This Week in Classical Music: January 27, 2020.Mozart, Schubert and more.Much more, that is.In a way it’s not fair, as there is too much talent for one week.To begin with, two of the greatest composers who ever lived, Mozart (we’ve written about him many times, for example here and here here), who was born on this day in Salzburg in 1756, and Schubert (here is one of the many entries devoted to him), born on January 31st of 1797 in the outskirts of Vienna.And that’s just the beginning.Six composers of considerable talent were also born this week; they are, chronologically: Alessandro Marcello (b. February 1st of 1673), brother of a more famous Benedetto but a fine composer in his own right; Édouard Lalo (b. January 27th of 1823), mostly famous for his Symphonie espagnole, Frederick Delius (b. January 29th of 1862), beloved by many Brits.And then there are two very different 20th century composers, Luigi Nono (b. January 29th of 1924), one of the most interesting “modernists,” and John Tavener (b. January 28th of 1944), who wrote many religious pieces in a sparse (but not minimalistic) style.It’s interesting that of the six composers on this week’s list, two, Schubert and Delius, were afflicted with syphilis, the scourge of the pre-antibiotic era.
And then we have the performers: Arthur Rubinstein, one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, who was born January 28th of 1887 and John Ogdon, born on this day in 1937.The beginning of John Ogdon’s career was very promising.After studying at the Royal Manchester College of Music and then, individually, with Dame Myra Hess and Egon Petri, he won the London Liszt Competition (in 1961) and the following year took part in the Second Tchaikovsky Competition, sharing the First Prize with Vladimir Ashkenazy.Back then winning the Tchaikovsky was very significant, and Ogdon was acknowledged both by the public and the critics as one of the brightest stars of his generation.He extensively performed, both in the UK and internationally, and made numerous recordings.Ogdon had a phenomenal technique, prodigious memory and deep understanding of the musical material.As Alistair Hinton wrote in the Grove Dictionary, “A widely read man of profound intellect who never took any repertory for granted, he often wrote copious notes about pieces; he even arrived at one recording session clutching his substantial essay on Chopin's G minor Ballade.”Ogdon made several unusual recordings, for example a rarely played Fantasia contrappuntistica by Ferriccio Busoni and, later in his life, the enormous, four-and-a-half hour long Opus clavicembalisticum by Sorabji. In 1973 he had a nervous breakdown and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital.The initial diagnosis was schizophrenia, later it was changed to manic depression.Ogdon never completely recovered but did perform, infrequently, in 1983 and after.In 1988, he released Opus clavicembalisticum to a great acclaim.Ogdon died a year later, on August 1st of 1989 in London.Here’s the recording ofLiszt's Funérailles which Ogdon made in 1967.
Renata Tebaldi, one of the most extraordinary sopranos of the 20th century, was born on February 1st of 1922.Let’s wait another two years and celebrate her properly.
John Ogdon, 2020
This Week in Classical Music: January 27, 2020. Mozart, Schubert and more. Much more, that is. In a way it’s not fair, as there is too much talent for one week. To begin with, two of the greatest composers who ever lived, Mozart (we’ve written about him many times, for example here and here here), who was born on this day in Salzburg in 1756, and Schubert (here is one of the many entries devoted to him), born on January 31st of 1797 in the outskirts of Vienna. And that’s just the beginning. Six composers of considerable talent were also born this week; they are, chronologically: Alessandro Marcello (b. February 1st of 1673), brother of a more famous Benedetto but a fine composer in his own right; Édouard Lalo (b. January 27th of 1823), mostly famous for his Symphonie espagnole, Frederick Delius (b. January 29th of 1862), beloved by many Brits. And then there are two very different 20th century composers, Luigi Nono (b. January 29th of 1924), one of the most interesting “modernists,” and John Tavener (b. January 28th of 1944), who wrote many religious pieces in a sparse (but not minimalistic) style. It’s interesting that of the six composers on this week’s list, two, Schubert and
Delius, were afflicted with syphilis, the scourge of the pre-antibiotic era.
And then we have the performers: Arthur Rubinstein, one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, who was born January 28th of 1887 and John Ogdon, born on this day in 1937. The beginning of John Ogdon’s career was very promising. After studying at the Royal Manchester College of Music and then, individually, with Dame Myra Hess and Egon Petri, he won the London Liszt Competition (in 1961) and the following year took part in the Second Tchaikovsky Competition, sharing the First Prize with Vladimir Ashkenazy. Back then winning the Tchaikovsky was very significant, and Ogdon was acknowledged both by the public and the critics as one of the brightest stars of his generation. He extensively performed, both in the UK and internationally, and made numerous recordings. Ogdon had a phenomenal technique, prodigious memory and deep understanding of the musical material. As Alistair Hinton wrote in the Grove Dictionary, “A widely read man of profound intellect who never took any repertory for granted, he often wrote copious notes about pieces; he even arrived at one recording session clutching his substantial essay on Chopin's G minor Ballade.” Ogdon made several unusual recordings, for example a rarely played Fantasia contrappuntistica by Ferriccio Busoni and, later in his life, the enormous, four-and-a-half hour long Opus clavicembalisticum by Sorabji. In 1973 he had a nervous breakdown and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. The initial diagnosis was schizophrenia, later it was changed to manic depression. Ogdon never completely recovered but did perform, infrequently, in 1983 and after. In 1988, he released Opus clavicembalisticum to a great acclaim. Ogdon died a year later, on August 1st of 1989 in London. Here’s the recording of Liszt's Funérailles which Ogdon made in 1967.
Renata Tebaldi, one of the most extraordinary sopranos of the 20th century, was born on February 1st of 1922. Let’s wait another two years and celebrate her properly.