Marc Blitzstein 1941 Courtesy of the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music “Music must have a so
Marc Blitzstein 1941 Courtesy of the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music “Music must have a social as well as an artistic base; it should broaden its scope and reach not only the select few but the masses.” – Marc Blitzstein, 1935Composer Marcus Samuel Blitzstein (1905-1964) was born to immigrant parents in Philadelphia. His father Sam founded Blitzstein Bank, which enabled early 20th-century immigrants to Philadelphia to save money and purchase steamship tickets to bring their families to the US. A piano prodigy, Marc made his professional debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at 21 years old and studied composition at the Curtis Institute of Music. He developed an interest in socially conscious theater and his compositions emphasized his political views. He did not hide his homosexuality, though he was discrete as required by social conventions of the time, even going so far as to write in a letter to his sister Jo in 1929, “It has become imperative at last that I cut out the “balance,” the “control” (I am a pretty good actor, I project well, nearly everybody thought it was the real thing", and let out what has been secret and furtive in me for so long. Shame is the single largest enemy; the sense of being sick, of living a diseased life, is another. Now, I accept what I am; really, knowing all it involves.“Blitzstein is known for the pro-union political opera The Cradle Will Rock, directed by Orson Welles during its opening run in 1937 – and its infamous premiere – and the Airborne Symphony (commissioned by the US Air Force and conducted by Leonard Bernstein in New York in 1946). His adaptation of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s Threepenny Opera (originally produced in 1952 at Brandeis, under Bernstein) helped popularize the song “Mack the Knife” later recorded by Louis Armstrong and Bobby Darin.To learn more about composer Marc Blitzstein, please visit the official website here. Marc Blitzstein Historical Marker DedicationMonday, June 12 at 11 am 419 Pine Street FREE and open to the publicThe Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission in partnership with NMAJH and Curtis Institute of Music invites you to the dedication of a state historical marker commemorating composer Marc Blitzstein at 419 Pine Street. Notable music historians rank Blitzstein in league with contemporaries like Leonard Bernstein (for whom Blitzstein was a clear influence), Aaron Copland, and Virgil Thomson. We hope you will join us in helping to commemorate his legacy as one of Pennsylvania’s most important sons.Reception to follow at Society Hill Synagogue, 418 Spruce StreetRelated programLater that evening at 7 pm, the Museum will mark the 80th anniversary of The Cradle Will Rock with a reading of Jason Sherman’s It’s All True in partnership with InterAct Theatre Company, a play about that production and its fabled opening night protest. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets. -- source link
#marc blitzstein#lgbt jews#queer jews#red scare#interact theatre#leonard bernstein#blitzstein