June 17 - Igor Stravinsky (The Musical Birthday Series)

Igor Stravinsky (17 June [O.S. 5 June] 1882 – 6 April 1971) was one of the dominant composers of the 20th century.

Sacré Bleu

There’s a question I have about Rite

And that riot on opening night.

Was the reason they booed

An ornery mood,

Or was it the Geist of the Zeit?

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June 16 - Willi Boskovsky (The Musical Birthday Series)

Willi Boskovsky (16 June 1909 – 21 April 1991) was a violinist and conductor best known for conducting and recording the light Viennese repertoire.

Waltz Time

On New Year’s Eve Willi Boskovsky

Would never play Brahms or Tchaikovsky.

Instead, he played Strauss and his family,

With schmalz, and I fear, a bit hammily.

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June 15 - Edvard Grieg (The Musical Birthday Series)

Edvard Grieg (15 June 1843 – 4 September 1907) is one of the very few Norwegian composers to achieve a place in the standard repertoire.

National Treasures

When Edvard, who stood in his doorway,

Heard folk songs and dances of Norway,

He said, “I’m Norwegian

And this is my region,

And I’ll write my stuff our way not your way.”

Advice and Consent

"So, Grieg, let me give you a hint.

If you want to keep something in print,

And bring to your name

International fame,

You should write some good tunes for Peer Gynt."

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June 14 - John McCormack (The Musical Birthday Series)

John McCormack (14 June 1884 – 16 September 1945) was one of the most beloved and successful tenors of the recording era. 

Couplets for John McCormack

Lows and Highs

John McCormack, tenor of grace,

Thank the Lord, was not a bass.

Signor McCormack

McCormack’s training was Italian,

He even earned the Pope’s medallion.

Does He Have A Job?

Was Mrs Foley sceptical when her

Daughter married an Irish tenor?

For the Record

John McCormack was well rewarded

For the discs that he recorded.

Unlikely

Although it seems preposterous

Singing made him prosperous.

Clarity Verity

John McCormack was famed for diction:

Recordings prove it wasn’t fiction.

Highs and Lows

Mozart and Wolf for cultured classes,

Ballads and love songs for the masses.

Irish Irony

McCormack, famous for his breath,

But emphysema caused his death.

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June 13 - Carlos Chávez (The Musical Birthday Series)

Carlos Chávez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a composer who known internationally for one or two works, but he was also a  conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. 

Southern Exposure

In Music History 103

He’ll likely rate a mention,

A snippet of a symphony

Of folkloric invention.

But in his native Mexico

He’s honored as a founder

Whose impact on the status quo

Couldn’t be profounder.


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June 12 - Richard M. Sherman (The Musical Birthday Series)

Richard M. Sherman (b. 12 June 1928) was half of the Sherman brothers team that was a ubiquitous presence in Disney scores from the 1960s to 80s.

Disney Princes

It’s hard to determine

What each brother Sherman

Contributes in each Disney song.

But fate has decided

However divided

As a team they could hardly do wrong.

The keen effervescence

Of pre-adolescence

Is captured in songs by the myriad.

And they learned to unleash

A potent pastiche

To capture a place or a period.

On the edge of annoying,

In danger of cloying,

As earworms extremely efficient.

It may not seem much,

For those Oscars and such,

But apparently it was sufficient.

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June 11 - Richard Strauss (The Musical Birthday Series)

Richard Strauss (11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) wrote some of the most often played orchestral showpieces in the repertoire, but today we celebrate his four most popular operas.

 

After the Dance

When Salome sings to his head,

St. John is quite recently dead.

It’s terribly gruesome,

This unlikely twosome —

We should have seen Barber instead

Vocational Responsibility

If you’re learning Elektra by Strauss

It’s best if you live in a house.

Apartmental neighbors

Who share in such labors

Will curse at both you and your spouse.

Get Yer "Ja Ja" Out

A delectable Viennese whirl,

A matron, soubrette, and a churl,

Some waltzes with brio,

A heavenly trio,

And a girl as a boy as a girl.

Dismythed

A composer despairs (it’s a crime),

The naiads are singing (sublime),

Ariadne (enisled),

And Bacchus (beguiled),

Comedians enter (wrong time).

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