Tag Archives: flautist

Some Musical Presidents

Posted by MaryO on

presidents-day

 

Presidents’ Day (celebrated on the third Monday in February), was originally established in 1885 in recognition of George Washington. The holiday became popularly known as Presidents’ Day after it was moved as part of the 1971 Uniform Monday Holiday Act, an attempt to create more three-day weekends for the nation’s workers. Presidents’ Day is now popularly viewed as a day to celebrate all U.S. presidents past and present.

Wondering how many U.S. Presidents played musical instruments?

Thomas Jefferson (1743 – 1826) Third president of the United States, drafted the Declaration of Independence, and played the violin and cello.

John Quincy Adams (1767 – 1848) The sixth president of the United States formulated the Monroe Doctrine, and played the flute.

John Tyler (1790-1862) The tenth president of the United States was the first Vice President to become President by the death of his predecessor.  He played the violin.

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) The sixteenth president of the United States issued the Emancipation Proclamation and played the violin.

Ulysses S. Grant (1822- 1884) The eighteenth president of the United States certainly scrapes the bottom of the list. He was tone deaf and famously commented, “I only know two tunes. One of them is Yankee Doodle and the other isn’t.”

Chester Alan Arthur (1829 – 1886) Became the 21st president of the United States following the assassination of President James A. Garfield. He played the banjo.

Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) The 32nd President of the United States and the fifth cousin to President Theodore Roosevelt, played the piano and sang soprano in his school choir.

Woodrow Wilson (1856 – 1924) The 28th president of the United States and creator of the League of Nations, played the violin and sang tenor in his college glee club.

Warren Harding (1865-1923) The 29th president of the United States organized the Citizen’s Cornet Band, available for both Republican and Democratic rallies. He once remarked that, “I played every instrument but the slide trombone and the E-flat cornet.”

Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933) The 30th president of the United States was determined to preserve old moral and economic precepts amid American prosperity. He played the harmonica.

Harry Truman (1884 – 1972) The 33rd president of the United States who served during the conclusion of World War II, played the piano.

Richard Nixon (1913 – 1994) The 37th president of the United States, who ended American fighting in Vietnam and later resigned from office in the aftermath of the Watergate Scandal, was a classically-trained pianist and also played the accordion. He composed and played this piece, set to concerto form with “15 Democratic violinists.”  Nixon takes a dig at Harry Truman just before playing.:

Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) The 40th president of the United States implemented the Reagan Revolution, which aimed to reinvigorate the American people and reduce their reliance upon Government. He played the harmonica.

Bill Clinton (born 1946) The 42nd president of the United States and the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second term, plays the saxophone.

Barack Obama (born 1961) The 44th president of the United States and first African American president has broken into song on several recent occasions. President Obama sang Amazing Grace at the funeral for South Carolina State Senator Clementa Pinckney:

December 29 ~ On This Day in Music

Posted by MaryO on

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• 1876 ~ Pablo Casals, Spanish cellist and conductor
More information about Casals

• 1912 ~ Peggy Glanville-Hicks, Australian composer and music critic

• 1922 ~ Rose Lee Maphis, Entertainer, half of the team: Mr. and Mrs. Country Music with husband Joe, Hee Haw regular

• 1942 ~ Ray Thomas, Flute, saxophone, harmonica, singer with The Moody Blues

• 1943 ~ San Fernando Valley was recorded by Bing Crosby. He chose the tune because he felt it would be a big hit. He was right. Within a week after its release, the song became a popular favorite everywhere, including the San Fernando Valley in California.

• 1945 ~ Sheb Wooley recorded the first commercial record made in Nashville, TN. The song was recorded on the Bullet label; but it was 13 years before Wooley would finally score with a big hit (The Purple People Eater was #1 for six weeks in June and July, 1958). Wooley (whose first name is Shelby) played the part of Pete Nolan on TV’s Rawhide, recorded novelty tunes under the name, Ben Colder, and acted in High Noon, Rocky Mountain, Giant and Hoosiers.The Country Music Association honored him with the title of Comedian of the Year in 1968. If you remember the TV show Hee Haw, with Buck Owens and Roy Clark, it was Sheb Wooley who wrote the theme song.

• 1951 ~ Yvonne Elliman, Actress, singer joined Eric Clapton in his 1974 comeback tour

• 1952 ~ Gelsey Kirkland, Dancer, ballerina, author of Dancing on My Grave: An Autobiography, Shape of Love

• 1952 ~ Beryl Rubinstein, American pianist and composer, died at the age of 54

 

• 1957 ~ Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme were married. They became popular singers on the The Tonight Show with Steve Allen, and as Las Vegas showroom regulars and recording artists. They remained married until Eydie’s death in 2013.  Lawrence issued a statement: “Eydie has been my partner on stage and in my life for more than 55 years. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and even more the first time I heard her sing. While my personal loss is unimaginable, the world has lost one of the greatest pop vocalists of all time.”

• 1961 ~ Mark Day, Guitarist with Happy Mondays

• 1963 ~ Much to the chagrin of the disc jockeys at 50,000-watt WABC in New York, the 5,000-watt blowtorch known as WMCA and its famed ‘Good Guys’ became the first New York radio station to play The Beatles’ I Want to Hold Your Hand. It didn’t take long for WABC to get revenge. It started calling itself the ‘official’ Beatles station (W-A-Beatle-C).

• 1967 ~ Orchestra leader Paul Whiteman passed away at the age of 76. Known as the King of Jazz, Whiteman had 28 #1 hits between 1920 and 1934 including Three O’Clock in the Morning, My Blue Heaven, All of Me and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

• 1980 ~ American singer, songwriter Tim Hardin died of a heroin overdose. Hardin wrote the songs ‘If I Were A Carpenter’ (covered by Bobby Darin, Johnny Cash and June Carter, The Four Tops, Leon Russell, Small Faces, Robert Plant and Bob Seger,) and ‘Reason To Believe’, (covered by Rod Stewart). Hardin appeared at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.

• 2001 ~ Cassia Eller, one of the most irreverent singers of Brazilian rock music, died at the age of 39. Eller’s fame peaked in 2001 with the sale of about 250,000 copies of her “MTV Unplugged” album and a performance in January’s Rock in Rio festival in front of hundreds of thousands of fans, singing along with one of her hits, I just ask God for a little indecency.

• 2001 ~ Jazz pianist Ralph Sutton, a leading practitioner of the stride piano, died at the age of 79. Born in St. Charles, Mo., in 1922, Sutton made his professional debut at age  11 with his father’s band. He later signed on with trombone great Jack Teagarden, and played at several clubs along New York’s famed 52nd Street. To create his eclectic style, Sutton drew from the jazz piano, from ragtime and the blues to stride, in the style made famous by James P. Johnson, Willie “The Lion” Smith, and Fats Waller. Critics hailed Sutton as one of the best contemporary jazz pianists with a mastery of his instrument. He was a founding member of the 1968 World’s Greatest Jazz Band, which performed at Elitch Gardens in Denver.

• 2003 ~ Manny Dworman, who owned a Greenwich Village nightspot where comedians including Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano and Jon Stewart performed, died. He was 73. Dworman, a musician who played the oud, guitar and mandolin, owned the Comedy Cellar and the Olive Tree Cafe upstairs. The club was previously the site of Cafe Feenjon, a Middle Eastern nightclub that originally opened as a coffeehouse in 1960. Dworman performed at Cafe Feenjon with his band, the Feenjon Group, which recorded five albums, performed at Carnegie Hall and inspired the radio show “Music From Around the World.” Comedy Cellar, which opened in 1980, also hosted performances by Chris Rock and Colin Quinn. Discussions at the club inspired the Comedy Central show “Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn.” Dworman was featured in the 2002 documentary “Comedian” by Jerry Seinfeld.

• 2004 ~ Jerry Orbach, American singer and actor for the musical theater and longtime star of the “Law & Order” television series, died at 69. Orbach, a lanky actor with a deep voice and a slicked mop of black hair, first made his name on Broadway, winning a Tony for “Promises, Promises.” He was also in the original cast of “Chicago” and “42nd Street.”

 

December 8 ~ On This Day in Music

Posted by MaryO on

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Christmas Countdown: It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

• 1731 ~ Frantisek Xaver Dusek, Czech composer and one of the most important harpsichordists and pianists of his time.

OCMS 1865 ~ Jean (Johan) Julius Christian Sibelius, Finnish composer
Read quotes by and about Sibelius
More information about Sibelius

• 1882 ~ Manuel Maria Ponce, composer

• 1890 ~ Bohuslav Martinu, composer

• 1924 ~ Franz Xaver Scharwenka, German pianist/composer (Mataswintha), died at the age of 74

• 1925 ~ Jimmy Smith, Grammy Award-winning musician, modern jazz organist

• 1925 ~ Sammy Davis, Jr., American singer of popular music

OCMS 1939 ~ James Galway, Irish flutist
Read quotes by and about Galway
More information about Galway

• 1939 ~ Jerry Butler, Singer with The Impressions

• 1941 ~ Ray Eberle and The Modernaires teamed with the Glenn Miller Orchestra to record Moonlight Cocktail on Bluebird Records. By April, 1942, the song was a solid hit.

• 1942 ~ Bobby Elliott, Drummer with The Hollies

• 1943 ~ Jim (James Douglas) Morrison ‘The Lizard King’, Singer in the rock group The Doors

• 1946 ~ John Rubinstein, Tony Award-winning actor, composer

• 1947 ~ Gregg Allman, Keyboards, guitar, singer with Allman Brothers Band

• 1957 ~ Phil Collen, Guitarist with Def Leppard

• 1961 ~ Surfin’, The Beach Boys first record, was released on Candix Records. It became a local hit in Los Angeles but only made it to #75 nationally. The surfin’ music craze didn’t take hold across America for another year. By the time Surfin’ Safari entered the Top 40 (September, 1962), though, The Beach Boys were ridin’ a wave of popularity that continues today.

• 1963 ~ Florence Henderson and Jose Ferrer co-starred in The Girl Who Came to Supper on Broadway. The production, however, only lasted for 112 shows.

• 1963 ~ Frank Sinatra, Jr. was kidnapped in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. He was set free four days later. It was discovered that Sinatra, Jr. cooperated with his abductors in their plot. Dad was not proud, nor pleased. Frank, Jr. went on to conduct the big band for Frank, Sr. and all was well.

• 1966 ~ Sinead O’Connor, Singer

• 1980 ~ John Lennon was shot and killed on this day as he stood outside of his New York City apartment house, the Dakota. A deranged, obsessed ‘fan’ asked Lennon to autograph an album, then shot him as Lennon started to comply. The man was quickly apprehended by others gathered at the scene. A several-days vigil by hundreds of mourning fans is remembered as candles flickered and the song Give Peace a Chance was heard, a continuing tribute to the musician and songwriter of a generation. John Lennon’s wife, Yoko Ono, together with New York’s officials, set up a permanent memorial to her husband: a section of Central Park, opposite the Dakota, named Strawberry Fields.

• 1982 ~ Marty Robbins passed away

. 1995 ~ American rock band Grateful Dead announced they were breaking up after 30 years of making music. The news came four months after the death of lead guitarist Jerry Garcia.

• 2003 ~ Lewis Allen, producer of the Broadway hit “Annie” and winner of three Tony Awards, died of pancreatic cancer, his wife said. He was 81. “Annie” opened in 1977 and ran for six years. Allen won a Tony for it and for two plays he produced: Herb Gardner’s “I’m Not Rappaport” in 1986 and Terrence McNally’s “Master Class” in 1996. Allen also produced several films, including Shirley Clarke’s “The Connection” (1961), Francois Truffaut’s “Fahrenheit 451” (1966) and both the 1963 and 1990 versions of “Lord of the Flies.” He was an early supporter of “Annie,” which started life at a regional theater in Connecticut. Although that production received lukewarm reviews, Allen got producer-director Mike Nichols to join him in backing the Broadway version, which spawned the 1982 film version that Allen did not produce. Allen was born in Berryville, Va., graduated from the University of Virginia and served with the American Field Service during World War II. His wife, Jay Presson Allen, wrote the screenplays for “Cabaret” (1972) and Alfred Hitchcock’s “Marnie”(1964).

• 2003 ~ Cuban pianist Ruben Gonzalez, who found new fame in the mid-1990s playing with Compay Segundo’s Buena Vista Social Club band, died. He was 84. Gonzalez’s keyboard gymnastics provided the heartbeat of the Buena Vista Social Club’s string of traditional Cuban “son” music albums beginning in 1997. The smallish man with grizzled hair and beard gained worldwide attention as the pianist on the opening album of the series, the Grammy-winning “Buena Vista Social Club.”

. 2013 ~ Britain’s Got Talent singer Susan Boyle announced that she had been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. While Boyle said this diagnosis will not change her life she believes that it gives her a greater understanding of herself.

July 12: Today’s Music History

Posted by MaryO on

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Be sure your student reads and listens to Today’s Daily Listening Assignment

 

• 1633 ~ Simon Besler, Composer, died at the age of 49

• 1757 ~ Christian Danner, Composer

• 1773 ~ Johann Joachim Quantz, German royal flautist and composer, died at the age of 76

• 1801 ~ John Hill Hewitt, Composer

• 1802 ~ Charles-Louis Hanssens, Composer

• 1821 ~ Cesare Dominiceti, Composer

• 1839 ~ Christian Traugott Tag, Composer, died at the age of 62

• 1882 ~ Alfred Humphreys Pease, Composer, died at the age of 44

• 1883 ~ Hermann Zopff, Composer, died at the age of 57

• 1885 ~ George Sainton Kaye Butterworth, Composer

• 1895 ~ Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano, famed for her performances of Wagner and noted for her noble and easy delivery

• 1895 ~ Oscar (Greeley Clendenning) Hammerstein II, American lyricist for the musical theater
More information about Hammerstein

• 1897 ~ Felix Godefroid, Composer, died at the age of 78

• 1906 ~ Henrique Alves de Mesquita, Composer, died at the age of 70

• 1908 ~ Johan Franco, Composer

• 1920 ~ Paul Foster, Singer

• 1926 ~ Charles Wood, Composer, died at the age of 40

• 1927 ~ Conte (Secondo) Candoli, Trumpeter, bandleader; toured with Stan Kenton

• 1934 ~ Van Cliburn (Harvey Lavan), American piano virtuoso, won the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1958

• 1942 ~ Richard Stolzman, clarinet soloist

• 1943 ~ Christine (Perfect) McVie, Singer with Fleetwood Mac

• 1946 ~ Benjamin Britten’s “Rape of Lucretia,” premiered at Glyndebourne

• 1947 ~ James Melvin Lunceford, American jazz dance-band leader, passed away
More information about Lunceford

• 1949 ~ John Wetton, Bassist, singer with Asia

• 1952 ~ Liz Mitchell, Singer

• 1953 ~ Marie-Alphonse-Nicolas-Joseph Jongen, Belgian composer, died at the age of 79

• 1956 ~ Sandi Patti, Gospel Singer

• 1958 ~ “Li’l Abner” closed at St James Theater New York City after 693 performances

• 1958 ~ Yakety Yak, by The Coasters, became the number one song in America according to Billboard magazine. It was the first stereo record to reach the top of the chart.

• 1962 ~ The Rolling Stones first performance, at the Marquee Club, London. The lineup featured Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, bass player Dick Taylor and drummer Mick Avory. Taylor and Avory were soon replaced.

• 1970 ~ Blues-Rock singer Janis Joplin’s debut, in Kentucky

• 1979 ~ Kalervo Tuukkanen, Composer, died at the age of 69

• 1979 ~ Minnie Ripperton (Andrea Davis) Singer, died at the age of 30

• 1985 ~ “Singin’ in the Rain” opened at Gershwin Theater New York City for 367 performances

• 1990 ~ Les Miserables opened at National Theatre, Washington

• 1993 ~ Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical “Sunset Promenade” opened in London

• 1995 ~ Alan David Marks, Pianist and composer, died at the age of 49

• 1995 ~ Earl Coleman, Singer, died at the age of 69

• 1995 ~ Ernie Furtado, Bassist, died at the age of 72

• 1996 ~ Gottfried von Einem, Composer, died at the age of 78

• 1996 ~ Jonathan Melvoin, Keyboardist with Smashing Pumpkins, died

• 2000 ~ Ras Shorty I, who fused calypso with an up-tempo beat that he said represented the true soul of calypso, died of bone cancer. He was 59. He was born Garfield Blackman and started singing calypso as Lord Shorty. Dozens of musicians later adopted his up-tempo “soca” beat, which he called the “Indianization of calypso,” bringing together the music of his Caribbean nation’s two major ethnic groups, descendants of African slaves and of indentured laborers from India.

• 2001 ~ James Bernard, who composed the eerie musical scores for some of Britain’s most famous horror films, died at the age of 75. The British composer was best known for his work with Hammer Film studios, which made low-budget gothic horror films featuring actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. During his nearly 40-year career, Bernard composed scores for “The Curse of Frankenstein” (1957), “Dracula” (1958) and “The Devil Rides Out” (1968). He won an Academy Award, but not for his music. Bernard shared an Oscar in 1951 with Paul Dehn for best motion picture story for “Seven Days to Noon.” His last work was the score for “Universal Horror” in 1998, a documentary of Universal Studios’ horror films of the 1930s and 1940s.

July 9: Today’s Music History

Posted by MaryO on

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Be sure your student reads and listens to Today’s Daily Listening Assignment

• 1607 ~ God Save the King was first sung

• 1656 ~ Michelangelo Rossi, Italian opera Composer, buried. He was about 55

• 1713 ~ First performance of George Frederic Handel’s “To Deum” & “Jubilate”
More information about Handel

• 1747 ~ Giovanni Battista Bononcini, Italian opera composer, died at the age of 76

• 1755 ~ Gottlob Harrer, Composer, died at the age of 52

• 1774 ~ Giuseppi Maria Carretti, Composer, died at the age of 83

• 1791 ~ Nicolas Ledesma, Composer

• 1794 ~ Pascal Boyer, Composer, died at the age of 51

• 1805 ~ Henry John Gauntlett, Composer

• 1821 ~ Tommaso Sogner, Composer, died at the age of 58

• 1826 ~ Friedrich Ludwig Dulon, Flautist and composer, died at the age of 56

• 1839 ~ Carl Baermann, Composer

• 1841 ~ Carl Christian Lumbye, Composer

• 1855 ~ Johann P Zilcher, German composer

• 1879 ~ Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer, viola-player, pianist and conductor. Respighi’s Pines of Rome is featured in Fantasia 2000.
More information about Respighi

 

• 1882 ~ Richard Hageman, Dutch and American pianist, composer and conductor

• 1883 ~ Adrien Louis Victor Boieldieu, Composer, died at the age of 67

• 1898 ~ Marcel Delannoy, Composer

• 1900 ~ Robert Oboussier, Composer

• 1910 ~ Harold C Fox, Fashion designer and musician

• 1915 ~ David Diamond, American composer, winner of the Paderewski Prize in 1943

• 1916 ~ Joe Liggins, American Composer

• 1918 ~ Herbert Brun, Composer

• 1924 ~ Leonard Pennario, Concert pianist and composer

• 1924 ~ Pierre Cochereau, Composer

• 1925 ~ Alan Dale, American singer

• 1927 ~ Ed Ames, Singer with The Ames Brothers

• 1927 ~ Jim McReynolds, Folk singer with his brother Jesse

• 1929 ~ Lee Hazlewood, Songwriter of The Fool, These Boots are Made for Walkin’; singer with Nancy Sinatra

• 1930 ~ Buddy Bregman, American orchestra leader of the Eddie Fisher Show

• 1933 ~ Nodar Kalistratovich Gabuniya, Composer

• 1934 ~ Otakar Zich, Composer, died at the age of 55

• 1935 ~ Mercedes Sosa, Argentinian singer

• 1936 ~ David Joel Zinman, American composer and conductor

• 1946 ~ Bon (Ronald) Scott, Singer with AC/DC

• 1947 ~ Jerney Kaagman, Dutch singer

• 1949 ~ Fritz Bennicke Hart, Composer, died at the age of 75

• 1949 ~ Benjamin Britten’s Jump Symphony premiered

• 1949 ~ “Cabatgata (A Night Spain)” opened at Broadway New York City for 76 performances

• 1951 ~ Jorgen Bentzon, Composer, died at the age of 54

• 1952 ~ John Tesh, Emmy Award-winning composer and pianist

• 1954 ~ Debbie Sledge, Rhythm and Blues Singer with Sister Sledge

• 1955 ~ Bill Haley & Comets’ Rock Around the Clock hit #1 on Top 100 chart

• 1956 ~ Douglas Moore and John Latouche opera “Ballad of Baby Doe” premiered

• 1956 ~ Dick Clark’s first appearance as host of American Bandstand

• 1957 ~ Alexander Fyodorovich Gedike, Composer, died at the age of 80

• 1959 ~ Marc (Peter) Almond, Singer

• 1959 ~ Jim Kerr, Singer with Simple Minds

• 1960 ~ Edward Burlingame Hill, Composer, died at the age of 86

.1962 ~ Bob Dylan recorded “Blowin’ in the Wind”

• 1964 ~ Courtney Love, Rock Singer

• 1965 ~ Frank Bello, Musician, bass with Anthrax

• 1965 ~ Otis Redding recorded Respect

• 1967 ~ The Beatles’ All You Need is Love was released

• 1967 ~ Doors’ Light My Fire hit #1

• 1968 ~ Rock group “Yardbirds” disbanded

• 1972 ~ Paul McCartney appeared on stage for the first time since 1966 as his group, Wings, opened at Chateauvillon in the south of France.

• 1977 ~ Undercover Angel, by songwriter (turned pop singer) Alan O’Day, reached the top spot on the Billboard chart. It was not the first visit to the top of the pop music world for O’Day, though the million-seller would be his last as a singer. He wrote Angie Baby, a number one hit for Helen Reddy and the #3 hit, Rock And Roll Heaven, for The Righteous Brothers.

• 1978 ~ Aladar Zoltan, Composer, died at the age of 49

• 1978 ~ “Hello, Dolly!” closed at Lunt-Fontanne Theater New York City after 152 performances

• 1981 ~ Oscar van Hemel, Composer, died at the age of 88

• 1984 ~ Randall Thompson, American composer, died at the age of 85

• 1986 ~ A new Broadway showplace opened. It was the first new theater on Broadway in 13 years. The Marquis Theatre, located at the corner of 46th Street and Broadway, seated 1,600 theatergoers.

• 1994 ~ Cornelius Boyson, Bassist, died at the age of 57

• 1994 ~ William “Sabby” Lewis, Jazz Pianist and Arranger, died at the age of 79

• 1994 ~ “Les Miserables” opened at Imperial Theatre, Tokyo

July 12: On This Day in Music

Posted by MaryO on

today

 

Be sure your student reads and listens to Today’s Daily Listening Assignment

 

• 1633 ~ Simon Besler, Composer, died at the age of 49

• 1757 ~ Christian Danner, Composer

• 1773 ~ Johann Joachim Quantz, German royal flautist and composer, died at the age of 76

• 1801 ~ John Hill Hewitt, Composer

• 1802 ~ Charles-Louis Hanssens, Composer

• 1821 ~ Cesare Dominiceti, Composer

• 1839 ~ Christian Traugott Tag, Composer, died at the age of 62

• 1882 ~ Alfred Humphreys Pease, Composer, died at the age of 44

• 1883 ~ Hermann Zopff, Composer, died at the age of 57

• 1885 ~ George Sainton Kaye Butterworth, Composer

• 1895 ~ Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano, famed for her performances of Wagner and noted for her noble and easy delivery

• 1895 ~ Oscar (Greeley Clendenning) Hammerstein II, American lyricist for the musical theater
More information about Hammerstein

• 1897 ~ Felix Godefroid, Composer, died at the age of 78

• 1906 ~ Henrique Alves de Mesquita, Composer, died at the age of 70

• 1908 ~ Johan Franco, Composer

• 1920 ~ Paul Foster, Singer

• 1926 ~ Charles Wood, Composer, died at the age of 40

• 1927 ~ Conte (Secondo) Candoli, Trumpeter, bandleader; toured with Stan Kenton

• 1934 ~ Van Cliburn (Harvey Lavan), American piano virtuoso, won the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1958

• 1942 ~ Richard Stolzman, clarinet soloist

• 1943 ~ Christine (Perfect) McVie, Singer with Fleetwood Mac

• 1946 ~ Benjamin Britten’s “Rape of Lucretia,” premiered at Glyndebourne

• 1947 ~ James Melvin Lunceford, American jazz dance-band leader, passed away
More information about Lunceford

• 1949 ~ John Wetton, Bassist, singer with Asia

• 1952 ~ Liz Mitchell, Singer

• 1953 ~ Marie-Alphonse-Nicolas-Joseph Jongen, Belgian composer, died at the age of 79

• 1956 ~ Sandi Patti, Gospel Singer

• 1958 ~ “Li’l Abner” closed at St James Theater New York City after 693 performances

• 1958 ~ Yakety Yak, by The Coasters, became the number one song in America according to Billboard magazine. It was the first stereo record to reach the top of the chart.

• 1962 ~ The Rolling Stones first performance, at the Marquee Club, London. The lineup featured Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, bass player Dick Taylor and drummer Mick Avory. Taylor and Avory were soon replaced.

• 1970 ~ Blues-Rock singer Janis Joplin’s debut, in Kentucky

• 1979 ~ Kalervo Tuukkanen, Composer, died at the age of 69

• 1979 ~ Minnie Ripperton (Andrea Davis) Singer, died at the age of 30

• 1985 ~ “Singin’ in the Rain” opened at Gershwin Theater New York City for 367 performances

• 1990 ~ Les Miserables opened at National Theatre, Washington

• 1993 ~ Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical “Sunset Promenade” opened in London

• 1995 ~ Alan David Marks, Pianist and composer, died at the age of 49

• 1995 ~ Earl Coleman, Singer, died at the age of 69

• 1995 ~ Ernie Furtado, Bassist, died at the age of 72

• 1996 ~ Gottfried von Einem, Composer, died at the age of 78

• 1996 ~ Jonathan Melvoin, Keyboardist with Smashing Pumpkins, died

• 2000 ~ Ras Shorty I, who fused calypso with an up-tempo beat that he said represented the true soul of calypso, died of bone cancer. He was 59. He was born Garfield Blackman and started singing calypso as Lord Shorty. Dozens of musicians later adopted his up-tempo “soca” beat, which he called the “Indianization of calypso,” bringing together the music of his Caribbean nation’s two major ethnic groups, descendants of African slaves and of indentured laborers from India.

• 2001 ~ James Bernard, who composed the eerie musical scores for some of Britain’s most famous horror films, died at the age of 75. The British composer was best known for his work with Hammer Film studios, which made low-budget gothic horror films featuring actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. During his nearly 40-year career, Bernard composed scores for “The Curse of Frankenstein” (1957), “Dracula” (1958) and “The Devil Rides Out” (1968). He won an Academy Award, but not for his music. Bernard shared an Oscar in 1951 with Paul Dehn for best motion picture story for “Seven Days to Noon.” His last work was the score for “Universal Horror” in 1998, a documentary of Universal Studios’ horror films of the 1930s and 1940s.

July 9: On This Day in Music

Posted by MaryO on

today

 

Be sure your student reads and listens to Today’s Daily Listening Assignment

• 1607 ~ God Save the King was first sung

• 1656 ~ Michelangelo Rossi, Italian opera Composer, buried. He was about 55

• 1713 ~ First performance of George Frederic Handel’s “To Deum” & “Jubilate”
More information about Handel

• 1747 ~ Giovanni Battista Bononcini, Italian opera composer, died at the age of 76

• 1755 ~ Gottlob Harrer, Composer, died at the age of 52

• 1774 ~ Giuseppi Maria Carretti, Composer, died at the age of 83

• 1791 ~ Nicolas Ledesma, Composer

• 1794 ~ Pascal Boyer, Composer, died at the age of 51

• 1805 ~ Henry John Gauntlett, Composer

• 1821 ~ Tommaso Sogner, Composer, died at the age of 58

• 1826 ~ Friedrich Ludwig Dulon, Flautist and composer, died at the age of 56

• 1839 ~ Carl Baermann, Composer

• 1841 ~ Carl Christian Lumbye, Composer

• 1855 ~ Johann P Zilcher, German composer

• 1879 ~ Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer, viola-player, pianist and conductor. Respighi’s Pines of Rome is featured in Fantasia 2000.
More information about Respighi

 

• 1882 ~ Richard Hageman, Dutch and American pianist, composer and conductor

• 1883 ~ Adrien Louis Victor Boieldieu, Composer, died at the age of 67

• 1898 ~ Marcel Delannoy, Composer

• 1900 ~ Robert Oboussier, Composer

• 1910 ~ Harold C Fox, Fashion designer and musician

• 1915 ~ David Diamond, American composer, winner of the Paderewski Prize in 1943

• 1916 ~ Joe Liggins, American Composer

• 1918 ~ Herbert Brun, Composer

• 1924 ~ Leonard Pennario, Concert pianist and composer

• 1924 ~ Pierre Cochereau, Composer

• 1925 ~ Alan Dale, American singer

• 1927 ~ Ed Ames, Singer with The Ames Brothers

• 1927 ~ Jim McReynolds, Folk singer with his brother Jesse

• 1929 ~ Lee Hazlewood, Songwriter of The Fool, These Boots are Made for Walkin’; singer with Nancy Sinatra

• 1930 ~ Buddy Bregman, American orchestra leader of the Eddie Fisher Show

• 1933 ~ Nodar Kalistratovich Gabuniya, Composer

• 1934 ~ Otakar Zich, Composer, died at the age of 55

• 1935 ~ Mercedes Sosa, Argentinian singer

• 1936 ~ David Joel Zinman, American composer and conductor

• 1946 ~ Bon (Ronald) Scott, Singer with AC/DC

• 1947 ~ Jerney Kaagman, Dutch singer

• 1949 ~ Fritz Bennicke Hart, Composer, died at the age of 75

• 1949 ~ Benjamin Britten’s Jump Symphony premiered

• 1949 ~ “Cabatgata (A Night Spain)” opened at Broadway New York City for 76 performances

• 1951 ~ Jorgen Bentzon, Composer, died at the age of 54

• 1952 ~ John Tesh, Emmy Award-winning composer and pianist

• 1954 ~ Debbie Sledge, Rhythm and Blues Singer with Sister Sledge

• 1955 ~ Bill Haley & Comets’ Rock Around the Clock hit #1 on Top 100 chart

• 1956 ~ Douglas Moore and John Latouche opera “Ballad of Baby Doe” premiered

• 1956 ~ Dick Clark’s first appearance as host of American Bandstand

• 1957 ~ Alexander Fyodorovich Gedike, Composer, died at the age of 80

• 1959 ~ Marc (Peter) Almond, Singer

• 1959 ~ Jim Kerr, Singer with Simple Minds

• 1960 ~ Edward Burlingame Hill, Composer, died at the age of 86

• 1964 ~ Courtney Love, Rock Singer

• 1965 ~ Frank Bello, Musician, bass with Anthrax

• 1965 ~ Otis Redding recorded Respect

• 1967 ~ The Beatles’ All You Need is Love was released

• 1967 ~ Doors’ Light My Fire hit #1

• 1968 ~ Rock group “Yardbirds” disbanded

• 1972 ~ Paul McCartney appeared on stage for the first time since 1966 as his group, Wings, opened at Chateauvillon in the south of France.

• 1977 ~ Undercover Angel, by songwriter (turned pop singer) Alan O’Day, reached the top spot on the Billboard chart. It was not the first visit to the top of the pop music world for O’Day, though the million-seller would be his last as a singer. He wrote Angie Baby, a number one hit for Helen Reddy and the #3 hit, Rock And Roll Heaven, for The Righteous Brothers.

• 1978 ~ Aladar Zoltan, Composer, died at the age of 49

• 1978 ~ “Hello, Dolly!” closed at Lunt-Fontanne Theater New York City after 152 performances

• 1981 ~ Oscar van Hemel, Composer, died at the age of 88

• 1984 ~ Randall Thompson, American composer, died at the age of 85

• 1986 ~ A new Broadway showplace opened. It was the first new theater on Broadway in 13 years. The Marquis Theatre, located at the corner of 46th Street and Broadway, seated 1,600 theatergoers.

• 1994 ~ Cornelius Boyson, Bassist, died at the age of 57

• 1994 ~ William “Sabby” Lewis, Jazz Pianist and Arranger, died at the age of 79

• 1994 ~ “Les Miserables” opened at Imperial Theatre, Tokyo

Musical Presidents

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Presidents’ Day (celebrated on the third Monday in February), was originally established in 1885 in recognition of George Washington. The holiday became popularly known as Presidents’ Day after it was moved as part of the 1971 Uniform Monday Holiday Act, an attempt to create more three-day weekends for the nation’s workers. Presidents’ Day is now popularly viewed as a day to celebrate all U.S. presidents past and present.

Wondering how many U.S. Presidents played musical instruments?

Thomas Jefferson (1743 – 1826) Third president of the United States, drafted the Declaration of Independence, and played the violin and cello.

John Quincy Adams (1767 – 1848) The sixth president of the United States formulated the Monroe Doctrine, and played the flute.

John Tyler (1790-1862) The tenth president of the United States was the first Vice President to become President by the death of his predecessor.  He played the violin.

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) The sixteenth president of the United States issued the Emancipation Proclamation and played the violin.

Ulysses S. Grant (1822- 1884) The eighteenth president of the United States certainly scrapes the bottom of the list. He was tone deaf and famously commented, “I only know two tunes. One of them is Yankee Doodle and the other isn’t.”

Chester Alan Arthur (1829 – 1886) Became the 21st president of the United States following the assassination of President James A. Garfield. He played the banjo.

Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945) The 32nd President of the United States and the fifth cousin to President Theodore Roosevelt, played the piano and sang soprano in his school choir.

Woodrow Wilson (1856 – 1924) The 28th president of the United States and creator of the League of Nations, played the violin and sang tenor in his college glee club.

Warren Harding (1865-1923) The 29th president of the United States organized the Citizen’s Cornet Band, available for both Republican and Democratic rallies. He once remarked that, “I played every instrument but the slide trombone and the E-flat cornet.”

Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933) The 30th president of the United States was determined to preserve old moral and economic precepts amid American prosperity. He played the harmonica.

Harry Truman (1884 – 1972) The 33rd president of the United States who served during the conclusion of World War II, played the piano.

Richard Nixon (1913 – 1994) The 37th president of the United States, who ended American fighting in Vietnam and later resigned from office in the aftermath of the Watergate Scandal, was a classically-trained pianist and also played the accordion. He composed and played this piece, set to concerto form with “15 Democratic violinists.”  Nixon takes a dig at Harry Truman just before playing.:

Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) The 40th president of the United States implemented the Reagan Revolution, which aimed to reinvigorate the American people and reduce their reliance upon Government. He played the harmonica.

Bill Clinton (born 1946) The 42nd president of the United States and the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second term, plays the saxophone.

Barack Obama (born 1961) The 44th president of the United States and first African American president has broken into song on several recent occasions. President Obama sang Amazing Grace at the funeral for South Carolina State Senator Clementa Pinckney:

On December 29 ~ in Music History

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• 1876 ~ Pablo Casals, Spanish cellist and conductor
More information about Casals

• 1912 ~ Peggy Glanville-Hicks, Australian composer and music critic

• 1922 ~ Rose Lee Maphis, Entertainer, half of the team: Mr. and Mrs. Country Music with husband Joe, Hee Haw regular

• 1942 ~ Ray Thomas, Flute, saxophone, harmonica, singer with The Moody Blues

• 1943 ~ San Fernando Valley was recorded by Bing Crosby. He chose the tune because he felt it would be a big hit. He was right. Within a week after its release, the song became a popular favorite everywhere, including the San Fernando Valley in California.

• 1945 ~ Sheb Wooley recorded the first commercial record made in Nashville, TN. The song was recorded on the Bullet label; but it was 13 years before Wooley would finally score with a big hit (The Purple People Eater was #1 for six weeks in June and July, 1958). Wooley (whose first name is Shelby) played the part of Pete Nolan on TV’s Rawhide, recorded novelty tunes under the name, Ben Colder, and acted in High Noon, Rocky Mountain, Giant and Hoosiers.The Country Music Association honored him with the title of Comedian of the Year in 1968. If you remember the TV show Hee Haw, with Buck Owens and Roy Clark, it was Sheb Wooley who wrote the theme song.

• 1951 ~ Yvonne Elliman, Actress, singer joined Eric Clapton in his 1974 comeback tour

• 1952 ~ Gelsey Kirkland, Dancer, ballerina, author of Dancing on My Grave: An Autobiography, Shape of Love

• 1952 ~ Beryl Rubinstein, American pianist and composer, died at the age of 54

 

• 1957 ~ Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme were married. They became popular singers on the The Tonight Show with Steve Allen, and as Las Vegas showroom regulars and recording artists. They remained married until Eydie’s death in 2013.  Lawrence issued a statement: “Eydie has been my partner on stage and in my life for more than 55 years. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and even more the first time I heard her sing. While my personal loss is unimaginable, the world has lost one of the greatest pop vocalists of all time.”

• 1961 ~ Mark Day, Guitarist with Happy Mondays

• 1963 ~ Much to the chagrin of the disc jockeys at 50,000-watt WABC in New York, the 5,000-watt blowtorch known as WMCA and its famed ‘Good Guys’ became the first New York radio station to play The Beatles’ I Want to Hold Your Hand. It didn’t take long for WABC to get revenge. It started calling itself the ‘official’ Beatles station (W-A-Beatle-C).

• 1967 ~ Orchestra leader Paul Whiteman passed away at the age of 76. Known as the King of Jazz, Whiteman had 28 #1 hits between 1920 and 1934 including Three O’Clock in the Morning, My Blue Heaven, All of Me and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

• 1980 ~ American singer, songwriter Tim Hardin died of a heroin overdose. Hardin wrote the songs ‘If I Were A Carpenter’ (covered by Bobby Darin, Johnny Cash and June Carter, The Four Tops, Leon Russell, Small Faces, Robert Plant and Bob Seger,) and ‘Reason To Believe’, (covered by Rod Stewart). Hardin appeared at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.

• 2001 ~ Cassia Eller, one of the most irreverent singers of Brazilian rock music, died at the age of 39. Eller’s fame peaked in 2001 with the sale of about 250,000 copies of her “MTV Unplugged” album and a performance in January’s Rock in Rio festival in front of hundreds of thousands of fans, singing along with one of her hits, I just ask God for a little indecency.

• 2001 ~ Jazz pianist Ralph Sutton, a leading practitioner of the stride piano, died at the age of 79. Born in St. Charles, Mo., in 1922, Sutton made his professional debut at age  11 with his father’s band. He later signed on with trombone great Jack Teagarden, and played at several clubs along New York’s famed 52nd Street. To create his eclectic style, Sutton drew from the jazz piano, from ragtime and the blues to stride, in the style made famous by James P. Johnson, Willie “The Lion” Smith, and Fats Waller. Critics hailed Sutton as one of the best contemporary jazz pianists with a mastery of his instrument. He was a founding member of the 1968 World’s Greatest Jazz Band, which performed at Elitch Gardens in Denver.

• 2003 ~ Manny Dworman, who owned a Greenwich Village nightspot where comedians including Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano and Jon Stewart performed, died. He was 73. Dworman, a musician who played the oud, guitar and mandolin, owned the Comedy Cellar and the Olive Tree Cafe upstairs. The club was previously the site of Cafe Feenjon, a Middle Eastern nightclub that originally opened as a coffeehouse in 1960. Dworman performed at Cafe Feenjon with his band, the Feenjon Group, which recorded five albums, performed at Carnegie Hall and inspired the radio show “Music From Around the World.” Comedy Cellar, which opened in 1980, also hosted performances by Chris Rock and Colin Quinn. Discussions at the club inspired the Comedy Central show “Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn.” Dworman was featured in the 2002 documentary “Comedian” by Jerry Seinfeld.

• 2004 ~ Jerry Orbach, American singer and actor for the musical theater and longtime star of the “Law & Order” television series, died at 69. Orbach, a lanky actor with a deep voice and a slicked mop of black hair, first made his name on Broadway, winning a Tony for “Promises, Promises.” He was also in the original cast of “Chicago” and “42nd Street.”

 

On December 8 ~ in Music History

Posted by MaryO on

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Christmas Countdown: It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

• 1731 ~ Frantisek Xaver Dusek, Czech composer and one of the most important harpsichordists and pianists of his time.

OCMS 1865 ~ Jean (Johan) Julius Christian Sibelius, Finnish composer
Read quotes by and about Sibelius
More information about Sibelius

• 1882 ~ Manuel Maria Ponce, composer

• 1890 ~ Bohuslav Martinu, composer

• 1924 ~ Franz Xaver Scharwenka, German pianist/composer (Mataswintha), died at the age of 74

• 1925 ~ Jimmy Smith, Grammy Award-winning musician, modern jazz organist

• 1925 ~ Sammy Davis, Jr., American singer of popular music

OCMS 1939 ~ James Galway, Irish flutist
Read quotes by and about Galway
More information about Galway

• 1939 ~ Jerry Butler, Singer with The Impressions

• 1941 ~ Ray Eberle and The Modernaires teamed with the Glenn Miller Orchestra to record Moonlight Cocktail on Bluebird Records. By April, 1942, the song was a solid hit.

• 1942 ~ Bobby Elliott, Drummer with The Hollies

• 1943 ~ Jim (James Douglas) Morrison ‘The Lizard King’, Singer in the rock group The Doors

• 1946 ~ John Rubinstein, Tony Award-winning actor, composer

• 1947 ~ Gregg Allman, Keyboards, guitar, singer with Allman Brothers Band

• 1957 ~ Phil Collen, Guitarist with Def Leppard

• 1961 ~ Surfin’, The Beach Boys first record, was released on Candix Records. It became a local hit in Los Angeles but only made it to #75 nationally. The surfin’ music craze didn’t take hold across America for another year. By the time Surfin’ Safari entered the Top 40 (September, 1962), though, The Beach Boys were ridin’ a wave of popularity that continues today.

• 1963 ~ Florence Henderson and Jose Ferrer co-starred in The Girl Who Came to Supper on Broadway. The production, however, only lasted for 112 shows.

• 1963 ~ Frank Sinatra, Jr. was kidnapped in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. He was set free four days later. It was discovered that Sinatra, Jr. cooperated with his abductors in their plot. Dad was not proud, nor pleased. Frank, Jr. went on to conduct the big band for Frank, Sr. and all was well.

• 1966 ~ Sinead O’Connor, Singer

• 1980 ~ John Lennon was shot and killed on this day as he stood outside of his New York City apartment house, the Dakota. A deranged, obsessed ‘fan’ asked Lennon to autograph an album, then shot him as Lennon started to comply. The man was quickly apprehended by others gathered at the scene. A several-days vigil by hundreds of mourning fans is remembered as candles flickered and the song Give Peace a Chance was heard, a continuing tribute to the musician and songwriter of a generation. John Lennon’s wife, Yoko Ono, together with New York’s officials, set up a permanent memorial to her husband: a section of Central Park, opposite the Dakota, named Strawberry Fields.

• 1982 ~ Marty Robbins passed away

• 2003 ~ Lewis Allen, producer of the Broadway hit “Annie” and winner of three Tony Awards, died of pancreatic cancer, his wife said. He was 81. “Annie” opened in 1977 and ran for six years. Allen won a Tony for it and for two plays he produced: Herb Gardner’s “I’m Not Rappaport” in 1986 and Terrence McNally’s “Master Class” in 1996. Allen also produced several films, including Shirley Clarke’s “The Connection” (1961), Francois Truffaut’s “Fahrenheit 451” (1966) and both the 1963 and 1990 versions of “Lord of the Flies.” He was an early supporter of “Annie,” which started life at a regional theater in Connecticut. Although that production received lukewarm reviews, Allen got producer-director Mike Nichols to join him in backing the Broadway version, which spawned the 1982 film version that Allen did not produce. Allen was born in Berryville, Va., graduated from the University of Virginia and served with the American Field Service during World War II. His wife, Jay Presson Allen, wrote the screenplays for “Cabaret” (1972) and Alfred Hitchcock’s “Marnie”(1964).

• 2003 ~ Cuban pianist Ruben Gonzalez, who found new fame in the mid-1990s playing with Compay Segundo’s Buena Vista Social Club band, died. He was 84. Gonzalez’s keyboard gymnastics provided the heartbeat of the Buena Vista Social Club’s string of traditional Cuban “son” music albums beginning in 1997. The smallish man with grizzled hair and beard gained worldwide attention as the pianist on the opening album of the series, the Grammy-winning “Buena Vista Social Club.”