MAY 14

Claudio MONTEVERDI

1652 Birth of composer Johann Philipp Fortsch

1567 (15th?) Birth of Italian composer Claudio MONTEVERDI in Cremona. d-1643. Search  for Claudio MONTEVERDI

1574 Birth of Italian tenor Francesco RASI in Arezzo. d-9 DEC 1621. Debut as Amynter in Euridice (Peri) 1600 (Premiere). Teacher was Giulio Caccini. Created Ovid in Dafne (Da Gagliano). Apollo in Dafne (Da Gagliano). Orfeo in Orfeo (Monteverdi). Sang in FP of Rapimento di Cefalo (Caccini). Arianna (Monteverdi).

1707 Birth of composer Antonio Teixeira

1723 (JC, GC=25 MAY) FP of G. F. Handel´s opera Flavio, re de' Langobardi “Flavio, King of the Langobards”, at the King's Theater in the Haymarket, London.

1748 FP of Gluck's opera Semiramide Riconosciuta for the reopening of the Burgtheater in Vienna.

1749 FP of Galuppi's "L'Arcadia in Brenta" Venice.

1749 FP of Baldassare's "L'Arcadia in Brenta" Venice.

1749 Opening of the Burgtheater, Vienna.

1763 FP of Gluck's "Il trionfo di Clelia" Vienna.

1788 FP of Dalayrac's "Sargines" Paris.

1791 Death of German singer and composer Franziska Lebrun in Berlin. b-Mannheim, 24 MAR 1756.

1799 FP of G. Ferrari's "I due Svizzeri" London.

1805 Birth of Danish organist and composer Johann Peter Emilius HARTMANN in Copenhagen. d-Copenhagen, 10 MAR 1900. Opera, "The Raven" (Copenhagen, 1832); "The Corsairs" (Copenhagen, 1835); "Little Christina" (Copenhagen, 1846).

1816 Birth of composer Gualtiero Sanelli

1832 FP of the Hebrides Overture by Mendelssohn, conducted by composer from manuscript at Covent Garden, London.

1842 Birth of composer Alphons CZIBULKA. Search for Alphons CZIBULKA

1845 FP of Balfe's "The Enchantress" London.

1847 Death of composer and pianist Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel   in Berlin at age 41. Sister of Felix. b-Hamburg, 14 NOV 1805. 

1851 Birth of German soprano Marie LEHMANN. d-9 DEC 1931. Sister of soprano Lilli Lehmann.

1853 Birth of Italian tenor Francesco MARCONI. d-Rome, 5 FEB 1916. Debut as Faust in Faust (Gounod) 1878. Teachers were Ottavio Bartolini, Veneslao Persichini, Enrico Tamberlik. Photo with Mascagni.

1855 FP of Halévy's "Jaguarita l'indienne" Paris.

1861 Operatic debut of Adelina PATTI  at Covent Garden in London, in Bellini's La Sonnambula at the age of 18.

1863 Birth of French tenor Pierre CORNUBERT. d-27 JUN 1922. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire. Début Opéra Comique [Danielin] Le Châlet (1887); London, CG, with the San Carlo Opera [Canio] I pagliacci (1904). He was appointed professor at the Paris Conservatory on 16 OCT 1919. MET Opera Début 24 FEB 1900 [Vasco] L'Africaine, 1 season (1899-1900) 6 perf. , 5 roles.

1864 Birth of American composer and singer Eleanor Everest FREER in Philadelphia. Studied singing in Paris with Mathilde Marchesi and composition with Benjamin Godard. She taught piano in Philadelphia. Studied theory with Bernard Ziehn in Chicago. She composed eleven operas and more than 150 songs. d-Chicago, 13 DEC 1932. She studied singing in Paris with German mezzo-soprano Mathilde Marchese(1821-1913). When she returned to the U.S. she studied composition. Freer composed nine operas, "The Legend of the Piper" (South Bend, IN, 1924); "The Court Jester" (Lincoln, NB, 1926); "A Christmas Tale" (concert form, Houston, TX, 1929); "Frithiof" (in concert form, Chicago, 1931); "A Legend of Spain" (in concert form, Milwaukee, WI, 1931). Works list.

1869 Birth of Polish composer Sigismond STOJOWSKI. d- 5 NOV 1946.

1872 Birth of composer John Stepan ZAMECNIK. d-1953.

1873 Birth of Russian composer Nicholas TCHEREPNIN. d-nr Paris, 26 JUN 1945.

1874 Birth of Italian tenor Giuseppe ARMANINI in Milan. d-15 MAY 1915. Debut as Visconte in Linda di Chamounix (Donizetti) 1902. Teachers were Il Selma, Alberto Selva, Alberto Foresti.

1885 Birth of German conductor Otto KLEMPERER in Breslau. Fled Germany in 1933. d-Aurich, 6 JUL 1973. Opera, "Das Ziel"(1915). The conductor had a scandalous liaison with then recently married German soprano Elisabeth Schumann (1885-1952). It obliged him to leave the Hamburg opera (1912). Klemperer was accident prone and a manic-depressant all of his life. His son was the actor Werner Klemperer. Search  Otto KLEMPERER

1889 FP of Massenet's "Esclarmonde" Paris. With Sybil Sanderson (s) (1865- 1903) U.S. [Esclarmonde].

1891 Birth of composer Egon Kornauth

1892 Birth of Russian composer and Commissar of Music Arthur Vincent LOURIE´, in Paris. d-Princeton, NJ 13 OCT 1966.

1892 Birth of composer Felix Petyrek

1893 Birth of composer Ivan Alexandrovich Vishnegradsky

1895 Birth of composer Renato Lunelli

1898 Birth of composer Bonifacio Gil Garcia

1900 Birth of Dutch composer Leo SMIT in Amsterdam. d-Auschwitz, Poland, 1943. Search for Leo SMIT

1908 Birth of German bass Helmut EYLE in Halberstadt. Created Police Sergeant in Sugar Reapers (G Bush). Sang in premiere of Frohliche Sunder (Gerster).

1902 Debut of Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921) at Covent Garden in London. [Duke] Rigoletto.

1911 Birth of composer Hans Vogt

1914 FP of Richard Strauss' ballet Josephslegende in Paris.

1917 Birth of American composer Lou HARRISON in Portland, OR. d-Lafayette, Indiana 2 FEB 2003, age 85. Andante obiturary. Search for Lou HARRISON

1917 Birth of American choral conductor Norman LUBOFF in Chicago. d-Bynum, NC 22 SEP 1987.

1917 Birth of Austrian baritone Hans BRAUN in Vienna. 2 MAY 1992. Debut as Count in Nozze di Figaro (Mozart) 1938. Created Kurt in Werbekleid (Salmhofer).

1919 Birth of German tenor Martin VANTIN in Nurnberg. Debut 1948. Sang in premiere of Konig Hirsch (Henze).

1919 FP of Claude Debussy's Saxophone Rhapsody orchestrated by Roger-Ducasse. Société Nationale de Musique, conducted by André Caplet at the Salle Gaveau in Paris.

1920 Debut of Scottish tenor Joseph Hislop (1884-1977) at Covent Garden in London. Puccini: [Rodolfo] La bohème (1920).

1924 Birth of Portugese composer Joly BRAGA-SANTOS in Lisbon. d-Lisbon, 1988.

1923 FP of Gustav Holst's opera The Perfect Fool at Covent Garden, London. With Maggie Teyte (1888-1976) Eng. [Princess].

1925 Birth of American soprano Patrice MUNSEL  in Spokane WA. MET Opera Début in Concert 14 MAR 1943. Opera, 4 DEC 1943 [Philine] Mignon, 16 seasons (1942-58) 225 perf., 16 roles, 15 works. Debut as Philine in Mignon (Thomas) 4 DEC 1943. Teachers were Renato Bellini, William Hermann, Giacomo Spadoni.

1925 Birth of composer Tristram Ogilvie Cary

1926 Birth of composer Cestmir Gregor

1930 Birth of American soprano Margaret HOSWELL. d-22 OCT 1987.

1931 Birth of American composer Alvin LUCIER in Nashua, NH.

1931 Birth of German pianist Aloys KONTARSKY, in Westphalia. Performs as piano duo with his brother Alfons. Search  for Aloys KONTARSKY

1931 Arturo Toscanini refuses to open his concert with playing of Fascist hymn and is assalted by an indignant Fascist, in Bologna, Italy.

1936 (1939?)Birth of American mezzo-soprano Joann GRILLO in Brooklyn, NY. d-NYC, 1 FEB 1999 heart attack recuperating from surgery. MET Opera Début 17 OCT 1963 [Rosette] Manon, 20 seasons (1963-78, 79-84) 288 perf., 24 roles, 23 works. Debut as Gertrude in Louise (Charpentier) 1962.

1937 Birth of composer Peter Frederic Williams

1938 Operatic debut of tenor Jan Peerce in Rigoletto, Philadelphia.

1940 Birth of Austrian bass-baritone Peter WIMBERGER in Vienna. MET Opera Début 30 APR 1984 [Woton] Die Walküre, 1 season (1983-84) 3 perf., 1 work. Debut as Pietro in Simon Boccanegra (Verdi) 1963. Teachers were Paul Schoffler, Adolf Vogel.

1941 FP of John Cage's Third Construction for four percussionists in San Francisco.

1942 Birth of American composer Gerald SHAPIRO in Philadelphia, PA.

1942 FP of Aaron Copland's Lincoln Portrait, narrated by William Adams and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andre Kostelanitz.

1943 Birth of American composer and conductor Tania LEóN in Havana, Cuba.

1948 Birth of Welsh composer Albert Alan OWEN in Bangor, Wales.

1947 Birth of English composer and singer Peter SKELLERN.

1948 Birth of American soprano Carmen BALTHROP in Washington, DC. MET Opera Début 6 APR 1977 [Pamina] Die Zauberflöte, 1 season (1976-77) 5 perf., 1 work.

1949 Birth of American pianist Alan MARKS in Chicago. d-7/12/95 in Berlin due to lung cancer.

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1950 Birth of French pianist Maria de La PAU.

1951 Birth of Welsh soprano Helen FIELD in Anyn, North Wales.

1953 FP in USAmerica of Stravinsky's opera The Rake's Progress at the MET in NYC, Stravinsky conducting. FP on 11 SEP 1951, in Venice.

1957 Birth of Italian soprano Daniela DESSI in Genoa.

1957 FP of Malipiero's "Il Figliuol prodigo" 1st stage perf. and his "Venere prigioniera" Florence.

1959 FP of Glanville-Hicks' "The Glittering Gate" New York (1959).

1965 Death of tenor Franz Gollnitz. b-1897.

1965 American debut of cellist Jacqueline DuPre.  Plays Elgar concerto in Carnegie Hall, NYC.

1966 FP of Alberto Ginastera's Concerto per Corde. Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting.

1974 Final London performance by Leopold Stokowski at age 92 conducting premiere of Otto Klemperer's Merry Waltz by New Philharmonia Orchestra.

1978 Death of Ukranian bass Alexander Kipnis. b-Zhitomir, 1 FEB 1891. Debut 1915. Teacher was Ernst Grenzebach. Pupils were Yi-Kwei Sze, Noel Mangin. Father of Igor Kipnis, harpsichordist, and founding member of the MUSIClassical forum.

1985 Debut of mezzo-soprano Yun Deng at the MET Opera, [Olga] Eugene Onegin, 9 seasons (1984-87, 88-90, 92-96) 68 perf., 10 roles, 8 works.

1986 FP of Einojuhani Rautavaara's Symphony No. 5. Finnish Radio Symphony, Paavo Berglund conducting in Helsinki.

1987 FP of Alvin Singleton's Shadows for orchestra. Atlanta Symphony, Robert Shaw conducting.

1992 FP of James MacMillan's Sinfonietta. London Sinfonietta, Martyn Brabbins conducting at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London

1993 FP of Philip Glass' opera Orphée. American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA.

2003 Death of Austrian bass-baritone Otto Edlemann aka Otto Edelmann in Vienna, Austria. Star of the Vienna State Opera famous for his interpretation of Strauss's Baron Ochs. b-5 FEB 1917. Andante, obituary, London Times, obituary, NY Times, obituary.

2005 FP of English-Canadian composer Robert Farnon's Third Symphony, which he dedicated to the city of Edinburgh, at the Usher Hall, with the ad hoc National Symphony Orchestra of Scotland, conducted by Iain Sutherland. Robert Farnon, composer, arranger and bandleader was born 24 JUL 1917 and died 23 APR 2005.