Events in Music History in December 1951

Billy Budd

Dec 1 Benjamin Britten's opera "Billy Budd" premieres in London

The Pied Piper

Dec 4 Aaron Copland's and Jerome Robbins' ballet "The Pied Piper" premieres in New York City

  • Dec 11 "The Wild Side of Life" single recorded by Hank Thompson and His Brazos Valley Boys (Billboard Song of the Year, 1952)
  • Dec 24 1st opera commissioned for television - "Amahl and the Night Visitors" by Gian Carlo Menotti premieres on NBC with the NBC Opera Theater