Century Sunday: April 1926
One hundred years ago, the end of the silent film era was approaching, and the music and culture of the Jazz Age were still in full force. Below are some notable highlights for April 1926.
One of the most historic nights of opera or concert hall music occurred on April 25, 1926. Giacomo Puccini’s final, unfinished opera, Turandot, premiered at La Scala in Milan. Puccini had died of throat cancer before completing the final act. The performance was conducted by the legendary Arturo Toscanini. When the orchestra reached the final notes Puccini had actually written (the death of the emotional focus of the opera, the young female slave Liù), Toscanini abruptly stopped the orchestra, laid down his baton, faced the audience, and announced: “Here the opera ends, because at this point the maestro died.” The curtain was lowered to complete silence.
In 1926, Jelly Roll Morton recorded “The Pearls” as a piano solo for the Brunswick label. It’s often described as one of the most intricate and carefully constructed pieces in early jazz. Morton himself said it was among the hardest jazz works ever written. In the performance, his left hand keeps a rock-solid, steady stride rhythm, while his right hand weaves in detailed and expressive melodic variations.
Fletcher Henderson’s orchestra, recording under the pseudonym The Dixie Stompers for contractual reasons, released “Static Strut” and “Dynamite.”
