Anderson and Golijov for the record

Synopsis

It’s a mark success when a new musical work is recorded shortly after its premiere, and even more when the recording session itself is the premiere. But that was the case with many works written by the American composer Leroy Anderson, whose short and tuneful compositions from the 1940s, 50s and 60s proved enormously popular during his lifetime.

On June 20, 1962, Anderson was at New York’s Manhattan Center, conducting for Decca Records the premiere of his “Clarinet Candy.” By recording in the summer months, when many of New York’s best symphonic players were available for studio work, Anderson was able to round up top-notch musicians for his recording sessions.

The contemporary Argentinean-born composer Osvaldo Golijov has also proved popular enough to have many of his brand-new works recorded either at their premieres or shortly thereafter. This Klezmer-style clarinet piece is entitled “Rocketekya,” and was written for the 20th anniversary of New York’s Merkin Hall. Golijov explained: “I thought it would be interesting to write a different sort of celebratory piece, and I had an idea of a shofar blasting inside a rocket—an ancient sound propelled toward the future.”

Music Played in Today's Program

Leroy Anderson (1908 - 1975) –Clarinet Candy (Decca Studio Orchestra; Leroy Anderson, cond.) MCA 9815

Osvaldo Golijov (b. 1960) Rocketekya (David Krakauer, clarinet; Alicia Svigals, violin; Martha Mooke, electric viola; Pablo Aslan, contrabass) Naxos 8.559403

On This Day

Births

• 1756 - German-Swedish composer Joseph Martin Kraus, in Miltenberg, near Mainz;

• 1819 - German-born French cellist and operetta composer Jacques Offenbach, in Cologne;

• 1931 - Norwegian composer Arne Nordheim, in Larvik;

Deaths

• 1787 - German-born, London-based composer, gamba virtuoso and concert impresario Carl Friedrich Abel, age 63, in London; He was a friend and associate of Johann Christian Bach (the "London" Bach);

• 1940 - French organ composer Jehan Alain, age 29, killed in action at Petits-Puis, near Saumur;

Premieres

• 1716 - Handel: Concerto Grosso in F, Op. 3, no. 4a, at the King's Theater in London, performed between the acts of Handel's opera "Amadigi di Gaula" (Gregorian date: July 1);

• 1901 - Elgar: "Cockaigne Overture: In London Town," at a London Philharmonic concert;

• 1938 - Jerome Moross: ballet, "Frankie and Johnny," by the Page-Stone Ballet at the Great Northern Theater in Chicago; This production was part of the Federal Theater Project;

• 1947 - Britten: opera "Albert Herring," at the Glyndebourne Opera;

• 1952 - Hindemith: opera "Cardillac" (2nd version) in Zürich at the Stadttheater;

• 1961 - Paul Creston: "Dance Variations" for soprano and orchestra, at Lewisohn Stadium by the Stadium Symphony (New York Philharmonic), Pierre Monteux conducting and Roberta Peters the vocal soloist;

• 1962 - Leroy Anderson: "Clarinet Candy" at a Decca recording session in New York City, with the composer conducting; The four clarinet soloist for this classic recording were Vincent Abato, Herbert Blayman, Roger Hiller and Bernard Portnoy;

• 1969 - Penderecki: opera "The Devils of Loudun," in Hamburg at the Staatsoper;

Others

• 1948 - At the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City, Edward Wallerstein conducts the first public demonstration of the revolutionary Columbia Records 33-rpm "Long Playing" (LP) discs for fifty-odd members of the press.