1765
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1 January 1765 Sacred to thee, an ode by William Boyce (53) to words of Whitehead, is performed for the first time.
6 January 1765 A revised version of La clemenza di Tito, an opera seria by Niccolò Jommelli (50) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Ducal Theatre, Ludwigsburg.
10 January 1765 Il barone di Torrefonte, an intermezzo by Niccolò Piccinni (36), is performed for the first time, in Teatro Capranica, Rome.
12 January 1765 Three ships commanded by Commodore John Byron, RN reach the Falkland Islands.
15 January 1765 Bey Beerdigung der Schw. August Erdmuth v. Tschirsky in Gnadenfrey for female voices and strings by Johannes Herbst (29) is performed for the first time.
18 January 1765 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (8) dedicates six sonatas for keyboard and violin (K.10-15) to British Queen Charlotte, in London.
20 January 1765 Il tempo dell’onore, a componimento drammatico by Nicola Bonifacio Logroscino (66) to words of Baldanza, is performed for the first time, in Palermo.
21 January 1765 Singgedichte bey der Durchreise der kaiserlichen...Majestäten, a cantata by Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (28) to words of Schuster, is performed for the first time, in Melk to celebrate an overnight visit by Archduke Joseph II.
23 January 1765 The first of the Bach-Abel subscription concerts takes place at Carlisle House, London. The performers are Johann Christian Bach (29) and Karl Friedrich Abel. They become known as the “Soho Subscription Concerts” and are enormously successful.
Archduke Joseph, King of the Romans, and heir to the imperial throne, marries his second wife, Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria, in Schönbrunn Palace, Vienna.
24 January 1765 Il Parnaso confuso, an azione teatrale by Christoph Willibald Gluck (50) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Schönbrunn Palace, Vienna, during the festivities surrounding the wedding of Crown Prince Joseph to Bavarian princess Maria Josepha. The production is directed from the harpsichord by Leopold, the second son of Emperor Franz I (himself later Emperor Leopold II).
25 January 1765 A British expedition lands at Port Egmont, Falkland Islands. Commodore John Byron claims the islands for Great Britain.
Il trionfo d’amore, an azione teatrale by Florian Leopold Gassmann (35) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Schönbrunn Palace, Vienna.
26 January 1765 Adriano in Siria, an opera by Johann Christian Bach (29) to words after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London, in the presence of King George and Queen Charlotte.
Madama l’umorista, a dramma giocoso by Giovanni Paisiello (24) to words after Palomba, is performed for the first time.
29 January 1765 Francesco Maria Gaetano Della Rovere replaces Rodolfo Emilio Maria Brignole Sale as Doge of Genoa.
30 January 1765 Christoph Willibald Gluck’s (50) dramma per musica Telemaco, ossia L’isola di Circe to words of Coltellini after Capece is performed for the first time, in the Burgtheater, Vienna. This is the second offering by Gluck for the festivities surrounding the wedding of Crown Prince Joseph to Bavarian princess Maria Josepha.
31 January 1765 Semiramis, a pantomime by Christoph Willibald Gluck (50) to a scenario by Angiolini after Voltaire, is performed for the first time, at the Burgtheater, Vienna. This is the third offering by Gluck for the festivities surrounding the wedding of Crown Prince Joseph to Bavarian princess Maria Josepha.
An aria and a duet by Johann Christian Bach (29) are performed for the first time as part of Samuel Arnold’s comic opera The Maid of the Mill in Covent Garden, London.
11 February 1765 Le nozze di Bacco ed Arianna, a mascherata coreografica by Giovanni Paisiello (24) to a story by Biondini, is performed for the first time, in Modena.
14 February 1765 Kirchenmusik zur Vermählung Kaiser Joseph d. II und Josepha by Georg Philipp Telemann (83) to words of Zimmermann is performed for the first time, in the Johanneskirche, Hamburg.
21 February 1765 A benefit concert for Wolfgang (9) and Nannerl Mozart is performed by the two prodigies in the Little Theatre, Haymarket. It goes off at 6 pm owing to other performances going on tonight. As a result, it is not well attended.
27 February 1765 Tom Jones, an opéra comique by François-André Danican-Philidor (38) to words of Poinsinet after Fielding, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris. It is the first staging of the famous novel. Eventually, Tom Jones will be a financial success but the audience is at first bored and, in the third act, some are moved to hoots and laughter. The management closes it tonight.
28 February 1765 François-André Danican-Philidor (38) succeeds in persuading the First Gentleman of the Bedchamber to demand a second performance of Tom Jones. It takes place tonight. Free passes are distributed throughout the day. The evening is so successful that both poet and composer are called before the curtain.
16 March 1765 Le tonnelier, an opéra comique by seven composers including François-André Danican-Philidor (38) and François-Joseph Gossec (31), to words of Quétant and Audinot, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.
20 March 1765 Six sonatas for keyboard and violin K.10-15 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (9) and dedicated to Queen Charlotte, go on sale in London.
22 March 1765 The Stamp Act is approved by the British Parliament and will go into effect on 1 November. It provides for a tax on all newspapers, pamphlets, almanacs, playing cards, etc. The money raised is intended to defray the cost of defending the North American colonies.
24 March 1765 A Quartering Act is passed by the British Parliament. It provides for 10,000 soldiers to be quartered in facilities provided by the North American colonies. If this is inadequate, commanders are authorized to commandeer local inns or uninhabited houses and barns.
30 March 1765 Muhsinzade Mehmed Pasha replaces Köse Bahir Mustafa Pasha as Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire.
1 April 1765 Carl Ditters (25) becomes Kapellmeister to Adam Patachich, Bishop of Grosswardein (Oradea, Romania), succeeding Michael Haydn (27).
3 April 1765 Publication of the Six Symphonies op.3 by Johann Christian Bach (29) is advertised in London.
9 April 1765 An announcement appears in the Public Advertiser, London. Wolfgang Amadeus (9) and Nannerl Mozart will be at home from 12-2 each day if anyone wishes to come and test their musical ability.
27 April 1765 L’olimpiade, an opera seria by Thomas Augustine Arne (55) to words of Bottarelli after Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in King’s Theatre, London.
2 May 1765 Die heilige Freude, an eines Lehrers Hand, a cantata by Georg Philipp Telemann (84), is performed for the first time, for the installation of Rütger Höpfer as priest in the Pesthof, Hamburg.
3 May 1765 Robert Clive arrives in Calcutta as the British governor and Commander-in-Chief of Bengal.
The first medical school in North America is organized at the College of Philadelphia (University of Pennsylvania).
4 May 1765 Ripieno di una cantata in lode di San Gennaro by Nicola Porpora (78) to words of A. Gennaro, Duca de Belforte, is performed for the first time, at Sedile di Portanova, Naples.
13 May 1765 Wolfgang (9) and Nannerl Mozart give a concert in Hickford’s Great Room, Brewer Street, London.
17 May 1765 Zophilette, a pasticcio including music of Baldassare Galuppi (58), Christoph Willibald Gluck (50), Niccolò Jommelli (50), Tommaso Traetta (38), Niccolò Piccinni (37) and Johann Christian Bach (29) to words of Marmontel, is performed for the first time, in Paris.
18 May 1765 Friedrich Albrecht replaces Viktor Friedrich as Prince of Anhalt-Bernburg.
19 May 1765 Christoph Willibald Gluck’s (50) ballo pantomimo Iphigenia in Aulide, to a choreography by Angiolini is performed for the first time, at the Laxenburg, Vienna.
25 May 1765 Great Britain creates the colony of Senegambia in West Africa.
29 May 1765 The Virginia House of Burgesses adopts the Stamp Act Resolves, asserting the colonists’ rights as Englishmen and condemning taxation without representation. During the debate, the author of the resolution, Patrick Henry, responds to shouts of “treason” with the words “Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I his Cromwell, and George III may profit by their example.” He adds, “If this be treason, make the most of it.”
4 June 1765 Hail to the rosy morn, an ode by William Boyce (53) to words of Whitehead, is performed for the first time, to honor the birthday of King George III.
27 June 1765 François-Joseph Gossec’s (31) opéra comique Le faux lord, to words of Parmentier, is performed for the first time, at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris.
8 July 1765 An advertisement appears informing the English public that the Mozart family will be giving public concerts every day from 12-3:00 p.m. in the Swan and Harp Tavern, Cornhill. They have had to take a room there.
13 July 1765 Charles Watson-Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham replaces George Grenville as Prime Minister of Great Britain.
18 July 1765 Filippo, Duke of Parma, dies and is succeeded by his son, Ferdinando.
20 July 1765 The Royal Bank is founded by King Friedrich the Great as the Prussian State Bank.
24 July 1765 The Mozart family leaves London for Canterbury, staying until the end of the month at the estate of Sir Horace Mann.
As part of festivities surrounding the visit of the Infanta Maria Luisa, future wife of Archduke Leopold, Giovanni Battista Sammartini (64) conducts his own music at an accademia in Pavia. Among the cello section is Luigi Boccherini (22).
27 July 1765 L’isola disabitata, an azione drammatica by Tommaso Traetta (38) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Ducale Nuovo, Mantua.
1 August 1765 The Mozart family crosses the English Channel from Dover to Calais.
5 August 1765 The Mozart family arrives in Lille from Dunkirk.
6 August 1765 Romolo ed Ersilia, an opera by Johann Adolf Hasse (66) to words of Metastasio, is performed for the first time, in the Imperial Palace, Innsbruck, to celebrate the wedding of Archduke Leopold to the Bourbon Maria Luisa of Spain. The work does not please. This opera contains ballet music by Florian Leopold Gassmann (36), presumably the Ballo dell’opera di Romolo.
11 August 1765 Xindo riconosciuto, an opera seria by Georg Benda (43) to words of Galletti, is performed for the first time, in Gotha for the birthday of Duchess Luise Dorothea. It is the first opera performed at Gotha, productions having been banned through the opposition of the clergy. Within a month, regular stagings will commence.
14 August 1765 Lieutenant-Governor Thomas Hutchinson of Massachusetts is hanged in effigy on the “Liberty Tree” in Boston.
18 August 1765 Emperor Franz I, Grand Duke Francesco II of Tuscany, dies suddenly at Innsbruck and is succeeded as emperor by his son, Joseph II. Another son, Archduke Leopold, becomes Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo I of Tuscany. All theaters are closed. Soon, Grand Duke Leopold will abolish the inquisition in Tuscany.
26 August 1765 While in Lille, the Mozart family learns of the death of Emperor Franz.
A Boston mob attacks the home of Lieutenant-Governor Thomas Hutchinson and ransacks it. At the urging of his daughter, Hutchinson flees for his life.
4 September 1765 The Mozart family departs Lille after a month in the city, owing to the illness of both Leopold (45) and Wolfgang (9), and arrive in Ghent.
5 September 1765 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (9) performs in Ghent.
6 September 1765 Motivated by a rabid clergyman and liberal amounts of alcohol, a mob stones the house of Jean-Jacques Rousseau in Môtiers, Switzerland, presumably for his attacks on religion and the government of Geneva. He escapes injury.
7 September 1765 The Mozart family arrives in Antwerp.
9 September 1765 The Mozart family arrives in Rotterdam from Antwerp.
10 September 1765 The Mozart family arrives in The Hague from Rotterdam.
12 September 1765 The Mozart family gives a concert before members of the Dutch ruling family in The Hague. Nannerl is too ill to perform.
13 September 1765 The new Grand Duke of Tuscany, Leopoldo, arrives in Florence to take up his duties, accompanied by his Spanish wife, Maria Luisa.
17 September 1765 Empress Maria Theresia of Austria names her son Joseph as co-regent, although she continues to rule.
18 September 1765 The Mozart family gives a second concert before members of the Dutch ruling family in The Hague.
19 September 1765 The Mozart family performs at Leyden (this could be 20 September).
22 September 1765 Baldassare Galuppi (58) arrives in St. Petersburg to produce Italian operas.
30 September 1765 At least two early symphonies of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (9) are performed at The Hague.
6 October 1765 Wie ist der Held gefallen, an oratorio by Georg Philipp Telemann (84), is performed for the first time, to mourn the death of Emperor Franz I.
Francesco Maria Veracini (75) is soloist in several violin concertos at the Florentine court. Although he is a native of the city, it is his first performance there.
7 October 1765 27 delegates from nine colonies meet in New York for the Stamp Act Congress. They petition Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act as taxation without representation. It is the first intercolonial assembly.
10 October 1765 Georg Benda (43) is granted six months leave from his position as Kapellmeister to Duke Friedrich III of Saxe-Gotha to study in Italy.
21 October 1765 Nannerl Mozart, ill with typhus, receives the last rites of the Roman Catholic Church, at The Hague. Leopold (45) calls in a second doctor who reverses the opinion of the first doctor and changes the remedy. She will recover.
25 October 1765 The Stamp Act Congress adjourns after adopting a Declaration of Rights opposing taxation without representation and trial without jury.
1 November 1765 The Stamp Act goes into effect in Britain’s North American colonies. Rioters in New York burn effigies and attack the homes of royal officials.
3 November 1765 Prince Nicholas Esterházy, perceiving laxity in his musical establishment, orders his vice-kapellmeister, Joseph Haydn (33), to inventory the music and instruments (in triplicate), to oversee the upkeep of the instruments, make sure all musicians attend to their obligations, and Haydn is “urgently enjoined to apply himself to composition more diligently than heretofore, and especially to write such pieces as can be played on the gamba (baryton), of which pieces we have seen very few up to now; and to be able to judge his diligence, he shall at times send us the first copy, clearly and carefully written, of each and every composition.”
4 November 1765 Niccolò Jommelli’s (51) pastorale Imeneo in Atene, to words after Stampiglia, is performed for the first time, in the Ducal Theatre, Ludwigsburg. On the same day is performed for the first time, the second version of his Temistocle to words of Metastasio.
Il Creso, an opera seria by Antonio Sacchini (35) to words of Pizzi, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples.
7 November 1765 Thésée, a tragédie by Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville (53) to words of Quinault, is performed for the first time, at Fontainebleau. See 13 January 1767.
13 November 1765 Louis, le Dauphin, receives the Last Rights of the Roman Catholic Church in front of the entire royal family, important Frenchmen, foreign ambassadors and his servants.
15 November 1765 L’arrivo di Enea nel Lazio, a componimento drammatico by Baldassare Galuppi (59) to words of Alamanni, is performed for the first time, in Teatro della Pergola, Florence.
As his sister recovers from typhus, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (9) falls ill with the same disease at The Hague.
19 November 1765 Teatr Narodowy opens in Warsaw. It was established by King Stanislaus II and is the first theater in Poland with a professional company of Polish actors.
6 December 1765 The Summer’s Tale, a pasticcio musical comedy with music by Thomas Augustine Arne (55) to words of Cumberland, is performed for the first time, in Covent Garden, London.
9 December 1765 La confederazione dei Sabini con Roma pt.I, a cantata by Luigi Boccherini (22) to words of Trenta and de’Nobili, is performed for the first time, in Lucca.
11 December 1765 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (9) arises from his sick bed at The Hague for the first time in a month.
20 December 1765 Louis, le Dauphin, heir to the throne of France, dies alone (according to Bourbon custom) at Fontainebleau.
©Paul Scharfenberger 2004-2011
8 April 2011