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Here’s a bit of music history I didn’t know I had.
 
Gerhard Samuel, who gave the first performance of Hans Rott’s Symphony Symphony in E, repeated the work for his final concerts before retiring from the podium as conductor of the Cincinnati Philharmonia after an unforgettable tour of Portugal in 1997.
 
I was his assistant at the time and helped prepare the orchestra. Gerhard very sweetly gave me his “spare” score as a present. I’ve had it for 22 years, but today noticed this little bit of information about the circumstances of its printing.
 
Although Mahler toyed with programming the Rott Symphony for most of his career, the work languished in semi-oblivion for over 100 years following Rott’s tragic death in 1884. Hats off to Paul Banks for putting this fascinating, flawed, yet inspiring, work into a form in which it could be performed.
 
Since Gerhard’s first performance and groundbreaking recording in 1989, the Rott Symphony has become something of a repertoire piece, with several subsequent recordings by figures as eminent as Dennis Russel Davies and Paavo Jarvi. The entry of the Rott into the body of recorded music, and its incorporation into the repertoire of orchestras worldwide, has contributed immeasurably to our understanding of the creative growth of Mahler.
 
Anyway, I was touched to discover that this was the first copy of the first printing of this important, and nearly lost, work. It’s quite a thing to imagine the first two copies being printed, and from that simple act, music history changing forever.
 
Perhaps something to bring to Colorado MahlerFest some day?