WETA FM 90.9 Blog

2008 ended with three important anniversaries – the 100th of Messiaen (December 10th), the 100th birthday of Elliot Carter (December 11th), and the 150th anniversary of Giacomo Puccini (December 22nd), which I nonchalantly skipped. In 2009 I want to pay a little more attention to anniversaries – and not just the three “big” ones that are Mendelssohn (200 years, February 3rd – and with February specially dedicated to his music on WETA), G.F.Handel (de-composing for 250 years – April 14th), and Joseph Haydn (dead for 200 years – May 31st). With a little diligence, I hope to write a little about these important composers that have anniversaries in 2009:

* Jean Mouton (~1459–1522) most likely born some time 550 years ago
* Henry Purcell (1659–1695) born 350 years ago on March 7th
* Charles Avison (1709–1770) born 300 years ago on February 16th
* Frantisek Benda (1709–1786) born 300 years ago on November 22nd
* Franz V. Krommer (1759–1831) born 250 years ago on November 27th
* Victor Herbert (1859–1924) born 150 years ago on February 1st
* Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859–1935) born 150 years ago on November 19th
* Sergei Liapunov (1859–1924) born 150 years ago on November 30th
* Grazyna Bacewicz (1909–1969) born 100 years on February 5th
* Harald Genzmer born 1909, February 9th
* Vagn Holmboe (1909–1996) born 100 years ago on December 20th
* James MacMillan born in 1959 on July 16th
* Erkki Sven Tüür also born in 1959, on October 16th

as well as

* Giuseppe Torelli (1658–1709), died 300 years ago, on February 8th
* Karl Heinrich Graun (1704–1759), died 250 years ago, on August 8th
* Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (1736–1809) died 200 years ago, on March 7th
* Louis Spohr (1784–1859) died 150 years ago, on October 22nd
* Mieczysław Karłowicz (1876–1909) died 100 years ago, on February 8th
* Isaac Albéniz (1860–1909) died 100 years ago, on May 18th
* George Antheil (1900–1959) kicked the bucket 50 years ago, on February 12th
* Eric(h) Zeisl (1905–1959) died 50 years ago, on February 18th
* Ernest Bloch (1880–1959) died 50 years ago, on July 15th
* Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959) died 50 years ago, on August 28th
* Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959) died 50 years ago, on November 17th