Boston Symphony Orchestra Concert Programs, Season 35,1915-1916, Trip
Symphony No. 2, "Antar," Op. 15. Nicolas Andrejevitch Rimsky-Korsakoff (Born at Tikhvin, in the government of Novgorod, March 18,* 1844; died at Petrograd, June 21, 1908.) This symphony, composed in 1868, was first performed in Petro- grad at a concert of the Russian Musical Society on March 22, 1869. The year of performance is erroneously given as 1868 by some bi- ographers. The first performance in Germany was at Magdeburg in June, 1881, at a concert of the Allgemeiner Deutscher Musikverein Festival. " Antar" was performed in New York in the course of the season 1891-92, at one of three concerts with orchestra given by The Arion Society in Arion Hall, led by Frank Van der Stucken. The symphony is dedicated to Cesar Cui, and is scored for three flutes (one interchangeable with piccolo), two oboes (one interchange- able with English horn), two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, bass tuba, a set of three kettledrums, bass drum, tambourine, triangle, cymbals, tam-tam, harp, and the usual strings. Antar, as a historical character, was the son of an Abyssinian slave. His father was a chieftain in the tribe of Abs. He acknowledged and freed him, and Antar became famous as a poet and by his deeds. He asked his Uncle Malik for the hand of his cousin Abla. Malik accepted the offer, but, not wishing his daughter to wed the son of a slave girl, he led him into perilous adventures. Antar was slain by one of his foes about 615. According to Clement Huart's "History of Arabic Literature," this true desert poet ' Antara, son of Shaldad, "whose name was later to serve the popular story-tellers of the romance of 'Antar as the incarnate type of the virtues ascribed to the wandering paladins of the heathen tribes," was a mulatto and his lower lip was split.
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