Synopsis
“This highway leads to the shadowy tip of reality: you're on a through-route to the land of the different, the bizarre, the unexplainable... Go as far as you like on this road. Its limits are only those of mind itself. Ladies and Gentlemen, you're entering the wondrous dimension of imagination…”
Next stop The DATEBOOK Zone.
OK, all kidding aside, but “submitted for your approval” as Rod Serling would say, this is the COMPOSERS DATEBOOK for September 30th. I’m John Birge.
On today’s date in 1960, the second season of “The Twilight Zone,”—the legendary TV series created by Mr. Serling— began airing on CBS. For this, the producers added a new signature theme written by Marius Constant, a Romanian-born French composer. Constant had studied composition with Olivier Messiaen, Arthur Honegger, and Nadia Boulanger and had a very respectable career as a composer and teacher, but he’s best known for his brief, but iconic, “Twilight Zone” theme.
During its five-season run, that show also employed the talents of other famous composers, including Jerry Goldsmith, Leonard Rosenman, Fred Steiner, and Franz Waxman.
And in case you’re wondering who wrote the theme for the FIRST season of “The Twilight Zone,” well, that was another famous Hollywood composer by the name of Bernard Herrmann.
Music Played in Today's Program
Marius Constant (1925 - 2004) The Twilight Zone Main Theme (2nd version) orchestraJoel McNeely, cond. Varese-Sarabande VSD2-6087
Bernard Herrmann (1911 - 1975) The Twilight Zone Main Theme (1st version) orchestraJoel McNeely, cond. Varese-Sarabande VSD2-6087
On This Day
Births
1840 - Norwegian composer Johann Svendsen, in Christiania;
1852 - Irish-born British composer Sir Charles Villers Stanford, in Dublin;
Deaths
1989 - American composer and music critic Virgil Thomson, age 92, in New York City;
Premieres
1791 - Mozart: opera, "Die Zauberflöte" (The Magic Flute), in Vienna at the Freihaustheater auf der Wieden, conducted by the composer;
1863 - Bizet: opera "Les Pecheurs de perles" (The Pearl Fishers), in Paris at the Théâtre Lyrique;
1935 - Gershwin: opera "Porgy and Bess," during trial run at Boston's Colonial Theater; According to Opera America magazine, this is one of the most frequently-produced American operas during the past decade;
1944 - R. Vaughan Williams: Oboe Concerto, with soloist Leon Goosens and the Liverpool Philharmonic conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent;
1960 - Barber: "Toccata Festiva" for organ and orchestra, at Philadelphia's Academy of Music, by the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Eugene Ormandy, with Paul Callaway the soloist;
1979 - Penderecki: "Te Deum" in Assisi, Italy;
1989 - Daniel Asia: Piano Quartet, at Wigmore Hall in London, by the Domus ensemble;
1999 - Michael Tilson Thomas: "Whitman Songs for Orchestra," by the San Francisco Symphony, composer conducting.
Love the music?
Show your support by making a gift to YourClassical.
Each day, we’re here for you with thoughtful streams that set the tone for your day – not to mention the stories and programs that inspire you to new discovery and help you explore the music you love.
YourClassical is available for free, because we are listener-supported public media. Take a moment to make your gift today.
Your Donation
About Composers Datebook®
Host John Birge presents a daily snapshot of composers past and present, with timely information, intriguing musical events and appropriate, accessible music related to each.
He has been hosting, producing and performing classical music for more than 25 years. Since 1997, he has been hosting on Minnesota Public Radio's Classical Music Service. He played French horn for the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestra and performed with them on their centennial tour of Europe in 1995. He was trained at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music and Interlochen Arts Academy.
