1992
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1 January 1992 At UN headquarters in New York, a deal is reached between the government and rebels in El Salvador, brokered by outgoing Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. The war will end by 1 February. Minutes later, conservative terrorists blow up a journalist’s car.
UN envoy Cyrus Vance announces that Serbia and Croatia have accepted UN peacekeeping troops.
Boutros Boutros-Ghalli of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as Secretary-General of the United Nations.
There for guitar and strings by Jonathan Lloyd (43) is performed for the first time, at Snape Maltings.
2 January 1992 In Russia, state subsidies for most goods and services are removed. All prices rise, some sharply. Price rises also occur in Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine.
President Mutalibov of Azerbaijan imposes direct rule over Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Israeli government orders the deportation of twelve Arab terrorists.
3 January 1992 Rebels fire on people demonstrating in support of President Zviad Gamsakhurdia in Tbilisi. Two people are killed, 25 wounded.
A cease-fire between Croatia and the federal Yugoslav army is signed in Sarajevo.
Incidental music to Chekhov’s play Ivanov by Roger Reynolds (57) is performed for the first time, in Mito, Japan.
Concerto for clarinet and orchestra by William Bolcom (53) is performed for the first time, in New York.
5 January 1992 The government of Portugal announces it will sell a majority stake in the oil company, Petrogal.
6 January 1992 After 16 days of battling rebels, Georgian president Zviad Gamsakhurdia flees his bunker as rebels storm the Parliament building in Tbilisi. He leaves the country with about a hundred supporters, probably to Armenia. Rebels take over the capital. A military council takes up the government. Tengiz Ipolitovich Sigua is named Prime Minister.
Bulgarian General Stoyan Savov, former deputy interior minister and chief suspect in the murder of Georgi Markov, shoots himself to death two days before going to trial.
Macedonia amends its constitution to give up any territorial demand on Greece.
An Irish Republican Army bomb kills eight and wounds five people riding home from work at a British army base in Northern Ireland.
7 January 1992 A federal Yugoslav fighter shoots down a clearly marked helicopter carrying five European Community observers near Zagreb. All aboard are killed.
8 January 1992 The Yugoslav defense minister resigns over the events of yesterday.
Moscow military command reports that its primary communication link with 300,000 troops in Ukraine has been taken over by the Ukrainian military.
9 January 1992 Food rationing begins in Estonia.
The Serbian Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Bosanka Krajina declares the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Hercegovina (later renamed Republika Srpska) as part of the Yugoslav Federation.
10 January 1992 Russia places an embargo on consumer goods leaving the country.
An Irish Republican Army bomb explodes 275 meters from the Prime Minister’s office in London.
11 January 1992 The Serbian Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Bosanka Krajina declares that Bosnia and Hercegovina no longer exists.
President Chadli Benjedid of Algeria resigns and is replaced by a ruling council dominated by the army.
The Flute of Interior Time for baritone and piano by John Harbison (53) to words of Kabir (tr. Bly) is performed for the first time, in the Shauspielhaus, Berlin.
12 January 1992 The ruling council of Algeria cancels a run-off election. The country is now to be run by the State Security Panel which voids the results of the December election. They begin arresting the apparent winners of the election, the Islamic Salvation Front.
14 January 1992 Kolchis for percussion, harp, piano, cello, and double bass by Wolfgang Rihm (39) is performed for the first time, in Vienna.
Two California condors bred in captivity are released into the wild. The last surviving condors had been captured in 1987 and bred in captivity.
15 January 1992 The twelve members of the European Community recognize Croatia and Slovenia.
Also recognizing Croatia and Slovenia are Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Hungary, Norway, Poland, and Switzerland. Bulgaria also recognizes Bosnia and Hercegovina and Macedonia.
16 January 1992 Six people are killed and dozens injured in riots over rising prices in Uzbekistan.
Former President Gamsakhurdia returns to western Georgia to rally his supporters.
President Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan lifts price controls. Riots ensue.
A formal treaty enshrining the agreement of 1 January is signed in Mexico City by President Alfredo Cristiani of El Salvador and five rebel leaders. The rebels will give up their arms but gain political freedom. The government agrees to reduce the size of the armed forces and institute land reform.
17 January 1992 A court in Athens acquits former Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou of corruption charges. Two of his ministers are found guilty.
On a state visit to Croatia and Slovenia, President Francesco Cossiga of Italy signs documents creating formal relations between his country and the two former Yugoslav republics.
Eight people are killed by a bomb planted by the Provisional IRA as they ride home from work at a British army base in County Tyrone.
18 January 1992 “Nordosten” and “Nordwesten” from the cycle Die Stücke der Windrose for small orchestra by Mauricio Kagel (60) are performed for the first time, in Cologne directed by the composer.
John Cage’s (79) installation Roaratorio opens at the Wilhelm-Hack-Museum, Ludwigshafen am Rhein.
19 January 1992 Zhelyu Zhelev is reelected to a five-year term as President of Bulgaria.
Am Horizont for violin, cello, and accordion by Wolfgang Rihm (39) is performed for the first time, in Cologne to celebrate the 60th birthday of Mauricio Kagel. Also premiered is Five2 for english horn, two clarinets, bass clarinet, and timpani by John Cage (79).
20 January 1992 John Frohnmayer is forced to resign as chairman of the US National Endowment for the Arts. On the same day, Republican presidential candidate Pat Buchanan calls the NEA “the upholstered playpen of the arts and crafts auxiliary of the Eastern Liberal Establishment.”
Jeffrey Dahmer goes on trial in Milwaukee for the murder of 15 people.
21 January 1992 Poland recognizes the independence of Slovenia and Croatia.
A former East German border guard is convicted of manslaughter for killing a man seeking to flee over the Berlin Wall. He is sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison.
The Duenna, an opera by Roberto Gerhard (†22) to words of Hassall and the composer after Sheridan, is staged for the first time, in a concert setting in Teatro Lirico Nacional, Madrid 45 years after it was composed. See 23 February 1949.
The Spacious Firmament op.69 for chorus and orchestra by Robin Holloway (48) to words of Dryden, Blake and Tennyson is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Birmingham.
23 January 1992 The UN Security Council votes a total arms embargo on Somalia due to the civil war there.
25 January 1992 Moslem and Croat legislators vote to hold a referendum on the independence of Bosnia and Hercegovina.
Simple Stories for voices and instruments by William Bolcom (53) to words of Hall is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.
26 January 1992 Intermezzo for dulcimer and keyboards by Ralph Shapey (70) is performed for the first time, in Mandel Hall of the University of Chicago. Also premiered is Shapey’s Centennial Celebration for four vocal soloists and twelve players.
27 January 1992 Over 60 people are reported killed over the last two days in fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh.
28 January 1992 Georgian government troops capture Poti and Zugdidi, the last two towns held by supporters of deposed president Zviad Gamsakhurdia.
29 January 1992 Delight of the Muses, a ballet by Charles Wuorinen (53), is staged for the first time, at the New York State Theatre in Lincoln Center, the composer conducting.
30 January 1992 Tiit Vähi replaces Edgar Savisaar as Prime Minister of Estonia.
In the wake of a wiretapping scandal, Prime Minister Charles Haughey of Ireland resigns.
Two5 for trombone and piano by John Cage (79) is performed for the first time, in Frankfurt-am-Main.
31 January 1992 Former CIA official Alan Fiers pleads guilty to withholding information from Congress in the Iran-Contra affair.
1 February 1992 The Commonwealth of Independent States agrees to remove all its remaining troops from the Baltic states.
A cease-fire goes into effect in El Salvador, ending twelve years of civil war which has cost the lives of 75,000 people.
At Camp David, Presidents Bush and Yeltsin declare a formal end to the Cold War.
The United States begins repatriating thousands of Haitian refugees it has picked up and held at Guantanamo in Cuba since September.
2 February 1992 The Yugoslav Army begins to withdraw from Macedonia.
3 February 1992 Song of Penance for hyperviola, computer voice, and chamber ensemble by Tod Machover (38) to words of Moss is performed for the first time, in Los Angeles. This will constitute the second part of Hyperstring Trilogy. See 25 July 1996.
4 February 1992 A member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary enters the Belfast office of Sinn Fein and opens fire with a shotgun. He kills three people and injures two others. Later in the day, he kills himself.
Early morning. A coup led by mid-level army officers attacks the presidential palace in Caracas. Loyal troops regain control by mid-afternoon. A thousand people are arrested.
5 February 1992 Archaeologists find Ubar in the Arabian desert. It was the center of the ancient Frankincense trade.
Two members of the Ulster Freedom Fighters walk into a betting shop in south Belfast and open fire. They kill five men, mostly elderly Catholics, and injure at least twelve.
6 February 1992 Concerto for orchestra by Leslie Bassett (69) is performed for the first time, in Orchestra Hall, Detroit.
7 February 1992 Presidents Yeltsin of Russia and Mitterand of France sign a treaty of political, economic and military cooperation in Paris.
8 February 1992 Russia announces that its last ten political prisoners have been released.
The 16th Winter Olympic Games open in Albertville, France.
Südosten from the cycle Die Stücke der Windrose for small orchestra by Mauricio Kagel (60) is performed for the first time, in the Stadthalle, Gütersloh.
9 February 1992 The Serbian Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Bosanka Krajina votes to accept a UN peace plan.
Die Eroberung von Mexico, a Musiktheater by Wolfgang Rihm (39) to his own words after Artaud, is performed for the first time, in the Staatstheater, Hamburg.
Musique pour Delphine for violin and cello by Betsy Jolas (66) is performed for the first time, in the amphitheater of the Opera of the Bastille, Paris.
And one of the Pharisees for alto, tenor, and bass voices by Arvo Pärt (56) is performed for the first time, in Davis, California.
10 February 1992 An emergency airlift of food and supplies to the former USSR begins from Frankfurt. 14 nations are involved.
11 February 1992 Albert Reynolds replaces Charles James Haughey as Prime Minister of Ireland.
US President Bush orders US companies to cease producing ozone-depleting chemicals by the end of 1995.
14 February 1992 On the recommendation of UN envoy Cyrus Vance, the Security Council votes to send 12,000 peacekeepers to Yugoslavia for one year. Their task will be to supervise the cease-fire, begin disarming the Serb militia and oversee the withdrawal of the Federal Yugoslav army.
An infirm William Schuman (81) falls in his New York apartment, breaking a hip and a hand. He is taken to Lenox Hill Hospital across the street from his apartment. Doctors operate on his hip.
15 February 1992 Arab terrorists attack an Israeli military post and kill three people.
11:43 William Howard Schuman dies in New York, from a heart attack after surgery for a hip ailment, aged 81 years, six months, and eleven days.
String Quartet no.5 by Philip Glass (55) is performed for the first time.
16 February 1992 Israeli helicopters attack a motorcade in southern Lebanon killing Sheik Abbas al-Musawi, the leader of the Shia terrorist group Hezbollah. Musawi’s wife, son, and four of his bodyguards are also killed.
British security forces kill four men and injure two others whom they suspect are members of the Provisional IRA, in County Tyrone.
A Milwaukee jury finds Jeffrey Dahmer sane. Having pleaded guilty but insane, he is determined to be guilty of the murder of 15 people.
17 February 1992 Mario Chiesa, a minor official of the Italian Socialist Party, is arrested for embezzlement of charitable funds. When he is denounced by socialist leader Bettino Craxi, Chiesa will tell all about the widespread corrupt practices of the Socialist Party.
Jeffrey Dahmer is sentenced in a Milwaukee court to 15 consecutive life sentences.
Sinfonietta no.1 for strings by Krzysztof Penderecki (58) is performed for the first time, in Warsaw, the composer conducting.
20 February 1992 Israeli forces attack Shia terrorist bases in southern Lebanon.
21 February 1992 The Bush administration lifts sanctions against China.
The UN Security Council votes to send a peacekeeping force to Croatia.
22 February 1992 The US military reports that failure to communicate restrictions on targets during the Gulf War caused damage to civilian structures much more heavily than desired or announced.
23 February 1992 The 16th Winter Olympic Games close in Albertville, France. In 16 days of competition, 1,801 athletes from 64 nations took part.
Missa brevis for chorus and organ by Charles Wuorinen (53) is performed for the first time, at St. Ignatius of Antioch Episcopal Church, New York.
24 February 1992 Erich Honecker leaves the Chilean Embassy in Moscow to enter a Russian hospital.
Ten for flute, oboe, clarinet, trombone, percussion, string quartet, and piano by John Cage (79) is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.
25 February 1992 Poland devalues the zloty by 12%.
27 February 1992 Germany and Czechoslovakia sign a treaty of friendship in Prague.
Focus a beam, emptied of thinking, outward... for cello by Roger Reynolds (57) is performed for the first time, in Merkin Concert Hall, New York.
28 February 1992 The Albanian government closes the port of Durrës to prevent a repeat of the 1991 exodus.
The UN Security Council condemns Iraq for refusing to allow UN arms experts to dismantle its Scud production plants. They give Iraq until the week of 9 March to resolve the issue.
1 March 1992 Hungary becomes an associate member of the European Community.
Results of ballotting over the last two days indicate that 63% of the electorate of Bosnia and Hercegovina have voted for independence from Yugoslavia.
2 March 1992 Nine countries are admitted to the United Nations: the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Republic of Moldova, the Most Serene Republic of San Marino, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan.
3 March 1992 Movement of Varied Moments for Two for flute and vibraphone by Ralph Shapey (70) is performed for the first time, at the University of Akron, Ohio.
6 March 1992 President Ayaz Niyazi ogly Mutalibov of Azerbaijan resigns.
7 March 1992 Ehud Sadan, an official at the Israeli embassy, is killed by a car bomb planted by Islamic terrorists in Ankara.
Hill-Song no.1 for string quartet by Peter Sculthorpe (62) is performed for the first time, in Longford, Tasmania.
Russian President Yeltsin removes the last price controls on bread, milk, kefir, cottage cheese, sugar, salt, cooking oil, and matches.
Jean-Luc Dehaene replaces Wilfried Martens as Prime Minister of Belgium at the head of a center-left four-party coalition.
Songs in the Forest for flute, violin, piano, vibraphone, and narrator by Lou Harrison (74) to his own words is performed for the first time, in De Young Museum, San Francisco.
8 March 1992 UN forces from over 30 countries begin a deployment in Yugoslavia under the command of General Satish Nambiar of India.
Étude pour Séraphin for brass and percussion by Wolfgang Rihm (39) is performed for the first time, in Karlsruhe.
Ever Since Babylon a cantata by Samuel Adler (64) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.
10 March 1992 The ruling military council of Georgia chooses Eduard Shevardnadze to lead the new State Council.
11 March 1992 Hymn to the Senses op.72 for chorus by Robin Holloway (48) to words of Fuller is performed for the first time, at Trinity College, Cambridge.
12 March 1992 Two for Jan for soprano, mezzo-soprano, oboe/english horn, bass clarinet, and cello by Richard Wernick (58) is performed for the first time.
13 March 1992 A new constitution allowing multi-party democracy is adopted in Burundi.
Two works by Peter Maxwell Davies (57) are performed for the first time, in City Halls, Glasgow, the composer conducting: Strathclyde Concerto no.6 for flute and orchestra, and Ban: Vanitas arranged for string orchestra.
14 March 1992 Pravda announces that it is ceasing publication.
15 March 1992 The United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia takes control of the country.
Following hundreds of deaths in fighting over the last six weeks, Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a draft truce agreement.
The Peoples Republic of Congo is renamed the Republic of Congo.
What Ever Happened to the Big Bands? for alto saxophone, trumpet and trombone by TJ Anderson (63) is performed for the first time, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
16 March 1992 Fighting begins between Moslems and Serbs in Bosanski Brod.
17 March 1992 An Arab goes on a rampage in Tel Aviv, killing two people and injuring 19 others.
Islamic Jihad sets off a bomb outside the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires. The embassy, a nearby Catholic Church and a school are destroyed. 32 people are killed, 250 wounded.
In a referendum among whites in South Africa, almost 70% favor President de Klerk’s road to constitutional reform and power sharing.
18 March 1992 Afghan rebels capture Mazar-i-Sharif.
20 March 1992 The UN Security Council says Iraq has agreed to all its demands for full disclosure and dismantling of its weapons of mass destruction programs.
21 March 1992 Luraï for celtic harp and synthesized sounds by Jean-Claude Risset (54) is performed for the first time, at Radio-France, Paris.
22 March 1992 In the first round of Albanian elections the Democratic Party receives 62% of the vote with 25% going to the Socialist party (former Communists). 13% goes to other parties.
23 March 1992 Bariolage for harp, part of Trilogy by Elliott Carter (83), is performed for the first time, at Salle Patino, Geneva. See 30 June 1992.
24 March 1992 Roáï for orchestra by Iannis Xenakis (69) is performed for the first time, in Berlin.
25 March 1992 The German ambassador to France visits Olivier Messiaen (83) in his Paris apartment to confer on him the Braunschweig Prize. The composer is too ill to leave his home.
Cosmonaut Sergey Krikalyov returns to Earth in Kazakhstan after ten months in space. The country that launched him into orbit no longer exists.
26 March 1992 The Yugoslav Army completes its withdrawal from Macedonia.
Études aperçues for vibraphone and five cowbells by Betsy Jolas (65) is performed for the first time, in a recording session in Paris. See 28 January 1995.
Fanfares and Reflection for two violins by John Harbison (53) is performed for the first time, in Renée Weiler Concert Hall, New York.
27 March 1992 Concerto for violin and orchestra op.70 by Robin Holloway (48) is performed for the first time, in Manchester.
In Theresienstadt for mezzo-soprano and piano by Alexander Goehr (59) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of BBC Radio 3.
Festival Alleluia for chorus by Ned Rorem (68) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.
28 March 1992 Moldovan President Snegur imposes emergency rule in the Trans-Dniester region after weeks of fighting between ethnic Romanians and Slavs.
29 March 1992 In the final round of the Albanian election the Democratic Party wins 92 seats, the Socialist Party wins 38, Social Democrats 7, others 3.
30 March 1992 Under a UN program, the first 527 of 375,000 Cambodian refugees living in Thailand return to Cambodia.
31 March 1992 The UN Security Council votes sanctions against Libya if they refuse to hand over suspects in the Pan Am bombing.
1 April 1992 The “Tigers” of Serb leader Arkan move into Bijeljina. They begin a program of murder, harassment, and intimidation against the Moslem civilians. 24 people are killed.
Scientists find the largest living organism, a giant fungus covering 12 hectares, in the forest on the border of Michigan and Wisconsin.
A memorial concert is given in memory of William Schuman (†0) at the Juilliard Theatre in New York.
2 April 1992 Pierre Bérégovoy replaces Edith Cresson as Prime Minister of France.
Libyans attack embassies in Tripoli of those countries who voted sanctions against the country.
3 April 1992 President Ramiz Alia of Albania resigns.
The Federal Yugoslav Army moves into Bijeljina and occupies the town. The terror continues unabated with the full complicity of the federal troops.
4 April 1992 Alarmed by the increasing flight of Moslems from northeast Bosnia, President Izetbegovic orders a general mobilization.
The Albanian Peoples Assembly elects Sali Berisha as President. He is the first non-communist leader of the country since World War II. Berisha names Alexander Meksi as Prime Minister.
200 people are killed in fighting at Kupres.
1,200 United Nations peacekeeping troops arrive in Croatia.
Cayuga Lake (Memories) for chamber orchestra by Karel Husa (70) is performed for the first time, in Alice Tully Hall, New York. The work celebrates the centennial of Ithaca College and marks Husa’s retirement from the faculty.
5 April 1992 Serb paramilitaries lay siege to, then attack the Sarajevo police academy on the south side of the city. Serb artillery begins bombarding the Sarajevo airport. Meanwhile, thousands of Serbs, Croats, and Moslems march through Sarajevo protesting the violence. They are fired upon by Serb paramilitaries with bullets and hand grenades. Suada Dilberovic, a 21-year-old female medical student, becomes the first civilian to die in Sarajevo.
Iranians opposed to the government attack ten Iranian diplomatic missions in Europe and North America.
President Alberto Fujimori of Peru dissolves Congress and the Judiciary, arrests opposition politicians and imposes censorship. Tanks and troops take to the streets of Lima in support of the coup. The Congress building and homes of congressional leaders are surrounded.
6 April 1992 Russian President Yeltsin narrowly wins a vote of confidence in the Duma.
The European Community recognizes the independence of Bosnia and Hercegovina.
Italian voters strip the ruling four-party coalition of its majority in Parliament. Both the Christian Democrats and the former Communists lose significant numbers of seats. 16 parties are elected and the formation of a new government seems unclear.
President Fujimori of Peru declares a state of emergency and swears in a new government.
Now Sleep the Mountains, All for chorus, percussion, and two pianos by Lou Harrison (74) is performed for the first time, at San Jose State University.
7 April 1992 Suchinda Kraprayoon replaces Anand Panyarachun as Prime Minister of Thailand.
G-7 leaders announce a $24,000,000,000 aid program for the former Soviet Union.
The United States recognizes the independence of Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, and Slovenia.
String Quartet no.6 by Isang Yun (74) is performed for the first time, in Basel.
8 April 1992 Serbs begin shelling the civilian areas of Zvornik from inside Serbia proper. Citizens of the town, who are 60% Moslem, flee.
Radovan Karadzic declares the independent “Serbian Republic of Bosnia-Hercegovina” later renamed Republika Srpska, to come into existence at midnight with Sarajevo as its capital and himself as head of state.
From positions in the Sarajevo Holiday Inn, Serb gunners fire into the forecourt of the Parliament building where the Peoples Assembly and National Salvation Committee are meeting. Six people are killed and dozens wounded. Bosnian troops storm the hotel and capture six men.
A plane carrying PLO leader Yasir Arafat goes down in a sandstorm in southeastern Libya. Three people are killed, five injured, but Arafat survives relatively unscathed.
9 April 1992 Serb terrorist Arkan issues an ultimatum to the Moslems of Zvornik to surrender. He receives no response. José Maria Mendiluce, the most senior UNHCR official in Yugoslavia, happens to be crossing through Serb lines into Zvornik. He is detained for two hours, during which time he sees four or five trucks full of the bodies of men, women, and children. The Serbs finally let him cross the line into Bosnian held territory. He finds 5,000 terrified people in a narrow valley and spends an hour trying to calm them. Mendiluce confirms that both Serb paramilitaries and the federal army took part in the attack.
In a surprise result, the British Conservative Party loses 41 seats in national elections but holds on to a 21-seat majority.
Manuel Noriega is convicted in Miami of drug trafficking, racketeering, and money laundering. He will be sentenced to 40 years in prison.
The Song of Majnun, an opera by Bright Sheng (36) to words of Porter, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.
10 April 1992 Serb forces take Zvornik. They will kill over 4,000 Moslem civilians and force the remaining 40,000 Moslems in the town out.
The Irish Republican Army explodes a bomb in the financial district of London. Three people are killed, 91 injured.
11 April 1992 The Russian Congress of Peoples Deputies passes a resolution requiring President Yeltsin to give up the post of prime minister within 90 days.
Due Libri for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble by John Harbison (53) is performed for the first time, in the Nauraushaun Presbyterian Church, Pearl River, New York.
12 April 1992 The Mouse Metamorphosed into a Maid op.54 for unaccompanied voice by Alexander Goehr (59) to words of Moore after LaFontaine, is performed for the first time, at the University of South Carolina, Columbia.
13 April 1992 Life with an Idiot, an opera by Alfred Schnittke (57) to words of Yerofeyev, is performed for the first time, in Amsterdam.
15 April 1992 UN sanctions go into effect against Libya for failing to hand over two suspects in two airplane bombings.
16 April 1992 President Najibullah of Afghanistan resigns and flees to the UN compound in Kabul.
18 April 1992 Benedicamus Domino for male chorus by Krzysztof Penderecki (58) is performed for the first time, in Lucerne.
19 April 1992 Abdul Rahim Hatif becomes interim president of Afghanistan at the head of an eight-man council.
20 April 1992 The Albanian government institutes economic reforms: privatization of land and industries, restructuring of banking, and loosening of price controls.
Neo-Nazi demonstrators are arrested in Dresden in a government crackdown on anti-foreign violence.
21 April 1992 President Hatif of Afghanistan says he is willing to give control of the country to the Moslem rebels.
Olivier Messiaen (83) is admitted to the Beaujon Hospital in Clichy.
22 April 1992 Olivier Messiaen (83) undergoes an operation in Paris to support two collapsed vertebrae.
A series of gas explosions in the sewer system of Guadalajara destroys 20 blocks of the city, killing over 200 people, injuring 1,400.
In a Munich studio, WDR films the first performance of One11 for solo cameraman by John Cage (79).
24 April 1992 Forces from six different rebel groups enter Kabul.
Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti of Italy resigns to make way for a new government based on the election of 5/6 November.
Violin Concerto by Joan Tower (53) is performed for the first time, in Symphony Hall, Salt Lake City.
25 April 1992 Afghan leaders in Pakistan announce a commission to run the country until elections can be held.
King Mihai returns to Romania for the first time in 45 years for an Easter visit.
President Francesco Cossiga of Italy resigns two months before the end of his term, effective 28 April.
Inner Song for oboe, part of Trilogy by Elliott Carter (83) is performed for the first time, in the Theatersaal, Witten, Germany. Also premiered is Five4 for two saxophones and three percussionists by John Cage (79). See 30 June 1992.
Seraphic Games for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (63) is performed for the first time, in Costa Mesa, California.
26 April 1992 Afghan rebels capture the presidential palace in Kabul from an alliance of government troops and fundamentalist militia.
Egyptian Diary for soprano and percussion by TJ Anderson (63) to words of Kaldas is performed for the first time, at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.
27 April 1992 Serbia and Montenegro proclaim a new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in Belgrade.
President Izetbegovic of Bosnia and Hercegovina demands that the Yugoslav army leave the country.
Betty Boothroyd becomes the first woman speaker of the British House of Commons.
Evening. Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen dies after surgery in a Paris hospital, aged 83 years, four months, and 19 days.
28 April 1992 Sibgatullah Mojadedi becomes the leader of the ruling Islamic Council of Afghanistan. He enters Kabul and assumes power. The council is a coalition of all rebel groups in the country except the fundamentalists led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.
29 April 1992 Four Los Angeles policemen are acquitted on all but one count of beating black motorist Rodney King. Rioting erupts in the minority district of South-Central Los Angeles. Mayor Tom Bradley declares a state of emergency. California Governor Pete Wilson calls out National Guard units. Over the next few days, 52 people will be killed and 600 buildings set afire. Damage estimates reach $1,000,000,000.
The US government says it will no longer produce enriched uranium for nuclear weapons.
30 April 1992 A dusk-to-dawn curfew is imposed in Los Angeles. The rioters begin targeting Asian-owned businesses. Korean shop-owners fire on looters. Violence occurs in San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle, Miami, Pittsburgh, Omaha, Tampa, and St. Louis. Two people are killed in Las Vegas, 1,100 arrested in San Francisco.
1 May 1992 Serbs begin sending artillery shells into Sarajevo around the clock. They seize many towns throughout Bosnia and Hercegovina.
President Bush orders 1,500 marines and 3,000 army troops into Los Angeles. Nevada Governor Bob Miller sends 400 National Guard troops into Las Vegas.
A 20-year-old former student kills four people and injures ten others in a siege at his former high school in Olivehurst, California.
2 May 1992 In the greatest single bombardment of Sarajevo to date, Serb gunners target government buildings. Saboteurs destroy the central post office and telephone exchange. 40,000 lines to the city are knocked out. President Izetbegovic lands at Sarajevo airport from peace talks in Lisbon with his daughter and Deputy Prime Minister Nurudin Imamovic. They are taken into custody by 30 men of the Federal Yugoslav Army. Yugoslav President Branko Kostic orders the army to trade Izetbegovic for federal troops led by General Kukanjac now under siege in Sarajevo. Meanwhile, Izetbegovic manages to talk by phone to Sarajevo television on the air and informs the world that he has been kidnapped. Fearing that a coup attempt is underway, he names Ejup Ganic as acting President. News anchor Senad Hadzifejzovic begins negotiating with Yugoslav General Vojislav Djurdjevac for the release of the President.
Serbs consolidate their holds on Brcko and Doboj, driving the majority Moslem population from their homes.
Serb forces move into Sarajevo to implement the plan of Radovan Karadzic for an ethnically divided city. They enter the central district of Grbavica. An armored column comes within 100 meters of the Presidency building. Artillery and tank rounds hit the city’s municipal building. Another Serb armored column moves in from the west. They are both stopped by small numbers of Bosnian forces. Although the offensive is unsuccessful, Serbs now hold the suburbs of Nedzovici and Mojmilo, the Sarajevo districts of Grbavica and Hrasno, and they have surrounded the suburb of Dobrinja. This will be essentially the front line for the duration of the war.
Representatives of 19 European countries sign the European Economic Area Treaty in Oporto, Portugal. It creates a free trade area between the European Community and the European Free Trade Area.
3 May 1992 After five days of pro-democracy demonstrations in Dushanbe, Tajik authorities begin a violent crackdown.
Acting President Ganic makes it to UN General Mackenzie’s headquarters and pleads with him to intervene for the release of President Izetbegovic. Mackenzie and European Community representative Major Colm Doyle of Ireland drive to Lukavica where the surrounded federal army units hold the President. Izetbegovic and General Kukanjac agree to a swap, the President for the besieged army troops. Soon, a convoy carrying Izetbegovic, Kukanjac and the federal troops, led by Mackenzie, heads for the Serb lines. Within five minutes, Bosnian militia troops, believing their President to be kidnapped or dead, set upon the convoy cutting it in half, shooting and grabbing guns and ammunition. Mackenzie has Izetbegovic pop out of his APC to show that he is safe. The shooting stops and the militia joyously welcome their president back. Seven federal soldiers are killed, several wounded. 100 federal troops are still trapped but their release is negotiated later.
La déesse Athéna for baritone and twelve instruments by Iannis Xenakis (69) to words of Aeschylus is performed for the first time, in Athens.
4 May 1992 Yugoslav authorities order all federal army members not from Bosnia and Hercegovina to leave the country and return to the new Yugoslavia.
Over 90% of voters in Ghana approve a new charter which includes a multi-party democracy.
Presidential spokesman Marlin Fitzwater blames the violence in Los Angeles on President Johnson’s anti-poverty programs thirty years ago.
5 May 1992 Rebel factions reach a peace agreement in Kabul and interim president Sibghatullah Mojadidi appoints a 36-member temporary cabinet. The fundamentalist Hekmatyar faction continues to shell Kabul, causing 73 deaths.
The Bosnian government signs a peace agreement with the Yugoslav federal army.
Acting chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, Anne-Imelda Rice, tells a congressional committee that she will deny funding for sexually explicit art and art dealing with “difficult subject matter.”
6 May 1992 The shelling of Kabul stops as the Hekmatyar faction begins negotiations with the new Afghan government.
Meeting in Prague, the presidents of Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary declare a free trade zone.
Marlene Dietrich dies in Paris at the age of 90.
7 May 1992 100,000 people demonstrate in Bangkok against Prime Minister Suchinda Kraprayoon and his government.
President Yeltsin decrees the creation of a separate Russian army with himself as its head.
8 May 1992 Armenian forces take the last Azerbaijani stronghold in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Stephen Sondheim refuses to accept the National Medal of Arts Award, saying the NEA has become “a conduit and a symbol of censorship and repression rather than encouragement and support.”
9 May 1992 At United Nations headquarters, 143 countries approve a treaty reducing the emission of greenhouse gases.
String Quartet no.5 by Michael Tippett (87) is performed for the first time, in Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
10 May 1992 Dienstag aus Licht, an opera by Karlheinz Stockhausen (63) to his own words, is performed completely for the first time, in a concert setting, in Lisbon. See 28 May 1993.
11 May 1992 Pressured by continuing violence in Dushanbe, Tajiki President Rakhman Nabiyev agrees to a coalition government with the opposition.
The European Community votes to withdraw its ambassadors from Belgrade.
12 May 1992 The US recalls its ambassador from Belgrade.
The Danish Parliament approves the Maastricht Treaty.
Circle with Four Trios, Conductor, and Audience for 12 players by Tan Dun (34) is performed for the first time, in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.
13 May 1992 The French National Assembly votes several constitutional amendments designed to allow for approval of the Maastricht Treaty.
14 May 1992 Janez Drnovsek replaces Lojze Peterle as Prime Minister of Slovenia.
15 May 1992 Erich Honecker is charged with ordering border guards to shoot to kill escaping East Germans.
Three Fragments for flute and harp by Witold Lutoslawski (79) are performed for the first time, in Warsaw, 39 years after they were composed.
Monster in a Box, a film with music by Laurie Anderson (44), is shown for the first time, in Los Angeles.
17 May 1992 Thai military and police battle pro-democracy demonstrators in Bangkok.
Voters in Switzerland approve joining the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
18 May 1992 Thai military and police again open fire on demonstrators in Bangkok. Scores are killed. The government declares a state of emergency and arrests hundreds.
19 May 1992 Thousands of anti-government demonstrators are arrested in Bangkok.
The Hungarian government formally abandons an agreement with Czechoslovakia to build hydroelectric dams across the Danube.
And Then I Knew ‘Twas Wind for flute, viola, and harp by Toru Takemitsu (61) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.
20 May 1992 King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand summons Prime Minister Suchinda Kraprayoon and opposition leader Chamlong Srimvang to the palace in Bangkok, insisting that they begin face to face dialogue.
The United States revokes the landing rights of the Yugoslav national airline.
Lejaren Hiller is admitted to Niagara Lutheran Nursing Home in Buffalo. He is suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease.
21 May 1992 The British House of Commons approves legislation to implement the Maastricht Treaty.
22 May 1992 98 countries approve a treaty in Nairobi designed to protect biodiversity. The Bush Administration refuses to sign.
The United States closes Yugoslav consulates in New York and San Francisco and expels military attaches.
The Republic of Bosnia and Hercegovina, the Republic of Croatia, and the Republic of Slovenia are admitted to the United Nations.
The second, third, and fourth pieces from ...in real time op.50 for piano by Alexander Goehr (57) is performed for the first time, at the University of Southampton.
23 May 1992 Giovanni Falcone, Italy’s chief anti-Mafia investigator, is murdered in Sicily along with his wife and a police escort.
Representatives of Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan sign protocols in Lisbon pledging them to compliance with the START limits on nuclear weapons.
Tropic for clarinet, violin, two guitars, double bass, and percussion by Peter Sculthorpe (63) is performed for the first time, in Brighton, Great Britain.
Costaso, a dramatic work by William Grant Still (†13), is performed for the first time, in Pasadena, California.
24 May 1992 King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand grants an amnesty to government and army officials in their brutal repression of pro-democracy demonstrations. Meechai Ruchupan replaces Suchinda Kraprayoon as Prime Minister ad interim.
Kosovo voters elect a parliament dominated by the Democratic Alliance of Ibrahim Rugova.
President Bush orders the Coast Guard to intercept Haitian refugees on the high seas and return them to Haiti.
25 May 1992 The Parliament of Thailand amends the constitution to end the military stranglehold on politics.
The Afghan government reaches an agreement with the Hekmatyar faction to end fighting and to hold elections within six months.
At a news conference in Moscow, President Yeltsin’s chief legal adviser, Sergey Shakrai, reads from a 1975 Communist Party document describing a decision to arm the PLO for “actions against US and Israeli personnel in third countries.”
After two weeks of struggle, the Italian parliament elects Oscar Luigi Scalfaro as President.
26 May 1992 Polish President Lech Walesa removes his support from the Olszewski government and it falls.
27 May 1992 The European Community imposes a trade embargo on Yugoslavia.
Serb forces send a mortar barrage into Sarajevo killing at least 16 civilians and injuring over 100.
Visions for string quartet by Roger Reynolds (57) is performed for the first time, in Tokyo.
28 May 1992 Oscar Luigi Scalfaro replaces Francesco Cossiga as President of Italy.
29 May 1992 Over the next two days, Serbs shell Sarajevo and Dubrovnik.
Switzerland is admitted to the International Monetary Fund.
30 May 1992 Outraged by Serb atrocities in Bosnia, the UN Security Council votes strong sanctions against Yugoslavia (13-0-2). It demands an end to the fighting and to Yugoslav interference in Bosnia and Hercegovina. It authorizes a ban on all exports to Yugoslavia except food and medical supplies. It imposes a global ban on imports from Yugoslavia. Yugoslav foreign assets and commercial contacts are frozen.
1 June 1992 Russia is admitted to the International Monetary Fund.
Concerto “Shir Ha Ma’alot” for woodwind quintet and orchestra by Samuel Adler (64) is performed for the first time, in Mannheim.
2 June 1992 Voters in Denmark refuse to ratify the Maastricht European Union Treaty.
Marc Bazin is named Prime Minister of Haiti.
Litany of Sins for orchestra by Anthony Davis (41) is performed for the first time, in New York.
Peer Gynt, a theatre piece by John C. Eaton (57) to his own words after Ibsen, is performed for the first time, in New York.
4 June 1992 The 1974 conviction of Judith Ward for taking part in an IRA bombing is overturned by England’s Court of Appeal. The court blasts the authorities for concocting evidence to convict her.
Vaslav’s Song for baritone and piano by William Bolcom (54) to words of Eichelberger is performed for the first time.
5 June 1992 Erich Honecker is charged with embezzlement and breach of trust by the German government.
Waldemar Pawlak replaces Jan Olszewski as Prime Minister of Poland.
6 June 1992 The conservative Civic Democratic Party wins a plurality of seats in national elections in Czechoslovakia.
A Christmas Round for chorus by John Tavener (48) to words from the Orthodox liturgy is performed for the first time, in St. John’s Smith Square, London. Also premiered is Tavener’s O, Do Not Move for chorus to words of Seferis (tr. Sherrard).
7 June 1992 In its first multi-party presidential elections, Azerbaijani voters elect Abulfez Elchibey.
The Child Lived for soprano and cello by John Tavener (48) to words of Mother Thekla is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.
8 June 1992 Professor Faraq Foda, an opponent of Moslem extremism, is shot by two gunmen near his office in Cairo. He will die tomorrow.
Arab terrorist leader Atef Bseiso is shot and killed in Paris.
The UN Security Council approves a plan to take control of Sarajevo airport and begin airlifting humanitarian aid.
9 June 1992 Amid fears of an environmental disaster, the Hungarian Parliament declares the 1977 treaty between Hungary and Czechoslovakia on the Babcikovo-Nagymaros dam project invalid.
Due to continuing violence in the Trans-Dniester, the Moldovan government resigns.
10 June 1992 Anand Panyarachun replaces Meechai Ruchupan as Prime Minister of Thailand.
A United States soldier is shot to death in Panama.
Komsomolskaya Pravda reports that recently released secret documents show that the KGB paid $24,000,000 in cash and arms to Arab terrorists in return for stolen art, jewelry, and coins.
The Six Partsongs by Frederick Delius to words of Reinick, Geibel, Bjørnson, Andersen, and Ibsen are performed completely for the first time, over the airwaves of the BBC, on the 58th anniversary of his death. See 11 January 1974.
11 June 1992 Protesters attempt to disrupt a speech by President Bush in Panama City. They begin tossing projectiles over the heads of police who respond with pepper gas. Bush and other dignitaries, affected by the gas, are required to leave.
13 June 1992 Azerbaijani forces launch a counterattack against Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Gesungene Zeit for violin and orchestra by Wolfgang Rihm (40) is performed for the first time, in Zürich.
Easter Dawning for carillon by George Crumb (62) is performed for the first time, in Dayton, Ohio.
14 June 1992 The Earth Summit closes in Rio de Janeiro. The Rio Declaration and Agenda 21 outline cleanup strategies and environmentally sound development.
Tania, an opera by Anthony Davis (41) to words of LaChiusa, is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.
15 June 1992 Yegor Timurovich Gaidar becomes acting Prime Minister of Russia.
Dobrica Cosic replaces Branko Kostic as President of Yugoslavia.
The British government announces it is removing tactical nuclear weapons from ships and aircraft of the Royal Navy.
Five songs by Benjamin Britten (†15) are performed for the first time, in Blythburgh Church, Aldeburgh: When you’re feeling like expressing your affection (1935/6) to words of Auden, Wild with passion (1942) to words of Beddoes, If thou wilt ease thine heart (1942) to words of Beddoes, Um Mitternacht (1959/60) to words of Goethe, and Cradle Song (1938) to words of MacNeice.
16 June 1992 Russian President Boris Yeltsin and US President George Bush agree in Washington to large reductions in long range nuclear weapons.
Former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger is indicted for perjury to Congress for his part in the cover-up of the Iran-Contra scandal.
17 June 1992 Shia terrorists in Lebanon free the last western hostages, Heinrich Struebig and Thomas Kemptner, two German relief workers kidnapped in 1989.
Bosnian Croat forces drive Serbs off the east bank of the Neretva River and out of Mostar. They take a large amount of territory along the east bank. It is the first serious defeat for the Serbs.
About 200 Zulu men rampage through the South African township of Boipatong, killing 46 people and injuring dozens more. Survivors claim police complicity.
Concerto grosso for orchestra by Philip Glass (55) is performed for the first time, in Bonn.
18 June 1992 Irish voters ratify the Maastricht European Union treaty by a 2-1 vote.
19 June 1992 A Selkie Tale, a music theatre piece by Peter Maxwell Davies (57) is performed for the first time, in the Orkney Arts Theatre, Kirkwall.
Mary of Egypt, an ikon in music and dance by John Tavener (48) to words of Mother Thekla, is performed for the first time, at Snape Maltings.
Six for six percussionists by John Cage (79) is performed for the first time, in The Hague.
Marc Bazin is named President of Haiti.
20 June 1992 Czech leader Václav Klaus and Slovak leader Vladimír Meciar agree to form a new federal government and begin the division of the country into two independent states.
Grohg, a ballet by Aaron Copland (†1) to a scenario by Clurman, is performed for the first time, in London. The work was composed between 1922 and 1925.
Then for guitar ensemble by Jonathan Lloyd (43) is performed for the first time, in Exeter.
22 June 1992 Serb forces send mortar shells into Sarajevo. 19 civilians are killed and 87 wounded.
Concerto for violin and orchestra no.3 by Isang Yun (74) is performed for the first time, in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.
ONE12 for a lecturer by John Cage (79) is performed for the first time, in Perugini, Italy by the composer.
23 June 1992 Serbian authorities prevent the opening of the new Kosovo Parliament elected on 24 May.
The Labor Party defeats the ruling Likud bloc in Israeli national elections. They will form a new coalition.
24 June 1992 300 backers of former Georgian President Zviad Gamsakhurdia stage a coup in Tbilisi. They seize television and radio stations. Loyal government troops put down the coup. Two people are killed and 27 wounded. Afterwards, Head of State Eduard Shevardnadze flies to Sochi and signs an agreement with Russian President Yeltsin aimed at ending fighting in South Ossetia.
Five Kosovo legislators elected on 24 May are arrested by Serbian authorities.
25 June 1992 The Declaration of Black Sea Economic Cooperation is signed in Istanbul by representatives of Turkey, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Azerbaijan, and Armenia. The signatories agree to increase economic contacts.
28 June 1992 Burhanuddin Rabbani becomes President of Afghanistan, replacing Sibghatullah Mojadidi.
French President François Mitterand flies by helicopter from Croatia to Sarajevo. He tours the city and accepts an enthusiastic welcome.
A massive rally in Belgrade, attended by political and religious leaders, calls on Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic to resign and for an end to the war in Bosnia.
Giuliano Amato replaces Giulio Andreotti as Prime Minister of Italy at the head of a four-party coalition.
At Keraterm concentration camp at Prijedor, northwest of Sarajevo, more than 200 Moslems are forced into a tiny room where they are beaten for hours by Serb guards. They are then machine-gunned.
29 June 1992 At Keraterm, a Serb concentration camp, prisoners are forced to dispose of the bodies shot last night, some still living. They estimate that 150 have been killed, unknown to the rest of the world for months.
Serb forces hand over Sarajevo airport to the United Nations. Within hours, planes with food and medicine begin arriving. The UN Security Council votes to send 1,000 more troops to the city.
The remains of Ignacy Jan Paderewski arrive in Poland from the United States. The pianist left Poland in 1919 never to return alive. He was later a member of the Polish government-in-exile during World War II. When Paderwski died on 19 June 1941, President Roosevelt ordered the body buried in the crypt of the Battleship Maine in Arlington National Cemetery until it could be returned to Poland after the war. The communist government refused to accept the return of the body.
President Mohammed Boudiaf of Algeria is shot and killed by Islamic militants while giving a speech in Annaba. 40 people are wounded in the ensuing gun battle.
30 June 1992 Fidel Valdez Ramos replaces Maria Corazon Cojuangco Aquino as President of the Philippines.
Trilogy for oboe and harp by Elliott Carter (83) is performed completely for the first time, at the Pontino Festival, Castello Caetani, Sermonetta, Italy. Bariolage for harp was performed on 23 March. Inner Song for oboe was performed on 25 April. The third section, Immer Neu, is performed for the first time today.
1 July 1992 The Russian ruble is now convertible.
Andrei Sangheli replaces Valeriu Muravschi as Prime Minister of Moldova.
Jan Strásky replaces Marián Calfa as Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia.
2 July 1992 Ali Kafi replaces Mohammed Boudiaf as President of Algeria.
Serbian-American millionaire Milan Panic announces he will return to Yugoslavia to become Prime Minister.
Ballad for the Evening of a Man for flute, violin, viola, and cello by Jonathan Lloyd (43) is performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London.
3 July 1992 Václav Havel’s attempt for a second term as President of Czechoslovakia fails when Slovak deputies in the Federal Assembly do not vote for him. They are jeered and heckled as they leave the Parliament building in Prague.
Croats in Hercegovina set up Herceg-Bosna under Mate Boban who favors the partition of Bosnia between Serbia and Croatia. Other Croat leaders oppose this.
The UNHCR sends a report about Serb concentration camps to the ICRC, UNPROFOR, and the European Community monitoring missions. It garners little response.
4 July 1992 In elections to the Nigerian National Assembly, the leftist Social Democratic Party wins a majority of seats.
5 July 1992 UN weapons inspectors attempt to gain entrance to the Ministry of Agriculture in Baghdad looking for information about Iraq’s ballistic missile program. They are stopped by Iraqi authorities. The inspectors set up a 24-hour watch on the premises.
The Ivanov Suite for electronic sound generators by Roger Reynolds (57) is performed for the first time, in Delphi, Greece.
6 July 1992 Four people are killed when a bomb goes off near the motorcade of Danielle Mitterand (wife of the French President) during a visit to a Kurdish town in northern Iraq. She is unhurt.
7 July 1992 Agreement is reached on broad constitutional changes by nine provincial premiers, four indigenous leaders and the federal government of Canada, in Ottawa.
8 July 1992 Hanna Suchocka replaces Jan Olszewski as Prime Minister of Poland. She is the first woman to hold that position.
Thomas Klestil replaces Kurt Waldheim as President of Austria.
10 July 1992 A treaty is signed between Russia and Germany. It provides for the resettlement of about 2,000,000 ethnic Germans along the Volga and the re-establishment of an autonomous region for them, dissolved by Stalin when he exiled them to Central Asia during World War II.
NATO and the Western European Union agree to send warships to the Adriatic to enforce the embargo on Yugoslavia.
An Alaska appeals court throws out the conviction of Joseph Hazelwood of the Exxon Valdez because he immediately reported that his tanker was spilling oil.
13 July 1992 Yitzhak Rabin replaces Yitzhak Shamir as Prime Minister of Israel, leading a center-left coalition.
Serb forces begin new offensives in Bosnia, renewing their attacks on Gorazde.
14 July 1992 The Russian government announces that a peacekeeping force of Russians, Georgians, North Ossetians, and South Ossetians has taken up positions in South Ossetia in an effort to stop the violence.
Bulgarian authorities arrest former Prime Minister Georgi Stanchev on charges of embezzlement and corruption.
Milan Panic becomes Prime Minister of Yugoslavia replacing Aleksandar Mitrovic.
15 July 1992 The Last Sleep of the Virgin for string quartet and handbells by John Tavener (48) is performed for the first time, in Pittville Pump Room, Cheltenham.
17 July 1992 The Slovak National Council adopts a declaration of sovereignty. President Vaclav Havel announces he will resign.
Gending Max Beckmann for Javanese gamelan by Lou Harrison (75) is performed for the first time, at Lick Observatory, California.
18 July 1992 We Shall See Him as He Is for soprano, two tenors, chorus, two trumpets, timpani, organ, and strings by John Tavener (48) to words of Mother Thekla is performed for the first time, in Chester for the 900th anniversary of Chester Cathedral.
19 July 1992 Newsday publishes the first reports of Serb concentration camps.
Paolo Borsellino, chief prosecutor in Palermo, is killed by a mafia car bomb in that city. Five others are also killed.
20 July 1992 Vaclav Havel resigns as President of Czechoslovakia. Jan Strásky becomes acting President.
Serb paramilitaries enter Biscani and immediately begin killing civilians. Dozens of people are killed. Over 100 are rounded up and taken out of town. Two men are shot dead, the others are savagely beaten with clubs and rifle butts, then marched to the concentration camp at Trnopolje.
Estonia introduces a new currency, the kroon, to replace the ruble.
21 July 1992 Russia and Moldova agree to a joint peacekeeping force for Trans-Dniester.
Aleksandras Abisala replaces Gediminas Vagnorius as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Lithuania.
22 July 1992 After over two weeks of watch on the Ministry of Agriculture in Baghdad, UN weapons inspectors withdraw after one of them is stabbed by a demonstrator.
23 July 1992 The new Israeli government halts construction of new settlements in the occupied territories.
The Parliament of Abkhazia declares independence from Georgia.
Czech and Slovak leaders agree on a separation plan to go into effect before 30 September.
Four6 for any way of producing sound by John Cage (79) is performed for the first time, in Central Park, New York. As part of the experience, the composer performs ONE12. It is his last public performance.
24 July 1992 A revised version of Hans Werner Henze’s (66) opera Der Prinz von Homburg to words of Bachmann after von Kleist, is performed for the first time, in the Bayerischer Staatsoper, Munich.
25 July 1992 Shankar Dayal Sharma replaces Ramaswamy Venkataraman as President of India.
The State Council of Georgia holds the Abkhazian declaration of 23 July null and void. Abkhaz rebels attack Georgian troops at Gagry, unsuccessfully.
The Italian government sends 7,000 troops to Sicily to fight the Mafia.
The Games of the 25th Olympiad of the Modern Era open in Barcelona.
Tatar Dance for bayan and two double basses by Sofia Gubaidulina (60) is performed for the first time, in Hitzacker, Germany.
26 July 1992 Iraq agrees to let UN inspectors into the Ministry of Agriculture in Baghdad. No evidence of nuclear arms programs will be found.
A law banning discrimination against disabled people goes into effect in the US.
27 July 1992 The UNHCR circulates a second report about the Serb concentration camp at Omarska. Again, little response is generated.
Yiddishbbuk for string quartet by Osvaldo Golijov (31) is performed for the first time, at Tanglewood, Lenox, Massachusetts.
28 July 1992 It Was... for soprano and five players by Anthony Davis (41) to words of Saner is performed for the first time, in Beaver Creek, Colorado.
29 July 1992 Erich Honecker returns to Germany from Moscow to stand trial.
The United States and the State of New York indict prominent lawyers Clark Clifford and Robert Altman in the BCCI scandal. Clifford is a former cabinet member.
30 July 1992 Former East German leader Erich Honecker is arraigned in a Berlin court on 49 counts of manslaughter in the deaths of those attempting to flee from East Germany to the west.
31 July 1992 The Republic of Georgia is admitted to the United Nations.
The Greek Parliament approves the Maastricht Treaty on European Union.
The Death of Moses op.53, an oratorio for vocal soloists, chorus, children’s chorus, and 13 players by Alexander Goehr (58) to words of Hollander, is performed for the first time, in Seville Cathedral.
1 August 1992 Outside Sarajevo, Serbs fire on a bus carrying Bosnian orphans to asylum in Germany. Two people are killed, but the bus completes the trip.
Three Campion Choruses for chorus by Paul Lansky (48) is performed for the first time, in Aarhus, Denmark.
2 August 1992 Newsday publishes a front page article entitled “The Death Camps of Bosnia”, detailing Serb atrocities, including eyewitness accounts of killings of Moslems and Croats and detention in unspeakable conditions.
3 August 1992 President Boris Yeltsin of Russia and President Leonid Kravchuk of Ukraine agree that they will jointly control the Soviet Black Sea Fleet for three years, and then divide it.
Millions of black South Africans begin a two-day general strike. Most industries shut down.
4 August 1992 Heavy fighting around Sarajevo forces the UN to suspend relief flights.
The UN Security Council demands that the ICRC and other agencies be allowed to inspect all detention camps in the former Yugoslavia.
5 August 1992 A federal grand jury in Los Angeles indicts the four white police officers found not guilty of beating Rodney King. They are charged with violating his civil rights.
6 August 1992 A television crew from the British network ITN films the Serb concentration camp of Omarska. Hundreds of prisoners are seen badly malnourished and in unhealthy conditions.
7 August 1992 A truce is signed in Rome between the Mozambique government and Renamo rebels. In the last 16 years, an estimated 600,000 people have been killed in the fighting.
9 August 1992 The Games of the 25th Olympiad of the Modern Era close in Barcelona. In 16 days of competition, 9,356 athletes from 169 nations took part.
10 August 1992 The British government bans the largest Protestant paramilitary organization in Northern Ireland, the Ulster Defense Association.
11 August 1992 Georgian Interior Minister Roman Gventsadze and eleven other high officials are kidnapped by supporters of former President Zviad Gamsakhurdia. Thousands take to the streets in Tbilisi to show support for Head of State Eduard Shavardnadze.
The Mall of America opens in Bloomington, Minnesota.
About 18:00 Merce Cunningham returns home to his New York apartment to find John Cage (79) unconscious on the floor from a cerebral hemorrhage. An ambulance is summoned which transports him to St. Vincent’s Hospital. He will never regain consciousness.
12 August 1992 A draft of the North American free trade Agreement is approved by representatives of Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
14:40 John Milton Cage, Jr. dies at Saint Vincent’s Hospital in New York City after a stroke, aged 79 years, eleven months, and seven days.
13 August 1992 Afghan rebels launch rockets into Kabul killing over 100 people and wounding hundreds more. Over the last week 1,200 people have been killed in rebel shelling of the capital.
The UN Security Council votes 12-0-3 to authorize force to ensure that humanitarian aid gets to Bosnia and Hercegovina. In a separate resolution they condemn the Serb policy of ethnic cleansing.
14 August 1992 The Georgian Interior Minister is released by kidnappers. Georgian troops battle separatists in Abkhazia. 15 people are killed. This fighting will continue for weeks.
Symphony no.5 by Krzysztof Penderecki (58) is performed for the first time, in Seoul.
Begin Again Again... for hypercello by Tod Machover (38) is performed for the first time, at Tanglewood, Lenox, Massachusetts by the commissioner, Yo-Yo Ma. It will constitute Part I of Hyperstring Trilogy. See 25 July 1996.
16 August 1992 The UN evacuates most of its foreign relief staff from Kabul due to renewed fighting.
Come Round for six instruments by Jacob Druckman (64) is performed for the first time, in Sante Fe, New Mexico.
17 August 1992 A UN aid convoy carrying food and medicine reaches Gorazde, a town surrounded and bombarded by Serbs. On the way out, the convoy is required to wait 18 hours as French engineers remove mines placed in their path.
Branko Crvenkovski replaces Nikola Kljusev as Prime Minister of Macedonia.
18 August 1992 On the third day of fighting in Sukhumi, Georgian troops capture the Abkhazian Parliament building. Separatists set up a government in Gudauta.
21 August 1992 A Brief History of Time, a film by Errol Morris with music by Philip Glass (55), is released in the United States.
22 August 1992 Conservative youths, angry over too much immigration into Germany, begin five days of rioting in Rostock.
23 August 1992 UN staff and many foreign embassy personnel depart Kabul in an auto convoy.
24 August 1992 South Korea and China establish diplomatic relations in a ceremony in Beijing.
26 August 1992 The trial of ex-CIA official Clair George ends in a hung jury.
Czech and Slovak leaders agree to dissolve Czechoslovakia on 1 January.
27 August 1992 US, UK, and French warplanes begin enforcing a no-fly zone over southern Iraq to protect Shia Moslems.
The name of the People’s Republic of Angola is changed to the Republic of Angola.
28 August 1992 United Nations sanctions against Slovenia come to an end.
The United States begins an emergency airlift of food to Somalia, its largest ever to Africa. The UN Security Council votes 3,000 peacekeeping troops to guard the food.
A Village Wedding for counter tenor, two tenors, and bass by John Tavener (48) to words of Sikelianos is performed for the first time, in St. Augustine’s Church, Penarth.
30 August 1992 Bosnian Serb forces lift the siege of Gorazde.
“Low” Symphony for orchestra by Philip Glass (55) is performed for the first time, in Munich.
1 September 1992 Former communist Prime Minister of Poland Piotr Jaroszewicz and his wife are found murdered in their Warsaw home. (No one has ever been punished for the crime.)
3 September 1992 An Italian aid plane crashes near Sarajevo from unknown causes. Four people are killed.
A permanent conference on the former Yugoslavia begins in Geneva. The co-chairs are David Owen, representing the European Community, and Cyrus Vance, representing the United Nations.
4 September 1992 Former Bulgarian party leader Todor Zhivkov receives a seven-year prison sentence after conviction on embezzlement and misuse of state funds. He is allowed to remain under house arrest.
5 September 1992 Ceremonial: An Autumn Ode for shô and orchestra by Toru Takemitsu (61) is performed for the first time, in Matsumotu, Japan.
Twenty-Six, Twenty-Eight, and Twenty-Nine for orchestra by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, in the Alte Oper, Frankfurt-am-Main on the 80th anniversary of the composer’s birth.
7 September 1992 President Rakhman Nabiyev of Tajikistan is forced to resign by the opposition after he was caught trying to flee Dushanbe.
As hundreds march to the Ciskei border to protest its military ruler, Ciskei troops open fire. 24 people are killed.
8 September 1992 Serbs attack a UN aid convoy outside Sarajevo. Two French citizens are killed.
Hrvoje Sarinic replaces Franjo Greguric as Prime Minister of Croatia.
11 September 1992 The International Court of Justice settles a centuries-long border dispute between El Salvador and Honduras. Later in the day, the presidents of the two countries meet at the border and take part in ceremonies celebrating the resolution.
Candyman, a film with music by Philip Glass (55), is shown for the first time, at the Toronto Film Festival.
12 September 1992 Peruvian security officials capture Abimael Guzmán Reynoso, the leader of the guerrilla group Sendero Luminoso, and three other high ranking members of the group.
The Gardens of Adonis, an opera by Hugo Weisgall (79) to words of Scrymgeour after Shakespeare and Obey, is performed for the first time, in Omaha, Nebraska.
13 September 1992 Quintet for oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, and piano by Elliott Carter (83) is performed for the first time, in Cologne.
14 September 1992 The first elements of United Nations peacekeeping forces, Pakistani troops, arrive in Somalia to protect food distribution.
The Security Council also sends up to 6,000 more peacekeepers to Bosnia, under French command.
Henri Emmanuelli, President of the National Assembly of France, is indicted for influence peddling.
La lugubre gondola/Das Eismeer for two orchestras and piano by Wolfgang Rihm (40), composed in memory of Luigi Nono (†2), is performed for the first time, in Duisburg. See 8 October 1994.
15 September 1992 Former Albanian President Ramiz Alia is placed under house arrest in Tirana on charges of corruption.
Chairman of the Supreme Council Anatolijs Gorbunovs of Latvia is declared head of state.
16 September 1992 Great Britain suspends participation in the European Monetary System and allows the pound to float.
Quartet for horn, trumpet, trombone, and piano by Isang Yun is performed for the first time, in Berlin on the eve of the composer’s 75th birthday.
18 September 1992 Eleven days of floods in northern India and Pakistan have killed 2,500 people.
Cantares de Nochebuena, a cycle for voice, guitar, zambomba, and rebec by Manuel de Falla (†45), is performed for the first time, in Trinity College Chapel, Melbourne about 88 years after it was composed.
Two works by Harrison Birtwistle (58) are performed for the first time, in the Purcell Room, London: Night for soprano, two clarinets, viola, cello, and double bass to words of Celan (tr. Hamburger), and Tenebrae for soprano, clarinet, clarinet in A, viola, cello, and double bass to words of Celan. See 28 April 1996.
19 September 1992 Two works by John Cage (†0) are performed for the first time, in Cologne: 103 for orchestra and One11 for solo cameraman. The two works are performed simultaneously.
20 September 1992 French voters approve the Maastricht European Union Treaty by 51%-49%.
Estonia holds the first free elections in over 50 years.
Bounce for hyperkeyboards, Yamaha Disklavier Grand piano, and interactive computer electronics by Tod Machover (38) is performed for the first time, in Chicago.
Dedicace: A Small Measure of Affection for piano four-hands by William Bolcom (54) is performed for the first time.
22 September 1992 The UN General Assembly votes to declare Yugoslavia’s seat vacant 127-6-26.
Sir Charles his Pavan for orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (58) is performed for the first time, at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester the composer conducting.
23 September 1992 Chuan Leekpai replaces Anand Panyarachun as Prime Minister of Thailand.
Le Duc Anh replaces Vo Chi Cong as President of Vietnam.
Chemins V for guitar and chamber orchestra by Luciano Berio (66) is performed for the first time, in Bonn conducted by the composer.
24 September 1992 Germany signs an agreement with Romania to deport 50,000 Romanian Gypsies to Romania. They give $20,000,000 to Romania to help repatriation.
25 September 1992 The Zagreb weekly Globus reports the systematic rape of Moslem and Croat women by Bosnian Serb troops.
The United States reports that 3,000 men, women, and children have been killed in Serb concentration camps near Brcko.
29 September 1992 The first multiparty elections are held in Angola today and tomorrow. Voters choose a president and a national assembly,
The Brazilian House of Representatives impeaches President Fernando Collor de Mello.
NASA reports that the ozone hole over Antarctica has grown to its largest reported size.
The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje is published by McClelland and Stewart in Canada.
30 September 1992 Russian troops take control of the airport in Dushanbe.
Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and Yugoslav President Dobrica Cosic sign an agreement in Geneva. Yugoslavia agrees to withdraw all forces from Dalmatia, thus completing the withdrawal of Yugoslav troops from Croatia and ending the threat to Dubrovnik.
1 October 1992 The Russian government begins to distribute 1,400,000,000,000 rubles worth of vouchers to its citizens in a plan to privatize 70% of its state-owned industries.
2 October 1992 Valentyn Kostyantinovych Symonenko replaces Vitold Pavlovych Fokin as Prime Minister of Ukraine.
President Fernando Collor de Mello of Brazil is suspended in the face of a bribery scandal. He transfers his powers to Vice-President Itamar Augusto Franco.
The UN Security Council votes to seize Iraqi assets overseas to compensate the victims of the invasion of Kuwait and countries involved in the Gulf War.
3 October 1992 Trio for clarinet, bassoon, and horn by Isang Yun (75) is performed for the first time, in Hannover.
4 October 1992 President Joaquin Chissano and rebel leader Alfonso Dhlakama of Mozambique sign a peace treaty ending the 16-year civil war.
Spirit Divine for chorus and piano by Ned Rorem (68) to words of Longfellow is performed for the first time, in First Parish Church, Lexington, Massachusetts.
Triptych for chamber orchestra by Ned Rorem (68) is performed for the first time, in Columbus, Ohio.
5 October 1992 Silla, a legend for orchestra by Isang Yun (75), is performed for the first time, in the Hannover Opera House.
6 October 1992 After a five-day offensive against Georgian forces, Abkhaz rebels control all of Abkhazia north of Sukhumi.
Lennart Meri replaces Arnold Ruutel as President of Estonia.
Serb forces take Slavonski Brod, Croatia, thus linking Serbia to Krajina.
The UN Security Council votes unanimously to create a war crimes commission for Bosnia and Hercegovina.
Caroline Mathilde: Concert Suite from Act II of the Ballet by Peter Maxwell Davies (58) is performed for the first time, in Royal Festival Hall, London the composer conducting.
7 October 1992 Officials of Canada, Mexico, and the US initial the North American Free Trade Agreement in San Antonio, Texas.
A military court on San Lorenzo Island, Peru convicts Abimael Guzmán Reynoso of high treason and sentences him to life in prison. He is the leader of Sendero Luminoso. Ten other guerrilla leaders are sentenced to life in prison.
8 October 1992 Mart Laar replaces Tiit Vahi as Prime Minister of Estonia.
Concerto for violin and orchestra by Györgi Ligeti (69) is performed completely for the first time, in Cologne. See 3 November 1990 and 9 June 1993.
9 October 1992 The UN Security Council bans all military flights within Bosnia and Hercegovina (14-0-1).
Suite on the Name Gabriel Fauré for piano by Arnold Bax (†39) is performed for the first time, in Église Saint Pierre, Paris, 47 years after it was composed.
11 October 1992 Fifty-eight for 58 wind players by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, in the Landhaushof, Graz.
12 October 1992 Two days of protest begins in Pristina, Kosovo by 50,000 students unhappy with the “serbization” of the curriculum at the University of Pristina.
On the 500th anniversary of the landing of Columbus in the New World, NASA begins its own SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) program.
A Winter’s Tale for soprano, clarinet, horn, violin, viola, cello, and piano by Charles Wuorinen (54) to words of Thomas, is performed for the first time, in Spivey Hall of Clayton State College, Atlanta.
The Voyage, an opera by Philip Glass (55) to words of Hwang, is performed for the first time, at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. The work was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the voyage of Columbus. The Met pays $325,000 for The Voyage, perhaps the most money, in real dollars, ever paid for a new opera.
13 October 1992 Leonid Danylovych Kuchma replaces Valentyn Kostyantinovych Symonenko as Prime Minister of Ukraine.
14 October 1992 Russian President Boris Yeltsin sends Polish President Lech Walesa photocopies of documents dated 5 March 1940 which prove the Soviet Politburo ordered the execution of over 20,000 Poles including 5,000 senior army officers. The bodies were dumped in mass graves in the Katyn Forest.
A court in Rostov-on-Don Russia convicts Andrey Chikatilo of the murder of 52 children and young women, mostly in the Rostov area, between 1978 and 1990.
16 October 1992 Music for cello and orchestra by Leon Kirchner (73) is performed for the first time, in Philadelphia.
Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman no.4 for orchestra by Joan Tower (54) is performed for the first time, in the Music Hall, Kansas City.
21 October 1992 Moslem militants open fire on a tour bus near Asyut, 380 km south of Cairo. One British tourist is killed, two others injured.
23 October 1992 Three French officials are convicted in a Paris court of knowingly allowing blood infected with the AIDS virus to be used for transfusions. They receive fines and jail sentences.
Rain Tree Sketch II--In Memoriam Olivier Messiaen (†0) for piano by Toru Takemitsu (62) is performed for the first time, in Education Hall, Yokohama.
25 October 1992 Fighting breaks out between Croats and Moslems in Prozor. After a few days the city center is in ruins.
26 October 1992 Voters in Canada reject a series of constitutional reforms agreed to by its provinces, territories, and aboriginal nations known as the Charlottetown accord.
27 October 1992 Leaders of Czechoslovakia and Hungary agree to steps to resolve their differences over the Gabcikovo hydroelectric project on the Danube.
28 October 1992 Russian president Yeltsin signs a decree outlawing the National Salvation Front, a party made up of nationalists and former communists.
The last Russian combat troops in Poland sail from Swinoujscie. For the first time since 1 September 1939, there are no foreign combat troops on Polish soil.
29 October 1992 Russian President Yeltsin stops the pullout of Russian troops from the Baltic states citing fears for the Russian minority in the three countries.
Moslem-Croat squabbling breaks down the defense of Jajce and Serbs walk into the city, sending 40,000 Moslem and Croat refugees out of town toward Travnik, 70km to the south, under Serb shelling and mortar fire.
30 October 1992 Three days of fighting between government troops and UNITA rebels breaks out in Luanda, Angola. At least 1,000 people are killed.
Independent counsel Lawerence Walsh releases notes taken by former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger which show that then Vice President Bush was completely aware of the arms-for-hostages deal and supported it, contrary to Bush’s claims.
31 October 1992 The Slovak government finishes damming the Danube at Cunovo, in the face of strong protests from environmentalists.
Pope John Paul II accepts the report of his commission and exonerates Galileo Galilei of all charges against him.
McTeague, an opera by William Bolcom (54) to words of Weinstein and Altman, is performed for the first time, in Chicago.
Dream Tracks for violin, clarinet, and piano by Peter Sculthorpe (63) is performed for the first time, in San Diego, California.
3 November 1992 The leaders and founders of Charter 77 agree to disband the organization.
Voting in the United States ensures victory for Bill Clinton, Governor of Arkansas, of the Democratic Party as President over incumbent George Bush and wealthy businessman Ross Perot. Democrats retain control of both houses of Congress with only modest changes. They also gain two governorships.
4 November 1992 Nicolae Vacaroiu is named Prime Minister of Romania replacing Theodor Stolojan.
The remains of Orlando Letelier are returned to Santiago de Chile for a state funeral attended by President Patricio Aylwin and his cabinet. Letelier was murdered in 1976 in Washington by agents of the US-backed dictator Augusto Pinochet.
5 November 1992 Eclairs sur l’au-delà for orchestra by Olivier Messiaen (†0) is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.
Entrance: Carousing: Embarkation op.71 for band by Robin Holloway (49) is performed for the first time, in Opperman Music Hall, Tallahassee, Florida.
6 November 1992 Sixty-Eight for orchestra by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, over the airwaves of Hessischer Rundfunk, Frankfurt.
7 November 1992 Former Czechoslovak leader Alexander Dubcek dies as a result of injuries suffered in an automobile crash on 1 November.
8 November 1992 Mass protests against right-wing violence take place in Germany. 350,000 march in Berlin and 100,000 in Bonn.
President César Gaviria Trujillo declares a 90-day state of emergency to combat widespread terrorism from drug lords and leftist guerrillas.
Music for the 1927 silent film The Last Days of St. Petersburg by Alfred Schnittke (57) is performed for the first time, when the film is shown in Frankfurt.
Seventy-Four for orchestra by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, in Carnegie Hall, New York.
Concerto for saxophone quartet and orchestra by Richard Wernick (58) is performed for the first time.
10 November 1992 The coalition government of Tajikistan resigns leaving an interim council in control.
Popular music entertainer Axl Rose of the group Guns N’ Roses is found guilty of assault and property damage for his part in a riot at Riverport Amphitheatre outside St. Louis in 1991.
13 November 1992 Kneeling Dance for six pianos by Kevin Volans (43) is performed for the first time, in Southampton.
15 November 1992 The first post-independence national election in Lithuania is won by the Democratic Labor Party, ex-communists.
Saxatile for soprano saxophone and synthesized sounds by Jean-Claude Risset (54) is performed for the first time, in Orléans.
16 November 1992 The UN Security Council votes 13-0-2 to impose a blockade of Yugoslavia.
17 November 1992 The trial of former East German leaders Erich Honecker, Willi Stoph, and Erich Mielke is suspended due to the severe health problems of all three of them.
The Czech and Slovak national parliaments approve the separation of the country.
20 November 1992 Imomali Rakhmonov becomes President of Tajikistan.
The Russian parliament begins a real estate market by giving property rights to about 100,000,000 Russians.
A fire at Windsor Castle destroys St. George’s Hall, causing an estimated £60,000,000 damage.
Love Will Find Out the Way for soprano, two clarinets, viola, cello, and double bass by Robin Holloway (49) to words of Percy is performed for the first time, in Pebble Mill.
An extended version of Initiale for brass by Pierre Boulez (67) is performed for the first time, in Chicago, conducted by the composer.
Strict Songs, in the setting for baritone, chorus, and chamber orchestra by Lou Harrison (75) to his own words, is performed for the first time, at the University of California at Santa Cruz. See 18 January 1956.
22 November 1992 Their Lonely Betters by Ned Rorem (69) to words of Auden is performed for the first time, in Avery Fisher Hall, New York.
23 November 1992 A firebomb from right-wing extremists kills a Turkish woman and two Turkish girls in Mölln, Germany.
24 November 1992 Guatemala gives up its long standing claim and recognizes the independence of Belize.
Eternal Memory for cello and strings by John Tavener (48) is performed for the first time, in the Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington, New Zealand.
Strathclyde Concerto no.7 for double bass and orchestra by Peter Maxwell Davies (58) is performed for the first time, in City Halls, Glasgow, the composer conducting.
Alleluia for chorus by William Bolcom (54) is performed for the first time.
25 November 1992 The Czechoslovak National Assembly passes a constitutional amendment allowing the dissolution of the country without a referendum and stipulating that the split take place at midnight, 31 December 1992.
93 nations agree in Copenhagen to speed up the phase out of ozone-depleting chemicals.
Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas replaces Vytautas Landsbergis as President of Lithuania.
In national elections in Ireland, the two largest parties both lose ten seats. Strong gains are made by leftist parties. Voters approve constitutional changes allowing greater freedom to travel abroad for abortions, but simultaneously reject abortions in Ireland itself. Fianna Fail will form a coalition with Labour.
Annunciation for vocal soloists and chorus by John Tavener (48) to words from the Bible is performed for the first time, in Westminster Abbey.
Jo-Ha-Kyu for three performers on water, metals, and earth by Tan Dun (35) is performed for the first time, in New York.
26 November 1992 Rex tremendae, Lacrimosa, and Sanctus, from Hans Werner Henze’s (63) unperformed Requiem, for piano, trumpet, and chamber orchestra, are performed for the first time, in Suntory Hall, Tokyo. Also premiered is Henze’s Drei geistliche Konzerte for trumpet and chamber orchestra. See 24 February 1993.
27 November 1992 The German government bans the Nationalist Front, a neo-Nazi group.
Members of the Venezuelan military seize a television station and two air bases. Planes bomb the Presidential Palace and other sites in Caracas. By afternoon the rebellion is put down by loyal troops. At least 169 people are killed.
Tandy’s Tango for piano by Lou Harrison (75) is performed for the first time.
28 November 1992 Concerto-Cantata op.65 for flute and orchestra by Henryk Górecki (58) is performed for the first time, in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.
29 November 1992 Those Who Wait for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by William Grant Still (†13) to words of his wife Verna Arvey, is performed for the first time, at St. Mark’s AME Church in Milwaukee, 49 years after it was composed.
2 December 1992 Bronislovas Lubys replaces Gedimanas Vagnorius as Prime Minister of Lithuania.
3 December 1992 The Greek tanker Aegean Sea runs aground near La Coruna, Spain. It breaks in two, catches fire and sinks, releasing 512,000 barrels of crude oil on the Spanish coast.
The UN Security Council authorizes a US-led military force for Somalia to ensure delivery of food aid.
O God, My Heart is Ready for chorus and organ by Ned Rorem (69) to words of Psalm 108 is performed for the first time, in St. Thomas’ Church, New York.
Concerto for oboe by John Harbison (53) is performed for the first time, in San Francisco.
5 December 1992 Pu wijnuej we fyp for children’s choir by Iannis Xenakis (70) to words of Rimbaud, is performed for the first time, in Paris.
Two6 for violin and piano by John Cage (†0) is performed for the first time, in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Orléans.
6 December 1992 Militant Hindus tear down a mosque in Ayodhya, India occupying the believed site of the birthplace of the Hindu god Ram. Communal violence ensues.
Swiss voters reject a proposal to join the European free trade zone.
7 December 1992 Espace I for cello and piano by Isang Yun (75) is performed for the first time, in Hamburg.
9 December 1992 The death toll in Hindu-Moslem violence since 6 December exceeds 700.
1,800 United States troops enter Mogadishu and begin restoring the airport runway.
The Russian Congress refuses to confirm President Yeltsin’s nominee, Yegor Gaidar, as Prime Minister.
Prime Minister John Major announces that the Prince and Princess of Wales have agreed to separate.
Former CIA operations director Clair George is convicted of lying to Congress in the cover-up of the Iran-Contra scandal.
10 December 1992 Rigoberta Menchú of Guatemala receives the Nobel Prize for Peace.
11 December 1992 Somalia’s two main war lords sign a peace agreement in Mogadishu.
A revised version of Traces for piano by Tan Dun (35) is performed for the first time, in Toronto. See 9 November 1989.
12 December 1992 An earthquake centered on the island of Flores, Indonesia kills at least 2,500 people.
European Community foreign ministers refuse to recognize Macedonia without a name change, but they do endorse a UN plan for troops and humanitarian aid.
13 December 1992 The Indian government reports that 1,210 people have died and 4,600 have been injured in a week of religious violence.
Meeting in Edinburgh, European Community nations agree to changes in the Maastricht Treaty aimed at gaining approval from voters.
John Harbison’s (53) longer setting of O Magnum Mysterium for chorus is performed for the first time, in Emmanuel Church, Boston.
14 December 1992 Viktor Stepanovich Chernomyrdin replaces Yegor Timurovich Gaidar as Prime Minister of Russia as part of a deal between President Yeltsin and the Congress of Peoples Deputies to slow economic changes.
Paille in the wind for cello and piano by Iannis Xenakis (70) is performed for the first time, in Milan.
15 December 1992 A ceremony in San Salvador marks the end of the twelve-year civil war.
16 December 1992 US and French troops occupy Baidoa, Somalia and begin bringing food into the city.
17 December 1992 After the kidnapping and murder of an Israeli border guard by Hamas, Israel expels 415 Arab terrorists, depositing them in Lebanon. The Lebanese government refuses to allow them into territory it controls.
Thousands of Polish coal miners strike against the projected loss of 180,000 jobs over the next ten years.
Acting United States Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger releases the names of Serbs and Croats believed by the United States to be war criminals. The list includes Slobodan Milosevic (President of Serbia), Radovan Karadzic (political leader of the Bosnian Serbs), Ratko Mladic (military leader of the Bosnian Serbs), Vojislav Seselj (commander of the Cetniks), and Zeljko Raznjatovic aka Arkan.
The heads of government of Canada, Mexico, and the US sign the North American Free Trade Agreement in their respective capitals.
20 December 1992 US forces occupy Kismayu after 100 citizens are killed by a local war lord.
In highly questionable elections, Slobodan Milosevic and his Socialist Party are returned to power in Serbia.
21 December 1992 Both Israel and Lebanon refuse to allow the Red Cross to bring food and medicine to 415 Arab terrorists caught between their territories.
24 December 1992 US troops secure Bardera, Somalia.
President George Bush pardons six men for their part in the Iran-Contra scandal and its cover-up: former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, indicted for perjury; three former CIA officials, Clair George, convicted of perjury, Duane Clarridge, indicted and Alan Fiers, convicted of withholding information from Congress; former National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane; and Elliott Abrams, convicted of withholding information from Congress.
25 December 1992 US and French troops secure Hoddur, Somalia.
27 December 1992 A United States fighter shoots down an Iraqi warplane in the no-fly zone.
Italian troops reach Gailalassi, Italy.
28 December 1992 US forces secure Belet Uen, Somalia, ending the first phase of the relief mission.
29 December 1992 Prime Minister Milan Panic of Yugoslavia loses a confidence vote in the federal Parliament and is removed from office.
The United States and Russia announce an agreement on a treaty that would reduce their strategic nuclear arms by two-thirds.
Fernando Collor de Mello resigns as President of Brazil shortly after the Senate convenes an impeachment trial. He is succeeded by Itamar Franco.
30 December 1992 Lyuben Borisov Berov replaces Filip Dimitrov as Prime Minister of Bulgaria.
The Israel Philharmonic announces it will reinstate its ban on the music of Richard Wagner (†109).
The Brazilian Senate votes 76-3 to convict President Collor de Mello on bribery charges.
31 December 1992 Demos for orchestra by Jacob Druckman (64) is performed for the first time, in Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels.
©2004-2012 Paul Scharfenberger
25 January 2012
Last Updated (Wednesday, 25 January 2012 07:38)