1888
| 
| 
1 January 1888 At the home of the violinist Adolf Brodsky in Leipzig, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) makes the acquaintance of Johannes Brahms (54). Mrs. Brodsky will remember, “It would be difficult to find two men more unlike. Tchaikovsky...had something elegant and refined in his whole bearing and the greatest courtesy of manner. Brahms with his short, rather square figure and powerful head, was an image of strength and energy; he was an avowed foe to all so-called ‘good manners.’” Later, Edvard (44) and Nina Grieg arrive. They have met Brahms before but never Tchaikovsky, although the Russian is an admirer of Grieg’s music. “It was more like a children’s party than a gathering of great composers.”
5 January 1888 Henri Herz dies in Paris, on the eve of his 85th birthday.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) begins his first European conducting tour at the Leipzig Gewandhaus.
6 January 1888 Three chamber works by Antonín Dvorák (46) are performed for the first time, in Prague: Quintet for piano and strings op.81, String Quartet no.1 op.2, and String Quartet no.2. Also premiered are five of the twelve Cypresses for string quartet.
8 January 1888 Donauweibchen op.427, a waltz by Johann Strauss (62), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.
9 January 1888 The London Financial Guide is founded as a four-page newspaper. Next month it will be relaunched as The Financial Times.
13 January 1888 Sava Grujic replaces Jovan Ristic as Prime Minister of Serbia.
14 January 1888 While on a concert tour in Lübeck, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) learns that Tsar Alyeksandr III has granted him a state pension of 3,000 rubles per year for life.
15 January 1888 In Leipzig, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) makes the acquaintance of Ferruccio Busoni (21) and local conductor Gustav Mahler (27). Tchaikovsky finds Busoni “extraordinarily gifted.” He makes no comment about Mahler.
16 January 1888 The five finished movements of the Requiem op.48 for chorus, boy soprano, harp, timpani, organ, solo violin, and strings by Gabriel Fauré (42) are performed for the first time, in the Madeleine, during a mass for M. Joseph Le Soufaché conducted by the composer. See 28January 1892, 21 January 1893 and 12 July 1900.
Holiday Quickstep for piccolo, two cornets, two violins and piano by Charles Ives (13) is performed for the first time, in Taylor’s Opera House, Danbury, Connecticut by the theatre orchestra directed by the composer’s father.
20 January 1888 Die drei Pintos, a comic opera by Carl Maria von Weber (†61), completed by Gustav Mahler (27) to words of Hell after Seidel, is performed for the first time, in the Neues Stadttheater, Leipzig, 67 years after it was composed. It is extremely successful and gains Mahler more widespread acclaim than he has ever had before.
21 January 1888 One scene from Ernest Chausson’s (33) drame lyrique Hélène is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.
22 January 1888 The third version of Anton Bruckner’s (63) Symphony no.4 is performed for the first time, in Vienna. It is an astounding success. See 20 February 1881 and 12 December 1909.
23 January 1888 Quintet for piano and strings by George Whitefield Chadwick (33) is performed for the first time, in Union Hall, Boston.
25 January 1888 A String Quartet in F by Carl Nielsen (22) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen, the composer playing one of the violin parts. Even though he has had works publicly performed already, Nielsen will later consider this his debut as a composer.
Dein blaues Auge hält so still op.59/8, a song by Johannes Brahms (54) to words of Groth, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
26 January 1888 The Wreck of the Hesperus op.17 for chorus and orchestra by Arthur Foote (34) to words of Longfellow is performed for the first time, in Boston to piano accompaniment. See 27 March 1890.
27 January 1888 The National Geographic Society is incorporated in Washington.
28 January 1888 Germany and Italy conclude a military convention. Italy promises to support Germany in any war with France.
String Quartet in d minor by Ferruccio Busoni (21) is performed for the first time, in the Leipzig Gewandhaus. The reviews are not positive. One member of the audience, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47), finds it original but laments what he sees as Busoni’s desire to be German. He thinks that he is ashamed of being Italian.
2 February 1888 The Richmond Union Passenger Railway begins operations in Richmond, Virginia. Designed by Frank Sprague, it is the first practical, large scale electric trolley system in the world.
3 February 1888 German Chancellor Bismarck partially publishes the 1879 alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary against Russia. Russia opposes Ferdinand of Coburg as King of Bulgaria.
6 February 1888 Didrik Anders Gillis Bildt replaces Oscar Robert Themptander as Prime Minister of Sweden.
11 February 1888 In Leipzig, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) awakens to the sound of a band playing the Russian national anthem below his window. He dines this day with Mr. and Mrs. Edvard Grieg (44) and Ethyl Smyth. Tomorrow he leaves for Prague.
The British South Africa Company claims a protectorate over the Ndebele Kingdom (Zimbabwe) calling it Matabeleland.
14 February 1888 While Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) is in Prague on a concert tour, he meets Antonín Dvorák (46).
15 February 1888 Liebesglut op.47/2, a song by Johannes Brahms (54) to words of Hafis, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
16 February 1888 France extends a protectorate over Tu’a and Sigave, the two kingdoms of the Futuna Islands.
19 February 1888 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) conducts a very successful concert of his own music in Prague which includes the Piano Concerto no.1, the Violin Concerto, Romeo and Juliet, and the Overture 1812. In the audience is Leos Janácek (33) who will review the performance.
Two works by Johann Strauss (62) are performed for the first time, in the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna: Simplicius-Quadrille op.429 and the polka française Soldatenspiel op.430.
23 February 1888 Suite in D for orchestra by Edward Elgar (30) is performed completely for the first time, conducted by the composer in Birmingham. See 14 March 1882 and 13 December 1883.
24 February 1888 Justorum animae op.38/1 for chorus and organ by Charles Villiers Stanford (36) to words of the Bible is performed for the first time, in Trinity Chapel, Cambridge.
26 February 1888 Lagerlust op.431, a polka mazur by Johann Strauss (62), is performed for the first time, in the Cursalon, Vienna. Strauss’ schnellpolka Muthig voran! op.432 is premiered at the Musikverein, Vienna.
27 February 1888 Ständchen op.106/1, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (54) to words of Kugler, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
28 February 1888 Three works by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (47) are performed for the first time, in Paris: Pezzo capriccioso for bass, cello, and orchestra, Andante cantabile for cello and violins, and Humoreske op.10/2 for piano.
2 March 1888 Rosa Papier gives the first public performance of any song by Hugo Wolf (27).
3 March 1888 Auf zum Tanze! op.436, a schnell-polka by Johann Strauss (63), is performed for the first time, in the Strauß-Palais, Vienna.
6 March 1888 Klage op.105/3, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (54), is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
9 March 1888 German Emperor Wilhelm I, King of Prussia dies in Berlin and is succeeded by his son Friedrich I, King Friedrich III of Prussia. The closing of theatres for ten days is a godsend to Gustav Mahler (27) who is trying to finish his Symphony no.1.
10 March 1888 Psyché, a symphonic poem by César Franck (65), is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris, conducted by the composer.
11 March 1888 Symphony no.2 by Antonín Dvorák (46) is performed for the first time, in Prague, 23 years after it was composed.
A great blizzard begins today and will last until 14 March causing 400 deaths in the eastern United States.
12 March 1888 Cecil Rhodes joins the Kimberley diamond companies of the Cape Colony to form De Beers Consolidated Mines.
16 March 1888 France annexes Ra’iatea, Taha’a and Huahine (French Polynesia).
19 March 1888 France annexes Borabora.
22 March 1888 Joseph Joachim writes to Ethel Smyth (29) telling her that the compositions he sent her are “unnatural, far-fetched, overwrought and not good as to sound.” (Collis, 43)
23 March 1888 Hugo Wolf (28) plays and sings his Mörike settings to the Wagner-Verein in Vienna. They are impressed.
27 March 1888 Nationalist General Georges Boulanger, former Minister of War, is forcibly retired from the French army. He is now eligible to be elected a deputy.
29 March 1888 Valentin Alkan (Charles-Valentin Morhange) dies in Paris, aged 74 years, three months and 29 days. Accounts vary as to how he actually died, although the most accepted is that he was crushed by a falling bookcase in his home.
30 March 1888 Austria adopts a national health insurance system.
1 April 1888 The mortal remains of Valentin Alkan (Charles-Valentin Morhange) are laid to rest in Montmartre Cemetery on Easter Sunday. Beyond the immediate family, only four people attend. An obituary appearing today in Le Ménéstrel says “Charles Valentin Alkan has just died. It was necessary for him to die in order to suspect his existence.”
3 April 1888 Charles Thomas Floquet replaces Pierre Emmanuel Tirard as Prime Minister of France.
Piano Concerto no.1 by Edward MacDowell (27) is performed completely for the first time, in Boston. See 30 March 1885.
4 April 1888 Teodor G. Rosetti replaces Ion Constantin Bratianu as Prime Minister of Romania.
9 April 1888 Incidental music to Wennerberg’s play Näcken (The Water Sprite) by Jean Sibelius (22) and his teacher Martin Wegelius is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.
11 April 1888 Fritz (Frederick) Delius (26) returns to his home in Bradford from his studies at the Leipzig Conservatory.
The Concertgebouw opens in Amsterdam, designed by Adolf Leonard van Gendt.
15 April 1888 Nationalist former General Georges Boulanger is elected to the French National Assembly.
18 April 1888 The British East Africa Company is incorporated in London.
21 April 1888 Aeneas, Baron Mackay replaces Jan Heemskerk as chief minister of the Netherlands.
22 April 1888 Messa di Gloria by Pietro Mascagni (24) is performed for the first time, in Cerignola, by a group of students conducted by the composer.
23 April 1888 Edvard Grieg (44) and his wife depart Leipzig for his first concert engagements in England.
28 April 1888 The German East Africa Corporation signs a treaty with the Sultan of Zanzibar which gives them power of administration over a coastal strip adjacent to Zanzibar in East Africa.
Two works by Gabriel Fauré (42) are performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris: Pavane op.50 for orchestra and chorus, and Clair de lune op.46/2 for voice and piano to words of Verlaine.
30 April 1888 Count Kiyotaka Kuroda replaces Marquis Hirobumi Ito as Prime Minister of Japan.
1 May 1888 Serbian-American Nicola Tesla receives a US patent for the electromagnetic motor. This will make alternating current necessary.
3 May 1888 Edvard Grieg (44) appears as pianist and composer with the Royal Philharmonic Society. He is soloist on his Piano Concerto. The performance is a stunning success.
6 May 1888 Fritz (Frederick) Delius (26) moves from Bradford to Paris, at first to live with his Uncle Theodor. Unknown to him, France will be his home for most of the rest of his life.
7 May 1888 Three Pieces for string orchestra by Edward Elgar (30) are performed for the first time, in Worcester.
8 May 1888 Atlanta pharmacist John Stith Pemberton first makes the syrup for Coca Cola. He carries a jug of it down the street to Jacob’s Pharmacy where it is put on sale at the soda fountain. Carbonated water will be added later.
9 May 1888 Nikola Hristic replaces Sava Grujic as Prime Minister of Serbia.
12 May 1888 Great Britain establishes a protectorate over North Borneo and Brunei.
Prélude, aria et final for piano by César Franck (65) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris. In the same concert, La fée aux chansons op.27/2 for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré to words of Silvestre is performed for the first time, on the composer’s 43rd birthday.
13 May 1888 Slavery is abolished in Brazil by Emperor Pedro II. The act is signed by Princess Elizabeth in the absence of her father.
16 May 1888 Nicola Tesla demonstrates his two-phase induction motor before a meeting of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers at Columbia University.
17 May 1888 Gustav Mahler’s (27) resignation in Leipzig is accepted. He leaves over a personal dispute with the stage manager, Albert Goldberg. Mahler has no immediate prospects.
18 May 1888 The mortal remains of Maurice Greene (†132) are removed from St. Olave Jewry in London and reinterred in St. Paul’s Cathedral near those of his student William Boyce (†109). St. Olave Jewry is being demolished.
22 May 1888 Edvard Grieg (44) and his wife leave London after his first performances in England. They intend to travel to Calais, Denmark, and home.
The Song of Promise op.43 for chorus and orchestra by John Knowles Paine (49) to words of Woodberry, is performed for the first time, in Cincinnati.
24 May 1888 In a concert of Conservatoire students at the Salle Erard, Ricardo Viñes and Enrique Granados (20) play the Rondo op.73 of Frédéric Chopin (†40).
25 May 1888 Francis Galton informs the Royal Institution in London of his studies into the individuality of fingerprints.
31 May 1888 Theme and Variations for string quartet by Jean Sibelius (22) is performed for the first time, at Helsinki Conservatory.
1 June 1888 The Lick Observatory begins operations near San Francisco. With a 91 cm objective, it is the largest refracting telescope in the world.
2 June 1888 Bram Stoker visits Arthur Sullivan (46) with a proposal to write incidental music for a production of Macbeth starring Henry Irving. Sullivan provisionally agrees. See 29 December 1888.
3 June 1888 Casey at the Bat, a poem by Ernest L. Thayer, is published in the San Francisco Examiner.
4 June 1888 The State of New York replaces hanging with electrocution as the official means of putting prisoners to death.
6 June 1888 Great Britain annexes Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.
7 June 1888 Carmen familiare for voice and piano by Charles Villiers Stanford (35) to words of Verrall is performed for the first time, at Trinity College, Cambridge.
8 June 1888 WS Gilbert reads the second act of “The Tower Warder” to Arthur Sullivan (46) at Sullivan’s London home. He leaves the words for Sullivan to set. Sullivan is delighted.
The committee of the Brno Beseda writes to Leos Janácek (33) accepting his resignation as conductor.
14 June 1888 Great Britain establishes a protectorate over Sarawak.
15 June 1888 German Emperor Friedrich I, King Friedrich III of Prussia dies of throat cancer in Potsdam and is succeeded by his son, Wilhelm II, King Wilhelm II of Prussia.
17 June 1888 Arthur Farwell (16) is confirmed in the Episcopal Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
21 June 1888 The remains of Ludwig van Beethoven (†61) are exhumed from the Währinger Cemetery and reinterred in the Zentralfriedhof, Vienna. Among those witnessing the event is Anton Bruckner (63).
23 June 1888 Scherzo for orchestra by Hans Pfitzner (19) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.
26 June 1888 After viewing a performance of Die Fledermaus in Bern, Johannes Brahms (55) writes an admiring letter to “Meister” Johann Strauss (62).
29 June 1888 Richard Wagner’s (†5) romantische Oper Die Feen WWV 32 to his own words after Gozzi is performed for the first time, in the Königliches Hof-und Nationaltheater, Munich, 55 years after it was composed. See 12 December 1833.
12 July 1888 After his forced retirement, General Georges Boulanger takes office as a French deputy, representing Nord. A crowd of supporters accompanies him to the ceremony.
5 August 1888 Trio for piano and strings in G by Ralph Vaughan Williams (15) is performed for the first time, in Charterhouse, Godalming.
7 August 1888 Theophilus van Kannel of Philadelphia receives a US patent for a revolving door.
12 August 1888 A train runs directly from Vienna to Constantinople for the first time.
15 August 1888 Isaac Albéniz (28) plays the first eleven of the Douze Pièces caractéristiques pour piano op.92, possibly for the first time, in Barcelona.
18 August 1888 The first Gymnopédie by Erik Satie (22) is published in his father’s La Musique des familles.
21 August 1888 The first commercially successful adding machine is patented by William Seward Burroughs of St. Louis.
29 August 1888 Judith, an oratorio by Hubert Parry (40) is performed for the first time, in Birmingham. It is a smashing success which secures Parry’s already growing reputation with the public.
31 August 1888 Mary Ann Nichols is murdered in London. She is the first victim attributed to Jack the Ripper.
4 September 1888 George Eastman of Rochester, New York receives a patent for the first roll film camera which does not require a supporting tripod or table. It weighs 625 grams and can take 100 pictures on a roll. The registered name is Kodak.
6 September 1888 Queen Victoria grants a royal charter to the British East Africa Company.
8 September 1888 Annie Chapman is murdered in London. She is the second victim attributed to Jack the Ripper.
Little Suite op.1 for string orchestra by Carl Nielsen (23) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen. The composer is a violinist in the orchestra and the conductor literally drags him out to share the applause.
9 September 1888 Vincent Van Gogh completes Night Café in Arles.
Chile annexes Easter Island.
12 September 1888 Ferruccio Busoni (22) arrives in Helsinki to take up a position as piano teacher at the conservatory.
18 September 1888 Arabs in coastal East Africa begin an armed revolt against the German administration, at Pangani.
22 September 1888 Edward Elgar (31) and Alice Roberts announce their engagement to the horror of her family.
23 September 1888 The remains of Franz Schubert (†59) are exhumed from the Währinger Cemetery and reinterred in the Zentralfriedhof, Vienna. Among those witnessing the event is Anton Bruckner (63).
30 September 1888 Elizabeth Stride and Catharine Eddowes are murdered in London. They are the third and fourth victims attributed to Jack the Ripper.
2 October 1888 To the astonishment of everyone in the city, Gustav Mahler (28) is named the new director of the Royal Opera in Budapest. He has been given a ten-year contract at a salary of 10,000 kronen. He is only 28, he is largely unknown, and he is a Jew.
3 October 1888 After a journey of 41 days, six Norwegians, led by Fridtjof Nansen, complete the first crossing of Greenland by Europeans.
Violin Sonata op.18 by Richard Strauss (24) is performed for the first time, in Munich.
The Yeoman of the Guard, or The Merryman and his Maid, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (46) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, London. It is a tremendous success and will see 423 performances. The author and composer argue about the arrangement of various numbers through the day. Only just before the curtain goes up is a compromise reached.
5 October 1888 Arthur Sullivan (46) records a brief message for Thomas Edison on his phonograph.
8 October 1888 Deutsche Bank receives a concession from the Ottoman Empire to build a railroad from Izmit to Ankara.
9 October 1888 The Washington Monument opens to the public.
Ecce sacerdos magnus for chorus and organ by Edward Elgar (31) is performed for the first time, in St. George’s Church, Worcester.
12 October 1888 Ferruccio Busoni (22) gives his first recital in Helsinki. He began teaching at Helsinki Conservatory last month.
14 October 1888 Hamburg joins the German Customs Union.
The new Burgtheater, Vienna opens two days after the old one was closed.
15 October 1888 Bremen joins the German Customs Union.
16 October 1888 Carl Nielsen (23) conducts in public for the first time, leading his Suite for Strings with the Odense Music Society.
20 October 1888 Charles Ives enters duties as organist at the First Baptist Church, Danbury, Connecticut on his 14th birthday.
21 October 1888 Two works by Johann Strauss (62) are performed for the first time at the Musikvereinsaal, Vienna: Spanischer Marsch op.433 and the waltz Sinnen un Minnen op.435.
22 October 1888 Alyeksandr Glazunov (23) makes his conducting debut in St. Petersburg.
29 October 1888 By the Suez Canal Convention in Constantinople, all European powers declare the canal free and open to all ships of all nations at all times.
30 October 1888 King Lo Bengula, ruler of the “Matebeles and Mashonas”, signs over exclusive mineral rights in his lands, north of South Africa, to representatives of Cecil Rhodes.
JJ Loud of Weymouth, Massachusetts receives a US patent for a ball point pen.
31 October 1888 John Boyd Dunlop receives a patent for pneumatic bicycle tires.
The eleven Zigeunerlieder op.103 for vocal quartet and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) to traditional Hungarian words translated by Conrat are performed for the first time, in the Singakademiesaal, Berlin. Also premiered is Brahms’ song for voice and piano, Salamander op.107/2, to words of Lemcke.
3 November 1888 Sheherazade, an orchestral work by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (44), is performed for the first time, in a Russian Symphony concert at the Club of the Nobility, St. Petersburg.
4 November 1888 Two works by Emmanuel Chabrier (47) are performed for the first time, in Angers: Joyeuse marche and Prélude pastorale.
Dix pièces pittoresques for piano by Emmanuel Chabrier (47) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.
5 November 1888 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play (translated by Bouchor) The Tempest by Ernest Chausson (33) is performed for the first time, in the Petit Théâtre des Marionettes, Paris.
6 November 1888 Voting in the United States ensures the election of former Senator Benjamin Harrison as President over the incumbent Grover Cleveland. His Republican Party gains 27 seats and takes control of the House of Representatives.
8 November 1888 Wagnerian tenor Ferdinand Jäger witnesses a performance of three of Hugo Wolf’s (28) Mörike-Lieder in Vienna. Jäger will become Wolf’s most ardent supporter in performance. See 15 December 1888.
Incidental music to Dumas’ play Caligula by Gabriel Fauré (43) is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris conducted by the composer.
Charles Villiers Stanford (36) is awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Cambridge University.
9 November 1888 Mary Kelly is murdered in London. She is the fifth and last victim attributed to Jack the Ripper.
14 November 1888 In a ceremony before many eminent persons, the Institut Pasteur is dedicated in Paris.
17 November 1888 Symphony no.5 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg, conducted by the composer. The audience is very enthusiastic but the critics are scornful.
19 November 1888 String Quartet no.8 op.80 by Antonín Dvorák (47) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.
23 November 1888 Maurice Ravel (13) meets the 13-year-old Ricardo Viñes in Paris. As a virtuoso pianist, Viñes will become a major exponent and champion of Ravel’s music.
24 November 1888 Great Britain separates Gambia from Sierra Leone, creating a separate colony.
Erik Satie (22) advertises the publication of the third of his Trois Gymnopédies. “To the musical public, we cannot recommend this essentially artistic work too highly. It is a work which rightly stands among the most beautiful of the century in which this unfortunate gentleman was born.”
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s (48) fantasy-overture Hamlet is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg, conducted by the composer.
28 November 1888 The British West Africa Settlements is dissolved.
30 November 1888 An international blockade, organized by Chancellor Bismarck of Germany, is declared against the Arabs revolting against German rule in east Africa.
Auf dem Kirchhofe op.105/4, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) to words of von Liliencron, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
2 December 1888 Kaiser Jubiläum op.434, a Jubel-Walzer by Johann Strauss (63), is performed for the first time, in the Musikverein, Vienna.
5 December 1888 Two songs for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Vienna: Verrat op.105/5 to words of Lemcke, and Auf dem See op.106/2 to words of Reinhold.
10 December 1888 Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, Marquess of Lansdowne replaces Frederick Temple Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, Earl of Dufferin as Viceroy of India.
11 December 1888 Gabon is united with the French Congo.
12 December 1888 Festival Overture “Queen of the Seas”, for orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (36), is performed for the first time.
15 December 1888 The foundation stone is laid for the Royal English Opera House by Helen Lenoir Carte on Shaftesbury Avenue, London.
Russian Easter Overture by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (44) is performed for the first time, in a Russian Symphony concert at the Club of the Nobility, St. Petersburg.
Ferdinand Jäger, who sang Parsifal at Bayreuth, gives an all-Wolf (28) concert accompanied by the composer, Wolf’s first appearance in that role. The performance, in the Bösendorfersaal, Vienna, is very successful.
18 December 1888 Capriccioso op.19/5 for piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) is performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg.
21 December 1888 Sonata for violin and piano no.3 op.108 by Johannes Brahms (55) is performed for the first time, in Budapest, the composer at the keyboard.
22 December 1888 Alyeksandr Skryabin (16) makes his debut as composer-pianist at the Great Hall of the Noblemen (Hall of Columns of Union House).
24 December 1888 Anton Chekhov meets Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) for the first time, in St. Petersburg. They exchange mutual admiration.
25 December 1888 Il est né le divin enfant for children’s choir and instruments by Gabriel Fauré (43) is performed for the first time, in the Madeleine, Paris.
26 December 1888 Arthur Sullivan (46) completes incidental music to Macbeth.
29 December 1888 Incidental music to Shakespeare’s play Macbeth by Arthur Sullivan (46) is performed for the first time, in the Lyceum Theatre, London in a production by Henry Irving.
30 December 1888 The Hainfeld Congress meets. Over the next three days it creates a common agenda for the labor movement in Austria-Hungary.
©2004-2012 Paul Scharfenberger
14 September 2012
Last Updated (Friday, 14 September 2012 07:06)