1906
Germany plans to build a fleet of battleships • The Liberal Party led by Henry Campbell-Bannerman obtains a large majority in British elections; it proceeds to introduce a series of social reforms • The Russian Duma (parliament) meets, but is quickly dissolved because its members criticise the government of Tsar Nikolai II • Transvaal and Orange Free State win self-government from Britain • British navy launches HMS Dreadnought, the most advanced warship of the day • Frederick Hopkins (Eng) discovers the existence of vitamins • John Galsworthy (Eng) begins the ‘Forsyte Saga’ with The Man of Property
1907
Second Hague Peace Conference; Germany opposes arms limitations • Russia’s second Duma (parliament) is dissolved after disagreement; a third Duma embarks on the repression of revolutionary activities • Britain and Russia form an Entente • The Triple Alliance of Germany, Italy and Austria is renewed • The Korean Emperor Kojong abdicates; Korea becomes a Japanese protectorate • British soldier Robert Baden-Powell founds the Boy Scout movement • Women obtain the vote in Norway • Pablo Picasso (Sp) paints The Young Ladies of Avignon • Gustav Klimt (Aus) paints Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I • First exhibition of Cubism in Paris • G-B Shaw (Ire): play Major Barbara
1908
Portugal’s King Carlos and Crown Prince Luis are assassinated • Herbert H. Asquith takes over as leader of the Liberals and Prime Minister of UK • Bulgaria declares its independence from Turkey; Prince Ferdinand is made Tsar • Austria annexes the Balkan states of Bosnia and Herzegovina • Germany continues to build large warships, creating tense relationship with Britain • Congo (now Zaire) becomes a Belgian colony • Emile Cohl (Fr) releases the first animated cartoon on film: Fantasmagorie • Bruno Liljefors (Swe) paints Winter Hare • Gustav Klimt (Aus) paints The Kiss • E. M. Forster (Eng): A Room with a View • Kenneth Graham (Scot): The Wind in the Willows
1909
William Howard Taft (Rep) takes office as President of the USA • Young Turks depose Sultan Abdul Hamid; Muhamad V succeeds him as ruler of Turkey • The conditions of Russian peasants are improved by Land Laws • Old-age pensions are introduced in Britain • Henry Ford (US) begins assembly-line production of ‘affordable’ Ford Model T cars • Louis Bleriot (Fr) makes first powered air crossing of English Channel • Leo H. Baekeland (US) introduces Bakelite plastic • Explorer Robert E. Peary (US) possibly reaches the North Pole • The first motion-picture newsreels are shown in N. America and Europe • Futurist Manifesto by poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti (It) is published in Italian and French newspapers
1910
Britain’s King Edward dies; is succeeded by his son George V • Liberals win a second general election in UK under Herbert H. Asquith • Cape Colony, Natal, Transvaal and Orange Free State unite to form the Union of South Africa • Revolution breaks out in Portugal, and a republic is declared • Japan annexes Korea • Thomas Edison (US) demonstrates the first talking motion picture • Henri Matisse (Fr) paints The Dance • Pablo Picasso (Sp) paints Girl with a Mandolin • Wassily Kandinsky (Russ) begins abstract Composition series • British philosopher-mathematicians Bertrand Russell and A. N. Whitehead: Principia Mathematica, Vol. I • E. M. Forster (Eng): Howard’s End

George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 1880s to his death and beyond. He wrote more than sixty plays, including major works such as Man and Superman (1902), Pygmalion (1912) and Saint Joan (1923). With a range incorporating both contemporary satire and historical allegory, Shaw became the leading dramatist of his generation, and in 1925 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
1906
Charles Ives composes the first version of his progressive tone poem Central Park in the Dark. Disparate musical ideas are superimposed to conjure up a 'picture in sounds’ of a summers night in New Yorks Central Park, with an appropriately cacophonous climax. Revised twice afterwards, the one-movement work is not performed publicly until 1946.
Charles Ives - Central Park in the Dark
Northern Sinfonia conducted by James Sinclair
Josef Suk completes his Asrael Symphony, a heartfelt response to the deaths of his beloved wife, Otilka, and father-in-law, Dvorak.
Josef Suk - Asrael
funeral symphony in C minor dedicated "to the noble memory of Dvořák and Otilka"
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
conductor Rafael Kubelík
1. Andante sostenuto 0:00
2. Andante 16:29
3. Vivace 23:44
4. Adagio 37:16
5. Adagio e maestoso - Allegro appassionato 49:32
Ralph Vaughan-Williams completes his revisions and cataloguing of the English Hymnal. In addition to resetting a number of hymns with folk tunes, he and other composers have contributed new compositions. These include his own For All the Saints and Come Down O Love Divine, and Gustave Holst’s setting of In the Bleak Midwinter.
Vaughan Williams - Hymns from the English Hymnal
No.133 : Jesus Christ is Risen Today, Alleluya! (Easter Hymn)
No.152 : Come Down, O Love Divine (Down Ampney, an original tune)
No.390 : Firmly I Believe and Truly (Shipston)
No.485 : Teach Me, My God and My King (Sandys)
No.524 : God Be With You Till We Meet Again (Randolph, an original tune)
No.579 : Rest of the Weary (Fortunatus)
No.597 : It is a Thing Most Wonderful (Herongate)
No.641 : For All the Saints (Sine Nomine, an original tune)
Performed by the Cardiff Festival Choir conducted by Owain Arwel Hughes (with Robert Court, organ)
6 January
Maurice Ravel's piano suite Miroirs is introduced by Ricardo Vines at the Salle Erard in Paris.
Ravel - Miroirs (Lortie, Bavouzet)
Lortie:
00:00 – Noctuelles (Night Moths)
04:31 – Oiseaux tristes (Sad Birds)
08:32 – Une barque sur l'océan (A Boat on the Ocean)
15:17 – Alborada del gracioso (Morning Song of the Jester)
21:55 – La vallée des cloches (The Valley of Bells)
Bavouzet:
27:09 – Noctuelles (Night Moths)
31:50 – Oiseaux tristes (Sad Birds)
35:45 – Une barque sur l'océan (A Boat on the Ocean)
43:07 – Alborada del gracioso (Morning Song of the Jester)
49:44 – La vallée des cloches (The Valley of Bells)
24 January
Sergei Rachmaninov - The Miserly Knight.
The Miserly Knight, Op. 24, also The Covetous Knight (Russian: Скупой рыцарь, Skupój rýtsar’), is a Russian opera in one act with music by Sergei Rachmaninoff, with the libretto based on Alexander Pushkin's drama of the same name.
Sergei Rachmaninov: "Il cavaliere avaro" (The miserly knight)
Con: Richard Berkeley-Steele, Maxim Mikhailov, Viacheslav Voynarovskiy, Albert Schagidullin, Sergei Leiferkus, Matilda Leyser
Vladimir Iurowski / Annabel Arden
Glyndebourne, 2004
24 January
Sergei Rachmaninov - Francesca da Rimini.
Francesca da Rimini, Op. 25, is an opera in a prologue, two tableaux and an epilogue by Sergei Rachmaninoff to a Russian libretto by Modest Ilyich Tchaikovsky. It is based on the story of Francesca da Rimini in the fifth canto of Dante's epic poem The Inferno (the first part of the Divine Comedy).
Rachmaninov - Francesca Da Rimini
Direction musicale : Rani Calderon
Mise en scène : Silviu Purcărete
L’Ombre de Virgile : Igor Gnidii
Dante : Suren Maksutov
Lanceotto Malatesta : Alexander Vinogradov
Francesca : Gelena Gaskarova
Paolo : Evgeny Liberman
Nancy 2015
19 March
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s comic opera I Quatro rusteghi (The Four Curmudgeons) premieres at the Hoftheater in Munich. Based on Carlo Goldini’s play I rusteghi (1760), the work adds popularity to the post-Romantic 'back to Mozart’ movement.
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari - I QUATRO RUSTEGHI
Lunardo - Fernando Corena,
Margarita - Agnese Dubbini,
Marina - Alda Noni,
Siora Felice - Ester Orell,
Filipeto - Mario Carlin
Cancian - Cristiano Dalamangas,
Conte Riccardo - Manfred Ponz de León,
Lucieta - Gianna Perea-Labia,
Maurizio - Pasquale Lombardo,
Simon - Carlo Ulivi,
Giovane serva - Gilda Capozzi
Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano della RAI
Direttore ALFREDO SIMONETTO
Teatro dell'Arte, Milano 13 giugno 1951
24 May
One of Frederick Delius’s greatest compositions, Sea Drift, scored for baritone, chorus and orchestra to words by Walt Whitman, is first performed in Essen.
Delius - Sea Drift, after Walt Whitman
Baritone: Bryn Terfel
Chorus-masters: Neville Creed, Graham Caldbeck,
David Hill
Conductor: Richard Hickox
Waynflete Singers
Southern Voices
Bounemouth Symphony Chorus &
Symphony Orchestra
Late May
Gustav Mahler rehearses his Sixth Symphony in Essen. The composer is overwhelmed by his own work, as his wife Alma later recalls: 'When it was over, Mahler walked up and down in the artists’ room, sobbing, wringing his hands, unable to control himself.’ Anxiety gets the better of him as he conducts the premiere on the 27th, resulting in a poor performance.
Mahler - 6th Symphony "Tragic"
Leonard Bernstein cond.
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, 1988, Vienna
July
Arnold Schoenberg completes his Chamber Symphony No. 1, moving ever further away from tonality.
Arnold Schoenberg - Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9
Omega Ensemble
Australian National Academy of Music
Paul Meyer (conductor)
23 August
Vaughan-Williams’s folk-tune inspired Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1 is performed for the first time, at the Promenade Concerts in London.
Vaughan Williams - Norfolk Rhapsody No 1
The London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Bryden Thompson
25 September
Composer Dmitri Shostakovich is born in St Petersburg.

3 October
Edward Elgar’s oratorio The Kingdom, sequel to The Apostles (1903), premieres in Birmingham.
Elgar: The Kingdom - Prelude
Sir Andrew Davies conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Elgars 'The Kingdom' in the First Night of the Proms 2014.
Recorded live by BBC Radio Three from the Royal Albert Hall, London.
31 October
Jules Massenet - Ariane.
Ariane is an opera in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Catulle Mendès after Greek mythology (the tale of Ariadne).
Jules Massenet - ARIANE acte I 1/5
Ariane : Cécile Perrin
Phèdre : Barbara Ducret
Perséphone : Anne Pareuil
Cypris : Inge Dreisig
Eunoé : Florence Vinit
Chromis : Patricia Schnell
Thésée : Luca Lombardo
Pirithoüs : Cyril Rovery
Le chef de la nef – Phereklos : Marco di Sapia
Le récitant : Patrice Kahlhoven
Chœurs Lyriques de Saint-Etienne
Chef de chœurs Laurent Touche
Orchestre Symphonique de Saint-Etienne
sous la direction de Laurent Campellone
Jules Massenet - ARIANE acte II 2/5
Jules Massenet - ARIANE acte III 3/5
Jules Massenet - ARIANE acte IV 4/5
Jules Massenet - ARIANE acte V 5/5

11 November
Carl Nielsen introduces his comic opera Maskarade to a receptive audience at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen.
Carl Nielsen - Maskarade
Leonore: Inga Nielsen
Leander: Stig Fogh Andersen
Henrik: Guido Paevatalu
Jeronimus: Ib Hansen
Pernille: Elsebeth Lund
Magdelone: Minna Nyhus
Arv: Christian Sørensen
Leonard: Poul Karlskov
Vægteren: Jørgen Klint
Maskesælgeren: Hans Jørgen Laursen
Hans assistent: Anthony Michael
Skriveren: Johan Uldall
Kokkepigen: Kari Hamnøy Theilmann
Fem studenter:
Peter Grønlund
Sten Nordberg Nielsen
Mogens Halken
Michael Kammer
Tony Stenfors
Officeren: Troels Kold
Tre piger:
Lise-Lotte Nielsen
Lilli Jønch
Annemarie Møller
Vagtmesteren: Claus Nørby
Maskarademesteren: Ulrik Cold
Magisteren: Christian Christiansen
Drengen: Martin Bloch
Danish Radio 1986
Dirigent: Lamberto Gardelli
Iscenesættelse: Palle Kjærulff-Schmidt
1907
Claude Debussy completes his second book of Images for Piano.
Claude Debussy: Images, book II
Daniel Stipe, piano, August 13, 2015
Richmond Center Stage, Richmond, Virginia
I. Cloches a travers les feuilles
II. Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut
III. Poissons d'or
Gustav Mahler finishes the orchestration of his mammoth Eighth Symphony, scored for quadruple woodwinds, two brass sections (the second off-stage), two harps, two mandolins, piano, celesta, harmonium and organ, eight solo voices, three choirs, a large battery of percussion, and strings. He regards it as his greatest work to date.
The Symphony No. 8 in E-flat major by Gustav Mahler is one of the largest-scale choral works in the classical concert repertoire. Because it requires huge instrumental and vocal forces it is frequently called the "Symphony of a Thousand", although the work is normally presented with far fewer than a thousand performers and the composer did not sanction that name. The work was composed in a single inspired burst, at Maiernigg in southern Austria in the summer of 1906. The last of Mahler's works that was premiered in his lifetime, the symphony was a critical and popular success when he conducted the Munich Philharmonic in its first performance, in Munich, on 12 September 1910.
21 February
Frederick Delius - A Village Romeo and Juliet.
A Village Romeo and Juliet is an opera by Frederick Delius, in six scenes. The composer himself, with his wife Jelka, wrote the English-language libretto based on the short story Romeo und Julia auf dem Dorfe by the Swiss author Gottfried Keller. The first performance was at the Komische Oper Berlin on 21 February 1907
Frederick Delius - "A Village Romeo and Juliet" Sadler's Wells, 1962
Meredith Davies conducts a cast featuring Elsie Morison, Donald McIntyre, Lawrence Felley, John Wakefield, and Neil Easton.
Frederick Delius - "A Village Romeo and Juliet"
This film is by Petr Weigl in 1991
Sergei Rachmaninov completes his Second Symphony and composes his First Piano Sonata.
Rachmaninoff - Symphony No 2 in E minor, Op 27
1 Largo - Allegro moderato
2 Allegro molto
3 Adagio
4 Allegro vivace
Orchestra of the Academy of Santa Cecilia, Rome
Sir Antonio Pappano, conductor. London, 2013
Alexander Scriabin completes his symphonic Poem of Ecstasy (Symphony No. 4), which struggles at its New York premiere the following year.
Alexander Scriabin - The Poem of Ecstasy
Philharmonia Orchestra and conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen at 2010 BBC Proms.
5 February
Arnold Schoenberg’s String Quartet No. 1 in D minor (1905), exploring extended tonality, provokes a frosty reaction at its premiere in Vienna. Three days later the 32-year-old’s Chamber Symphony No. 1 in E major (1906) is played for the first time, also in Vienna, and fairs no better.
Arnold Schönberg - String Quartet No. 1 D minor, op.7
Zemlinsky Quartet - Basel 24.11.2015
15 April
Francesco Cilea - Gloria.
Gloria is a tragic opera in three acts by Francesco Cilea with an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti. A variation on the Romeo and Juliet story and set in 14th century Siena, the libretto is based on Victorien Sardou's 1874 play La Haine (Hatred). The opera premiered on 15 April 1907 at La Scala conducted by Arturo Toscanini.
"Gloria" - Francesco Cilea
Margherita Roberti (Gloria)
Flaviano Labò (Lionetto de'Ricci)
Ferruccio Mazzoli (Aquilante dei Bardi)
Lorenzo Testi (Bardo)
Enrico Campi (Il Vescovo)
Anna Maria Rota (La Senese)
Alberto Albertini (Il Banditore)
Orchestra Sinfonica e Coro di Torino della RAI
Ruggero Maghini, chorus master
Fernando Previtali, conductor, Torino, 1969
10 May
Paul Dukas’s Ariane et Barbe-Bleue (Ariane and Bluebeard), based on a play by Maeterlinck, opens at the Opera-Comique, Paris.
Paul Dukas - Ariane et Barbe-Bleue
Ygraine - Anne-Marie Blanzat, soprano
Mélisande - Jocelyne Chamonin, soprano
Bellangère - Michelle Command, soprano
Ariane - Katherine Ciesinski, mezzosoprano
La Nourrice - Mariana Paunova, mezzosoprano
Sélysette - Hanna Schaer, contralto
Barbe.Bleue - Gabriel Bacquier, baritono
Un vieux Paysan - Chris de Moor, basso
II. Paysan - André Meurant, tenore
III Paysan - Gilbert Chretien, basso
Alladine, mimo
Coro: Paysans, Foule
Chœurs et Nouvel Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France - Rainer Altorfer e Jacques Jouineau, maestri di coro - Armin Jordan, direttore
7 February
Jules Massenet - Therese.
Thérèse is an opera in two acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Jules Claretie.
Thérèse - Massenet Jules
Dirigent: Patrick Fournillier
Redatelj: Vlado Habunek
Dunja Vejzović .................(Therese)
Daniel Galvez Vallejo....... (Armand de Cherval)
Josip Lešaja.......................(Andre Thorel)
Miroslav Belamarić...........(Morel)
Damir Fatović....................(Prvi oficir)
Vlaho Ljutić ......................(Drugi oficir)
Sotir Spasevski..................(Civilni oficir)
Zbor i orkestar HNK - Zagreb, 1989
4 September
Leading Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg dies in Bergen, aged 64. A crowd of 50,000 gather to watch his funeral procession five days later.

25 September
Jean Sibelius conducts the premiere of his Symphony No. 3 in C major in Helsinki. A national hero, he can observe his portrait hanging in many of the city’s shop windows.
Jean Sibelius - Symphony No. 3 Op. 52
The Danish National Symphony Orchestra
Leif Segerstam, conductor.
1908
Claude Debussy completes his piano suite Children's Corner, dedicated to ‘Chou-Chou’, his beloved daughter, Claude-Emma.
Debussy - Children's Corner
1. Doctor Gradus ad parnassum
2. Jimbo's Lullaby
3. Serenade for the Doll
4. The Snow is Dancing
5. The Little Sheperd
6. Golliwog's Cake Walk
Mieczyslaw Horszowski, 1984
4 February
Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony in E flat (Op. 1) is given its first complete performance, in St Petersburg. This year the composer also writes the orchestral scherzo Fireworks, composed as a wedding present for Rimsky-Korsakov’s daughter, Nadezhda.
Igor Stravinsky - Symphony in E-flat major Op. 1
Russian National Orchestra conducted by Mikhail Pletnev.
Charles Ives completes his chamber work The Unanswered Question. This same year he marries a nurse, Harmony Twitchell. He will later write (in Memos): "If I have done anything good in music, it was first, because of my father, and second, because of my wife."
Charles Ives - The Unanswered Question
CCM Concert Orchestra
Olivier Ochanine, conductor, 2009
15 March
The first performance of Maurice Ravel's symphonic suite Rapsodie espagnole is warmly applauded in Paris.
Ravel "Rhapsodie espagnole"
Boston Symphony Orchestra - Seiji Ozawa
Camille Saint-Saens produces one of the first original film scores with his music to Henri Lavedan’s film L’assassinat du due de Guise (The Assassination of the Duke of Guise).
Camille Saint Saëns - L'Assassinat du Duc de Guise Op. 127
2 January
The third book of Isaac Albeniz’s piano suite Iberia is introduced at the salon of Princess de Polignac in Paris.
The composer completes the fourth and final book this year.
Book I: May 9, 1906, Salle Pleyel, Paris
Book II: September 11, 1907, Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Book III: January 2, 1908, Palace of Princess de Polignac, Paris
Book IV: February 9, 1909, Société Nationale de Musique, Paris.
«Iberia, doce nuevas impresiones en cuatro cuadernos» - Isaac Albéniz
Alicia de Larrocha, piano.
Cuaderno 1
1. Evocación (00:00)
2. El Puerto (06:04)
3. Corpus Christi en Sevilla (10:14)
Cuaderno 2
4. Rondeña (19:15)
5. Almería (26:39)
6. Triana (36:29)
Cuaderno 3
7. El Albaicín (41:35)
8. El Polo (49:03)
9. Lavapiés (56:05)
Cuaderno 4
10. Málaga (01:03:10)
11. Jerez (01:08:29)
12. Eritaña (01:18:20)
18 January
Frederick Delius's An English Rhapsody is premiered in Liverpool.
Frederick Delius - "Brigg Fair", an "English rhapsody"
Orchestra of the Welsh National Opera
by Sir Charles Mackerras, 1990
21 June
Composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov dies outside St Petersburg, aged 64.

19 September
Gustav Mahler premieres his Seventh Symphony (completed 1905) with only modest success in Prague. This year also marks the completion of his orchestral song cycle Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth).
Gustav Mahler - Symphony No. 7: Song of the Night
Wiener Philharmoniker - Leonard Bernstein
Mahler - Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth)
1. The Drinking Song of Earth's Misery
2. The Lonely One in Autumn
3. Of Youth
4. Of Beauty
5. The Drunken Man in Spring
6. The Farewell
Sasha Cooke, mezzo-soprano
William Burden, tenor
Vladimir Kulenovic, Conductor
Texas Festival Orchestra - Round Top Music Festival, 2016
3 December
Edward Elgar's Symphony No. 1 is introduced under Hans Richter in Manchester. It is the first significant symphony by an English composer.
Elgar - Symphony No.1
London Philharmonic Orchestra
conducted by Vernon Handley, 1979.
10 December
French composer Olivier Messiaen is born in Avignon.
23 January
American composer Edward MacDowell dies in New York, aged 47.

1 February
Karl Goldmark - Ein Wintermärchen.
Karl Goldmark - Ein Wintermärchen
IDEGENEK – operavizsga
Szimfonikus Zenekara
Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: MADARAS Gergely
Leontes: Zuo YOU
Hermione: Lusine SAHAKYAN
Perdita: IHRING Anna
Paulina: RUSZÓ Alexandra
Dada: VIDA Anikó
Polixenes: ERDŐS Attila
Florizel: ÓDOR Botond
Camillo: GAÁL Csaba
Mamilius: KISS Tamás
2015., Hungarian State Opera House
11 December
Composer Elliot Carter is born in New York.
21 December
The Rose Quartet (The Rosé Quartet was a string quartet formed by Arnold Rosé in 1882. It was active for 55 years, until 1938) premiere Arnold Schoenberg’s highly dissonant Second String Quartet with the soprano Marie Gutheil-Schoder in Vienna. The audience begins to laugh during the second movement, followed up with some stronger reactions as the final movement introduces pure atonality. The groundbreaking work suffers, in Schoenbergs words, 'tumultuous rejection’.
Arnold Schoenberg - Quartetto per archi n.2 op.10 Bethany Beardslee, soprano
The Sequoia String Quartet
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen, in full Olivier-Eugène-Prosper-Charles Messiaen, (born Dec. 10, 1908, Avignon, France—died April 27, 1992, Clichy, near Paris), influential French composer, organist, and teacher noted for his use of mystical and religious themes. As a composer he developed a highly personal style noted for its rhythmic complexity, rich tonal colour, and unique harmonic language.
Messiaen was the son of Pierre Messiaen, who was a scholar of English literature, and of the poet Cécile Sauvage. He grew up in Grenoble and Nantes, began composing at age seven, and taught himself to play the piano. At age 11 he entered the Paris Conservatory, where his teachers included the organist Marcel Dupré and the composer Paul Dukas. During his later years at the conservatory he began an extensive private study of Eastern rhythm, birdsong, and microtonal music (which uses intervals smaller than a semitone). In 1931 he was appointed organist at the Church of the Sainte-Trinité, Paris.
Messiaen became known as a composer with the performance of his Offrandes oubliées (“Forgotten Offertories”) in 1931 and his Nativité du Seigneur (1938; The Birth of the Lord). In 1936, with the composers André Jolivet, Daniel Lesur, and Yves Baudrier, he founded the group La Jeune France (“Young France”) to promote new French music. He taught at the Schola Cantorum and the École Normale de Musique from 1936 until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. As a French soldier he was taken prisoner and interned at Görlitz, where he wrote Quatuor pour la fin du temps (1941; Quartet for the End of Time). Repatriated in 1942, he resumed his post at Sainte-Trinité and taught at the Paris Conservatory. His students included Karlheinz Stockhausen, Pierre Boulez, Jean-Louis Martinet, and Yvonne Loriod (whom he married in 1961).
Much of Messiaen’s music was inspired by Roman Catholic theology, interpreted in a quasi-mystical manner, notably in Apparition de l’église éternelle for organ (1932; Apparition of the Eternal Church); Visions de l’amen for two pianos (1943); Trois Petites Liturgies de la présence divine for women’s chorus and orchestra (1944); Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant Jésus for piano (1944; Twenty Looks upon the Infant Jesus); Messe de la Pentecôte for organ (1950); and La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ for orchestra and choir (1969). Among his most important orchestral works is the Turangalîla-Symphonie (1948) in 10 movements—containing a prominent solo piano part and using percussion instruments in the manner of the Indonesian gamelan orchestra, along with an ondes martenot (an electronic instrument). Also notable is Chronochromie for 18 solo strings, wind, and percussion (1960). Le Réveil des oiseaux (1953; The Awakening of the Birds), Oiseaux exotiques (1956; Exotic Birds), and Catalogue d’oiseaux (1959; Catalog of Birds) incorporate meticulous notations of birdsong. He composed an opera, St. François d’Assise, which premiered at the Paris Opera in 1983.
Messiaen’s method of composition is set forth in his treatise Technique de mon langage musical (1944; “Technique of My Musical Language”).

Messiaen - Quartet for the End of Time
Richard Nunemaker, Clarinet
Johnny Chang, Violin
Olive Chen, Cello
I-Ling Chen, Piano
St. Thomas University, Houston, November 15, 2011
Olivier Messiaen - Chronochromie (1960)
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks diretta da Karl Anton Rickenbacher -
I. Introduction
II. Strophe 1 [3:26]
III. Antistrophe 1 [4:52]
IV. Strophe 2 [8:05]
V. Antistrophe 2 [9:30]
VI. Épôde [15:10]
VII. Coda [18:48]
Messiaen - La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jesus-Christ
John A. C. Kane [Xylorimba], János Starker [Cello], Yvonne Loriod [Piano], Wallace Mann [Flute], Loren Kitt [Clarinet], Frank A Ames [Marimba], Ronald Barnett [Vibraphone], Michael Sylvester [Tenor], Paul Aquino [Baritone], Westminster Symphonic Choir [Choir], National Symphony Orchestra Washington [Orchestra], Antal Doráti [Conductor]
Olivier Messiaen - SAINT FRANCOIS D'ASSISE
Saint François: José van Dam
L'Ange: Christine Schäfer
Le Lépreux: Chris Merritt
Frère Léon: Brett Polegato
Frère Massée: Charles Workman
Frère Elie: Christoph Homberger
Frère Bernard: Roland Bracht
Frère Sylvestre: Guillaume Antoine
Frère Ruffin: David Bizic
Choeur et Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Paris
Sylvain Cambreling, Paris, Opéra Bastille, 2004
Elliot Carter
Elliott Carter, in full Elliot Cook Carter, Jr., (born December 11, 1908, New York, New York, U.S.—died November 5, 2012, New York City), American composer, a musical innovator whose erudite style and novel principles of polyrhythm, called metric modulation, won worldwide attention. He was twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize for music, in 1960 and 1973.
Carter, who was born of a wealthy family, was educated at Harvard University (1926–32), where he first majored in English and later studied music with Walter Piston and Gustav Holst. His interest in music dated from his teens and was fostered by the composer Charles Ives, who was Carter’s neighbour in 1924–25.
Carter began composing seriously in 1933, while studying in Paris with Nadia Boulanger. His early works displayed an original diatonic style that was strongly influenced by the rhythmic and melodic patterns of ancient Greek music and literature. Among his early works were choral and instrumental pieces and a ballet. Two pieces from the early 1940s—The Defense of Corinth for narrator, men’s chorus, and two pianos (1941) and Symphony No. 1 (1942)—were especially representative work of that period.
Carter’s Piano Sonata (1945–46) marked a turning point in his stylistic development; in it he used a complex texture of irregularly cross-accented counterpoint within a large-scale framework. In the Cello Sonata (1948) the principles of metric modulation were well established. In a 2002 radio interview, Carter said, “Everybody hated it. I couldn’t get it published. Now it’s taught in most universities and it’s played all the time.” The composer’s innovative rhythmic technique culminated in his String Quartet No. 1 (1951), characterized by the densely woven counterpoint that became a hallmark of his style. Both that quartet and the String Quartet No. 2 (1959; Pulitzer Prize, 1960) became part of the standard repertory. The Variations for Orchestra (1955) marked another phase of Carter’s development, leading to a serial approach to intervals and dynamics. The Double Concerto for harpsichord, piano, and two chamber orchestras (1961), which won rare praise from Igor Stravinsky, displayed Carter’s interest in unusual instrumentation and canonic texture (based on melodic imitation). The conflict generated between the two orchestral groups and the great difficulty of the concerto were mirrored in his Piano Concerto (1965). Carter’s Concerto for Orchestra was first performed in 1970 and the String Quartet No. 3, for which he won a second Pulitzer Prize, in 1973.
The 1980s began a major creative period for Carter. Some of his more frequently performed works from that and subsequent decades include the Oboe Concerto (1987); Violin Concerto (1990), a recording of which won the 1993 Grammy Award for best contemporary composition; String Quartet No. 5 (1995); the playful Clarinet Concerto (1996); the ambitious Symphonia: Sum Fluxae Pretium Spei (1993–96; “I Am the Prize of Flowing Hope”); an opera, What Next? (1999), about six characters in the aftermath of a car accident; the Cello Concerto (2000), first performed by Yo-Yo Ma; and a continuing string of commissions beyond the composer’s 100th birthday. Major orchestras and other performers around the world increasingly played his music, and he became one of the few contemporary composers whose works entered the standard repertoire.
Carter was the first composer to receive the U.S. National Medal of Arts (1985); the governments of France, Germany, Italy, and Monaco also awarded him high honours. He became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Referring to the “wit and humour…anger…lyricism and beauty” found throughout Carter’s works, the critic Andrew Porter labeled the composer “America’s great musical poet.”

Elliott Carter - Symphony No. 1
American Composers Orchestra
Conducted by Paul Dunkel
Elliott Carter - Piano Concerto (1964)
Ursula Oppens, piano
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
Michael Gielen, conductor
Elliott Carter - String quartet No.1 (1951)
Juilliard String Quartet
I. Fantasia: Maestoso
Allegro scorrevole
II. Allegro scorrevole (13:16)
Adagio
III. Variations (26:46)
Elliott Carter - String quartet No.2 (1959)
Juilliard String Quartet
Introduction
I. Allegro fantastico Cadenza for viola
II. Presto scherzando Cadenza for cello
III. Andante espressivo Cadenza for violin I
IV. Allegro Conclusion
Elliott Carter - Cello Concerto
Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music
Fred Sherry - cello
Stefan Asbury - conductor
Elliott Carter - Piano Sonata
Paul Jacobs
1909
Zoltan Kodaly captures Hungarian folk melody in his String Quartet No. 1.
Zoltán Kodály - String Quartets 1 & 2
Kodály String Quartet
Arnold Schoenberg completes Three Piano Pieces, Op. 11, and the Five Orchestral Pieces, Op. 16. They are the composers first completely atonal works.
Arnold Schoenberg: Three Piano Pieces, Op 11
I Mässig (at a moderate speed) 0:00
II Mässig (at a moderate speed) 4:33
III Bewegt (with motion) 12:40
Matthew Edwards
Arnold Schoenberg - 5 Orchestral Pieces Op. 16
1. Premonitions (Vorgefühle)
2. The Past (Vergangenes) 2:12
3. Chord-Colours (Farben) 7:30
4. Turning Point (Peripetie) 10:41
5. The Obbligato Recitative (Das obligate Rezitativ) 12:52
London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rober Craft.
2 June
The ballet Les Sylphides, with Chopin's music orchestrated by Alexander Glazunov, is first danced in St Petersburg.
Alexander Glazunov - Chopiniana (Les Sylphides)
I. Polonaise
II. Nocturne
III. Mazurka
IV. Walzer
V. Tarantelle
Czecho-Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (Bratislava) Ondrej Lenárd
7 June
Thomas Beecham premieres Frederick Delius’s A Mass of Life (1905) at the Queens Hall, London. True to his anti-religious disposition, Delius has drawn his text from Nietzsche's Also sprach Zarathustra.
Frederick Delius - A Mass of Life.
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Hill.
Soprano: Janice Watson.
Mezzo-Soprano: Catherine Wyn-Rogers.
Tenor: Andrew Kennedy.
Baritone/barítono: Alan Opie.
Choir: The Bach Choir.
I. First Part (0:00)
II. Second Part (32:51)
Ralph Vaughan Williams, aged 38, completes his first symphonic work, A Sea Symphony, scored for orchestra and voices throughout.
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Symphony No. 1 for soprano, baritone, chorus & orchestra ("A Sea Symphony")
London Philharmonic Orchestra, 1989
- Choirs: London Philharmonic Choir, Cantilena
- Conductor: Bernard Haitink
- Felicity Lott (soprano),
- Jonathan Summers (baritone)
00:00 - 1: A Song for All Seas, All Ships (baritone, soprano, and chorus)
20:58 - 2: on the Beach at Night, Alone (baritone and chorus)
33:02 - 3: Scherzo: The Waves (chorus)
40:00 - 4: The Explorers (baritone, soprano, semi-chorus, and chorus)
Anton Webern, Five movements for string quartet, op. 5
Anton Webern - Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6
Staatskapelle Dresden conducted by Giuseppe Sinopoli
Anton Webern composes his Five Movements for String Quartet, Op. 5, and Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6.
The 12-minute orchestral suite, inspired by Schoenberg's Five Orchestral Pieces, points to Webern's mature style with its predominantly sparse, fragmentary atonal textures.
25 January
Richard Strauss’s potent one-act opera Elektra, completed the previous year to a librettoby Hugo von Hofmannsthal, is performed for the first time, in Dresden. The opera incorporates some of Strauss’s most harmonically daring passages, flirting at times with atonality.