Today's Birthday: October 27 (Paganini)

1782 - Niccolò Paganini, Genoa, Italy; violinist, violist, guitarist, composer

Wikipedia
Legendary violinists

Jascha Heifetz plays Caprice No. 24 (accompanist Emanuel Bay)


Leonid Kogan plays Paganini's variations on the theme "Di tanti palpiti" from Rossini's Tancredi

Today's Birthday in Music: August 3 (Lauro)

1917 - Antonio Lauro, Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela; composer and guitarist

Wikipedia
Biography

Historical recording of Antonio Lauro playing "Maria Cristina," a cradle song dedicated to his granddaughter


Waltz "El Marabino", played by José Gregorio Guánchez

Today's Birthdays in Music: July 15 (Margison, Bream, Birtwistle)

1953 - Richard Margison, Victoria, Canada; opera tenor

Biography and pictures
Richard Margison - In Constant Motion (La Scena Musicale, 2002)

Richard Margison sings "Cielo e mar!" from Ponchielli's La Gioconda (Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, 2005)



1933 - Julian Bream, London, England; guitarest and lutenist

Wikipedia
Guitare Diffusion Biography

Julian Bream (self-duet) plays "Fandango" by Luigi Boccherini



1933 - Harrison Birtwistle, Accrington, England; composer

Wikipedia
New York Times on Harrison Birtwistle

Scenes from Punch and Judy, Act I, by Harrison Birtwistle (Rupert Bergmann as Punch, Hamburg 2001)

Today's Birthdays in Music: July 11 (Boyd, Gedda, Prey)

1949 - Liona Boyd, London, England; guitarist

Wikipedia
Official website

Liona Boyd in concert



1925 - Nicolai Gedda, Stockholm, Sweden; opera tenor

Wikipedia
Short biography and pictures

Nicolai Gedda as Chapelau (singing in German) in Adolph Adam's Le postillon de Lonjumeau



1929 - Hermann Prey, Berlin, Germany; opera bass-baritone

Wikipedia
Short biography and pictures

Hermann Prey as Don Carlo singing in German "Son Pereda" from Verdi's La Forza del Destino

Today's Birthdays in Music: April 24 (Archer, Williams)

1913 - Violet Archer, Montreal, Canada; composer, pianist, teacher

Bio/picture
Wiki entry
Obituary (La Scena Musicale, 2000)


1941 - John C. Williams, Melbourne, Australia; guitarist

Wiki entry

John Williams and Julian Bream play Debussy's Clair de Lune

Today's Birthdays in Music: February 21 (Segovia, Délibes)

1893 - Andrés Segovia, Linares, Spain; guitarist

Wiki entry

Andres Segovia playing Asturias (Albéniz)



1836 - Léo Delibes, Saint-Germain-du-Val, France; composer

Wiki entry
Bio/pictures

Joan Sutherland and Huguette Tourangeau sing the "Flower Duet" from Delibes' Lakmé (Sydney Opera, 1976)

Today's Birthdays in Music: February 14 (Fleming, Sor)

1959 - Renée Fleming, Indiana, PA, USA; opera and recital soprano

Wiki entry
Interview

Renée Fleming in Copenhagen sings Handel's "Let the Bright Seraphim"




1778 - Fernando Sor, Barcelona, Spain; composer, guitarist

Wiki entry

Fernando Sor: No. 3 from Six Petite Pièces for Harpolyre, played by John Doan