[Monteux, Pierre. (1875–1964)] Dugardin, Hervé. (1910–1969) & Nabokov, Nicolas. (1903–1978)
Typed Letter Signed about 1952 Performance of Rite of Spring
Typed letter signed from two directors of the 1952 Paris festival "Exposition Internationale des Arts," thanking the great conductor for his performance with the Boston Symphony of the Rite of Spring. Monteux, who had conducted the premiere of the work in 1913, returned with the Boston Symphony to perform it again in Paris in the 1952 festival, to wide acclaim. Translated from the French, in part: "The performance of the Rite was probably one of the most moving events of the festival, this masterpiece which you created even amidst jeers and which over the years has become one of the great classics of contemporary music. Neither will the Parisian public and we ourselves forget the closing concert in which you conducted a French orchestra, and we were very proud and happy about the success which you have achieved." Dated June 21, 1952. 1 p. Folding creases, otherwise in fine condition. 8.25 x 10.5 inches (21 x 26.9 cm). From the estate of Monteux's daughter, Nancie Monteux Barendse."The highlight of the tour for Monteux had to have been the performance, on 8 May in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, of The Rite of Spring, which climaxed a program that also included Vaughan Williams's Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis, the Milhaud [Proté] suite, and the Schuman [Third] symphony. During the ovation that followed The Rite, Stravinsky, who had taken a bow in the audience, was pushed onto the stage by both Monteux and Munch, to even greater applause... Stravinsky bowed once, kissed Monteux on both cheeks, and left the stage with tears streaming down his face. The July 1952 issue of Musical America reported that Monteux silenced the audience and addressed them: 'Thirty-nine years ago I conducted the first performance of the Sacre; may I invite you to hear me do it again thirty-nine years hence!' Members of the BSO who had played The Rite under Koussevitzky, Bernstein, and others felt that this particular performance was the greatest in which they had participated." (John Canarina: Pierre Monteux, Maître, p. 213.) (13787)
TLS Classical Music