All musicians are inspired by other artists -- performers from the past that resonate with the individual's artistic spirit. Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini (1867-1957) was a staunch admirer of German composer Felix Mendelssohn
(1809-1847). Author, critic and scholar, Mortimer Frank, will discuss Toscanini's reprise of Mendelssohn's work during Greenwich Library's Toscanini Lecture Series, Tuesday, September 29, at 7 p.m., in the Meeting Room.
(1809-1847). Author, critic and scholar, Mortimer Frank, will discuss Toscanini's reprise of Mendelssohn's work during Greenwich Library's Toscanini Lecture Series, Tuesday, September 29, at 7 p.m., in the Meeting Room.
Toscanini programmed Mendelssohn's "Italian" and "Reformation" Symphonies frequently. However, he led the "Scottish" Symphony only once in the United States in a 1941 NBC Symphony broadcast. It is his only surviving performance of the work and may be the only time he conducted it.
Preserved in exceptionally fine sound for its time, the symphony will be discussed in terms of its form and style. For comparative purposes, excerpts from other performances led by Otto Klemperer, Peter Maag, and Herbert von Karajan will be featured.
For more information, please call Greenwich Library at 622-7917.
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