World War I in Europe, Bach in America

SynopsisOn today’s date in 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, effectively beginning World War I. Early in the course of that war, French composer Albéric Magnard became a national hero when he died defending his home against invading German troops. Maurice Ravel tried to enlist as a French pilot but was refused because of his poor health. Instead, he became a truck driver stationed at the Verdun front. British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams was too old to be drafted, but he enlisted as a private in the Royal Army Medical Corps. Another British composer, George Butterworth, would be killed by a sniper during the Battle of the Somme.Austrian violinist and composer Fritz Kreisler served briefly in the Austrian Army in 1914 before being wounded and honorably discharged. He arrived in then-neutral New York on November of 1914 and remained in America through the war years. In 1915, Kreisler made a recording of Bach’s Double Violin Concerto, performing with the Russian violinist Efrem Zimbalist. Austria and Russian may have been at war in Europe, but in a cramped New Jersey recording studio, at least, the music of Bach provided a brief island of peace and harmony.Music Played in Today's ProgramJ.S. Bach (1685-1750): Double Concerto (recorded 1915); Fritz Kreisler, Efrem Zimbalist, violins; string quartet; Buddulph CD 21/22