May 18: Today’s Music History

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1909 ~ Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (Suite española, Tango in D), died from nephritis at the age of 48

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concertmaster at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concertmaster of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

• 2012 ~ Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, German baritone, died at the age of 86

• 2014 ~ Jerry Vale, American singer, died at the age of 83

Happy Birthday to Mozart!

mozart-birthday

 

 

Wolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus Theophilus Mozart lived between 1756 and 1791. He is considered to be a classical composer. Mozart, born in Salzburg, Austria, began composing before most children go to kindergarten. By the time he was six he had played the piano and violin in public.

A Wunderkind, a prodigy of the first rank before the age of five, Mozart astounded the musical world with compositions of unsurpassed brilliance. His father Leopold had recognized his talent at the age of three and immediately set out to teach him to play the harpsichord, violin, and organ. Mozart and his sister made their debut in Munich when he was just six and traveled about Europe together, performing at courts and before royalty, always with success. While still a little child Mozart was inventing symphonies, sonatas, and his first opera. Legends abound about how Mozart could hear an entire work in his head and write everything down without making even one change.

As a child performer he was often treated as a freak. People would cover his hands as he played the piano, make him compose tunes on the spot and perform all sorts of other musical tricks.

In 1787 Mozart became court composer to Joseph II. He played for royalty, received commissions from aristocrats and in his short lifetime composed nearly a thousand masterpieces, including symphonies, operas, serenades, sonatas, concertos, masses, vocal works, and church works.

Mozart was a prolific composer writing masterpieces using every form of music, including his operas “The Marriage of Figaro” (based on a play by Pierre Beaumarchais), “Don Giovanni”, “Cosi fan tutte” and “The Magic Flute”. His mastery of instrumental and vocal forms, from symphony to concerto and opera, was unrivalled in his own time and perhaps in any other.

Composing the Requiem Mass commissioned for Count Walsegg, he felt he was writing his own requiem and he died before it was finished.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer, died in Vienna Austria at the age of 35, penniless, on December 5th, 1791, of malignant typhus. Mozart, the precocious child prodigy, composed several pieces that are deemed central to the classical era. Though he ranked as one of the greatest musical genius, he did not live a life of affluence as none of his compositions earned him a decent commission but the world is forever enriched by such works as Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the Symphonies No. 38 through 41 and the Coronation Mass.

In the year 2000, there have were some new discoveries about Mozart’s death

     Mozart’s birthday

     Mozart’s son, Wolfgang Amadeus Franz Xavier Mozart

     Listen to Mozart’s music.

You might be surprised to hear what “Ah Vous Dirais-je Maman” is!


     Read quotes by and about Mozart

     In Praise of Pianos and the Artists Who Play Them

     Guess what my li’l Chopin played today

     History of the Piano

     Mozart’s first public concert with his sister

     Books and CD’s by Mozart

         Mozart for Children

     Read Amazon.com’s Get Started in Classical feature

University offers opera instead of traditional discipline

 

 

May 18: On This Day in Music

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1909 ~ Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (Suite española, Tango in D), died from nephritis at the age of 48

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concertmaster at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concertmaster of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

• 2012 ~ Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, German baritone, died at the age of 86

• 2014 ~ Jerry Vale, American singer, died at the age of 83

Happy Birthday, Mozart!

mozart-birthday

 

 

Wolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus Theophilus Mozart lived between 1756 and 1791. He is considered to be a classical composer. Mozart, born in Salzburg, Austria, began composing before most children go to kindergarten. By the time he was six he had played the piano and violin in public.

A Wunderkind, a prodigy of the first rank before the age of five, Mozart astounded the musical world with compositions of unsurpassed brilliance. His father Leopold had recognized his talent at the age of three and immediately set out to teach him to play the harpsichord, violin, and organ. Mozart and his sister made their debut in Munich when he was just six and traveled about Europe together, performing at courts and before royalty, always with success. While still a little child Mozart was inventing symphonies, sonatas, and his first opera. Legends abound about how Mozart could hear an entire work in his head and write everything down without making even one change.

As a child performer he was often treated as a freak. People would cover his hands as he played the piano, make him compose tunes on the spot and perform all sorts of other musical tricks.

In 1787 Mozart became court composer to Joseph II. He played for royalty, received commissions from aristocrats and in his short lifetime composed nearly a thousand masterpieces, including symphonies, operas, serenades, sonatas, concertos, masses, vocal works, and church works.

Mozart was a prolific composer writing masterpieces using every form of music, including his operas “The Marriage of Figaro” (based on a play by Pierre Beaumarchais), “Don Giovanni”, “Cosi fan tutte” and “The Magic Flute”. His mastery of instrumental and vocal forms, from symphony to concerto and opera, was unrivalled in his own time and perhaps in any other.

Composing the Requiem Mass commissioned for Count Walsegg, he felt he was writing his own requiem and he died before it was finished.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer, died in Vienna Austria at the age of 35, penniless, on December 5th, 1791, of malignant typhus. Mozart, the precocious child prodigy, composed several pieces that are deemed central to the classical era. Though he ranked as one of the greatest musical genius, he did not live a life of affluence as none of his compositions earned him a decent commission but the world is forever enriched by such works as Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the Symphonies No. 38 through 41 and the Coronation Mass.

In the year 2000, there have were some new discoveries about Mozart’s death

     Mozart’s birthday

     Mozart’s son, Wolfgang Amadeus Franz Xavier Mozart

     Listen to Mozart’s music.

You might be surprised to hear what “Ah Vous Dirais-je Maman” is!


     Read quotes by and about Mozart

     In Praise of Pianos and the Artists Who Play Them

     Guess what my li’l Chopin played today

     History of the Piano

     Mozart’s first public concert with his sister

     Books and CD’s by Mozart

         Mozart for Children

     Read Amazon.com’s Get Started in Classical feature

University offers opera instead of traditional discipline

 

 

On May 18 in Music History

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1909 ~ Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (Suite española, Tango in D), died from nephritis at the age of 48

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concertmaster at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concertmaster of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

• 2012 ~ Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, German baritone, died at the age of 86

• 2014 ~ Jerry Vale, American singer, died at the age of 83

It’s Mozart’s Birthday!

mozart-birthday

 

 

Wolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus Theophilus Mozart lived between 1756 and 1791. He is considered to be a classical composer. Mozart, born in Salzburg, Austria, began composing before most children go to kindergarten. By the time he was six he had played the piano and violin in public.

A Wunderkind, a prodigy of the first rank before the age of five, Mozart astounded the musical world with compositions of unsurpassed brilliance. His father Leopold had recognized his talent at the age of three and immediately set out to teach him to play the harpsichord, violin, and organ. Mozart and his sister made their debut in Munich when he was just six and traveled about Europe together, performing at courts and before royalty, always with success. While still a little child Mozart was inventing symphonies, sonatas, and his first opera. Legends abound about how Mozart could hear an entire work in his head and write everything down without making even one change.

As a child performer he was often treated as a freak. People would cover his hands as he played the piano, make him compose tunes on the spot and perform all sorts of other musical tricks.

In 1787 Mozart became court composer to Joseph II. He played for royalty, received commissions from aristocrats and in his short lifetime composed nearly a thousand masterpieces, including symphonies, operas, serenades, sonatas, concertos, masses, vocal works, and church works.

Mozart was a prolific composer writing masterpieces using every form of music, including his operas “The Marriage of Figaro” (based on a play by Pierre Beaumarchais), “Don Giovanni”, “Cosi fan tutte” and “The Magic Flute”. His mastery of instrumental and vocal forms, from symphony to concerto and opera, was unrivalled in his own time and perhaps in any other.

Composing the Requiem Mass commissioned for Count Walsegg, he felt he was writing his own requiem and he died before it was finished.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer, died in Vienna Austria at the age of 35, penniless, on December 5th, 1791, of malignant typhus. Mozart, the precocious child prodigy, composed several pieces that are deemed central to the classical era. Though he ranked as one of the greatest musical genius, he did not live a life of affluence as none of his compositions earned him a decent commission but the world is forever enriched by such works as Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the Symphonies No. 38 through 41 and the Coronation Mass.

In the year 2000, there have were some new discoveries about Mozart’s death

     Mozart’s birthday

     Mozart’s son, Wolfgang Amadeus Franz Xavier Mozart

     Listen to Mozart’s music.

You might be surprised to hear what “Ah Vous Dirais-je Maman” is!


     Read quotes by and about Mozart

     In Praise of Pianos and the Artists Who Play Them

     Guess what my li’l Chopin played today

     History of the Piano

     Mozart’s first public concert with his sister

     Books and CD’s by Mozart

         Mozart for Children

     Read Amazon.com’s Get Started in Classical feature

University offers opera instead of traditional discipline

 

 

May 18 in Music History

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1909 ~ Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (Suite española, Tango in D), died from nephritis at the age of 48

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concert master at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concertmaster of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

May 18 ~ This Day in Music History

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concert master at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concertmaster of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

May 18 in Music History

today

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concert master at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart and Beethoven, Schneiderhan became concert master of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.

May 18 ~ Today in Music History

today

 

• 1799 ~ Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright, died. Famed for his two comedies “The Marriage of Figaro” (Mozart used this for an opera) and “The Barber of Seville” Rossini used this for an opera).

• 1830 ~ Karl Goldmark, composer

• 1876 ~ The first issue of the first music magazine in America, Musical America, was published

• 1892 ~ Ezio Pinza, Italian bass and actor

• 1902 ~ Meredith Willson, American composer, flutist, arranger and orchestrator
More information about Willson

• 1911 ~ Gustav Mahler, Czech-born Austrian composer, died. His last word was “Mozart”.  He completed nine symphonies and several song-cycles notably “Das Lied von der Erde.”
More information about Gustav Mahler

• 1911 ~ Big Joe (Joseph Vernon) Turner, Rhythm & blues singer

• 1913 ~ Perry (Pierino Roland) Como, Grammy Award-winning American singer of popular music, 15 gold records
More information about Como

• 1919 ~ Dame Margot Fonteyne, British prima ballerina. She started her career with the London Sadler’s Wells company in 1934 and in 1962 began a legendary partnership with Rudolph Nureyev.

• 1922 ~ Kai Winding, Jazz musician: trombone

• 1948 ~ Joe Bonsall, Singer with The Oak Ridge Boys

• 1968 ~ Tiny Tim’s warbly Tiptoe Through the Tulips was released. An eventual top twenty hit, Tiptoe was a remake of a number one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929.

• 1970 ~ Opening this night in New York City was The Me Nobody Knows at the Orpheum Theatre. The musical had a run of 586 performances.

• 2002 ~ Wolfgang Schneiderhan, a violinist who began performing as a child, became a concert master at 17 and played with orchestras across Europe, died. He was 86. A child prodigy, Schneiderhan quickly rose to international fame, performing with leading ensembles, including the Vienna Symphonic Orchestra and the Philharmonic. A regular at Europe’s most important music festivals, Schneiderhan played with Wilhelm Backhaus and other well-known pianists and gave violin concerts under such legendary conductors as Bruno Walter and Wilhelm Furtwängler. Later, Schneiderhan was a teacher at the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Vienna Academy of Music. At age 11, Schneiderhan played in Copenhagen, Denmark – his first major concert abroad. Already a distinguished interpreter of the music of Mozart andBeethoven, Schneiderhan became concert master of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at age 17, a job he also held with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1937.

• 2003 ~ Broadway’s ‘Les Miserables’ Ended After 16 Years. The pop opera based on Victor Hugo’s 1832 novel closed after 16 years, making it the second longest-running show ever on the Great White Way. The show played 6,680 performances since opening at the Broadway Theater in 1987. Only “Cats” has played more performances on Broadway with 7,485. The last performance at the Imperial Theater included a finale featuring 300 alumni of the Broadway run. Although it is now gone from the New York stage, the show is performed around the world by touring companies and is a fixture in London’s West End.