1899
| 
| 
1 January 1899 A constituent assembly names Emilio Aguinaldo as President of the Republic of the Philippines. United States authorities refuse to recognize this action.
The British government unites Trinidad with Tobago.
Stanislaw Przybyszewski publishes a manifesto entitled Confiteor in his journal Life based in Krakow. His belief in absolute art, without external associations, forms a philosophical underpinning for a group of artists known as Young Poland.
Six Waltzes op.22 for piano-four hands by Max Reger (25) are performed for the first time, in Weiden by the composer.
6 January 1899 George Nathaniel Curzon replaces Victor Alexander Bruce, Earl of Elgin as Viceroy of India.
Goal nets are used for the first time in an ice hockey game, in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
7 January 1899 Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc is born near the Elysée Palace in Paris, son of Emile Poulenc who, along with his brothers, owns a firm which manufactures industrial chemicals, and Jenny Royer, daughter of a cabinet maker.
9 January 1899 The regent María Cristina confers on Enrique Granados (31) the Cross of Carlos III.
13 January 1899 The first movement of the Symphony in d minor by Frederick Shepherd Converse (28) is performed for the first time, in Boston. It is well received by audience and critics.
14 January 1899 Briséïs, ou Les amants de Corinthe, an unfinished drame lyrique by Emmanuel Chabrier (†4) to words of Mendès and Mikhaël after Goethe, is staged for the first time, in the Royal Opera House, Berlin, conducted by Richard Strauss (34). See 31 January 1897.
17 January 1899 Le Temps publishes a petition from the Comité de l’Appel à Union favoring moderation and reconciliation in the Dreyfus affair. Among others, it is signed by Claude Debussy (36) and Gustave Charpentier (38).
The United States takes formal possession of Wake Island. It is an important station in cross-Pacific cables.
Brigham Roberts is denied his seat in the US House of Representatives because he is a polygamist.
19 January 1899 A condominium of Great Britain and Egypt is established over the Sudan.
21 January 1899 La Vega, the first of a projected suite for piano called The Alhambra by Isaac Albéniz (38), is performed for the first time, at the Société National de Musique, Paris.
23 January 1899 The Malolos Constitution goes into effect creating the Philippine Republic.
24 January 1899 Julius Vandenpeereboom replaces Paul de Smet de Nayer as Prime Minister of Belgium.
28 January 1899 Dimitur Panayotov Grekov replaces Konstantin Stoilov Konstantinov as Prime Minister of Bulgaria.
29 January 1899 Chanson perpétuelle op.37 for voice and orchestra by Ernest Chausson (44) to words of Cros is performed for the first time, in Le Havre, in the presence of the composer.
30 January 1899 Blancaflor, a lyric drama by Enrique Granados (31) to words of Gual, is performed for the first time, in the Teatre Liric, Barcelona.
1 February 1899 Jules Massenet (56) purchases a chateau in Egreville, 30km south of Fontainebleau. It will come to be known as Chateau Massenet.
4 February 1899 After United States troops kill three Philippine soldiers in a Manila suburb, Philippine troops under Emilio Aguinaldo begin a war against the United States forces occupying their islands. A battle lasting several days begins at Manila. 550 people are killed, 1,200 wounded and 500 taken prisoner.
British poet Rudyard Kipling welcomes the United States to the brotherhood of imperialists by writing a poem entitled “Take Up the White Man’s Burden.”
Symphonic Dances op.64 for orchestra by Edvard Grieg (55) are performed for the first time, in Christiania (Oslo).
6 February 1899 The Treaty of Paris ending war between Spain and the United States is ratified by the United States Senate.
10 February 1899 The French Court of Appeals rejects the demand of the military to halt a retrial for Alfred Dreyfus.
12 February 1899 Germany buys the Mariana, Caroline, and Palau Islands from Spain.
13 February 1899 In a state of nervous depression, Sergey Rakhmaninov (25) meets Lev Tolstoy for the first time.
15 February 1899 Tsar Nikolay II issues a manifesto which abrogates the Finnish constitution, extends autocracy to Finland, and reduces the Finnish Diet to a recommending body.
16 February 1899 President François Félix Faure of France dies suddenly while engaged in sexual activity with his mistress in his office in the Palais de l’Elysée.
18 February 1899 Emile François Loubet, a supporter of Alfred Dreyfus, replaces François Félix Faure as President of France.
An expedition led by Carsten Borchgrevink aboard the Southern Cross lands at Cape Adare and builds a camp. They will be the first to endure an entire winter on the Antarctic Continent. It is called the British Antarctic Expedition, but only because it was funded by the British publisher Sir George Newnes. Only three of the members are British.
22 February 1899 United States forces occupy San Juan del Norte and Bluefields, Nicaragua.
23 February 1899 The Patriotic League, strongly nationalist and anti-Dreyfus, attempts a coup during the funeral of French president Félix Faure. It fails.
25 February 1899 Brothers Louis, Marcel, and Fernand Renault found Société Renault Frères to build and sell automobiles in Paris.
26 February 1899 Kálmán Szell de Duka et Szentgyörgyvölgy replaces Dezsö, Baron Bánffy de Losoncz as Prime Minister of Hungary.
Symphony no.6 by Anton Bruckner (†2) is performed completely for the first time, in Vienna conducted by Gustav Mahler (38). Mahler makes some cuts and changes some of the orchestration. Nevertheless, it is very well received. See 11 February 1883 and 14 March 1901.
27 February 1899 Claude Debussy’s (36) piano work Reverie is performed for the first time.
28 February 1899 Incidental music to Craigie’s play A Repentance by Hubert Parry (51) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Theatre, London.
3 March 1899 Ein Heldenleben, a tone poem by Richard Strauss (34), is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main, the composer conducting.
4 March 1899 Arthur Sullivan (56) draws up his will.
Francisco Silvela y Le Vielleuze replaces Práxedes Mateo-Sagasta Escolar as Prime Minister of Spain.
König Tejas Begräbnis for male chorus and orchestra by Franz Schreker (20) is performed for the first time, in Döbling.
5 March 1899 United States forces end their occupation of San Juan del Norte and Bluefields.
6 March 1899 Farbenfabriken vormals Friedrich Bayer und Co. receive a German patent for acetylsalicylic acid which they market under the name Aspirin.
8 March 1899 Fantasy and Fugue in c minor op.29 for organ by Max Reger (25) is performed for the first time, in Willibroddom zu Wesel.
11 March 1899 US and UK consuls in Samoa decide to back Malietoa Tanu, son of the late King Malietoa, in his power struggle against German-backed Mataafa to be King of Samoa. Marines from both countries are landed and the USS Philadelphia bombards areas held by Mataafa.
13 March 1899 Richard Strauss (34) meets Kaiser Wilhelm II for the first time. The Kaiser tells him that he does not care for modern music and prefers Der Freischütz. Strauss tells the monarch that he agrees with him.
14 March 1899 After 13 months stuck in ice, and drifting across 17° of longitude, the Belgica is freed to return home.
Hymne à Astarté op.39/1 for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (31) is performed for the first time, in Théâtre de la Bodinière, Paris. See 29 January 1918.
16 March 1899 Adstant angelorum chori op.45, a motet by Horatio Parker (35) to words of Thomas a Kempis, is performed for the first time, in New York. It wins first prize in a contest sponsored by the Musical Art Society of New York.
17 March 1899 Radio is used for the first time to save lives at sea when the German ship Elbe runs aground on the Goodwin Sands, Great Britain. The radio is used to summon lifeboats.
Sou bois op.4/2 for voice, female chorus and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (31) to words of Gille is performed for the first time, in Salle Erard, Paris.
21 March 1899 France formally abandons all claims to Egypt and the Nile Valley.
The three houses of the French National Assembly meet as a Supreme Court of Appeals to consider the case of Alfred Dreyfus. The sessions go on until 23 April.
Edward Elgar (41), his wife and daughter move to a new home which they call Craeg Lea, in West Malvern.
Regina, a revolutionary opera by Albert Lortzing (†48) to his own words, is performed for the first time, in Berlin.
23 March 1899 In the Berlin suburb of Pankow, Richard Strauss (34) meets Hugo von Hofmmansthal for the first time at the home of Richard Dehmel.
British and US officials in Samoa crown Malietoa Tanu as king, at the expense of the German-backed Mataafa. Fighting between the two and their followers comes to an end.
26 March 1899 German archaeologist Robert Koldewey begins the excavation of Babylon in the Ottoman Empire. He will work on it for 18 years.
27 March 1899 Belgica, with a multi-national crew, sails into Punta Arenas, Chile having been the first expedition to winter in the Antarctic.
28 March 1899 Guglielmo Marconi sends the first wireless telegraph message between Great Britain and the continent.
29 March 1899 Ruggero Leoncavallo (42) plays excerpts from his La Bohème and Pagliacci for Queen Victoria and her companions at the Hotel Regina in Cimiez. She finds his music “charming.”
7 April 1899 A Northern Ballad op.46, a tone poem by Horatio Parker (35), is performed for the first time, in New Haven.
14 April 1899 Georgios Theotokis replaces Alexandros Thrasivoulou Zaimis as Prime Minister of Greece.
19 April 1899 Sergey Rakhmaninov (26) makes his London debut, conducting and playing his music in Queen’s Hall. It is his first significant performance outside Russia.
20 April 1899 Fritz (Frederick) Delius (37) arrives in London to begin the massive preparations for his all-Delius concert due to take place on 30 May.
21 April 1899 The Broken Voice op.18/1 for male chorus by Jean Sibelius (33) is performed for the first time, in Helsinki.
Hands Across the Sea, a march by John Philip Sousa (44), is performed for the first time, at the Philadelphia Academy of Music.
23 April 1899 Prince Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino replaces Dimitrie Alexandru Sturdza as Prime Minister of Romania.
26 April 1899 Two works by Jean Sibelius (33) are performed for the first time, in Helsinki, conducted by the composer: the Symphony no.1, and Song of the Atheneans for boys chorus, male chorus, winds, and percussion to words of Rydberg. The second work is a protest against the February manifesto which denudes the autonomy of the Finnish Parliament.
29 April 1899 Edward Kennedy Ellington is born in Washington, the second of three children (and eldest surviving) born to James Edward Ellington, a coachman, later butler for a wealthy society doctor, and Daisy Kennedy, daughter of a former slave.
Angry that the Bunker Hill Mining Company refuses to recognize their union, members of the Western Federation of Miners blow up the company’s mill in Wardner, Idaho with dynamite.
1 May 1899 The String Quartet no.3 op.14 of Carl Nielsen (34) is performed for the first time, in Copenhagen.
2 May 1899 Arthur Farwell (27) returns to the United States aboard the steamer Menominee after two years of travel and study in Europe. Farwell spent much time studying with Engelbert Humperdinck (44).
4 May 1899 Sent by President McKinley after the events of 29 April, federal troops enter Burke, Idaho and arrest every male inhabitant, transporting them in boxcars to Wardner where 1,000 of them are held in a barn.
Concert Variations upon an English Theme “Down among the dead men” op.71 for piano and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (46) is performed for the first time, in Queen’s Hall, London conducted by the composer.
Inno ad Adelaide Cairoli for voice and piano by Pietro Mascagni (35) is performed for the first time in Teatro Palacorda, Pesaro.
8 May 1899 The Irish Literary Theatre opens in Dublin with The Countess Cathleen by William Butler Yeats. Police are present to protect the players.
10 May 1899 La véranda op.3 for voice, female chorus, and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (31) to words of Leconte de Lisle is performed for the first time, privately, at the home of Mme. A. Duglé, Paris. See 18 May 1904.
13 May 1899 Duet for two pianos by Gustav Holst (24) is performed for the first time, by the composer and his father.
18 May 1899 On the initiative of the Tsar Nikolay of Russia, representatives of 26 nations gather at The Hague to discuss ways to promote peace and limit armaments.
The practice of exile to Siberia is officially ended by the Tsarist government of Russia.
19 May 1899 Dans le ciel clair op.4/1 for three solo voices, female chorus, and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (31) to words of Leconte de Lisle, is performed for the first time, in Paris.
23 May 1899 After conducting the overture to Die Fledermaus last night, Johann Strauss (73) awakes with a fever.
Si tu le veux op.5/5 for voice and piano or orchestra by Charles Koechlin (31) to words of Marsan is performed for the first time, in Paris.
24 May 1899 Cendrillon, a conte de fées by Jules Massenet (57) to words of Cain after Perault, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre Favart, Paris. It is an overwhelming success.
Edward Elgar’s (41) part-song To Her Beneath Whose Steadfast Star to words of Myers is performed for the first time, at Windsor Castle as one of a group of songs dedicated to Queen Victoria on her 80th birthday.
WT McCullough opens the Back Bay Cycle and Motor Company in Boston. It is the first public car repair shop in the United States.
27 May 1899 After catching a severe cold at a soiree, Johann Strauss, Jr. (73) takes to his bed suffering from shivering, vomiting, and a fever.
Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie for orchestra by Maurice Ravel (24) is performed for the first time, in the Salle du nouveau Théâtre, Paris conducted by the composer. The public is mixed, the critics hostile.
28 May 1899 Catalonia, part of an unfinished suite for orchestra by Isaac Albéniz, is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique in Paris, on the eve of the composer’s 39th birthday.
30 May 1899 At the annual general meeting of the Vienna Philharmonic, it is voted 54-41 to postpone the election of the chief conductor for a time sufficient to ask Hans Richter if he will take the post back from Gustav Mahler (38).
Several works by Fritz (Frederick) Delius (37) are performed for the first time, in an all-Delius night at St. James’ Hall, London: La ronde se déroule, a symphonic poem, Mitternachtslied Zarathustras for solo voice, male chorus and orchestra to words of Nietzsche, Légende for violin and orchestra and five of the Seven Danish Songs for voice and orchestra to words of Jacobsen and Drachmann. See 16 March 1901.
1 June 1899 Suffering from double pneumonia, Johann Strauss (73) exhibits periods of delirium.
3 June 1899 The Cour de cassation annuls the 1894 Dreyfus conviction and orders a new trial to take place in Rennes.
16:15 Johann Strauss dies of pneumonia in the arms of his wife Adèle, in his Vienna home, aged 73 years, seven months, and nine days. In the Vienna Volksgarten, Eduard Kremser is conducting an open-air concert. When the news reaches him, he makes a brief announcement to the audience, turns and conducts An der schönen, blauen Donau.
4 June 1899 Primera Suite bagatelas for orchestra by Julián Carrillo (24) is performed for the first time, at the National Conservatory, Mexico City.
5 June 1899 Emile Zola returns to France from England and challenges the libel verdict against him. Lieutenant Colonel Georges Picquart is released from prison.
6 June 1899 The cortege carrying the body of Johann Strauss travels from his house in Ingelgasse, past the Theater-an-der-Wien, the Musikverein and the court opera. His mortal remains are laid to rest in the Zentralfriedhof near those of Beethoven (†72), Schubert (†70) and Brahms (†2). Among the mourners is Gustav Mahler (38).
7 June 1899 Camille Saint-Saëns (63) arrives in Rio de Janeiro aboard The Duchess of Genoa. He will give two concerts in the capital and two in São Paulo. While in Rio, his String Quartet op.112 will be premiered.
8 June 1899 Marcha “Mexico” for orchestra by Julián Carrillo (24) is performed for the first time, in a farewell concert before his trip to Europe.
9 June 1899 After over four years of imprisonment on Devil’s Island, Alfred Dreyfus departs for France and retrial.
10 June 1899 Ernest Amédée Chausson, while traveling near his country home at Limay near Mantes, loses control of his bicycle and crashes into a wall, dying instantly. He is aged 44 years, four months and 21 days.
Hans Pfitzner (30) marries Maria (Mimi) Kwast, the daughter of James Kwast, Pfitzner’s former piano teacher at the Hoch Conservatory, in a civil ceremony in Canterbury. They have eloped to England.
13 June 1899 Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez is born in Popotla, near Mexico City, seventh of seven children born to Agustín Chávez, an inventor, and Juvencia Ramírez, who directs a normal school for young women in Popotla.
14 June 1899 Organ Sonata no.1 op.33 by Max Reger (26) is performed for the first time, in Essen.
15 June 1899 A funeral service in memory of Ernest Chausson held in St. François-de-Sales, is attended by hundreds of artists, among them Gabriel Fauré (54), Henri Duparc (51), Isaac Albéniz (39), Claude Debussy (36), Edgar Degas and Auguste Rodin.
19 June 1899 Variations on an Original Theme “Enigma” for orchestra by Edward Elgar (42) is performed for the first time, in St. James’ Hall, London. Both critics and public give the work an “almost unreserved success.” Hubert Parry (51) records that they are “Quite brilliantly clever...”
20 June 1899 Oxford University confers an honorary doctorate on Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (51).
21 June 1899 Dry Those Fair, Those Crystal Eyes, a song for voice and piano by Edward Elgar (42) to words of King is performed for the first time, in Royal Albert Hall.
22 June 1899 Pierre Marie Waldeck-Rousseau replaces Charles Alexandre Dupuy, dit Charles-Dupuy as Prime Minister of France.
26 June 1899 The International Conference of the International Council of Women convenes in London.
30 June 1899 Our Enemies Have Fallen op.68 for chorus and orchestra by Charles Villiers Stanford (46) to words of Tennyson is performed for the first time, in Buckingham Palace.
1 July 1899 Alfred Dreyfus arrives in France from French Guiana and is imprisoned at Rennes.
8 July 1899 Suite for string orchestra by Gustav Holst (24) is performed for the first time, in Princess’ Hall, Ladies College, Cheltenham.
9 July 1899 The North Wind for voice and orchestra by Hubert Parry (51) is performed for the first time, in New Brighton.
11 July 1899 While bicycling near Gosaumühle, Austria, Gustav Mahler (39) encounters the musician Gustav Geiringer and a small party including Alma Schindler. He asks directions but then ends up following them and overtaking them four or five times. Although Geiringer wants to introduce Alma to Mahler, Alma rides away. “I feel absolutely no urge to meet him. I love and honor him as an artist, but as a man he doesn’t interest me at all. I wouldn’t want to lose my illusions either.”
A group of investors in Turin sign a charter for Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili Torino (FIAT) to build and sell automobiles. One of the investors, Giovanni Agnelli, will become managing director in 1902.
13 July 1899 Piano Trio no.2 op.73 by Charles Villiers Stanford (46) is performed for the first time, in London.
14 July 1899 Romanza para violonchelo y piano by Manuel de Falla (22) is performed for the first time, privately, at the home of the cellist Salvador Viniegra in Cádiz.
16 July 1899 Two works for small orchestra by Edward Elgar (42) are performed for the first time, in an all-Elgar concert in New Brighton, conducted by the composer: Minuet op.21 and Three Characteristic Pieces op.10. This concert, organized by Granville Bantock (30), begins a lifelong friendship between Elgar and Bantock.
18 July 1899 Micronesia is placed under the domain of German New Guinea.
Le Matin publishes the admission of Major Esterhazy that he wrote the original letter in the Dreyfus case, but that he did so under orders.
20 July 1899 Alfredo Casella (16) wins the piano competition at the Paris Conservatoire. Ecstatic, he runs to a nearby church where his mother has been praying for her son’s success.
26 July 1899 General Ulises Heureaux, dictator of the Dominican Republic, is shot to death in Moca by Ramón Cáceres and Jacobito Lara. The assassins escape. General Horacio Vásquez proclaims a revolution.
28 July 1899 After declining coffee prices cause bankruptcy and widespread unrest in Colombia, President Manuel Antonio Sanclemente declares martial law.
29 July 1899 The first Hague Peace Conference closes. Signatories agree to a Permanent Court of International Arbitration and ban new types of weapons such as Dum Dum bullets and chemical weapons.
1 August 1899 Writing from Bayreuth, Hans Richter informs the Vienna Philharmonic that he will be unable to return to his former post as chief conductor of the orchestra concerts. This leaves the path open for its current director, Gustav Mahler (39).
5 August 1899 Paul de Smet de Nayer replaces Julius Vandenpeereboom as Prime Minister of Belgium.
7 August 1899 The second trial of Alfred Dreyfus begins at Rennes.
9 August 1899 Great Britain buys the assets of the Niger Company.
11 August 1899 Kaiser Wilhelm II presides at ceremonies at Dortmund opening the 255 km Dortmund-Ems Canal.
12 August 1899 In the midst of arrests of right-wing demonstrators, anti-Semitic leader Jules Guérin barricades himself in the headquarters of the Patriotic League in Paris. He will remain there until 20 September.
14 August 1899 At the trial of Alfred Dreyfus in Rennes, Dreyfus’ lawyer, Fernand Labori, is shot and critically injured. He will survive. The shooter makes his escape without being identified.
A presidential commission on the future of the Philippines recommends that the United States retain colonial control over the islands.
16 August 1899 Several works by Manuel de Falla (22) are performed for the first time, in Salón Quirell, Cádiz, the composer at the keyboard: Nocturno for piano, Melodía for cello and piano, Cuarteto en sol for piano quartet, and Serenata andaluza for violin and piano. It is the first public performance of any of Falla’s music.
24 August 1899 The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra votes on a conductor, as it does every year at this time. Gustav Mahler (39) receives 61 votes, 19 are for Josef Hellmesberger, one for Felix Mottl and three are invalid. Mahler declines to lead an orchestra so divided.
6 September 1899 United States Secretary of State John Hay pronounces the “Open Door Policy.” The American government believes that those nations extorting concessions from China should not set up monopolies in their concessions but should allow all nations equal trading rights.
9 September 1899 A second trial of Alfred Dreyfus once again finds him guilty of espionage, but this time notes “extenuating circumstances.” He is sentenced to ten years in prison.
10 September 1899 Mireya for violin, viola, cello, flute, and piano by Manuel de Falla (22) is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Comico, Cádiz, the composer at the keyboard.
16 September 1899 The Vienna Philharmonic takes a second vote on a conductor. Of the 96 musicians present, 90 vote for Gustav Mahler (39). Later, the orchestra announces that Mahler has accepted the position.
19 September 1899 After repeated public protest, Alfred Dreyfus is pardoned by President Emile Loubet. Dreyfus accepts the pardon, provided he may continue to work for his exoneration.
21 September 1899 English painter Mark Henry Barraud sells a painting of his dog Nipper (listening to a gramophone) to the Gramophone Company of London. It will become their trademark in Great Britain.
The British chemist James Dewar reports in Nature that he has achieved solid hydrogen, at 16° K.
Two works for voice and piano by Jean Sibelius (33) are performed for the first time: Black Roses op.36/1 to words of Josephson, and But My Bird is Long in Homing op.36/2 to words of Runeberg.
30 September 1899 A victory parade for Admiral George Dewey takes place in New York. Taking part is the band led by John Philip Sousa (44) who play the El Capitan march.
1 October 1899 An arbitration commission on the UK-Venezuela border dispute issues its report. It grants most of the disputed territory to British Guiana, although Venezuela retains the mouth of the Orinoco.
2 October 1899 Manfred, Count Clary und Aldringen replaces Franz, Count Thun und Hohenstein as Chancellor of Austria.
3 October 1899 Representatives of Venezuela and Great Britain agree to the arbitration finding of 1 October and sign documents in Paris.
5 October 1899 Sea Pictures op.37 for alto and orchestra by Edward Elgar (42) to words of various writers is performed for the first time, in Norwich conducted by the composer. The work is a success.
9 October 1899 In an ultimatum, the government of the Transvaal demands that British troops be removed from their border.
10 October 1899 After a sleepless night, Giulio Ricordi writes to Giacomo Puccini (40) the longest letter he will ever write to him. “The third act of Tosca, as it stands, is a grave error of conception and craftsmanship...” He goes into detail about his misgivings. Puccini will not make any changes.
11 October 1899 The Transvaal declares war on Great Britain. 10,000 Boers march into British territory.
12 October 1899 In the first action of the Boer War, Boers attack a British armored train.
Todor Ivanchov replaces Dimitur Panayotov Grekov as Prime Minister of Bulgaria.
13 October 1899 Boers attack the British garrison at Mafeking. Outnumbered four to one, the British fend off the attack and the Boers settle in for a siege.
17 October 1899 British forces defeat the Boers at Glencoe, Natal.
18 October 1899 Liberals in Santander department rise against the conservative government of Colombian President Manuel Antonio Sanclemente.
19 October 1899 Claude Debussy (37) marries Rosalie “Lily” Texier in a civil ceremony in Paris. She is a model in a dressmaker’s firm, the daughter of a telegraph inspector for the French Railroad. Among the witnesses is Erik Satie (33).
21 October 1899 The Breaking of the Ice on the Oulu River for reciter, male chorus, and orchestra by Jean Sibelius (33) to words of Topelius is performed for the first time, in Helsinki directed by the composer.
23 October 1899 Chris and the Wonderful Lamp, an operetta by John Philip Sousa (44) to words of MacDonough, is performed for the first time, in the Hyperion Theatre, New Haven, Connecticut.
26 October 1899 Wiener Blut, an operetta by Johann Strauss (†0) to words of Léon and Stein, is performed for the first time, at the Carltheater, Vienna a day after what would have been the composer’s 74th birthday. Despite the love that the Viennese feel towards the late composer, the work is a flop.
30 October 1899 Boer forces defeat the British at Nicholson’s Neck.
The first 1,000 Canadian troops sail from Quebec to fight in the Boer War.
31 October 1899 Two works for orchestra by Enrique Granados (32) are performed for the first time, in Barcelona: Marcha de los vencidos and Suite on Gallician Themes.
1 November 1899 Ladysmith, Natal, surrenders to Boer forces.
2 November 1899 The Mountain Maid op.67, a cycle for voice and piano by Edvard Grieg (56) to words of Garborg, is performed completely for the first time, in Christiania (Oslo).
3 November 1899 The Tsar’s Bride, an opera by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (55) to words of Tyumenev after Mey, is performed for the first time, in the Solodovnikov Theatre, Moscow.
4 November 1899 The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud is published in Vienna.
Scènes historiques I and Finlandia by Jean Sibelius (33) are performed for the first time, in the Swedish Theatre, Helsinki. Both are from a larger collection of incidental music to accompany a set of historical tableaux on Finnish themes. These are the “Press Pension Celebrations”, to raise money ostensibly for pension funds for newspapermen but in reality they give support to the Finnish press who are battling Tsarist censorship.
8 November 1899 Federal Mexican troops crush La Angostura Uprising of Yaqui Indians in Sonora. The survivors are sent to the Yucatán.
13 November 1899 The Absent Minded Beggar, a song for voice and piano by Arthur Sullivan (57) to words of Kipling, is performed for the first time, at the Alhambra Theatre, London. All proceeds from the song, including singing rights and direct sale (the printing is donated), go to the wives and children of those on active service. It is an enormous success and becomes the 19th century equivalent of a number one hit.
14 November 1899 By a treaty concluded in London between Great Britain and Germany, the border between Togoland and the Gold Coast is settled and Britain annexes the Tonga and Savage Islands. Britain gives up its rights in Samoa, allowing Germany to make an agreement to partition the islands with the US.
The Saracen, an opera by Cesar Cui (64) to words after Dumas, père, is performed for the first time, in Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg.
21 November 1899 Melody for violin and piano op.44 by Arthur Foote (46) is performed for the first time, in Fall River, Massachusetts.
23 November 1899 Kate and the Devil, a comic opera by Antonín Dvorák (58) to words of Wenig, is performed for the first time, at the National Theatre, Prague.
26 November 1899 La lampe du ciel op.12, a cantata for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Charles Koechlin to words of Leconte de Lisle, is performed for the first time, privately at the home of Jules Griset, Paris, on the eve of the composer’s 32nd birthday. See 13 February 1903.
28 November 1899 British forces defeat the Boers at Modder River.
29 November 1899 The Rose of Persia, or The Story-teller and the Slave, an operetta by Arthur Sullivan (57) to words of Hood is performed for the first time, in the Savoy Theatre, London, conducted by the composer. The work is fairly successful.
30 November 1899 Hubert Parry (51) receives a telegram telling him that he has been elected Heather Professor at Oxford University.
2 December 1899 By the Treaty of Berlin, the United States is granted sovereignty over the Samoan Islands east of 171° W. Germany is given sovereignty over Samoa west of 171° W.
4 December 1899 The Fifty-sixth Congress of the United States convenes in Washington. Republicans increase their majority in the Senate but lose ground in the House of Representatives, although still maintaining control.
8 December 1899 Zwei Männerchöre by Richard Strauss (35) to folk poems are performed for the first time, in Vienna.
10 December 1899 Boers defeat British troops at Stromberg, killing 3,000 in the process.
11 December 1899 A British attack on Boer positions at Magersfontein, Orange Free State is repulsed.
12 December 1899 The first cases of bubonic plague are confirmed in Honolulu. City officials quarantine the Chinese section of the city where the cases originated.
15 December 1899 A British attack on Boer positions in Colenso, Natal is repulsed.
Liberal and Conservative armies engage at the Peralonso River, west of Cúcuta, Colombia. The day’s action is indecisive.
16 December 1899 Giuseppe Verdi (86) signs a document establishing the foundation of the Casa di Riposo in Milan.
Liberal forces defeat Conservatives at the Peralonso River, Colombia sending them into headlong flight.
21 December 1899 Heinrich von Wittek replaces Manfred, Count Clary und Aldringen as Chancellor of Austria.
23 December 1899 Germany secures a concession from the Ottoman Empire to build a railway to Baghdad.
24 December 1899 The Netherlands adopts proportional representation.
30 December 1899 Song of Oleg the Wise for tenor, bass, male chorus, and orchestra by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (55) to words of AK Tolstoy is performed for the first time, by the Russian Musical Society, St. Petersburg, conducted by the composer.
31 December 1899 An English Protestant minister is captured by about 30 Chinese near Ping Yin in Shantung (Shandong)Province. They take him away to the town, he escapes but is hunted down and killed. It is the first casualty of the Boxer Rebellion.
The Casa di Riposo per Musicisti in Milan, funded completely by Giuseppe Verdi (86), is founded by royal decree in Rome.
Silvestre Revueltas Sánchez is born in Santiago Papasquiaro, Durango, Mexico, 875 km northwest of Mexico City. He is the oldest of twelve children born to José Revueltas Gutiérrez, a bookkeeper, and Romana Sánchez Arias, daughter of miners.
Officials in Honolulu begin a program of burning houses where bubonic plague has been detected. Today, 85 residents are made homeless.
©2004-2012 Paul Scharfenberger
15 August 2012
Last Updated (Wednesday, 15 August 2012 05:36)