SUNDAY, SEPTE.MBEE 27, i9SS T HE MICHIGAN DAXILY PAGE ~ urn VIENNESE ARTIST: Noted Pianist Paul Badura-Skoda, Pianist, To Appear Myra Hess Paul Badura-Skoda. an out- standing Viennese pianist, has a hobby very useful to him, piano tuning. He learned this skill during the war years when he lived with his parents in a country house equip- ped with a very old piano that was very hard to keep in tune. Because the piano tuner could not come often, Badura-Skoda bor- rowed a set of tools and set to rwork. SINCE HE has mastered the skill, he likes to take care of his own piano and will often tune a string at a concert when neces- sary. The 25 year old artist is scheduled to appear here on Feb. 17 as part of the Choral Union Series. Making his debut tour of the United States and Canada this year, Badura-Skoda Arst appeared in this country with the Cincinnati Symphony. He took first place in the Bar- tok competition in Budapest and at the International music com- petition in Paris. He has also demonstrated his interpretive abil- ity at the Vienna and Salzburg estivals. Athough he hs neve ben i known here. He has been preceeded in this country by his works on record- ings. Many records he has cut are works of the old masters Mozart and Schubert but he also records and plays modern works. His most recent recordings are two albums of Mozart whom he names as his favorite composer. He plays a portion of one of the albumn on a piano made by Anton Walker for Mozart himself in 1'785. * * * BADURA-SKODA feels that the most important part of any performance is interpretation and rinds learning the music the hard- est, He expects, due to different 4n- Fritz Reiner Ann Arborites will hear the third oldest orchestra in the Unit- ed States when the Chicago Sym- phony makes its almost annual appearance here Sunday, Dec. 13. Founded in 1891, the organiza- tion Is now under the dynamic direction of its new permanent conductor, Fritz Reiner. Reiner will lead the Chicago group through its 63rd season. BFORE joining the Chicago Symphony, Reiner conducted the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Metro- politan Opera and appeared as guest conductor with various ma- jor orchestras. Reiner appeared in Ann Arbor as a guest conductor iwr 1950. He pony Orhestra during its an vinia Festival, in 1947, 48 . and 49 and also appeared with the group in March, 1950 at Orchestra Hall, home of the Chicago Sym- phony. 'The orchestra, well known throughout the mid-west through its 'tours and weekly radio con- certs, conducts a unique training school for orchestral players, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. About half of the Chicago Symphony members started with the Civic Orchestra. PAUL BADURA-SKODA TO GIVE RECITAL * * , , , ,* terpretation, in later years he will play some works differently than he does now. The young pianist says that he has never suffered from stage fright but is occasionally a lit- tle nervous before a concert. He feels however that a certain ex- citement is necessary for an in- -spired performance. Although Badura-Skoda began piano lessons at the age of six he did not decide on music as a career until he was sixteen. He then achieved early fame by win- ning the Australian Music Com- petition. After this he made his debut with the Vienna Symphony. The next year he graduated from the Conservatory in Vienna. and made his recital debut. Badura -Skoda has already toured extensively in Europe and Australia. At the end of his cur- rent North American tour he will return to Europe for a number of engagements in Italy and Scan- dinavia. - Dame Myra Hess, widely regard- ed as the greatest living woman pianist, will present the final con- cert of the Choral Union Series on Wednesday, March 17. Beginning her musical training at the age of five, Miss Hess com- menced serious concentration on piano study when she was thir- teen at the Royal Academy of Mu - sic in England. HER CONCERT debut was made in Queens Hall, London when she was seventeen, at which she performed two concertos with Sir Thomas Beecham of London Philharmonic fame conducting the orchestra. Soon after, she be- gan touring England with the London String Quartet, followed by a concert tour in Holland where the Dutch public quickly acceptedt and praised her musical talent. Miss Hess made her first tour of America in 1922, and since that initial, appearance on this continent has returned for twenty-two concert tours. During World War It she can- celled foreign engagements and or- ganized the famous noon-time concerts in the National Gallery, giving enjoyment and solace to thousands of civil servants and war workers, soldiers and air-raid wardens during their lunch hour five times a week. In recognition of this work dur- ing the War, King George VI dec- orated her with the Order of the British Empire. Since that time she has continued her internation- al career with uninterrupted suc- cess, playing in Great Britain, on the European Continent and in America. * *. * MISS HESS devotes a major part of her programs to the great classics, from Bach to Brahms. Her playing of Schuman's piano con- certo- has long been a particular favorite with audiences and con- ductors. Her name is identified in the public's mind with the sonatas of Scarlatti, and her own ar- rangements of certain Bach chorale preludes, notably "Jesu, oyofMans esiig," has had an enormous circulation throughout the world. Miss Hess' American tour of 1952-53, which included an Ann Arbor appearance in the May Fes- tival, was curtailed because of an operation, from which she has now recovered. She will return to America on January 14 following her European tour. AcTickets Extra Concert Series are still on sale at the office of The Uni- Iversity Musical Society in Bur- ton Tower. Single ticket sales may also be purchased at the Tickets for teMay fstival will go on sale Dec. 1, and tick - ets for the Chamber Music Fes- tivat will be sold after Oct. I5. Canada's only iusical knight will conduct Canada's foremost or- chestra when the Toronto Sym- phony appears here Wednesday, Feb. 10, in the Choral Union Con- cert Series. Sir Ernest MacMillan. dean of Canadian conductors and musi- cians and permanent conductor of the Toronto. Symphony, will lead the distinguished group in its Arn Arbor appearance. * *'* MacMILLAN, world - famous as a conductor of symphony orches- ancshas a guest coductorin the United States, Canada, and Eng- land. Dean of the Faculty of Music In the University of Toronto, he is recognized as an outstanding teacher of music. A gru f moetha 60 "Sir Ernest MacMlla Fine Arts Clb" exist in schools throughout Canada. Under Sir Ernest's spon- sorship, the clubs have held not only musical, but art and drama festivals. Sir Ernest is also the originator of the Toronto symphony's zany "Christmas Box Symphony" per- formance, a completely undigni- fied and humorous presentation which has become a Canadian in- stitution. A typical number, "Unravelling Ravel," began with a typewriter solo and ended with an entire per- cussion orchestra. * * * SIR ERNEST has also been ac- tive in the scholarly field of mu- sic, not only in lecturing and ed- iting, but also in publishing sev- eral pedagogical works, numerous authoritative magazine articles and many reviews of new music. Also a composer, Sir Ernest has been writing since the age of nine. His choral works are among his best known compositions. Although he complains that he hasn't time enough for compos- ing, he turned out about a fugue a day during World War IT. BOSTON POPS REHEARSE WITH FIEDLER * * * * Fiedler To Conduct Boston PopsSpring Concert Here Opera Star To Perform Operatic star George London, who admi ttst a frustrated diesia'e to "runtf to te French Riviera and I usnday Februar 28, at Hill Au ditorium as part of the Choral Union series of concerts. Tall. over six feet, dark and handsome. London comes to Ann Arbor heralded by music critics as one of the best bass-baritones in opera today. Among his featured roles have been Count Almaviva in The Marriage of Figoro," the title role in "Boris Godunov," Es- camillo in "Carmen," and Scarpia in "Tosca." In his early youth he attracted attention in Los Angeles an San Francisco. Kar'l Boehm, conduc- tor of the Vienna State Opera en- gaged him and he immediately be- came a sensation. London made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera House as Amonasro in "Aida" In November, 1951. the opening night of the sea- son. Aftr ti eprerM perform- his ears, he flew to Europe. Trere he made his first anpearance at La Scala in Milan as Pizarro in Beethoven's "Fidelio." After this performance, London, still in his twenties, received invi- tations to sing at seven of Europe's outstanding music festivals: Bay- reuth, Salzburg, Glyndebourne, Munich, Aix -en -Provence and Holland. When London returned to America in the fall of 1952, he ap- peared as guest artist with the New York Philharmonic at Carne- gie Hal for the symphony's open- ing concert of the season. After a three month transcon* tinental concert tour throughout the United States and Canada where he was born of American parents, he returned for his sec- ond season with the Met. London, unlike mnany vpera stars, did not come from a family with a musical background, al- though he loved music Listening to the broadcasts of the Me'tropoli- tan Opera fired his ambition and made hum decide to devote his life to becoxnfng a professional sing- er. Before his experience with the Met, he appeared with the Ameri- can Music Theater, San Francisco Opera and Los Angeles and San Francisco Light Opera Companies. On the radio and television, too, London has scored successes. His recordings have also been popular with the operatic set, [Vesia Cocr TPrsn FourSolistswit Chrs Maud Nosler, soprano. Carol Smith, contralto, Walter Fireder- icks, tenor and Norman Scott, bass, will appear with the Uni- versity Choral Union conducted by Lester McCoy in two "Messiah" concerts on Dec. 5 and 6. Miss Nosler has been a featured soloist in Bach and music festi- vals at many colleges. An audience of over 10,000 heard her sing the soprano role in Handel's '"Mes- sa" t th Mormon aTabernacle * * * ALTHOUGH only in her' early twenties, Carol Smith has already proved herself in a wide variety of professional engagements. She made her New York de- but under the sponsorship of the National Federation of Mu- sic Clubs in 1951 and has stud- ied at the Metropolitan Opera School. few yars aoworked as a ma den, N.J., made his operatic debut in "Pagliacci" in San Francisco in 1947. His performance caused such a sensation that l'e was awarded a scholarship for a year's study in Italy. Fredericks has had several ex- tensive recital tours, radio and television appearances in this country and in Canada and is a favorite American tenor in Latin America. leading roles with the Metropoli- tan Opera for the last two seasons. The young bass-baritone has ours, includin appearaner a guest soloist with the New York Philharmonic Symphony under Dimitri Mitropoulos and the NBC Symphony conducted by Aruro Toscanini. The University Choral Union made up of more than 300 voices will participate in both perform- ances of the Messiah. Rehearsals for the Handel oratorio are al- ready under way. The Musical Society Orchestra, made up of students and towns- ppl will provdethe orchesta bins will play the organ. THE "MESSIAH" has had many performances throughout the civ- ilized world since Handel first of- fered it to the public. So imprse ste ~irst ad us. Thi tradition remains to the present day. Two other musical performances are given each season by the choral group. During the May Festival they appear for two con- certs with the Philadelphia Sym- phony Orchestra conducted by Eugene Ormandy. Tickets for the two Messiah concerts go on sale beginning Oct. 15 at the offices of the University Musical Society in Burton Tower. In Boston the beginning of the Boston Pops Orchestra season sig- nifies the beginning of spring as it will here in March when the Pops perform as part of the Extra Con- cert Series. In the spring, prior to the Pops' season, their home, Symphony Hall in Boston, gets a new coat of paint inside and small tables sur- rounded by chairs replace the rows of seats used in the winter. The Pops then begin nightly concerts which last from May to July. * * * THE POPS originated as a re- sult of an experiment in 1885. This experiment modeled a series of concerts after the European Bilse concerts which combined light classical music with food and drink. Since their origin the Boston Pops have had a number of conductors. The first of these was "Ad" Meuendorff and the most recent is Arthur Fiedler. Fiedler, who has held the po- sition since 1930, has had the longest tenure with the same or- chestra of any symphony con- ductor in the country. The year before Fiedler became conductor of the Pops, he founded the free Esplanade Concerts on the banks of the Charles River. He has conducted many orches- tras, holds a chair on the Boston University faculty, is a member of the Boston Fire Department and is Honorary Police Commissioner of Boston. For the second year, Fiedler will bring the Boston Pops to Hill Au- ditorium to give Ann Arborites a taste of spring. * * ,* FIEDLER, after attending the Boston Latin School, continued his education at the Royal Academy in Berlin. His father and two un- cles were members of the Boston Symphony, and when young Fied- ler returned from the continent he joined the min the Orchestra's string section. The maestro has long been a sought-after guest conductor for major symphony orchestras throughout the country. Among the many famed orchestras he has conducted are the San Francisco, Boston, Toronto, Minneapolis, NBC, San Antonio and Seattle symphonies. H-e has, on several occasions, also conducted the Hol- lywood Bowl and Chicago's Grant Park orchestras. While recording with his or- chestra for a major record com- pany, Fiedler's group became the only orchestra to sell over a mil- lion copies of a single record, .1 CHIAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL Three Concerts in Rackham AuRditorium * * * NORMAN SCOTT has sung Ii~ "I SIDNEY GRILLER, First Violin JACK O'BRIEN, Second Violin PHILIP BURTON, Viola COLIN HAMPTON, Violoncello Appearing: Friday, Fehrairy 19, 8:30 Sunday, February 21, 2:30 REGINALD KEEL PLAYERS .4 ,,,,, REGINALD KELL, Clarinetist JOEL ROSEN, Pianist MELVIN RITTER, Violinist AURORA NATOLA, Cellist