Richard Strauss, celebrated for his opulent tone poems and decadent operas, described himself as a “first-class second-rate” composer.
This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” we mark the 150th anniversary of Strauss’ birth (June 11, 1864), with two of his lesser-heard works, the “Festive Prelude” for large orchestra with organ, written in 1913 for the opening of the Vienna Konzerthaus, and the symphonic fragment from the ballet “Josephslegende” (“The Legend of Joseph”), which I discussed in a Facebook entry on May 14, the work’s centenary.
We’ll also hear the composer’s breakout success, “Don Juan,” in a recording from 1929, with Strauss himself conducting, and a contemporaneous song, “Wie sollten wir geheim sie halten,” Op. 19, No. 4, an ardent expression of clandestine love.
That’s “First Among Seconds,” 150 years of Richard Strauss. This Sunday night at 10 ET, with a repeat Thursday at 11; or you can listen to it later as a webcast at http://www.wwfm.org.