FEBRUARY 11

Egidio Romualdo DUNI

1708 Birth of Italian composer Egidio Romualdo DUNI in Matera. d-Paris, 11 June 1775.

1741 Birth of French opera composer Andre GRETRY, in Liege, Belgium. d-1813.

1744 Birth of tenor and coach Giovanni Ansani in Rome.   Died 15 Jul 1826 Debut 1768 Pupils, Manuel Garcia Snr, Luigi Lablache.

1785 FP of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 in d, Mozart was soloist, in Vienna.  CD-Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos, Vol. 1.

1785 Franz Joseph Haydn joins the Freemasons.

1795 Death of Swedish composer Carl Mikael Bellman, at age 55, in Stockholm. b-Stockholm, 4 FEB 1740.

1806 Death of Spanish composer Vicente Martín y Soler in Valencia. 2-St. Petersburg, MAY 1754.

1810 Birth of French composer and vocalist Louise Puget LEMOINE in Paris. d-Pau, 27 NOV 1889.

1819 Birth of American organist and composer Samuel Parker TUCKERMAN.

1826 Death of tenor Charles Incledon. Born 5 Feb 1763 in Cornwall. Debut as Alphonso in Castles of Andalusia (S Arnold) 1784 Teacher, Venanzio Rauzzini, William Jackson Sang in premiere of Woodman (Shield).

1830 Birth of Danish composer Peter Arnold HEISE in Copenhagen. d- Stockkerup, 12 SEP 1879.

1830 Birth of German composer Hans Bronsart VON SCHELLENDORF in Berlin. d-3 NOV 1913.

1834 Birth of tenor Gustav Walter in Bilin, Bohemia.  Died 31 Jan 1910 Debut as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti) 1855 Teacher, Franz Vogl Pupils, Lula Mysz-Gmeiner, Franz Pacal, Mme Charles Cahier Created Assad in Queen of Sheba (Goldmark).

1840 FP of Donizetti's opera The Daughter of the Regiment in Paris, at the Opéra-Comqie in Paris. DVD-Donizetti - The Daughter of the Regiment / Wendelken-Wilson, Sills, McDonald, Wolf Trap.

1843 FP of Verdi's I Lombardi at La Scala, Milan. CD-Verdi - I Lombardi / Anderson, Leech, Pavarotti, Ramey; Levine.

1847 Birth of American inventor Thomas A. Edison. Premiere developer of the phonograph.

1879 Birth of German composer and conductor Jean GILBERT aka Max Winterfeld. d-Buenos Aires, 20 DEC 1942.

1883 Birth of Danish conductor Paul von KLENAU in Copenhagen, founder of the Copenhagen Philharmonic. d-Copenhagen 31 AUG 1946.

1885 Birth of soprano Bella Fortner-Halbaerth in Bosnien. Died 28 Jan 1959 Debut 1906 Sang in premiere Das Spielwerk und die Prinzessin (Schreker) Traumspiel (Weismann).

1887 Birth of American violinist, conductor and teacher Louis PERSINGER, in 1915 concertmaster of San Francisco Symphony; in 1930 Julliard faculty. d-NYC 31 DEC 1966.

1888 Birth of tenor Antonio Melandri Tenor in Bologna. Died 28 Sep 1970 Debut 1924 Pupils, Luciano Saldari, Ivan Sardi, Ferruccio Mazzoli Created Radio Officer in Volo di Notte (Dallapiccola) Altidor in Donna Serpente (Casella) Sang in premiere of Thien Hoa (Bianchini) Maddalena (Michetti) Re Lear (Frazzi) Sagredo (Vittadini).

1890 Birth of tenor Richard Kubla in Moravska, Ostrava. Died 1964 Debut as Rodolfo in Boheme (Puccini) 7 Feb 1914 Teachers, Ludmilla Prohaska-Neumann, Buhomil Ptak.

1892 (GC, JC=30 JAN) FP of Rachmaninoff's Trio élégiaque No. 1 in G minor, for violin, cello, and piano. David Kreyn (violin), Anatoly Brandukov (cello), and the composer at the piano in Moscow.

1903 Birth of baritone Robert Weede in Baltimore.  Died 9 July 1972 Debut as Tonio in Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) 1937 Teachers, Oscar Anselmi, George Castelle Pupils, John Alexander, Dominic Cossa, Charles Karel, Donald Grobe Created Bob in Old Maid and the Thief (Menotti) Jean Jacques Dessalines in Troubled Island (Still).

1903 FP of Bruckner's Symphony No. 9 in Vienna. CD-Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 (with the Documentation of the Finale Fragment) (Hybrid SACD).

1907 FP in USAmerica of Puccini's Madama Butterfly conducted by Arturo Toscanini at the MET in NYC. Composer in the audience. CD-Puccini - Madama Butterfly / Freni, Pavarotti, Ludwig, Wiener Phil., Karajan.

1909 Birth of tenor Vasco Campagnano in Alexandria.  Died 16 Jan 1976 Debut in Boheme (Puccini) 1929 Teachers, Olga Righi-Mieli, Mario Sammarco, Elvino Ventura, Luigi Bolis.

1912 Birth of Czech-American pianist Rudolph FIRKUSNY in Napajedla. d-Staatsburg, NY 19 JUL 1994.

1915 First American recital by Percy Grainger.

1916 FP by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Gustav Strube (1916-1930), cond. First municpal orchestra supported by tax payers.

1922 Birth of Austrian-American pianist (Ruth) Hilde SOMER in Vienna. d-Freeport, Bahamas 24 DEC 1979.

1926 Birth of soprano Ursula Buckel in Lauscha. Debut as Donna Anna in Don Giovanni (Mozart) 1970 Teacher, Ria Ginster.

1926 Birth of Scottish conductor Sir Alexander GIBSON. d-1995.

1927 Birth of tenor Michel Senechal in Paris. Debut as Le Fellah in Marouf (Rabaud) 1950 Teacher, Gabriel Paulet Pupils, Thierry Dran, Toen Viala, Jean Christian, Christian Lara Daniel Ottevaere, Christian Papis Created Fabien in Montsegur (Landowski) Elie in St Francois D'Assise (Messiden) Leo X in Docteur Faustus (Boehmer) Sang in premiere of Ecume des Jours (Denisov).

1927 Birth of Austrian pianist Ilse von ALPENHEIM in Innsbruck.

1929 Birth of composer Leonard KASTLE.

1930 Birth of English organist and choral conductor Christopher DEARNLEY. d-15 DEC 2000.

1932 Birth of pianist and professor at Jeruselem Academy of Music, Jerome LOWENTHAL.

1935 Birth of Ukranian-born, Argentinian violinist Alberto LYSY. Translated Bio and photos.

1937 Birth of soprano Catherine Gayer in Los Angeles. Debut as Companion in Intolleranza (Nono) 1961 ( premiere) Created Melusine in Melusine (Reimann) Woman in Versuchung (Tal) Christina Elliott in Hermiston (Orr) Nausicaa in Ulisse (Dallapiccola) Lady Astor in Untergang der Titanic (Siebert) Woman in Hyperion (Maderna) Klara in Amerika (Haubenstock-Ramati) Young Woman in Traum des Liu-Tang (Yun Isang).

?1938 Birth of Swiss soprano Edith MATHIS in Lucerne. Operatic debut at 18 in Mozart's Magic Flute. m. Bernhard Klee. (Alternate sources indicate her birthdate as 1 Feb, Grove's as 11 Feb). Teacher, Elisabeth Basshart Pupils, Ingrid Bartz, Anna Maria Bogner Created Emily in Help Help the Globolinks (Menotti) Queen Marie in Roi Berenger (Sutermeister) Luise in Junge Lord (Henze) Sang in premiere of Zerrissene (Von Einem).

1938 FP of Ernest Bloch's Evocations for orchestra, by the San Francisco Symphony, Pierre Monteux conducting. CD-Ernest Bloch: Trois Poèmes Juifs; Symphony in E flat; Evocations.

1939 Birth of soprano Nelia Lebedeva in Karsnoyarsk. Debut as Cherubino in Nozze di Figaro (Mozart) 1964 Teachers, Nina Dorliak, G Malitcheva.

1939 Death of Austrian composer Franz Schmidt, at age 72, in Perchtoldsdorf. b-Pressburg, Austria, 22 DEC 1874.

1944 Birth of bass-baritone Roger Bryson in London. Debut as Ceprano in Rigoletto (Verdi) 1975 Teachers, Walther Gruner, Otakar Kraus Created William in Caritas (Saxton) Duke / Judge / Hotel Manager in Powder Her Face (Ades).

1945 Birth of baritone Lenus Carlson in Jamestown. Debut as Demetrius in Midsummer Night's Dream (Britten) Teachers, Oren Brown, Dwayne Jorgenson Created Archie Weir in Hermiston (Orr) Thomas Moore in Lord Byron (Thomson) Messenger in Oedipus (Rihm).

1946 Birth of soprano Magdalena Falewicz in Lublin, Poland. Debut in Livietta e Tracolo (Pergolesi) 1970 Teachers, Olga Olgina, Maria Kuninska-Opacka Created Countess in Love & Death of Cornet Pilke (Matthus) Sang in premiere of Amphitryon (Kunad).

1949 Death of tenor Giovanni Zenatello. Born 22 Feb 1876 in Verona. Debut as Silvio in Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) Apl 1898 Teachers, F Moretti, Zannoni Pupils, Nino Martini, Lily Pons Created Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly (Puccini) Alexis in Siberia (Giordano) Sang in premiere of Oceana (Smareglia) La Figlia di Jorio (Franchetti) Gloria (Cilea).

1949 FP of Igor Stravinsky's Orpheus. Boston Symphony, Serge Koussevitzky conducting. The staged ballet FP in NYC on 28 APR 1948. CD-Igor Stravinsky: Orpheus, Ballet in 3 Scenes (1947) / Danses  | Concertantes, for Chamber Orchestra (1942) - Orpheus Chamber Orchestra.

1951 Birth of baritone Jean Philippe Lafont in Toulouse. Debut as Papageno in Zauberflote (Mozart) 1974 Teacher, Denise Dupleix Created Alfaro in Montsegur (Landowski) Roderick Usher in Fall of the House of Usher (Debussy) Sang in premiere of Gambara (Duihamel) Boreades (Rameau) Galina (Landowski).

1952 FP of Hugo Weisgall's opera The Tenor in Baltimore. CD-Hugo Weisgall: Two Operas and Two Song Cycles.

1953 Death of soprano Maria Labia. Born 14 Feb 1880 Died 11 Feb 1953 Debut as Geisha in Iris (Mascagni) 1900 Teacher, Cecilia Labia (mother).

1953 FP of Carlos Chávez' Symphony No. 4 Sinfonía Romantica by the Louisville Orchestra, Chavez conducting. CD-Chavez: Three Symphonies.

1956 Birth of French composer Michel Dalle AVE in Agen.

1958 Death of baritone and coach Waldemar Staegemann. Born 21 July 1879 in Konigsburg.  Died 11 Feb 1958 Pupils, Walter Grossman, Fritz Hoppe, Hellmuth Kaphahn, Ruth Lange Einar Kristiansson, Elisabeth Reichelt, Paul Schoeffler Hans Lobel.

1957 Birth of soprano Gabriele Fontana in Innsbruck. Teachers, Ilse Rapf, Erik Werba Created Sister in White Rose (Zimmermann) Sang in premiere of Die Wande (Hoelszky).

1959 Birth of Scottish Mezzo-soprano Christine CAIRNS.

1971 FP of H. W. Henze's Compases para Preguntas ensimismandes in Basel, Switzerland.

1973 FP of Feldman's Voices and Instruments II in Buffalo, NY.

1981 Death of soprano Elisabeth Friedrich. Born 1893 in Karlsruhe.  Died 11 Feb 1981 Debut 1917 Teacher, Mary Esselsgroth von Ernst Created Wife's Friend in Von Heute auf Morgen (Schoenberg) Astarte in Der Schmied van Gent (Schreker) Sang in premiere of Francois Villon (Noelte) Der Sprung uber den Schatten (Krenek).

1985 Death of composer Heinz Eric Roemheld. b-Milwaukee, WI 1 MAY 1901.