1868 in music
Encyclopedia
Events
- Modest MussorgskyModest MussorgskyModest Petrovich Mussorgsky was a Russian composer, one of the group known as 'The Five'. He was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
begins work on Boris GodunovBoris Godunov (opera)Boris Godunov is an opera by Modest Mussorgsky . The work was composed between 1868 and 1873 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is Mussorgsky's only completed opera and is considered his masterpiece. Its subjects are the Russian ruler Boris Godunov, who reigned as Tsar during the Time of Troubles,...
, which is completed six years later. - Johannes BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
completes his work for soloists, chorusChoirA choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
and orchestraOrchestraAn orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
, Ein deutsches RequiemEin deutsches RequiemA German Requiem, To Words of the Holy Scriptures, Op. 45 by Johannes Brahms, is a large-scale work for chorus, orchestra, and a soprano and a baritone soloist, composed between 1865 and 1868. It comprises seven movements, which together last 65 to 80 minutes, making this work Brahms's longest...
(his OpusOpus numberAn Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
45). - February 3 - Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
's Symphony No. 1Symphony No. 1 (Tchaikovsky)Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote his Symphony No. 1 in G minor, Winter Daydreams , Op. 13, in 1866, just after he accepted a professorship at the Moscow Conservatory: it is the composer's earliest notable work. The composer's brother Modest claimed this work cost Tchaikovsky more labor and suffering...
("Winter Dreams") is first performed in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. - June 21 - Richard WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
Die Meistersinger debuts in MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
's Hoftheater. The conductor is Hans von BülowHans von BülowHans Guido Freiherr von Bülow was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. He was one of the most famous conductors of the 19th century, and his activity was critical for establishing the successes of several major composers of the time, including Richard...
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Published popular music
- "Come Back To Erin" by Claribel
- "Her Bright Smile Haunts Me Still" w. J.E. Carpenter m. W.T. Wrighton
- "I Cannot Sing The Old Songs" w.m. Claribel (Charlotte Alington [Mrs. Charles Barnard])
- "Little Footsteps" w. Michael Bennett Leavitt m. James A. Barney
- "The Man on the Flying Trapeze" by George Leybourne, Gaston Lyle, & Alfred Lee (first published the previous year)
- "Sweet Bye and Bye" w. S. Fillmore m. Joseph P. Webster
- "Walking In The Zoo" w. Hugh Willoughby Sweny m. Alfred Lee
- "The Whispering Hope" by Septimus Winner
- "The Widow In The Cottage By The Sea" w.m. Charles A. White
- "Yield Not To Temptation" w.m. Horatio R. Palmer
Classical music
- Jean-Baptiste AccolayJean-Baptiste AccolayJean-Baptiste Accolay Jean-Baptiste Accolay Jean-Baptiste Accolay (17 April 1845 (Brussels, Belgium) – 19 August 1910 (Brugge, Belgium) was a Belgian violin teacher, violinist, conductor, and composer of the romantic period . His best known composition is a student concerto with only one movement...
- Concerto for Violin no 1 in A minor - Georges BizetGeorges BizetGeorges Bizet formally Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer, mainly of operas. In a career cut short by his early death, he achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, became one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertory.During a...
- Variations chromatiques de concert for piano - Ignaz BrüllIgnaz BrüllIgnaz Brüll was an Austrian pianist and composer.Ignaz Brüll was born the eldest son of a prosperous Jewish merchant family in the Moravian provincial town of Prostějov . In 1850 he moved with his parents to Vienna, which became the centre of his life and work...
- Piano Concerto No. 2 in C, op. 24 - Peter TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
- Songs Without Words; FatumFatum (Tchaikovsky)Fatum, Op. 77, is a symphonic poem by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. It was written in 1868 and performed in 1869, but Tchaikovsky later destroyed the score, and it was published only three years after his death, with a posthumous opus number.-History:...
Opera
- Arrigo BoitoArrigo BoitoArrigo Boito , aka Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni Boito, pseudonym Tobia Gorrio, was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist and composer, best known today for his libretti, especially those for Giuseppe Verdi's operas Otello and Falstaff, and his own opera Mefistofele...
- MefistofeleMefistofeleMefistofele is an opera in a prologue, four acts and an epilogue, the only completed opera by the Italian composer-librettist Arrigo Boito.-Composition history:... - Gaetano BragaGaetano BragaGaetano Braga was an Italian composer and cellist.He was born in Giulianova in Abruzzi and died in Milan....
- Ruy Blas - Gialdino GialdiniGialdino GialdiniGialdino Gialdini was an Italian composer and orchestra conductor.He studied at Florence with Teodulo Mabellini. He won a prize offered by the Pergola Theatre of that city for the best opera, with Rosmunda, which met, however, with an unfavorable reception when produced in 1868...
- Rosmunda premiered March 5 at the Teatro Pergola, FlorenceFlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area.... - Jacques OffenbachJacques OffenbachJacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
- The Island of Tulipatan - Richard WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
- Die Meistersinger von NürnbergDie Meistersinger von NürnbergDie Meistersinger von Nürnberg is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater in Munich, on June 21,...
, premièred in the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater, MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
Musical theater
- La Belle HélèneLa belle HélèneLa belle Hélène , opéra bouffe in three acts, is an operetta by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy...
(Music by Jacques OffenbachJacques OffenbachJacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy) New York production opened at Pike's Opera HousePike's Opera HousePike's Opera House, later renamed the Grand Opera House, was a theatre in New York City on the northwest corner of 8th Avenue and 23rd Street, in Chelsea, Manhattan.His other Pike's Opera House, in Cincinnati, burned in the Great Fire of Cincinnati, in 1866. Rebuilt after the fire, and the first...
on November 2 and ran for 14 performances - IxionIxionIn Greek mythology, Ixion was king of the Lapiths, the most ancient tribe of Thessaly, and a son of Ares, or Leonteus, or Antion and Perimele, or the notorious evildoer Phlegyas, whose name connotes "fiery". Peirithoös was his son...
Broadway production opened at Wood's Museum and Metropolitan on September 28 and ran for 120 performances. Starring Lydia ThompsonLydia ThompsonLydia Thompson, born Eliza Hodges Thompson , was an English dancer, actress and theatrical producer....
. - The White Fawn Broadway production opened at Niblo's GardenNiblo's GardenNiblo's Garden was a New York theatre on Broadway, near Prince Street. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the Sans Souci and was later the property of the coffeehouse proprietor and caterer William Niblo. The large theatre that evolved in several...
on January 17 and ran for 176 performances
Births
- January 26 - Juventino RosasJuventino RosasJosé Juventino Policarpo Rosas Cadenas was a Mexican composer and violinist.-Life and career:Rosas was born in Santa Cruz de Galeana, Guanajuato, now renamed Santa Cruz de Juventino Rosas. Rosas began his musical career as a street musician and playing with dance music bands in Mexico City...
, composer, band leader - April 19 - Max von SchillingsMax von SchillingsMax von Schillings was a German conductor, composer and theatre director. He was chief conductor at the Berlin State Opera from 1919 to 1925....
, composer, conductorConductingConducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble... - April 22 - José Vianna da MottaJosé Vianna da MottaJosé Vianna da Motta was a distinguished Portuguese pianist, teacher, and composer. He was one of the last pupils of Franz Liszt...
, composer, pianist (d. 1948) - August 7 - Granville BantockGranville BantockSir Granville Bantock was a British composer of classical music.-Biography:Granville Ransome Bantock was born in London. His father was a Scottish doctor. He was intended by his parents for the Indian Civil Service but was drawn into the musical world. His first teacher was Dr Gordon Saunders at...
, composer - August 21 - Vess OssmanVess OssmanVess Ossman was a leading 5-string banjoist and popular recording artist of the early 20th century.-Biography:...
, ragtimeRagtimeRagtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...
banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
artist - September 12 - Jan Brandts BuysJan Brandts BuysJan Willem Frans Brandts Buijs was a Dutch-Austrian composer who came from a long line of Dutch organists and composers of protestant church music....
, composer - November 24 - Scott JoplinScott JoplinScott Joplin was an American composer and pianist. Joplin achieved fame for his ragtime compositions, and was later dubbed "The King of Ragtime". During his brief career, Joplin wrote 44 original ragtime pieces, one ragtime ballet, and two operas...
, US composer and pianist
Deaths
- January 3 - Moritz HauptmannMoritz HauptmannMoritz Hauptmann , was a German music theorist, teacher and composer.Hauptmann was born in Dresden, and studied violin under Scholz, piano under Franz Lanska, composition under Grosse and Francesco Morlacchi,...
, composer (b. 1792) - February 25 - Sophie SchröderSophie SchröderSophie Antonie Luise Schröder , was a German actress.She was born at Paderborn, the daughter of an actor, Gottfried Bürger.She made her first appearance in opera at St Petersburg, in 1793...
, actress and singer (b. 1781) - March 2 - Carl EberweinCarl EberweinFranz Carl Adalbert Eberwein was a German composer and violinist. He was born in Weimar, Germany and learned music under the consultation of his father. He was good friends with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and put music to many of his works, such as Faust and to Proserpina...
, composer (b. 1786) - April 3 - Franz BerwaldFranz BerwaldFranz Adolf Berwald was a Swedish Romantic composer who was generally ignored during his lifetime. He made his living as an orthopedic surgeon and later as the manager of a saw mill and glass factory....
, composer (b. 1796) - April 26 - Karel StrakatýKarel StrakatýKarel Strakatý was a Czech operatic bass who had a lengthy career at the Estates Theatre in Prague from 1827 until his retirement in 1858. While there he portrayed more than 253 roles in over 3,230 performances...
, singer (b. 1804) - June 5 - Anselm HüttenbrennerAnselm HüttenbrennerAnselm Hüttenbrenner , was an Austrian composer. He was on friendly terms with both Ludwig van Beethovenhe was one of only two people present at his deathand Franz Schubert, his recollections of whom constitute an interesting but probably unreliable document in Schubertian biographical...
, composer (b. 1794) - July 6 - Samuel LoverSamuel LoverSamuel Lover was an Anglo-Irish songwriter, novelist, as well as a painter of portraits, chiefly miniatures. He was the grandfather of Victor Herbert....
, songwriter (b. 1797) - August 11 - Halfdan KjerulfHalfdan KjerulfHalfdan Kjerulf was a Norwegian composer.Kjerulf was born in Christiania . He was the son of a high government official. His early education was at Christiania University, for a legal career, but his studies ended in 1839 as a result of illness, and the next year he spent some time in Paris...
, composer (b. 1815) - November 13 - Gioacchino RossiniGioacchino RossiniGioachino Antonio Rossini was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces...
, composer (b. 1792) - November 25 - Franz BrendelFranz BrendelNot to be confused with composer Franz Brendel .Karl Franz Brendel was a German music critic, journalist and musicologist....
, music critic (b. 1811) - December 23 - Karl Ferdinand AdamKarl Ferdinand AdamKarl Ferdinand Adam was a German composer, cantor, and music director.Adam was born in Constappel . He moved to Leisnig, where he served as cantor and music director. He composed popular choruses and quartets for men's voices, as well as songs and piano pieces. He died in Leisnig.-References:...
, composer and cantor (b. 1806) - date unknown
- Berl BroderBerl BroderBerl Broder , born Berl Margulis, was a Ukrainian Jew born in Podkamen, the most famous of the Broder singers and reputed the first to be both a singer and an actor. His nickname is the origin of the term Broder singer...
, singer/troubadour (b. 1815) - Erik Jonsson HellandErik Jonsson HellandErik Jonsson Helland was a Norwegian Hardanger fiddle maker from Bø in Telemark.He was the eldest son of the Hardangerfiddle maker Jon Eriksson Helland....
, Hardanger fiddle maker (b. 1816)
- Berl Broder