Today in Music History ~ 10/12

• 1855 ~ Arthur Nikisch, Hungarian conductor

1872 ~ Ralph Vaughan Williams, British composer was born in Down Ampney, England. He was a composer of the 20th century who championed nationalism in English music. He became director of the Leith Hill Music Festival in 1905 and taught composition at the Royal College of Music from 1919 to 1959.
More information on Vaughan Williams

• 1935 ~ Luciano Pavarotti, Italian tenor, Emmy Award-winning opera star

• 1935 ~ Samuel Moore, Singer with Sam & Dave

• 1944 ~ Who could forget the picture of a huge crowd of swooning bobbysoxers stopping traffic in New York’s Times Square as Frank Sinatra made his triumphant return to the famed Paramount Theatre (he had played there for eight weeks starting on December 30, 1942). In what was called the ‘Columbus Day Riot’, 25,000 teenagers, mostly young women, blocked the streets, screaming and swooning for Frankie. Sinatra later explained, "It was the war years, and there was a great loneliness. And I was the boy in every corner drug store ... who’d gone off, drafted to the war. That was all."

• 1948 ~ Rick Parfitt, Singer, guitarist with Status Quo

• 1950 ~ Susan Anton, Singer

• 1956 ~ Dave Vanian (Letts), Singer

• 1971 ~ Some folks weren’t pleased when "Jesus Christ Superstar" premiered on Broadway because of the controversial content of the musical. Before the show opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre, some 2.5 million copies of the album were sold to the curious. The Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd Webber collaboration would become a big hit. "Jesus Christ Superstar would run on Broadway" for 720 shows, and spawn several hit songs, including I Don’t Know How to Love Him (Helen Reddy) and the title song, Jesus Christ Superstar (Murray Head).

• 1981 ~ Barbara Mandrell walked away with the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year honor for the second year in a row.

• 1989 ~ Carmen Cavallaro passed away

• 2000 ~ Boston Symphony Hall celebrated it's 100th anniversary