Events in Music History in 1936

Jan 4 Billboard magazine publishes its 1st music hit parade

"Astonished Heart"

Jan 9 Noël Coward's stage drama "Astonished Heart" premieres in London

Playwright, Director and Singer Noël Coward

Stompin' at the Savoy

Jan 24 Benny Goodman and His Orchestra record "Stompin' at the Savoy" for Victor Records in Chicago, Illinois

Jazz Musician, Clarinetist and Bandleader Benny Goodman

Stalin Dislikes Opera

Jan 26 Joseph Stalin views Dmitri Shostakovich's opera "Lady Macbeth" but he and his officials leave early and the play is denounced in state press

Shostakovich Opera Criticized

Jan 28 Pravda criticizes Dmitri Shostakovich's opera "Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District"

Feb 6 Pravda criticizes Dmitri Shostakovich's ballet "Clear Brook"

On Your Toes

Apr 11 George Abbott, Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart's musical "On Your Toes", choreographed by George Balanchine, and starring Ray Bolger and Tamara Geva, opens at the Imperial Theatre (later transfers to Majestic), NYC; runs for 515 performances

Édith Piaf Under Suspicion

Apr 14 French singer Édith Piaf questioned after nightclub owner and her patron Louis Leplée murdered in Paris

Apr 26 Dmitri Shostakovich completes his 4th Symphony

Peter and the Wolf

May 2 Sergei Prokofiev's musical "Peter and the Wolf" premieres in Moscow

May 12 Ralph Vaughan Williams' opera "Poisoned Kiss" premieres in London

Music History

Jun 29 George M. Cohan is the first artist to be presented with a US Congressional Gold Medal, by Franklin D. Roosevelt (for raising war morale)

Composer, Actor and Singer George M. Cohan

Music History

Jul 25 Jazz saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker marries his childhood sweetheart Rebecca Ruffin

Jazz Saxophonist and Composer Charlie "Bird" Parker

Swing Time

Sep 4 RKO Radio Pictures releases "Swing Time", directed by George Stevens, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

Red, Hot And Blue

Oct 29 Cole Porter's musical "Red, Hot And Blue", starring Ethel Merman, Jimmy Durante, and Bob Hope, opens at the Alvin Theatre, NYC; runs for 183 performances