdinand Hérold (24) arrives in Bologna for a stay of 12 days.  While there, he will meet Gioachino Rossini (23).

    12 April 1826 Oberon, a romantic opera by Carl Maria von Weber (39) to words of Planché after Wieland, is performed for the first time, in Covent Garden, London.  As the composer arrives to conduct the premiere he receives a standing ovation with cheering and waving.  The overture and each number are encored, some twice.

    12 April 1829 Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (47) is elected a member of the Institut, replacing François Joseph Gossec (†0).

    12 April 1838 Franz Liszt (26) plays some of his music, and that of Czerny (47) at the home of piano maker Conrad Graf in Vienna.  There to witness it are Friedrich and Clara Wieck (18) who are extremely, though not universally, impressed.  Liszt writes to Marie d’Agoult, “She is a very simple person, entirely preoccupied with her art, but nobly and without childishness.  She was flabbergasted when she heard me.  Her compositions are truly most remarkable, especially for a woman.  They have a hundred times more invention and real feeling than all the past and present fantasies of Thalberg (26)”  (Williams, 101)

    12 April 1842 A meeting takes place to begin to organize the New York Philharmonic Society.  It is chaired by Anthony Philip Heinrich (61).

    12 April 1846 At a memorable concert in Leipzig, Felix Mendelssohn (37) accompanies Jenny Lind and later Ferdinand David.  He also performs the Moonlight Sonata and plays duets with Clara Schumann (26).

    12 April 1853 Emperor Napoléon III names Gioachino Rossini (61) a Commander of the Legion of Honor.

    12 April 1854 Arthur Sullivan (11) is enrolled as a chorister in the Chapel Royal.

    12 April 1858 After almost three years of work, Hector Berlioz (54) dates the final scene of Les Troyens.

    12 April 1862 The post of permanent secretary at the Institute, made vacant by the death of Halévy last month, is granted to Charles-Ernest Beulé by a vote of 19-14 over Hector Berlioz (58).

    Edvard Grieg (18) performs his final examination concert for Leipzig Conservatory at the Gewandhaus.  Among other things, he plays three pieces from his op.1.

    12 April 1867 Piano Piece op.1/1 “Russian Scherzo” by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (26) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein, an opéra-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (47) to words of Meilhac and Halévy, is performed for the first time, at the Variétés, Paris.  The production takes place during the Paris Exposition Universelle so many foreign dignitaries attend.  The reaction is mixed and the creators make cuts tonight producing a much more successful version.

    12 April 1873 Valentin Alkan (59) premieres three “chants” from his Book 4 op.67, in Paris.

    12 April 1884 On Holy Saturday, Leos Janácek (29) attends supper with his estranged in-laws in Brünn (Brno).  A grudging reconciliation is effected and it is decided that his wife, Zdenka, will return to live with him.

    12 April 1886 The Queen of Hearts, an operetta by John Philip Sousa (31) to words of Taber, is performed for the first time, in Albaugh’s Opera House, Washington.

    12 April 1892 The second and third movements of Charles Martin Loeffler’s (31) String Quartet are performed for the first time, in Union Hall, Boston.

    12 April 1894 Ferruccio Busoni (28) and his family arrive in Berlin from America.  Except for the interval of World War I, this will be his home for the rest of his life.

    Hymne à Apollon for voice, harp, flute and two clarinets by Gabriel Fauré (48) to an ancient Greek text, is performed for the first time, in the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris.

    12 April 1902 Los amores de la liñes, a zarzuela by Manuel de Falla (25) to words of Dugi, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Cómico, Madrid.  It is moderately successful.

    12 April 1908 Marycka Magdónova, for male chorus by Leos Janácek (53) to words of Bezruc, is performed for the first time, in Prostejov.

    12 April 1916 Symphony in Yellow op.3/2 to words of Wilde from Tone-Images for solo voice and piano by Charles T. Griffes (31) is performed for the first time, in the Punch and Judy Theatre, New York.

    12 April 1919 The Fantaisie op.111 for piano and orchestra by Gabriel Fauré (73) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    The first revision of Igor Stravinsky’s (36) Suite from “The Firebird” for orchestra is performed for the first time, in Geneva.

    12 April 1921 The final version of the First Piano Sonata by Arnold Bax (37) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    Quatre Petites Mélodies for voice and piano by Erik Satie (54) to words of Lamartine, Cocteau, Radiguet, and Anonymous are performed completely for the first time, in Galerie Georges Giroux, Brussels.  See 19 December 1920.

    12 April 1924 Piano Sonata no.4 by Nikolay Roslavets (43) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    12 April 1925 A setting of Tantum ergo by Anton Bruckner (†28) is performed for the first time, in Vöcklabruck.

    12 April 1927 Minuetto in Stile Vecchio for string quartet by Walter Piston (33) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    12 April 1928 Six Symphonic Epigrams by Willem Pijper (33) are performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    12 April 1930 From the House of the Dead, an opera by Leos Janácek (†1) to his own words after Dostoyevsky is performed for the first time, in the National Theatre, Brno.  The libretto of this version is revised by Zitek, the music revised and reorchestrated by Chlubna and Bakala.

    String Quartet no.3 op.96 by Vincent d’Indy (79) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    12 April 1934 The Tale the Pine-Trees Knew, a symphonic poem by Arnold Bax (50), is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    12 April 1935 Four Marian Songs for chorus by Bohuslav Martinu (44) to traditional Czech words, is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    The first exhibition of paintings devoted entirely to the work of Carl Ruggles (59) opens at Bennington College, Vermont.

    12 April 1937 Reveille, a concert study for violin and piano by Benjamin Britten (23), is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    Paul Hindemith (41) appears as viola soloist with the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler in the Boston Chamber Music Club.  He plays the Sonata for viola solo op.25/1 and Der Schwanendreher. Also performed is his Wind Quintet op.24/2.

    12 April 1946 Extemporale:  Fünf Stücke für Klavier by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (28) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    12 April 1951 Variations for piano by Morton Feldman (25) is performed for the first time, for a dance by Merce Cunningham in Seattle.

    12 April 1955 The Gadfly, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (48), is shown for the first time.

    The Saint of Bleecker Street by Gian Carlo Menotti (43) wins the New York Drama Critics Circle Award as Best Musical of the year.

    12 April 1957 Symphony no.4 by Wallingford Riegger (71) is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    12 April 1959 An episode of the CBS television program The Twentieth Century entitled “Submarine!” with music by Ulysses Kay (42) is broadcast for the first time, over the airwaves of the network.

    Ensemble for string orchestra by Henry Cowell (62) is performed for the first time, in New School Auditorium, New York.

    12 April 1960 Festival of Birds for female chorus and trumpet by Bohuslav Martinu (†0) is performed for the first time, in Brno.

    12 April 1961 Major Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin becomes the first human to orbit the earth.  His one orbit aboard Vostok I takes one hour and 48 minutes, blasting off from Baikonur, Kazakhstan and landing near Smelovka in the Saratov Region.  Upon feeling the return of gravity, the cosmonaut sings My homeland hears, my homeland knows where in the skies her son soars on, a melody by Dmitri Shostakovich (54), the first music produced by a human in outer space.

    12 April 1964 Being Beauteous for soprano, harp and four cellos by Hans Werner Henze (37) to words of Rimbaud, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Poems of Love and the Rain for voice and piano by Ned Rorem (40) to various authors, is performed for the first time, in Wisconsin Union Theatre, Madison the composer at the piano.

    String Quartet no.2 by Carlos Chávez (64) is performed for the first time, in the Auditorio de Medicina, Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico City.

    12 April 1968 The Boor, an opera by Ulysses Kay (51) to his own words after Chekhov, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting at the University of Kentucky at Lexington.

    12 April 1969 Twelve-Tone Variations for piano by Lejaren Hiller (43) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    12 April 1972 Divan i Shams i Tabriz for seven voices, orchestra, and tape by R. Murray Schafer (38) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    12 April 1973 Apotheosis of this earth for chorus and orchestra by Karel Husa (57), to his own words, is performed for the first time, at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.  See 1 April 1971.

    12 April 1978 Le grand macabre, a music-theatre by György Ligeti (54) to words of Meschke and the composer after de Ghelderode, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Opera, Stockholm.  It is a great success, selling out seven performances.  See 21 December 1978.

    Les espaces du sommeil for baritone and orchestra by Witold Lutoslawski (65) is performed for the first time, in West Berlin, conducted by the composer.

    12 April 1980 Erik Satie’s (†54) earliest extant composition, a nine-bar allegro for piano, is performed for the first time, in Teatro di Porta Romana, Milan, 96 years after it was composed.  See 9 September 1884.

    Iubilum for orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (64) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires.  The work was composed for the 400th anniversary of the city of Buenos Aires.

    Three Dance Sketches for percussion quartet, and Pastoral for string orchestra by Karel Husa (58) are performed for the first time, in Miami Beach, Florida.

    12 April 1981 After a performance in Fürth, West Germany, conductor Maksim Shostakovich and pianist Dmitri Shostakovich, son and grandson of the composer (†5), seek political asylum.

    12 April 1982 Roger Sessions (85) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Concerto for Orchestra.  In addition, the Pulitzer committee bestows a special citation on Milton Babbitt (65) for his life's work as a distinguished and seminal American composer.    See 23 October 1981.

    12 April 1984 Symphony no.4 by Alfred Schnittke (49) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Violin and Orchestra by Morton Feldman (58) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Hessischer Rundfunk, originating in Frankfurt.

    12 April 1985 Chiffre VI for eight players by Wolfgang Rihm (33) is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe.

    Casanova’s Homecoming, an opera buffa by Dominick Argento (57) to words of the composer after Casanova, is performed for the first time, in the Ordway Music Theatre, St. Paul, Minnesota.  It is very successful and goes on to be produced in New York.

    12 April 1986 Frolic:  Fanfare for Orchestra by Ned Rorem (62) is performed for the first time, in Jones Hall, Houston.

    12 April 1987 Homer:  Three Scenes from The Illiad for chorus, flute, oboe, bassoon, trumpet, piano, and three strings by Ned Rorem (63) is performed for the first time, at Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

    12 April 1989 Salford Toccata for brass by Harrison Birtwistle (54) is performed for the first time, at the Salford College of Technology.

    12 April 1990 Mel Powell (67) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his Duplicates:  A Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra.  See 26 January 1990.

    Prisons of the Mind for 314 musicians by Henry Brant (76) is performed for the first time, in the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas.

    12 April 1992 The Mouse Metamorphosed into a Maid op.54 for unaccompanied voice by Alexander Goehr (59) to words of Moore after LaFontaine, is performed for the first time, at the University of South Carolina, Columbia.

    12 April 1994 Gunther Schuller (68) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Of Reminiscences and Reflections.  See 2 December 1993.

    12 April 1999 The Pulitzer Committee bestows a special citation posthumously on Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (†24), commemorating the centennial year of his birth, in recognition of his musical genius, which evoked aesthetically the principles of democracy through the medium of jazz and thus made an indelible contribution to art and culture.

    12 April 2002 Toy Symphony for hyperviolin, children’s chorus, orchestra, and electronics by Tod Machover (48) is performed for the first time, in the National Concert Hall, Dublin.

    12 April 2003 Eight Memories in Watercolor for piano by Tan Dun (45) is performed for the first time, at the Kennedy Center, Washington.

    Footnotes for two bass clarinets by John C. Eaton (68) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    12 April 2007 Rose of the Winds for various instruments and orchestra by Osvaldo Golijov (46) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Chicago.

    12 April 2008 Laurie Anderson (68) marries musician Lou Reed in Boulder, Colorado.

    Dumbarton Quintet for piano quintet by Joan Tower (69) is performed for the first time, at Dumbarton Oaks, Washington.

    12 April 2012 The Felix Variations for bass trombone by David Del Tredici (75) is performed for the first time, at Le Poisson Rouge, New York.

    12 April 2013 The Lost, an opera by Philip Glass (76) after Handke, is performed for the first time, for the opening of the Landestheater, Linz.

    12 April 2014 Symphony no.4 op.85 by Henryk Górecki (†3) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    13 April

    13 April 1761 Die Auferstehung, a sacred oratorio by Georg Philipp Telemann (80) to words of Zachariae, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    13 April 1774 A second setting of the musical drama Henry and Emma by Thomas Augustine Arne (64) to words of Bate Dudley after Prior, is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden, London.

    13 April 1789 The String Trio K.563 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (33) is performed for the first time, in the Hotel de Pologne, Dresden.

    13 April 1818 Heinrich August Marschner’s (22) wife of six months, Emilie von Cerva, dies in Pressburg (Bratislava) of gangrene, perhaps from a miscarriage.

    Im Provence blüht die Liebe, a dance and song for tenor, chorus and orchestra by Carl Maria von Weber (31), is performed for the first time, as part of Das Haus Anglade, oder Die Vorsehung erwacht, a play by Hell, in the Dresden Hoftheater.

    13 April 1822 A performance of Zelmira begins a Rossini (30) festival at the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.  The festival will include six different Rossini operas and last from April to July.

    In The Euterpeiad or Musical Intelligencer, John Rowe Parker first calls Anthony Philipp Heinrich (41) the “Beethoven of America.”  It is a name the composer will adopt.

    13 April 1823 Franz Liszt (11) gives a large concert in the Redoutensaal, Vienna, playing music of Hummel (44), Moscheles and improvisations on themes suggested by the audience.

    13 April 1829 Nicholas Chopin writes to Minister Stanislas Grabowski and the Board of Administration for funds to allow his gifted son Fryderyk (19) to study abroad.  Although Grabowski favors the request, the board rejects it saying it is not possible to “squander public funds to encourage such artists.”

    13 April 1833 Otto Nicolai (22) gives his first concert in Berlin as composer, singer and pianist.  Several works are premiered, including the Symphony no.1, Variationen über Webers “Schlaf Herzenssöhnchen” op.19 for soprano and piano, and his scene and aria Tell auf der Strasse nach Küssnacht op.22.

    13 April 1841 The new Hoftheater in Dresden, designed by Gottfried Semper, opens with a performance of Goethe’s Torquato Tasso.

    13 April 1842 Incidental music to Sophocles’ play Antigone by Felix Mendelssohn (33) is performed publicly for the first time, in the Berlin Schauspielhaus.  See 28 October 1841.

    13 April 1867 Excerpts from The Sapphire Necklace, an opera by Arthur Sullivan (24) to words of Chorley, are performed for the first time, at the Crystal Palace, London.

    13 April 1877 This is the approximate date of the appointment of Gabriel Fauré (31) as choirmaster at La Madeleine, Paris.

    13 April 1882 Andante for orchestra by George Whitefield Chadwick (27) is performed for the first time, in the Music Hall, Boston, conducted by the composer.

    13 April 1885 The authorities in Kassel inform Gustav Mahler (24) that his contract will be terminated on 1 September.  Mahler wants it to be 1 July.

    13 April 1889 Suite for string trio by Jean Sibelius (23) is performed for the first time, in the Helsinki Music Institute.

    13 April 1893 The Second Suite in c minor for piano op.30 by Arthur Foote (40) is performed for the first time, in Boston by the composer.  Also heard is the first complete performance of Foote’s Three Pieces for oboe and piano, the composer at the piano.  See 15 January 1893.

    13 April 1894 Grand Duke Carl Alexander of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach grants leave to Richard Strauss (29) to resign his position.

    13 April 1896 The Lemminkäinen Suite by Jean Sibelius (30) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki the composer conducting.  The work includes four distinct sections:  Lemminkäinen and the Maidens, Lemminkäinen in Tuonela, The Swan of Tuonela and The Return of Lemminkäinen.  The public loves it.  Critics are mixed.

    El Capitan, an operetta by John Philip Sousa (41) to words of Klein, is performed for the first time, in the Tremont Theatre, Boston.

    13 April 1901 Sérénade grotesque for piano by Maurice Ravel (26) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    13 April 1903 Béla Bartók (22) gives his first solo recital, at his home town of Nagyszentmiklos.  The performance includes the premiere of his own Study for the Left Hand.

    Poème paien, for two pianos and three trumpets by Charles Martin Loeffler (42) is performed for the first time, at Fenway Court, the home of Isabella Stuart Gardner in Boston, as part of a concert devoted entirely to the music of Loeffler.

    13 April 1905 Sonata no.2 for cello and piano op.123 by Camille Saint-Saëns (69) is performed for the first time, in Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    13 April 1907 The singspiel Fernando, D.220 by Franz Schubert (†78) to words of Stadler, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, 92 years after it was composed.

    13 April 1912 Die Brautwahl, an opera by Ferruccio Busoni (46) to his own words after Hoffmann, is performed for the first time, in the Stadttheater, Hamburg.  Critics are pleased, but it runs only four performances.  See 3 January 1913.

    13 April 1915 Serenata invano, for clarinet, bassoon, horn, cello, and bass by Carl Nielsen (49), is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen, along with the premiere of Twenty Danish Songs for voice and piano.

    Morven and the Grail op.79, an oratorio by Horatio Parker (51) to words of Hooker, is performed for the first time, in Boston for the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Handel and Haydn Society.

    13 April 1917 Chaconne op.32 for piano by Carl Nielsen (51) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    13 April 1922 La bella addormentata nel bosco, a fiaba musicale by Ottorino Respighi (42) to words of Bistolfi after Perrault, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro dei Piccoli, Rome, in a version for marionettes.  See 9 April 1934.

    O vos omnes, a motet for alto and chorus by Ralph Vaughan Williams (49) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Cathedral, London.

    13 April 1923 A Night Piece for flute and string orchestra by Arthur Foote (70) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  This is a reworking of his Nocturne and Scherzo.  See 28 January 1919.

    13 April 1925 Tell Me More, a musical comedy with a book by Thompson and Wells, lyrics by DeSylva and Ira Gershwin and music by George Gershwin (26), is performed for the first time in New York, at the Gaiety Theatre.  It runs for 100 performances.  See 6 April 1925.

    13 April 1929 Two works for voice and piano by Albert Roussel (60) are performed for the first time, in the Salle l’Ancien Conservatoire, Paris, to celebrate the composer’s 60th birthday:  Vocalise no.2 and O bon vin, ou as-tu crû?, to anonymous words.  On the same program is the first performance of Arthur Honegger’s (37) piano work Hommage à Albert Roussel.

    13 April 1930 String Quartet no.1 by Roy Harris (32) is performed for the first time, in the President Theatre, New York.

    13 April 1931 In the first concert devoted entirely to the music of Anton Webern (47) the Quartet op.22 for violin, clarinet, tenor saxophone, and piano is performed for the first time.  The music takes place in the Kleiner Musikvereinssaal, Vienna.

    13 April 1937 Madmoiselle Docteur, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (45), is shown for the first time, in Paris.

    13 April 1938 Frederic Anthony Rzewski is born in Westfield, Massachusetts.

    13 April 1942 The Foreman Went to France, a film with music by William Walton (40), is performed for the first time, in the London Pavilion.

    13 April 1943 Lark for baritone and chorus by Aaron Copland (42) to words of Taggard is performed for the first time, in the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

    13 April 1947 The first known performance of Veni sancte spiritus for male chorus by Leos Janácek (†18) takes place over the airwaves of Czechoslovak Radio Brno, about 44 years after it was composed.

    13 April 1948 Two Chinese Songs op.29 by Vincent Persichetti (32) are performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    13 April 1950 Dark Devotion for band by Roy Harris (52) is performed for the first time, in Memorial Auditorium, Louisville.

    13 April 1951 Silesian Tryptich for soprano and orchestra by Witold Lutoslawski (38) to folk texts is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    13 April 1957 To the God Who is in the Fire, a cantata by Alan Hovhaness (46), is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    13 April 1958 The sixteen jurors of the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in Moscow vote to give the first prize to Van Cliburn of Kilgore, Texas.

    Studies in Sound for tape by Vladimir Ussachevsky (46) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    An episode of the CBS television program The Twentieth Century entitled “FDR:  From third term to Pearl Harbor” with music by Ulysses Kay (41) is shown for the first time, over the airwaves of the network.

    13 April 1961 Intolleranza 1960, a scenic action by Luigi Nono (37) after Ripellino, using texts of various authors including Eluard, Brecht, and Mayakovsky, is performed for the first time, in Venice, conducted by Bruno Maderna (40).  It is his first premiere in Italy.  A demonstration, complete with stink bombs and whistles, is staged by a fascist group who spreads anti-dodecaphonic literature throughout the audience.  One of the composer’s fellow leftists in the audience, Marc Blitzstein (56), is impressed.  “None of my scandals can touch this one!”

    Five motets for voice and piano by Paul Hindemith (65) to words from the Bible are performed for the first time, in Venice:  Dixit Jesus Petro, Erat Joseph et Maria, Vidit Joannes Jesum, Exiit edictum and Cum descendisset Jesus.

    13 April 1963 Piano Quintet op.29 by Alberto Ginastera (47) is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  On the same program is the premiere of Diagramma IV for flute by Henryk Górecki (29).

    13 April 1967 Chorale Prelude:  Drop, Drop. Slow Tears op.104 for organ by Vincent Persichetti (51) is performed for the first time, at the University of Kentucky, Lexington.

    13 April 1968 The first public performance of the work of Philip Glass (31) takes place at Queens College, New York.

    13 April 1969 A Nation of Cowslips, seven bagatelles for chorus by Dominick Argento (41) to words of Keats, is performed for the first time, at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

    13 April 1970 Mikis Theodorakis (44), the leading composer in Greece, is released after 20 months imprisonment by the Greek right-wing military government.  He is flown to France for treatment of tuberculosis.  The action comes through the efforts of French writer Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber.  At 17:30 the two arrive at Le Bourget.  However, the Greek government keeps Theodorakis’ wife and children as hostages.

    Anniversary Fanfare for brass and percussion by William Schuman (59) is performed for the first time, in New York for the centennial of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

    13 April 1971 Sonata no.3 for violin and piano by Lejaren Hiller (47) is performed for the first time, in Albany, New York.

    13 April 1973 Eridanos for eight brass players and ten string players by Iannis Xenakis (50) is performed for the first time, in La Rochelle.

    Chorus and Orchestra I, a vocalise for soprano, chorus, and orchestra by Morton Feldman (47) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, Cologne.

    13 April 1975 Adventures Underground for soprano, folk group, and orchestra by David Del Tredici (38) to words of Carroll, is performed for the first time, in Kleinhans Music Hall, Buffalo.

    13 April 1976 Block Songs for soprano and musical toys by TJ Anderson (47) to words of Lomax is performed for the first time, at the Busch-Reisinger Museum of Harvard University.

    13 April 1980 Potawatomi Legends for chamber orchestra by Otto Luening (79) is performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin at Parkside, Kenosha.

    13 April 1983 Genevieve de Brabant, possibly a shadow theatre play, by Erik Satie (†58) to words of Latour, is staged for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  See 17 May 1926.

    13 April 1984 Doctor Nero, a music theatre by Louis Andriessen (44) to words of de Boer, is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    13 April 1985 Sonata for cello and piano by George Perle (69) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Orphee-Serenade for eight players by William Bolcom (46) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    The Sibyl, an opera by Vincent Persichetti (69) to his own words, is performed for the first time at the Pennsylvania Opera Theatre, Philadelphia.

    13 April 1986 Pierrot for clarinet, violin, and piano by Thea Musgrave (57) is performed for the first time, in Istanbul.

    13 April 1991 John Tavener (47) undergoes surgery in London to repair a leaky aorta.  The operation is successful but while in intensive care after the surgery he begins to bleed again and is rushed back into the operating room.  Surgeons open him up again.  With his surgeon relaying advice from a car phone, the bleeding is stopped and he is once again wheeled into intensive care for recovery.

    13 April 1992 Life with an Idiot, an opera by Alfred Schnittke (57) to words of Yerofeyev, is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    13 April 1993 Adagio for orchestra by George Perle (77) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore.

    13 April 1996 The first version of Gejagte Form for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (44) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.  See 28 March 2003.

    Scratchband for amplified ensemble by John Adams (49) is performed for the first time, at Pennsylvania State University conducted by the composer.

    13 April 2002 Dracula, for tape by Pierre Henry (74) is performed for the first time, in Paris until 27 April.  As an introduction, Sonate d’ondes courtes for tape is premiered.

    13 April 2003 Piano Sonata no.2 by John Harbison (64) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    DNA for percussion quintet by Joan Tower (64) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    13 April 2004 Folk Tropes for chorus by Paul Lansky (59), to words of Greene, is performed for the first time, at Princeton University.

    13 April 2008 Cortège for six percussionists by John Harbison (69) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    14 April

    14 April 1759 0800 George Frideric Handel dies at his home in Brook Street, London, aged 74 years, one month and 22 days.

    14 April 1767 Eight new overtures (symphonies) by Thomas Arne (57) are performed for the first time, at the composer’s home in London.  Four of them are newly published.

    14 April 1775 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (18) dates his Violin Concerto K.207 in Salzburg.

    14 April 1785 Violin Concerto in B flat by Samuel Wesley (19) is performed for the first time, in London, the composer as soloist.

    14 April 1791 In London, Joseph Haydn (58) is deposed in the case of the publishers Forster v. Longman&Broderip.  He confirms that two of the Piano Trios H. XV:  3-5 were actually written by his student, Ignaz Pleyel (33) and supports Forster’s claims in the case.  Because of Haydn’s limited English, Johann Peter Salomon serves as interpreter.

    14 April 1817 Incidental music to Müllner’s play König Yngard by Carl Maria von Weber (30) is performed for the first time, in the Dresden Hoftheater.

    14 April 1828 Le comediens par testament, a vaudeville by Adolphe Adam (24) to words of Picard and Laffite, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Nouveautés, Paris.

    14 April 1831 In Florence, Hector Berlioz (27) receives a letter from Mme Moke, stating that her daughter, his fiancee Camille Moke, is going to marry someone else.  She suggests that he not kill himself.  He concocts a plan to arrive at their house disguised and kill both of them.  He leaves for Paris tonight.

    14 April 1833 Hector Berlioz’ (29) Intrata di Rob-Roy Macgregor for orchestra is performed for the first time, in the Paris Conservatoire.  It fails.

    14 April 1842 Hector Berlioz’ (38) song Absence op.7/4 to words of Gautier is performed for the first time, in an amateur performance at the Paris home of Mortier de Fontaine.  See 24 April 1842.

    14 April 1849 Johannes Brahms (15) gives a second piano recital, in Hamburg playing music of Beethoven (†22), Thalberg (37) and himself.  It earns him his first notices—favorable ones.

    14 April 1856 Clara Schumann (36) makes her London debut playing Beethoven’s (†29) Emperor Concerto in the Hanover Square Rooms.  “A positive sensation, even among those who are moved with difficulty.”

    14 April 1863 Horace Waters publishes a hymnbook called The Golden Harp.  It contains ten new songs by Stephen Foster (36).

    14 April 1864 18-year-old King Ludwig II of Bavaria, on the throne for one month, orders his cabinet secretary Franz Seraph von Pfistermeister, to find Richard Wagner (50).

    14 April 1871 Kaisermarsch by Richard Wagner (57) is performed for the first time, privately, in Berlin.  See 23 April 1871.

    14 April 1872 The overture to Antonin Dvorák’s (30) unperformed opera King and Charcoal Burner is performed for the first time, in Prague, conducted by Bedrich Smetana (48).  On the same program is the premiere of Smetana’s Libuse overture.  See 11 June 1881.

    Le Rouet d’Omphale op.31, a symphonic poem by Camille Saint-Saëns (36), is performed for the first time in its orchestral setting, in Paris.  See 7 December 1871.

    14 April 1874 L’ultimo Abenzeraggio, an opera by Felipe Pedrell (33) to words of Fors de Casamayor, is performed for the first time, at the Liceo, Barcelona.

    14 April 1875 Incidental music to Porto-Riche’s play Un drame sous Philippe II by Jules Massenet (32) is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.

    14 April 1880 Modest Musorgsky (40) dates and dedicates the final scene to Khovanshchina in St. Petersburg.

    14 April 1882 Françoise de Rimini, an opéra by Ambroise Thomas (70) to words of Barbier and Carré after Dante, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    14 April 1887 Andreas Hofer, a singspiel by Albert Lortzing (†36) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Mainz, 54 years after it was composed, in an arrangement by von Reznicek.

    14 April 1903 On her first birthday in Fenway Court, Isabella Stewart Gardner is presented with a viola d’amore by Charles Martin Loeffler (42).  The instrument is from the 18th century Neapolitan Tomaso Eberle and was used in the premiere of Loeffler’s La Mort de Tintagiles on 7 January 1898.  Mrs. Gardner places it in her Yellow Room which will include Loeffler memorabilia including a cast of his hand and a portrait painted by John Singer Sargent.

    14 April 1904 Albert Roussel’s (35) Piano Trio op.2 is performed for the first time, at the home of Mme Taravent, Paris.  See 4 February 1905.

    14 April 1905 Engelbert Humperdinck’s (50) comic opera Die Heirat wider Willen, to words of H. Humperdinck after Dumas, is performed for the first time, at the Royal Opera House, Berlin, conducted by Richard Strauss (40).

    14 April 1917 Le drapeau belge op.79 for reciter and orchestra by Edward Elgar (59), to words of Cammaerts, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    14 April 1923 Divertimento verde Velhice for orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (36) is performed for the first time, in São Paulo.

    14 April 1928 Preludio e Presto op.52 for violin by Carl Nielsen (62) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.  Also premiered are the first two of the Nielsen’s Three Piano Pieces op.59.  See 6 March 1930.

    14 April 1929 Vom ewigen Leben for soprano and orchestra by Franz Schreker (51) to words of Whitman is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    14 April 1930 The first complete performance of Alban Berg’s (45) Three Pieces for orchestra op.6 takes place in Oldenburg.  They are dedicated to Arnold Schoenberg (55).  See 5 June 1923.

    14 April 1931 In Windsor Forest, a cantata for chorus and orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (58) to words of Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    14 April 1932 Severn Suite by Edward Elgar (74), in the version for orchestra, is performed for the first time, in the HMV recording studios, Abbey Road, London.  The composer conducts.  See 27 September 1930 and 7 September 1932.

    14 April 1933 Igor Stravinsky (50) sends to Willy Strecker of B. Schotts Söhne a statement to be used should the need arise.  It explains his genealogy and his political views, which are strongly anti-communist.

    Morton Leon Subotnick is born in Los Angeles.

    String Quartet no.2 by Virgil Thomson (36) is performed for the first time, at the home of Philip Johnson in New York.

    14 April 1934 Three Pieces for piano op.49 by Albert Roussel (65) are performed for the first time, in the École Normale, Paris.

    Symphonic Song op.57 by Sergey Prokofiev (42) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.  It is a disaster.  According to Nikolay Myaskovsky “There were literally three claps in the hall.”

    14 April 1940 Quintet for two violins, two violas, and cello by Roy Harris (42) is performed for the first time, in Coolidge Auditorium of the Library of Congress, Washington.  Also premiered is Divertimenti for flute, oboe, clarinet, and bassoon by Frank Bridge (61).

    14 April 1942 Concerto for piano and band by Roy Harris (44) is performed for the first time, in Hill Auditorium at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

    14 April 1944 Symphony no.6 “Gettysburg” by Roy Harris (46) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    14 April 1945 The Berlin Philharmonic and the Singakademie perform Ein deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms (†48) in the ruins of Berlin Philharmonic Hall.

    14 April 1946 The Birds’ Courting Song for chorus by Roy Harris (48) is performed for the first time, in Times Hall, New York.  Also premiered is Hymn and Fuguing Tune no.5 for five voices by Henry Cowell (49).

    Radio Piece for orchestra by Roy Harris (48) is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York the composer conducting.

    The first four of the Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano by John Cage (33) are performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    14 April 1951 Hymn and Fuguing Tune no.3 for orchestra by Henry Cowell (54) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    14 April 1954 An Air from Act 3 of Rapunzel, a chamber opera by Lou Harrison (36) to words of Morris, is performed for the first time, in Rome as part of a composition competition.  This will win a 20th Century Masterpiece Award, conferred on Harrison by Igor Stravinsky (71).  See 14 May 1959.

    Twenty-five Pages for 1-25 pianos by Earle Brown (27) is performed for the first time, in Carl Fischer Hall, New York.  On the same program is the New York premiere of John Cage’s (41) 4’33”.  During the intermission, Cage’s mother asks Brown, “Now Earle, don’t you think that John has gone too far this time?”

    Sicilian Limes, an opera by Dominick Argento (26) to words of Olon-Scrymgeour after Pirandello, is performed for the first time, at Peabody Conservatory, Baltimore, conducted by Hugo Weisgall (41).  The accompaniment is two pianos, one of which is played by the composer.

    14 April 1957 When Christ Rode into Jerusalem for soprano, chorus, and organ by Robert Ward (39) to his own words after the Bible is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Episcopal Church, Yonkers.

    14 April 1958 Cornelius Cardew (21) marries Ruth Aaronberg, a fellow student at the Royal Academy of Music, at the British Consulate in Düsseldorf.  One of the witnesses is Gottfried Michael Koenig (31).

    The Robbers, a melodrama by Ned Rorem (34) to his own words, revised by Blitzstein after Chaucer, is performed for the first time, at the Kaufman Auditorium of the YMHA, New York.

    Invención for piano by Carlos Chávez (58) is performed officially for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    14 April 1960 String Quartet by Arthur Berger (47) is performed for the first time, in Nova Gallery, Boston.

    14 April 1964 Pandorasbox for bandoneon by Mauricio Kagel (32) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    14 April 1965 The Symphony no.10 “Abraham Lincoln Symphony” by Roy Harris (67) is performed for the first time, at Long Beach State College, California on the centennial of Lincoln’s murder.

    14 April 1967 Dies irae for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki (33) is performed for the first time, in Krakow.

    Three of the Five Pieces for orchestra (1913) by Anton Webern (†21) are performed for the first time, in Philadelphia, 54 years after they were composed.  See 13 January 1969.

    14 April 1968 Music for Mittagong for winds, strings, percussion, and many voices by Peter Sculthorpe (38) is performed for the first time, in Mittagong, New South Wales.

    14 April 1969 Virgil Thomson (72) receives a letter from Rudolf Bing, general manager of the Metropolitan Opera, New York.  Bing tells him that Lord Byron is not appropriate for his house, and will not be performed there in the foreseeable future.  See 9 April 1969.

    Terry Riley (33) gives the inaugural concert at the newly renovated Electric Circus on St. Mark’s Place, New York.  In the audience is an interested composer named Philip Glass (32).

    Deux for two pianos by Ralph Shapey (48) is performed for the first time, in the Pan-American Union, Washington.

    14 April 1970 Music for Expo ‘70 for mulitchannel tape by Pauline Oliveros (37) is performed for the first time, in Osaka.

    Kingdom Come for circus band, orchestra, and organ by Henry Brant (56) is performed for the first time, in Oakland, California.

    14 April 1972 Concertino for chamber orchestra by Roger Sessions (75) is performed for the first time, in Chicago conducted by Ralph Shapey (75).

    Darius Milhaud’s (79) opera-oratorio Saint Louis, Roi de France to words of Claudel and Doublier is staged for the first time, in Rio de Janeiro.  See 18 March 1972.

    14 April 1973 Parable IX op.123 for alto saxophone by Vincent Persichetti (57) is performed for the first time, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

    14 April 1977 Lily, an opera by Leon Kirchner (58) to his own words after Bellow, is performed for the first time, in New York, conducted by the composer.

    14 April 1978 Claudia Legare, an opera by Robert Ward (60) to words of Stambler after Ibsen, is performed for the first time, in Guthrie Theatre, Minneapolis.

    The Covenant for soprano and 16 players by Ralph Shapey (57) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall, Chicago.  The work is dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the State of Israel.

    14 April 1979 Requiem for cello by Peter Sculthorpe (49) is performed for the first time, in Clubbe Hall, Mittagong, New South Wales.

    14 April 1980 David del Tredici (43) wins the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his In Memory of a Summer Day. See 23 February 1980.

    The Idea of Order at Key West for soprano, flute, clarinet, trumpet, viola, and cello by Robert Erickson (63) to words of Stevens is performed for the first time, in San Diego.

    14 April 1981 Evocation no.2 for cello, percussion, and piano by Ralph Shapey (60) is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School, New York.

    14 April 1982 I sentimenti di Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach for flute, harp, and strings by Hans Werner Henze (55) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Olimpico, Rome.

    Capriccio for piano by Charles Wuorinen (43) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York.

    A Bride from Pluto, an opera for children by Gian-Carlo Menotti (70) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Terrace Theatre, Kennedy Center, Washington.

    14 April 1983 Trio for bass instruments for bass trombone, double bass, and tuba by Charles Wuorinen (44) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    14 April 1985 Curriculum Vitae Tango for piano by Lukas Foss (62) is performed for the first time, in Hallwalls Art Gallery, Buffalo.

    14 April 1986 Kroslish Sonate for cello and piano by Ralph Shapey (64) is performed for the first time.

    14 April 1988 Robert Ashley’s (58) opera eL/Aficionado, scored for two pianos to his own words, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre national de Marseille.

    14 April 1989 Intermezzo for flute, clarinet and piano by Gottfried Michael Koenig (62) is performed for the first time, in Ghent.

    14 April 1991 Marching to a Different Song for soprano and chamber ensemble by Jonathan Lloyd (42) to his own words is performed for the first time, in Bracknell, Great Britain.

    Frederick Douglass, an opera by Ulysses Kay (74) to words of Dorr, is performed for the first time, in Newark Symphony Hall, New Jersey.

    14 April 1995 Lament for Phaedra for cello and soprano by John Tavener (51) is performed for the first time, in Athens Concert Hall.

    14 April 1996 Jubilation for orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (56) is performed for the first time, in Athens, Georgia.

    14 April 1997 Critical Moments for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion by George Perle (81) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    14 April 1998 The Pulitzer Committee bestows a special citation posthumously on George Gershwin (†60), commemorating the centennial year of his birth, for his distinguished and enduring contributions to American music.

    14 April 1999 In the Shadow of the Tree for koto, bass koto, cheng, and orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (67) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.

    14 April 2002 Lysistrati, an opera by Mikis Theodorakis (76), is performed for the first time.

    Six American Painters in the version for flute, violin, viola, and cello by John Harbison (63) is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.  See 26 October 2001.

    Piano Sonata no.2 by Richard Wernick (68) is performed for the first time, at the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia.

    14 April 2005 3. Doppelgesang for clarinet, viola, and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (53) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis.

    14 April 2007 Spin 5 for violin and 18 players by Charles Wuorinen (68) is performed for the first time, in Miller Theatre.

    14 April 2008 Heart Shadow for piano by Charles Wuorinen (69) is performed for the first time, in Zankel Hall, New York.

    14 April 2012 White Water for string quartet by Joan Tower (73) is performed for the first time, in Carmel, California.

    15 April

    15 April 1753 Mr. Justice Le Diard, along with a constable, arrives at a rehearsal of Thomas Arne’s (43) Alfred in Hart Street opposite Covent Garden.  He requires the proceedings to end because the advertised performance on 21 April is in violation of the Lord Chamberlain’s order of 11 April.

    15 April 1763 Ruth, an oratorio by Charles Avison (54) and Felice Giardini, is performed for the first time, in Newcastle.

    15 April 1766 Aline, reine de Golconde, a ballet héroïque by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny (36) to a scenario by Sedaine after Boufflers, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  This marks the first time that an opéra-comique composer has written for the Opéra.

    15 April 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart are received in audience by Pope Clement XIV at the Vatican.

    15 April 1774 Amor vincitore, a serenata by Johann Christian Bach (38), is performed for the first time, in Carlisle House, Soho Square, London.

    15 April 1789 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (33) engages in an impromptu duel with Johann Wilhelm Hässler on the organ of the court church in Dresden, and the piano of Prince Alyeksandr Mikhailovich Beloselsky, the Russian ambassador to Saxony.

    15 April 1806 Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s (27) cantata Diana ed Endimione to words of Brizzi is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    15 April 1814 Des Teutschen Vaterland for male voices and winds by Meyer Beer (Giacomo Meyerbeer) (22) to words of Arndt is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    15 April 1815 After a temporarily successful uprising in Bologna, Gioachino Rossini’s (23) Inno dell’Indipendenza to words of Giusti is performed for the first time, in the presence of Joachim Murat in Teatro Contavalli, directed by the composer.

    15 April 1839 Les treize, an opéra comique by Fromental Halévy (39) to words of Scribe and Duport, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Bourse, Paris.  The critics are mixed but it does receive 39 performances.

    15 April 1865 Totentanz for piano and orchestra by Franz Liszt (53) is performed for the first time, at The Hague.

    15 April 1866 Richard Wagner (52) moves to Tribschen, a house obtained for him by King Ludwig overlooking the Vierwald Stättersee near Lucerne.  Cosima von Bülow will join him in May and by the time her husband Hans arrives in June, she will be carrying Wagner’s second child.

    15 April 1872 Mily Balakirev (35) conducts the fourth concert of the 1871-72 Free School of Music subscription series.  It is poorly attended and the fifth concert will be cancelled for lack of funds.  Balakirev will not conduct again for ten years.  The Polonaise from Modest Musorgsky’s (33) unperformed opera Boris Godunov is premiered.  See 18 July 1872.

    15 April 1886 The second setting of Um Mitternacht for tenor and male chorus by Anton Bruckner (61) to words of Prutz is performed for the first time, in Linz.

    Vorschneller Schwur op.95/5, a song by Johannes Brahms (52) to traditional words, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    15 April 1893 Symphonic Tone Poem for orchestra by Ferruccio Busoni (27) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  There was an open dress rehearsal of the work yesterday in Boston.

    15 April 1894 Alfredo Casella (10) makes his public debut, playing the keyboard part in a Beethoven (†57) piano trio, in Turin.

    15 April 1898 Richard Strauss (33) signs a contract to conduct the Berlin Court Opera.

    The Legend of St. Christopher op.43, a dramatic oratorio by Horatio Parker (34) to words of his mother, Isabella Parker, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    15 April 1902 Arnold Schoenberg (27) receives the following postcard message at his Berlin address:  “Dear Sir, you can see me every day from three till four at home.  Yours sincerely, Richard Strauss.”(37)

    Gustav Holst’s (27) children’s operetta Fairy Pantomime of Cinderella is performed for the first time, at St. Mary’s School, conducted by the composer.

    Two airs from John Knowles Paine’s (63) unperformed opera Azara are performed for the first time, in Steinert Hall, Boston.

    15 April 1912 The first in the series of reviews entitled “Memoirs of an Amnesiac”, by Erik Satie (45), appears in the Revue musicale S.I.M. in Paris.

    15 April 1915 In Petrograd, Alyksandr Skryabin (43) plays the final recital of his life.

    El amor brujo, a ballet by Manuel de Falla (38) to a story by Martínez Sierra, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Lara, Madrid.  It receives a mixed response.  See 28 March 1916.

    15 April 1917 In Flanders Fields, a song for voice and piano by Charles Ives (42) to words of McCrae, is performed for the first time, at a luncheon of the insurance firm of Ives and Myrick at the Waldorf-Astoria, New York.

    15 April 1918 Visions fugitives and the Piano Sonata no.3 by Sergey Prokofiev (26) are performed for the first time, by the composer, in Petrograd.

    I selvaggi, a puppet ballet by Gian Francesco Malipiero (36) to a story by Depero, is performed for the first time, in Teatro dei Piccoli, Rome.

    15 April 1927 Flivver 10,000,000, a Joyous Epic:  Fantasy for Orchestra by Frederick S. Converse (56) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  It is very well received by the public and the press.

    15 April 1928 Trois caprices de Paganini op.97 for violin and piano by Darius Milhaud (35) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    15 April 1931 Dance Symphony by Aaron Copland (30) is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    15 April 1932 Philharmonisches Konzert by Paul Hindemith (36), composed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Berlin Philharmonic, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    15 April 1934 Ecuatorial, a prayer from Popol Yuh of Maya Quiché (tr. Jimines) for bass, eight brass instruments, piano, organ, two theremins, and six percussionists by Edgard Varèse (50), is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  The theremins, much too loud, drown out everything else.  Varèse will later replace them with ondes martenots.  On the same program are premieres of two works by Charles Ives (59):  The New River, for unison chorus and orchestra to words of the composer, and December for unison chorus, brass, and winds to words of DG Rossetti after Folgore da San Geminiano.  It has been over 20 years since Ives composed the two pieces.

    15 April 1936 Piano Concerto by Marc Blitzstein (31) is performed for the first time, in New York in a version for two pianos.  The composer plays the orchestral reduction.  Also premiered is Blitzstein’s song Writing a Letter from his Children’s Cantata:  Workers’ Kids of the World Unite!, the composer at the piano.  See 25 January 1986.

    15 April 1937 The Woman I Love, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (45), is released in the United States.

    The Second Suite op.64b from Sergey Prokofiev’s (45) unperformed ballet Romeo and Juliet is performed for the first time, in Leningrad.  See 30 December 1938.

    15 April 1943 Dirge.  In Memory of Thomas Wolfe for orchestra by Morton Feldman (17) is performed for the first time, at the High School of Music and Art, New York.

    15 April 1950 Suite for cello and harp by Lou Harrison (32) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre, Columbia University.  Also premiered are two movements from Harrison’s Seven Pastorales for chamber orchestra.  See 25 November 1951.

    15 April 1952 Partita in A for violin and piano by Ulysses Kay (35) is performed for the first time, at the American Academy, Rome.

    15 April 1955 Song for a Spring Festival for chorus by Ralph Vaughan Williams (82) to words of his wife, Ursula Vaughan Williams, is performed for the first time, in Dorking Halls, Dorking the composer conducting.

    15 April 1958 Piano Quintet no.2 by Ernest Bloch (77) is performed for the first time, at the University of California, Berkeley.

    15 April 1959 Catalogue des Oiseaux for piano by Olivier Messiaen (50) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris.

    15 April 1962 Three Pieces for two pianos by Arthur Berger (49) is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theatre, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    15 April 1965 Himnos de los neófitos de Qumrán for three sopranos, male chorus, and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (63) to words of the Dead Sea Scrolls adapted by Victoria Kamhi (Sra. Rodrigo) is performed for the first time, in Iglesia de San Miguel, Cuenca.

    15 April 1967 Never 1 for male voices by Kenneth Gaburo (40) is performed for the first time, at Colgate University.

    15 April 1969 Konzertstück op.26 for piano and chamber orchestra by Alexander Goehr (36) is performed for the first time, in Sydney.

    15 April 1970 Musiquette 4 “Trombone Concerto” op.28 for trombone, clarinet, cello, and piano by Henryk Górecki (36) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    15 April 1971 After a performance of Alessandro Scarlatti’s (†245) Missa pro defunctis and Stravinsky’s Requiem Canticles, an oration by the Mayor of Venice and a Greek Orthodox ceremony featuring organ works by Andrea Gabrieli (†384), the earthly remains of Igor Stravinsky are interred on the island of San Michele in Venice, a few steps from those of Sergey Diaghilev.

    15 April 1972 Heracles, a grand opera by John C. Eaton (37) to words of Fried after Sophocles and Seneca, is performed for the first time, in Bloomington, Indiana.

    15 April 1975 Malta for tuba and tape by Lejaren Hiller (51) is performed for the first time, in San Diego.

    15 April 1978 Stances for piano and orchestra by Betsy Jolas (51) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio France.

    15 April 1979 Quintet for Winds by John Harbison (40) is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.

    15 April 1981 Harmonium for chorus and orchestra by John Adams (34) to words of Donne and Dickinson is performed for the first time, in Louise M. Davies Hall, San Francisco.

    15 April 1982 The three most important composers of the Soviet avant-garde are heard together for the first time in a major Moscow venue.  Performed are Offertorium for violin and orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (50), Painting by Edison Denisov, and a suite from the incidental music to Dead Souls by Alfred Schnittke (47).  It takes place in the Bolshoy Hall of the Moscow Conservatory.

    Concierto como un divertimento for cello and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (80) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    15 April 1983 Thomas Jefferson’s Minstrels for baritone, male chorus, and jazz band by TJ Anderson (54) is performed for the first time, at Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts.

    15 April 1984 Trio for violin, cello, and piano by Morton Feldman (58) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    15 April 1985 Nachtanz über ein thema aus dem 16. Jahrhunderts for orchestra by Werner Egk (†1) is performed for the first time, in Augsburg.

    15 April 1986 Etude 1 from György Ligeti’s (62) Études pour piano Book I is performed for the first time, in Bratislava.

    But what about the noise of crumpling paper which he used to do in order to paint the series of ‘Papiers froissés’ or tearing up paper to make ‘Papiers déchirés’? Arp was stimulated by water (sea, lake and flowing waters like rivers), forests for percussion ensemble by John Cage (73) is performed for the first time, at the University of Buffalo.

    15 April 1988 Trio for piano, violin, and cello by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (48) is performed for the first time.

    15 April 1989 With Music Strong for chorus and orchestra by Lukas Foss (66) to his own words after Whitman is performed for the first time, in Uihlein Hall, Milwaukee the composer conducting.

    15 April 1993 Colossos or Panic op.55, a symphonic fragment after Goya for orchestra by Alexander Goehr (60), is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    15 April 1998 Monsters of Grace, a music theatre by Philip Glass (61) and Robert Wilson after Rumi, is performed for the first time, Royce Hall of UCLA.

    15 April 2008 The Minotaur, an opera by Harrison Birtwistle (73) to words of Harsent, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Opera House, London.

    15 April 2009 Internet Symphony no.1:  Eroica for orchestra by Tan Dun (51) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York, conducted by the composer.  The work was commissioned by Google/You Tube.

    15 April 2011 Chomsky Suite for string quartet by Tod Machover (57) is performed for the first time, in Kresge Auditorium of MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    16 April

    16 April 1766 Publication of six sonatas for keyboard and violin K.26-31 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (10) is announced in The Hague.

    16 April 1782 Adriano in Siria, an opera seria by Luigi Cherubini (21) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in Teatro degli Armeni, Livorno.

    16 April 1785 Leopold Mozart (65) achieves the Journeyman Degree of Freemasonry at the Lodge “Zur wahren Eintracht” in Vienna.  It is possible that the Lied zur Gesellenreise “Die ihr einem neuen Grade” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (29) is premiered on this occasion.

    16 April 1792 Rouget de Lille, having worked through the night, presents to the Mayor of Strasbourg, Baron Dietrich, the score of a patriotic march:  Chant de Guerre de l’Armée du Rhin.  See 30 July 1792.

    16 April 1808 Le séducteur en voyage, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (32) to words of Dupaty, is performed for the first time, in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg.  It will later be called Les voitures versées.

    16 April 1814 Gaspare Spontini (39) petitions King Louis XVIII for directorship of the king’s private music and the Théâtre-Italien.

    16 April 1819 The publication of Muzio Clementi’s (67) Gradus ad Parnassum Volume II is entered at Stationers’ Hall, London.

    16 April 1827 The Octet in F D.803 of Franz Schubert (30) is performed publicly for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna.

    16 April 1830 Hector Berlioz (26) writes his friend Humbert Ferrand that he is getting over his obsession with Harriet Smithson by composing a symphony.  He calls it Fantastic Symphony, Episode in the Life of an Artist and includes a draft of the program, saying he has just written the last note.

    16 April 1842 Franz Liszt (30) is presented to Tsar Nikolay I in St. Petersburg.

    16 April 1845 Duchess Marie Louise and the Bishop of Parma allow the earthly remains of Nicolò Paganini (†4) to enter Parma.

    Hector Berlioz (41) writes glowingly of Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (40) and his music in Journal des débats, calling him “among the outstanding composers of his time.”

    16 April 1849 Le prophète, a grand opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer (57) to words of Scribe and Deschamps, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  It features the first use of electric light at the Opéra, in creating the illusion of a sunrise.  In the audience is Hector Berlioz (45) (who calls it “matchless magnificence”) and a very ill Frédéric Chopin (39).  Over the first ten days of the production, the Opéra will take in 9,000-10,000 francs per performance, an unprecedented amount.  The composer will receive from his publisher the highest amount ever paid for a score.

    16 April 1850 Richard Wagner (36) writes from Montmorency to his wife Minna, informing her of his decision to separate from her.  He is presently engaged in a liaison with Jessie Laussot, the English wife of a Bordeaux wine merchant.

    16 April 1851 Sapho, an opéra by Charles Gounod (32) to words of Augier, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  The audience is generally pleased, but it will be a financial failure.

    16 April 1854 Mazeppa, a symphonic poem by Franz Liszt (42), is performed for the first time, in Weimar, directed by the composer.

    16 April 1873 A fugue in a flat minor for organ by Johannes Brahms (39) is performed for the first time, in Leipzig.

    16 April 1893 Music for Club Swinging for piano by Leos Janácek (38) is performed for the first time, at the annual display by the gymnastics organization Sokol in Brno.

    16 April 1895 Antonín Dvorák (53), his wife and son leave New York for Europe aboard the SS Saale never to see America again.

    16 April 1898 Sicilienne op.78 for cello and piano by Gabriel Fauré (52) is performed for the first time.

    16 April 1903 Three songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams (30) are performed for the first time, in Exeter:  If I were a Queen, for solo voice and piano to words of Rossetti, Adieu and Cousin Michael, both for two solo voices and piano, to anonymous words (tr. Ferguson).

    16 April 1904 The premiere of Richard Strauss’ (39) Symphonia domestica on 12 March was so successful that an entire floor of Wannamaker’s department store in New York has been cleared for a repeat performance.  It will be performed again in the same place on 18 April.

    16 April 1905 The Sergeant’s Song op.15/3 for solo voices and piano by Gustav Holst (30) to words of Hardy, is performed for the first time, in London, the composer at the piano.

    16 April 1907 Suite in E for string orchestra by Arthur Foote (54) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    16 April 1909 Suite in e minor for string orchestra op.63 by Arthur Foote (56) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    16 April 1917 After a ride through Germany in a train sealed by the Kaiser's government (so as not to infect German citizens), Lenin arrives in Petrograd at the Finland Station.  He gives his famous speech on top of an armored car.  Among the throng welcoming him is a ten-year-old boy named Dmitri Shostakovich.

    16 April 1918 Three of the Six Choral Folksongs by Gustav Holst (43) are performed for the first time, at the Royal Victoria Hall, London.  See 27 June 1916.

    16 April 1920 Sonatina for piano by Béla Bartók (39) is performed for the first time, in Bratislava.

    Sonata for Solo Cello by Zoltán Kodály (37) is performed by the Society for Private Performances, Vienna.

    16 April 1925 Klage der Ariadne by Carl Orff (29), to his own translation of Rinuccini, is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.  See 30 November 1940.

    16 April 1927 Incidental music to Claudel’s (after Aeschylus) play Agamemnon by Darius Milhaud (34) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    16 April 1928 Incidental music to Paronian’s play The Eastern Dentist by Aram Khachaturian (24) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    16 April 1931 Serenade for chamber orchestra by Bohuslav Martinu (40) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    16 April 1937 Crown Imperial, a march for orchestra by William Walton (35) is performed for the first time, in a recording session for His Master’s Voice.  See 9 May 1937.

    16 April 1938 After three months in North America, Sergey Prokofiev (46) returns to the USSR.  He will not leave the country again.

    16 April 1940 Christophe Colomb, a radio drama by Arthur Honegger (48) to words of Aguet, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Lausanne.

    16 April 1941 Mills Fanfare op.224 for strings by Darius Milhaud (48) is performed for the first time, in Oakland.

    16 April 1942 Second Essay for Orchestra by Samuel Barber (32) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    16 April 1943 The last of 18 patriotic fanfares for brass and percussion commissioned by Eugene Goossens and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Fanfare for the Merchant Marine by Eugene Goosens, is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.

    16 April 1944 Concierto de estio for violin and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (42) is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlos, Lisbon.

    The Expiring Frog:  recitative and aria ranatica for voice and piano by Paul Hindemith (48) to words of Dickens and the Encyclopedia Britannica is performed for the first time, in New Haven.

    16 April 1946 The 1945 Variations for piano and baritone by Robert Erickson (29) is performed for the first time, at Hamline University.  Also premiered is Erickson’s The Star Song for female voices to words of Herrick.

    16 April 1956 Liebeslied for chorus and instruments by Luigi Nono (32) to his own words is performed for the first time, in London.

    Dalton Suite for school orchestra by Henry Cowell (59) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Symphony for Band op.69 by Vincent Persichetti (40) is performed for the first time, in St. Louis, Missouri.

    16 April 1959 The Triumph of Saint Joan, an opera by Norman Dello Joio (46) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in New York.  It is an adaptation of his television opera The Trial at Rouen.  See 8 April 1956.

    16 April 1961 Durations I for alto flute, piano, violin, and cello by Morton Feldman (35) is performed for the first time, in Kaufmann Concert Hall, New York the composer at the keyboard.

    16 April 1962 Polymorphia for 48 strings by Krzysztof Penderecki (28) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    16 April 1967 Krzysztof Penderecki’s (33) work Dies irae, premiered two days ago, is repeated at the Auschwitz death camp, Oswiecim-Brzezinka.

    Impromptu for flute and oboe by Thea Musgrave (38) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    16 April 1968 Nonet for winds and piano by Leslie Bassett (45) is performed for the first time, in Ithaca, New York.

    16 April 1969 Virgil Thomson’s (72) Fugue and Chorale on Yankee Doodle for orchestra is performed for the first time, in Glenn Memorial Auditorium, Emory University, Atlanta.

    16 April 1972 Biogramma for orchestra by Bruno Maderna (51) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    16 April 1973 Milena, a cantata by Alberto Ginastera (57) to words of Kafka, is performed for the first time, in Denver.

    16 April 1975 Rumore e silenzio for harpsichord, celesta, and percussion by Sofia Gubaidulina (43) is performed for the first time, in Leningrad.

    Concerto for alto saxophone, winds, harp, celesta, and percussion by Ross Lee Finney (68) is performed for the first time, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

    16 April 1982 March for orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (50), Alfred Schnittke (47), and Edison Denisov is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Laurie Anderson’s (34) Big Science is released in the United States.

    16 April 1984 Lichens for orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (61) is performed for the first time, in Liège.

    16 April 1985 Acrostics for flute, oboe, clarinet, violin, cello, and harpsichord by Samuel Adler (57) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    Works for piano by Vladimir Ussachevsky (73) are performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin, Madison:  Left Hand Rehabilitation Piano Pieces, Mini Preludes, Right Hand Study no.1, Right Hand Study no.2 and Three Voice Fugue for Right Hand Alone.

    16 April 1987 John Harbison (48) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his The Flight Into Egypt.  See 21 November 1986.

    16 April 1990 Dance With Shadows for brass quintet by Jacob Druckman (61) is performed for the first time, in Toad’s Place, New Haven, Connecticut.

    A Play of Shadows for flute and chamber orchestra by Joseph Schwantner (47) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    16 April 1996 Concerto for orchestra no.3 by Robin Holloway (52) is performed for the first time, in Barbican Hall, London.

    Concerto for guitar and orchestra by Samuel Adler (68) is performed for the first time, in Orlando, Florida.

    16 April 2001 John Corigliano (63) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Symphony no.2 for string orchestra.  See 30 November 2000.

    16 April 2003 Maya Atma for soprano, violin, and percussion by John Tavener (59) is performed for the first time, at Poole’s Center for the Arts.

    16 April 2005 A multimedia exhibition entitled Visual Music 2005 by Tan Dun (47) opens at the Shanghai Gallery of Art.  It consists of sights and sounds based around the rebuilding of abandoned pianos.

    16 April 2007 …miserere… for string quartet by Louis Andriessen (67) is performed for the first time, in Utrecht.

    16 April 2009 Gee’s Bend for electric guitar and orchestra by Michael Daugherty (54) is performed for the first time, in Jemison Hall, Birmingham, Alabama.

    16 April 2013 Suite for cello by Krzysztof Penderecki (79) is performed for the first time, in Almi Hall, Helsinki.

    Schneebilder, for piano quartet by Hans Abrahamsen (60) is performed for the first time, in the Konzerthaus, Freiburg.

    17 April

    17 April 1764 Johann Mattheson dies in Hamburg, aged 82 years, six months and 20 days.

    17 April 1767 Stabat mater for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Franz Joseph Haydn (35) is performed for the first time, in the chapel of Eisenstadt Castle, probably directed by the composer from the organ.

    17 April 1768 Applausus, an oratorio by Joseph Haydn (36), is performed for the first time, in Zwettl.

    17 April 1774 Václav Jan Krtitel Tomásek is born in Skutec, 113 km east of Prague, the youngest of 13 children born to a linen merchant.

    17 April 1816 Josef von Spaun writes to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, enclosing manuscript copies of settings of Goethe poems by “a 19-year-old composer by the name of Franz Schubert.”  He asks permission from Goethe that Schubert might dedicate an edition of his German songs to the poet.  The manuscripts will be returned without comment.

    17 April 1822 Frühlingsgesang D.740, a vocal quartet by Franz Schubert (25) to words of Schober, is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    17 April 1831 At Genoa, on his desperate trip back to Paris from Florence, Hector Berlioz (27), weak from not eating and lovesick despair, falls Ophelia-like, off the ramparts into the ocean.  After almost drowning he is fished out and spends a long time lying on the beach vomiting water.

    17 April 1836 Overture in D D.556 by Franz Schubert (†7) is performed publicly for the first time, at the Vienna Musikverein.

    17 April 1849 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (19) gives his professional Paris debut in the Salle Pleyel.  It is an unreserved critical and popular success.  La France musicale claims that “Gottschalk is henceforth placed in the ranks of the best performers and of the most renowned composers for the piano.”

    17 April 1864 A concert conducted by Johannes Brahms (30) in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna of his own music meets with only limited success.  Among the works premiered are the Sonata for Two Pianos op.34b and four works for unaccompanied chorus:  Marias Kirchgang op.22/2 and Ruf zur Maria op.22/5, both to traditional German words, the motet Es is das Heil uns Kommen her op.29/1 to words of Speratus, and Abendständchen op.42/1 to words of Brentano.

    17 April 1866 The day after an attempt on the life of the Tsar, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25) attends a performance of Glinka’s (†9) A Life for the Tsar at the Bolshoy which, because of the circumstances, has turned into a patriotic event.  While he is engrossed in the score, patrons around him become enraged that he should be interested in the music at such a time.  Tchaikovsky is forced to flee the theatre in fear of his life.

    17 April 1870 The Kärntnertortheater, Vienna closes after 160 years of operation.

    17 April 1873 L’adorable Bel’-Boul’, an operetta by Jules Massenet (30) to words of Gallet, is performed for the first time, at the Cercle des Mirlitons, Paris.

    17 April 1875 Die Maccabäer, an opera by Anton Rubinstein (45) to words of Mosenthal after Ludwig, is performed for the first time, in the Berlin Königlichetheater, the composer conducting.

    17 April 1876 Vanda, a tragic opera by Antonin Dvorák (34) to words of Sumavsky and Zakrejs after Surzycki, is performed for the first time, at the Prague Provisional Theatre.

    17 April 1892 Easter Carol for solo voices, chorus and organ by Charles Ives (17) to words of Elliott is performed for the first time, in Danbury Baptist Church, Connecticut.  (This might not have happened.)

    17 April 1895 Three works by Jean Sibelius (29) are performed for the first time, in an all-Sibelius concert in Helsinki:  The Wood Nymph, a tone poem, Serenade for baritone and orchestra to words of Stagnelius, these two conducted by the composer, and Sonata for piano op.12.  See 10 March 1895.

    17 April 1906 Edvard Grieg (62) records three of his piano pieces onto rolls on a Welte-Mignon piano at Popper & Co. in Leipzig.

    The Metropolitan Opera performs Carmen (with Enrico Caruso as Don José) to an overflow crowd in San Francisco.  A few hours after the conclusion of the opera the city is rocked by a devastating earthquake.  Caruso spends two nights sleeping in Golden Gate Park.

    17 April 1912 Nadia Boulanger (24) makes her conducting debut at La Roche-sur-Yon, directing her own 1908 cantata La Sirène.

    17 April 1918 Piano Sonata no.4 by Sergey Prokofiev (26) is performed for the first time, by the composer in Petrograd.

    17 April 1920 Deux mélodies hébraïques for voice and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (45) is performed for the first time, in Paris.  See 3 June 1914.

    17 April 1925 Orpheus by Carl Orff (29), to a translation of Striggio by Günther, is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.  See 13 October 1929 and 4 October 1940.

    17 April 1927 The last concert of Edgard Varèse’s (43) International Composers Guild takes place at Aeolian Hall, New York.

    17 April 1931 Demeter, a cantata for alto, female chorus, and orchestra by Karol Szymanowski (48) to words of Szymanowska after Euripedes,  is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    Sinfonia Dialectica, the first symphony of Arthur Vincent Lourié (39), is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    17 April 1932 Two Sonatinas op.54 for piano by Sergey Prokofiev (40) is performed for the first time, in London.

    Christ in the Universe op.132 for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Amy Cheney Beach (64) to words of Meynell is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Hammersmith by Gustav Holst (57), in its first setting, for band, is performed for the first time, in Washington.  The composer is scheduled to be in attendance but has to cancel due to his recent hospitalization.  See 25 November 1931.

    17 April 1940 Concerto for oboe and orchestra by Ulysses Kay (23) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York, Howard Hanson (43) conducting.

    17 April 1941 Olivier Messiaen (32) is appointed Professor of Harmony at the Paris Conservatoire.

    A Song for Illinois for orchestra by John Alden Carpenter (65) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.

    17 April 1942 Three Psalms for voice and piano by Arthur Honegger (50) to words from the Huguenot Psalter is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    17 April 1945 Incidental music to the stage spectacle Russian River by Dmitri Shostakovich (37) to words of Dobrovolsky is performed for the first time, in Moscow Dzerzhinsky Central Club.

    17 April 1948 I Looked Back Suddenly, a song for voice and piano by Hugo Weisgall (35) to words of Wolfe, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    17 April 1951 Two works by Lejaren Hiller (27) are performed for the first time, in Waynesboro, Virginia:  Piano Concerto and Suite for small orchestra.  They are the first of Hiller’s music to be performed in public.

    17 April 1958 The Rock for orchestra by Bohuslav Martinu (67) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    17 April 1960 Little Songs for children’s choir by Bohuslav Martinu (†0) is performed for the first time, in Brno.

    17 April 1962 To Music, a cycle for voice and piano by Leslie Bassett (39) to words of Jonson, Herrick, and Billings, is performed for the first time, in Rome.

    Jest of Cards, a ballet version of Marginal Sounds by Ernst Krenek (61), is performed for the first time, in Geary Theatre, San Francisco.  See 22 February 1960.

    17 April 1965 Two works in honor of departed artists by Igor Stravinsky (82) are performed for the first time, in Chicago:  Introitus to the text of the Latin requiem, prompted by the death of TS Eliot, and Variations for Orchestra dedicated to Aldous Huxley.

    17 April 1966 Incidental music to Smuul’s play The Colonel’s Widow by Alfred Schnittke (31) is performed for the first time, in Mossoviet Theatre, Moscow.

    Come Out for tape loops by Steve Reich (29) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  It is a benefit for the retrial of six Black teenagers convicted of murder in 1964.

    17 April 1968 Duo for violin and piano by Charles Wuorinen (29) is performed for the first time, in Greenwich House Music School, New York the composer at the piano.

    Parable II op.108 for brass quintet by Vincent Persichetti (52) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    Movements for flute and piano by Joan Tower (29) is performed for the first time, in New York, the composer at the keyboard.

    17 April 1969 Flute Variations II for flute solo by Charles Wuorinen (30) is performed for the first time, at Jersey City State College.

    17 April 1970 The Creation op.111 for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Vincent Persichetti (54), to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    Lingua III:  In the Can for 40 actors, slides, film, and tape by Kenneth Gaburo (43) is performed for the first time, at the University of Oregon.

    17 April 1971 Far From Home for women’s chorus by György Ligeti (47) to words of Balassa and traditional texts, is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.  The work was completed in 1946.

    Variations for harp, violin, viola, and cello by Charles Wuorinen (32) is performed for the first time.

    17 April 1972 Vendanges, a ballet by Darius Milhaud (79) to a scenario by Rothschild, is performed for the first time, at the Nice Opéra, 20 years after it was composed.

    17 April 1973 Harp Variations for harp, violin, viola, and cello by Charles Wuorinen (34) is performed for the first time in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    17 April 1975 Dybbuk Suite no.2 for orchestra by Leonard Bernstein (56) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York conducted by the composer.

    Two Butterflies for amplified orchestra by Morton Subotnick (42) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    17 April 1977 ...sofferte onde serene... for piano and tape by Luigi Nono (53) is performed for the first time, in Sala Verdi, Milan.

    A second Orchestral Suite from Leonard Bernstein’s (58) ballet Dybbuk is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York, the composer conducting.  See 16 May 1974.

    17 April 1978 Michael Colgrass (45) wins the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Deja Vu for percussion and orchestra. See 20 October 1977.

    17 April 1986 George Perle (70) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Wind Quintet IV.  See 2 October 1985.

    17 April 1990 Resurrection for solo voices, chorus, brass, percussion, organ, and string quartet by John Tavener (46) to words of the Bible and Mother Thekla is performed for the first time, in Glasgow Cathedral.

    17 April 1994 Concerning Them Which Are Asleep for chorus by John Harbison (55) is performed for the first time, in Emmanuel Church, Boston.

    17 April 1997 Concerto for viola and orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (65) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    17 April 1998 The Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States presents its Lifetime Achievement Award to Morton Subotnick (65).

    17 April 1999 Apparitions concertées for tape by Pierre Henry (71) is performed for the first time, in Poitiers.

    17 April 2003 The Light of the End for orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (71) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    17 April 2005 The South Bank Centre, London begins a series of concerts, films, and lectures in celebration of Peter Maxwell Davies (70).

    Ashberyana for baritone voice, trombone, piano, and string quartet by Charles Wuorinen (66) to words of Ashbery, is performed for the first time, at the Guggenheim Museum, New York the composer conducting.

    17 April 2008 Symphony no.5 by John Harbison (69) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston.

    18 April

    18 April 1605 Giacomo Carissimi is baptized in Marino, near Rome.

    18 April 1771 Der Dorfbalbier, a comische Operette by Johann Adam Hiller (42) and Christian Gottlob Neefe (23) to words of Weisse after Sedaine, is performed for the first time, at the Theater am Rannstädter Thore, Leipzig.

    18 April 1796 The Archers, or Mountaineers of Switzerland with music by Benjamin Carr and words by William Dunlap is produced at John Street Theatre, New York.  It is, perhaps, the first American opera.

    18 April 1797 Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf’s (57) singspiel Der Mädchenmarkt, to words of Herklots after Saintfoix, is performed for the first time, in the Herzogliches Hoftheater, Oels.

    18 April 1799 Les méprises espagnoles, an opéra-comique by Adrien Boieldieu (23) to words of Saint-Just, is performed for the first time, in Théâtre Feydeau, Paris.

    18 April 1800 Sonata for french horn and piano op.17 by Ludwig van Beethoven (29) is performed for the first time, in the Hofburgtheater, Vienna, the composer at the keyboard.  The applause is so great that the entire work is repeated.

    18 April 1828 Grosse Festmusik zum Dürerfest, a cantata for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Felix Mendelssohn (19) is performed for the first time, in Berlin to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the death of Albrecht Dürer.

    18 April 1831 On his furious charge back to Paris to kill his fiancee and her mother, Hector Berlioz (27) reaches Nice.  He will stay there a month and later remember these as the happiest days of his life.

    18 April 1833 Hymnus zum Dürerfest for chorus and brass by Otto Nicolai  (22) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    18 April 1834 Szenen aus Mozarts Leben, a Singspiel by Albert Lortzing (32) to his own words, is performed for the first time.

    18 April 1838 Clara Wieck (18) plays Robert Schumann’s (27) Carnaval for Franz Liszt (26) in Vienna, as well as Liszt’s own Divertissement sur la cavatine de Pacini ‘I tuoi frequenti palpiti’.  Clara notes that Liszt made motions as if he were playing along, and moved his body with the music.

    Franz Liszt (26) appears in a Vienna concert to benefit victims of recent floods in Pest.  He is an enormous success.  “Recalled 15 to 18 times.  A packed house.  Universal amazement.  Thalberg (26) hardly exists at the moment in the memory of the Viennese.  Never have I had such a success.” (Williams, 102)

    18 April 1842 As he passes through Leipzig, Richard Wagner (28) seeks out Robert Schumann (31) at his home.  Wagner does most of the talking.

    18 April 1848 Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein meets Franz Liszt (36) at the hunting castle of his friend Felix Lichnowsky in Silesia.  She leaves Russia moments before the border is closed to protect against infection from revolutionary Europe.

    18 April 1860 Orpheus-Quadrille op.236 by Johann Strauss (34) is performed for the first time, in “Zum großen Zeisig,” Vienna.

    18 April 1861 The temple scene from a projected opera by Modest Musorgsky (22) to Ozerov’s (after Sophocles) play Oedipus in Athens is performed for the first time, at the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg.

    18 April 1864 Mily Balakirev’s (27) Second Overture on Russian Themes is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg.  The work will be published in 1869 as 1000 years and in 1887 as Russia.

    18 April 1875 Johannes Brahms (41) conducts his last concert with the Vienna Gesellschaftskonzerte, claiming personal differences with advisory board member Johann Herbeck.  Brahms will never have a steady job again.

    18 April 1876 Incidental music to Tennyson’s play Queen Mary op.6 by Charles Villiers Stanford (23) is performed for the first time, in the Lyceum Theatre.  This performance includes only the songs.  See 29 March 1880.

    18 April 1880 Two sacred works by Giuseppe Verdi (66) for unaccompanied chorus are performed for the first time, in Milan:  Pater noster and Ave Maria, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    18 April 1884 Savonarola, a grand opera by Charles Villiers Stanford (31) to words of Gilbert A Beckett, is performed for the first time, in the Hamburg Stadttheater.  The public is ecstatic, the press generally positive.

    18 April 1885 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (44) writes to Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (41) offering him the directorship of the Moscow Conservatory.

    The entr’acte to Ernest Chausson’s (30) comédie lyrique after de Musset Les Caprices de Marianne is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    Hymn in honor of SS Cyril and Methodius for unaccompanied chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (44) to his own words is performed for the first time, at Moscow Conservatory.

    18 April 1886 Two songs for voice and piano by Gustav Mahler (25) to his own words are performed for the first time, in Prague:  Frühlingsmorgen and Hans und Grethe.

    18 April 1891 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (50) departs Le Havre aboard Le Grand Bretagne making for New York.

    Symphony in B flat by Ernest Chausson (36) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris conducted by the composer.

    18 April 1893 The Black Knight, a cantata by Edward Elgar (35) to words of Uhland translated by Longfellow is performed for the first time, in Worcester conducted by the composer.  The press, although local only, is “respectable.”

    18 April 1895 A third version of Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov’s (51) opera The Maid of Pskov to words of Krestovsky, Musorgsky (†14) and the composer after May, is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.  See 13 January 1873.

    Klug Gretelein op.462, a waltz by Johann Strauss (69), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.

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

    Menuet antique for piano by Maurice Ravel (23) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris.

    18 April 1902 Sonata for clarinet and piano op.49/1 by Max Reger (29) is performed for the first time, in Munich, the composer at the keyboard.

    The cantata The Celestial Country by Charles Ives (27) to words of Alford, is performed for the first time, at New York’s Central Presbyterian Church, the composer directing from the organ.

    18 April 1903 Four of the Huit Pièces brèves op.84 for piano by Gabriel Fauré (57) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.

    18 April 1905 The symphonic sketch Vendanges by Albert Roussel (36) is performed for the first time, in the Nouveau-Théâtre, Paris.

    18 April 1916 Two of the Trois Mélodies by Erik Satie (49) to words of Godebska and Chalupt, are performed for the first time, at the Société Lyre et Palette, Paris.  See 30 May 1916.

    18 April 1918 Le chant du Nigamon, a symphonic poem by Arthur Honegger (26), is performed for the first time, privately at the Paris Conservatoire the composer conducting.  See 3 January 1920.

    18 April 1919 On this date, Sergey Rakhmaninov (46) begins six days during which he makes his first gramophone recordings, consisting of five double-sided records, for Thomas Edison.

    18 April 1921 The Diary of the Young Man Who Disappeared, a song cycle by Leos Janácek (66) to anonymous words, for alto and tenor soloists, female chorus, and piano, is performed for the first time, in Reduta Theatre, Brno.

    18 April 1924 Song of the Sea, a tone poem by Frederick S. Converse (53), is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    18 April 1929 Jazz dans la nuit for voice and piano by Albert Roussel (60) to words of Dommange, is performed for the first time, at the Salle Gaveau, Paris.  Also premiered is Pièce brève sur le nom d’Albert Roussel for piano by Francis Poulenc (30).

    18 April 1931 The new government of Brazil creates the Superintendência de Educação Musical e Artística to make the teaching of music compulsory in every school in Rio de Janeiro.  The appointment to head the program will go to Heitor Villa-Lobos (44).

    18 April 1936 06:10  Ottorino Respighi dies at his villa “The Pines” in Rome, aged 56 years, eight months, and nine days.

    18 April 1937 From Olden Times, for male chorus by Béla Bartók (56) to traditional Hungarian words arranged by the composer, is performed for the first time, in Kecskemét.

    18 April 1939 Serenade no.2 for two violins and viola by Bohuslav Martinu (48) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    18 April 1941 O Happy Land for voice and piano by John Ireland (61) to words of Linton is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating in Bedford the composer at the keyboard.

    18 April 1943 Trois Chants op.98 for voice and orchestra by Florent Schmitt (72) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    18 April 1944 Leonard Bernstein’s (25) ballet Fancy Free, to a scenario by Robbins, is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York conducted by the composer.

    18 April 1945 Lejaren Hiller (21) marries Elizabeth Halsey in Elkton, Maryland.

    18 April 1947 The Trial of Lucullus, an opera by Roger Sessions (50) to words of Brecht, is performed for the first time, at the University of California, Berkeley the composer conducting.

    18 April 1949 Suite for strings by Ulysses Kay (32) is performed for the first time, in Baltimore conducted by the composer.

    18 April 1958 Symphony no.1 by Easley Blackwood (24) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    18 April 1959 Symphony no.3 by Ned Rorem (35) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, Leonard Bernstein (40) conducting.

    Fantasia for string quartet and orchestra by Otto Luening (58) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre, Columbia University.

    18 April 1966 Four psalm setting for chorus by Charles Ives (†10) are performed for the first time, in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art:  Psalms 54, 90, 100, and 150.  Also premiered is Ives’ General William Booth Enters into Heaven for male chorus and chamber orchestra to words of Lindsay, Two Slants for chorus and orchestra to words of Emerson and Manilius, and Walt Whitman for chorus and chamber orchestra to words of Whitman.

    18 April 1968 Incidental music to Claudel’s play L’histoire de Tobie et Sara by Darius Milhaud (75) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de Rideau, Brussels.

    18 April 1971 Prologue for tenor, bassoon, horn, two trumpets, trombone, violin, and double bass by Harrison Birtwistle (36) to words of Aeschylus (tr. Vellacott) is performed for the first time, in London, conducted by the composer.

    18 April 1977 Richard Wernick (43) wins the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his Visions of Terror and Wonder.

    18 April 1978 Six Pieces for violin and piano by Charles Wuorinen (39) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York the composer at the keyboard.

    18 April 1980 Ländler for thirteen strings by Wolfgang Rihm (28) is performed for the first time, in Baden-Baden. Also premiered is Rihm’s Nature Morte--Still Alive for thirteen strings.

    18 April 1983 Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (43) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for her Symphony no.1, the first woman to win the honor.  See 5 May 1982.

    Profils for seven instruments and tape by Jean-Claude Risset (45) is performed for the first time, at Centre Georges-Pompidou, Paris.

    Horn Trio for french horn, violin, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (44) is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York the composer at the keyboard.

    Piano Sonata no.12 op.145 by Vincent Persichetti (67) is performed for the first time, in Notre Dame, Indiana.

    Snow Dreams for flute and guitar by Joan Tower (44) is performed for the first time, in St. Paul, Minnesota.

    18 April 1986 Music for 18 Winds by John Harbison (47) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    18 April 1988 Ricorrenze for woodwind quintet by Luciano Berio (62) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    18 April 1990 Concerto for piano four-hands and orchestra by Alfred Schnittke (55) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    A revised version of Don for soprano and orchestra by Pierre Boulez (65) to words of Mallarmé is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.  See 13 June 1960 and 5 July 1962.

    Haughty Sortie for chorus and piano by Peter Sculthorpe (60) to words of his mother is performed for the first time, in Colorado Springs.

    18 April 1991 Europera V by John Cage (78) is performed for the first time, at SUNY Buffalo.

    18 April 1992 Benedicamus Domino for male chorus by Krzysztof Penderecki (58) is performed for the first time, in Lucerne.

    18 April 1998 Two works by John Luther Adams (45) are performed for the first time, at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks:  The Immeasurable Space of Tones for violin, contrabass instrument, piano, electronic keyboard, and vibraphone, and Qilyaun for four bass drums and electronics.

    18 April 2000 The Last Supper, an opera by Harrison Birtwistle (65) to words of Blaser, is performed for the first time, in the Berlin Staatsoper.

    Used Car Salesman for percussion ensemble by Michael Daugherty (45) is performed for the first time, in Hancher Auditorium, Iowa City, Iowa.

    18 April 2001 Risonanza for two trumpets, four trombones, organ, and six strings by Sofia Gubaidulina (69) is performed for the first time, in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.

    18 April 2002 Millennium Designs for violin and piano by Ralph Shapey (81) is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington.

    18 April 2004 Montale Sketches for piano by John Harbison (65) is performed for the first time, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

    18 April 2005 Military March for nine players by Peter Maxwell Davies (70) is performed for the first time, at the Royal Academy of Music.

    18 April 2012 SwarAmant for violin, guitar, and tabla by Terry Riley (76) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room of Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    18 April 2014 Scatter Roses Over My Tears for string quartet by John Tavener (†0) is performed for the first time, in Klangraum Krems, Minoritenkirche, Austria.

    19 April

    19 April 1605 Orazio Benevoli is born in Rome.

    19 April 1768 Amid great ceremony in St. Catherine’s Church, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (54) is inaugurated to his post in Hamburg as kantor of the Johanneum and director of music in the five principal churches.

    19 April 1770 Leopold (50) and Wolfgang Amadeus (14) Mozart are guests of Prince San Angelo of Naples, in Rome.  They meet the Scottish Pretender, Charles Edward Stuart.

    19 April 1774 Iphigénie en Aulide, a tragédie opéra by Christoph Willibald Gluck (59) to words of DuRoullet after Racine after Euripedes, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  It was scheduled for 13 April, but when a lead singer caught a cold, Gluck changed the date of the premiere, even though many members of the royal family planned to attend.  As it turned out, the royal family adjusted their schedule to accommodate Gluck.  More than any other, this work solidifies Gluck’s success with the Parisian public.  It captivates the audience, which includes the dauphin and his wife, Marie Antoinette.

    Nitteti, an opera seria by Antonio Sacchini (43) to words of Bottarelli after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.

    19 April 1787 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (31) dates the score to his String Quintet K.515 in Vienna.

    19 April 1800 Domenico Corri, father-in-law to Jan Ladislav Dussek (40) and partner with Dussek and Lorenzo da Ponte in a publishing firm, goes bankrupt.  Dussek already fled England in 1799 to escape his creditors.  There is no evidence that he will ever see his wife or daughter again.

    19 April 1818 Antonio Salieri’s (67) chorus Do re mi fa is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    19 April 1838 Festgesang for chorus and piano by Felix Mendelssohn (29) is performed for the first time, in Schwaz.

    19 April 1841 Le comte de Carmagnola, an opéra by Ambroise Thomas (29) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    19 April 1846 Austria-Marsch op.20 by Johann Strauss (20) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    19 April 1853 Hoping to attract the attention of influential musicians, and a little money, Johannes Brahms (19) and his violinist friend Eduard Hoffmann (Reményi) set out from Hamburg on a concert tour of nearby cities.

    19 April 1854 In a concert in Weimar, the phrase “symphonic poem” is used for the first time, to describe Tasso by Franz Liszt (42).

    19 April 1856 Cantate pour le distribution des prix de la Société des gens de lettres by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (74) is performed for the first time.

    19 April 1858 La chatte metamorphosée en femme, an operetta by Jacques Offenbach (38) to words of Scribe and Mélesville, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    19 April 1859 Katerina Smetana, wife of the composer Bedrich Smetana (35), dies in Dresden, on their way to Prague.

    19 April 1871 On their way to Berlin, Richard (57) and Cosima Wagner inspect the opera house in Bayreuth.  They have been led to believe that it has one of the largest stages in Germany.  It does not.  Wagner approves of the town, but not the opera house.  A decision is made to build a new one.

    19 April 1876 Samuel Sebastian Wesley dies in Gloucester of Bright’s Disease, aged 65 years eight months and five days.

    19 April 1883 The Transit of Venus, a march by John Philip Sousa (28), is performed for the first time, in Washington, conducted by the composer.

    19 April 1890 String Quartet in D by César Franck (67) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris where it is well received.

    19 April 1896 Lord Have Mercy Upon Us for solo quartet and double choir by Leos Janácek (41) is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno) conducted by the composer.

    19 April 1897 Imperial March op.32 by Edward Elgar (39) is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria.  Credit for the composition is ascribed to Richard Elgar.

    19 April 1899 Sergey Rakhmaninov (26) makes his London debut, conducting and playing his music in Queen’s Hall.  It is his first significant performance outside Russia.

    19 April 1907 The Piano Sonata no.1 op.8 of Karol Szymanowski (24) is performed for the first time, at a Young Poland concert in Warsaw.  The critics are not kind.

    19 April 1909 A Sonata for violin and piano by Karol Szymanowski (26) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    Into the Twilight for orchestra by Arnold Bax (25) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London.

    19 April 1913 Ouverture carnevalesca for orchestra by Ottorino Respighi (33) is performed for the first time, in Bologna, directed by the composer.

    19 April 1918 Incidental music to Wilde’s play Salome by Granville Bantock (49) is performed for the first time, in London.

    19 April 1926 Maria (Mimi) Kwast Pfitzner, wife of Hans Pfitzner (56), dies at the age of 46.  “With the death of my wife Mimi, I had the feeling that my true life had ended.”

    Incidental music to d’Annunzio’s (tr. Doderet) play Phaedre by Arthur Honegger (34) is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Costanzi, Rome the composer conducting.

    19 April 1928 Sonatina for piano by John Ireland (48) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC originating at BBC Studios, London by the composer.

    19 April 1934 Two songs by Charles Ives (59) are performed for the first time, in Skinner Recital Hall of Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York:  Thoreau, to his own words after Thoreau, and Whitman to words of Whitman.  Whitman has been performed already, in June of last year.

    19 April 1936 Three works are performed for the first time, in Barcelona:  Violin Concerto by Alban Berg (†0), composed to the memory of Manon Gropius, Fragmente aus dem Bühnenwerk Karl V for soprano and orchestra by Ernst Krenek (35), and Ariel, a ballet by Roberto Gerhard (39) to a story by Foix and the composer, in a concert setting.  In the audience is Benjamin Britten (22).

    19 April 1939 The King of the Stars, a cantata for chorus and orchestra by Igor Stravinsky (56) to words of Balmont, is performed for the first time, in Brussels 27 years after it was composed.

    Sinfonietta for orchestra by Ulysses Kay (22) is performed for the first time, in Syracuse, New York.

    19 April 1942 Three Trios op.99 for female voices and orchestra by Florent Schmitt (71) are performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Canon (II), a song by Charles Ives (67) to words of Moore, is performed for the first time, at the Humphrey-Weidman Studio in New York.

    19 April 1943 Salute to Sydney, a fanfare for brass by Arnold Bax (59), is performed for the first time, in a BBC Overseas broadcast.

    19 April 1946 Sextet for piano, strings, and clarinet op.55 by Hans Pfitzner (76) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    19 April 1948 The first All-Union congress of Soviet Composers meets in Moscow.  They condemn Benjamin Britten (34), Gian-Carlo Menotti (36), and Olivier Messiaen (39) as being “impregnated with extreme subjectivism, mysticism, and disgusting facetiousness.”

    Ausencias de Dulcinea for bass-baritone, four sopranos, and orchestra by Joaquín Rodrigo (46) to words of Cervantes is performed for the first time, in Teatro Español, Madrid.

    19 April 1949 The US House Un-American Activities Committee releases its report on the Waldorf Conference recently held in New York featuring Aaron Copland (48), Marc Blitzstein (44), Dmitri Shostakovich (42), Leonard Bernstein (30), and Lukas Foss (26).  It lists names of the participants and describes the “threat” posed by the conference which they call “a supermobilization of inveterate wheelhorses and supporters of the Communist Party and its auxiliary organizations...”

    19 April 1950 Sonata no.1 for piano by Karel Husa (28) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    19 April 1955 Ideas and Transformations no.1 for violin and viola by Kenneth Gaburo (28) is performed for the first time, in Rome.

    19 April 1958 String Quartet no.2 op.26 by Alberto Ginastera (42) is performed for the first time, in Coolidge Auditorium, Washington.  Also premiered is String Quartet no.15 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (71).

    Elegy and Dance for orchestra by Roy Harris (60) is performed for the first time, in Public Auditorium, Portland, Oregon the composer conducting.

    19 April 1959 String Quartet no.3 op.81 by Vincent Persichetti (43) is performed for the first time, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

    19 April 1961 Pillars for two pianos and percussion by Joan Tower (22) is performed for the first time, at Bennington College, Vermont.

    Serenade no.11 op.85 for band by Vincent Persichetti (45) is performed for the first time, in Ithaca, New York conducted by the composer.

    19 April 1963 Deo ac veritati for male chorus by William Schuman (52) is performed for the first time, at Colgate University, Hamilton, New York.

    19 April 1964 Montezuma, an opera by Roger Sessions (67) to words of Borgese, is performed for the first time, in West Berlin.  The public reaction is mixed.  The press is scathing.

    Fanfare for a New Theatre for two trumpets by Igor Stravinsky (81) is performed for the first time, at a private gala for the New York State Theatre, Lincoln Center, New York.

    Sonata for cello and piano by Roy Harris (66) is performed for the first time, in the Main Auditorium of San Francisco State College.  It is programmed under the name “Duo.”

    Corona II (Corona for Strings) for one or more string instruments by Toru Takemitsu (33) is performed for the first time, in Honolulu.

    19 April 1965 Of Wood and Brass for tape by Vladimir Ussachevsky (53) is performed for the first time, in McMillin Theatre of Columbia University.

    19 April 1967 Györgi Ligeti’s (43) Cello Concerto is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    Excursions, duets for young pianists by Thea Musgrave (38), is performed for the first time, in London.

    19 April 1968 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet by Gian Carlo Menotti (56) is performed for the first time, in the Palais de Chaillot, Paris.

    Partita-Fantasia for cello and 16 players by Ralph Shapey (47) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago.

    An Avalanche for Pitchman, Prima Donna, Player Piano, Percussionist, and Pre-recorded Playback by Lejaren Hiller (44) to words of Parman is performed for the first time, at the University of Illinois, Urbana.

    19 April 1969 Piano Sonata no.5 by Lejaren Hiller (43) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    19 April 1970 Stèle funéraire op.224 for one person playing piccolo, flute, and alto flute by Charles Koechlin (†19) is performed for the first time, in Verrières-le-Buisson, 20 years after it was composed.

    19 April 1973 Cello and Orchestra for cello and orchestra by Morton Feldman (47) is performed for the first time, in the Casino in Royan.

    19 April 1975 Les Boréades (sometimes called Abaris), a tragédie en musique by Jean-Philippe Rameau (†210) to words possibly by Cahusac and possibly by Decroix, is performed very likely for the first time, in London.

    Al fresco for band by Karel Husa (53) is performed for the first time, at Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York.

    19 April 1981 At the Haunted End of Day, a television profile of William Walton (79), is shown for the first time, on British television.

    19 April 1983 Varii capricci, a ballet by William Walton (†0) is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York.  It is an arrangement of his Five Bagatelles for guitar.

    19 April 1985 Behold the Sun, an opera by Alexander Goehr (52) to words of McGrath and the composer, is performed for the first time, in Duisburg.

    A Collection of Rocks for chorus and orchestra by John Cage (72) is performed for the first time, in Zagreb.

    19 April 1986 Piece for Small Orchestra no.2 by Conlon Nancarrow (73) is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    Version 1 of Algorithms III for nine instruments and tape by Lejaren Hiller (62) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    19 April 1989 John Cage (76) gives the last of his six Charles Eliot Norton Lectures (I-VI) in Sanders Theatre of Harvard University.

    Anna La Bonne for voice and piano by Ned Rorem (65) to words of Cocteau is performed for the first time, in Bing Theatre of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

    19 April 1991 Piano Study no.16 by Charles Ives (†36) is performed for the first time, at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut.

    Broadside:  Ceremonial for Winds by William Bolcom (52) is performed for the first time.

    Soli for percussion duo by Ralph Shapey (70) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    19 April 1993 Tillinghast Duo for voice and piano by William Bolcom (54) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    19 April 1994 Sonata da Caccia for oboe, horn, and harpsichord by Thomas Adès (23), is performed for the first time, in Birmingham.

    19 April 1998 Four movements of Harrison’s Clocks for piano by Harrison Birtwistle (63) are performed for the first time, in Bridgewater Hall, Manchester.  See 13 July 1998.

    19 April 1999 Serenata Concertante by Donald Martino (67) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    Resurrection, an opera by Tod Machover to (45) words of Harrington and Murray after Tolstoy, is performed for the first time, at Houston Grand Opera.

    19 April 2001 Romp for string quartet by Samuel Adler (73) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    19 April 2004 Telos 135 for four trumpets and two timpani by Peter Maxwell Davies (69) is performed for the first time, in London.

    19 April 2006 Raag Mala for wind ensemble by Michael Colgrass (73) is performed for the first time.

    19 April 2010 Trio for flute, bass clarinet, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (71) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.

    20 April

    20 April 1643 Johannes Christoph Demantius dies in Freiberg, Saxony, aged 75 years, four months and five days.

    20 April 1759 Evening.  The mortal remains of George Frideric Handel are laid to rest in the south transept of Westminster Abbey.  The London Evening Post reports, “The Bishop, Prebendaries, and the whole Choirs attended, to pay the last Honours due to his Memory; and it is computed there were not fewer than 3,000 persons present on this Occasion.”

    20 April 1770 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (14) performs in the Palazzo Chigi in the Piazza Colonna, Rome, before a distinguished audience invited by Cardinal Pallavicini.

    20 April 1787 This is the approximate date that Ludwig van Beethoven (16) departs Vienna for Bonn.

    20 April 1792 In the eighth Haydn-Salomon concert in London, Johann Nepomuk Hummel (13) plays the piano part in Joseph Haydn’s (60) Piano Trio in Ab Hob.XVI: 14.  It is the first known public performance of a piano trio by Haydn.

    20 April 1806 Georg Joseph Vogler’s (56) Bavarian National Symphony, a reworking of his Symphony in C, is performed for the Bavarian court in Munich.

    20 April 1807 Ludwig van Beethoven (36) signs a contract with Muzio Clementi (55) in Vienna giving Clementi sole printing rights in Britain for the Rassumovsky Quartets, the Symphony no.4, the Coriolanus Overture, the Piano Concerto no.4, and the Violin Concerto.

    20 April 1815 Bostonians Gottlieb Graupner, Asa Peabody and Thomas Webb lead a group of amateur singers to ratify a formal constitution called The Boston Handel and Haydn Society.  It is the first such group in the United States.

    20 April 1832 Nicolò Paganini (49) gives his second performance in Paris.  Of this, Franz Liszt (20) writes, “What a man, what a violin, what an artist...heavens, what suffering, what misery, what tortures in those four strings...”  (Zaluski, 156)

    20 April 1836 Giuseppe Verdi (22) signs a contract to be maestro di musica in Busseto, a position that requires him to reside in Busseto ten months of every year, give vocal, instrumental, counterpoint and composition lessons and conduct the Philharmonic Society.

    An aria and chorus for Bakhturin’s play The Moldavian Girl and the Gypsy Girl by Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (31) are performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    20 April 1842 Franz Liszt (30) gives his first performance in St. Petersburg before 3,000 people, the largest audience ever seen in Russia for such an event.  The critic Stasov will later write, “After the concert, Serov and I were like madmen.  We scarcely exchanged a word, but hurried home, each to write down his impressions, dreams and raptures.  We both vowed to keep this anniversary sacred forever, and never, while life lasted, to forget a single instant of it.”  Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (37) is also present and says that Liszt “played some things exceptionally well…but other things he played unbearably, with totally inappropriate expression…with often tasteless, worthless, vacuous ornamentation of his own.”  It is the first time Glinka meets Vladimir Stasov.

    20 April 1850 Le songe d’une nuit d’été, an opéra comique by Ambroise Thomas (38) to words of Rosier and de Leuven, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Nouveautés, Paris.

    20 April 1862 Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (18) graduates from the College of Naval Cadets, St. Petersburg with the rank of midshipman.

    20 April 1869 Valse caprice op.4 for piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (28) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Johann Carl Gottfried Loewe dies of a stroke, in Kiel, aged 72 years, four months and 21 days.

    20 April 1875 Quasimodo, an opera by Felipe Pedrell (34) to words of Barret after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in the Liceo, Barcelona.

    20 April 1876 The Great Bell of Gloucester Cathedral tolls for one hour in keeping with the wishes of Samuel Sebastian Wesley as his mortal remains are taken to the railroad station.  At 14:30 the train arrives in Exeter and the coffin is taken to the Old Cemetery where, after a short service, it is laid to rest.

    20 April 1879 Portions of Attendez-moi sous l’orme, an opéra comique by Vincent d’Indy (30) to words of Prével and de Bonnières after Régnard, are performed for the first time, by the Société

    des Auditions Lyriques in Paris.  See 11 February 1882.

    20 April 1880 New works from the Kuchka are performed for the first time, in Kononov Hall, St. Petersburg:  In Central Asia, a symphonic poem by Alyeksandr Borodin (46) composed for the silver jubilee of Tsar Alyeksandr II, conducted by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (36), the closing scene from Modest Musorgsky’s (41) opera Khovanshchina, and Musorgsky’s Mephistopheles’ Song of the Flea for solo voice and piano to words of Goethe (tr. Strugovshchikov).

    20 April 1882 After lengthy preliminary and final examinations, the first 50 students are chosen for the new Royal College of Music.

    20 April 1885 Lied aus dem Gedicht “Ivan” op.3/4, a song by Johannes Brahms (51) to words of Bodenstedt, is performed for the first time, in Vienna, 32 years after it was composed.

    20 April 1887 The Symphony no.5 by Anton Bruckner (55) is performed for the first time, in a four-hand piano arrangement, in Vienna.  See 7 October 1880, 20 February 1881, and 8 April 1894.

    20 April 1889 An Island Fantasy for orchestra by John Knowles Paine (50) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    20 April 1890 Enrique Granados (22) makes his official debut at Barcelona’s Teatre Líric, premiering Arabesca, selections from Danzas españolas and Serenata española.  He also plays music of Saint-Saëns (54), Bizet (†14), Mendelssohn (†42), Chopin (†40), Beethoven (†63), Mozart (†98), and Schubert (†61).  The critics are enthusiastic about his compositions and his playing.

    20 April 1895 La bonne chanson, a cycle for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (49) to words of Verlaine, is performed publicly for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.  See 25 April 1894.

    20 April 1904 Gustav Holst (29) enters upon duties as teacher of class singing at James Allen’s Girls’ School in Southeast London.  He was recommended by the last person to hold the job, Ralph Vaughan Williams (31).  See 16 September 1904.

    20 April 1905 Arthur Farwell (32) meets with Henry Gilbert (36) and other interested people in Boston to form the American Music Society to promote the music of living American composers.

    20 April 1907 The symphonic poem Souvenirs, by Vincent d’Indy (56) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    20 April 1909 A pregnant Harmony Ives, wife of Charles Ives (34), suffers bleeding and is rushed to a New York hospital where she loses the baby and undergoes an emergency hysterectomy.  She will be hospitalized until 15 May.

    20 April 1910 At the inaugural concert of the Société Musical Indépendente at the Salle Gaveau, the song cycle La Chanson d’Eve op.95 by the society’s president Gabriel Fauré (64) to words of van Lerberghe, is given its first complete performance, the composer at the piano.  Other premieres heard on this occasion are Ma mère l’oye by the force behind the new society, Maurice Ravel (35) for piano four hands, performed by two pianists aged six and ten, and Claude Debussy’s (47) D’un cahier d’esquisses, performed by Maurice Ravel at the keyboard.  See 3 February 1908, 26 May 1909 and 29 January 1912.

    20 April 1912 Song for the People of Uusimaa for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (46) to words of Terhi is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    20 April 1916 The first complete performance of the Two Portraits for orchestra op.5 by Béla Bartók (35) takes place in Budapest.  See 12 February 1911.

    20 April 1922 The first three of the four movements of La forêt païnne, a ballet by Charles Koechlin (54), is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  See 11 June 1925.

    20 April 1928 Two “minute operas” by Darius Milhaud (35) to words of Hoppenot are performed for the first time, in Wiesbaden:  La Déliverance de Thésée and L’Abandon d’Ariane.

    Two “minute operas” by Darius Milhaud (35) to words of Hoppenot are performed for the first time, in Wiesbaden:  La Déliverance de Thésée and L’Abandon d’Ariane.

    20 April 1932 Le Bal masqué, a cantata for voice, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, percussion, and piano by Francis Poulenc (33) to words of Jacob, is performed for the first time, at the home of Vicomte de Noailles, Hyères.  The composer performs the piano part.  See 13 June 1932.

    20 April 1936 A funeral mass in honor of Ottorino Respighi takes place in the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome.

    20 April 1937 Three Romances op.73 for voice and piano by Sergey Prokofiev (45) to words of Pushkin are performed for the first time, in a radio broadcast from Moscow.

    20 April 1939 Sonata for violin and piano by Walter Piston (45) is performed for the first time, in Brunswick, Maine.

    20 April 1941 Two dances to scenarios by Hawkins are performed for the first time, in New York:  Trickster by Henry Cowell (44), and Pilgrim’s Progress by Wallingford Riegger (55).

    20 April 1943 La Capitaine Fracasse, a film with music by Arthur Honegger (51), is shown for the first time, in Paris.

    20 April 1945 Sonatina for piano by Karel Husa (23) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    Two works by Vincent Persichetti (29) are performed for the first time, in Philadelphia:  Pastoral op.21 for woodwind quintet, and Fables op.23 for speaker and orchestra.

    20 April 1947 Étude pour Espace for chorus, two pianos and percussion by Edgard Varèse (63) is performed for the first time, at the New School for Social Research, New York, directed by the composer.  This is the only fragment of the large projected work Espace to reach a concert hall.  Also premiered is Organum for orchestra by Carl Ruggles (71), in a reduction for two pianos made by the composer.  See 24 November 1948.

    20 April 1951 Petite Suite for orchestra by Witold Lutoslawski (38) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    20 April 1955 Two Pieces for Two Pianos by Morton Feldman (29) is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theater of Harvard University by John Cage (42) and David Tudor.

    20 April 1956 Two works are performed for the first time, in Juilliard Concert Hall, New York:  Theatre Piece no.2 for tape, piano, voice, narrator, percussion, and winds by Otto Luening (55), and Meditation on Ecclesiastes for strings by Norman Dello Joio (43).  See 6 May 1957.

    20 April 1958 Symphony no.12 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (71) is performed for the first time, in Lisner Auditorium, Washington.

    20 April 1961 Mass op.84 for chorus by Vincent Persichetti (45) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    Symphonic Prelude by Walter Piston (67) is performed for the first time, in Cleveland.

    20 April 1962 A dance suite from the Mikis Theodorakis’ (36) musical play The Ballad of the Dead Brother is performed for the first time, at the Rex Theatre, Athens.  See 15 October 1962.

    Rappresentazione e festa di Carnasciale e della Quaresima, an opera by Gian Francesco Malipiero (80) to his own words after a 16th century Florentine text, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice.  See 20 January 1970.

    20 April 1964 Symphony in Three Movements by TJ Anderson (35) is performed for the first time, in Oklahoma City.  It is dedicated to the memory of John F. Kennedy.

    20 April 1965 In Los Angeles, Harry Partch (63) receives word from Betty Freeman that she is willing to support him financially on a permanent basis and assist him in creating a studio.

    Two Mexican Pieces for orchestra by Aaron Copland (64) is performed for the first time, in Washington.  See 7 June 1972.

    20 April 1966 Summer Seascape II for viola and strings by Howard Hanson (69) is performed for the first time, in North Carolina.  See 7 April 1966.

    20 April 1972 Lord Byron, an opera by Virgil Thomson (75) to words of Larson, is performed for the first time, in the Juilliard Theatre, New York.  After being rejected by its commissioner, the Metropolitan Opera, the director of the Juilliard School, Peter Mennin (48), offers the venue to Thomson.  The director is John Houseman, who leads the school’s theatre department.  Reviews are strongly mixed.  See 14 April 1969.

    20 April 1973 Autour for harpsichord by Betsy Jolas (46) is performed for the first time, in Royan.

    20 April 1974 Lamia for soprano and orchestra by Jacob Druckman (45) to words of Ovid, Wagner, and elsewhere is performed for the first time, in Albany, New York.

    Two works by Ned Rorem (50) are performed for the first time, in Sioux City, Iowa:  Laudemus tempus actum for chorus, and Little Prayers for soprano, baritone, chorus, and orchestra to words of Goodman.

    20 April 1979 Concertino for piano, winds and timpani by George Perle (63) is performed for the first time, in Chicago, conducted by Ralph Shapey.

    20 April 1980 Two works by Hans Werner Henze (53) are performed for the first time, in Witten:  El Rey de Harlem for voice and small ensemble to words of Lorca, and Sonata for viola and piano.

    Piano Sonata no.2 by Lejaren Hiller (56) is performed for the first time, in Albany, New York, 33 years after it was composed.

    20 April 1981 Thy Song Expands My Spirit for piano by Samuel Adler (53) is performed for the first time, in the National Gallery, Washington.

    20 April 1983 Cantata for chorus and brass quintet by Karel Husa (61), to words of Robinson, Dickinson and Whitman, is performed for the first time, in the Wabash College Chapel, Crawfordsville, Indiana.

    20 April 1984 Flower Songs op.157 for chorus and strings by Vincent Persichetti (68), to words of Cummings, is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    20 April 1985 Concerto grosso no.3 for two violins, harpsichord, and 14 strings by Alfred Schnittke (50) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    20 April 1987 Six Marimbas by Steve Reich (50) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    20 April 1988 Sequenza XI for guitar by Luciano Berio (62) is performed for the first time, in Rovereto.

    20 April 1990 Variations for viola and nine players by Ralph Shapey (69) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago, the composer conducting.

    20 April 1991 String Quartet no.4 by Richard Wernick (57) is performed for the first time, in the Port of History Museum, Philadelphia.

    Everyone Sang for double chorus by Dominick Argento (63) to words of Sassoon is performed for the first time, in Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh.

    20 April 1995 blessed days of blue for flute, strings, mandolin, guitar, and harp by Jonathan Lloyd (46) is performed for the first time, at Malvern College, Malvern.

    Family Tree:  Musical Verses for Young People for narrator and orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (64) to words of Tanikawa is performed for the first time, in New York.

    20 April 1996 Spring Song for harp by TJ Anderson (67) is performed for the first time, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

    20 April 2007 New Morning for the World for wind ensemble by Joseph Schwantner (64) is performed for the first time, in Tallahassee, Florida.

    20 April 2008 The Partenheimer Project, three pieces for various chamber combinations by Kevin Volans (58), is performed for the first time, in Birmingham.

    Aeolian Ballade for harp by David Del Tredici (71) is performed for the first time, in Weill Recital Hall, New York.

    20 April 2009 Steve Reich (72) is awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his Double Sextet.

    20 April 2013 Submerged Memories for narrator, bass clarinet, electric guitar, percussion, electroacoustic processing, and visual projections by Roger Reynolds (78), to words of Sebald (tr. Hulse) is performed for the first time with all components, in Atkinson Hall, La Jolla, California.  See 31 March 2006.

    21 April

    21 April 1783 The National Theatre in Prague officially opens for opera, singspiel and stage plays.  It will see the successes of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27):  Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni and La Clemenza di Tito.

    21 April 1801 A dramma serio eroico per musica, Ginevra di Scozia, with music by Simon Mayr (37) to words of Rossi after Ariosto, is performed for the first time, in Trieste, at the inauguration of the Teatro Nuovo.

    21 April 1812 Palestine, an oratorio by William Crotch (36) to words of Heber, is performed for the first time, in the Hanover Square Rooms, London.  The capacity audience is so positive, the work will be repeated on 26 May.

    21 April 1829 Felix Mendelssohn (20) arrives in London, ten hours late after a rough crossing from Hamburg and engine trouble.

    An article called “Reflections on Religious Music” appears in the progressive Catholic weekly Correspondant in Paris.  It is signed “H”.  The author, Hector Berlioz (25), will become a regular contributor and, starting in June, will be paid.

    21 April 1845 Undine, a romantische Zauberoper by Albert Lortzing (43) to his own words after de la Motte-Fouqué, is performed for the first time, in Magdeburg Stadttheater.

    21 April 1850 The Piano Concerto no.1 in e minor by Anton Rubinstein (20) is performed completely for the first time, in the Hall of the Nobility, Moscow, the composer at the keyboard.

    21 April 1852 Incidental music to Murger’s comédie Le Bonhomme Jadis by Jacques Offenbach (32) is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Française, Paris.

    21 April 1857 Mass op.4 for chorus, orchestra and organ by Camille Saint-Saëns (21) is performed for the first time, in the Church of Saint Merry, Paris.

    21 April 1889 Edgar, a dramma lirico by Giacomo Puccini (30) to words of Fontana after de Musset, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  The critics are mixed and it receives only one more performance at La Scala.

    21 April 1890 When WS Gilbert receives the preliminary expense report for The Gondoliers he goes immediately to the office of Richard D’Oyly Carte where a blistering argument takes place.  Gilbert essentially accuses Carte of padding his accounts with items like new carpets for the lobby and staircases.

    Incidental music to Haraucourt’s play La Passion by Gabriel Fauré (44) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique in the Salle Erard, Paris.  The Fantaisie for piano and orchestra by Claude Debussy (27) is programmed for this concert but after the dress rehearsal, the conductor, Vincent d’Indy (39), believing the concert to be too long, plans to perform only one movement.  Debussy does not agree to this, and, although he respects d’Indy, removes the orchestral parts from the stands.

    21 April 1892 Arpeggio study for piano by Gustav Holst (17) is performed for the first time, in Constitution Hall, Oxford by the composer.

    21 April 1894 The American Art Journal publishes the announcement by Antonín Dvorák (52) that George Whitefield Chadwick’s (39) Symphony no.3 has won the composition competition of the National Conservatory of Music.

    21 April 1896 From the Bavarian Highlands, six choral songs with piano or orchestra by Edward Elgar (38), is performed for the first time, in Worcester conducted by the composer.

    21 April 1899 The Broken Voice op.18/1 for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (33) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    Hands Across the Sea, a march by John Philip Sousa (44), is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.

    21 April 1906 Quatre poèmes op.3 for solo voice and piano by Albert Roussel (37), to words of de Régnier, is performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    21 April 1911 Gustav Mahler (50) is transported by car from the Elysée Palace Hotel in Paris to a clinic in Neuilly for treatment of his condition.

    21 April 1912 Deux Poèmes op.63 for piano by Alyeksandr Skryabin (40) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg by the composer.

    21 April 1914 Luigi Russolo (28) gives his first concert of “noise music” in Teatro del Verme, Milan before an overflow crowd.  A number of the audience, there for this specific purpose, attempt to disrupt the performance with boos, whistles, and “anti-noise” of all kinds, as well as launching produce towards the  stage.  In the middle of one piece, five musicians move from the stage to the audience and physically attack the demonstrators while their colleagues play on.  One of the vanguard remembers, “It was a display of an amazing harmonic arrangement of bloody faces and dissonances, an infernal melee.”  Eleven people are hospitalized.  See 20 May 1914.

    21 April 1918 Symphony no.1 “Classical” by Sergey Prokofiev (26) is performed for the first time, in Petrograd conducted by the composer.  Commissar of Public Education Anatoly Lunacharsky is present and tells Prokofiev that if he wants to travel overseas, he will not stop him.

    21 April 1919 Several works by Béla Bartók (38) are performed for the first time, in Budapest, the composer at the keyboard:  Suite for Piano op.14, Five Songs op.16 and Three Studies op.18.

    La La Lucille, a musical comedy by George Gershwin (20) with a book by Jackson and lyrics by DeSylva, Jackson, and Ceasar, is performed for the first time, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.  See 26 May 1919.

    21 April 1920 Sergey Rakhmaninov (47) signs a five-year exclusive contract with the Victor Talking Machine Company to record 25 pieces.  He is guaranteed at least $15,000 a year and will remain with Victor through 1942.

    Bruno Maderna is born in Venice, the son of Umberto Grossato and Caroline Maderna.

    21 April 1922 Symphony no.3 by Frederick S. Converse (51) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    21 April 1923 Gustav Holst (48) and his wife sail from England aboard the Aquitania for New York.  He is to conduct his music at the University of Michigan.

    Suite for piano and orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (36) is performed for the first time, in São Paulo, the composer conducting.

    21 April 1926 Dmitri Shostakovich (19) graduates from Leningrad Conservatory and is immediately accepted into the post-graduate composition course.

    21 April 1928 Le bardit des francs for male chorus, brass, and percussion by Albert Roussel (59) to words of Chateaubriand is performed for the first time, in Strasbourg.

    21 April 1930 Set no.8 for chamber orchestra by Charles Ives (55) is performed for the first time, in a version for trumpet and piano, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York.

    Rat Riddles, a song for alto, oboe, percussion, and piano by Ruth Crawford (28) to words of Sandburg, is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Hall, New York.

    21 April 1932 Evocation op.17, a dance by Wallingford Riegger (46) to a scenario by Becque, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    21 April 1933 Easley Blackwood is born in Indianapolis.

    21 April 1936 Suite for violin and piano op.6 by Benjamin Britten (22) is performed publicly for the first time, in Barcelona.  See 13 March 1936.

    21 April 1937 Fantasy for two pianos by Bohuslav Martinu (46) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    The Second Hurricane, a school opera by Aaron Copland (36) to words of Denby, is performed for the first time, in the Henry Street Settlement Music School, New York.

    A Sonata for viola solo by Paul Hindemith (41) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.  He composed it on the train to Chicago within the last two days.

    21 April 1938 Irish Reel for orchestra by Benjamin Britten (24) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC National.

    Trojan Incident op.26, a dance by Wallingford Riegger (52) to a scenario by Tamiris, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    21 April 1939 A favorable review of the performance of 19 April in the Rochester Times Union brings the name of Ulysses Kay (22) to the public for the first time.

    The seventh movement of Les Illuminations op.18 for voice and strings by Benjamin Britten (25) to words of Rimbaud is performed for the first time, at Queen’s College, Birmingham.  See 30 January 1940.

    Incidental music to Aristophanes’ play The Birds by Leonard Bernstein (20) is performed for the first time, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, directed by the composer in his conducting debut.

    21 April 1940 Concerto for double string orchestra by Michael Tippett (35) is performed for the first time, at Morley College, the composer conducting.

    Septet for clarinet, alto-saxophone, bassoon, violin, viola, double bass, and piano by Conlon Nancarrow (27) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    21 April 1941 14 American composers sue the National Association of Broadcasters, the National Broadcasting Company, the Columbia Broadcasting System, and Broadcast Music, Inc. for $1,215,500 for conspiring to “usurp and acquire complete domination and control of the business of song writing and musical composition in the United States.”  13 of the plaintiffs are members of ASCAP.

    21 April 1942 Clarinet Sonata by Leonard Bernstein (23) is performed for the first time, in the Institute of Modern Art, Boston, the composer at the piano.

    21 April 1945 Trois petites liturgies de la Présence Divine for female chorus, piano, ondes martenot, five percussionists, and strings by Olivier Messiaen (36) to his own words is performed for the first time, in Salle de l'Ancien Conservatoire, Paris.  The work is an immediate success with the public but causes a storm of protest in the press.  Also premiered is Un Soir de Neige, a chamber cantata by Francis Poulenc (46) to words of Eluard, and Darius Milhaud's (52) Quatrains valaisans for chorus to words of Rilke.

    21 April 1948 As part of ongoing experiments into recording of sound at Radiodiffusion Télevision Française, Pierre Schaeffer (37) discovers that by placing a volume control between the microphone and disc cutter, he is able to remove the attack from recorded bell tones.

    Symphony no.6 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (75) is performed for the first time, in the Royal Albert Hall, London.

    21 April 1950 Piano Concerto no.2 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (63) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Municipal, Rio de Janeiro, the composer conducting.

    21 April 1951 Piano Sonata no.9 op.103 by Sergey Prokofiev (59) is performed for the first time, in Moscow.

    Symphonie concertante (Symphony no.5) by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (45) is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    Aaron Copland (50) conducts his In the Beginning in a concert on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, two kilometers from the Syrian border.

    21 April 1952 Serenade no.1 op.1 for ten wind instruments by Vincent Persichetti (36) is performed for the first time, at San Angelo College, Texas, 23 years after it was composed.

    21 April 1956 Variations for Orchestra by Elliott Carter (47) is performed for the first time, in Columbia Auditorium, Louisville.

    21 April 1957 Comoedia de Christi resurrectione by Carl Orff (61) to words of the composer, is staged for the first time, in the Württembergisches Staatstheater, Stuttgart.  See 31 March 1956.

    21 April 1963 Two Songs and a Proverb for chorus and string quartet by Ned Rorem (39) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

    21 April 1966 Sofia Guaidulina’s (34) Five Etudes for harp, double bass, and percussion is performed publicly for the first time, in the Concert Hall of the Composers Union, Moscow.  See 30 March 1966.

    21 April 1967 Conservative and Fascist army officers overthrow the constitutional government in Greece and take control of the country.  Thousands of arrests are made.  A curfew is imposed and press censorship instituted.  Konstantinos Kollios replaces Panagiotis Kanellopoulos as Prime Minister.  Warned by a 04:00 telephone call from a friend, Mikis Theodorakis (41) goes into hiding.  This coup preempts one planned by the King’s generals for the 23rd.

    Sabbath Eve Service for tenor, chorus, and organ by Jacob Druckman (38) is performed for the first time, in the Park Avenue Synagogue, New York.

    21 April 1968 Rainforest, a musical event by Gordon Mumma (33), David Tudor, and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, is created by the Public Broadcast Laboratory Television Production in New York.

    21 April 1974 String Quartet no.4 by Ben Johnston (48) is performed for the first time, at Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    Variations on Jerusalem the Golden for organ by Charles Ives (†19) is performed for the first time, during the centennial year of his birth, at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis approximately 86 years after it was composed.

    21 April 1976 Platinum Spirals for violin by Joan Tower (37) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    21 April 1978 Danton and Robespierre, a grand opera by John C. Eaton (43) to words of Creagh, is performed for the first time, in Bloomington, Indiana.

    21 April 1983 Several works by Arnold Bax (†29) are performed for the first time, at the British Music Information Centre, London during the centennial of the composer’s birth:  A fragment for violin and piano composed in 1897, the second movement of the Sonata no.1 for violin and piano composed in 1910, the second movement of a Piano Sonata in E flat, composed in 1937, Four Pieces for piano composed in 1947, and the Sonata in F for violin and piano composed in 1928.  See 18 June 1914.

    Parable XXIV op.153 for harpsichord by Vincent Persichetti (67) is performed for the first time, in Columbus, Ohio.

    21 April 1985 Pan for piccolo and string quartet by Mauricio Kagel (53) is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    For Philip Guston for flute/alto flute, piano/celesta, and percussion by Morton Feldman (59) is performed for the first time, at SUNY Buffalo.

    21 April 1988 Missa brevis for countertenor, chorus, and percussion by Leonard Bernstein (69) is performed for the first time, in Atlanta.

    21 April 1989 Stück for three percussionists by Wolfgang Rihm (37) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    El divino narciso, a dramatic cantata by John C. Eaton (54) to words of Nelson after Juana, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    Concertante no.2 for alto saxophone and 15 players by Ralph Shapey (68) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall, Chicago, conducted by the composer.

    21 April 1991 magic song for one who wishes to live and the dead who climb up to the sky for voice and piano by John Luther Adams (38) is performed for the first time, in Seattle.

    21 April 1993 Piano Concerto no.3 by Andrew Imbrie (72) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    21 April 1995 Turning Points for clarinet and string quartet by Joan Tower (56) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    Lettere for mezzo-soprano, flute, harp, and string quartet by John C. Eaton (60) to words of Ranchetti, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    21 April 1996 Prayer to the Holy Trinity for chorus by John Tavener (52) is performed for the first time, in Jesus College Chapel, Cambridge.

    Fanfare for the Detroit Opera House:  Fantasia for Four Voices for brass by William Bolcom (57) is performed for the first time, in Detroit.

    Diary of a Journey for flute, bassoon, and cello by Samuel Adler (68) is performed for the first time, in Phoenix, Arizona.

    21 April 2000 Cinque canzoni napoletane for solo voice and orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (73) to anonymous 17th century texts, is performed for the first time, in Salzburg.

    21 April 2006 Three Studies from Couperin for chamber orchestra by Thomas Adès (35), is performed for the first time, in Basel, directed by the composer.

    21 April 2007 Afternoon On A Hill, four pieces for chorus and piano by Ned Rorem (83), is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street YMHA, New York.

    Concerto for Piano no.3 by Thomas Pasatieri (61) is performed for the first time, in the Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas.

    21 April 2012 A Little Night Fughetta for piano by William Bolcom (73) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York.

    String Quartet no.5 by John Harbison (73) is performed for the first time, in Madison, Wisconsin.

    21 April 2013 Two works by John Tavener (69) are performed for the first time, in the National Cathedral, Washington:  Three Hymns of George Herbert, for offstage percussion, offstage string quartet, offstage chorus, chorus and strings and Tolstoy’s Creed for chorus.

    21 April 2014 Kyrie op.83 for chorus, percussion, and piano or strings by Henryk Górecki (†3) is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Cathedral, Warsaw.

    22 April

    22 April 1658 Giuseppe Torelli is born in Verona.

    22 April 1757 The Fair Penitent, a play by Rowe with music by Thomas Augustine Arne (46), is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden, London.

    22 April 1761 In the middle of a performance of a symphony to celebrate the birthday of Prince Paul Anton Esterházy, the prince interrupts to ask who wrote such beautiful music.  “Haydn”(29) is the response.  The prince orders that henceforth Haydn is in his service.  When he is told that Haydn is already in his service, the prince asks how is it that he has not seen him before.  He tells Haydn to go and get dressed like a maestro.  Henceforth, Haydn wears a courtier’s wig.  This story is related by Giuseppe Carpani.

    22 April 1764 The earthly remains of Johann Mattheson are laid to rest in the Michaelskirche, Hamburg.

    22 April 1766 The King Shall Rejoice, an anthem by William Boyce (54), is performed for the first time.  This is the second anthem of that name by Boyce.

    22 April 1780 Antonio Sacchini’s (49) Armida is revived at the King’s Theatre, London as Rinaldo.  It is the hit of the London season.

    22 April 1782 A second child is born to Luigia Polzelli, an Italian singer at Esterháza, and her husband, the violinist Antonio Polzelli.  It is well known that the actual father is Franz Joseph Haydn (50).

    22 April 1783 An opera buffa company assembled by Emperor Joseph II makes its debut in Vienna with a production of Antonio Salieri’s (32) La scuola de’ gelosi.

    22 April 1785 Leopold Mozart (65) becomes a Master Mason in Vienna.

    22 April 1789 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (33) plays the organ in the Thomaskirche, Leipzig, to a large and appreciative audience, without remuneration.

    22 April 1821 Franz Schubert’s (24) male vocal quartet Die Nachtigall D.724 to words of Unger is performed for the first time, in the Kärntnertortheater, Vienna.

    22 April 1827 String Quartet op.130 by Ludwig van Beethoven (†0) is performed for the first time with the new ending, in Vienna.  See 21 March 1826.

    Nachtgesang im Walde D.913 for male vocal quartet and four horns by Franz Schubert (30) is performed for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna.

    22 April 1832 A Scene and Aria WWV 28 for soprano and orchestra by Richard Wagner (18) is performed for the first time, in the Leipzig Hoftheater.

    22 April 1842 César Franck (19) withdraws from the Paris Conservatoire and departs with his father for Belgium.

    22 April 1844 The earthly remains of Nicolò Paganini (†3) are brought into Genoa and transported to the Paganini property at Ramairone.

    22 April 1845 La barcarolle, ou L’amour et la musique, an opéra comique by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (63) to words of Scribe, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    22 April 1854 Anton Bruckner’s (29) Laßt Jubeltöne laut erklingen for male chorus and brass to words of Weiss is performed for the first time, for the reception of the future Empress Elizabeth, in Linz.

    22 April 1872 Richard Wagner (58) leaves his house near Lucerne, Tribschen, forever.  He moves to Bayreuth to oversee construction of the Festspielhaus.

    22 April 1873 Wiener Blut op.354, a waltz by Johann Strauss (47), is performed for the first time, at a ball to celebrate the wedding of the daughter of Emperor Franz Joseph to Prince Leopold of Bavaria in the Musikverein, Vienna.  It is conducted by the composer.

    22 April 1874 Gille et Gillotin, an opéra by Ambroise Thomas (62) to words of Sauvage, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    22 April 1875 Les hannetons, a revue de printemps by Jacques Offenbach (55) to words of Grangé and Millaud, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    22 April 1876 Les Djinns op.12 for chorus and orchestra by Gabriel Fauré (30) to words of Hugo is performed for the first time, with piano accompaniment, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.  See 27 June 1878.

    22 April 1881 The Viking’s Last Voyage for baritone, male chorus and orchestra by George Whitefield Chadwick (26) is performed for the first time, in Boston, conducted by the composer.

    22 April 1885 After three years of study, Pietro Mascagni (20) withdraws from the Milan Conservatory to become assistant conductor of the Castagnetta-Forlì operetta company.

    Edvard (41) and Nina Grieg move into the house they have just built, 10 km south of Bergen on Lake Nordås.  At the suggestion of Mrs. Grieg, they call it Troldhaugen (Troll Hill).

    Symphony no.7 by Antonín Dvorák (43) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London, conducted by the composer.

    22 April 1888 Messa di Gloria by Pietro Mascagni (24) is performed for the first time, in Cerignola, by a group of students conducted by the composer.

    22 April 1892 Nikolay Obukhov is born in Olshanka, Kursk province.

    22 April 1902 Four songs by Gustav Holst (27) are premiered at Cleveland Hall, London, including three of the Four Songs op.4 to words of Kingsley, Ibsen (tr. by Archer) and Bridges, and Invocation to the Dawn op.15/1 to words from the Rig-Veda, translated by the composer.

    22 April 1904 Four Irish Dances op.89 for orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (51) is performed for the first time, in Buckingham Palace.

    22 April 1912 Natasha Troukhanova performs a dance recital at the Théâtre du Châtelet to four works conducted this evening by their composers:  La Peri by Paul Dukas (46), Istar by Vincent d’Indy (61), La Tragédie de Salomé by Florent Schmitt (41), and Adélaïde, ou Le langage des fleurs by Maurice Ravel (37).  Dukas’ ballet is performed for the first time.  Ravel’s is a premiere of the ballet, although the music is actually Valses nobles et sentimentales.  See 9 May 1911.

    22 April 1917 Sonata no.3 for violin and piano by Charles Ives (42) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York.

    22 April 1918 Two songs by Charles T. Griffes (33), Waikiki op.9/2 to words of Brooke and The Sorrow of Mydath from Two Poems to Words of Masefield, are performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, New York.

    22 April 1920 The original version of An Irish Concertino for violin, cello, and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (67) is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth.  See 4 December 1918.

    22 April 1921 Five Orchestral Pieces by Arnold Schoenberg (46) is performed in Paris.  Maurice Ravel (46) and Francis Poulenc (22) are among the listeners.  During the fourth movement a brawl breaks out in the audience involving Florent Schmitt (50) who leaves with a swollen face.

    22 April 1922 Five Orchestral Pieces by Arnold Schoenberg (47) are introduced to the Paris public in  a Pasdeloup concert ten years after their London premiere.  Some audience members express their opinion by emitting animal noises.  A woman exclaims, “It’s a disgrace to subject war widows to stuff like this!”

    Salut au monde, a festival drama by Charles T. Griffes (†2) after Whitman, is performed for the first time, in Neighborhood Playhouse, New York.

    22 April 1927 Symphony no.1 by Roger Sessions (30) is performed for the first time, in Boston.  The public response is mixed, the critics generally positive.  In the audience is Elliott Carter (18) who is “immensely struck” and will follow Sessions’ work from now on.

    22 April 1928 The first of the Copland-Sessions concerts of Contemporary Music takes place at the Edyth Totten Theatre, New York, featuring premieres of works by Carlos Chávez (28) and Virgil Thomson (31) including Piano Sonata no.3, Sonatina for violin and piano, Sonatina for cello and piano, and the Piano Sonatina by Chávez, the composer at the keyboard, and Thomson’s Five Phrases from the Song of Solomon for soprano and percussion (first public performance).  In Thomson’s work, Aaron Copland (27) plays percussion.  Thomson is presently in Paris.  Sessions (31) is in Northampton, Massachusetts finishing the Piano Sonata that was intended for this concert.  See 2 July 1926.

    22 April 1932 Michael Charles Colgrass is born in Chicago, son of Michael Clement Colgrass and Ann Colgrass.

    22 April 1934 By government decree, all German singing societies are merged into the Sängerbund.

    Three works by Charles Ives (59) are performed for the first time, in the Alvin Theatre, New York:  The Gong on the Hook and Ladder/Firemen’s Parade on Main Street for small orchestra,  Hallowe’en for string quartet and piano, and The Pond for orchestra, and piano.

    Meanwhile, in Boston, Ives’ song for voice and piano Vita to words of Manilius is performed for the first time.

    22 April 1936 Two of the Three Songs op.10 for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (26) to words of Joyce, Rain Has Fallen and Sleep Now, along with The Beggar’s Song to words of Davies, are performed for the first time, in Rome.  See 7 March 1937.

    22 April 1938 The fourth program in the radio feature Lines on the Map entitled “Communication by Air” with music by Benjamin Britten (25) is broadcast for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.

    22 April 1939 Gian Carlo Menotti’s (27) radio opera The Old Maid and the Thief to his own words, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the National Broadcasting Company Blue Network originating in New York.  See 11 February 1941.

    22 April 1941 Vaucochard et fils Ier, an operetta by Emmanuel Chabrier (†46) to words of Verlaine and Viotti, is performed for the first time,  at the Salle de l’Ancien Conservatoire, Paris, 77 years after it was composed.

    22 April 1944 The first three of the four parts of The Wayward by Harry Partch (42) are performed for the first time, in Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, New York:  Eight Hitchhiker Inscriptions from a Highway Railing at Barstow, California for voice and guitar; US Highball: a Musical Account of a Transcontinental Hobo Trip to the composer’s words for chorus, guitar, and chromelodeon; and San Francisco:  a Setting of the Cries of Two Newsboys on a Foggy Night in the Twenties for solo voice, viola, chromelodeon, and kithara.  Also premiered is Partch’s YD Fantasy for soprano, tin flutes, tin oboe, flexatone, and chromelodeon to his own words.  See 29 November 1943.

    22 April 1945 String Quartet no.12 by Darius Milhaud (52) is performed for the first time, in the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

    22 April 1947 String Quartet no.13 by Darius Milhaud (54) is performed for the first time, in the Library of Congress, Washington.

    22 April 1948 Wood Notes for orchestra by William Grant Still (52) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.

    22 April 1953 The Night is Still for soprano and piano by Kenneth Gaburo (26) to words of Tagore is performed for the first time, in New Orleans.

    22 April 1957 Klavierstück XI no.7 by Karlheinz Stockhausen (28) is performed for the first time, in Carl Fischer Hall, New York.

    22 April 1958 Dmitri Shostakovich (51) is awarded the Lenin Prize for his Symphony no.11.

    The Philips Pavilion at the Brussels World’s Fair is officially inaugurated.  It is immediately closed for further adjustments to the sound and light systems.

    Symphony no.8 “Rhodanienne” by Darius Milhaud (65) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.  On the same program is the premiere of the Violin Concerto no.1 by Andrew Imbrie (37).

    22 April 1959 Aram Khachaturian (55) is awarded the Lenin Prize.

    22 April 1960 Two songs for two mezzo-sopranos and piano by Charles Wuorinen (21) to words of Strombeck are performed for the first time, at Barnard College, New York, the composer at the keyboard:  The Door in the Wall and On the Raft.

    Edge of Shadow for chorus, percussion and two pianos by Ross Lee Finney (53) is performed for the first time, at Grinnell College, Iowa.

    Altitude for chorus and orchestra by Claude Champagne (68) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in Toronto.  The work makes use of the Ondes Martenot.

    22 April 1961 Incantations for soprano and ten instruments by Ralph Shapey (40) is performed for the first time, in Miller Hall at Columbia University.

    Piano Concerto no.1 by Alberto Ginastera (45) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    Classical Symphony by TJ Anderson (32) is performed for the first time, in Kansas City, Kansas.

    Patterns, a suite for chamber orchestra by William Grant Still (65) is performed for the first time, in Torrance, California.

    Divertimento for orchestra by Robert Ward (43) is performed for the first time, in Portland, Oregon.

    22 April 1965 L’amour chante op.409, a cycle for voice and piano by Darius Milhaud (72) to various authors, is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    22 April 1966 Preludes for flute, clarinet, and bassoon by Karel Husa (44) is performed for the first time, at Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York.

    22 April 1969 Eight Songs for a Mad King, a stage work for male voice, piccolo, flute, clarinet, keyboards, percussion, violin, and cello by Peter Maxwell Davies (34) to words of Stow, is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, the composer conducting.  Also premiered are works by eleven composers in honor of Dr. Alfred Kalmus, the director of Universal Edition, on the occasion of his 80th birthday.  They are presented as A Garland for Dr. K. by the Pierrot Players and include Some Petals from my Twickenham Herbarium for piccolo, clarinet, viola, cello, piano, and bells by Harrison Birtwistle (34), conducted by the composer, Für Dr. K. no.28 for flute, clarinet, piano, vibraphone, tubular bells, violin, and cello by Karlheinz Stockhausen (40), conducted by Pierre Boulez (44), Pour le Dr Kalmus for flute, clarinet, viola, cello and piano by Pierre Boulez, the composer conducting, Modification and Instrumentation of a Famous Hornpipe as a Merry and Altogether Sincere Homage to Uncle Alfred for flute, clarinet, percussion, harpsichord, viola, and cello by Luciano Berio (43), and Echos II de votre Faust for mezzo-soprano, flute, violoncello, and piano by Henri Pousseur (39).   Also premiered is Birtwistle’s Linoi II for clarinet, piano, tape, and dancer.  See 11 October 1968.

    22 April 1970 The Mystic Trumpeter for chorus, narrator, and orchestra by Howard Hanson (73) to words of Whitman is performed for the first time, at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

    22 April 1972 Jubilate Deo for chorus and organ by William Walton (70) is performed for the first time, at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford.

    22 April 1973 On Alligators for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and string quartet by Charles Wuorinen (34) is performed for the first time.

    22 April 1975 Ensembles for 17 for soprano and instrumental ensemble by Shulamit Ran (25) to words of Shakespeare is performed for the first time, at the University of Chicago conducted by Ralph Shapey (54).

    22 April 1976 Ragtime Dance no.1 by Charles Ives (†21) is performed for the first time, in New Haven.

    Jenny, or The Hundred Nights, an opera by Hugo Weisgall (63) to words of Hollander after Mishima, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    22 April 1977 Canticle of the Mother of God for soprano and chorus by John Tavener (33) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in Rye Parish Church.

    Voyage for Strings by John Corigliano (39) is performed for the first time, in Rockland County, New York.

    String Quartet no.7 by Ralph Shapey (56) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago.

    22 April 1979 Miracles for boys chorus and orchestra by Gian Carlo Menotti (67) to children’s poems is performed for the first time, in Tarrant County Convention Center, Fort Worth, Texas.

    22 April 1980 Barcarola for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (53) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.  The audience requires the last movement to be repeated.

    22 April 1981 Grave, metamorphoses for cello and piano by Witold Lutoslawski (68), is performed for the first time, in the National Museum, Warsaw.  See 26 August 1982.

    Gending Alexander for Javanese gamelan by Lou Harrison (63) is performed for the first time, at the University of Delaware.

    22 April 1983 Chiffre I for piano and seven instruments by Wolfgang Rihm (31) is performed for the first time, in Saarbrücken.

    22 April 1989 Festlicher Tanz for wind quintet by Isang Yun (71) is performed for the first time, in Witten.  Also premiered is 3x7 for clarinet, horn, trombone, harpsichord, violin, cello, and double bass by Alfred Schnittke (54).

    22 April 1990 The Path of Glory for speaker, solo voice, and orchestra by William Grant Still (†11) to words of his wife, Verna Arvey is performed for the first time, in Holy Family Church, Grand Forks, North Dakota.

    22 April 1992 In a Munich studio, WDR films the first performance of One11 for solo cameraman by John Cage (79).

    22 April 1993 Epiphanies for female voices and orchestra by Luciano Berio (67) to words of Proust, Joyce, Machado, Simon, Brecht, and Sanguinetti is performed for the first time, in Bonn.

    22 April 1994 Lullaby for soprano and flute by Ralph Shapey (73) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago.

    22 April 1999 Four Psalms for vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra by John Harbison (60) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    22 April 2001 Two chamber works by Werner Egk (†17) are performed for the first time, in Augsburg:  String trio in g minor composed in 1921, and a String quintet composed in 1924.

    22 April 2010 Double Concerto for violin, cello, and orchestra by Philip Glass (73) is performed for the first time, at The Hague.

    23 April

    23 April 1464 Robert Fayrfax is born in Deeping Gate, Lincolnshire.

    23 April 1691 Jean Henry d'Anglebert dies in Paris, 62 years and 22 days after his baptism.

    23 April 1728 Tomás de Torrejón y Velasco dies in Lima, 83 years and four months after his baptism.

    23 April 1766 Les pêcheurs, an opéra comique by François-Joseph Gossec (32) to words of La Salle d’Offémont, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.

    23 April 1775 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (19) serenata Il ré pastore K.208 to words after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Archepiscopal Palace, Salzburg for the visit of Archduke Maximilian Franz, youngest son of Empress Maria Theresia.  The production is in a concert setting as there is no opera house in Salzburg.

    23 April 1776 Alceste, a tragédie opéra by Christoph Willibald Gluck (61) to words of Calzibigi in a French translation by Lebland du Roullet, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  The third act is not well received but the work will eventually succeed.  See 26 December 1767.

    23 April 1798 Adriano in Siria, a dramma per musica by Johann Simon Mayr (34) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Benedetto, Venice.

    23 April 1821 A Polonaise in A flat by Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin (11) is performed for the first time, by the composer and his teacher, Wojciech Zywny.

    23 April 1830 Danilowa, an opera by Adolphe Adam (26)  to words of Vial and Duport, is performed for the first time, in the Opéra-Comique, Paris.

    23 April 1838 Clara Wieck (18) writes to Robert Schumann (27) about Franz Liszt (26), “He is an artist whom one must hear and see for oneself...He rates your work extraordinarily highly, far above Henselt (23), above everything he has come across recently.  I played your Carnaval, which quite enchanted him.  ‘What a mind!’ he said; ‘that is one of the greatest works I know.’  You can imagine my joy.”  (Williams, 103)

    23 April 1842 Franz Liszt’s (30) second concert in St. Petersburg is attended by Tsar Nikolay I.  Composer and theorist Yuri Arnold will remember, “...I returned home more than merely moved; by such a music-hurricane, of which I had never before had the least presentiment, my whole being was dissolved.  No sooner had I pulled off my coat than I flung myself on to the sofa and for a long time wept the bitterest and sweetest tears!”

    23 April 1843 The memorial to Johann Sebastian Bach (†92) is unveiled before the Thomaskirche, Leipzig.  Felix Mendelssohn (34) leads an all-Bach concert in the Gewandhaus.

    Hector Berlioz (39) performs in Berlin at the Royal Opera House.  King Friedrich Wilhelm IV is deeply moved by Roméo et Juliette and goes backstage to meet the composer and ask for a momento.  Berlioz presents him with a manuscript copy of Fête chez Capulet.

    23 April 1852 Le juif errant, an opéra by Fromental Halévy (52) to words of Scribe and Saint-Georges after Sue, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.

    23 April 1858 Ethel Mary Smyth is born in London, the fourth child of Major General John Smyth, currently in India, and Nina Struth, descended from minor nobility.  The birth certificate says 22 April, but Smyth and her family will always celebrate 23 April.

    23 April 1863 Bedrich Smetana (39) submits the score of The Brandenburgers in Bohemia to the organizers of a competition to produce a truly Czech opera.

    Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (22) resigns from the Russian Ministry of Justice and becomes a full time student at St. Petersburg Conservatory.

    23 April 1864 March for the Shakespearean Festival by Bedrich Smetana (40) is performed for the first time, in Prague, conducted by the composer.  The Festival celebrates the 300th anniversary of the playwright’s birth.

    23 April 1865 Aboard the Constitution, two days out from San Francisco, Louis Moreau Gottschalk (35) and his party receive simultaneous news that General Lee has surrendered and President Lincoln has been murdered.

    23 April 1871 Kaisermarsch by Richard Wagner (57) is performed publicly for the first time, in the Leipzig Stadttheater.

    23 April 1872 Arthur George Farwell is born in St. Paul, Minnesota, second of two children born to George Lyman Farwell, owner of a hardware business, and Sara Gardner Wyer, a descendant of one of the first English families in New England, and the founder of the first kindergarten in St. Paul.

    23 April 1878 Duo concertante for violin and violoncello op.33 by John Knowles Paine (39) is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theatre at Harvard University.  This was to be the premiere of the composer’s Spring Symphony, but when this is not ready, the Duo concertante is substituted.  The audience applauds each movement.

    23 April 1879 Festival March by Antonin Dvorák (37) is performed for the first time, in Prague, for the silver wedding anniversary of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth.

    23 April 1881 Patience, or Bunthorne’s Bride, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (38) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, at the Opera Comique Theatre, London.  Oscar Wilde is in the audience “looking forward to being amused.”  The initial run of 578 performances is the longest of any Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, save The Mikado.

    Ballade for piano and orchestra op.19 by Gabriel Fauré (35) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    23 April 1884 After violent bouts of anger and failure to recognize his family, Bedrich Smetana (60) is taken to the Prague lunatic asylum in Katerinsky.

    The first three of the six character pieces From the Bohemian Forest for piano four hands by Antonín Dvorák (42) are performed for the first time, in Prague.  The composer plays one part.

    23 April 1891 17:00  Sergey Sergeyevich Prokofiev is born in Sontsovka (Krasnoye Selo), Yekaterinoslav District, Ukraine, the third and eldest surviving child of Sergey Alexeyevich Prokofiev, an agricultural engineer, and Maria Gregoryevna Zhitkov, from a family of former serfs.

    Two works by Jean Sibelius (25) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki:  Overture in E and Scène de ballet.

    23 April 1898 Symphony in C by Mily Balakirev (61) is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg conducted by the composer.  It is his last appearance as conductor.

    23 April 1902 A review of the performance of Charles Ives’ (27) The Celestial Country five days ago appears in The Musical Courier.  Although a generally positive review, Ives writes across his copy “Damn rot and worse.”  It is only the second of two times that a performance of his work is reviewed before 1924.

    23 April 1904 The Euterpe Overture of George Whitefield Chadwick (49) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Boston, conducted by the composer.

    23 April 1909 The Second Symphony of Mily Balakirev (72) is performed for the first time, at the Free School of Music, St. Petersburg.

    23 April 1910 Alfredo Casella (26) directs first performances of three of his orchestral works, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris:  Symphony no.2, Suite in C major, and the rhapsody Italia.

    23 April 1912 Series no.1 of Sei liriche for voice and piano by Ottorino Respighi (32) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    23 April 1914 Anton von Webern (30) signs a contract to renew his old position of conductor at the Stettin (Szczecin) Theatre, to commence 20 August.  He will never take up the post, owing to the intervention of war.

    23 April 1915 Three Little Songs “Recollections of my Childhood” for voice and piano by Igor Stravinsky (32) to traditional Russian words are performed for the first time, at Petrograd Conservatory.

    23 April 1917 The Cantata for the Centenary of the Merchants Committee, by Carl Nielsen (51) to words of Rørdam, is performed for the first time, the composer conducting.

    23 April 1918 Symphony no.1 by Willem Pijper (23) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    23 April 1920 The Excursions of Mr. Broucek, an opera in two parts (Mr. Broucek’s Excursion to the Moon and Mr. Broucek’s Excursion to the Fifteenth Century) by Leos Janácek (65) to words of Gellner, Dyk, Prochazka, and the composer after Cech, is performed for the first time, in the National Theatre, Prague.  It is not a success.

    23 April 1921 The Cello Sonata by Arthur Honegger (29) is performed for the first time, in the Salle du Conservatoire, Paris.

    23 April 1922 Offrandes, for soprano and small orchestra by Edgard Varèse (38), is performed for the first time, at an International Composers’ Guild concert in the Greenwich Village Theatre, New York.  The audience is enthusiastic.  The press barely notices.

    23 April 1925 The first concert of the Quarter-Tone Music Society takes place in Leningrad and includes music of Alois Haba (31).

    Parts of Grail Song op.20, a masque for community singing, acting, and dancing by Arthur Farwell, are performed for the first time, in Los Angeles, on the composer’s 53rd birthday.

    23 April 1926 Andante for orchestra by Roy Harris (28) is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York Howard Hanson (29) conducting.

    23 April 1934 Amy Beach (66) and Ruth Shaffner appear in a command performance in the East Room of the White House for Eleanor Roosevelt and 400 invited guests.  In spite of her continual life-long insistence on voting the Republican ticket, Mrs. Beach will always cherish the day and the kindness of Mrs. Roosevelt.

    23 April 1935 Symphony no.1 by Aram Khachaturian (31) is performed publicly for the first time, in Moscow Conservatory Bolshoy Hall.  It is dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the establishment of Soviet rule in Armenia.  See 11 June 1934.

    23 April 1937 Music for Bridson’s play King Arthur by Benjamin Britten (23) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC.  See 21 October 1995.

    23 April 1939 Three new works are performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York:  Quartet for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano, and Sonata for viola and piano no.3, both by Paul Hindemith (43) as well as the Soliloquy from Soliloquy and Dance for viola and piano by Roy Harris (41).  See 10 March 1940.

    23 April 1940 Variations on an Original Theme for chamber orchestra by David Diamond (24) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York.

    A Stopwatch and an Ordnance Map op.15 for male chorus and timpani by Samuel Barber (30) to words of Spender is performed for the first time, at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia the composer conducting.  Also premiered is Charles Ives’ (65) song 1, 2, 3 to his own words.

    23 April 1941 Fantasia de movimentos mistos for violin and orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (54) is performed completely for the first time, in Rio de Janeiro.  See 9 December 1922.

    Danse Calinda, a ballet by Ulysses Kay (24) after Torrence is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York, Howard Hanson (44) conducting.  See 23 May 1947.

    23 April 1942 Woman in War, dance music by Henry Cowell (45) to a scenario by Chen, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    23 April 1946 Arturo Toscanini arrives in Italy to conduct a concert celebrating the reinauguration of Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  He orders all Jewish musicians who lost their jobs at the house in 1938 reinstated.  Also, those removed for opposing fascism are given their jobs back.

    23 April 1947 Fantasie für Orchester op.56 by Hans Pfitzner (77) is performed for the first time, in Nuremberg.

    23 April 1948 Dreams that Money Can Buy, a film with music by Darius Milhaud (55), John Cage (35) and David Diamond (33), is released in the United States.  It was shown at the Venice Film Festival last September.

    23 April 1952 Praises for Hummingbirds and Hawks for chamber orchestra by Lou Harrison (34) is performed for the first time, in Brooklyn.

    23 April 1953 Livre d’orgue for organ by Olivier Messiaen (43) is performed for the first time, for the inauguration of the organ in Villa Berg, Stuttgart by the composer.

    Admiral Ushakov, a film with music by Aram Khachaturian (49), is released.

    Six Songs by Thea Musgrave (24) are performed for the first time, at Glasgow University.

    Night Music, the second movement of George Rochberg’s (34) Symphony no.2, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    23 April 1954 Song of Jeremiah, a cantata for bass-baritone, chorus, and orchestra by Ulysses Kay (37) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in Nashville.

    Sonata for trombone and piano by Leslie Bassett (31) is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    23 April 1958 A string quartet by Thea Musgrave (29) is performed for the first time, at the University of Glasgow.

    Six Elizabethan Songs, a cycle for high voice and piano by Dominick Argento (30) to words of various authors, is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York.  See 8 March 1963.

    23 April 1962 Honeyrêves for flute and piano by Bruno Maderna (42) is performed for the first time, in Venice.

    23 April 1965 Solo Partita for violin and viola (one player) by George Perle (49) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    23 April 1967 The Martyr’s Elegy for taped narration, tenor, alto, chorus, and orchestra by Ross Lee Finney (60) to words of Shelley is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    23 April 1968 Cello Studien by Ernst Krenek (67) are performed for the first time, in Riehen, Switzerland.

    Stedman Doubles for clarinet and percussion by Peter Maxwell Davies (33) is performed for the first time, at the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff.

    23 April 1969 Ramifications for string orchestra by György Ligeti (45) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.  See 10 October 1969.

    23 April 1970 The remorseless rush of time for amplified voice, chorus, and orchestra by Ross Lee Finney (63) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at Wisconsin State University, River Falls.

    23 April 1971 Mänadentanz for orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (44) from his opera Die Bassariden is performed for the first time, in Bielefeld.

    23 April 1972 Fool’s Fanfare for male speaker, two trumpets, two trombones, ukulele, and two percussionists by Peter Maxwell Davies (37) to words of Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, in Southwark Cathedral, London, the composer conducting.  Also premiered is Epilogue for baritone, horn, four trombones, and six tam-tams by Harrison Birtwistle (37) to words of Shakespeare.

    23 April 1973 Myshkin, a television opera by John C. Eaton (38) to words of Creagh after Dostoyevsky, is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of the Public Broadcasting Service.

    23 April 1979 Slow Fires of Autumn:  Ukiyo-E II for flute and harp by George Rochberg (60) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    23 April 1980 Symphony no.2 “St. Florian” for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Alfred Schnittke (45) to words of the Mass, is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    23 April 1981 Concerto for violin, cello, and chamber orchestra by Arvo Pärt (45) is performed for the first time, in London.

    23 April 1982 Pour la Paix for chorus by Iannis Xenakis (59) to his own words is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio France in Paris.  Also premiered is Pierre réfléchies for tape by Pierre Henry (54).

    23 April 1983 The Triple Duo by Elliott Carter (74) for violin, cello, flute, clarinet, piano, and percussion is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York.

    Magabunda (Witchnomad) for soprano and orchestra by Joseph Schwantner (40) to words of Pizarro is performed for the first time, in St. Louis.

    23 April 1985 Seven works by Benjamin Britten (†8) are performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio3:  Not Even Summer Yet (1936) to words of Burra, To lie flat on the back (1937) for voice and piano to words of Auden, The Children and Sir Nameless (1953) for treble voices and piano to words of Hardy, If It’s Ever Spring Again (1953) for high voice and piano to words of Hardy, and Dawties Devotion (1969), The Gully (1969), and Tradition (1969) for tenor and piano to words of Soutar.

    23 April 1988 Chiffre VIII for eight players by Wolfgang Rihm (36) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    Schuyler Songs, a cycle for solo voice and orchestra by Ned Rorem (64), is performed for the first time, in Fargo, North Dakota.

    23 April 1990 Wagner Nights op.60 for orchestra by Robin Holloway (46) is performed for the first time, in Colston Hall, Bristol.

    23 April 1993 Plektó (Flechte) for flute, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, and cello by Iannis Xenakis (70) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    Inventions for clarinet and percussion by Ralph Shapey (72) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago.

    23 April 1994 The Sonata for viola by Györgi Ligeti (70) is performed completely for the first time, in Gütersloh.  See 18 November 1991 and 28 March 1993.

    23 April 1995 Study for orchestra by Conlon Nancarrow (82) is performed for the first time, in the Juilliard Theatre, New York.

    Evocation no.4 for violin, cello, piano, and percussion by Ralph Shapey (74) is performed for the first time, in Kathryn Bache Miller Theatre of Columbia University.

    23 April 1997 Piccolo Concerto by Peter Maxwell Davies (62) is performed for the first time, in the Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham conducted by the composer.

    23 April 2004 Métamorphoses d’Ovide I for trumpet and tape by Pierre Henry (76) is performed for the first time, in Vélizy.

    I Dreamt a Dream for female chorus and piano by Tod Machover (50) to words of Blake is performed for the first time, in New York.

    23 April 2006 The central section of The Golden Rule for chorus and organ by Peter Maxwell Davies (71) is performed for the first time, in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor to celebrate the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II.  See 27 September 2006.

    23 April 2009 Towards Silence for four string quartets and a large Tibetan temple bowl by John Tavener (65) is performed for the first time, at the Ruben Museum of Art, New York.

    23 April 2010 not forgotten for string quartet by Roger Reynolds (75) is performed for the first time, in Witten, Germany.

    William Bolcom’s (71) arrangement of his opera A View from the Bridge, to words of Miller and Weinstein, is performed for the first time, at the University of Texas in Austin.  It is a reduced orchestration.  See 9 October 1999.

    23 April 2013 Towards Silence for four string quartets and Tibetan temple bowl by John Tavener (69) is performed for the first time, in the Rubin Museum of Art, New York.

    24 April

    24 April 1706 Giovanni Battista Martini is born in Bologna.

    24 April 1764 Egeria, a festa teatrale by Johann Adolf Hasse (65) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, at the Vienna court.  It is part of the celebrations surrounding the April 3 coronation of Crown Prince Joseph.

    24 April 1767 Lottchen am Hofe, a comische Oper by Johann Adam Hiller (38) to words of Weisse after Favart, is performed for the first time, in Theater am Rannstädter Thore, Leipzig.

    24 April 1769 Franz Xaver Richter (59) is made kapellmeister at Strasbourg Cathedral.

    24 April 1779 Rose et Carloman, a comédie héroïque by Giuseppe Cambini (33) to words of Dubreuil, is performed for the first time, at the Hôtel de Montalembert, Paris.

    24 April 1784 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) writes to his father from Vienna, “I must tell you that some quartets have just appeared, composed by a certain [Ignaz] Pleyel (26), a pupil of Joseph Haydn (52).  If you do not know them, do try and get hold of them; you will find them worth the trouble.  They are very well written and most pleasing to listen to.”

    24 April 1785 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (29) cantata Die Maurerfreude K.471 to words of Petran is performed for the first time, at Lodge “Zur wahren Eintracht”, Vienna.

    24 April 1787 Quintetto in A for organ, two violins, viola and bass, with horns in the last movement, by Samuel Wesley (21) is performed for the first time, at a Wesley family concert in London.

    24 April 1801 Franz Joseph Haydn’s (69) oratorio Die Jahreszeiten, to words of van Swieten after Thomson is performed for the first time, at the palace of Prince Schwarzenberg, Vienna, under the direction of the composer.  Griesinger records that the work evoked “silent devotion, astonishment and loud enthusiasm.”

    24 April 1816 Le nozze di Teti, e di Peleo, a cantata by Gioachino Rossini (24) to words of Ricci, is performed for the first time, in Naples for the wedding of Carolina Ferdinanda Luigia, daughter of the Hereditary Prince of the Two Sicilies, and Charles-Ferdinand, Duc de Berry, second son of future King Charles X of France.  The work is performed in Teatro del Fondo because Teatro San Carlo burned down two months ago.

    24 April 1819 Gioachino Rossini’s (27) dramma Eduardo e Cristina to words of Schmidt, revised by Bevliacqua-Aldobrandini and Tottola, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Benedetto, Venice.  It is an unqualified success.

    24 April 1820 Four pieces for harp by Carl Maria von Weber (33) are performed for the first time, as part of Der Leuchtthurm, a play by von Houwald, in the Dresden Hoftheater.

    24 April 1823 Simon Mayr’s (59) cantata La vita campestre is performed for the first time, in Bergamo.

    24 April 1830 Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient sings Franz Shubert’s (†1) setting of Erlkönig for the poet, Goethe, who reverses his previous negative reaction to the work.  “I have heard this composition once before, when it did not appeal to me at all; but sung in this way, the whole shapes itself into a visible picture.”  (Schroeder, 25)

    24 April 1842 Absence, op.7/4 from Les Nuits d’été for voice and piano by Hector Berlioz (38) to words of Gautier, is performed publicly for the first time, in the Salle du Conservatoire, Paris.  See 14 April 1842.

    24 April 1846 Le Moine bourru ou les Deux Poltrons, a duo bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (26) to words of Plouvier, is performed publicly for the first time, in Salle Herz, Paris.  See 25 February 1846.

    24 April 1847 L’alcôve, an opéra-comique by Jacques Offenbach (27) to words of de Forges, de Leuven and Roche, is performed for the first time, at Tour d’Auvergne.  It is a hit with public and press.

    24 April 1860 Bedrich Smetana’s (36) symphonic poem Richard III is performed for the first time, in Göteborg in an arrangement for four pianos.  See 5 January 1862.

    24 April 1862 In The Times of London an indignant letter from Giuseppe Verdi (48) appears.  He complains that his Inno delle nazioni, composed on commission from the organizers of the London Exhibition, has been rejected for performance.

    24 April 1871 Anton Bruckner (46) is informed that he has won a competition in Vienna to determine who will represent Austria in demonstration concerts on the new Willis organ in Albert Hall, London.

    24 April 1873 A report in the Iglau (Jihlava) Mahrischer Grenzbote tells of a performance of Sigismund Thalberg’s (†1) Fantasia on Themes from the opera Norma by one Gustav Mahler (12).  The reporter is quite overwhelmed by the virtuosity of the young man, as was the audience.

    24 April 1874 Oprichnik, an opera by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (33) to his own words after Lazhechnikov, is performed for the first time, in the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg.  The work proves an unquestioned success.  At a dinner afterwards, Tchaikovsky is awarded the Young Composer’s Prize of 300 rubles.

    24 April 1876 Ernest Chausson (21) obtains a law degree in Paris.

    Anton Bruckner (51) gives his first oration as lecturer in harmony and counterpoint at Vienna University.  The post is without salary.

    24 April 1880 Two duets for soprano, alto and piano by Johannes Brahms (46) are performed for the first time, in Vienna:  Die Schwestern op.61/1 to words of Mörike and Hüt du dich! op.66/5 to words from Des knaben Wunderhorn.

    Charles-Valentin Alkan (66) gives the last public performance of his career, at the Salle Erard, Paris.

    24 April 1887 Today appears the last issue of the Wiener Salonblatt containing a criticism by Hugo Wolf (27).

    24 April 1893 Die Rebe, a ballet by Anton Rubinstein (63), is performed for the first time, in the Königliche Theater, Berlin.

    24 April 1898 Festive Chorus for dedicating the banner of the St. Joseph’s Union, for male voices by Leos Janácek (43) to words of Stasny is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).

    24 April 1902 Flammen, an opera by Franz Schreker (24), to words of Leen, is given it’s first performance, in concert with piano, at the Bösendorfersaal, Vienna.

    Eleven Chorale Preludes for organ op.122 by Johannes Brahms (†5) are performed for the first time, in the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche, Berlin.

    Gustav Holst’s (27) Symphony “The Cotswolds” op.8 is performed for the first time, in Bournemouth.  The audience is appreciative but the critics are mixed.

    24 April 1905 Incidental music to Jonson’s play Pan’s Anniversary by Ralph Vaughan Williams (32) is performed for the first time, in Bancroft Gardens, Stratford-on-Avon conducted by the composer.  In addition, Gustav Holst (30) contributes orchestrations of keyboard music and traditional melodies.

    24 April 1911 Disciples of Arnold Schoenberg (36) figure prominently in a performance at the Ehrbarsaal, Vienna.  Premiered this evening are two works by Alban Berg (26), the Piano Sonata op.1 and the String Quartet op.3, along with the Four Pieces for violin and piano op.7 by Anton von Webern (27).

    24 April 1913 God is our Hope for bass, double chorus and orchestra by Hubert Parry (65) to words of the Psalms is performed for the first time, in St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.

    24 April 1922 The String Quartet no.2 by Ernst Krenek (21) is performed for the first time, in the Berlin Singakademie.

    Sonata for violin and piano by Leos Janácek (67) is performed for the first time, in Brno.

    24 April 1925 Two works for female chorus by Aaron Copland (24), The House on the Hill to words of Robinson, and An Immorality, to words of Pound, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    24 April 1927 Four Songs of James Joyce op.54 for voice and piano by Karol Szymanowski (44) are performed for the first time, in Wasaw the composer accompanying his sister.

    24 April 1928 George (29) and Ira Gershwin meet Kurt Weill (28) for the first time, in Berlin, at an informal meeting to acquaint European composers with American music publishing.  It is possible that Arnold Schoenberg (53) is also in attendance.

    24 April 1932 The Transylvanian Spinning-room, a lyrical play by Zoltán Kodály (49) to a traditional story, is performed for the first time, in the Hungarian Royal Opera House, Budapest.

    24 April 1934 Quintet for piano and strings no.1 op.80 by Charles Koechlin (66) is performed for the first time, in Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels.

    24 April 1935 Samuel Barber (25) begins a weekly song series on the NBC Radio Network.

    24 April 1939 Angels for four muted trumpets and two muted trombones, or four violins and two cellos by Carl Ruggles (63) is performed for the first time, in Miami conducted by the composer.  This is the final orchestration of this work.  See 27 April 1922 and 17 December 1922.

    24 April 1940 The Wise Virgins, a ballet by William Walton (38) consisting of an arrangement of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, is performed for the first time, in Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London.

    Prelude for female chorus by William Schuman (29) to words of Wolfe is performed for the first time, in New York the composer conducting.

    24 April 1943 Drei Lieder von Bertolt Brecht for voice and piano by Stefan Wolpe (40) is performed for the first time, in Heckscher Theatre, New York.

    24 April 1945 Benjamin Britten’s (31) Festival Te Deum op.32 for chorus and organ is performed for the first time, in St. Mark’s, Swindon.

    24 April 1948 Dmitri Shostakovich (41) addresses the First All-Union Congress of Soviet Composers.  He repents the sin of “formalism” and accepts the direction of the Party vowing to make folkloric melody the foundation of all his future works.

    24 April 1950 Incidental music to Leonard Bernstein’s (31) Peter Pan after Barrie is performed for the first time, in the Adelphi Theatre, New York.

    24 April 1953 Symphony no.6 by Karl Amadeus Hartmann (47) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    24 April 1954 Kontraste, a ballet by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (36) to an idea by Schneckenberger, is staged for the first time, in Stadttheater Bielefeld.  See 1 January 1953.

    24 April 1957 First String Quartet “From the Salvation Army” by Charles Ives (†2) is performed completely for the first time, in the Museum of Modern Art, New York, 61 years after it was composed.  See 17 March 1943,

    24 April 1960 Sonata for cello solo by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (42) is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    24 April 1961 Two works are performed for the first time, in Venice:  three of the four movements of Jeux Vénitiens for chamber orchestra by Witold Lutoslawski (48), and Fonogrammi for flute and chamber orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki (27).  See 16 September 1961.

    Overture for orchestra by Charles T. Griffes (†41) is performed for the first time, in Kilbourn Hall, Rochester New York conducted by Howard Hanson (64) 56 years after it was composed.

    Symphony no.9 by Heitor Villa-Lobos (†1) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    24 April 1962 Three works for chorus by Kenneth Gaburo (35) are performed for the first time, in St. Louis:  Ave Maria, Laetantur coeli, and Terra tremuit.

    24 April 1963 Novae de Infinito laudes, a cantata for four solo voices, chorus, and small orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (36) to words of Bruno, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice, under the baton of the composer.

    24 April 1964 Hamlet, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (57), is shown for the first time, in Moscow.

    Portrait Suite for orchestra by Ulysses Kay (47) is performed for the first time, in Erie, Pennsylvania.

    Fanfare for a New Theatre for two trumpets by Igor Stravinsky (81) is performed publicly for the first time, at the opening of the New York State Theatre, Lincoln Center, New York.

    24 April 1965 This Day for female voice and piano by Ralph Shapey (44) to words of his wife, Vera Klement, is performed for the first time, in Butler Auditorium at the State University of New York, Buffalo.

    24 April 1966 Six Romances on Japanese Poems for tenor and orchestra by Dmitri Shostakovich (59) is performed for the first time, in Glinka Concert Hall, Leningrad, over thirty years after they were composed.

    Prayers for Divine Service for male chorus and organ by Leslie Bassett (43) is performed for the first time, at Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts.

    24 April 1967 Cantata from Job op.413 for baritone, chorus, and organ by Darius Milhaud (74) is performed for the first time, in Beth Zion Temple, Buffalo.

    24 April 1970 The Peoples Republic of China launches a satellite into Earth orbit.  It beams back to Earth The East is Red, a popular Chinese song.

    24 April 1971 Concerto da camera for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (45) is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York conducted by the composer.

    On Time and the Instrumental Factor for orchestra by Morton Feldman (45) is performed for the first time, in Dallas.

    24 April 1972 Chronometer for 2x4 track tape by Harrison Birtwistle (37) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    24 April 1976 Music for 18 Musicians by Steve Reich (39) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    A Dylan Thomas Trilogy for soloists, chorus, and orchestra by John Corigliano (61) is performed for the first time, in the National Cathedral, Washington.  See 11 March 1999.

    The Voyage of Edgar Allan Poe, an opera by Dominick Argento (48) to words of Nolte, is performed for the first time, in O’Shaughnessy Auditorium, St. Paul, Minnesota.  It was commissioned by the Minnesota Opera to celebrate the bicentennial of the United States.  The press is very positive.

    24 April 1978 Books I and II of the Freeman Etudes for violin by John Cage (65) are performed for the first time, in the Whitney Museum, New York.  See 26 June 1991.

    24 April 1980 MMM, A Lullaby for Daisy Pauline for audience by Pauline Oliveros (47) is performed for the first time, in Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.

    24 April 1981 The second and third of the Trilogy:  Song of Songs for soprano, baritone, ensemble, and tape by Ralph Shapey (60) are performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall, Chicago the composer conducting.  See 29 February 1980.

    24 April 1982 Fire Variations for orchestra by Dominick Argento (54) is performed for the first time, at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota.

    24 April 1983 Excursions for violin, cello, and piano by Shulamit Ran (33) is performed for the first time, at Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.

    24 April 1984 Narrative in retrospect for piano by Ross Lee Finney (77) is performed for the first time, in Brasilia.

    The Pulitzer Committee bestows a special citation on William Schuman (73) for more than half a century of contribution to American music as composer and educational leader.

    24 April 1986 Symphony no.60 “To the Appalachian Mountains” by Alan Hovhaness (75) is performed for the first time, in Knoxville, Tennessee.

    24 April 1987 Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis for chorus by John Tavener (43) is performed for the first time, in King’s College Chapel, Cambridge.

    Song Without Words for piano by Otto Luening (86) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    Concertante no.1 for trumpet and ten players by Ralph Shapey (66) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago.

    24 April 1988 Five:  Concerto for Amplified Cello and Orchestra by Charles Wuorinen (49) is performed for the first time, at the New York State Theatre, Lincoln Center, conducted by the composer.

    24 April 1990 Toward the Sea III for alto flute and harp by Toru Takemitsu (59) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo Metropolitan Festival Hall.

    Four Movements for Piano Trio by Bright Sheng (34) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    24 April 1991 De trap, a dance by Louis Andriessen (51) to a choreography by van Dillen, is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    The University of Louisville announces that John Corigliano (53) wins the Grawemeyer Award for his Symphony no.1.  The award brings $150,000.

    24 April 1992 Violin Concerto by Joan Tower (53) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Salt Lake City.

    24 April 1994 Plektó for flute, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, and cello by Iannis Xenakis (71) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    Several works for chorus by Györgi Ligeti (70) are performed for the first time, in Gütersloh:  Kings in Bethlehem, From a High Mountain Rock and Easter, all composed in 1946, Like a Stream Gently Flowing composed in 1947 and Songs from Inaktelke composed in 1953.

    Trio Concertante for violin, piano and percussion by Ralph Shapey (73) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    24 April 1997 Robert Erickson dies in San Diego, aged 80 years, one month, and 17 days.

    24 April 1998 Melvin Epstein Powell dies at his home in Van Nuys, California of liver cancer, aged 75 years, two months, and 12 days.

    24 April 2003 Ruttmann for flute, three saxophones, horn, three trumpets, three trombones, piano, and double bass by Louis Andriessen (63) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    24 April 2004 Aria for mezzo-soprano, oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, and piano by John Harbison (65) to words of Bishop is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    24 April 2005 A Dance on the Hill for mezzo-soprano and orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (70) to words of George Mackay Brown is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    XENIA for violin by Louis Andriessen (65) is performed for the first time, at Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, England.

    24 April 2008 Song and Dance for saxophones and percussion by Shulamit Ran (58) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    She Was Here for voice and orchestra by Osvaldo Golijov (47) is performed for the first time, in Ordway Hall, St. Paul.

    24 April 2009 French Horn Suite for four horns by John Harbison (70) is performed for the first time, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

    24 April 2010 Four Bohemian Sketches for oboe and piano by Karel Husa (88) is performed for the first time, at Grand Valley State University, Allendale, Michigan.

    24 April 2012 Sonata for violin and piano no.1 by John Harbison (73) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    24 April 2014 John Luther Adams (61) wins the Pulitzer Prize for music for his Become Ocean.  See 20 June 2013.

    25 April

    25 April 1690 Gottlieb Muffat is baptized in Passau.

    25 April 1727 Pasquale Anfossi is born in Taggia.

    25 April 1764 A special service in memory of Johann Mattheson is held in Hamburg.  Bells toll for two and a half hours in all the major churches of the town.  All city dignitaries attend.  The town cantor, Georg Philipp Telemann (83), conducts Mattheson’s Das fröliche sterbelied.  It was composed four years ago specifically for this occasion.  His mortal remains are laid to rest in the crypt of the Michaelskirche.

    25 April 1766 Miss in Her Teens, a farce by David Garrick after Dancourt, with a song by Thomas Arne (56), is performed for the first time, in Drury Lane Theatre, London.

    25 April 1767 Il maestro di capella, an intermezzo by Georg Benda (44), is performed for the first time, in Gotha.

    25 April 1779 La vera costanza, a dramma giocoso by Joseph Haydn (47) to words of Puttini, is performed for the first time, at Esterháza.

    25 April 1785 Leopold (65), Wolfgang Amadeus (29) and Constanze Mozart go to Burkerstorf (Purkersdorf), twelve km from Vienna, for lunch.  Wolfgang and Constanze return to Vienna while Leopold goes on to Salzburg.  Father and son will never see each other again.

    25 April 1791 Pietà di me, benigni Dei for three singers, english horn, bassoon, french horn, and orchestra by Joseph Haydn (59) is performed for the first time, in London.

    25 April 1796 Incidental music to Goethe’s play Egmont by Johann Friedrich Reichardt (43) is performed for the first time, in the Hoftheater, Weimar.

    25 April 1827 Piano Trio no.1 op.105 by Carl Czerny (36) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    25 April 1841 Hector Berlioz (37) and Franz Liszt (29) produce an all-Beethoven (†14) concert at the Salle du Conservatoire to benefit the Beethoven monument in Bonn.  Liszt plays various piano sonatas and the “Emperor” Concerto, conducted by Berlioz, along with the Sixth Symphony.  Unfortunately, the receipts are barely enough to pay the musicians.  The audience requires Liszt to play his own Reminiscences on Meyerbeer’s Robert le Diable, while Berlioz and the orchestra wait.  Richard Wagner (27), reviewing the concert for the Dresden Abendzeitung, is offended.  “Some day, Liszt in heaven will be summoned to play his Fantasy on The Devil before the assembled company of angels.”  An aspiring cellist named Jacques Offenbach (21) joins forces with a visiting prodigy from Russia, Anton Rubinstein (11), to perform the second and third movements of Beethoven’s Cello Sonata in A.

    25 April 1843 A second child is born to Robert (32) and Clara (23) Schumann.  She is named Elise.

    25 April 1853 The new Normal Musical Institute opens in New York.  An introductory address is given by its director, Lowell Mason (61).

    25 April 1856 Anton Bruckner (31) is officially appointed permanent organist at Linz Cathedral.

    25 April 1865 Franz Liszt (53) receives the tonsure in the Chapel of His Serene Highness Monseigneur Gustav Hohenlohe in the Vatican.  No one knows of this in advance except Pope Pius IX, Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein and Gustav Hohenlohe.  He moves into the Vatican.

    25 April 1883 Radway’s Ready Relief for male chorus by John Knowles Paine (44) to a contemporary advertisement for a patent medicine, is performed for the first time, in Boston, 20 years after it was composed.

    25 April 1894 La bonne chanson, a song cycle for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (48) to words of Verlaine, is performed for the first time, at the home of Madeleine Lamaire, Paris the composer at the keyboard.  See 20 April 1895.

    Mit vierzig Jahren ist der Berg ersteigen op.94/1, a song by Johannes Brahms (60) to words of Rückert, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    25 April 1904 The chamber orchestra setting of Valse Triste, by Jean Sibelius (38), is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.  See 2 December 1903.

    Five Partsongs from the Greek Anthology op.45, for male chorus by Edward Elgar (46), are performed for the first time at the Royal Albert Hall, London.

    25 April 1906 John Knowles Paine dies in Cambridge, Massachusetts of pneumonia complicated by diabetes mellitus, aged 67 years, three months, and 16 days.

    25 April 1911 Piano Sonata no.1 in f# minor by Arnold Bax (27) is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.  The audience is very pleased.

    25 April 1913 Panurge, a farce by Jules Massenet (†0) to words of Boukay and Spitzmüller after Rabelais, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Gaîté, Paris.

    25 April 1915 A prominent Moscow surgeon makes two incisions into Alyeksandr Skryabin’s (43) swollen lip.  A blood test reveals the presence of streptococcus and statilococcus.

    25 April 1918 Three Paganini Caprices for violin and piano by Karol Szymanowski (35) is performed for the first time, in Yelisavetgrad.

    Die Gezeichneten, an opera by Franz Schreker (40) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.

    25 April 1922 Violin Sonata no.2 by Arnold Bax (38) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London, the composer at the piano.

    25 April 1923 The Sunshine Trail, a film with a title song by George Gershwin (24), to words of Ira Gershwin, is released in the United States.

    25 April 1925 Ségovia op.29 for guitar by Albert Roussel (56) is performed for the first time, in Madrid.

    25 April 1926 Turandot, a dramma lirico by Giacomo Puccini (†1) to words of Adami and Simoni, after Gozzi and Schiller, and finished by Franco Alfano, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan.  During the performance, after the death of Liù, the conductor, Arturo Toscanini, stops the orchestra, turns to the audience and announces, “at this point, the master put down his pen.”  There is a long silence.  Then, from the balcony comes the shout “Viva Puccini!”, followed by a long ovation.  The “completed” version by Franco Alfano will be heard at the second performance, on 27 April.  Mussolini is not present since Toscanini has refused to play the Fascist anthem La Giovinezza.

    Several songs for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (16) are performed for the first time, in front of about a hundred guests at the composer’s home in West Chester, Pennsylvania:  Sometime, Seven Nursery Songs, October Weather, Dere Two Fella Joe, My Fairyland, Two Poems of the Wind, A Slumber Song of the Madonna, Fantasy in Purple, Lady When I Behold the Roses, La nuit, I never thought that Youth would Go, Invocation to Youth, Au clair de la lune, Man, Music When Soft Voices Die, Thy Love, and Watchers.

    25 April 1928 Incidental music to Bronnen’s play Katalaunische Schlacht by Kurt Weill (28) is performed for the first time, at the Staatliches Schauspielhaus, Berlin.

    25 April 1929 A setting of Psalm 80 for tenor, chorus, and orchestra and Fanfare pour un sacre païen for brass and percussion, both by Albert Roussel (60), are performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. 25 April 1930 Ten Victor Theremins, a group of ten people playing Theremins, debuts at Carnegie Hall in what must be the first all-electronic orchestra.  Among the performers are the inventor, Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (33) and Wallingford Riegger (44).

    25 April 1931 String Quartet no.1 op.50 by Sergey Prokofiev (39)  is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    25 April 1933 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play Macbeth by Aram Khachaturian (29) is performed for the first time, in Sundukian Dramatic Theatre, Yerevan.

    String Sextet by Bohuslav Martinu (42) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    25 April 1934 Prière, a song for voice and piano by Charles Martin Loeffler (73) to words of Dévigne, is performed for the first time, in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston.

    25 April 1936 Pièce pour le Tombeau de Paul Dukas for piano by Olivier Messiaen (27) is performed for the first time, at École Normale de Musique, Paris.  This is one of a collection of piano pieces by nine composers in memory of Dukas (†0).

    25 April 1937 Vier Bagatellen for piano-four hands by Ernst Krenek (36) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    25 April 1940 Symphony no.4 “Folksong Symphony” for chorus and orchestra by Roy Harris (42) is performed for the first time, conducted by Howard Hanson (43) at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York.

    25 April 1945 Tema y variaciones op.100 for harp and piano by Joaquín Turina (62) is performed for the first time, in the Circulo Medina de Madrid.

    25 April 1947 Sinfonietta for orchestra by Karel Husa (25) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    Songs on Poems by Gerard Manley Hopkins for voice and piano by Ernst Krenek (46) is performed for the first time, in Waco Hall, Baylor University, Waco, Texas.

    The Private Affairs of Bel Ami, a film with music by Darius Milhaud (54), is released in the United States.

    25 April 1949 Three-Page Sonata for piano by Charles Ives (74) is performed for the first time, in the Museum of Modern Art, New York, 44 years after it was composed.

    25 April 1950 Five Madrigals for small choir and ensemble by Hans Werner Henze (23) to words of Villon is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt.

    25 April 1952 Allegria Godimento in quattro tempi for orchestra by Werner Egk (50) is performed for the first time, in Baden-Baden, the composer conducting.

    25 April 1954 Brasilianischen Ouvertüre, part I of Alagoana, Caprichos Brasileiros for orchestra by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (33), is staged for the first time, in the Stadttheater Bielefeld.  See 12 November 1951.

    25 April 1955 Primrose, duets for soprano, alto, violin, and piano after Moravian folk poetry by Bohuslav Martinu (64), is performed for the first time, in Brno.

    25 April 1959 Ricercar and Doubles on “To Many a Well” for instrumental ensemble by Peter Maxwell Davies (24) is performed for the first time, at Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire.

    25 April 1960 Woodwind Quintet by Gottried Michael Koenig (33) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.

    25 April 1963 Stratégie for two orchestras by Iannis Xenakis (40) is performed for the first time, in Venice.

    Concerto for organ and orchestra by Paul Hindemith (67) is performed for the first time, in New York, the composer conducting.

    25 April 1965 Concerto for orchestra by Roberto Gerhard (68) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    25 April 1966 Two works by Karlheinz Stockhausen (37) are performed for the first time, in Tokyo:  Solo no.19 for melody instrument and tape, and Telemusik no.20, for four track tape.

    25 April 1968 Musique pour les soupers du Roi Ubu, a ballet noir by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (49), is staged for the first time, in the Deutschen Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf.  See 31 January 1968.

    25 April 1969 Letters from Paris for chorus and small orchestra by Ned Rorem (45) to words of Flanner, is performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    25 April 1970 Chemins IIb for orchestra by Luciano Berio (44) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.

    New Orleans Suite by Duke Ellington (70) is performed for the first time, at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

    25 April 1971 Staatstheater, a szenische Komposition by Mauricio Kagel (39), is performed for the first time, in the Hamburg Staatsoper.  Reactions of the audience are strongly mixed.

    25 April 1974 Cantico del sole for chorus by William Walton (72) to words of St. Francis, is performed for the first time, at University College, Cork.

    25 April 1976 Paraphrase for cello, percussion, and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (24) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    25 April 1977 Inharmonique for soprano and tape by Jean-Claude Risset (39) is performed for the first time, in Centre Georges-Pompidou, Paris.

    Fiftieth Birthday Greeting for Ernst Widner for flute, clarinet, keyboards, percussion, violin, and cello by Peter Maxwell Davies (42) is performed for the first time, in Salvador, Brazil the composer conducting.

    25 April 1980 Octet, A Grand Fantasia for flute, clarinet, horn, violin, viola, cello, double bass, and piano by George Rochberg (61) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall.

    A Song of Hope for solo baritone, chorus, and orchestra by Gian Carlo Menotti (68) is performed for the first time, in Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    25 April 1981 De Profundis for male chorus, percussion, and organ by Arvo Pärt (45) is performed for the first time, in the Martinskirche, Kassel.

    Sappho:  Lyrical Fragments for two sopranos and strings by John Tavener (37) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    The Celestial Sphere for chorus, orchestra, and tape ad lib by Charles Wuorinen (42) to words of Fuller is performed for the first time, in Centennial Hall, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois.

    25 April 1982 Etudes Australes for piano by John Cage (69) is performed completely for the first time, in Witten, West Germany.  Also premiered is Lebenslauf for four metronomes, percussion and piano by Alfred Schnittke (47).  See 25 January 1975.

    After a two-hour battle, British forces recapture the port of Grytviken, South Georgia from Argentine defenders.

    Parable XXII for tuba by Vincent Persichetti (66) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    25 April 1987 Caminantes...Ayacucho for alto, bass flute, organ, two choirs, orchestra, and electronic instruments by Luigi Nono (63) to words of Bruno is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    The electroacoustic version of Vertigo for electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (52) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.  See 3 May 1986.

    25 April 1988 Blick for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (36) is performed for the first time, in Freiburg.

    Pastoral for english horn or alto saxophone, marimba, and strings by Elliott Carter (79) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  See 12 November 1944.

    25 April 1989 Echoes Through Time for chorus and chamber ensemble by Thea Musgrave (60) is performed for the first time, in Atlanta.

    25 April 1992 Inner Song for oboe, part of Trilogy by Elliott Carter (83) is performed for the first time, in the Theatersaal, Witten, Germany.  Also premiered is Five4 for two saxophones and three percussionists by John Cage (79). See 30 June 1992.

    Seraphic Games for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (63) is performed for the first time, in Costa Mesa, California.

    25 April 1994 Canticle and Round in Honor of Gerhard Samuel’s Birthday for percussion by Lou Harrison (76) is performed for the first time, at the University of Cincinnati.

    Cicada for two pianos by Kevin Volans (44) is performed for the first time, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

    25 April 1996 Duet for two violins and string orchestra by Steve Reich (59) is performed for the first time, in Bochum.

    25 April 1997 Perriault le déluné for twelve voices by Betsy Jolas (70) to words of Illouz is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris.

    Responsorium for female voice and ensemble by Wolfgang Rihm (45) to words of Homer is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    Ernster Gesang for orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (45) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    25 April 1998 Symphonia:  sum fluxae pretium spei for orchestra by Elliott Carter (89) is performed completely for the first time, in Manchester, England.  It is made up of Carter’s Partita, Adagio Tenebroso and Allegro Scorevole.  See 17 February 1994, 13 September 1995, and 22 May 1997.

    Route 66 for orchestra by Michael Daugherty (43) is performed for the first time, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

    25 April 2001 Suite for violin and piano op.70 by Alexander Goehr (68) is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    25 April 2003 A suite of music from Leonard Bernstein’s (†12) musical 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue arranged by Sid Ramin and Charlie Harmon is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.

    25 April 2004 Fetzen 5, 6, 7, 8 for accordion and string quartet by Wolfgang Rihm (52) are all performed for the first time, in the Rudolf Steiner Schule, Witten.

    Mittwochs-Gruss from the opera Mittwoch aus Licht by Karlheinz Stockhausen (75) is performed for the first time, in the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Belfast.

    Boatmen’s Song, the first of the Two Folk Songs for female or children’s chorus and harp by Bright Sheng (48) is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y in New York.  See 18 February 2012.

    25 April 2005 A Musical Portrait of Chuck Close for piano by Philip Glass (68) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    Concerto da Camera III (Under the Sun's Gaze) by Shulamit Ran (55) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    26 April

    26 April 1762 Donnerode, part 2, a sacred oratorio by Georg Philipp Telemann (81) to words of Cramer, is performed for the first time, in the Drillhaus, Hamburg.

    26 April 1763 Christoph Willibald Gluck (48) receives a pension of 600 gulden from Empress Maria Theresia.

    26 April 1767 L’amore artigiano, an opera buffa by Florian Leopold Gassmann (37) to words of Goldoni, is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.

    26 April 1776 Cefalo e Procri, a cantata by Johann Christian Bach (40) to words possibly by Bottarelli, is performed for the first time, at the Hanover Square Rooms, London.

    26 April 1779 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (23) dates his Symphony K.318 in Salzburg.

    26 April 1781 Violin Concerto in D by Samuel Wesley (15) is performed for the first time, in London, the composer as soloist.

    26 April 1783 Bonn Kapellmeister Andrea Luchesi and Konzertmeister Cajetano Mattioli leave town for Italy.  While they are away, Luchesi’s duties are taken up by court organist Christian Gottlob Neefe (35).  With all this extra work, Neefe will call on the assistance of his student, Ludwig van Beethoven (12).

    26 April 1784 Les Danaïdes, a tragédie lyrique by Antonio Salieri (33) to words of DuRoullet and Tschudi after Calzabigi, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  In an attempt to encourage attention and sales, Salieri is listed as co-composer with Christoph Willibald Gluck (69).  Gluck will eventually announce publicly that he had nothing to do with the work.  See 16 May 1784.

    26 April 1786 Publication of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (30) Variations on Lison dormait by Nicolas Desède K.264 is announced in the Wiener Zeitung.

    26 April 1788 La croisée, a comédie by Giuseppe Cambini (42), is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre du Comte de Beaujolais, Paris.

    26 April 1791 A concerto movement for basset horn K.621b by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (35) is performed for the first time, at the Prague National Theatre.

    26 April 1830 Violin Concerto no.4 by Nicolò Paganini (47) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt.

    26 April 1835 Grand Polonaise op.22 for piano and orchestra by Frédéric Chopin (25) is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire, the composer at the keyboard.

    26 April 1841 Frédéric Chopin (31) is the featured artist at the Salle Pleyel, Paris performing mostly his own music including the Mazurkas op.41, the Ballade op.38, the Scherzo op.39 and the Polonaise op.40/1.  The evening is an unequalled triumph.  Eugène Delacroix has stayed in bed the last two days to get over a sore throat just so he can attend.  Also present are Hector Belioz (37), Franz Liszt (29), Heinrich Heine and, of course, George Sand.

    26 April 1846 Fidelen-Polka op.26 by Johann Strauss (20) is performed for the first time, at Goldener Strauß, Vienna.

    26 April 1847 Felix Mendelssohn (38) gives his last concert with the London Philharmonic Society, in the presence of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, and Jenny Lind.

    26 April 1851 Franz Liszt (39) takes over sole direction of the Weimar Hofkapelle.

    Messe de l’orphéon for four male voices and orchestra by Adolphe Adam (47), Fromental Halévy (51), Ambroise Thomas (39), and Antoine Louis Clapisson is performed for the first time, in the Cathedral of Meaux.

    26 April 1855 Believing that French doctors might cure his ailment, Gioachino Rossini (63) and his wife leave Florence for Paris.  He will never see Italy again.

    26 April 1856 In Zürich, Richard Wagner (42) plays and sings through the first act of Die Walküre for friends.  Businessman Otto Wesendonck is so taken by it that he decides to forward 250 francs a month to the composer so that he may complete the work unhindered.

    Valentine d’Aubigny, an opéra comique by Fromental Halévy (56) to words of Barbier and Carré, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris.

    26 April 1870 Camille Du Locle, a french librettist and opera director, visits Giuseppe Verdi (56) in Busetto and, acting for the Khedive of Egypt, asks Verdi to compose an opera for the Cairo Opera House.

    26 April 1882 Summons to Love op.37, a cantata by John Knowles Paine (43) to words of Drummond, is performed for the first time, at the Boston Music Hall.  It will eventually be known as Phoebus, Arise!

    26 April 1886 An der Wolga op.425, a polka mazurka by Johann Strauss (60), is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    26 April 1890 Serenade for orchestra by Ethel Smyth (32) is performed for the first time, at the Crystal Palace, London.  It is her debut as a composer in her homeland.  The press is generally positive.

    26 April 1891 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (50) arrives in New York from Le Havre.

    26 April 1895 Children’s Songs op.61 for voice and piano by Edvard Grieg (51) are performed for the first time, in Copenhagen, by the composer’s wife.

    26 April 1897 Edward Elgar’s (39) song Rondel:  The Little Eyes that Never Knew Light for voice and piano to words of Swinburne is performed for the first time, in Worcester, the composer at the piano.

    26 April 1899 Two works by Jean Sibelius (33) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki, conducted by the composer:  the Symphony no.1, and Song of the Atheneans for boys chorus, male chorus, winds, and percussion to words of Rydberg.  The second work is a protest against the February manifesto which denudes the autonomy of the Finnish Parliament.

    26 April 1907 Edvard Grieg (63) appears at a public concert for the last time, in Kiel.

    26 April 1906 Maurice Ravel’s (31) orchestration of his own song Noël des jouets, to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris.  The composer conducts.  See 24 March 1906.

    26 April 1908 Recouli for orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (21) is performed for the first time, in Teatro Santa Isabel, Paranguá, the composer conducting.

    26 April 1913 Act I of Franz Schubert’s (†84) singspiel Claudine von Villa Bella, to words of Goethe, is performed for the first time, to piano accompaniment, at the Vienna Gemeindehaus Wieden, 98 years after it was composed.

    26 April 1915 String Quartet in C op.2 by Paul Hindemith (19) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.  The composer plays the first violin part.

    26 April 1920 Gabriel Fauré (74) is made a Grand Officier de la Légion d’honneur.

    26 April 1923 Belfagor, a lyric comedy by Ottorino Respighi (43) to words of Guastalla after Morselli, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    26 April 1924 Edward Elgar (66) is offered the position of Master of the Musicke by King George V.  It is almost entirely a nominal position, calling on him only to advise the King on musical matters.  Elgar will accept.

    Two new works by Maurice Ravel (49), Tzigane, Rapsodie de concert for violin and piano, and Ronsard à son âme for voice and piano, are performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London the composer at the keyboard for the latter.  See 30 November 1924 and 17 February 1935.

    26 April 1929 A cello concerto in A major by Antonín Dvorák (†24) is performed for the first time, in Prague, 64 years after it was composed.

    26 April 1930 The first two movements of Henry Cowell’s (33) Concerto for piano and orchestra are performed for the first time, in New York, the composer at the keyboard.  See 28 December 1930.

    The Royal Welsh Fusiliers no.2, a march by John Philip Sousa (75), is performed for the first time, in the Willard Hotel, Washington, at a dinner attended by President Hoover.

    26 April 1934 Hollywood on Parade, a film with music by Duke Ellington (35), is released in the United States.

    26 April 1936 O Lord God of Israel op.141, an anthem for solo voices and chorus by Amy Beach (68) to words of the Bible, is performed for the first time, in St. Bartholemew’s Church, New York.

    26 April 1938 Sei Cori di Michelangelo Buonarroti il Giovane for chorus by Luigi Dallapiccola (34) is performed completely for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio Prague.  See 6 April 1935, 14 May 1937 and 17 December 1937.

    26 April 1941 Leonard Bernstein (22) conducts his first broadcast performance, directing the Curtis Institute Orchestra in the A major Serenade of Johannes Brahms (†44).

    26 April 1942 Two works for male chorus by Hans Pfitzner (72) are performed for the first time, in Cologne:  Wir geh’n dahin op.49/1 to words of Franck, and Das Schifflein op.49/2 to words of Uhland.

    26 April 1946 Where Does the Uttered Music Go? for chorus by William Walton (44) to words of Masefield is performed for the first time, at St. Sepulchre’s, Holborn, London.  The occasion is the unveiling of a stained glass window in memory of Henry Wood.

    Les cloches, a ballet by Darius Milhaud (53) after Poe, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.

    26 April 1950 A Sonata for double bass by Paul Hindemith (54) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.

    26 April 1951 The Pilgrim’s Progress, a morality play by Ralph Vaughan Williams (78) to his own words after Bunyan, the Bible, and Wood, is performed for the first time, at Covent Garden.  The audience is enthralled, the critics mixed.

    John Alden Carpenter dies of heart failure in Chicago, aged 75 years, one month, and 29 days.

    Piano Sonata no.6 op.39 by Vincent Persichetti (35) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    Sacred Songs for Pantheists for piano and orchestra by Robert Ward (33) to words of Hopkins, Stephens, and Dickinson is performed for the first time, in Quincy, Illinois.

    26 April 1953 Symphony no.1 by Charles Ives (78) is performed for the first time, in Washington, 55 years after it was completed by the composer.  See 19 March 1910.

    26 April 1954 Suite for Younger Orchestras op.56 by Wallingford Riegger (68) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Soldier Songs, a cycle for voice and piano by Hugo Weisgall (41) to eight different authors, is performed for the first time, in New York.  See 30 March 1966.

    26 April 1956 Clarinet Duets by Leslie Bassett (33) are performed for the first time, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    26 April 1958 Crossing Brooklyn Ferry for chorus and piano by Virgil Thomson (61), to words of Whitman, is performed for the first time, in Brooklyn.

    26 April 1959 The winners of an anonymous composition contest sponsored by the League of Polish Composers are announced in Warsaw.  First, Second, and Third Prize all go to Krzysztof Penderecki (25).

    Six Characters in Search of an Author, an opera by Hugo Weisgall (46) to words of Johnston after Pirandello, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Last Pieces for piano by Morton Feldman (33) is performed for the first time, at The Village Gate, New York.

    Song of Peace op.82 for male chorus and piano by Vincent Persichetti (43) is performed for the first time, in Hamilton, New York.

    26 April 1960 Music, for unison chorus, strings, and percussion by Michael Tippett (55) to words of Shelley, is performed for the first time, in Assembly Hall, Tunbridge Wells.

    26 April 1962 Chamber Concerto no.1 for nine instruments by Thea Musgrave (33) is performed for the first time, at the University of Glasgow, the composer conducting.  See 19 January 1973.

    26 April 1963 From the Steeples and the Mountains for trumpet, trombone, and four sets of bells by Charles Ives (†8) is performed for the first time, at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts.

    Enactments for three pianos by Stefan Wolpe (60) is performed completely for the first time, at the New School, New York.

    26 April 1964 Composition for violin and ten instruments by Charles Wuorinen (25) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Piece in Two Parts for Violin Alone by Stefan Wolpe (61) is peformed for the first time, in the YMHA, New York.

    Inscriptions from Whitman for chorus and orchestra by Ulysses Kay (47) is performed for the first time, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

    26 April 1965 Five Fragments for orchestra op.42 by Dmitri Shostakovich (58) is performed for the first time, in Leningrad, 30 years after it was composed.

    Symphony no.4 by Charles Ives (†10) for orchestra and chorus ad.lib. is performed for the first time, in New York almost 50 years after it was completed.  Present for the occasion is Hans Werner Henze (38).  See 29 January 1927 and 10 May 1933.

    26 April 1967 An article by Harold Schonberg in the New York Times reveals to the west that Lev Sergeyevich Termen (Leon Theremin) (70) is still alive and working in Moscow.  Soon, Termen will lose his position and his instruments will be destroyed.

    Intercomunicazione for cello and piano by Bernd Alois Zimmermann (49) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of WDR, originating in Cologne.

    A film of Mauricio Kagel’s (35) Match for three players is shown for the first time, over the airwaves of West German television, Cologne.

    26 April 1968 Two works by Mikis Theodorakis  (42) are performed for the first time, in London:  The song cycle Love and Death for mezzo-soprano and strings to words of Mavilis and the composer, and Oedipus Tyrannus, an ode for strings.  The composer is currently under house arrest in Athens.

    Monologhi op.16 for soprano and instruments by Henryk Górecki (34) to his own words is performed for the first time, in West Berlin.

    26 April 1969 Shapes and Designs for orchestra by Gunther Schuller (43) is performed for the first time, in Bushnell Memorial Auditorium, Hartford, Connecticut the composer conducting.

    26 April 1972 Linaia-Agon for horn, trombone, and tuba by Iannis Xenakis (49) is performed for the first time, in London.

    Three vocal works with words by Frank O’Hara are performed for the first time, in the Whitney Museum, New York:  From “Sneden’s Landing Variations” for voice and piano by Virgil Thomson (75), I Will Always Love You, a song by Ned Rorem (48), and Three Airs for Frank O’Hara’s Angel for speaker, soprano, female chorus, four instruments, and tape ad lib by Lukas Foss (49).

    26 April 1974 Three Motets on Poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins for chorus and organ by Ned Rorem (50) are performed for the first time, in Trinity Church, New York.

    26 April 1980 Sequenza IXa for clarinet by Luciano Berio (54) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre d’Orsay, Paris.

    Four Studies for clarinet and electronic valve instrument by Vladimir Ussachevsky (68) is performed for the first time, at Bowling Green State University, Ohio.

    Felix’s Girls, nine songs for vocal quartet or chorus by R. Murray Schafer (46) is performed for the first time, in Toronto.

    26 April 1981 Teile dich Nacht, a cycle for soprano and chamber ensemble by Isang Yun (63) to words of Sachs, is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    26 April 1989 Echange for 13 instruments by Iannis Xenakis (66) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.

    26 April 1990 Concerto for flute and orchestra by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (50) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    Concerto for double brass choir and orchestra by John Harbison (51) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    26 April 1992 Egyptian Diary for soprano and percussion by TJ Anderson (63) to words of Kaldas is performed for the first time, at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

    26 April 1996 Slow Frieze for piano and 13 players by Harrison Birtwistle (61) is performed for the first time, in Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

    26 April 1997 Concerto for P’i-p’a with String Orchestra by Lou Harrison (79) is performed for the first time, in Lincoln Center, New York.

    26 April 2000 Asko Concerto for 16 players by Elliott Carter (91) is performed for the first time, in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.

    26 April 2002 Escalas for orchestra by Jean-Claude Risset (64) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    The Mother of God for chorus by John Tavener (58) to words of Yeats is performed for the first time, at the First Derry Presbyterian Church.

    Tibetan Swing for orchestra by Bright Sheng (46) is performed for the first time, in Brooklyn, New York.

    26 April 2003 Incandescent for string quartet by Joan Tower (64) is performed for the first time, in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.

    Slip Knot, an opera by TJ Anderson (74) to words of Komunyakaa, is performed for the first time, at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

    26 April 2005 Naxos Quartet no.6 for string quartet by Peter Maxwell Davies (70) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.

    26 April 2007 Credo/Ani Ma'amin for voices by Shulamit Ran (57) is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

    26 April 2008 Henry Dreyfus Brant dies at his home in Santa Barbara, California, aged 94 years, seven months, and 13 days.

    26 April 2014 Hoquetus Irvineus for string quartet by Harrison Birtwistle (79) is performed for the first time, in Milton Court Concert Hall, London.

    27 April

    27 April 1762 Il trionfo di Clelia, an opera by Johann Adolf Hasse (63) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna.  It celebrates the birth of a daughter to Archduke Joseph of Austria and Isabella of Parma.

    27 April 1764 Wolfgang Amadeus (8) and Nannerl Mozart perform for King George III and Queen Charlotte today and 19 May at Buckingham House.  Leopold (44) will report that the reception they receive at this royal court “surpassed all others.” (Sadie, 59)

    27 April 1765 L’olimpiade, an opera seria by Thomas Augustine Arne (55) to words of Bottarelli after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.  It sees two performances.

    27 April 1770 L’eroe cinese, an opera seria by Antonio Sacchini (39) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Munich Residenz.

    27 April 1777 Domenico Cimarosa marries Costanza Suffi Palante, stepdaughter of a secretary to the Holy Roman Consul, in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, Naples.

    27 April 1781 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (25) gives his last concert in the employ of the Archbishop of Salzburg, in the presence of His Eminence in Vienna.

    27 April 1783 Amen, Lob und Preis und Stärke, a chorus for Quasimodogeniti by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (69) to words of Sturm, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    27 April 1811 Two new works by Samuel Wesley (45) are performed for the first time, at a concert for his benefit at Hanover Square Rooms, London:  Trio for three pianofortes and the glee O Delia, every charm is thine to words of Pindar.  The composer plays one part in the trio.

    27 April 1824 Les trois genres, a scène lyrique by Adrien Boieldieu (48) and Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (42) to words of Scribe, Dupaty and Pichat, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris.

    27 April 1829 La belle au bois dormant, a ballet by Ferdinand Hérold (38) to a scenario by Scribe and Aumer, is performed for the first time, in the Paris Opéra.

    27 April 1842 Jacques-François-Fromental-Elie Halévy (42) marries Hannah Léonie Rodrigues-Henriques, daughter of wealthy bankers, in Paris.

    27 April 1845 Franz Liszt (33) is created a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor.

    27 April 1850 Hector Berlioz (46) is named head librarian at the Paris Conservatoire.

    27 April 1854 Myrthen-Kränze op.154, a waltz by Johann Strauss (28), is performed for the first time, in the Hofburg, Vienna for the wedding of Emperor Franz Joseph II to Princess Elisabeth of Bavaria, directed by the composer.

    27 April 1857 Sonata for cello and piano op.47 by Valentin Alkan (43) is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris, the composer at the keyboard.

    27 April 1863 Rückblick for chorus and piano by Edvard Grieg (19) is performed for the first time, in Bergen.

    27 April 1866 Suite for cello and piano op.16 by Camille Saint-Saëns (30) is performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    27 April 1867 Roméo et Juliette, an opéra by Charles Gounod (48) to words of Barbier and Carré after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre-Lyrique, Paris.  The work is a resounding success despite a state ball on the same evening.

    27 April 1871 Sigismond Fortuné François Thalberg dies in Posillipo, near Naples, aged 59 years, three months and 19 days.

    27 April 1873 Three male choruses by Leos Janácek (18) are performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno):  The Enforced Bridegroom, Serbian Folksong, and Ploughing under the direction of the composer in his conducting debut.

    27 April 1877 Le roi de Lahore, an opéra by Jules Massenet (34) to words of Gallet, is performed for the first time, in the Paris Opéra.  The work is so successful with the audience, which includes President Mac-Mahon of France and Emperor Pedro of Brazil, that it proves a turning point in Massenet’s career.  See 3 March 1878.

    27 April 1886 Wiener Frauen op.423, a waltz by Johann Strauss (60), is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    27 April 1889 La procession for solo voice and orchestra by César Franck (66) to words of Brizeux is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris.

    27 April 1890 Hymne for four voices and piano by César Franck (67) to words of Racine is performed for the first time, in Tournai.  See 30 November 1890.

    27 April 1895 Souvenir d’Ismaïlia op.100 for piano by Camille Saint-Saëns (59) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    27 April 1897 Hymnus amoris op.12 for solo voices, children’s chorus, male chorus, chorus, and orchestra by Carl Nielsen (31) to words of Olrik, translated into Latin by Heiberg, is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.  Both the public and critics are enthusiastic.

    27 April 1901 The Emerald Isle, or The Caves of Carig-Cleena, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (†0) to words of Hood, is performed for the first time, at the Savoy Theatre, London.  Left unfinished at the composer’s death, it was completed by Edward German.

    27 April 1903 Sound Sleep, for women’s chorus and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams (30) to words of C. Rossetti, is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London.

    27 April 1906 A funeral service is held in memory of John Knowles Paine in Appleton Chapel, Harvard University.  Following this, the mortal remains are taken to Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge for cremation.

    27 April 1907 The second and third movements of Igor Stravinsky’s (24) Symphony in Eb op.1 are premiered by the Russian court orchestra in a private performance at the Imperial Chapel, St. Petersburg, arranged by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (63).  See 4 February 1908.

    27 April 1908 Carl Ruggles (32) marries Charlotte Snell, a professional singer, in St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Winona, Minnesota.

    27 April 1909 Phantasy in c minor for piano trio by Frank Bridge (30) is performed for the first time, in London.

    27 April 1913 Benedetto Marcello’s (†173) intreccio scenico musicale Arianna to words of Cassani, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Liceo Benedetto Marcello, Venice.  The work, composed in 1727, was rediscovered in 1885.

    27 April 1914 John Alden Carpenter’s (38) orchestration of his song cycle Gitanjali to words of Tagore, is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago.

    27 April 1915 08:05  Alyeksandr Nikolayevich Skryabin dies of septicaemia, in Petrograd, aged 43 years, three months, and 21 days.

    Two works for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (49) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki:  Mr. Lager and the Fair One op.84/1 to words of Fröding, and On the Mountain to words of Gripenberg.

    27 April 1916 Goffredo Mameli, an azione storica by Ruggero Leoncavallo (59) to words of Belvederi and the composer, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa conducted by the composer.  The response is lukewarm.  The press finds many faults.

    27 April 1918 Folk-Tale for cello and piano by Arnold Bax (34) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    27 April 1919 Sergey Rakhmaninov (46) and Jascha Heifetz appear at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, at an event to support the Victory Liberty Loan.  Both perform set pieces and then auction their encores to the highest bidder.  Rakhmaninov receives a bid of $1,000,000 for his Prelude in c# minor.  However, the high bidder is Ampico, a small reproducing piano company who has Rakhmaninov under contract.  They do it for the publicity.

    27 April 1920 Rag-Time for eleven instruments by Igor Stravinsky (37) is performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London.

    27 April 1922 Angels for “any six instruments of equal timbre” by Carl Ruggles (46) is performed for the first time, in New York, as part of a lecture by the composer.  For this performance, strings are employed.  See 17 December 1922.

    27 April 1923 Zigeunerlied op.55/2 for voice and orchestra by Ferruccio Busoni (57) to words of Goethe is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, Berlin.

    27 April 1927 Intrada for clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, two horns, trombone, and timpani by Ernst Krenek (26) is performed for the first time, in Kassel.

    27 April 1928 Igor Stravinsky’s (45) ballet Apollon musagète is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress, Washington.  It is the first time that a ballet by a major international composer is premiered in the United States.

    27 April 1930 Roberto Gerhard (33) marries Leopoldina Feichtegger in Barcelona.

    27 April 1932 Before Sleep, the sixth of the Six Choruses op.53 by Gustav Holst (57) to medieval lyrics (tr. Waddell), is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    Piano Trio in e minor by Frederick S. Converse (61) is performed for the first time, at New England Conservatory, Boston.

    27 April 1937 Jeu de cartes, a ballet in three deals by Igor Stravinsky (54) to a scenario by Malayev and the composer, is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York conducted by the composer.  The audience is appreciative, the critics range from lukewarm to hostile.

    27 April 1940 Joaquín Turina (57) is named commissioner of the Ministry of Education for Music in the new Spanish administration.

    27 April 1944 Symphony no.1 by Elliott Carter (35) is performed for the first time, in Eastman Theatre, Rochester, New York conducted by Howard Hanson (47).

    27 April 1945 While staying at the house of his in-laws on Lake Starnberg, Karl Amadeus Hartmann (39) witnesses 20,000 prisoners from Dachau being marched past shortly before the arrival of the American army.  This will inspire his second piano sonata which he will inscribe with the words “Unending was the line--unending was the misery--unending was the suffering.”

    Montparnasse and Hyde Park, both for voice and piano by Francis Poulenc (46) to words of Apollinaire, are performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris the composer at the keyboard.

    27 April 1947 A tour d’Anches op.97 for piano, oboe, clarinet, and bassoon by Florent Schmitt (76) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    27 April 1949 Three fresques for orchestra by Karel Husa (27) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    27 April 1950 Ward Ashley, father of Robert Ashley (20), suffers a coronary thrombosis and dies at the post office in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he has worked for the last 50 years.

    27 April 1951 A service in memory of John Alden Carpenter is held at his Chicago home one day after his death.  His mortal remains will be buried near his summer home in Beverly, Massachusetts.

    27 April 1952 Flirtatious Jig for violin and string orchestra by Henry Cowell (55) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of radio station WCBS, New York.

    Six Piano Pieces by Leslie Bassett (29) are performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    27 April 1961 Two new works by American composers are performed for the first time, at Howard University in Washington under the baton of Howard Hanson (64):  Symphony no.14 by Henry Cowell (64) and Give Me the Splendid Silent Sun for bass and orchestra by Roy Harris (63) to words of Whitman.

    27 April 1964 Piano Quartet by Walter Piston (70) is performed for the first time, at Harvard University.

    27 April 1965 The Emperor of Ice Cream, a theatre piece by Roger Reynolds (30) to words of Stevens, is staged for the first time, in Rome.  See 19 March 1965.

    27 April 1966 Variations VI for electronic circuitry, microphones, radio, tape, and television by John Cage (53) is performed for the first time, in Pan American Auditorium, Washington.

    27 April 1967 Olson III by Terry Riley (31) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    Variation III-Phorion, from Lukas Foss’ (44) Baroque Variations for orchestra is performed for the first time, in Philharmonic Hall, New York conducted by Leonard Bernstein (48).  See 7 July 1967.

    27 April 1969 Despite and Still op.41, a cycle for voice and piano by Samuel Barber (59) to words of Graves, Roethke and Joyce, is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    In Memoriam Zach Walker for band by TJ Anderson (40) is performed for the first time, in his home town of Coatesville, Pennsylvania.

    27 April 1973 Clapping Music for two humans by Steve Reich (36) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 April 1977 Violin Concerto no.1 by Krzysztof Penderecki (43) is performed for the first time, in Basel.

    27 April 1978 Landscape II for string trio and amplified piano by Peter Sculthorpe (48) is performed for the first time, in Queen Street Galleries, Woollahra, Sydney.

    27 April 1979 Mangrove for orchestra by Peter Sculthorpe (49) is performed for the first time, in the Sydney Opera House.

    Blue’s Blue, an ethnomusicological reconstruction by Mauricio Kagel (47), is performed for the first time, in the Städtischer Saalbau, Witten.

    A Ring of Emeralds for chorus and piano by Leslie Bassett (56) to various Irish texts is performed for the first time, in Cork.

    27 April 1980 Méditation op.277 for piano by Darius Milhaud (†5) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.

    27 April 1982 Koyaanisqatsi, a film with music by Philip Glass (45), is shown for the first time, at the Santa Fe Film Festival.

    27 April 1983 Ned Rorem’s (59) setting of Three Calamus Poems by Walt Whitman for voice and piano is performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 April 1984 Bild for nine players by Wolfgang Rihm (32) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    27 April 1986 Child Alice for amplified soprano and orchestra by David Del Tredici (49) is performed completely for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.  See 23 February 1980, 16 September 1980, and 19 November 1981.

    27 April 1987 Epilogue from “Peer Gynt” for chorus and orchestra by Alfred Schnittke (52) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    For the Time Being:  Advent for chorus and narrator by Thea Musgrave (58) to words of Auden is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Smith Square, London.

    27 April 1988 Nachtwach for eight solo voices, chorus, and four trombones by Wolfgang Rihm (36) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe.

    Tanzspiel, a ballet by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (48) to a choreography by Martins, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    27 April 1990 Songs of Illumination, a cycle for soprano, tenor, and piano by TJ Anderson (61) to words of TJ Anderson III, is performed for the first time, at Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts.

    27 April 1991 Tetora for string quartet by Iannis Xenakis (68) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    27 April 1992 Evening.  Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen dies after surgery in a Paris hospital, aged 83 years, four months, and 19 days.

    27 April 1996 Several new works are performed for the first time in the Concert Hall of the Stadt-Casino, Basel:  A 6 Letter Letter for english horn by Elliott Carter (87); Sur Incises for solo piano, two pianos, three harps, two vibraphones, and marimba by Pierre Boulez (71); An Eye, open for soprano, two clarinets, viola, cello, and double bass by Harrison Birtwistle (61) to words of Celan (tr. Hamburger); and Kol Od for trumpet and chamber orchestra by Luciano Berio (70).  All but the Carter are conducted by Pierre Boulez.  See 28 April 1996 and 30 August 1998.

    27 April 1997 Turbulence:  A Romance for soprano, baritone, and piano by William Bolcom (58) to words of Fulton is performed for the first time, in Minneapolis.

    27 April 2002 Four Heartfelt Anthems for chorus by David Del Tredici (65) to words of Stevenson, Burns and others are performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York.

    27 April 2003 Orpheus for chorus of treble voices by Dominick Argento (75) to words of O. Sitwell is performed for the first time, at the 92nd Street Y, New York.

    27 April 2004 My Goldberg (Gymnopedie) for piano by David Del Tredici (67) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    27 April 2006 The Illusionist, a film with music by Philip Glass (69), is shown for the first time, in Newport Beach, California.

    27 April 2008 String quartet: The Tree of Strings by Harrison Birtwistle (73) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    Two works by Arvo Pärt (72) are performed for the first time, in the Erlöserkirche, Potsdam:  Da pacem domine for chorus and orchestra, and De profundis for male voices and chamber orchestra.  See 1 July 2008 and 25 April 1981.

    God Only Knows for voice and piano by John Harbison (69) is performed for the first time, at the Guggenheim Museum, New York.

    Simply Purple for viola by Joan Tower (69) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    Can I for treble voices by Joan Tower (69) is performed for the first time, in Miller Theatre, New York.

    27 April 2009 The Seven Ages for mezzo-soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion, and piano by John Harbison (70) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Hall, New York.

    27 April 2013 Stille Feste for chorus and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (61) is performed for the first time, in Stuttgart.

    28 April

    28 April 1760 Die Auferstehung und Himmelfahrt Jesu, a sacred oratorio by Georg Philipp Telemann (79) to words of Ramler, is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.

    28 April 1768 In the Drillhaus, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (54) directs the first of many public concerts he will give in Hamburg, often performing on harpsichord and clavichord.

    28 April 1783 André Ernest Modeste Grétry’s (42) Thalie au nouveau théâtre is performed for the first time, for the opening of the Théatre Favart, Paris.

    28 April 1791 The City Magistracy of Vienna decides in favor of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s (35) petition to be appointed an unpaid assistant to the current Kapellmeister at St. Stephen’s, Leopold Hoffmann.

    28 April 1806 Un tour de soubrette, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (30) to words of Gersin is performed for the first time, in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

    28 April 1830 Franz Liszt (18) and Henri Herz (27) play duets at the Salle Chantereine, Paris.

    28 April 1834 For the first time, Robert Schumann (23) mentions the music of Hector Berlioz (30) in the Neue Leipziger Zeitschrift für Musik.

    Nicolò Paganini (51) debuts as a solo violist in London.  Critics advise him against persisting.

    28 April 1837 The aria “Jo l’amai di fiamma pupra” and quintet “Un turbamento orcano” from the opera La figlia abbandonata by Otto Nicolai (26) are performed for the first time, in Milan.

    28 April 1839 Gioachino Rossini (47) agrees to become “perpetual honorary consultant” to the Liceo Musicale in Bologna.

    28 April 1840 Die Hamadryaden, an opera-ballet by Adolphe Adam (36) to words of Pernot de Colombey, is performed for the first time, at the Berlin Court Opera.

    28 April 1848 Gioachino Rossini (56), believing his life to be in danger from revolutionaries who question his support for their cause, leaves Bologna for Florence.

    Richard Wagner (34) completes Lohengrin in Dresden.

    28 April 1857 Richard Wagner (43) takes up residence at Green Hill, Otto Wesendonck’s villa overlooking Lake Zürich.  His cottage is called Asyl (True Refuge) by Wesendonck’s wife, Mathilde.  The main house is still under construction and the Wesendonck’s will move into it in August.

    Tarantelle op.6 for flute, clarinet and orchestra or piano by Camille Saint-Saëns (21) is performed publicly for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris, the composer at the piano.

    28 April 1865 L’africaine, a grand opéra by Giacomo Meyerbeer to words of Scribe and Fétis, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra, four days before the first anniversary of the composer’s death.  The glittering audience includes the Emperor Napoléon III and Empress Eugènie.  The success is overwhelming and it will be performed thousands of times throughout the world over the next hundred years.

    28 April 1874 Richard Wagner (60), his wife and family move into the unfinished Villa Wahnfried in Bayreuth.

    28 April 1878 Today and tomorrow in Leipzig, Richard Wagner’s (54) Das Rheingold and Die Walküre are performed for the first time outside Bayreuth with the composer’s blessings.

    28 April 1884 The Canterbury Pilgrims, an opera by Charles Villiers Stanford (31) to words of Gilbert A Beckett, is performed for the first time, in the Drury Lane Theatre, London.

    28 April 1886 Adelen-Walzer op.424 by Johann Strauss (60) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    28 April 1888 Two works by Gabriel Fauré (42) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Pavane op.50 for orchestra and chorus, and Clair de lune op.46/2 for voice and piano to words of Verlaine.

    28 April 1889 String Quintet in G by Carl Nielsen (23) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.

    28 April 1892 The concert overtures In Nature’s Realm, Karneval, and Othello by Antonín Dvorák (50) are performed for the first time, together as Nature, Life, and Love in a special farewell concert for the composer in Prague.

    Kullervo, a symphony for soprano, baritone, male chorus, and orchestra by Jean Sibelius (26) to words from the Kalevala, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki, conducted by the composer.  It is a great success and puts Sibelius at the head of a new generation of Finnish nationalist art.  The success allows him to marry his fiancee, Aino Järnefelt, because it proves to her family that he can support her through composing.

    Five Poems by JP Jacobsen op.4, a song cycle by Carl Nielsen (26), is performed for the first time (all except the last song), in Copenhagen, in the first concert devoted entirely to the music of Nielsen.

    The Skeleton in Armor op.28 for chorus and orchestra by Arthur Foote (39) to words of Longfellow is performed for the first time, in New York.

    28 April 1894 The Lover for male choir by Jean Sibelius (28) to words of Kanteletar is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.  It has won second prize in a choral composition competition.

    After a period of reticence due to Mrs. Thurber’s failure to pay his salary, Antonín Dvorák (52) signs a contract for a further two years as director of the National Conservatory, New York.

    28 April 1903 Gustav Schmoranz, the director of the National Theatre in Prague, informs Leos Janácek (48) that his new opera, Jenufa, could not be performed as it was “not good enough to be successful.”  Janácek is stunned and falls into a depression of self-blame.

    28 April 1904 In Turin, Edgard Varèse (20) experiences Debussy’s (41) Prélude a l'après-midi d'un faune for the first time.  On hearing it, Varèse decides to become a composer.

    String Quartet op.54/2 by Max Reger (31) is performed for the first time, in Munich.

    28 April 1910 Idle Wishes op.61/7, a song for voice and piano by Jean Sibelius (44) to words of Runeberg, is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    28 April 1911 One of the Hymns from the Rig-Veda for solo voice and piano op.24/3a by Gustav Holst (36) to his own translation, is performed for the first time, in Bechstein Hall, London.

    28 April 1915 The fourth of the Eight Songs op.6 by Arnold Schoenberg (40) is performed for the first time, in the Schubertsaal, Vienna.  See 26 January 1907.

    28 April 1918 At the home of Valentine Gross in Paris, Francis Poulenc (19) meets Guillaume Apollinaire for the first time.  Poulenc will set Apollinaire’s words to music many times in the coming decades.

    28 April 1923 Two piano works by Gabriel Fauré (77) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Barcarolle no.13 op.116 and Nocturne no.13 op.120.

    28 April 1926 Two Basque Songs op.44 for voice and piano by Karol Szymanowski (43) to folk texts are performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    28 April 1928 Henry Cowell’s (31) Sinfonietta (originally Marked Passages) for chamber orchestra, is performed for the first time, in Jordan Hall, Boston.  Also premiered is Henry F. Gilbert’s (59) Suite for chamber orchestra.

    A String Quartet by John Alden Carpenter (52) is performed for the first time, at the Library of Congress in Washington.  Reviews are generally positive.

    28 April 1936 Pour le Tombeau de Paul Dukas for piano by Manuel de Falla (59) is performed for the first time, in the Salle de l’École Normale de Musique, Paris.

    28 April 1937 Poèmes pour Mi, a song cycle for voice and piano by Olivier Messiaen (28) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Salle des Concerts de la Schola Cantorum in Paris the composer at the piano.

    28 April 1938 Festival Fanfare for brass and percussion by Howard Hanson (41) is performed for the first time, in Eastman Theatre, Rochester, New York the composer conducting.  Hanson also conducts the premiere of Elegy in Memory of Maurice Ravel for brass, harps, and percussion by David Diamond (22).

    28 April 1939 West London, a song by Charles Ives (64) to words of Arnold, is performed for the first time, at the Fine Arts Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

    28 April 1940 John Cage’s (27) first composition for prepared piano, the ballet Bacchanale, is performed for the first time, at the Cornish School in Seattle by the composer.

    28 April 1943 Two songs by Irving Fine (28) for a Harvard Dramatic Club production of García Lorca’s play Doña Rosita are performed for the first time, at Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  The two songs are Because I Caught a Glimpse of You, and What the Flowers Say.

    28 April 1945 Symphony for voices and orchestra by Norman Dello Joio (32) to words of Stephen Vincent Benét is performed for the first time, in New York.

    28 April 1946 Danses de Jacaremirim op.256 for violin and piano by Darius Milhaud (53) is performed for the first time, in Hollywood.

    28 April 1948 Orpheus, a ballet by Igor Stravinsky (65), is performed for the first time, at the City Center, New York conducted by the composer.

    28 April 1950 Journey to the End of Night for soprano, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, and bassoon by Morton Feldman (24) to words of Céline is performed for the first time, in the Museum of National History Auditorium of the University of Minnesota.

    28 April 1952 Phantom of the Winds for violin and piano by Peter Maxwell Davies (17) is performed for the first time, in Manchester City Hall, the composer at the keyboard.

    28 April 1953 Goethe-Lieder for female voice and three clarinets by Luigi Dallapiccola (49) is performed for the first time, in Boston.

    28 April 1954 Michael Daugherty is born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the first of five children born to a drummer in a dance band.

    Intersection 3 for piano by Morton Feldman (28) is performed for the first time, in Carl Fischer Concert Hall, New York.

    28 April 1956 Eight Czech Duets for piano by Karel Husa (34) is performed for the first time, at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

    28 April 1957 Canção das águas claras for voice and orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos (70) to words of Amado, is performed for the first time, in London, directed by the composer.

    Such Sweet Thunder, a suite based on several Shakespeare characters by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.  It is the eve of Ellington’s 58th birthday.

    Fantasies for orchestra by Karel Husa (35) is performed for the first time, at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, conducted by the composer.

    28 April 1959 Coexistence, a ballet by Pierre Henry (31) to a choreography by Béjart, is performed for the first time, at the Galerie internationale d’art contemporain in Paris.

    28 April 1960 Landscape for string quartet by Toru Takemitsu (29) is performed for the first time, in Sogetsu Hall, Tokyo.  Also premiered is Takemitsu’s Le Son Calligraphie III for four violins, two violas, and two cellos, the musique concrète Water Music, and the first complete performance of Masque for two flutes.

    28 April 1961 Piano Distance by Toru Takemitsu (30) is performed for the first time, in Sogetsu Hall, Tokyo.

    28 April 1962 Die Soldatenliebschaft, a comic opera written by Felix Mendelssohn (†114) at the age of 10, to words of Casper, is performed for the first time, in Wittenberg 142 years after it was composed.

    28 April 1963 Alma Mahler Gropius Werfel writes to Deryck Cooke expressing admiration for his realization of Gustav Mahler’s (†51) 10th Symphony and rescinding her prohibition against performances of this version.

    28 April 1965 Designs, Images, and Textures for band by Leslie Bassett (42) is performed for the first time, in Ithaca, New York.

    28 April 1966 Two works for orchestra by David Diamond (50) are performed for the first time, in New York, Leonard Bernstein (47) conducting:  Symphony no.5 and Concerto for Piano and Orchestra.

    Personals, a cantata for narrator, chorus and brass by TJ Anderson (37) to words of Bontemps, is performed for the first time, in Nashville.

    28 April 1967 A week after the conservative military coup, Mikis Theodorakis (41), in disguise, is transported by car through Good Friday crowds in Athens to a meeting of the leadership of his Lambrakis Democratic Youth.

    28 April 1968 Romanza op.24 for cello and orchestra by Alexander Goehr (35) is performed for the first time, in Brighton.

    28 April 1970 Ringing Changes for twelve percussionists by Charles Wuorinen (31) is performed for the first time, at William Paterson State College, Wayne, New Jersey, the composer conducting.  “This premiere was interrupted by a disturbance.  The concert was a noon program.  Ringing Changes was the last work to be performed and made the concert run over a full hour.  A professor of communications who was scheduled to have a large class the next hour in the same hall grew impatient (the performance simply continuing) and routed Wuorinen and the ensemble by applying a power saw to a handy microphone.”

    28 April 1972 Two Sonnets from Michelangelo for orchestra by Karel Husa (50) is performed for the first time, in Evanston, Illinois.

    28 April 1973 Changing the System for any instruments by Christian Wolff (39) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    28 April 1975 The Courtship of Yongly Bongly Bo for voice and piano by Virgil Thomson (78) to words of Lear is performed for the first time, in the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church Chapel, New York.

    Ukiyo-e for solo harp by George Rochberg (56) is performed for the first time, at Grape Stake Art Gallery, San Fransisco.

    28 April 1976 Fantasy for three pianos by Lejaren Hiller (52) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo 25 years after it was composed.

    28 April 1977 Sonata no.1 for violin and piano by Lejaren Hiller (53) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo 28 years after it was composed.

    28 April 1978 Lamentation, Last Prayer, and Exaltation for soprano and handbells by John Tavener (34) is performed for the first time, in Rye.

    28 April 1979 Four Little Pieces for piano duet by Peter Sculthorpe are performed for the first time, at the Sydney Opera House, on the eve of the composer’s 50th birthday.

    Scherzetto for cello and piano by Frank Bridge (†38) is performed for the first time, in Snape Maltings, 77 years after it was composed, during the centennial of the composer’s birth.

    String Quartet Set by Lou Harrison (61) is performed for the first time, at the University of Toronto.

    Quoq for flute by Robert Erickson (62) is performed for the first time, at the California Institute of the Arts, Valencia.

    28 April 1983 Quatrième Vue sur les Jardins interdits for orchestra by Henri Pousseur (53) is performed for the first time, in Maestricht.

    28 April 1984 An den Wassern zu Babel sassen Wir und weintern for voices and instruments by Arvo Pärt (48) is performed for the first time, in Witten.  Also premiered is Pärt’s Zwei Slawische Psalmen.

    28 April 1985 Gottlieb Duo for piano and percussion by Ralph Shapey (64) is performed for the first time, in Quad City, Mississippi.

    28 April 1987 My Vistula, Grey Vistula op.46 for chorus by Henryk Górecki (53) is performed for the first time, in Poznan.  Also premiered is his Broad Waters op.39 for chorus.

    Veni Creator for chorus by Krzysztof Penderecki (53) is performed for the first time, in Madrid.

    28 April 1989 Arias and Barcarolles for soprano, baritone, strings, and percussion by Leonard Bernstein (70), to words of Jennie Bernstein, Segal, and the composer, is performed for the first time, at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.  See 9 May 1988.

    28 April 1990 Together for violin and double bass by Isang Yun (72) is performed for the first time, in Århus.

    28 April 1991 Polizeiruf110-Der Riß, a film with music by Laurie Anderson (43), is released in Germany.

    The cantata Llama de amor vita for baritone, chorus, and orchestra by Gian Carlo Menotti (79) after St. John of the Cross is performed for the first time, at Catholic University, Washington.

    28 April 1994 Counterpoise for soprano and orchestra by Jacob Druckman (65) to words of Dickinson and Apollinaire is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    28 April 1996 Pulse Shadows by Harrison Birtwistle (61) is performed for the first time, in Witten.  This consists of the intertwining of Nine Settings of Celan for soprano, two clarinets, viola, cello, and double bass performed completely for the first time today, and Nine Movements for String Quartet, also performed completely for the first time.  Sections of the Nine Settings of Celan not performed earlier are Thread suns, Psalm, and Give the Word. Sections of the Nine Movements for string Quartet not performed earlier are Fantasias 1, 3 and 5 and Friezes 2-4.

    Reliqui Domum meum for organ by Peter Maxwell Davies (61) is performed for the first time, in Kirkwall East Church, Orkney.

    28 April 1997 RomaDue: Sounds and Movements for Improvisation Ensemble and Tape by Larry Austin (66) is performed for the first time, in the Frederick Loewe Theatre, New York University, New York.

    28 April 2000 A federal court in New York City rules in favor of the Recording Industry Association of America in its copyright infringement suit against MP3.com Inc.

    Miz Inez Sez, a cycle for voice and piano by David Del Tredici (63) to words of Inez, is performed for the first time, in Miller Theatre, New York.

    28 April 2001 Glory to God for this Transient Life for children’s chorus by John Tavener (57) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    28 April 2002 Sequenza XIV for cello by Luciano Berio (76) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    28 April 2003 The Mathematics of Resonant Bodies for solo percussionist and electronics by John Luther Adams (50) is performed for the first time, in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

    28 April 2004 Solo e pensoso, two sonnets by Petrarch for baritone, viola, and harp by Wolfgang Rihm (52), is performed for the first time, in the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts, Munich.

    28 April 2008 In Seven Days for piano, orchestra and video by Thomas Adès (37), is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    28 April 2009 Septet for piano trio and string quartet by Ellen Taafe Zwilich (69) is performed for the first time, in the Tisch Center for the Arts, 92nd Street Y, New York.

    28 April 2012 String Quartet no.4 by Hans Abrahamsen (59) is performed for the first time, in the Saalbau, Witten.

    29 April

    29 April 1636 Esaias Reusner is born in Löwenberg, Silesia (Lwowek Slaski, Poland).

    29 April 1712 Juan Bautista José Cabanilles dies in Valencia, aged 77 years, seven months and 23 days.

    29 April 1757 La Nitteti, an opera seria by Tommaso Traetta (30) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Pubblico, Reggio Emilia.

    29 April 1761 Catone in Utica, an opera seria by Florian Leopold Gassmann (31) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Samuele, Venice.

    29 April 1762 Alessandro nell’Indie, an opera seria by Tommaso Traetta (35) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Pubblico, Reggio nell’Emilia.

    29 April 1772 Hieronymous, Count Colloredo enters Salzburg to take up his new position as Prince Archbishop.  He receives homage at the Residenz.  A gala dinner takes place in the evening accompanied by an orchestra which includes Leopold (52) and Wolfgang Amadeus (16) Mozart.  Wolfgang’s cantata Il sogno di Scipione is probably performed.

    29 April 1784 The Sonata for keyboard and violin K.454 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (28) is performed for the first time, in Vienna, the composer at the keyboard.  The work is probably not completely on paper.  Mozart plays much of the piano part out of his head.  According to Constanze, Emperor Joseph II saw the blank paper on the piano desk through his opera glasses.  Later, he asks Mozart to produce the music and the secret is unveiled to the delight of all.

    29 April 1788 Arvire et Evelina, a tragédie lyrique by Antonio Sacchini (†1) to words of Guillard after Mason, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.  Left unfinished at the composer’s death, the work is completed by the Opéra orchestra conductor, Jean-Baptiste Rey.

    29 April 1796 Ludwig van Beethoven (25) plays before Elector Friedrich August III of Saxony at Dresden.

    29 April 1798 Die Schöpfung, an oratorio by Franz Joseph Haydn (66) to words of the Bible and van Swieten after Milton, is performed for the first time, in the Palace of Prince Schwarzenberg, Vienna by amateurs directed by the composer.  It is a fantastic success.  This is actually an open rehearsal.  The official premiere is tomorrow.  Antonio Salieri (47) plays the piano part.  See 19 March 1799.

    29 April 1816 Inno alla primavera, a cantata for four solo voices and orchestra by Luigi Cherubini (55) to words of Vestri, is performed for the first time, in London.  This is the last of his commissions from the Royal Philharmonic Society and was intended for last year when the composer was present, but was not ready for performance before the season ended.

    29 April 1827 Die Hochzeit des Camacho, a singspiel by Felix Mendelssohn (18) to words of Klingemann after Cervantes, is performed for the first time, in the Royal Theatre, Berlin.  Although the press reaction is encouraging, the work is not a success and the composer leaves the theatre before the final curtain.  He will never write another opera.

    29 April 1832 Valentin Alkan (18) gives the first performance of his Concerto da camera op.10 no.1, at the Paris Conservatoire.

    29 April 1844 Valentin Alkan (30) gives his only known solo recital, at Salle Erard, Paris.  He plays the premieres of his Nocturne op.22, Saltarelle op.23, Alleluia op.25 and Air de ballet op.24/2.  It is wildly successful with an audience that includes Frédéric Chopin (34), Franz Liszt (32), George Sand and Alexandre Dumas.

    29 April 1855 Giacomo Meyerbeer (63) sees Richard Wagner’s (41) Tannhäuser for the first time, in Hamburg.  “The opera itself is incontestably a musical-artistic manifestation of the highest interest.  There is indeed a great dearth of melody, an unclarity and a formlessness, but nonetheless great flashes of genius in conception, in orchestral coloring, and in purely musical respects, particularly in the instrumental passages.”

    29 April 1856 Les pantins de Violette, an operetta by Adolphe Adam (52) to words of Battu, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    29 April 1862 Camille Saint-Saëns (26), Georges Schmitt, César Franck (39), Alexander Guilmant, and August Bazille inaugurate the new Cavaillé-Coll organ in St. Sulpice, France.

    29 April 1863 Alyeksandr Borodin (29) marries Yekaterina Sergeyevna Protopopova, daughter of the staff doctor at Moscow’s Golitsyn Hospital, and an excellent pianist.  The ceremony takes place in the chapel of the agricultural college in the Udelnaya, St. Petersburg.

    29 April 1872 Cosima Wagner, her five children, nursemaid, personal maid and dog Russ leave Tribschen, setting up household tomorrow with Wagner (58) in the Hotel Fantaisie in Donndorf, near Bayreuth.

    29 April 1875 Prelude and fugue in e minor by Charles Villiers Stanford (22) is performed for the first time, in Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge.

    29 April 1877 Plaudite populi, a motet for vocal solo, chorus and orchestra by Giacomo Puccini (18), is performed for the first time, in Lucca.

    29 April 1883 If ye then be risen with Christ, an anthem for chorus and organ by Charles Villiers Stanford (30) to words from the Bible, is performed for the first time, in Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge.

    29 April 1885 Wallingford Riegger is born in Albany, Georgia, the son of Constantine Riegger, presently the proprietor of a lumber business, and Ida Wallingford, a music teacher and daughter of an auctioneer and furniture dealer who fell in the American Civil War.

    If Doughty Deeds My Lady Please for chorus by Arthur Foote (32) to words of Graham is performed for the first time, at the Apollo Club, Boston.

    The first movement of the Symphony no.2 by George Whitefield Chadwick (30) is performed for the first time, at the Music Hall, Boston, the composer conducting.  See 10 December 1886.

    29 April 1886 Russischer Marsch op.426 by Johann Strauss (60) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.

    29 April 1892 Two songs for voice and piano by Gustav Mahler (31) to words of Brentano and von Arnim are performed for the first time, in Hamburg:  Aus! Aus! and Nicht wiedersehen.

    29 April 1899 Edward Kennedy Ellington is born in Washington, the second of three children (and eldest surviving) born to James Edward Ellington, a coachman, later butler for a wealthy society doctor, and Daisy Kennedy, daughter of a former slave.

    29 April 1903 A Sonata for violin and piano in g minor by Arnold Bax (19) is performed for the first time, privately, at the Bax family home in Hampstead, the composer at the piano.  See 4 June 1907.

    29 April 1904 The first concert of the recently founded Munich branch of the Allgemeiner Deutscher Musikverein is devoted entirely to the music of its secretary, Max Reger (31).  His Sonata for clarinet and piano op.49/2 is performed for the first time, the composer at the keyboard.

    29 April 1907 Igor Stravinsky’s (24) Faun and Shepherdess for mezzo-soprano and orchestra op.2 to words of Pushkin, is premiered by the Russian court orchestra in a private performance at the Imperial Chapel arranged by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (63).  See 29 February 1908.

    29 April 1908 Carl Ruggles (32) conducts the first performance of the Winona Symphony Orchestra in Winona, Minnesota.  The orchestra was founded largely through his efforts.  It is his first performance as a conductor and is very successful.

    29 April 1915 Funeral services for Alyeksandr Skryabin are held in the Church of the Miracle Worker in Moscow.  Because of the great desire of the public to attend, tickets are issued.  Among those attending are his sometime rival, Sergey Rakhmaninov (42).  Rakhmaninov will play a number of recitals of Skryabin’s music for the benefit of his widow.

    In a Vodka Shop and The Princess’ Rose Garden for piano by Arnold Bax (31) are performed for the first time, in Grafton Galleries.  See 25 July 1919.

    29 April 1923 Il primo bacio, an operetta by Ruggero Leoncavallo (†3) to words of Bonelli, is performed for the first time, in the Salone di Cura, Montecatini.  (There are serious doubts about the authenticity of this work)

    29 April 1924 Fantasie for two pianos by Samuel Barber (14) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.

    29 April 1929 Peter Joshua Sculthorpe is born in Launceston, Tasmania, the first of two children born to Joshua Tasman Sculthorpe, a general store owner, and Edna Moorehouse, an English immigrant, the daughter of an engine-fitter for mines.

    The Gambler op.24, an opera by Sergey Prokofiev (38) to his own words after Dostoyevsky, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels.  See 12 March 1932.

    29 April 1930 A setting of the 100th Psalm for chorus and orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (57) is performed for the first time, in the Drill Hall, Dorking the composer conducting.

    29 April 1933 Two Ballads to folksong texts for alto and piano by Bohuslav Martinu (42) is performed for the first time, in Prague.

    29 April 1934 Into the Streets May First for unison chorus and piano by Aaron Copland (33) to words of Hayes is performed for the first time, in New York.  It is the winner of a contest to set these words to music, sponsored by the New Masses.

    29 April 1939 Benjamin Britten (25) and Peter Pears sail aboard the SS Ausonia for Canada.  They will spend three years in North America.  They are seen off by Britten’s teacher Frank Bridge (60) and his wife.  It is the last time Britten and Bridge will see each other.

    29 April 1940 Incidental music to Puget’s play Un petit ange de rien du tout by Darius Milhaud (47) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre Michel, Paris.

    29 April 1941 Elegie und Reigen op.45 by Hans Pfitzner (71) is performed for the first time, in Salzburg.

    29 April 1945 A Quartet Movement in F by Antonín Dvorák (†40) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Prague Radio, 64 years after it was composed.

    Seven of Les chants de Nectaire for flute op.198 by Charles Koechlin (77) are performed for the first time, in the Grand Amphithéâtre de la Sorbonne.

    Zwei Lieder aus Gedichten von Berthold Viertel by Stefan Wolpe (42) are performed for the first time, in New York.

    29 April 1949 Memories: a. Very Pleasant, b. Rather Sad, a song by Charles Ives (74) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Pittsburgh.

    Concertante for piano and orchestra by Kenneth Gaburo (22) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York, Howard Hanson (52) conducting.

    29 April 1950 Piano Sonata no.2 by Pierre Boulez (25) is performed for the first time, in Paris.

    Symphony no.6 “Sobre a linha das montanhas do Brasil” by Heitor Villa-Lobos (63) is performed for the first time, in Rio de Janeiro, conducted by the composer.

    29 April 1951 Diapason Concertino for tape by Pierre Schaeffer (40) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Radio France IV.

    29 April 1953 Coronation March for orchestra by Arnold Bax (69) is performed for the first time, in a recording session in Kingsway Hall, London.  See 2 June 1953.

    29 April 1954 Six Children’s Songs for chorus and orchestra by Witold Lutoslawski (41) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.  They were originally written in 1947 for voice and piano.

    29 April 1956 The First Echelon, a film with music by Dmitri Shostakovich (49), is shown for the first time.

    29 April 1957 Ode to the West Wind, a concerto for soprano and orchestra by Dominick Argento (29) to words of Shelley, is performed for the first time, at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York, conducted by Howard Hanson (60).

    29 April 1958 Dialogues for clarinet and piano by George Rochberg (39) is performed for the first time, in Carl Fischer Concert Hall, New York.

    Incidental music to Fry’s play The Firstborn by Leonard Bernstein (39) is performed for the first time, in Coronet Theatre, New York.

    29 April 1962 Le Voyage, a ballet by Pierre Henry (34) to a choreography by Béjart, is performed for the first time, at the Cologne Opera.

    The last four of the Eight Orchestral Miniatures by Igor Stravinsky (79) are performed for the first time, in Toronto, the composer conducting.  See 26 March 1962.

    29 April 1965 Symphony by Stefan Wolpe (62) is performed completely for the first time, in Boston.  See 16 January 1964.

    29 April 1970 Ringing Changes for twelve percussionists by Charles Wuorinen (31) is performed without interruption for the first time, at Jersey City State College.

    29 April 1972 After five years under a ban by the mayor of Buenos Aires on moral grounds, Alberto Ginastera’s (56) dramatic cantata Bomarzo is given its Argentine premiere in the Teatro Colón.

    29 April 1977 Faust und Yorick, a chamber opera by Wolfgang Rihm (25) to words of Fusten and Haas after Tardieu, is performed for the first time, in the Nationaltheater, Mannheim.

    Quartet Plus for two string quartets, speaker, and video by Lukas Foss (54) to words of Eliot is performed for the first time, in the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

    Theater of Substitution:  Blind/Dumb/Director for solo performers by Pauline Oliveros (44) is performed for the first time, at the University of California at San Diego.

    29 April 1978 Eliza Fraser Sings, a music theatre piece for soprano, flute, and piano by Peter Sculthorpe, to words of Blackman, is performed for the first time, in Walter Hall, University of Toronto, Ontario on the composer’s 49th birthday.

    29 April 1979 Play Me Something for piano by TJ Anderson (50) is performed for the first time, in Weston, Massachusetts.

    El Relicario de los Animale for 20 instruments and singer by Pauline Oliveros (46) is performed for the first time, at the California Institute of the Arts, Valencia.

    29 April 1982 Symphony no.3 by Mikis Theodorakis (56) is performed for the first time, in East Berlin.  The composer is in a wheel chair from the long term effects of imprisonment and torture.

    The first two movements of the Concerto for violin and orchestra no.1 by Isang Yun (64) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.  See 25 November 1982.

    29 April 1983 Fratres I for string orchestra and percussion by Arvo Pärt (47) is performed for the first time, in Stockholm.

    29 April 1984 Inventionen for two oboes by Isang Yun (66) is performed for the first time, in Witten.

    29 April 1985 Theme (for variations) for cello solo by William Walton (†2) is performed for the first time, in Villa Wolkonsy, Rome.  The work is part of Music for a Prince, a collection of pieces by 14 composers for Prince Charles in 1970.  Also premiered is Walton’s 1970 composition All This Time for chorus to anonymous words.

    29 April 1986 A Birthday Bouquet for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (57) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    29 April 1987 For Us:  Happy Birthday To You! for four cellos by Mauricio Kagel (55) is performed for the first time, in the Alter Wartesaal, Cologne.  See 30 March 1990.

    Suite in C for piano by George Perle (71) is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    Version 2 of Algorithms III for nine instruments and tape by Lejaren Hiller (62) is performed for the first time, in Buffalo.

    29 April 1988 Strathclyde Concerto no.1 for oboe and orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (53) is performed for the first time, in City Halls, Glasgow, the composer conducting.

    Powaqqatsi, a film with music by Philip Glass (51), is released in the United States.

    29 April 1990 Hydrogen Jukebox, a music theatre by Philip Glass (53) to words of Ginsberg, is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Philadelphia.  See 26 May 1990.

    29 April 1993 Symphony (The Stages of Life) for orchestra by Roger Reynolds (58) is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles.

    29 April 1994 String Quartet by Bruno Maderna (†20) is performed for the first time, in Paris, 48 years after it was composed.

    Twice Upon…, a theatre piece without words for six groups of children by Luciano Berio (68) is performed for the first time, in London.

    29 April 1998 Things I Don’t Know, a dance by Kevin Volans (48) to a choreography of Burrows, is performed for the first time, in Laban Center, London.

    Cello Dreaming for cello, strings, and percussion by Peter Sculthorpe is performed for the first time, at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester on the composer’s 69th birthday.

    29 April 1999 Love Cries for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, and orchestra by Harrison Birtwistle (64) to words of Hoban, made up of excerpts from the opera The Second Mrs. Kong, is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    Two Paths for two violas and orchestra by Sofia Gubaidulina (67) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.

    29 April 2000 Sonata for violin and piano no.2 by Krzysztof Penderecki (66) is performed for the first time, in the Barbican Center, London.

    29 April 2002 Old Addresses, a cycle for voice and piano by William Bolcom (63), is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    29 April 2006 One Sweet Morning for chorus by John Corigliano (68) to words of Harburg is performed for the first time, in New York.  On the same program is the premiere of Going North by Thea Musgrave (77) to words of Keats.

    Quamby for orchestra and didjeridu ad lib by Peter Sculthorpe is performed for the first time, in Boulder, Colorado, on the composer’s 77th birthday.

    29 April 2008 Broken Lute for orchestra by Alexander Goehr (75) is performed for the first time, at Birmingham Town Hall.

    Clarinet Quintet by Elliott Carter (99) is performed for the first time, at the Juilliard School, New York.

    29 April 2010 Facts of Life for solo guitar by David Del Tredici (73) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Space, New York.

    30 April

    30 April 1761 Nicola Porpora (74) resigns his post at the Conservatorio di Santa Maria di Loreto, Naples.

    30 April 1781 Der Rauchfangkehrer, oder Die unentbehrlichen Verräther ihrer Herrschaften aus Eigennutz, a musikalisches Lustspiel by Antonio Salieri (30) to words of Auenbrugger, is performed for the first time, at the Burgtheater, Vienna, a year after it was commissioned by Emperor Joseph.  It is Salieri’s first singspiel.

    30 April 1802 In Hamburg, Louis Spohr (18) begins taking violin lessons with Franz Eck, one of the last representatives of the Mannheim School.

    30 April 1805 La jeune femme colère, an opéra comique by Adrien Boieldieu (29) to words of Claparède after Étienne, is performed for the first time, in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

    30 April 1821 Gretchen am Spinnrade D.118, a song by Franz Schubert (24) to words of Goethe, is published by Cappi and Diabelli to great success.

    30 April 1837 The piano manufacturer Pape presents a piano performance in Paris featuring Franz Liszt (25), Charles-Valentin Alkan (23), Johann Pixis and César Franck (14).  Despite the glittering competition, Franck is reviewed positively.

    30 April 1838 Souvenir of Vienna op.9 for piano by Clara Wieck (18) is performed for the first time, in Graz by the composer.  It receives tumultuous applause.

    30 April 1849 At a state ball in Buckingham Palace, the Alice-Polka op.238 by Johann Strauss, Jr. (23) is performed for the first time.  It was written in honor of Queen Victoria’s six-year-old daughter.

    30 April 1852 The Battle of Kulikovo, an opera by Anton Rubinstein (22) to words of Sollogub and Zotov after Ozerov, is performed for the first time, in the Bolshoy Theatre, St. Petersburg.

    30 April 1855 A setting of the Te Deum by Hector Berlioz (51) is performed for the first time, at St.-Eustache, Paris coinciding with the opening of the Paris Exposition.

    30 April 1857 Dragonette, an opérette-bouffe by Jacques Offenbach (37) to words of Mestépès and Jaime, is performed for the first time, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Paris.

    30 April 1885 Luigi Russolo is born in Portogruaro, the son of Dominico Russolo, organist of the cathedral in Portogruaro, and Elisabetta Russolo.

    30 April 1891 Harold Harfager op.26 for chorus and orchestra by Horatio Parker (27) is performed for the first time, in Chickering Hall, New York.

    30 April 1893 Rock of Ages, a song by Charles Ives (18) to words of Toplady, is performed for the first time, in Danbury, Connecticut.  It is his last Sunday service at the Baptist Church.

    30 April 1896 Numbers three and six of the Rondels op.1 for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (28) are performed for the first time, in Salle Pleyel, Paris, along with L’air op.8/5.  See 20 January 1897.

    30 April 1898 Two works by Gabriel Fauré (52) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris:  Dolly op.56 for piano-four hands, and Arpège op.76/2 for voice and piano to words of Samain.  See 6 December 1906 and 9 January 1913.

    Chansons de Shakespeare for voice and piano by Ernest Chausson (43) to words translated by Boucher is performed for the first time.

    30 April 1900 Pipes of Pan, a song with words by Ross and music by Edward Elgar (42) is performed for the first time, at Crystal Palace, London.

    30 April 1902 Pelléas et Mélisande, an opera by Claude Debussy (39) to words of Maeterlinck (abridged by the composer), is performed for the first time, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris.  The production elicits arguments in the crowd, laughter, and cheers.  An interested composer named Maurice Ravel (27) attends every one of the first thirty performances.

    30 April 1903 War and Peace, a symphonic ode for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Hubert Parry (55) to words of Benson and the composer, is performed for the first time, in Royal Albert Hall, London, conducted by the composer.  It is moderately successful.

    30 April 1904 Hymn of the West for chorus by John Knowles Paine (65) to words of Stedman, is performed for the first time, at the opening ceremonies of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis.  It is his last commission.

    30 April 1905 Cortège for orchestra by Jean Sibelius (39) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki directed by the composer.

    30 April 1914 Give Unto the Lord op.74 for chorus, organ, and orchestra by Edward Elgar (56) to words from the Bible, is performed for the first time, in St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.  It was composed for the Festival of the Sons of the Clergy.

    30 April 1917 Lodoletta, an opera by Pietro Mascagni (53) to words of Forzano after Ouida, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Costanzi, Rome the composer conducting.  The audience is warm, but not enthralled.  Critics are lukewarm.

    At Sea op.84/5 for chorus by Jean Sibelius (51) to words of Reuter is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.

    30 April 1921 Sextet for winds and strings by Otto Luening (20) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.  Press and public respond enthusiastically.

    30 April 1922 The Woodwind Quintet op.43 by Carl Nielsen (56) is performed for the first time, in a private performance at the Göteborg home of the Mannheimer family.  See 9 October 1922.

    30 April 1925 The Travelling Companion, an opera by Charles Villiers Stanford (†1) to words of Newbolt after Andersen, is performed for the first time, at the David Lewis Theatre, Liverpool.  See 4 November 1920.

    Kammermusik no.3 op.36/2, a cello concerto by Paul Hindemith (29), is performed for the first time, in Bochum, the composer conducting.

    30 April 1930 Three Choral Hymns for baritone or tenor, chorus, and orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams (57) to words of Coverdale are performed for the first time, in the Drill Hall, Dorking conducted by the composer.

    30 April 1932 Amidst controversy and turmoil, Karol Szymanowski (49) resigns as director of the Higher School of Music in Warsaw.

    The First Festival of American Contemporary Music opens at Yaddo, the home of Katrina and Spencer Trask in Saratoga Springs, New York.  The program and performer selection has been largely the responsibility of Aaron Copland (31).

    30 April 1934 Perséphone, a melodrama by Igor Stravinsky (51) to words of Gide, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra conducted by the composer.  The poet, upset at the setting of his words, does not attend.

    30 April 1936 Nocturne for orchestra by Arthur Honegger (44) is performed for the first time, in Brussels.

    30 April 1938 Luigi Dallapiccola (34) marries Laura Coen Luzzatto.

    30 April 1939 Ellen Taaffe (Zwilich) is born in Miami, Florida, the adopted daughter of Edward Porter Taaffe and Ruth Howard.

    Kurt Weill’s (39) historical pageant Railroads on Parade to words of Hungerford is performed for the first time, at the New York World’s Fair.  Also premiered at the fair is William Grant Still’s (43) Song of a City for chorus and orchestra to words of Stillman.

    30 April 1942 Fons salutifer op.48 for chorus, orchestra, and organ by Hans Pfitzner (72) is performed for the first time, in Karlsbad.

    Concerto for cello and orchestra by David Diamond (26) is performed for the first time, in Rochester, New York conducted by Howard Hanson (45).

    30 April 1944 March op.99 for winds by Sergey Prokofiev  (53) is performed for the first time, in a radio broadcast from Moscow.

    30 April 1945 American troops reach Garmisch and intend to billet themselves in a large villa.  Answering their knock, an 80-year-old man opens the door and announces, “I am Richard Strauss, the composer of Der Rosenkavalier and Salome.”  The officer in charge recognizes Strauss who invites them in and offers them wine and food.  The soldiers do not to disturb the composer’s privacy and proceed to take over another house.

    30 April 1952 Six of the 15 préludes for piano op.209 by Charles Koechlin (†1) are performed for the first time, in the École Normale, Paris.

    30 April 1954 Ode an den Westwind for cello and orchestra by Hans Werner Henze (27) is performed for the first time, in Bielefeld.

    Incidental music to Anouilh’s play Ring Around the Moon by Ben Johnston (28) is performed for the first time.

    30 April 1957 Two works by Morton Feldman (31) are performed for the first time, in Carl Fischer Concert Hall, New York:  Extensions 4 for three pianos, and Piece for Four Pianos.

    30 April 1959 Concert Piece for clarinet and piano by William Bolcom (20) is performed for the first time, at Mills College, Oakland by Morton Subotnick (26) and the composer.

    30 April 1960 Sonata for violin solo no.1 by Otto Luening (59) is performed for the first time, in Kaufmann Concert Hall, New York.

    30 April 1961 Cantata para America magica for soprano and percussion orchestra by Alberto Ginastera (45) to pre-Columbian words, is performed for the first time, in Washington.

    Violin Concerto with Lights by Henry Brant (47) is performed for the first time, in New York.

    String Quartet no.8 by Ross Lee Finney (54) is performed for the first time, at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa.

    30 April 1962 Duuiensela for cello and piano by Charles Wuorinen (23) is performed for the first time, at the Jewish Community Centre, New Haven, Connecticut.

    A Day in the Country for violin and tape by Otto Luening (61) is performed for the first time, in Kaufmann Concert Hall, New York.

    30 April 1963 The Flood, a musical play by Igor Stravinsky (80) to words of Craft, after the York and Chester Mystery Plays and Genesis, is staged for the first time, in the Hamburg Staatsoper.  See 14 June 1962.

    Variations on a Theme by Edward Burlingame Hill for orchestra by Walter Piston (69) is performed for the first time.

    30 April 1964 Three Pieces in Old Style for strings by Henryk Górecki (30) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw.

    30 April 1965 Second Fantasia on Taverner’s In Nomine for orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (30) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London.

    30 April 1966 String Quartet no.1 by Robert Ward (48) is performed for the first time, in Cadek Conservatory Concert Hall of the University of Alabama.

    30 April 1967 Antiphony for Winds by Robert Ward (49) is performed for the first time, in Interlochen, Michigan.

    30 April 1968 The Trial of Anne Opie Wehrer and Unknown Accomplices for Crimes against Humanity, an electronic music theatre by Robert Ashley (38) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

    30 April 1969 From Here on Farther for clarinet, bass clarinet, violin, and piano by Stefan Wolpe (66) is performed for the first time, in the YMHA, New York.

    30 April 1972 Parts of Perseverance for three trumpets, three saxophones, three trombones, and piano by Louis Andriessen (32) is performed for the first time, at a Young People for Vietnam demonstration in Amsterdam Woods.  See 12 May 1972.

    Declaration Chorale for chorus by William Schuman (61) to words of Whitman, is performed for the first time, in New York.

    30 April 1973 Concerto for organ with percussion orchestra by Lou Harrison (55) is performed for the first time, at San Jose State University.

    30 April 1974 Three Songs op.45 by Samuel Barber (64), Now I Have Fed and Eaten Up the Rose to words of Keller (tr. Joyce), A Green Lowland of Pianos to words of Harasymowicz (tr. Milosz) and O Boundless, Boundless Evening to words of Heym (tr. Middleton) for voice and piano are performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York.

    30 April 1975 Breakfast Rhythms I&II for six players by Joan Tower (36) is performed for the first time, in Town Hall, New York.

    30 April 1977 Concerto for two pianos and orchestra by Leslie Bassett (54) is performed for the first time, in Midland, Michigan.

    30 April 1979 Salomo for alto flute by Isang Yun (61) is performed for the first time, in Kiel.

    Full Moon in March, an opera by John Harbison (40) to his own words after Yeats, is performed for the first time, in Sanders Theatre of Harvard University.

    Quintets for orchestra by Lukas Foss (56) is performed for the first time, in Severance Hall, Cleveland the composer conducting.

    30 April 1981 Descensio for three trombones, three percussionists, harp, piano, and celesta by Sofia Gubaidulina (49) is performed for the first time, at Centre Pompidou, Paris.

    30 April 1987 For Stefan Wolpe for chorus and two vibraphones by Morton Feldman (61) is performed for the first time, at the University of Wisconsin.

    30 April 1990 Songs of Love (I am My Beloved’s) for voice and piano by Ralph Shapey (69) to words of The Bible, Gibran, and Whitman is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York.

    30 April 1991 Concerto for bass trombone, strings, timpani, and cymbals by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich is performed for the first time, in Chicago on the composer’s 52nd birthday.

    30 April 1994 String Quartet no.3 by John Harbison (55) is performed for the first time, at Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.

    30 April 1998 Triodion for chorus by Arvo Pärt (62) is performed for the first time, in Westminster Abbey.

    30 April 2003 In Wartime for band by David Del Tredici (66) is performed for the first time, at the University of Texas, Austin.

    My Father Knew Charles Ives for orchestra by John Adams (56) is performed for the first time, in Davies Hall, San Francisco.

    30 April 2010 Blake Dreaming for baritone and string quartet by Peter Maxwell Davies (75) is performed for the first time, in Wigmore Hall, London.

    Diamond Watch for two pianos by John Harbison (71) is performed for the first time, in Kresge Auditorium of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

    ©2004-2015 Paul Scharfenberger

    4 April 2015

    Last Updated (Sunday, 05 April 2015 07:28)

     

    Copyright  2014 Music and History