Obscure Non-Prog Music Facts

Celebrated conductor Leopold Stokowski said he recognised Anton Bruckner as a great composer, but that he could not appreciate his music. Nonetheless, he tried, having conducted the Fourth Symphony of his twice in 1914, and the Seventh Symphony once in 1924. After that, though, that was the end of Bruckner and Stokowski.

Conductor Pierre Monteux conducted the Mahler symphonies 2,4 and 5 during his long career, but admitted with painful honesty that he found Mahler's music "too contrived".

Adolf Hitler wanted to build a shrine to composer Anton Bruckner in his plans for new construction in Linz, Austria. Conductor Herbert von Karajan said that "Hitler loved Bruckner's music", but Albert Speer, in his memoirs Inside The Third Reich, said that Hitler was not really all that interested in Bruckner.

After a rehearsal of Schoenberg's second quartet, Mahler walked up on stage, asked the quartet to play a C-major chord. After they played it, he said "thank you" and left the building.

moshkito wrote: presdoug wrote: classical music ... When preparing his 6th Symphony for first performance, composer Gustav Mahler wept constantly. ...   Ken Russell did a marvelous film on Mahler ... and I have to look it up, but there is one composition he created, that was for his wife ... as she's walking out the door ... (Doors lyric since it fits!) ... and she had no idea, or understood that he did the whole thing for her.   Not sure this is the same symphony or not.   Should we start on these facts, that movies create and might not have happened?

I've seen the Russell film and liked it, but it was a long time since i saw it. What i think you are referring to is the fourth movement, the Adagietto, of his Fifth Symphony, written for his wife, and quite a lyrical and beautiful piece of music it is!
                  Interesting that after the first performance of the 5th Symphony, conducted by the composer, he re-orchestrated the whole thing to what we now know as that symphony.


Edited by presdoug - December 22 2012 at 21:24

The premiere of Hector Berlioz's Funeral and Triumphal Symphony was a fiasco. It was an open air performance, and the bandsmen had to play the music during a long march, under the blistering sun of a very hot July day. During the final movement of the symphony, the music was pretty much drowned out by the loud cannons being fired. (It was part of a ceremony re-interring the remains of some people that died in one of the previous French revolutions)

During one of the first indoor concerts featuring the Funeral and Triumphal Symphony, composer Richard Wagner was present, and was heard to remark, "This Symphony will exalt the hearts and minds of men, as long as there is a nation called France!"

When composer Richard Strauss was on his deathbed, he listened to a recording of his Death and Transfiguration tone poem, was heard to remark, "Near the end, i have really captured what it means, it is all there."


Edited by presdoug - January 01 2013 at 15:11

Dubstep musician Burial, electronic musician Four Tet (Kieran Hebden), post-rock band Fridge (who Hebden happened to be a member of) synthpop band Hot Chip, and indie pop/dream pop band The xx all attended the same school at the same time.

After WW2, when the Munich Philharmonic got back on it's feet and in operation and with conductor Hans Knappertsbusch directing things again, during the opening concert, Knappertsbusch said-"The "Thousand Year Reich" is over, and now we can hear Beethoven as he was meant to be heard."

Knappertsbusch was an outspoken opponent of the Nazis, one time it is recorded that he hurled an ashtray at a speaker during a Nazi speech.

Knappertsbusch was difficult for Hitler to deal with, as he was physically speaking an "Aryan German", and also a very endearing personality in the German's music world of the day, so the Nazis could not do away with him. They did push him around a bit, though, having prevented him from going to Britain in '36 to conduct.

Knappertsbusch's final concert with the Vienna Philharmonic in April of 1964, was done when the old man was quite ill with emphysema, having been a smoker, but the result was a fantastic recording of Anton Bruckner's Fourth Symphony. Sadly, the following October of '65 Knappertsbusch was dead.


Edited by presdoug - February 13 2013 at 15:31

Gustav Mahler's symphonies were performed with great frequency in Germany in the 1920s, to the point where some critics complained about what they called the "Mahler fever".

German pianist Elly Ney, who was a specialist in Beethoven, toured all over America in the 1920s, giving speeches at her concerts saying how great National Socialism was. At one point later in her career, she claimed troubles due to interference by Jewish people. Obviously, she was wrong on both accounts.

German conductor Hermann Abendroth was referred to in some circles as "the other Furtwangler". Furtwangler and Abendroth admired each other as conductors, and when Furtwangler died in 1954, Abendroth stated "It's as if my world has stopped turning."

^Must have succeeded in getting the ball rolling.  I believe the sign looks tip top now. 


The cover of Heart's Little Queen was not taken in some picturesque rural village in Wales or Canada, but rather in the city park right next to Dodger Stadium in LA.   Ann said there were 1000 other better shots taken of her that day where she was smiling, but they chose the one pic she didn't like, where she was "pouting". 

The riff sampled on Eminem's "My Name Is" was taken from a Labi Siffre song on which Chas & Dave played.  Before they formed their famous duo, Chas had worked with Joe Meek, and Dave had been in a band called The Rolling Stones.

The original cover for Heart's Magazine album was different than the one that became known

One of my cousins went to a school and had as a teacher, a brother of the Wilson sisters, years ago.