A Lehar premiere in Vienna

Synopsis

On this date in 1905, Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár conducted the first performance of his new operetta, The Merry Widow. He was sure it would be a success, but others did not share his confidence. The show’s librettist, lawyer in tow, urged him to cancel the premiere, and the nervous theater manager banned Viennese reporters from dress rehearsals, fearing bad advance press.

After a lukewarm debut at Vienna’s Theater an der Wien, The Merry Widow moved to a smaller, suburban theater, where it suddenly caught on. Within a year it had become a sensational hit throughout Europe.

Lehár’s contemporary, Gustav Mahler, was a Merry Widow fan, although he sent his wife, Alma, to buy the music rather than risk the embarrassment of having the director of Vienna’s Imperial Opera House seen buying such a shamelessly “pop” score.

Ironically, another great fan of Lehár’s music was Adolf Hitler. Despite the fact that his wife and many of his professional associates were Jewish, his music continued to be performed in Nazi Germany. He was 68 when Austria became part of the German Reich, and continued to conduct in Vienna and Berlin.

Lehár’s family was spared, but many of his former associates were forced into exile. Others were not so lucky: In 1942, Louis Treumann, who first sang The Merry Widow Waltz at the 1905 premiere in Vienna, died in the concentration camp at Theresienstadt.

Music Played in Today's Program

Franz Lehár (1870-1948): The Merry Widow excerpts; Budapest Philharmonic; Janos Sandor, conductor; Laserlight 15046

On This Day

Births

• 1853 - French composer André Messager, in Montlucon

• 1859 - Czech composer Joseph Bohuslav Foerster, in Prague

• 1874 - Russian composer Reinhold Glière (Gregorian date: Jan. 11, 1875)

• 1904 - Soviet composer Dimtri Kabalevsky, in St. Petersburg (Julian date: Dec. 17)

• 1910 - American composer and writer Paul Bowles, in Jamaica, New York

Deaths

• 1946 - American composer Charles Wakefield Cadman, 65, in Los Angeles

• 1979 - American composer Richard Rodgers, 77, in New York City

Premieres

• 1725 - Bach: Sacred Cantata No. 28 (Gottlob, nun Geht das Jahr zu Ende) performed on the Sunday after Christmas as part of Bach's third annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig (1725/27)

• 1877 - Brahms: Symphony No. 2, with Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Hans Richter

• 1879 - Gilbert & Sullivan: operetta The Pirates of Penzance, in Paignton at the Royal Bijou (partial preview to insure British copyright). The first full performance of the new work occurred at the Fifth Avenue Theater in New York City the following day, with Sullivan conducting and Gilbert in attendance. The New York premiere was arranged to register American copyright of the new work and pre-empt unauthorized “pirate” productions in the U.S.

• 1884 - Bruckner: Symphony No. 7, with Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra conducted by Arthur Nikisch

• 1905 - Lehar: operetta The Merry Widow, at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna

• 1921 - Prokofiev: opera The Love for Three Oranges, in Chicago, with composer conducting

• 1943 - Khachaturian: Symphony No. 2 in Moscow

• 1961 - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 4, by Moscow Philharmonic, Kiril Kondrashin conducting. This symphony was scheduled to be premiered in 1936, but the composer withdrew the score after performances of his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk had cancelled after being was severely criticized in the official press.

• 1977 - Daniel Pinkham: The Miracle at Cana at King’s Chapel in Boston, performed by flutist Liselyn Adams and organist Barry Turley at their own wedding. This music was later incorporated into a larger Miracles suite for flute and organ.

• 1992 - Christopher Rouse: Trombone Concerto, by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Slatkin, with soloist Joseph Alessi. This work won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1993.