Franz Lehar Operetta The Merry Widow

Classical Music Datebook: December 30 

 Lehar's "The Merry Widow" premiered December 30, 1905, in Vienna, Austria.

The Merry Widow (Die lustige Witwe) is an operetta, a romantic musical comedy by Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehar. The librettists, Victor Leon and Leo Stein,  based the story about a rich widow, Hanna Glawari, and her attempt to find a husband, on an 1861 comedy play, L'attache d'ambassade (The Ambassador's Attache) by Henri Meilhac.

It was first performed at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna on 30 December 1905 and had several very successful productions in Austria and Germany. In its English adaptation by Basil Hood, with lyrics by Adrian Ross, the show became a sensation in London in 1907 and opened a few months later on Broadway for a very successful run. Thereafter, it was played frequently in America and throughout the English speaking world.

 

Operetta in three acts with libretto by Viktor Léon and Leo Stein at the Semperoper Dresden.

 

Franz Lehár - The Merry Widow (Die lustige Witwe) "The Queen of Operattas" | Act 1 

 

Franz Lehár - The Merry Widow (Die lustige Witwe) "The Queen of Operattas" | Act 2 

 

Franz Lehár - The Merry Widow (Die lustige Witwe) "The Queen of Operattas" | Act 3

 

Gunther Emmerlich - Baron Mirko Zeta

Lydia Teuscher - Valencienne

Bo Skovhus - Count Danilo Danilovitsch

Petra-Maria Schnitzer - Anna Blawari

Jérôme Savary - stage director

Manfred Honeck - conductor

Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden

 

 

(Note:  Apology I can't embed the videos due to copyright reasons. YouTube, uploaded by EuroArtsChannel. Accessed December 30, 2022. 

 

(c)  December 2014. Updated December 30, 2022. Tel.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.  

Bon-Bons or Crackers for Christmas

Celebrating Christmas

 

Christmas crackers or bon-bons are a part Christmas celebrations in the UK and Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. They are also popular in Ireland. A cracker consists of a cardboard tube wrapped in a brightly decorated twist of paper, making it resemble an oversized sweet-wrapper.

How it is used for Christmas is like the way it's done with a wishbone. The cracker is pulled by two people. The cracker splits unevenly. The split is accompanied by a small bang produced by the effect of friction on a chemically impregnated card strip.

Ada Lovelace

Famous Birthday: December 10

World's First Computer Programmer

Countess Ada Lovelace (1815-1852), the only legitimate daughter of the famous English poet Lord Byron, was the first computer programmer.

Born Augusta Ada Byron in Marylebone, London, on December 10, 1815, was an English writer who worked on the analytical engine of English mathematician and inventor Charles Babbage. Countess of Lovelace (Augusta Ada King) studied astronomy, mathematics, Latin and music.  She later worked as a designer of arithmetical operations for calculating machines with Babbage.

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs - Handel's Messiah 2015

LIVE STREAMING of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' Handel's Messiah, 2015

Sunday, Dec 6, 2015 

Handel's greatest and most loved choral masterpiece "Messiah" is sung by 500 voices at the Sydney Opera House. Brett Weymark conducts the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs to mark the start of the festive season.

In a world first, and in collaboration with Accessible Arts and Sydney Opera House, the 2-day concert will be signed live by a choir of 18 to bring another element of meaning to this powerful piece of music. The live-streaming will be audio-described live for people who are blind or have low vision.

Friends, family, or anyone interested can tune-in and watch the performance of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' Handel's Messiah from the comfort of homes around the world!


When: Sunday 6 December 2015, live streaming begins at 12.50pm AEDT
 
Access:  Live Streaming, Live Captioning, Audio Description, Auslan Signing Choir
(Note:  Clicking on the link, there might be a few minutes wait due to earlier setting prior 1PM actual performance. In the interval the live stream will feature a virtual tour of the Opera House.)

Video Credit:

Handel's Messiah Performed by the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs with Auslan.  Streamed live on 6 December 2015. (Note: If this no longer works due to time limitation, try this link:  Handel: Messiah performed in Auslan (Australian Sign Language).

Image Credit:
Keith Saunders, for Sydney Philharmonia Choirs.  

Resources:

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs Program. 

 
(c) December 6, 2015. Tel. Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.

Of Human Bondage by W.S. Maugham

"It is an illusion that youth is happy, an illusion of those who have lost it;" ~ Maugham

W. Somerset Maugham was an English novelist, playwright and short story writer famous for his novel, Of Human Bondage. The book is said to be based on his own life. It was made into a movie and became equally popular at the time starring Leslie Howard (Gone with the Wind fame) and Bette Davis.

The book provokes. As demonstrated in his writings, faithful love has no place. And then again, it can be attributed to the writer's tormented emotional life, from his unhappy childhood and perhaps even unhappier adult existence. Maugham often wrote satire and humour, but he told his stories well that endeared him to his readers.  

Maria Callas

Classical Music / Operatic Sopranos

Maria Callas, (born Cecilia Sophia Anna Kalogeropoulou). She was a New York-born Greek soprano, one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Her musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina. Many critics praised her bel canto technique,  wide-ranging voice and dramatic interpretations. Her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini and Rossini, and to the works of Verdi and Puccini, and early in her career, to the music dramas of Wagner.

Timeline:

Dec 2, 1923.  Maria Callas is born in New York, U.S.A.

Sept 28, 1937. She moves back to Greece with her mother, and begins training with Madam Elvira Heldago, National Conservatory.

Sept 28, 1940.  Her auditions haven't been going as well until she is asked to audition for the General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera. He offers her the leading roles in two productions of the 1946/1947 season. Maria turns down the contract.   

November 1, 1940.  She makes her professional stage debut in Boccaccio. (age 17)

1941. Makes her debut as Tosca, in Athens. 

1947. Earns  wide acclaim singing Gioconda at the Verona Arena. 

January 19, 1949.  I Puritani is performed in Venice shortly after, starring the Italian soprano Margherita Carosio as Elvira. One night, Maria begins sight-reading Elvira's music as Carosio falls ill. Conductor Serafin's wife hears Maria. She is offered the role of Elvira.

April 21, 1949.  She marries Giovanni Battista Meneghini, a man almost 30 years her senior.

December 7, 1950.  La Scala, the famous Milan theatre offers her a leading role. She opens the 1950/1951 season with I Vespri Siciliani, a success with good reviews.

July 1, 1952.  She signs an exclusive recording contract with Walter Legge, EMI director.

1952 & 1956. Her early repertory includes Wagner but soon became identified with bel canto roles, singing Norma at her London (1952) and New York (1956). 

December 19, 1958. Maria Callas performs an aria from her signature role, Bellini's druid priestess Norma, with the Orchestre de l'Opera National de Paris and Georges Sebastian. Recorded live at the Palais Garnier on the 19th of December 1958, this concert marked the soprano's debut at the Paris Opera, a major social event for Parisians and for which Callas donned her most elegant couture and a million dollars' worth of jewelry. (Maria Callas sings "Casta Diva" (Bellini: Norma, Act 1). Youtube, uploaded by Warner Classics. Accessed December 19, 2015.)

Maria Callas interpreting Bellini's Norma, "Casta Diva".  Act I.  Orchestra of Teatro alla Scala, Milan Tullio Serafin, Conductor. Recorded in the Cinema Metropol, Milan, 1954. (Uploaded by Dennis Tschirner. Accessed December 2, 2015.)




January 1, 1942.  Nazi Germany invades Greece in April 1941, under Italian occupation. This day she is asked to perform in Puccini's Tosca at the Athens Opera.

Sydney Philharmonia Performs 2015 Handel's Messiah

Handel’s greatest and most loved choral masterpiece sung by more than 400 voices at the Sydney Opera House. Brett Weymark conducts the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs for three concert events to mark the start of the festive season.

In a world first, the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, in collaboration with Accessible Arts and Sydney Opera House, presents 2015 Handel's Messiah. The concerts will be signed live by a choir of 12 to bring another element of meaning to this powerful piece of music.  Hallelujah!