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February 10

11696 Johann Melchior Molter – German composer and violinist (d.1765); wrote some of the first clarinet concertos; one of his many trumpet concertos is the signature piece of C-SPAN's Washington Journal.

1744 premiere of George Frideric Handel’s opera/oratorio Semele at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden in London; originally presented as an oratorio as part of a concert series held yearly during Lent.

1794 first performance of Haydn’s Symphony No. 99 at the Hanover Square Rooms in London with the composer directing the orchestra seated at a fortepiano; the first of Haydn's symphonies to be scored for clarinets.

1860 first performance of Johannes Brahms's Serenade No. 2 in Hamburg with the composer conducting.

1881 premiere of Jacques Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann at the Opéra-Comique without the third (‘Venice’) act; Jules Barbier’s libretto is based on three short stories by E.T.A. Hoffmann, who is the protagonist in the opera.

1908 Jean Coulthard – Canadian composer, educator and pianist (d.2000); she was one of three women composers who dominated Western Canadian music in the 20th century, along with Barbara Pentland and Violet Archer; all three died within weeks of each other.

1927 Leontyne Price – African-American soprano (96 years old); one of the most popular American singers of her generation, and the first African-American to become a leading performer at the Metropolitan Opera.

1927 premiere of Ernst Krenek’s jazz opera Jonny spielt auf (Johnny Strikes Up the Band) in Leipzig at the Stadttheater; the work is a prime example of the 'golden era' of the Weimar Republic.

1929 Jerry Goldsmith – American film composer and conductor (d.2004); best known for his work in film and television scoring; nominated for 6 Grammys, 9 Golden Globes, 4 British Academy Film Awards, and 18 Oscars; in 1976, his score for The Omen won an Academy Award.

1934 stage premiere of Howard Hanson’s Merry Mount at the Metropolitan Opera in New York during a Saturday matinée broadcast, Tulio Serafin conducting.

1939 Barbara Kolb – American composer (84 years old); first female American composer to win the Prix de Rome, in 1969.

1970 Peter Boyer – American composer, conductor and professor (53 years old); best-known piece is Ellis Island: The Dream of America, a work for actors and orchestra with projected images, completed in 2002.