Nikos Skalkottas / The New Moon

On this day in classical music: Greek composer Nikos Skalkottas died at age 45 in Athens in 1949. A student of Arnold Schoenberg, Skalkottas combined the techniques of the Second Viennese School with the rich folk tradition of his native Greece. The composer’s musical output is not large, although he wrote symphonic works, music for piano, chamber music, concertos and ballets. During the five-year period between 1931 and 1936, Skalkottas composed three dozen “Greek Dances” for various performing ensembles. Listen to the Malmo (Sweden) Symphony Orchestra perform four of Skalkottas’ “Greek Dances.” Nikos Christodoulou conducts. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85D0_5DIqtc 

On this day in the musical theatre: Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein’s “The New Moon” opened on Broadway in 1928. “The New Moon,” the tale of a young French aristocrat whose political views forced him to leave France for the New World, followed closely on the heels of “The Student Prince” (1924) and “The Desert Song” (1926). Romberg would compose “Up in Central Park” in 1947 and “The Girl in Pink Tights” in 1954 but neither were as successful as the shows he produced in the 1920s. Listen to Christiane Noll perform “One Kiss” from “The New Moon.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwAjOmloyxE

Musical musings: Apart from Romberg’s melodious material, the glory of the original production was its singing. Either at Romberg’s insistence or because they had profited from the Shuberts’ experiences, (Frank) Mandel and (Laurence) Schwab enlisted a large, fine-voiced male chorus. While Romberg was to remain an active writer … “The New Moon” was his last great hit. The day of the Viennese-American operetta was over. Its incredibly melodious heyday encompassed a mere five seasons. They were the same five seasons that saw the coming of age of the sassy, cynical jazz musical comedy. – From American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle by Gerald Bordman

 

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