
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
In the 1940s, the Boston Symphony gave the premiere of more than 60 new orchestral works — most of them conducted by the charismatic and wealthy Serge Koussevitzky, the music director of the Boston Symphony.
And why not? It was the Koussevitzky Foundation that commissioned most of those pieces in the first place, and certainly Maestro Koussevitzky had the knack for picking winners and advancing the careers of composers he admired. In the 1940s, for example, Koussevitzky premiered no less than four major works by the Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu. On today’s date in 1943, one of these pieces, Martinu’s Violin Concerto No. 2, received its first performance under Koussevitzky with Mischa Elman as the soloist.
But not all the Boston premieres were conducted by Koussevitzky. Earlier that same December of 1943, the American composer and conductor Howard Hanson led the orchestra in the first performance of his Symphony No. 4, and on today’s date in 1948, the premiere of his Piano Concerto, with the Boston Symphony and Czech pianist Rudolf Firkusny as soloist. Like the Martinu concerto, this, too, was a Koussevitzky Foundation commission.
Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959): Violin Concerto No. 2; Josef Suk, violin; Czech Philharmonic; Vaclav Neumann, conductor; Supraphon 11 0702
Howard Hanson (1896-1981): Piano Concerto; Alfred Mouledous, piano; Eastman-Rochester Orchestra; Howard Hanson, conductor; Mercury 434 370
4.7
168168 ratings
In the 1940s, the Boston Symphony gave the premiere of more than 60 new orchestral works — most of them conducted by the charismatic and wealthy Serge Koussevitzky, the music director of the Boston Symphony.
And why not? It was the Koussevitzky Foundation that commissioned most of those pieces in the first place, and certainly Maestro Koussevitzky had the knack for picking winners and advancing the careers of composers he admired. In the 1940s, for example, Koussevitzky premiered no less than four major works by the Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu. On today’s date in 1943, one of these pieces, Martinu’s Violin Concerto No. 2, received its first performance under Koussevitzky with Mischa Elman as the soloist.
But not all the Boston premieres were conducted by Koussevitzky. Earlier that same December of 1943, the American composer and conductor Howard Hanson led the orchestra in the first performance of his Symphony No. 4, and on today’s date in 1948, the premiere of his Piano Concerto, with the Boston Symphony and Czech pianist Rudolf Firkusny as soloist. Like the Martinu concerto, this, too, was a Koussevitzky Foundation commission.
Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959): Violin Concerto No. 2; Josef Suk, violin; Czech Philharmonic; Vaclav Neumann, conductor; Supraphon 11 0702
Howard Hanson (1896-1981): Piano Concerto; Alfred Mouledous, piano; Eastman-Rochester Orchestra; Howard Hanson, conductor; Mercury 434 370
6,058 Listeners
9,115 Listeners
1,187 Listeners
3,109 Listeners
3,017 Listeners
502 Listeners
38,604 Listeners
883 Listeners
8,649 Listeners
38,202 Listeners
1,356 Listeners
13,264 Listeners
3,596 Listeners
235 Listeners
6,663 Listeners
27,500 Listeners
5,497 Listeners
2,089 Listeners
13,484 Listeners
1,129 Listeners
5,865 Listeners
15,942 Listeners
3,599 Listeners
199 Listeners
1,067 Listeners