Today is the birthday of George Szell (1897-1970). A notorious autocrat from an era when autocrats were tolerated, expected and even revered on the podium, Szell was a formidable perfectionist, even to the extent of lecturing the Severance Hall custodians on the acceptable way to mop a floor and what kind of toilet paper they should be supplying in the restrooms. Okay, he may have been a little tightly wound, but you can’t quibble with the results. Thank your lucky stars you didn’t have to work for him, but boy, could he conduct!
Szell’s benchmark modern orchestra Haydn:
While on tour with the Cleveland Orchestra in Tokyo, and with only two months to live (he was terminally ill with cancer), Szell conducted what very well may be the most thrilling performance of Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 I have ever heard, certainly on a par with the classic Barbirolli account with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra:
Szell as a Mozart pianist:
One of Szell’s own, early compositions, “Variations on an Original Theme”:
What precautions have you taken against Rusalka Week? None, you say? (Crosses self.)
In Slavic mythology, a rusalka is a spirit that dwells at the bottom of a river or lake. She lures unsuspecting men with her song, invariably resulting in a watery doom. Rusalki are never more dangerous than in early June, when the spirits roam free.
There have been innumerable pieces of music written about water spirits – sirens, naiads, lorelei, undines, mermaids and melusinas. One of the best known of the bunch is Dvořák’s “Rusalka,” inspired by Czech fairy tales of Karel Jaromir Erben and Božena Němcová. Here is its most famous aria, the “Song to the Moon,” sung by Lucia Popp:
Alexander Dargomizhsky, one of the pioneers of Russian nationalism in music, also composed an opera called “Rusalka.” His was based on a dramatic poem by Pushkin. Chaliapin recorded selections, but the complete opera is as rare as hen’s teeth.
Rusalka Week is the backdrop for Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera, “May Night,” drawn from Gogol’s collection, “Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka.” The Nikolai Golovanov recording from 1948 is still the one to beat.
Of course, it being YouTube, you will have to search for plot synopses and libretti yourself. You should have plenty of time to do so. You shouldn’t be out wandering at night during Rusalka Week anyway.
Collectors of a certain vintage (and musical archaeologists who haunt used record shops) may remember Leopold Stokowski’s recording, with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, of “Azerbaijan Mugam” by Fikret Amirov. Its native title is “Kyurdi Ovshari.”
That language barrier may in part explain Amirov’s relative obscurity in the West. Even taking into account the more accessible title, what exactly is a mugam? It turns out it is a highly rhapsodic and improvisatory form, alternating between song and dance episodes, characteristic of Azeri music. But you see what I mean.
It is that very exoticism which makes Amirov difficult to market, yet at the same time, it is what makes him so interesting. In these multicultural times, when such a high-profile musician as Yo-Yo Ma traverses the Silk Road, perhaps Amirov’s day has finally come.
This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” we’ll hear two works by Amirov (1922-1984), winner of the Stalin Prize in 1949, honored as People’s Artist of the USSR in 1965, and recipient of the USSR State Prize in 1980.
His “Six Pieces for Flute and Piano,” of 1970, consists of “Song of the Aushug,” “Lullaby,” “Dance,” “In the Azerbaijan Mountains,” “At the Spring,” and “Nocturne.” If Amirov’s music at times reminds one of Khachaturian, one need only remember that Azerbaijan shares a border with Armenia. Without getting too much into politics, relations between the two countries are tense, to say the least. His music also bears the influence of other neighboring and nearby countries – Turkey, Russia, and Iran.
This is something to bear in mind when approaching his full-length ballet, “The Arabian Nights.” The work, given its premiere in 1979, is one of the rare adaptations to come out of a region which gave us the original stories that make up “A Thousand and One Nights.” The world famous adventures of Sinbad, Ali Baba and Aladdin are enshrined in these tales, and each of them make an appearance in the ballet’s second act.
Tonight, however, we’ll hear selections from Act I, which sets up the framing device, the unfaithful wife Nurida, the Sultan’s declaration of vengeance against all womankind, and the introduction of Scheherazade, the vizier’s daughter who enthralls the Sultan with her wit and creativity and finally restores his ability to love.
I hope you’ll join me for “Azerbaijani Come Lately” – late works by Fikret Amirov – this Sunday night at 10 EDT, with a repeat Wednesday evening at 6; or that you’ll listen to it later as a webcast at wwfm.org.
How many radio hosts can do a “Wozzeck” warm-up show and then turn around and introduce an evening of jazz favorites? Well, this one will do his best.
Join me this afternoon — and this evening — on WRTI, as I fill in for Mark Pinto and Jeff Duperon. I’ll be on at noon with some music of Bach and Barber. Alban Berg’s “Wozzeck” is coming up at 1:00, from the Lyric of Opera of Chicago. In between, it will be the opera preview.
New releases, hosted by yours truly, will follow at 3:00. Then it’s “Discoveries from the Fleisher Collection” with Kile Smith and Jack Moore at 5:00. The focus this week will be on music by American composer Edward MacDowell.
Jazz begins at 6. Somewhere along the way, I’ll grab some tea and a sandwich. Listen today, in Philadelphia at 90.1 FM. You’ll find a full list of frequencies at wrti.org.
If you’ve never had the chance to hear Classic Ross Amico spinning the jazz, I’ll be donning the pork pie from 6 to 9 tonight on WRTI 90.1 FM in Philadelphia and at wrti.org. Stay cool, fools!
