1889
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4 January 1889 Two songs for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main: Immer leiser wird mein Schlummer op.105/2, to words of Lingg, and Mädchenlied op.107/5 to words of Heyse.
8 January 1889 Claude Debussy (26) becomes a member of the Société Nationale de Musique.
9 January 1889 WS Gilbert and Richard D’Oyly Carte meet Arthur Sullivan (46) at his London home. Sullivan once again expresses his wish to write opera on a grander scale with more importance given to the music. Gilbert and D’Oyly Carte agree.
10 January 1889 France establishes a protectorate over Côte d’Ivoire.
14 January 1889 Antonín Dvorak (47) writes to Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48), recently visiting Prague, telling him of his admiration for the opera Yevgeny Onyegin.
Two works by Charles Villiers Stanford (36) are performed for the first time, in Berlin: Suite op.32 for violin and orchestra, and the Symphony no.4, both conducted by the composer. The violin solo in the Suite is played by the dedicatee, Joseph Joachim.
18 January 1889 Ständchen op.14/7, a song by Johannes Brahms (55) to traditional words, is performed for the first time, 31 years after it was composed.
19 January 1889 Two works for two voices and orchestra by César Franck (66) to words of Daudet are performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris: Aux petits enfants and La Vierge à la Crèche. Also premiered is the third of the Trois romances sans paroles op.17 for piano by Gabriel Fauré (43). See 25 February 1881.
26 January 1889 Gustav Mahler (28) conducts the first performance of Das Rheingold in Hungarian at the Budapest Opera. Shortly after the music begins a fire starts in the prompter’s box. Mahler is forced to stop the music as firemen douse the flames. 30 minutes later the performance resumes. At the end the audience is ecstatic, both with Mahler and the production.
Meine Lieder op.106/4, a song for voice and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) to words of Frey, is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
27 January 1889 General Boulanger is elected to the Chamber of Deputies from Paris.
29 January 1889 Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria kills his mistress, Marie Vetsera and himself in the bedroom of Mayerling, his hunting lodge in the Wienerwald.
31 January 1889 Kosta Protic replaces Nikola Hristic as Prime Minister of Serbia.
1 February 1889 The Second Festmarsch in C by Richard Strauss (24) is performed for the first time, in Munich.
General Georges Boulanger, populist leader of right wing, nationalist supporters, flees France after the government issues a warrant for his arrest. The warrant charges conspiracy and treason.
2 February 1889 Au cimitière op.51/2 for voice and piano by Gabriel Fauré (43) to words of Richepin is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris. At the same concert, two of the Ariettes for voice and piano by Claude Debussy (26) to words of Verlaine are performed for the first time.
3 February 1889 The day before the birth of their second son (the first having died in infancy), Pietro Mascagni (25) and Argenide Carbognani marry in their home in Cerignola. She is the daughter of a tavern owner. See 7 February 1889.
4 February 1889 The French Universal Panama Canal Company of Ferdinand de Lesseps declares bankruptcy and sets off a financial panic.
Two works for vocal quartet and piano by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Frankfurt: Spätherbst op.92/2 to words of Allmers, and Warum? op.92/4 to words of Goethe.
7 February 1889 Pietro Mascagni (25) and Argenide Carbognani celebrate their religious wedding ceremony in Cerignola Cathedral. Only the couple, priest, and two required witnesses are present. The secrecy is due to the fact that everyone in Cerignola, where they have been living for two years, assumes that they are already married. The bride gave birth three days ago. The groom is in the middle of composing Cavalleria rusticana.
10 February 1889 Charles Ives (14) plays his first regular church service as organist at the Second Congregational Church in Danbury, Connecticut.
11 February 1889 A constitution for Japan is issued calling for a bicameral legislature but granting most powers to the Emperor.
12 February 1889 The Jacobin, an opera by Antonín Dvorák (47) to words of Cervinkova-Riegrova, is performed for the first time, in the Prague National Theatre.
13 February 1889 String Quintet in G by Carl Nielsen (23) is performed for the first time, privately in Copenhagen. See 28 April 1889.
14 February 1889 Violin Sonata in D by Hubert Parry (40) is performed for the first time, in London.
16 February 1889 Valse-Caprice no.2 op.38 for piano by Gabriel Fauré (43) is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris.
17 February 1889 Symphony in d minor by César Franck (66) is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.
21 February 1889 Pierre Emmanuel Tirard replaces Charles Thomas Floquet as Prime Minister of France.
I Think of Thee, My God for chorus by Charles Ives (14) to words of Monsell is performed for the first time, in Brewster, New York.
26 February 1889 Edvard Grieg (45) is appointed Knight of the Royal Danish Dannebrog Order.
1 March 1889 Petite Suite for piano four hands by Claude Debussy (26) is performed for the first time, privately, in Paris. See 23 May 1894.
4 March 1889 Benjamin Harrison replaces Grover Cleveland as President of the United States. As the Marine Band reaches the reviewing stand in the inaugural parade, it gives the first performance of Semper fidelis, a march by the band’s director, John Philip Sousa (34). The Fifty-first Congress of the United States convenes in Washington. President Harrison’s Republican Party holds majorities in both houses.
5 March 1889 Piano Concerto no.2 by Edward MacDowell (28) is performed for the first time, in New York. The critic HW Krehbiel will say that it deserves to be put “at the head of all works of its kind produced by either a native or an adopted citizen of America.”
6 March 1889 King Milan I of Serbia abdicates in favor of his 13-year-old son Aleksandar I who rules under regency.
7 March 1889 Hans Bronsart, intendent in Weimar, concludes secret negotiations with Richard Strauss (24) to bring Strauss to the conducting position in Weimar.
Sava Grujic replaces Kosta Protic as Prime Minister of Serbia.
Escenas sinfónicos for orchestra by Isaac Albéniz (28) is performed for the first time, in Teatro de la Comedia, Madrid.
10 March 1889 Emperor Yohannes IV of Ethiopia is killed in battle against Mahdists at Gallabat.
14 March 1889 Two songs by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Vienna: Vom Strande op.69/6, to anonymous words, and Das Mädchen op.95/1 to traditional words.
15 March 1889 As German and American warships face each other off Samoa, a great hurricane hits the islands forcing three ships from each side ashore. Unable to fight, a settlement ensues.
18 March 1889 Ferruccio Busoni (22) attends a charity banquet in Helsinki. There he dines with a student and three young women, one of whom is Gerda Sjöstrand. Within a week, he will ask her to marry him. She will accept.
21 March 1889 Valse-caprice op.4 by Amy Cheney Beach (21) is performed for the first time, in Boston.
22 March 1889 Edvard Grieg (45) and his wife Nina attend a soiree at the residence of the French ambassador in London. It is attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales and other royals, several members of the diplomatic corps and notable society personalities. Grieg plays some of his music with the violinist Johannes Wolff and Nina sings three Grieg songs, to the great delight of all present. The Prince and Princess of Wales invite the Griegs to Marlborough House.
23 March 1889 The following announcement appears in the French periodical La Lanterne Japonaise: M. Erik Satie, musical composer, received the following letter, which he has asked us to print: “Sir, For eight years I have suffered from a polyp in the nose, complicated by a liver disorder and rheumatic pains. On hearing your Ogives my condition showed a clear improvement. Four or five applications of your Gymnopédie no.3 cured me completely. I hereby authorize you, Monsieur Erik Satie, to make any use of this testimonial you may wish. In the meantime please accept the thanks of your grateful Femme Lengrenage, Day worker at Précigny-les-Balayettes. As for us, our opinion of M. Erik Satie, whom we do not have the honor of knowing personally, can be summed up in four words: he’s a hot rabbit!”
24 March 1889 Jules Massenet (46) meets Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) in Paris.
27 March 1889 Edvard (45) and Nina Grieg visit the Princess of Wales at Marlborough House. They perform some of Grieg’s music and meet the couple’s three daughters, Louise, Victoria, and Maud. Maud will one day become Queen of Norway. On the way out they meet the Prince once again and have a pleasant chat.
29 March 1889 Two works for unaccompanied chorus by Johannes Brahms (55) are performed for the first time, in Hamburg: Nachtwache op.104/2 to words of Rückert, and Im Herbst op.104/5 to words of Groth. See 3 April 1889.
30 March 1889 A contract is agreed to to make Richard Strauss (24) Kapellmeister in Weimar. Officially he begins 1 August but is given leave to be part of the Bayreuth Festival.
31 March 1889 The Eiffel Tower is completed. The designer, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, opens a French flag at the top.
Two works for chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (48) are performed for the first time, in St. Petersburg: Legend to words of Pleshcheyev, and The Nightingale to words of the composer.
1 April 1889 General Georges Boulanger flees Paris ahead of a warrant for his arrest for conspiracy and treason. He goes to Brussels.
2 April 1889 Charles Martin Hall receives a US patent for the first practical process for producing aluminum.
Frederick Abel and James Dewar receive, on behalf of Her Majesty’s Government, a patent for cordite, a smokeless explosive.
3 April 1889 The Five Songs op.104 for unaccompanied choir by Johannes Brahms (55) to words of Groth, Kalbeck, Rückert, and anonymous are performed completely for the first time, in Vienna. See 29 March 1889.
4 April 1889 The French Parliament strips General Georges Boulanger of his immunity from prosecution. The general is presently in Belgium.
10 April 1889 Lascar Catargiu replaces Teodor G. Rosetti as Prime Minister of Romania.
13 April 1889 Suite for string trio by Jean Sibelius (23) is performed for the first time, in the Helsinki Music Institute.
20 April 1889 An Island Fantasy for orchestra by John Knowles Paine (50) is performed for the first time, in Boston.
21 April 1889 Edgar, a dramma lirico by Giacomo Puccini (30) to words of Fontana after de Musset, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. The critics are mixed and it receives only one more performance at La Scala.
22 April 1889 12:00 The Oklahoma land rush begins into 8,000 sq km of previously restricted land in Oklahoma. 50,000 people take part.
25 April 1889 Isaac Albéniz (28) gives a concert devoted to his own music in the Salle Erard, Paris.
27 April 1889 La procession for solo voice and orchestra by César Franck (66) to words of Brizeux is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris.
28 April 1889 String Quintet in G by Carl Nielsen (23) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.
30 April 1889 The first George Washington Bridge opens, linking New York City with New Jersey.
1 May 1889 Bayer Company of Germany introduces aspirin to the market. It is available in powder form.
2 May 1889 By the Treaty of Ucciali between Italy and Abyssinia, Italy is granted an extension of Eritrea into the Abyssinian highlands. The Italian text implies a protectorate over the entire country but the Amharic text does not.
5 May 1889 The first and third movements of a Quintet for piano and strings in g minor by Jean Sibelius (23) are performed for the first time, at the Helsinki Music Institute.
6 May 1889 A Universal Exhibition to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution, featuring the newly completed Eiffel Tower, opens in Paris.
7 May 1889 Giacomo Puccini (30) writes to his publisher, Ricordi, asking that he secure the rights to the play La Tosca by Victorien Sardou, now on a successful tour of Europe. Sardou will refuse.
Dawn op.46/6 for two voices and piano by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to words of Surikov is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris, on the composer’s 49th birthday.
8 May 1889 Edward Elgar (31) marries Caroline Alice Roberts, daughter of a Major-General, at Brompton Oratory, London. Her family, upper-crust Anglicans, do not approve of a union with a working-class Catholic. The ceremony is Catholic.
15 May 1889 Esclarmonde, an opéra romanesque by Jules Massenet (47) to words of Blau and de Gramant, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Lyrique, Paris, with President Cardot in attendance. The work is generally successful.
19 May 1889 Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show opens at the Paris Exposition for a run of seven months.
21 May 1889 Charles Ives (14) begins his first organ lessons, with JR Hall in Danbury, Connecticut.
23 May 1889 Johannes Brahms (56) is awarded the freedom of the city of Hamburg.
The Threat for male chorus by Leos Janácek (34) to traditional Moravian words is performed for the first time, in Brünn (Brno).
Symphony no.3 “English” by Hubert Parry (41) is performed for the first time, in London, directed by the composer.
25 May 1889 Carl Nielsen (23) conducts a revised version of his Little Suite op.1. Next year, this will be his first composition to be published.
27 May 1889 Pietro Mascagni (24) sends off the newly completed score of Cavalleria rusticana to Milan where it is to be entered in a composition contest sponsored by the publisher Sonzogno.
28 May 1889 Edward (31) and Alice Elgar return to London from their honeymoon on the Isle of Wight.
29 May 1889 String Quartet in a minor by Jean Sibelius (23) is performed for the first time, in a student concert at the Helsinki Music Institute.
30 May 1889 Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen and his party sail up the Christiania (Oslo) fjord to tumultuous adulation after having made the first crossing of Greenland.
31 May 1889 Jean Sibelius (23) completes his studies at the Helsinki Music Institute.
A dam on the Connemaugh River bursts causing the inundation of Johnstown, Pennsylvania and the deaths of 2,200 people.
Ist der Himmel darum im Lenz so blau? op.2/2, a song for voice and piano by Hans Pfitzner (20) to words of Leander, is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.
2 June 1889 A recital by students of Emile Decombes at the Salle Erard, Paris sees the earliest known performance by Maurice Ravel (14). He plays an excerpt from Moscheles’ Third Piano Concerto.
6 June 1889 Emperor Franz Joseph II of Austria decrees for Johannes Brahms (56) the Komturkreuz of the Order of Leopold.
A fire in Seattle destroys 25 downtown blocks.
8 June 1889 WS Gilbert reads his sketches for the plot to The Gondoliers to Arthur Sullivan (47) at Sullivan’s London home. The composer is pleased.
11 June 1889 Arthur Farwell (17) learns of his acceptance to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
14 June 1889 The General Act of Berlin on Samoa is signed by representatives of Great Britain, Germany, and the United States, thus ending the decade-long dispute. King Malietoa is restored to power. A joint condominium of the three countries is created over Samoa.
15 June 1889 The Washington Post, a march by John Philip Sousa (34), is performed for the first time, at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington.
20 June 1889 Fritz (Frederick) Delius (27) departs France for a tour of Norway.
22 June 1889 The German government establishes old-age pensions and disability insurance, to take effect 1 January 1891.
Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (45) and Alyeksandr Glazunov (23) conduct the Colonne Orchestra in the first of two concerts dedicated to Russian music at the Trocadéro during the Paris Exhibition.
25 June 1889 Germany strongly protests the incursion of Cecil Rhodes’ forces towards the southern end of Lake Tanganyika.
26 June 1889 La tempête, a ballet fantastique by Ambroise Thomas (77) to a scenario by Barbier and Hansen after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.
29 June 1889 Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (45) and Alyeksandr Glazunov (23) conduct at the second of two concerts devoted to Russian music at the Trocadéro. These performances are a critical success but attendance is poor.
1 July 1889 Symphony no.4 by Hubert Parry (41) is performed for the first time, in London.
8 July 1889 In New York, The Customers’ Afternoon Letter is transformed into The Wall Street Journal.
The last bare-knuckle championship boxing match takes place in Jackson, Mississippi. John L. Sullivan defeats Jake Kilrain in 75 rounds.
10 July 1889 Giuseppe Verdi (75), in Montecatini, writes to Arrigo Boito (47) agreeing to compose Falstaff.
12 July 1889 Emil Stang replaces Johan Sverdrup as Prime Minister of Norway.
14 July 1889 After two years of study at the Paris Conservatoire, Enrique Granados (21) returns to Barcelona.
16 July 1889 A Sonata for violin and piano by Jean Sibelius (23) is performed for the first time, in Lovisa, by the composer.
30 July 1889 150 armed Americans occupy the royal palace in Honolulu. Royal troops suppress the rebellion. Seven people are killed, 12 wounded.
31 July 1889 Richard Strauss (25) travels from Munich to Bayreuth to assist in the festival.
1 August 1889 France grants autonomy to the Riviéres du Sud (Guinea) territory.
3 August 1889 British forces defeat the Sudanese at Toski.
Italy proclaims a protectorate over the Benadir Coast (northeast Somalia), although there are no European settlements there.
6 August 1889 The Savoy Hotel, built by Richard D'Oyly Carte, opens in London. It is the first hotel to have private bathrooms. One of the shareholders and directors is Arthur Sullivan (47).
10 August 1889 A meteor is photographed for the first time, at Harvard University.
13 August 1889 William Gray of Hartford, Connecticut receives a patent for a coin-operated pay phone. It is first installed this year in the Hartford Bank.
19 August 1889 Tempo di valse (Lulu Waltz) for cello and piano by Jean Sibelius (23) is performed for the first time, in Lovisa.
27 August 1889 George Eastman begins marketing a transparent film based on celluloid.
29 August 1889 Edvard Grieg (46) signs a contract with CF Peters Musikverlag (dated 22 August). He gives them world rights to all his future works.
1 September 1889 Carl Nielsen (24) is appointed as second violinist in the Royal Chapel, Copenhagen.
7 September 1889 Jean Sibelius (23) sails from Helsinki for Lübeck and his first trip to Germany.
8 September 1889 Richard Strauss (25) enters duties as conductor at Weimar. The position was secured for him by the music director, Edward Lassen, successor to Franz Liszt (†3).
9 September 1889 Fest-und Gedenksprüche op.109 for unaccompanied choir by Johannes Brahms (56) to words of the Bible, are performed for the first time, as part of celebrations of the Hamburg Exhibition of Trade and Industry.
10 September 1889 Prince Charles III of Monaco dies at Château de Marchais, near Sissone, and is succeeded by his son Albert.
25 September 1889 Great Britain establishes a protectorate over the Makololo (southern Malawi).
27 September 1889 Lo schiavo, an opera seria by Carlos Gomes (53) to words of Paravicini, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Lírico, Rio de Janeiro. It is very successful.
28 September 1889 The issue of this date of the Boy’s Own Paper announces prize winners in a musical composition competition. The sixth in order of merit of the 29 prizes in the junior division is Gustav Holst (15).
6 October 1889 Edvard Grieg (46) writes to the poet Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, suggesting a reconciliation 14 years after their estrangement over Olav Trygvason. Grieg has revived the music he wrote for the text in 1875 and wants Bjørnson to be present for the premiere. See 13 October 1889.
A second round of voting in the French general election results in most seats going to center-left parties, especially the Republicans and Radicals.
10 October 1889 Georg Martin Adolf von Henselt dies at WarmBrünn, Silesia (Cieplice Slaskie-Zdroj, Poland), aged 75 years, five months and one day.
11 October 1889 Ode on St. Cecilia's Day for soprano, bass, chorus, and orchestra by Hubert Parry (41) to words of Pope is performed for the first time, in Leeds. It is a resounding success. Also premiered is The Voyage of Maeldune op.34, a ballad for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (37) to words of Tennyson.
12 October 1889 Baron Johan Gustaf Nils Samuel Åkerhielm af Margretelund replaces Didrik Anders Gillis Bildt as Prime Minister of Sweden.
13 October 1889 Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson replies to Edvard Grieg’s (46) letter of 6 October, gladly agreeing to reconcile. “You have the greatest lyric power of any musician living today.” He agrees to be present at the premiere of Grieg’s Olav Trygvason music.
18 October 1889 Giuseppe Verdi (76) buys land near Porta Garibaldi in Milan. This will be the site of the Casa di Riposa per Musicisti.
19 October 1889 King Luís I of Portugal dies in Cascais and is succeeded by his son Carlos I.
Edvard Grieg’s (46) incidental music to Olav Trygvason to words of Bjørnson is performed for the first time, in a concert setting, in Christiania (Oslo), conducted by the composer. See 26 October 1889.
20 October 1889 Charles Ives plays his first regular church service as organist at the Baptist Church in Danbury, Connecticut. It is his fifteenth birthday.
21 October 1889 Kaiser-Walzer op.437 by Johann Strauss (63) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.
22 October 1889 Charles Ives (15) begins organ lessons with his second teacher, Alexander Gibson, in Danbury, Connecticut.
26 October 1889 Anton Chekhov inscribes the dedication to his collection of short stories, Gloomy People. It is in honor of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (49).
Edvard Grieg (46) conducts a second performance of his Olav Trygvason music, this time with the poet present. After five or six curtain calls, the composer shouts, “To this I have just one thing to say: Long live Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson.” To which the poet replies from the audience that he is proud to be a Norwegian, when we have a man who can write music like that. “Long live Edvard Grieg.” See 19 October 1889.
29 October 1889 Queen Victoria signs the charter of the British South Africa Company granting rights for 25 years to govern and exploit an undefined area north of Bechuanaland.
2 November 1889 North Dakota and South Dakota become the 39th and 40th states of the United States.
3 November 1889 Menelik II is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia on Mount Entoto.
4 November 1889 Of 46 pianists auditioned for acceptance into the Paris Conservatoire, 19 are accepted. Among them is Maurice Ravel (14) who played an excerpt from a Chopin (†40) concerto.
Arrigo Boito (47) arrives at Sant’ Agata for a week of work on Falstaff with Giuseppe Verdi (76).
8 November 1889 Montana becomes the 41st state of the United States.
Arthur Sullivan (47) completes composition of The Gondoliers. Tomorrow he begins the orchestration.
11 November 1889 Don Juan, a symphonic poem by Richard Strauss (25), is performed for the first time, in Weimar, conducted by the composer. More than any other, this work establishes his fame.
Salut d’amour for orchestra by Edward Elgar (32) is performed for the first time, in the Crystal Palace, London.
Washington becomes the 42nd state of the United States.
13 November 1889 Two songs for voice and piano by Gustav Mahler (29) are performed for the first time, in Budapest: Erinnerung. to words of Leander, and Scheiden und Meiden to words of Brentano and von Arnim.
15 November 1889 Surrounded in his palace by elements of the army, Emperor Pedro II of Brazil abdicates his throne and the United States of Brazil is proclaimed as a republic. Manuel Deodoro da Fonseca heads a provisional government.
17 November 1889 Direct rail service between Chicago and the Pacific coast of the United States is inaugurated.
Emperor Pedro II sails from Brazil for exile in France.
18 November 1889 Representatives of 17 nations meet in Brussels to create international standards for eliminating the slave trade.
Cello Sonata no.2 op.39 by Charles Villiers Stanford (37) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London, the composer at the piano.
20 November 1889 Symphony no.1 by Gustav Mahler (29) is performed for the first time, in Budapest, the composer conducting. The audience response is tepid at best. Critics range from praise to condemnation.
22 November 1889 Suite no.2 for string orchestra op.21 by Arthur Foote (36) is performed for the first time, in Boston.
25 November 1889 Arthur Sullivan (47) completes the orchestration to The Gondoliers.
The definitive version of String Quintet op.77 by Antonín Dvorák (48) is performed for the first time, in Boston. See 18 March 1876.
Piano Trio no.1 op.35 by Charles Villiers Stanford (37) is performed for the first time, at the University Musical Union, Oxford.
26 November 1889 In a letter to Cosima Wagner, Richard Strauss (25) writes about the Symphonie fantastique, “Next to such a gigantic work, how wretched appears Ein Deutsches Requiem by the musically abstinent temperance society member Brahms (56).”
British Prime Minister William Gladstone announces that if Charles Stewart Parnell is retained as leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party, the next election will be lost, along with Irish Home Rule. Parnell is involved in a long standing affair with another man’s wife.
29 November 1889 A week of concerts and celebrations begin in St. Petersburg to mark the 60th birthday of Anton Rubinstein (59) and the 50th anniversary of his Moscow debut.
30 November 1889 A Greeting to Anton Rubinstein for his Golden Jubilee as an Artist for unaccompanied chorus by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (49) to words of Polonsky is performed for the first time, in the Hall of the Court Assembly, St. Petersburg. Also premiered is Tchaikovsky’s Impromptu in A flat for solo piano, performed by the composer.
Die Meere op.20/3 for soprano, alto, and piano by Johannes Brahms (56) to traditional Italian words translated by Müller is performed for the first time, in Munich.
2 December 1889 Sonata for violin and piano op.20 by Arthur Foote (36) is performed for the first time, in Boston, the composer at the keyboard.
3 December 1889 Goryusha by Anton Rubinstein (60) to words of Averkiyev, is performed for the first time, in the Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg.
6 December 1889 After six days of debate in London, a majority of the Irish Parliamentary Party (those opposed to Parnell) bolt to form the Irish National Federation. Those remaining form the Irish National League.
7 December 1889 The Gondoliers, or the King of Barataria, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (47) to words of Gilbert, is performed for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, London. The work enjoys a magnificent success and goes on to 554 performances. It is their last triumph together.
9 December 1889 The Chicago Auditorium, designed by Louis Sullivan, opens.
10 December 1889 Lovely Rosabelle for chorus by George Whitefield Chadwick (35) is performed for the first time, in Association Hall, Boston.
12 December 1889 Robert Browning dies in Venice at the age of 77.
14 December 1889 Scherzquartett for male chorus by Richard Strauss (25) is performed for the first time, in Weimar.
16 December 1889 Buschiri bin Salim is executed by the Germans, effectively ending the Arab uprising in east Africa begun in September 1888.
Two works for orchestra by Pietro Mascagni (26) are performed for the first time, at the Palazzo di Città, Cerignola: Danza Boema and Marcia Militare.
17 December 1889 Incidental music to Haraucourt’s (after Shakespeare) play Shylock by Gabriel Fauré (44) is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre de l’Odéon, Paris, conducted by the composer. The play is successful but critics are not impressed by the music.
24 December 1889 Prince Aritomo Yamagata replaces Count Kiyotaka Kuroda as Prime Minister of Japan.
Captain William O’Shea, MP files for divorce from his wife Katherine, naming Charles Stewart Parnell, MP as a co-respondent. It is widely known that Parnell has had a liaison with Mrs. O’Shea and that he is the father of her three children.
©2004-2012 Paul Scharfenberger
14 August 2012
Last Updated (Tuesday, 14 August 2012 06:24)