1961 Vienna
Jun 11, 1961 – Jun 20, 1961
Vienna
Festival info
Start: Jun 11, 1961
End: Jun 20, 1961
Locations: Vienna
Hosting member(s)
(in conjunction with the 10th Internationalen Musikfest der Wiener Konzerthausgesellschaft and the Wiener Festwochen)
Jury
Hans Erich Apostel
Pierre Boulez
Alois Hába
Goffredo Petrassi
Kazimierz Serocki
Concerts
Sunday, 11 June 1961, 17:30 – Opening Concert featuring the Vienna Chamber Choir and the Orchester Der Wiener Staatsoper in der Volksoper conducted by Hans Gillesberger in the Mozart-Saal of the Wiener Konzerthaus
Anton Webern (Austria, 1883-1945): Das Augenlicht [text: Hildegard Jone], cantata for chorus and orchestra, op. 26 (1935) [6′];
Anton Webern: Cantata No. 1 for soprano, chorus and orchestra, op. 29 (1939) [8′] featuring Marie-Thérèse Escribano;
J.S. Bach (Germany 1685-1750) arr. Anton Webern: Ricercata a sei voci for orchestra (1747/1935) [11′];
J.S. Bach: Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied BWV 225, motet for double chorus (1726-27) [13′];
Anton Webern: Cantata No. 2 for soprano, bass, chorus and Orchestra, op. 31 (1941-43) [13′] featuring Marie-Thérèse Escribano and Rudolf Knoll.
Monday, 12 June 1961, 17:30 – special ISCM concert featuring the Vienna Symphony conducted by Hans Swarowsky in the Großer Saal of the Wiener Konzerthaus **
Theodor Berger (Austria, b. 1905; d. 1992): Rondino giocoso, op. 4, for string orchestra (1933) [6′];
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Austria, 1756-1791): Violin Concerto No. 3 in G, K. 216 (1775) [26′] featuring Zino Francescatti;
Sergei Prokofiev (Russia, 1891-1953): Violin Concerto No. 2 in g, op. 63 (1935) [c. 25′-28′] featuring Zino Francescatti;
Gustav Mahler (Austria, 1860-1911): Symphony No. 1 ‘Titan’ (1884-88) [55′] [to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Mahler’s death].
Tuesday, 13 June 1961, 17:30 – Orchester des Österreichischen Rundfunks conducted by Winfried Zillig in the Großer Saal
Jacques Wildberger (Switzerland, b. 1922; d. 2006): Music for 22 solo strings (1960) [19′] [world premiere];
Václav Dobiáš (Czechoslovakia, b. 1909; d. 1978): Sonate for piano, wind quintet, strings, and timpani (1947) [26′] with pianist Eduard Mrazek;
Michael Gielen (Austria, b. 1927; d. 2019): Variations for 40 Instruments (1959) [17′];
+ Edgard Varèse (United States, b. 1883 in France; d. 1965) Arcana for orchestra (1925-27; revised 1931-32) [19′].
Thursday, 15 June 1961, 17:30 in the Mozart-Saal
Winfried Zillig (West Germany, b. 1905; d. 1963): 4 A-cappella-Choruses [text: Bertolt Brecht] performed by the RIAS-Kammerchor Berlin conducted by Günther Arndt (?);
Vittorio Fellegara (Italy, b. 1927; d. 2011): Serenata for small instrumental ensemble (1960) [8′] performed by die reihe;
Krzysztof Penderecki (Poland, b. 1933; d. 2000): Wymiary Czasu i Ciszy (Dimensions of Time and Silence) for chorus and ensemble (1959 rev 1961) [15′] [world premiere of the revised version];
Fjölnir Stefánsson (Iceland, b. 1930; d. 2011): Drei Lieder for voice and piano;
Harrison Birtwistle (United Kingdom [England], b. 1934; d. 2022) Monody for Corpus Christi for soprano with flute, violin and horn (1959) [12′];
Salvatore Martirano (United States, 1927; d. 1995): O, O, O, O, That Shakespeherian Rag for chorus and jazz combo (1959) [23′].
Friday, 16 June 1961, 17:30 – Chorus and Orchestra Concert in the Großer Saal
Arnold Schönberg (Austria, 1874-1951): Die Jakobsleiter (Jacob’s Ladder), oratorio in 2 parts for soloists, chorus and orchestra (1915-1950, unfinished) performed by Ilse Hollweg, Thomas Stewart, Josef Traxel, Julius Patzak, Hans Herbert Fiedler, Helmut Krebs, with the Kölner Rundfunkchor, the Hamburger Rundfunkchor, the Kammersprechchor Zürich, and the Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester under the direction of Rafael Kubelík [world premiere of all surviving material].
Saturday, 17 June 1961, 17:30 – Ensemble die reihe under the direction of Friedrich Cerha in the Mozart-Saal
Björn Wilho Hallberg (Norway, b. 1938; d. 2009 in Sweden): Felder for flute and percussion [world premiere];
Keijiro Satoh (Japan, b. 1927; d. 2009): Calligraphy for piano (1960) [6′] performed by Iván Erőd [European premiere];
Mel Powell (United States, b. 1923; d. 1988): Haiku Settings for voice and piano (1960) [6′] performed by Maja Weis-Ostborn (?) and Iván Erőd [European premiere];
Shinichi Matsushita (Japan, b. 1922; d. 1990): Canzone da suonare (No. 1) for piano and percussion (1960) [7′] featuring Iván Erőd [European premiere];
Friedrich Cerha (Austria, b. 1926): Relazioni fragili for harpsichord and chamber orchestra (1956-57) [24′] featuring Gertraud Cerha;
Egisto Macchi (Italy, b. 1928; d. 1992): Composizione No. 3, study for 12 Instruments (1960).
Sunday, 18 June 1961, 17:30 – special concert for the ISCM Festival featuring the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Heinrich Hollreiser in the Großer Saal
Anton Webern: Passacaglia, op. 1, for orchestra (1908, published 1922) [10′];
Anton Webern: Variations for Orchestra, op. 30 (1940) [8′];
Anton Webern: Sechs Stücke, op. 6 for orchestra (1909 rev 1928) [12′];
Richard Strauss (Germany, 1864-1949): Metamorphosen for 23 solo strings (1944-45) [c. 25′-30′];
Josef Tal (Israel, b. 1910 in Poland; d. 2008): Piano Concerto No. 2 (1953) [21′] featuring Lola Granetman;
Gottfried von Einem (Austria, b. 1918; d. 1996): Von der Liebe [texts: Bertolt Brecht, Gabriela Mistral, Juan Ramón Jiménez], lyric fantasy for voice and orchestra, op. 30 (1961) [17′] featuring Irmgard Seefried [world premiere].
Monday, 19 June 1961, 17:30 orchestra concert featuring the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ernest Bour in the Großer Saal
Mátyás Seiber (Hungary/United Kingdom [England], 1905-1960), Tre Pezzi for violoncello and orchestra (1957) [20′] [in memoriam] most likely featuring Georg Donderer;
Bogusław Schaeffer (Poland, b. 1929; d. 2019): Monosonate for six string quartets (1959) [12′];
Franco Donatoni (Italy, b. 1927; d. 2000): Strophes for orchestra (1959) [11′];
Roman Haubenstock-Ramati (Austria, b. 1919 in Poland; d. 1994): Séquences for violin and 4 orchestral groups (1958) [13′] with violinist Ivry Gitlis;
Olivier Messiaen (France, b. 1908; d. 1992): Chronochromie for orchestra (1960) [21′].
Tuesday, 20 June 1961, 17:30 – concluding concert of the festival featuring the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ferenc Fricsay in the Großer Saal
Béla Bartók (Hungary/United States 1881-1945): Dance Suite (1923) [16′];
Béla Bartók: Violin Concerto No. 1 (1907-08) [20′] with violinist Yehudi Menuhin;
Béla Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (1943) [38′].
The following work was also scheduled but was not performed
* Anton Webern: Zwei Lieder auf Texte von Goethe, op. 19 for chorus and five instruments (1925-26) [2′].
Notes
** A poster for the 1961 Festival featuring repertoire and performers for all the concerts omits the Berger and Mahler works from the 12 June concert and instead lists two vocal works by Kurt Weill (Germany/United States 1900-1950) both featuring texts by Bertolt Brecht: Das kleine Mahagonny (1927) [25′] and Die sieben Todsünden (1933) [35′]. Considering that neither of these 2 Weill works are listed either by Haefeli or Slonimsky, who both list Berger and Mahler instead, it is reasonable to assume that both works were cancelled and that therefore the six singers listed for that concert–Laurence Dutoit, Hanna Ludwig, Murray Dickie, Ernano Lorenzi, Rudolf Knoll, and Ludwig Welter–also did not actually perform on the 12 June program since neither the Berger or Mahler works programmed involve singers.
Sources
Anton Haefeli, Die Internationale Gesellschaft für Neue Musik (IGNM), Ihre Geschichte von 1922 bis zur Gegenwart (Atlantis Musikbuch-Verlag, 1982), pp. 518-519 + fn103 on p. 727 [in German].
Nicolas Slonimsky, Music Since 1900, Sixth Edition edited by Laura Kuhn (Schirmer Reference, 2001), pp. 546-547.
(annotated by Frank J. Oteri, in progress)