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MILESTONES: May 7, birthdays for J Balvin, Sydney Leroux, Peter Carey

May 7, 2019 Brooklyn Eagle
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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include rapper J Balvin, who was born in 1985; author Peter Carey, who was born in 1943; filmmaker Amy Heckerling, who was born in 1954; Utah Gov. Gary R. Herbert, who was born in 1947; U.S. soccer player Sydney Leroux, who was born in 1990; actor Alexander Ludwig, who was born in 1992; former basketball player Shawn Marion, who was born in 1978; and actor Peter Reckell, who was born in 1955.

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BEETHOVEN’S NINTH SYMPHONY PREMIERED ON THIS DAY IN 1824. Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9 in D Minor” was performed for the first time at Vienna, Austria. Known as the Choral because of his use of voices in symphonic form for the first time, the Ninth was his musical interpretation of Schiller’s “Ode to Joy.” Beethoven was completely deaf when he composed it, and it was said a soloist had to tug on his sleeve when the performance was over to get him to turn around and see the enthusiastic response he could not hear.

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THIS WEEK IS NATIONAL PET WEEK. Since 1981, the first week of May has been dedicated to honoring the many important roles pets have in our lives and to encourage responsible pet ownership.

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PETER ILICH TCHAIKOVSKY WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1840. One of the outstanding composers of all time, Tchaikovsky was born at Vatkinsk, Russia. Among his famous works are the symphony “Pathetique;” the opera “Eugene Onegin;” and the ballets “Swan Lake,” “Sleeping Beauty” and “The Nutcracker.” He was the first to turn the ballet into a sustained dramatic expression. Tchaikovsky died of cholera during an epidemic at St. Petersburg in 1893 — nine days after conducting his “Pathetique” symphony for the first time.

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DAVID HUME WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1711. The Scottish Enlightenment philosopher’s ideas present the culmination of the philosophical movement of empiricism. Hume addressed such questions as the limits of knowledge. He rejected metaphysical questions and stated that we should be skeptical of all conclusions reached by the use of reason. A prolific author, Hume wrote the six-volume “History of England,” as well as other essays and historical work. Today, his “A Treatise of Human Nature” is seen as his most important work. Hume died in 1776 in Edinburgh.

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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.

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“A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.” — philosopher David Hume, who was born on this day in 1711

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