Synopsis

Today is National Hot Dog Day, but we’re taking this opportunity to celebrate the non-grill variety, namely the Weiner dog or dachshund, a breed beloved of some famous composers and performers.

Leonard Bernstein was passionate about the many dachshund he owned, all named Henry, and once on a flight to Paris, booked a seat for a furry passenger named Henry Bernstein.

When composer Benjamin Britten and tenor Peter Pears moved into their house in Aldeburgh, the brick wall surrounding the property soon sported signs in English, German, and Latin, warning “Beware of the Dog,” “Bisseger Hund,” and “Caveat Canem,” lest passersby ankles be savaged by their classically-named dachshunds, Klithe and Jove.  Britten’s friend and frequent collaborator, the Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, also a dachshund owner, presented Britten and Pears with an additional warning sign in Russian.

We’re told Rostropovich’s miniature, long-haired dachshund, Pooks, upon command, would play the piano with its front paws, then, after the humans’ appreciative applause died down, would walk up and down the keyboard as an encore. “Pooks” even gets a shout-out in Slava!, Leonard Bernstein’s short orchestral tribute to Rostropovich — at one point in the score members of the orchestra are invited call out the talented dog’s name.

Music Played in Today's Program

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): Slava! A Political Overture; Israel Philharmonic Orchestra; Leonard Bernstein, conductor; Naxos 8.559813