Strauss, Richard (1864 - 1949)

[cloughie]

Yes, well expressed. Way too much tod for my presbyterian tastes. But, in defence of the composer and in however much opprobrium he might be regarded as a fellow-traveller with the third reich (and that is maybe debatable), I think that self-pitying is a wee bit unfair.

I don’t have a problem with Tod und Verklarung - I’ve always find it as beautifully moving but I never feel Metamorphosen to have much warmth to it.

[BBMmk2]

I don’t have a problem with Tod und Verklarung - I’ve always find it as beautifully moving but I never feel Metamorphosen to have much warmth to it.

Oh what a pity, Cloughie. metamorphosen, has a lot of warmth to it.

[Petrushka]

Tod und Verklärung and Metamorphosen, works that come at either end of Strauss' long life. The composer contemplating death in the former, written as a young man, and staring it in the face after the destruction of all he held dear, in his 80's..

I've never even thought about having a 'problem' with Tod, bit puzzled about that, to be honest, while calling Metamorphosen 'bombastic' is one of the more silly comments I've read on this Forum. Metamorphosen must surely be the saddest piece of music ever written. It's Strauss surveying the ruins of German culture, the destruction of the opera houses that played such a significant role in his life and the loss of his beloved Dresden. There's no warmth on offer here.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Tod und Verklärung and Metamorphosen, works that come at either end of Strauss' long life. The composer contemplating death in the former, written as a young man, and staring it in the face after the destruction of all he held dear, in his 80's..

I've never even thought about having a 'problem' with Tod, bit puzzled about that, to be honest, while calling Metamorphosen 'bombastic' is one of the more silly comments I've read on this Forum. Metamorphosen must surely be the saddest piece of music ever written. It's Strauss surveying the ruins of German culture, the destruction of the opera houses that played such a significant role in his life and the loss of his beloved Dresden. There's no warmth on offer here.

My problem with it is that it’s very much Strauss’s sadness at the ruins of German culture but where is the sadness at the ruins of other countries’ (and indeed other races’) cultures? Without getting into the endless debate over Strauss and the Second World War I wonder why he didn’t write it in 1941 or 1942 when country after country had already been destroyed it was obvious to most intelligent Germans that genocide was Nazi policy. Admittedly it would have been a brave option . To me , although I think the music is a masterpiece, it plays into the comforting myth that the German people were just as much victims as any one else - a myth that some contemporary German historians have comprehensively debunked. That’s why I think it’s self-pitying.

If you want a ‘bombastic’ Strauss piece look no further than Ein Heldenleben…

[visualnickmos]

Oh what a pity, Cloughie. metamorphosen, has a lot of warmth to it.

I love Richard Strauss' compositions - warmth or no warmth, etc. All a question of individual interpretation and taste, in regard to what the listener 'gets' from - well, listening!

[Barbirollians]

I don’t have a problem with Tod und Verklarung - I’ve always find it as beautifully moving but I never feel Metamorphosen to have much warmth to it.

Try Barbirolli or Previn- but tend to agree with those who consider it is a desolate piece and I do not expect to find much consolation in it.

The saddest piece of music I know is Elgar’s Sospiri .

[BBMmk2]

Try Barbirolli or Previn- but tend to agree with those who consider it is a desolate piece and I do not expect to find much consolation in it.

The saddest piece of music I know is Elgar’s Sospiri .

Yes, it is a desolate work, but I do find warmth from it.

[gurnemanz]

I asked myself which R Strauss works I find myself deciding to listening to. Alpensinfonie almost never. Metamorphosen, Oboe/Horn Concertos fairly often, songs very often, operas quite often, Heldenleben,Tod und Verklärung, Also Sprach occasionally.

[Bryn]

The early Burlesque is good fun. The late oboe concerto, very special. Otherwise, I can largely take it or leave it regarding Richard Strauss.

[Ein Heldenleben]

As they haven’t been mentioned can I put in a brief plug for the operas?

[Bryn]

As they haven’t been mentioned can I put in a brief plug for the operas?

See #59.

[HighlandDougie]

As they haven’t been mentioned can I put in a brief plug for the operas?

The mention of the operas has had me look out the DG 'Richard Strauss Complete Operas' box which was a bargain buy from somewhere (Amazon Italy?) a number of years ago. I'm ashamed to admit that it's still sitting in its shrink-wrapped glory, a testament to the folly of buying something purely because, "well, it's such a bargain", rather than actually wanting it. But, back on topic, is the reviewer the Mark Simpson who is also a composer and clarinettist?

[cloughie]

The mention of the operas has had me look out the DG 'Richard Strauss Complete Operas' box which was a bargain buy from somewhere (Amazon Italy?) a number of years ago. I'm ashamed to admit that it's still sitting in its shrink-wrapped glory, a testament to the folly of buying something purely because, "well, it's such a bargain", rather than actually wanting it. But, back on topic, is the reviewer the Mark Simpson who is also a composer and clarinettist?

Well at least you got the box unlike many of us on the forum to whom Amazon never delivered!

[Ein Heldenleben]

See #59.

Thanks- Not exactly a massive endorsement though for arguably the greatest opera composer of the 20th century . Particularly buying the complete operas and not opening it. Mind you for over a year I was in a similar position with the complete Britten….

[Bryn]

Thanks- Not exactly a massive endorsement though for arguably the greatest opera composer of the 20th century . Particularly buying the complete operas and not opening it. Mind you for over a year I was in a similar position with the complete Britten….

For the greatest 20th Century (multi-)opera composer candidate, give me Janacek. For me, it's partly a matter of class (social, that is).