MAY 20

1547 Melchior Bischoff

1554 Birth of composer Paulo Bellasio

1751 Death of Spanish opera composer Domenico Terradella in Rome. b-Barcelona, 13 FEB 1713.

1754 Birth of composer Hans Gram

1782 Death of German-Saxon composer and organist Christoph Gottlieb Schroter in Nordhausen. b-Hohenstein, 10 AUG 1699.

1798 Birth of French tenor Jean Baptiste CHOLLET in Paris. d-10 Jan 1892. Created Chapelou in Postillion de Lonjumbeau (Adam). Fra Diavolo in Fra Diavolo (Auber). Zampa in Zampa (Herold). Sang in the FP of Marie (Herold).

1812 Birth of composer Gustav Adolf Mankell

1822 Birth of French composer Jean-Louis Aristide HIGNARD in Nantes. d-Vernon, 20 MAR 1898. Opera, "Hamlet" (1868; Nantes (1888); "Le Visionnaire" (Nantes, 1851); "Le Colin- Maillard" (Paris, 1853); "Les Compagnons de la Marjolaine" (Paris, 1855); "M. de Chimpanzé" (Paris, 1860); "Le nouveau Pourceaugnac" (Paris, 1860); "L'Auberge des Ardennes" (Paris, 1860); "Les Musiciens de l'orchestre" (Paris, 1861).

1846 FP is USAmerica of Beethoven's Choral Symphony No. 9. New York Philharmonic at Castle Garden, George Loder, Jr. conducting.

1850 Birth of composer Eaton Faning

1856 Birth of Scottish-American pianist and composer Helen HOPEKIRK. d-1945.

1865 Birth of French tenor Georges Imbart de la TOUR in Paris. d-Paris, (1911?) 1913. Debut as Raoul in Huguenots (Meyerbeer) 1890. Teacher was Saint-Yves Bax.

1870 Birth of German bass Max LOHFING. d-SEP 1953.

1871 Birth of French baritone Eugenio GIRALDONI in Marseilles. d-Helsinki, 23 JUN 1924. He was son of baritone Leone Giraldoni (1824-97), and soprano-violinist Carolina Ferni (1839–1926). Taught by his mother, début at Barcelona [Escamillo] Carmen (1891). Sang [Scarpia] Tosca, in FP at the Costanzi in Rome (1900), and repeated the role La Scala, and in other houses including Covent Garden (1906), FP of Franchetti's La figlia di Iorio. Retired in 1921, and taught in Helsinki. Never recorded any excerpts as [Scarpia], the role he created from Tosca. MET Opera Début 28 NOV 1904 [Barnaba] La Gioconda, 1 seasons (1904-05) 26 perf., 7 works. Debut as Escamillo in Carmen (Bizet) 1891. Teacher was Caroline Ferni. Pupils were Adolf Niska, Robert Steel. Created Scarpia in Tosca (Puccini). Lazaro in Figlia di Iorio (Franchetti).

1874 FP of F. Erkel's "Brankovics Gyoergy" Budapest.

1876 Birth of composer John Owen Jones

1878 Birth of Czech composer Karl III Komzäk.

1889 Birth of composer Feliz ARNDT. d-1918.

1890 Birth of Italian tenor Beniamino GIGLI in Recanati near Ancona. d-Rome, 30 NOV 1957. Wikipedia.

1893 Birth of German bass-baritone Hans Hermann NISSEN in Danzig. d-28 MAR 1980. MET Opera debut 23 NOV 1938 [Woton] Die Walküre, 1 season (1938-39) 14 perf., 7 roles. Debut as Caliph in Barber of Bagdad (Cornelius). Teacher was Julius Von Raatz-Brockmann. Pupil was Hans Gunter Nocker. Sang in premiere of Himmelskleid (Wolf-Ferrari). Don Juan de Manara (Tomasi).

1893 FP of Smareglia's "Cornelio Schutt" Prague.

1896 Death of German pianist, teacher, composer and wife of composer Robert Schumann, Clara Wieck Schumann in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, at age 76. b-Leipzig, 13 SEP 1819.

1897 Birth of Polish soprano Eva BANDROWSKA-TURSKA in Cracau. d-25 JUN 1979. Teachers were Miszug, Helena Ruszkowska.

1900 Death of Dutch coral conductor and composer Jan Ingenhoven in Hoenderlo. b-Breda, 29 May 1876.

1903 Birth of Polish composer Jerzy FITELBERG in Warsaw. In USA from 1940. d-NYC, 25 APR 1951.

1906 Birth of baritone Gerhard NIESE in Rostock.

1906 Birth of German bass Hans KRAMER in Mainz. d-12 DEC 1976. Teachers were Otto Ito, Walter Lorenz. Created John Ball in Wat Tyler (Bush).

1909 Birth of Austrian bass-baritone Erich KUNZ in Vienna. d-Vienna, 8 SEP 1995. MET Opera Début 26 NOV 1952 [Leporello] Don Giovanni, 2 seasons (1952-54) 23 perf. 4 works. Debut as Osmin in Zauberflote (Mozart). Teachers were Hans Duhan, Theodor Lerhammer.

1909 Birth of French baritone Marcel ENOT in Saint-Lo. d- 22 NOV 1979.

1913 Birth of composer Ion Dumitrescu

1910 First European tour by The Metropolitan Opera. With six opera productions in Paris.

1917 Death of Italian soprano Romilda Pantaleoni. b-Udine, 1847. Debut in Margherita (Foroni). Teachers were Lamperti, Prati, Rossi Created Desdemona in Otello (Verdi). Tigrana in Edgar (Puccini). Marion Delorme in Marion Delorme (Ponchielli).

1917 Birth of composer Enyss Djemil

1920 Birth of American pianist Hephzibah MENUHIN in San Francisco. Sister of violinist Yehudi Menuhin, she settled in Australia in 1938. d-NYC, 22 APR 1981.

1922 FP of Henriques's "Staerstikkeren" Copenhagen.

1923 Birth of American composer Ludmila ULEHLA. Manhattan School of Music, member of the composition faculty since 1947.

1923 FP of Petrauskas' "The Devil Inventer" South Boston.

1925 Birth of American baritone Chester LUDGIN in Brooklyn. d-9 AUG 2003, cancer. Debut as Scarpia in Tosca (Puccini). Teacher was William Brady. Created John Proctor in Crucible (Ward). Voditchka in Good Soldier Schweik (Kurka). Sam in Quiet Place (Bernstein). Lyman Ward in Angle of Repose (Imbrie). Sang in FP of Lady from Colorado (Ward).

1926 Birth of English conductor George HURST.

1927 Birth of composer Walter ASCHAFFENBURG.

1927 Birth of composer David Frederick Barlow

1927 Birth of composer Walter Aschaffenburg

1930 Birth of German soprano Eva BOBER in Berlin. Created Erotia in Double Trouble (Mohaupt).

1932 FP of Chlubna's "Nura" Brno.

1933 FP of Hanson's "Merry Mount" Ann Arbor, composer conducting.

1936 Birth of French baritone Jacques HERBILLON in Rheims. d-Rheims, 2003.

1937 FP of John J. Becker's Symphony No. 3 Symphonia Brevis at the Saint Paul Auditorium. Twin Cities Civic Federal Music Project with Minnesota Orchestra composer conducting.

1938 Birth of Danish soprano Lone KOPPEL in Copenhagen. Debut as Musetta in Boheme (Puccini) 1961. Created Mother in Historien om en Moder (Koppel T).

1940 Birth of Swiss conductor Karl Anton RICKENBACKER.

1943 Birth of American composer Tison STREET in Boston.

1943 Concert by The U.S. Marine Band on the White House South Lawn for President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. During a heavy rainstorm, Roosevelt and Churchill remain, singing The Battle Hymn of the Republic.

1944 Birth of Brazilian pianist Cipa DICHTER. m. Mischa Dichter.

1948 FP of Darius Milhaud's Sym No 4, composer conducting, in Paris.

1950 Birth of American soprano Julie KAUFMANN in Iowa.

1950 Birth of English organist Jane Parker SMITH.

1950 FP of Luigi Dallapiccola's staged opera Il prigionero 'The Prisoner' at the Teatro Comunale in Florence. The opera premiered in a concert performance on 1 DEC 1949 in Turin.

1950 FP of William Bergsma´s Symphony No. 1 on a radio broadcast.

1950 FP of Burghauser's "Lakomec" Liberec.

1952 Birth of English opera director Tim ALBERY.

1953 Birth of American composer Mark HAGERTY.

1954 FP of Bucchi's "Il Contrabasso" Florence.

1956 Birth of Irish mezzo-soprano Ethna ROBINSON in Dublin. Ethna Robinson. Debut as Rosette in Manon (Massenet) 1984. Teachers were Noelle Barker, Pamela Cook, Josephine Veasey. Created Philia in Inquest of Love (Harvey).

1959 Death of Italian tenor Gaston Micheletti. b-Tavaco, Corsica, 5 JAN 1894. Debut as Faust in Faust (Gounod) 1922. Teachers were Jacques Isnardon, Leon Melchissedec. Sang in FP of Joueur de Viole (Laparra). Chevalier de Mauleon (Fournier).

1961 FP of Henze's "Elegy for Young Lovers" chamber opera, Schwetzingen. With D. Fischer-Dieskau.

1966 Birth of English clarinetist Emma JOHNSON.

1969 Death of Welch bass-baritone Derick Davies. b-Wales, 1928. Teachers were Norman Allin, Fred Husler.

1971 FP of Overton's "Huckleberry Finn" Juilliard American Opera Center, NYC.

1973 FP of Gian Carlo Menotti's Suite for Two Cellos. With cellists Gregor Piatigorsky and Leslie Parnas, and pianist Charles Wadsworth in NYC.

1974 FP of Andrzej Panufnik's Sinfonia Concertante in London.

1976 Death of Russian tenor Victor Bregy. b-Kiev, 3 SEP 1903. Debut 1927. Teachers were Adele Comte-Wilgocka, Maria Lubkowska. Pupils were Hanna Lisowska, Hanna Rumowski, Anna Malewidz-Madey.

1977 FP of Alan Hovhaness' Rubaiyat for narrator, accordion, and orchestra, in NYC.

1979 FP of Tobias Picker´s Romance for violin and piano, with Linda Quan, violin and Aleck Karis, piano, at York College, The City University of New York.

1989 FP of Katherine Hoover's Quintet Da Pacem for piano quintet. Members of the New Jersey Chamber Music Society at Alice Tully Hall in NYC.

1995 Death of American composer Ulysses Kay, in Englewood, NJ. b-Tucson, AZ 7 JAN 1917.

2000 Death of French flautiust Jean Pierre Rampal. b- 7 JAN 1922.