FEBRUARY 12

Thomas CAMPION

1567 Baptismal of English composer Thomas CAMPION in London. d-London, 1 MAR 1620.

1617 Heinrich Schutz takes position as director of the Dresden Court chapel.

1653 Birth of castrato Siface (Giovanni Grossi) in Pistoia, Tuscany.  Died 29 May 1697 Debut 1672 Teacher, Tommaso Redi Sang in premiere of Favori degli Dei (Sabadini) Nerone (Pallavicino) Re Infante (Pallavicino).

1728 Death of Italian composer Augustino Steffani in Frankfurt-am-Main. b-Castelfranco Veneto, 25 JUL 1654.

1760 Birth of Bohemian pianist and composer Jan Ladislav DUSSEK in Cáslav. He studied composition with C. P. E. Bach. He wrote 28 piano sonatas and 15 piano concertos. d-Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Paris, 20 MAR 1812.

1760 FP of Jean-Philippe Rameau's comedy-ballet Les Paladins in Paris.

1797 FP of Franz Joseph Haydn's Emperor String Quartet, Op. 76, No. 3. Celebrating the birthday of Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph II. Second MMT is based on Austrian national Anthem. CD-Haydn: 15 Famous String Quartets (Box Set).

1799 Death of Czech composer and pianist František Xaver Dušek aka Frantisek Xaver Dusek, Duschek, Duscheck or Dussek, at age 67, in Prague. Mozart associate. b-1731. Do not confuse with Jan Ladislav Dussek [Dusik] .

1812 Carl Czerny gives FP of Beethoven's Emporer Concerto.

1850 Birth of soprano Clementine Schuch-Proska in Sopron, Hungary; on the Austrian border, near the Lake Neusiedl/Lake Fertő.  Died 8 Jun 1932 Debut as Norina in Don Pasquale (Donizetti) 1873 Teacher, Mathilde Marchesi

1851 Birth of Russian pianist Anna YESIPOVA in St. Petersburg. d-St. Petersburg, 18 AUG 1914. 150th Anniversary.

1854 Death of soprano Teresa Bertinotti. Born 1776 in Piedmont. Debut in Danaidi (Tarchi) 1794 Teacher , La Barbiera Pupils, Rita de Bassini-Gabussi, Ottavia Malvini, Balbina Steffenone Silvia Cabucci Created Rossana in Rossana (Paer) Sang in premiere of Virginia (Federici) Annibale in Capua (Salieri) I Misteri Eleusini (Mayr) La Vergine Vestale (Albertini).

1858 Birth of American composer Herman BELLSTEDT. d-1926.

1869 Birth of baritone Theodor Bertram in Stuttgart.  Died 24 Nov 1907 Debut as Hermit in Freischutz (Weber) 1889 Teacher, Heinrich Bertram (father) Pupil, Selma Vom Sceidt Created Theuerdank in Theuerdank (Thuille) Sang in premiere of Sarema (Zemlinsky) Der Barenhauter (Wagner S).

1888 Birth of Hungarian composer and conductor Victor KOLAR. Director, Detroit Symphony, 1940-1942.

1889 Death of French composer Frederic Etienne Barbier in Paris. b-Metz, 15 NOV 1829.

1894 Death in of German pianist and conductor Hans Von Bulow in Cairo. b-Dresden, 8 JAN 1830.

1894 (GC, JC=31 JAN) FP of S. Rachmaninoff's Trio élégiaque No. 2 in d minor, for violin, cello, and piano, in Moscow, with Julius Conus, violin; Anatoly Brandukov, cello and Tachmaninoff at the piano in Moscow.

1896 Death of French composer Ambrose Thomas, at age 84, in Paris. b-Metz, 5 AUG 1811.

1898 Birth of American composer Roy HARRIS in Chandler Oklahoma. d-Santa Monica, CA. 1 OCT 1979.

1902 Birth of soprano Anny Konetzni in Vienna. Died 6 Sep 1968 Debut as Adriano in Rienzi (Wagner) 1925 Teachers, Erik Schmedes, Jacques Stuckgold Pupil, Hilde Konetzni (sister) Created Richterin in Der Richterin (Grabner).

1903 Birth of tenor Rudolf Dittrich. Meissen Teacher, Hans Pokorney Pupils, Gerhard Stolze, Hajo Muller, Nelly Ailakowa, Theo Adam Created Romeo in Romeo und Julia (Sutermeister) Sang in premiere of Munchhausen (Lothar) Massimilla Doni (Schoeck).

1903 Birth of baritone Todd Duncan in Danville Ky.  Died 28 Feb 1998 Debut as Alfio in Cavalleria Rusticana (Mascagni) 1934 Pupils, Lawrence Winters, Philip Booth, David Griffith, Jerry Jennings Blair Wilson Created Porgy in Porgy & Bess (Gershwin) Rev Steven Kumalo in Lost in the Stars (Weill). 

1907 Birth of American vocalist, arranger and composer Roberta MARTIN. d-1969.

1909 FP of I. Paderewski's Symphony in b Polonia. Boston Symphony, Max Fiedler conducting. CD-Paderewski: Symphony in B Minor / Maksymiuk, et al.

1915 Death of French composer, conductor and pianist Emile Waldteufel, age 77, in Paris.

1917 Birth of American conductor and author Thomas K. SCHERMAN in NYC. Little Orchestra Society, 1947-1975. CD-The Beethoven Companion.

1922 Birth of soprano Goar Gasparian in Cairo. Teachers, E.Feldmann, V Karr.

1923 Birth of American composer Mel POWELL in NYC. d-Los Angeles, CA 27 APR 1998.

1924 Birth of tenor Ettore Babini in Lugo. Debut in Madama Butterfly (Puccini) 1947 Teachers, Vito Greco, Antonio Narducci.

1924 FP of Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue, Paul Whiteman Orch, NYC. Gershwin the piano soloist at Aeolian Hall in NYC. CD-Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue, Paul Whiteman Orch.

1932 Birth of baritone Yevgeny Kibkalo in Kiev. Debut 1956 Teacher, Vladimir Politkovsky.

1933 Death of French composer Henri Duparc in Mont-de-Marsan. b-Paris, 21 JAN 1848.

1934 Birth of bass-baritone Antonin Svorc in Jaromer. Debut as Pizarro in Fidelio (Beethoven) 1955 Teacher, Jan Berlik Created Zampano in Strada (Kaslik) Coriolanus in Coriolanus (Cikker).

1935 Birth of soprano Edy Amedeo in Turin. Debut as Suor Angelica in Suor Angelica (Puccini) 1957 Teacher, Renza Ferrari.

1935 Death of bass Franz Biehler. Born 1882 in Stuttgart. Debut 1915 Teacher, Freitag-Bexse.

1936 FP of David Diamond's Three Vocalises for soprano and viola, at the third 'Composer's Forum Laboratory' in NYC. A WPA Federal Music Project with soprano Louise Taylor and violist John Howell.

1937 Birth of American composer Terrence Patrick DOUGHERTY in Spokane, WA.

1939 Birth of German soprano Helga DERNESCH.

1940 Birth of soprano Gilda Cruz-Romo in Guadalajara,  Mexico. Debut as Ortlinde in Walkure (Wagner) 1962 Teacher, Angel Esquivel. 

1954 Death of soprano Hilda Ohlin. Born New York. Teachers, Paul Althouse, Povla Frijsh, Maurice Faure.

1955 Birth of Georgian bass Paata BURCHULADZE in Georgian capital Tbilisi. Debut as Leporello in Don Giovanni (Mozart) 1976 Teachers, Beltrami, Muller, Giulietta Simionato.

1955 Birth of Greek composer Michael REPOULIS in Athens.

1959 Death of American composer George Antheil, at age 58, in NYC. b-Trenton, NJ 8 JUL 1900.

1962 Death of mezzo-soprano Irene Pavloska. Born 1890 in Canada. Debut as Musetta in Boheme (Puccini) 1915 Created Princess Clarissa in Love of 3 Oranges (Prokofiev) Sang in premiere of A Witch of Salem (Cadman).

1964 FP of Henry Cowell's Quartet Euphometric by the Galimir String Quartet at Philharmonic Hall in NYC. CD-Fifty Years Of American Music 1919-1969.

1970 Death of baritone Robert Blasius. Born 18 Mar 1909 in Krefeld. Pupil, Peter Meven.

1970 Death of bass-baritone Andrea Mongelli. Born 16 Dec 1901 in Bari. Debut as Mephistopheles in Faust (Gounod) 1923 Created Dimo in Maria D'Allesandria (Ghedini) Bischof in Palla Di' Mozzi (Marinuzzi).

1973 Death of English composer and film score composer, Benjamin Frankel, at age 67, in London. b-London, 31 JAN 1906.

1977 Death of Domenico Malatesta Baritone Born 1897 Died 12 Feb 1977 Debut 1924 Pupils :- Otello Borgonovo, Franco Ghitti

1977 Death of tenor Alessandro Ziliani. Born 3 Jun 1906 in Bassetto. Debut as Pinkerton (Puccini) 1929 Teacher, Alfredo Cecchi Pupil, Angelo Laforese Sang in premiere of Vedova Scaltra (Wafferadi) Pescatori (Napoli) Primavera Fiorentina (Pedrollo) Pinotto (Mascagni) Beatrice Cenci (Pannian).

1992 Death of soprano Stella Roman. Born 25 Mar 1904 in Cluj, Rumania.  Died 12 Feb 1992 Debut as Madeleine in Andrea Chenier (Giordano) Teachers, Tina Poli-Randaccio, Giuseppina Baldassare-Tedeschi Luigi Ricci, Pessione, Cosma, Narducci Created Cordelia in Re Lear (Ghislanzoni).

1994 Death of tenor Graeme Matheson-Bruce. Born 19 Jul 1945 in Dundee. Debut Blind in Fledermaus (Strauss) 1973 Teachers, Ena Mitchell, Nicholas Powell, Hans Hotter Created Pentheus in Baxxai (Buller) Lovelace in Clarissa (Holloway).