Concert Notes
Echoes of the Armory Show: Modern Music in New York
Echoes of the Armory Show: Modern Music in New York by Leon Botstein Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. The Armory Show of 1913 may have been a watershed moment in the history of American visual arts—the moment when European modernism burst onto the scene, even…
Read MoreGeorge Antheil, A Jazz Symphony
George Antheil, A Jazz Symphony by Matthew Mugmon Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. Antheil born Jul 8, 1900 in Trenton, NJ; died Feb 12, 1959 in NYC A Jazz Symphony composed in 1925; Premiered on Apr 10, 1927 at Carnegie Hall Approximate performance time: 8…
Read MoreCharles Griffes, Poem
Charles Griffes, Poem by Matthew Mugmon Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. Griffes born Sep 17, 1884 in Elmira, NY; died Apr 8, 1920 in NYC Poem composed in 1918; Premiered Nov 16, 1919 by the New York Symphony Society under Walter Damrosch with Georges Barrère…
Read MoreAaron Copland, Symphony for Organ and Orchestra
Aaron Copland, Symphony for Organ and Orchestra by Matthew Mugmon Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. Copland born Nov 14, 1900 in Brooklyn; died Dec 2, 1990 in North Tarrytown, NY Symphony for Organ and Orchestra composed in 1924; Commissioned by Sergey Koussevitsky; Premiered Jan 11,…
Read MoreCarl Ruggles, Men and Mountains
Carl Ruggles, Men and Mountains by Matthew Mugmon Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. Ruggles born Mar 11, 1876 in East Marion, MA; died Oct 24, 1971 in Bennington, VT Men and Mountains composed from 1924–41; Premiered on Dec 7, 1924 at Aeolian Hall in NYC…
Read MoreEdgard Varèse, Amériques
Edgard Varèse, Amériques by Matthew Mugmon Written for the concert New York Avant-Garde, performed on Oct 3, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. Varèse born Dec 22, 1883 in Paris; died Nov 6, 1965 in NYC Amériques composed from 1918–21; Premiered Apr 9, 1926 by the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski; NY Premiere Apr 13, 1926 at Carnegie…
Read MoreHungary Torn
Hungary Torn By Leon Botstein Written for the concert Hungary Torn, performed on May 2, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. The consequences of the rise of fascism in the 1930s and the Second World War have continued to command our attention, despite the passage of time. The reasons are largely obvious. During the war, millions of…
Read MoreThe Hungarian Jewish Composers of WWII
The Hungarian Jewish Composers of WWII By Péter Bársony Written for the concert Hungary Torn, performed on May 2, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Liszt Music Academy had the highest ratio of Jewish students among all Hungarian universities. Between 1915 and 1919, almost half of all music students…
Read MoreErnő Dohnányi, Szeged Mass
Ernő Dohnányi, Szeged Mass By Peter Laki Written for the concert Hungary Torn, performed on May 2, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. “Musical life in Budapest today may be summed up in one name—Dohnányi.” These words were written by Béla Bartók in a 1920 article for the New York Musical Courier. A decade later, when the present…
Read MoreThe Vampire
The Vampire By Leon Botstein Written for the concert The Vampire, performed on March 17, 2013 at Carnegie Hall. The great novelist Vladimir Nabokov ridiculed the common impulse to find symbolic meaning, particularly of a Freudian kind, in any narrative or witnessed event. But he might have made an exception for the long-standing fascination in…
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