Beethoven in Vienna

Synopsis

On today’s date in the year 1801, the world, or at least that portion of it seated in the Imperial Court Theater in Vienna, heard for the very first time the music for a new ballet. The real draw that evening was the prima ballerina of the company, a certain Fraulein Cassentini, because the performance was being staged as a benefit in her honor.

The music was by a young composer not yet very famous, having written only one symphony and a couple of piano concertos, and nothing at all for the stage, let alone a ballet. His name was Ludwig van Beethoven, and his ballet was called “The Creatures of Prometheus.” The “creatures” referred to in the title are two stone statues that are brought to life by Prometheus, the legendary Greek figure who stole fire from the gods and gave it to mankind.

Beethoven’s commission came from an Italian dancer named Salvatore Vigano, who had been working in Vienna since 1793, and was —like Beethoven—seeking the attention and possible patronage of the culture-loving Austrian Empress Maria Theresa.

Although Beethoven’s ballet was given 14 times the first season, and nine more the next, it was never published in his lifetime, and even today remains one of his least-known orchestral works. Nevertheless, Haydn himself is said to have praised it, and Beethoven was evidently please with at least ONE of its themes, a tune he recycled twice: first in the finale of his mammoth “Eroica” and again in a set of 15 Variations for Solo Piano.

Music Played in Today's Program

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) The Creatures of Prometheus Orpheus Chamber Orchestra DG 453 713

On This Day

Births

• 1871 - Dutch conductor Willem Mengelberg, in Utrecht;

• 1890 - American bandleader Paul Whiteman, in Denver, Colo.;

• 1930 - American composer Robert Ashley, in Ann Arbor, Mich.;

Deaths

• 1881 - Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky, age 42, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Mar. 16);

• 1911 - Lithuanian painter and composer Mikolajus Konstantinas Ciurlionis (Gregorian date: April 10);

• 1937 - Polish composer Karol Szymanowski, age 54, in Lausanne, Switzerland;

• 1943 - Russian-born composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, age 69, in Beverly Hills, Calif.; A few weeks before his death he became an American citizen;

• 1949 - Rumanian composer and violinist Grigoras Dinicu, age 59, in Bucharest; He is best known for his virtuoso violin showpiece "Hora staccato" (1906);

• 1958 - American composer and "father of the blues" William Christopher (W.C.) Handy, age 84 in New York;

Premieres

• 1733 - Handel: oratorio "Deborah" (Julian date: March 17);

• 1801 - Beethoven: ballet "The Creatures of Prometheus," at the Burgtheater in Vienna;

• 1871 - Tchaikovsky: String Quartet in D, Op. 11, in Moscow, by members of the Russian Musical Society (Julian date: Mar. 16);

• 1879 - Smetana: String Quartet in e ("From My Life"), in Prague, by Ferdinand Lachner, Jan Pelikán (violins), Josef Krehan (viola), and Alois Neruda (cello); This was the "official" premiere, although a private performance had taken place in Prague the previous year, with the young Antonin Dvorák performing on viola;

• 1896 - Giordano: opera "Andrea Chénier," in Milan at the Teatro alla Scala;

• 1940 - Britten: Violin Concerto, Op. 15, by the New York Philharmonic conducted by John Barbirolli, with Antonio Brosa the soloist;

• 1951 - Douglas Moore: opera "Giants in the Earth," in New York City; This work won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1951;

• 1958 - Rochberg: Symphony No. 1, in Philadelphia;

• 1960 - Cowell: Symphony No. 12, by the Houston Symphony, Leopold Stokowski conducting;

• 1972 - Bernstein: "Meditations Nos. 1 and 2" for Cello and Piano, in New York City, by cellist Stephen Katz and the composer at the piano;

• 2003 - Ned Rorem: Cello Concerto, by the Kansas City Symphony with Michael Stern conducting and David Geringas the soloist;

Others

• 1739 - London music publisher John Walsh the younger issues Handel's Trio Sonatas, Op. 5 London (Gregorian date: April 8);

• 1842 - The Vienna Philharmonic plays its first concert (as the "Vienna Court Orchestra") in the Redoutensaale under the director of composer Otto Nicolai, the director of the Vienna Court Opera; The program included Beethoven's Seventh Symphony, his concert aria "Ah, Perfido," and the "Leonore" No. 3 and "Consercration of the House" Overtures, along with other vocal selections by Mozart and Cherubini.