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Timeline

Mario CASTELNUOVO-TEDESCO

MCT with mother Noemi, 1896
Born in Florence, Italy on 3 April

1895

MCT at the piano, c. 1905
Begins piano studies with his mother. Writes first composition at age nine.

1905

MCT, c.1911
Begins music studies at the conservatory.

1911

“Fuori I Barbari!” published in 1915
MCT’s patriotic anthem “Fuori i Barbari” is published on page one of the newspaper L’Idea nazionale.

1915

MCT in uniform, c.1918
Excused from active military duty after two months due to pleurisy. Receives diploma in Composition from Conservatory of Bologna.

1918

Clara Forti and MCT, 1923
Marries Clara Forti.

1924

MCT and Madeleine Grey, Florence, 1920s
Is sought-after as an accompanist in Italy. Works with renowned singers such as Madeleine Grey, Salomea Kurceniski, Marya Freund, and Lotte Lehman.

1920s

MCT with wife Clara and son Pietro, 1925
Son Pietro is born

1925

Concerto Italiano, Op 31.
Premiere of Concerto Italiano in Rome, conducted by Bernardo Molinari.

1926

Set design for La Mandragola by Primo Conti, 1926
Premiere of La Mandragola at La Fenice, Venice conducted by Piero Fabbroni.

1926

MCT with his sons, 1932
Son Lorenzo is born.

1930

Bacco in Toscana at La Scala, 1931
Bacco in Toscana premieres at Teatro alla Scala, Milano, conducted by Antonio Sabini.

1931

1932 Venice International Festival program
Meets Andrés Segovia at the International Society of Contemporary Music Festival in Venice.

1932

Opus 71, written for Andres Segovia
Writes first work for guitar, Variations à travers les siècles.

1932

MCT with Heifetz at the Florence premiere of I Profeti, 1934
Violin Concerto No.2, I Profeti premieres in at Carnegie Hall, New York, performed by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Arturo Toscanini, with soloist Jascha Heifetz.

1933

Savonarola set design, Bruno Bramanti, 1935
Savonarola premieres at III Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Piazza della Signoria, conducted by Fernando Previtali.

1935

MCT with Piatigorsky, 1935
Cello Concerto Opus 72 premieres at Carnegie Hall, performed by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Toscanini with soloist Gregor Piatigorsky.

1935

Corriere della Sera, 11 Nov 1938
Manifesto of Race – Italian Racial Laws published in September. By December, MCT decides to leave Italy.

1938

Premiere of Opus 99, Montevideo, Oct 1939
Completes Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra, Op 99 for Segovia. Segovia premieres the work in Montevideo in October.

1939

MCT purchased round-trip tickets for the family from Trieste to New York, 1939
Departs from Trieste aboard the Saturnia on 13 July.

1939

MCT outside his home in Larchmont, New York 1939
Arrives in New York City on 27 July and moves shortly thereafter to nearby suburb of Larchmont.

1939

1939, MCT’s American debut
Debuts as soloist at Carnegie Hall, New York performing his Second Piano Concerto with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by John Barbirolli.

1939

MCT and son Lorenzo with the Marx Brothers on the set of The Big Store, 1940
Moves to Los Angeles to start work at in the music department at MGM.

1940

And Then There Were None, 1945
Writes score for René Clair film And Then There were None.

1945

MCT with fellow composers Alexandre Tansman and Ernst Toch, Los Angeles, 1940s
The Genesis Suite, a collaboration among the émigré composers, premieres at the Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles under the baton of Werner Janssen.

1945

MCT and Clara CT, American passport photos, 1946
MCT and Clara become American citizens.

1946

Poster for The Loves of Carmen, 1948
Rita Hayworth selects MCT to write score for her film, The Loves of Carmen.

1948

MCT, Segovia and the Paganini Quartet, Los Angeles, 1951
Guitar Quintet, Op 153 premieres at the Wilshire-Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, performed by the Paganini Quartet with Segovia.

1951

Auccasin et Nicolette, Florence, 1952
Aucassin et Nicolette premieres at XV Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

1952

MCT in a live TV interview about the Campari prize, 1959
Wins international opera competition Concorso Campari for The Merchant of Venice.

1958

1959, Michigan State University concert honoring the composer
Teaches and lectures as Distinguished Visiting Professor, Michigan State University.

1959

MCT at The Merchant of Venice premiere, 1961
The Merchant of Venice premieres at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, conducted by Franco Capuana.

1961

Written in 1953, Opus 160 premiered in 1966
Second Guitar Concerto premieres in Los Angeles, conducted by Henri Temianka with soloist Christopher Parkening.

1966


MCT in his Beverly Hills studio, 1968
Dies in Los Angeles at age 72.

1968