Suffolkcoastal's Symphonic Journey

[Suffolkcoastal]

1954 comtinued from the above posting .....

Walter Piston’s 5th Symphony is a three movement work of about 20 minutes duration. It is another expertly crafted work by this fine composer, though it is perhaps the least satisfying of his eight symphonies as a whole. The 1st movement has a slow introduction, both it and the central slow movement lack real memorability, even though the highly chromatic central movement repays study, and somewhat dry. The finale contrasts strongly and is solidly tonal but structurally doesn’t balance the rest of the work.

Nino Rota is of course well known as a composer of memorable film scores. His 3rd Symphony is a highly engaging and lightweight work in 4 movements, classically balanced and could be considered Rota’s Classical Symphony. Not a work of any great depth but charming all the same.

Edmund Rubbra’s 6th Symphony is another fine work from this fine British Symphonist. It is in 4 movements lasting around 30 minutes and has an impressive inner momentum and inevitability which continually draws the listener onward. The stately grave opening leads to a continually developing more animated main movement before the movement returns to the world of the opening. The 2nd movement has a certain grave, archaic nobility and beauty. The 3rd movement is lively and Rubbra maintains an impressive momentum through his enviable command of counterpoint. Like the first movement the finale begins slowly before becoming more lively and concludes in a mood of affirmation. The work has a certain rich glow throughout that makes it both appealing and immensely satisfying.

For some reason I completely forgot to include Robert Simpson’s 1st Symphony under 1951, so I thought I’d better include here (at the earliest opportunity after discovering my omission). Written for his Doctoral Thesis at Durham University, this is an immensely confident work, the work of a composer who is determined to prove himself as a symphonist of high calibre. Though nominally in one movement, this 30 minute long work divides in to three sections. The outer movements are powerful and dynamic and the finale has a dance like energy and propulsion. The central section is slow and has an austerely beautiful polyphony. One of the most confident of starts to a symphonic cycle.

Adolfus Skulte was a Latvian composer and his 1st Symphony is a four movement 45 minute long work. Skulte’s style is tonal and romantic and he does have a certain lyrical gift. The slow 2nd movement is actually really rather lovely and the scherzo has a trio of rather dreamlike and haunting quality. The 1st movement is rather long but the 2nd subject is marked by a passionate lyricism. The conventional finale is rather rhetorical. The work has its faults but some listeners may find it quite appealing.

Finally Eduard Tubin’s 6th Symphony. This is a three movement work of about 30 minutes duration and includes a prominent part for solo saxophone. The moderately paced 1st movement is made rather restless but its swaggering occasionally jazzy rhythmic pulse. The central movement is lively and quite dynamic heavily scored and occasionally perhaps overscored , it packs quite a punch. The finale is basically a set of variations that again has plenty of dynamic range. The movement rather surprisingly fades away into silence.

As usual any comments on these works are most welcome.

[Suffolkcoastal]

SC, thanks once again for the effort that you go to , to describe your journey. Really enjoyed reading about the symphonies, and you always describe them in ways that make me want to hear them all as soon as possible.
You have already converted me to Piston,and I'll try to give some of these a go sooner rather than later. The Daniel Jones, Simpson, and Badings all sound tempting, but your top tips are a big help.
Thanks again.

Forgot to add my top tips from 1954 yesterday, so here they are:

Badings
Brian
G Bush
Enescu
Hanson
Holmboe
D Jones
Rubbra
R Simpson (under 1951)
Tubin

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1955

S Bate: Symphony No 4
Bloch: Symphony in E flat
Helps: Symphony No 1
Henze: Symphony No 4
A Hill: Symphony No 5 in A minor ‘The Carnival’
Hovhaness: Symphony No 2 ‘Mysterious Mountain’
Josephs: Symphony No 1 (revised 1975 vers)
Kapp: Symphony No 2 in E minor
Lajtha: Symphony No 6
Milhaud: Symphony No 6
Milhaud: Symphony No 7
Moyzes: Symphony No 7
Piston: Symphony No 6
Sauguet: Symphony No 3 ‘I.N.R.’
Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 8 in D minor

Stanley Bates’ 4th Symphony is a rather pessimistic and sombre work, but also one that has a fair amount of impact. The 1st movement has an anguished, restless quality that never really subsides. The 2nd movement has a feeling of desolation and poignancy. The scherzo is quite short and pugnacious driven on by brass fanfares but with a more subdued ‘trio’ section. The finale contrasts a rather grim militaristic restlessness with a wistful lyricism, the lyricism is eventually swept away, the symphony finishing as it had began in desolation. Though Bate’s style might not be the individual or innovative, this symphony really is quite striking and well worth investigating.

Bloch’s Symphony in E flat is a four movement work of about 25 minutes duration and was among his final works. A four note motif heard in the opening bars provides the basis for the works main material. For the most part the work is rather subdued and has a rather resigned wearied quality to it. There are some powerful outbursts in the 1st movement and plenty of drive in the scherzo. Only at the end of the symphony does a sense of calm acceptance finally prevail. Certainly a rewarding work, the language is tonal and approachable.

The American composer Robert Helps 1st Symphony is a three movement work lasting between 20 & 25 minutes. Its harmonic language, though tonally rooted has a strong chromatic slant to it and at times seems to hint at the language that Sessions had developed around the time of his 2nd Symphony a decade earlier. There is often a feeling of rather dark, sarcastic humour at play and also plenty of dance like energy.

Henze’s 4th Symphony originally started life as the finale to the 2nd Act of his opera Konig Hirsch, where a forest is portrayed through the seasons. The resulting one movement symphony has a sense of mystery and its shadowy shifting textures which are aided by continually shifting tempi and individual and chromatically free harmony. The orchestration is fascinating and richly varied and worth further study. Not an easy work perhaps to grasp initially but a haunting and at times beautiful work will reveal itself.

The Australian composer Alfred Hill died in 1960 not far short of his 91st birthday. The majority of his symphonies were composed in the last decade of his life and all bar one are orchestrations of earlier chamber works. His 5th Symphony is an orchestration of an early string quartet from 1912 and is in the late romantic manner of the time of the original Quartet. Even the orchestration is firmly rooted in late romanticism. There are some pleasant ideas, but the work is rather anonymous and sounds completely out of place in the world of the 1950’s.

Alan Hovhaness 2nd Symphony ‘Mysterious Mountain’, is probably his best known work, and was a favourite of Leopold Stokowski’s. Combining modality, Renaissance polyphony and hymn like harmonies with occasional Easter/Armenian touches, this is a simple but expressive work, that is genuinely relaxing. Hovhaness works within his limitations. Sometimes it can result in rather weak very dull and repetitive music, but at others times as here, it can result in music that is genuinely beautiful, spiritually uplifting and immensely satisfying.

Wilfred Josephs is a name that seems to have all but vanished from the concert hall and Radio 3. His 1st Symphony was written in memory of his father and is a one movement work of about 20 minutes duration. It was revised in 1974/5. The work is rather elegiac and stylistically rather difficult to pin down, with reminiscences of other British composers such as Fricker. The work is competently written and has a natural flow, the language is underlyingly tonal but often rather chromatic.

The Estonian composer Villem Kapp’s 2nd Symphony is a straightforward four movement work in an accessible romantic tonal style. The 1st movement is competent without being particularly memorable and the scherzo has conspicuous folk like elements is quite attractive. The finale though is rather scrappy and uninteresting. The slow movement, which comes 2nd, is something and really is very beautiful indeed and worth hearing on its own.

Laszlo Lajtha’s 6th Symphony is another fine work from this Hungarian symphonist. The symphony has an element of fantasy about it. The 1st movement seems to alternate between a gentle lightheartedness and more serious matters. The slow movement is very evocative almost nocturnal and quite beautiful. The 3rd movement is a surprise having the feel of a Baroque dance, whilst the finale is down to earth and makes an effective conclusion. Lajtha’s approachable style remains distinctive in this work.

Milhaud completed two symphonies in 1955. The 6th is among his most engaging and appealing symphonies. The 1st and 3rd movements are slow, the 2nd and 4th more lively. The 1st movement opens in a gentle and serene world of refined beauty with a pastoral lyricism, a particular manner than Milhaud made very much his own. The 3rd movement is also very lyrical and at times quite beautiful, though here there is an element of wistfulness and reserve. The other movements are more energetic, the finale being typical Milhaud in its slightly edgy, sometimes bitonal counterpoint. This work is certainly worth investigating

Milhaud’s 7th Symphony is a shorter three movement work of around 20 minutes duration. The buoyant 1st movement is quite short. The central slow movement has a certain sombre gravity. The finale is again generally optimistic though somewhat more strident than the 1st movement. Though a pleasant work it lacks the memorability of the 6th Symphony.

Alexander Moyzes 7th Symphony is a fairly substantial 40 minute long work in 4 movements. The first two movements are fairly short, the first gently pastoral, the 2nd an earthy and folk inspired scherzo that has echoes of Kodaly. The long third movement is more serious in tone and reaches a powerful sonorous climax. The finale is solid and conventional but not particularly distinctive.

Walter Piston’s 6th Symphony is among his finest and most appealing works. Like a number of his other symphonies it was written for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Piston knowing the players so well, said that it virtually wrote itself. The symphony is a classically balanced 4 movement work. The first is flowing and expressive, the 2nd a witty gossamer scherzo, a tour de force in light and staccato playing. The slow melancholic 3rd movement is among Piston’s most beautiful, with its lovely opening idea on the solo ‘cello and the energetic and optimistic finale is among Piston’s most successfully. The mastery of clarity of line and orchestration are enviable throughout. Thoroughly recommended.

Sauguet’s 3rd Symphony takes its INR title from the initials of the National Broadcasting Institute of Belgium and was composed for that institution’s orchestra’s 20th Anniversary. The INR is also applied to the indication of each of the three movements, ‘Impetusamente, Nobilmente & Risoluto’. It is a much more satisfying work than his overlong and dull 2nd Symphony. In the 1st movement the composer attempt a classical symphonic manner with much development. The central slow movement is a processional passacaglia and opens and closes on the percussion and is quite effective. The finale alternates a scherzo like mood with a more wistful lyricism which interrupts the scherzo’s more humorous progress.

Finally Vaughan Williams 8th Symphony, which is probably familiar to most MBs. It shows the composer even in his 80’s still developing and expanding his style. The opening movement variations in search of a theme is very novel . The 2nd movement is a witty march scored for instruments and one wonders if RVW knew Hindemith’s Sinfonia Serena, which has a similarly scored movement. There is a slight sense of wistfulness that creeps in occasionally in both the of the opening two movements and this readily shows its hand in the beautiful and slightly resigned Cavatina for strings alone. The finale is a tour de force for the percussion and ends this engaging symphony in optimistic style.

As usual any comments on any of these symphonies would be most welcome.

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1956

Alwyn: Symphony No 3
Atterberg: Symphony No 9 ‘ Sinfonia Visionaria’
Bainton: Symphony No 3 in C minor
Brian: Symphony No 11 (composed 1954)
Butting: Symphony No 9
Creston: Symphony No 5
J N David: Symphony No 7
Giannini: Symphony No 2
A Hill: Symphony No 6 in B flat major ‘Celtic’
Ivanovs: Symphony No 8 in B minor
Kabalevsky: Symphony No 4 in C
Koppel: Symphony No 5
G Lloyd: Symphony No 6
Martelli: Symphony op4
Mennin: Symphony No 6 (composed 1953)
Persichetti; Symphony No 6 (for Symphonic Band)
Rautavaara: Symphony No 1 (revised 1988 vers)
Riegger: Symphony No 4
Rochberg: Symphony No 2
Rorem: Symphony No 2
Shostakovich: Symphony No 11 in G minor ‘The Year 1905’
R Simpson: Symphony No 2
Wellesz: Symphony No 5

I seemed to have missed out both the Brian 11th and Mennin 6th under their respective years of 1954 & 1953, so include them here.

William Alwyn’s 3rd Symphony is a striking and powerful work, its 3 movements lasting a little over 30 minutes. The 1st movement is dominated by a near tempestuous energy which only relents in the coda (though the movement ends loudly). The 2nd movement is weary and resigned portraying some bleak landscape. The final movement has much of the pugnacious energy of the 1st, before it broadens to an expansive coda that seems to be searching for a serene conclusion, without success. The symphony should have ended like this however Alwyn unwisely adds a couple of loud bars as conclusion, which for me totally spoils the movement.

Kurt Atterberg’s 9th Symphony is scored for solo mezzo-soprano & baritone, chorus & orchestra. The text comes from the Icelandic Poetic Edda, which deals with mythology, the cosmos and the beginning and end of things. It reflects the composer’s dismay with the tense world of the 1950’s. The symphony is predominately reflective and sombre and plays continually for its 40 minute duration. Some of the writing is very haunting and the expansive coda, which seems to be searching for eternity.

The 3rd Symphony was Edgar Bainton’s last completed work. It was began in 1953, but progress was halted during the 3rd movement by the death of his wife, from which he never recovered. He finally managed to complete the remaining movements in the final year of his life. The first two movement show a symphonist of quality & craftsmanship, but without real individuality. The slow movement pours out the composer’s grief and maintains in impressive intensity. The broadly expansive finale makes and effective conclusion.

Havergal Brian’s 11th Symphony is a three movement work lasting about 25 minutes. The first movement is dominated by a lyrical and refined polyphony it is relaxed and quite beautiful. The central movement is by far the longest, it is somewhat eccentric in its shifting moods and slightly quirky orchestration. The finale is forthright in tone but arguably too short to make an effective conclusion.

Lasting about 30 minutes, Max Butting’s 9th Symphony is a tonal and approachable work. The texture is often quite polyphonic and the composer obviously has a fine command of counterpoint. Ultimately though, there isn’t a lot of interest in this work which is rather anonymous and lacking in distinctive ideas.

Paul Creston’s 5th Symphony is a 3 movement work of about 25 minutes duration. The 1st movement is an unusually tense affair for the composer. The central slow movement is the longest and makes much use of wood wind solos and there is air of slightly resigned melancholy in this very lyrical movement. With the finale we are on familiar Creston territory dominated by an infectious dancing rhythm full of energy. Certainly an attractive work and Creston’s style should present few problems.

Johann Nepomuk David’s 7th Symphony is a rather dry and fairly austere work of about 30 inutes duration. There is a certain sparcity of texture and the often polyphonic textures have a certain acerbity. Like the Butting this work suffers somewhat from a lack of real memorability, though it is a finely crafted work.

Vittorio Giannini’s 2nd Symphony is a 3 movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The outer movements are marked by a nervous propulsive energy which in the finale assumes a more stark and edgy quality. The central movement has a gentle melancholic lyricism that is quite appealing.

Alfred Hill’s 6th Symphony, like his 5th is based on an earlier chamber work. The language is romantic & straightforward. The 1st movement is rather dull, but Celtic elements appear in the middle movements with a gentle lyricism and a folk like flavour in the 3rd movement. The work is quite pleasant but of no great interest.

Janis Ivanov’s 8th Symphony is a four movement work of about 35 minutes duration. The late-romantic and somewhat sombre restlessness of the 1st movement is reminiscent of Miaskovsky. The short scherzo that follows has folk like elements and looks back to the Russian National School. The rather sombre mood returns in the 3rd movement, though there is a lighter and livelier central section. The finale again has a rather restless nature, but looses momentum to end the work in a quiet and inconclusive manner.

Kabalevsky’s 4th Symphony is a four movement work of about 40 minutes duration. The music of the symphony is based on the Kabalevsky’s own opera ‘ The Family of Taras’, about Russian resistance to the Nazi invaders. The symphony is a cyclical work. The 1st movement is quite impressive and powerful with distinctive ideas and a slightly harsher harmonic palette than normal for the composer. The melancholic slow movement is typical Kabalevsky, quite sombre but also moving. The other two movements are of less interest and the optimistic finale is rather tame.

Koppel’s 5th Symphony is a finely crafted work of about 30 minutes duration. The 1st movement has a continual fluid tempo that holds the listener’s attention. The central scherzo makes much of interplay between various ostinati and is very engaging. The finale is continually developing, and begins slowly, eventually reaching a powerful climax before returning to the slow opening. Koppel’s harmonic language is tonal but fluid and this symphony is well worth investigating.

George Lloyd’s 6th Symphony is one of his more appealing scores. The 1st movement has plenty of buoyant swagger and the 2nd movement, though a little sentimental at times, has genuine lyricism. The 3rd movement concludes the symphony successfully, even if it is a touch rhetorical.

The British born Carlo Martelli, became well known as a film composer in the 1960’s. His only symphony was composed when he was just 19 years old and is very impressive for so young a composer. The 1st movement shows the young composer flexing his musical muscles and a dynamic and powerful movement that occasionally brings Robert Simpson to mind. The scherzo that follows provides a lighter contrast. The 3rd movement combines slow movement and finale. The slow section is dogged and determined striving to escape from its rather gloomy depths. The faster section has much of the 1st movement’s energy, building to a sonorous climax. The slow music ultimately triumphs to end the work quietly. It is such a pity that Martelli has never written a successor to a symphony of such promise.

Peter Mennin’s 6th Symphony is among a group of works that marks the transition between the energetic youthful works of the composer and the fairly tough language of his later compositions. The symphony is in 3 movements and lasts about 25 minutes. The 1st movement starts slowly and quietly before the music is propelled forward in typical Mennin style. The central movement is gravely austere but also has a haunting beauty and it stays in the memory. The finale is tripartite, a scherzo like section is followed by a brief slower section, which recalls the previous movement, before a dynamic, harsh and angry quicker section concludes this powerful and gripping symphony.

Vincent Persichetti composed a number of fine works for concert band including his 6th Symphony. It is among his most engaging and entertaining compositions. Expertly composed for the medium, combining both gravity and light hearted humour.

Rautavaara’s 1st Symphony was originally a four movement work. The composer heavily revised the symphony in 1988, combining the 1st and 3rd movement and using the scherzo as the concluding movement. This results in a very lopsided composition with a 1st movement of about 13 minutes duration, followed by the scherzo-finale which is only a little over 3 minutes long. The opening clearly shows the promise of a gifted composer and symphonist, with its expansive atmospheric textures which have a distinctive Nordic touch. The scherzo-finale, is slightly reminiscent of Prokofiev & Shostakovich and has some bite to it. It is a pity that the composer couldn’t be persuaded to release the original score.

Wallingford Riegger’s 4th Symphony is a fairly tough but absorbing score. The symphony is in three movements and lasts about 30 minutes. Riegger’s style is very distinctive, highly chromatic and often atonal. The moderately fast 1st movement has a natural slow and is full of contrasts. The central movement is based on an earlier short dance work for Martha Graham with a Spanish Civil War background are there are some distinct Spanish touches, this movement is the most immediately appealing of the three. The 3rd movement is full of an angular, nervous energy that ultimately propels the symphony to a powerful and dissonant conclusion.

Concluded in the posting below .....

[Suffolkcoastal]

1956 concluded from the above posting .....

George Rochberg’s 2nd Symphony is in one continuous movements, though in four distinct sections and lasts a little over 30 minutes. The symphony is a tough and uncompromising work using teh composer’s own individual take on serialism. The work is often quite violent, aggressive and angry, and there is also a rather dark and bitter humour present. The slow 3rd section is desolate and anguished. The final section reaches a defiant climax before sinking back in to icy desolation. Not an easy listen by any means, but definitely worth the trouble for those who wish to investigate.

Ned Rorem’s 2nd Symphony is in three movements, the 1st is quite long, whilst the other two are quite short, creating a somewhat unbalanced work. The first movement maintains a lyrical flow that is flexibly handled. The short slow movement is really a brief song but the main tune is very beautiful, simple and memorable. The finale is a bright optimistic scherzo, which one wishes was longer. Rorem’s language is lyrical and very approachable.

Shostakovich’s 11th Symphony is familiar to most MBs so needs no introduction. I am always amazed how the first two movements becoming so striking and moving a listening experience as such little material is used in the near 35 minutes of both opening movements, yet the timing and pacing is utterly masterly. The finale looks to be heading for a tub-thumping conclusion in the approved Soviet manner, before being suddenly deflected into a moving cor anglais solo over the opening idea of the Palace Square movement. The deep warning bell then sounds as the music regains momentum but this time in a stark manner ending on the note G alone. A thinly veiled warning to the Soviet regime of the time?

Robert Simpson’s 2nd Symphony is a three movement work of a little under 30 minutes duration. It is scored for a classical orchestra of double woodwind, 2 horns & trumpets, timpani & strings. This work is a fine example of Simpson’s growing command of symphonic form. The 1st movement mixes both light and shade in a free flowing movement, the influence of Nielsen can be felt at times. The central movement is quite fascinating being both a palindrome and in variation form, a strange, austere and eerily beautiful movement. The finale is full of Beethovenian thrust and energy that continually propels this movement forward to its conclusion.

Finally Egon Wellesz’s 5th Symphony. In this work Wellesz largely abandons the generally Germanic late romantic language of his earlier symphonies, adapting some of Schoenberg’s serial methods. The symphony however is not a strict serial work and there are plenty of distinct tonal centres. The 1st movement is robust, striving and unsettled. The short 2nd movement is a rather engaging, slightly humorous intermezzo. The 3rd movement is a rather stark and tough affair, but quite impressive. The finale rounds the work off in rugged, awkward defiance.

As usual any comments about any of these works would be very welcome.

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1957

Adler: Symphony No 2
Arnell: Symphony No 5
Arnold: Symphony No 3
Bolcom: Symphony No 1
Brian: Symphony No 12
G Bush: Symphony No 2 ‘Guildford’
Frankel: Symphony No 1
Gerhard: Symphony No 2 ‘Metamorphoses’ (inc rev 1967)
Koppell: Symphony No 6 ‘Sinfonia Breve’
Krejci: Symphony No 2 in C sharp minor
Lajtha: Symphony No 7 ‘Autumn’ or ‘Revolution Symphony’
Milhaud: Symphony No 8 ‘Rhodanienne’
Ovchinnikov: Symphony No 1
Panufnik: Symphony No 2 ‘Sinfonia Elegiaca’ (revised 1966)
Popov: Symphony No 5 in A major ‘Pastoral’
Rautavaara: Symphony No 2 (revised 1984)
Rubbra: Symphony No 7 in C
Schwarz-Schilling: Sinfonia Diatonica
Sessions: Symphony No 3
Vainberg/Weinberg: Symphony No 4
Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 9 in E minor
Williamson: Symphony no 1 ‘Elevamini’

Samuel Adler’s 2nd Symphony is a 20 minute long work in 3 movements. The musical language is fairly straightforward and approachable. The 1st movement is lively, slightly neo-classical and rather typical of many American symphonic movements of the period stylistically. The central slow movement has a grave refined feeling and is quite moving. The finale makes much play with a simple fanfare idea and makes a satisfactory completion to this approachable work.

Richard Arnell’s 5th Symphony is in 3 movements and lasts about 35 minutes. I find the most immediately appealing of his symphonies. The 1st movement is moderately paced, searching and expressive. The central movement combines slow movement and scherzo alternating slow, fast, slow, fast, slow, the slow sections have a certain melancholy whilst the scherzo sections have a near capricious humour and Arnell pulls off the contrasts fairly successfully. The finale is broadly paced with a warm romantic melody of some memorability. The symphony ends with a lively optimistic coda. This work is an ideal introduction to the composer.

Malcolm Arnold’s 3rd Symphony is a 3 movement work of about 30 minutes duration and is a diverse but fascinating score. In the 1st movement a Sibelian influence can be felt at times and structurally it is slightly unusual in that the 2nd part of the movement develops the ideas at a faster tempo. The central movement is a dark and fairly bleak Passacaglia and anticipates the world of Arnold’s later symphonies. The finale begins with the Haydnesque joke of only partly presenting the main idea at the beginning and is full sly humour in its play with 3 ideas.

The 1st Symphony of the American William Bolcom was written in his early 20’s and shows some talent. In 4 movements lasting around 20 minutes it is fairly eclectic with the influence of Stravinsky and occasionally Ives at times. The 2nd movement which is a kind of processional is the most effective.

Brian’s 12th Symphony is a compact little work lasting only around 12 minutes. The Greek tragedy of Agamemnon was on Brian’s mind at the time and he was shortly to write a one act opera on the subject. The work is gritty and full of incident and seems to last longer than 12 minutes.

Geoffrey Bush’s 2nd Symphony is in one movement but in four very distinct sections. The work opens with a slightly martial chorale followed by a fast section with two main ideas which constitutes the 1st part of the work, the 2nd section is slow and has a certain refined austerity and it merges in to a propulsive scherzo, the finale section is a recapitulation of the 1st section in reverse order. Though not as immediately appealing or memorable as his 1st Symphony, this is still a fine and approachable work and it is a great pity that he only wrote two symphonies.

Benjamin Frankel came to the Symphony fairly late in his composer career being already in his 50’s. His 1st Symphony is an imposing 3 movement work, with a powerful and dramatic 1st movement, followed by an intense driving scherzo and concluding with a dark eerie slow movement. Though there are strong 12 tone elements in the score, Frankel does not completely abandon tonality and creates a striking sound and quite individual sound world in this work.

Gerhard partially revised his 2nd Symphony in 1967 giving it the title ‘Metmorphoses’ but left the revision incomplete and the recording is based on a performing addition of the work including the composer’s revisions. This is a tough work using the composer’s own style of serialism and I do find it quite hard going. As with the 1st Symphony the textures/orchestration that Gerhard creates are really quite fascinating, but personally I don’t find the work has the clarity of the 1st Symphony.

Koppel’s 6th Symphony is aptly named ‘Sinfonia Breve’ as it is a compact work lasting a little over 15 minutes. The work plays continually but is in 5 distinct section consisting of an Introduction and 4 sections that correspond to the 4 normal movements of a symphony. The symphony is engaging and is among Koppel’s most approachable works. The musical language is not particularly difficult.

Isa Krejci was a Czech composer and his 2nd Symphony is somewhat neo-classical in feel but with distinctly Czech touches that occasionally remind one of Martinu. The 2nd Symphony is quite attractive with an instant and driving 1st movement, that possibly drives a little too hard, followed by a short witty scherzo. The slow 3rd movement is chorale like and has a certain nobility. The finale is relatively short and has a cryptic quality with slightly barbed humour.

Laszlo Lajtha’s 7th Symphony got the composer in to a certain amount of trouble with the authorities. It is inspired by the failed 1956 Hungarian Revolution with which the composer strongly sympathized and is privately dedicated to the victims. The symphony is a very fine and moving work. The 1st movement has a barely suppressed tension with bleak textures, the very personal use of a solo saxophone and a lyrical and impassioned idea. The 2nd movement contrasts the stark textures of the 1st with a sweet, wistful pastoral lyricism, again creating great tension. The finale is defiant ending in a final chorale before a series of gruff chords concludes the work. This really is worth investigating, Lajtha is a symphonist of some stature IMO.

Milhaud’s 8th Symphony takes its inspiration from the River Rhone and is a 4 movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The 1st movement is full of continual polyphonic motion opening wit acerbic string harmonics, and the lines often create a sense of bitonality and even briefly polytonality. The 2nd movement is broader and relaxed with typical Milhaud pastoralism. The 3rd movement is energetic and bright and leads to a rather festive finale.

Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov wrote his 1st Symphony in his early 20’s and the work is in one movement lasting about 25 minutes. Even considering the composer’s young age this is a symphony might surprise many listeners and should IMO be programmed over here. The symphony begins and ends slowly and has a more dramatic middle section. The overall atmosphere is rather dark, sombre and subdued. There are some hints of Prokofiev and the composer seems to know Mahler too, but stylistically this is quite individual. The language is tonal as one would expect from Soviet symphonies of the period, but is very rich and sometimes dissonant and the symphony is also very well orchestrated. The conclusion of the work is very beautiful with almost Ravelian harmonies dissolving into a bleakness very remotely reminding me of the end of Shostakovich’s 4th Synphony.

Panufnik’s 2nd Symphony has its origin in his earlier Symphony for Peace of 1952 with that work’s final movement removed. It was also later revised in 1966. The symphony is in three sections, the 1st is aptly elegiac and highly expressive, the 2nd section dramatic with a sense of anger and frustration and the finale section returns to an elegiac world, but this time more weary and resigned. The symphony as it stands is quite moving.

Gavril Popov’s 5th Symphony is in five movements with the first two and last three playing continuously. The symphony is about 40 minutes in duration. The opening ‘Pastoral’ is lyrical but with a certain melancholic feel, the 2nd movement ‘Storm’ follows without a break and is fairly dramatic and it subsides to a quiet coda. The 3rd movement ‘Struggle’ is a dramatic, driving fugue, which merges in to the 4th movement ‘Hopes’, which is chorale like with rich almost Ravelian harmonies. The final movement ‘Pastoral’ returns to the world of the opening movement and uses some of the earlier movement’s material and the symphony ends in a radiant peaceful coda. Though slightly uneven, this is still an appealing and quite attractive symphony.

Rautavaara’s 2nd Symphony is a four movement work of about 20 minutes duration, the 1st and 3rd movement are slow, the 2nd & 4th quick and short. The symphony was revised in 1984 when the composer enlarged the original chamber orchestra scoring. The 1st and 3rd movements are both rather dark, the 1st like some twighlit landscape the 3rd dominated by strange dark murmurings. The 2nd and 4th movements are short with dissonant edgy harmonies and strong rhythmic drive. The musical language here is quite harsh, but in the dense harmonic textures clearly anticipates the later composer.

In a nice link to Panufnik, Rubbra’s 7th Symphony was premiered by the CBSO under Panufnik. It is among Rubbra’s finest symphonies, in three movements and lasts about 35 minutes. The broad 1st movement has a free flowing inevitability, that shows Rubbra at his best. The central movement is lively and dance like and quite extrovert in its rhythmic interplay. The finale is an imposing Passacaglia & Fugue which has a natural forward flow to it and concludes this fine symphony in a most satisfactory manner.

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[Suffolkcoastal]

1957

continued from the above posting.....

Reinhard Schwarz-Schilling is not among the best known of post-war German composers. As the title ‘Sinfonia Diatonica’ indicates, this work is tonal and fairly straightforward in expression. Its 3 movements last about 25 minutes. All three movements are dominated by polyphonic textures. The 1st movement is quite rhythmic and alert, the 2nd has the feeling of a Renaissance motet in the grave austerity of its counterpoint, whilst the 3rd movement is dance like and sparse in texture. No masterpiece but an approachable work.

Roger Sessions 3rd Symphony was among a group of works that ushered in the final 25 years of his composing career, a period in which he became far more prolific. The 3rd Symphony is in four movements and lasts about 30 minutes. The language is that of Sessions mature style, tough and uncompromising with often dense textures. Despite the density and tough language, Sessions always seems to be able to maintain rhythmic fluidity and a certain romantic expressiveness in the melodic lines, which is distinctly his own. This, and the invitability of his writing is what makes the symphony ultimately so absorbing and rewarding.

Vainberg/Weinberg’s 4th Symphony is a 4 movement work of about 30 minutes duration and is a fine and engaging work. The 1st movement is a sonata form ‘Toccata’ which has real energy and determination. The 2nd movement ‘Serenata’ contrasts a limpid, slightly Shostakovichian waltz with fanfare like material. The 3rd movement ‘intermezzo’ is the most impressive movement, it has an arch like structure and the main idea has a distinctly Jewish touch to it. The finale ‘Rondo’ is dancelike and energetic. Apart from the occasional Shostakovich like moment, the composer is stylistically very much his own man and the symphony is well worth investigating.

Vaughan Williams 9th Symphony is of course familiar to many MBs and is among my very favourite symphonies of all. It really is an astonishing work for a composer in his 85th year, showing that he is still expanding his reach both structurally and orchestrally. The finale is a highly original double-movement, RVW never really failed in providing strong and original symphonic finales, the art of a truly great symphonist. There is a sense of nostalgia in this work, not least in the use of a theme (very slightly altered) from his early tone poem ‘The Solent’ of 1906, as well as a grandeur and magical mysticism that seems to reach back in to the distant past. It can also be seen as a tribute to his beloved J S Bach in the grandeur of his counterpoint. A true summing up and outstanding conclusion to a great symphonic cycle, are there many more magical codas to any symphonic cycle than that that concludes this symphony?

Finally Malcolm Williamson’s 1st Symphony. Poor Williamson is now virtually ignored both on R3 and in the concert halls of this country. His 1st Symphony is a reminder of what a fine composer he really could be. Dedicated to the memory of his beloved Grandmother, it is a powerful dramatic and moving work. Williamson uses serialism but with strong tonal pulls and the influence of Messaien can occasionally be heard. The 1st movement is dark, powerful and dramatic, the 2nd fairly short but rhythmic, the 3rd with its shifting temping is dark and quite despairing and has the feeling of a slightly macabre dance. This symphony certainly is a fine work for a composer only in his mid 20’s.

As usual any comments on any works will be most welcome.

[Suffolkcoastal]

Just to add my symphonic top tips from 1957

Arnold
Frankel
Lajtha
Ovchinnikov
Rubbra
Sessions
Vainberg
Vaughan Williams
Williamson

with possibly also the Arnell & Panufnik

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1958

Arnold: Sinfonietta No 2
Blackwood: Symphony No 1
Cowell: Symphony No 13 ‘Madras’
Eklund: Symphony No 1 ‘Sinfonia Seria’
Giannini: Symphony No 4
Haieff: Symphony No 2
K A Hartmann: Symphony No 7
A Hill: Symphony No 10 in C major ‘Short Symphony’
Hindemith: Pittsburgh Symphony
Hovhaness: Symphony No 4
D Jones: Symphony No 5
Lees: Symphony No 2
Le Flem: Symphony No 2
Raichev: Symphony No 2 ‘The New Prometheus’
Rorem: Symphony No 3
Searle: Symphony No 2
Sessions: Symphony No 4
Shchedrin: Symphony No 1 in E flat minor
Tansman: Symphony No 9
Tippett: Symphony No 2
Vermeulen: Symphony No 6 ‘Les minutes heureuses’
R E Ward: Symphony No 4

Arnold’s Sinfonietta No 2, is a nicely balanced 3 movement work lasting about 15 minutes, capturing the essence of Arnold’s style in miniature. A gently gracious 1st movement, followed by a darker and more serious central movement and a light hearted finale.

The American Easley Blackwood’s 1st Symphony is a 4 movement work of about 30 minutes duration. The 1st movement is chromatic and fairly angular with a rather tense expression. The 2nd movement is slow and rather subdued. The 3rd movement is marked Allegretto Grotesco and it is a kind of rather ugly and grotesque dance with barbed humour. The finale is slow with more sparse textures and ends in a rather desolate manner that slightly recalls the end of Vaughan Williams 6th Symphony. Blackwood’s language is chromatic and rather harsh at times though with a tonal pull.

Henry Cowell’s 13th Symphony is scored for a small orchestra with extra percussion and draws on his love of Indian and Eastern music to create an effective but slight score that largely avoids mere pastiche.

Hans Eklund’s 1st Symphony is a serious 20 minute long work. Eklund is barely known outside of his native Sweden, but he is clearly a composer of some note. His 1st Symphony is a dark gritty work, often quite dissonant and proceeds with the inevitability of a fine craftsman. The climaxes have real power and intensity and there is an underlying sense of anguish and foreboding throughout this work.

Vittorio Giannini’s 4th Symphony is scored for concert band and is one of a number of inventive symphonies for the medium from this period. The symphony is an attractive 4 movement work of about 22 minutes duration and is nicely scored for the medium. Giannini is a lyrical and inventive composer and this work is quite enjoyable.

The 2nd Symphony of the Russian born US composer Alexander Haeiff is a neo classical 3 movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The material often has an angular athletic feel to it with a Stravinskyian bite to the harmony. The textures are often quite sparse allowing the material gto be heard to the best advantage, though overall this is not the most memorable of symphonies.

Hartmann’s 7th Symphony was the first Hartmann symphony not to draw on any earlier works for any of the material. The symphony is in two parts, the 2nd of which consists of two connected movements and the symphony is of about 30 minutes duration. The 1st part an Introduction and Ricercare is an unsettling movement contrasting textures and sonorities and eventually drives to a powerful propulsive conclusion. The 2nd part opens with a stark despairing movement full of shifting chromatic harmonies that seems to offer little hope. The finale follows without a break and is a dramatic hard driven movement of nagging persistence. Hartmann’s language is quite challenging at times but this a powerful work that needs to be heard.

Like nearly all his symphonies, Alfred Hill’s 10th Symphony is based on an earlier chamber work, in this case a String Quartet of 20 years earlier. The symphony is in 3 movements and lasts about 20 minutes. Like his previous symphonies on which I have commented, this symphony is firmly rooted in the late 19th century even in its orchestration and seems to come from a totally different and long gone musical world.

Hindemith’s Pittsburgh Symphony was the last of his six symphonies. It is a slightly uneven but still attractive work. The 1st movement is full of typical Hindemith pugnacious energy with plenty of contrapuntal action, though the movement’s progress is interrupted by a strange meditative episode. The central movement is in 3 parts, the first a slow march which begins with a long 28 bar melody for solo oboe, the central section is lively and based on a Pennsylvania Dutch tune, the finale section combines both elements at a slow tempo. The finale opens with suitably industrial energy, again there is a central meditative episode with string harmonics, the momentum is restored and the brass thunder out the popular tune ‘Pittsburgh is a great old town’ in an almost Ivesian manner to conclude the work.

Alan Hovhaness 4th Symphony is scored for wind instruments, percussion and harp and is in three movements lasting about 20 minutes. It contrasts solemn chorale like ideas with more exotic Eastern textures in typical Hovhaness fashion. The orchestration is effective, but the work is very slight.

Daniel Jones 5th Symphony is a four movement work of about 40 minutes duration. The symphony is on a large scale and is quite imposing. The 1st movement comes off best for me with its restless often highly expressive mood that is well maintained. The scherzo that follows has a certain sly humour. The 3rd movement is very austere in expression and rather dry and not among Jones’s most memorable movements. The finale is muscular and rugged making an emphatic conclusion to this uneven but still powerful score.

Benjamin Lees 2nd Symphony followed a withdrawn 1st effort in the medium. The 2nd symphony is a very inventive work in 3 movements lasting about 25 minutes. The 1st movements uses a ground bass though it is not a strict Passacaglia. The movement is arch shaped with slow opening and closing sections surrounding a livelier developmental section. The 2nd movement is an inventive and engaging scherzo with plenty of rhythmic and thematic interplay. The finale alternates between slow and quicker sections in a very fluid and impressive manner. Lees language is basically tonal and this is a thoughtful and approachable work.

The French composer Paul Le Flem (1881-1984) lived a very long life. His 2nd Symphony is a three movement work of about 25 minutes duration. The music is tonal and approachable, though the tonality is quite free. The symphony is nicely crafted and inventive without being particularly distinctive or really memorable.

The 2nd Symphony of the Bulgarian composer Alexander Raichev lasts about 20 minutes. It is an energetic and workmanlike symphony. It is very much under the influence of Soviet composers of the period. The symphony has a certain panache, though it doesn’t come across as a work of particular depth.
Ned Rorem’s 3rd Symphony is a lyrical, tonal and engaging work. It is in 5 movements and of about 25 minutes duration. The 1st movement is a nicely balanced Passacaglia which is followed by a fun, rhythmic dance. Two slow movements follow the first short and intense, the second very beautiful and tinged with a sense of regret. The finale is mainly high spirited and optimistic. Rorem has no great statements to make in the work, it is simply a work to enjoy and bring pleasure and that it does admirably.

Humphrey Searle’s 2nd Symphony is a powerful and dramatic 3 movement work of about 30 minutes duration. It was dedicated to the memory of his 1st wife who died shortly after the work was sketched. The symphony is serial though the row used has strong tonal implications. The 1st movement opens broadly then picks up a driving nervous energy. The central movement is dark and brooding with a slightly wistful feel. The finale has plenty of hard driven energy that is successfully maintained. Not an easy listen, but this is a striking work that should be heard.

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[Suffolkcoastal]

1958

continued from the above posting.....

Sessions 4th Symphony is in three movements entitled Burlesque, Elegy & Pastorale and lasts about 25 minutes. Stylistically the work follows on directly from the 3rd Symphony being atonal with freely developing textures. The 1st movement has element of humour that sometimes occurs in Sessions music despite the thorny textures. The Elegy brings more expressive lines to the fore. The final movements builds to a surprising climax before fading away.

Composed in his 26th year Rodion Shchedrin’s 1st Symphony is a 30 minute long work and is quite an impressive piece from a young composer. The influence of Shostakovich can be felt at times, but there is much that also quite distinctive and individual. The long 1st movement is quite broad and expansive with expressive ideas if a little long for its material. The central movement is a Toccata with propulsive energy that surrounds a more melancholic trio. The finale is a theme & variations and is lyrical and very expressive at times with some memorability. The symphony ends quietly with the timps alone.

Alexander Tansman’s 9th Symphony is a four movement work of around 20 minutes duration. The first movement is typical Tansman with its slightly jazzy Stravinskyian idiom but with more chromaticism than usual. The 2nd movement is a grave and rather lovely movement in an almost Baroque manner. The scherzo that follows is full of rhythmic play, whilst the finale is an imposing double fugue that builds to a dense and tonally free climax before ending firmly in G. An attractive work well worth investigating.

Michael Tippett’s 2nd symphony is among my favourite Tippett works. The symphony has an arresting opening with those pounding C and the almost frenetic string line. The 1st movement maintains an irresistible forward pulse and rhythmic interest through both main subjects . The slow 2nd movement seems to occupy a haunting nocturnal world with shades of The Midsummer Marriage. The 3rd movement with its irresistible dancing rhythms leads to a finale that seems to neatly some up what has gone before, and ends by bringing back an augmented version of the symphony’s opening. The symphony really is unlike any other British symphony of the time and if you’ve never heard this symphony then you certainly should.

Vermeulen’s 6th Symphony plays continuously for 25 minutes and is a typically individual and striking work from this absurdly neglected composer. Like many of his earlier symphonies, the language is quite challenging at times. The symphony impressively maintains an absorbing inevitability and encompasses a wide range of moods from tense, dark and almost aggressive, to impassioned, to haunting and subdued. This is all aided by the composer’s often dense and very rich harmony, that helps to create a highly individual sound world.

Finally Robert E Ward’s 4th Symphony, a three movement work of 25 minutes duration. This is a typically lyrical and approachable work from this composer, with attractive ideas that stays within its limited means. The central movement is particularly lyrically appealing.

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1959

Alwyn: Symphony No 4
Brian: Symphony No 13
Diamond: Symphony No 7
Dutilleux: Symphony No 2 ‘Le Double’
Eshpai: Symphony No 1
Finney: Symphony No 2
Giannini: Symphony No 4
I Hamilton: Sinfonia for Two Orchestras
Hovhaness: Symphony No 6 ‘Celestial Gate’
Hovhaness: Symphony No 7 ‘Nanga Parvut’
Jolivet: Symphony No 2
Lajtha: Symphony No 8
Milhaud: Symphony No 9
Persichetti: Symphony No 7 ‘Liturgical’
Rawsthorne: Symphony No 2 ‘A Pastoral Symphony’
Skulte: Symphony No 2 ‘Ave Sol’
A Tcherepnin: Symphony No 4 in E major

William Alwyn’s 4th Symphony is a three movement work of about 35 minutes duration. The 1st movement comes off best and has a searching quality that holds the listener’s attention. The central movement is schezo like in that lively section surround a more wistful central section. This movement has a distinctly Russian feel to it which in places is briefly reminiscent of Petrushka. The finale is predominately broadly paced, but for me lacks real inevitability and tends to lose focus in places.

Brian’s 13th Symphony is a one movement work of about 18 minutes duration. It is a dogged and at times almost despairing work. The opening is a typical gritty Brian slow march, with a note of anguish. The symphony tries several times to lift its way out of its despairing note, but ultimately fails ending in uncertainty. A greater contrast is perhaps needed in this work, though the writing is often effective in Brian’s unique way.

David Diamond’s 7th Symphony is a rather short work that plays continuously for about 16 minutes. Like his 6th symphony the language is much tougher and more chromatic than in his earlier symphonies and lacks the prevailing lyricism of these works. Diamond’s notable contrapuntal skills are still evident but the textures are notably more gritty and sparse. The symphony does come off reasonably well though, but it is not easy to appreciate on initial hearings.

Henri Dutilleux’s 2nd Symphony is scored for two orchestras, one a small group of instruments the other the full symphony orchestra. The symphony is in three movements and lasts about 30 minutes. The 1st movement is very skilfully orchestrated and makes much of the contrast between the orchestras. The central movement is more sparse but with clear and often luminous textures. The finale makes much of contrasts in tempi, texture and rhythm ending in a coda of quite exceptional beauty. Dutilleux maintains and enriches the highly individual style of his 1st Symphony here, take what he can from various developments in 20th century music, but making them distinctly his own. Thoroughly recommended.

The 1st Symphony of Andrei Eshpai is in two movements and lasts around 17 minutes. The 1st movement has typical Russian melancholy as well as plenty of atmosphere and a distinctive lyric voice. The 2nd movement is lively and brighter but more conventionally Soviet in tone, but with a more wistful central section. As it stands however, one feels that another movement is needed to make the work more satisfactory.

Ross Lee Finney’s 2nd Symphony is a four movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The language is fairly chromatic and typical of time. The 1st movement is aptly marked ‘Tempestuoso’ and is very restless and uncompromising. The central movement is grave and rather sparse. The scherzo has a nagging insistence that starts off in a rather humourous manner but becomes more irritated and angry. The finale is more emphatic and makes a fairly successful finale to a symphony that takes a while to adjust to.

Giannini’s 4th Symphony is a three movement work of about 23 minutes duration. It is an attractive neo-romantic work that shares a world with composers such as Barber & Hanson. The symphony is quite compact and nicely constructed with lyrical ideas and attractive orchestration. It is a shame that such a pleasant work has to wait 50 years between its first and second performances.

Iain Hamilton’s Sinfonia for Two Orchestras basically splits the orchestra in to two halves. It is in eleven short sections that have an overall arch shape and lasts about 15 minutes. The language is tough using strict pitch serialism which results in a Webern like feel to the work, but without the latter composer’s extreme clarity.

Alan Hovhaness 6th Symphony is in one continuous movement of about 20 minutes duration. It is a simple and relaxing work typical of the composer in its chorale like textures and use of modal harmony with Eastern harmonic touches and sudden swirling string passages. Nothing special but quite uplifting if one is in the right mood.

Hovhaness's 7th Symphony is scored for wind instruments, harp & percussion and takes its name from a mountain in the Kashmir. The symphony is very ritualistic with a strong Eastern atmosphere, accentuated by the rhythmic drumming patterns in the first two movements and slightly raucous wind writing. The last movement portraying a sunset is luminous in its scoring. The symphony lasts about 15 minutes.

Jolivet’s 2nd Symphony is a rather uncompromising work in three movements of about 30 minutes duration. The language is highly chromatic and the orchestration makes ample use of percussion to create and often rather ‘dry’ sound. The 1st movement has a fussy, nagging energy and rather dense textures. The central movement has the feeling of a rather tense nocturnal. The finale is energetic and dramatic with some powerful outbursts. Not an easy work to grasp, but it does have a certain inevitability that just manages to hold one’s attention.

Laszlo Lajtha’s 8th Symphony is a large scale four movement work of about 40 minutes duration. This is a very striking work full of brooding anger and dark humour. The 1st movement is a strange affair full of barbed sarcastic humour. The 2nd movement is slow with a sense of weariness and isolation. The 3rd movement switches emotion repeatedly in a fast flowing and fluid atmosphere. This is then taken to an extreme in the finale with an emotional state that winds itself up to a state of near frustration and anger approaching a complete breakdown. Certainly the composer had been deeply affected when writing this work. Lajtha’s language is very distinctive and this work really highlights his individuality.

Milhaud’s 9th Symphony is in three movements and lasts about 20 minutes and is a somewhat uneven work. The outer movements are bright and lively, the first with typical tangy bitonal counterpoint and a general lighthearted feel, the 3rd is more robust and emphatic. In between there comes a rather dark and very sombre slow movement which accounts for about half the work’s length. This gloomy and tense movement seems to occupy a totally different world from the other two movements.

Persichetti’s 7th Symphony takes its title ‘Liturgical’ from the composer’s use of material from his own ‘First Volume of Hymns & Responses for the Church Year’. The work plays continuously and lasts about 25 minutes, but can be divided into five sections that alternate slow and fast. The influence of Harris and occasionally Schuman can be felt in the harmony and scoring, the distinctive non-functional diatonic harmony favoured by Harris is in evidence. But Persichetti still has a voice of some distinction and in the lively sections, considerable contrapuntal skill. Overall the work comes off quite well and is very approachable.

Alan Rawsthorne’s 3rd Symphony is in four movements and lasts a little over 20 minutes. This is an attractive and rather haunting work. The first movement emerges tentatively from a distinctive chord that is typical of the composer and gradually becomes more animated before returning back in to the world of the opening. The 2nd movement is slow and inhabits a haunting nocturnal summer world. The 3rd movement is a short and rather humourous ‘Country Dance’ full of high spirits. The finale sets a 16th Century poem by the Earl of Surrey in praise of summer for soprano in a mood of hazy, gentle sadness. The symphony closes by withdrawing in to its opening chord.

The Latvian composer Adolfis Skulte’s 2nd Symphony is scored for solo soprano & tenor, chorus & orchestra and is a very large work in three movements lasting around 70 minutes, with all three movements of over 20 minutes duration. The language is late/neo-romantic with a touch of impressionism. A number of composers come to mind at times from Ravel and Puccini, to Delius and Hanson. The symphony though struggles to justify its length. The central movement does contain some rather lovely lyrical writing which lifts the work out of the commonplace. The finale though is rather meandering and doesn’t totally avoid banality.

Finally Alexander Tcherepnin’s 4th Symphony. This is a three movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The first movement has a certain freshness and lyricism that is quite attractive and uses sonata form. The central movement is a waltz and has a touch of quirky humour. The finale is slow and rather sombre with a weary and slightly resigned tread and also a somewhat more pungent edge to the harmony.

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1960

Arnold: Symphony No 4
Badings: Symphony No 9
Brian: Symphony No 14
Brian: Symphony No 15
Brian: Symphony No 16
A Bush: Symphony No 3 ‘Byron’
Cowell: Symphony No 14
I Dan: Symphony No 3
Diamond: Symphony No 8
Finney: Symphony No 3
Fricker: Symphony No 3
Gerhard: Symphony No 3 ‘Collages’
Gutche: Symphony No 4
Hovhaness: Symphony No 14 ‘Ararat’
Ivanovs: Symphony No 9
Kokkonen: Symphony No 1
Milhaud: Symphony No 10
Milhaud: Symphony No 11 ‘Romantique’
Piston: Symphony No 7
Rautavaara: Symphony No 3
Schuman: Symphony No 7
Searle: Symphony No 3
Tansman: Symphonie de Chambre
Vainberg/Weinberg: Sinfonietta No 2 in A minor
Walton: Symphony No 2

Arnold’s 4th Symphony is a work that seems to have aroused some controversy, but is also one of his most fascinating creations. The 1st movement contrasts a gentle lyrical idea in the Lydian mode, and episode dominated by the brass and exotic (West Indian & South American) percussion which always has a menacing quality, and a melody of a distinctly commercial manner. The contrast between these ideas helps to create a movement of great tension, especially as the ‘commercial’ melody seems totally in ignorance of the developments around it. The scherzo is among Arnold’s most original creations, wispy and imaginatively scored. The 3rd movement is wistful and rather melancholic and seems to periodically enter a dreamlike state. The finale is more high spirited until a bizarre crazy march throws the whole movement ‘off the rails’ and only finally regains some composure in the final bars.

Henk Badings 9th Symphony is scored for string orchestra and is in 3 movements and of about 18minutes duration. The writing for strings is imaginative and occasionally Bartok like, ranging with from diatonicism to clusters. The work has a certain austerity, but is well worth exploring.

Havergal completed three symphonies in 1960. The 14th is in one continuous movement and lasts about 23 minutes. The symphony begins in a mood of tense murmuring and takes several attempts before the mood brightens. Once this is finally established a dance like mood takes over, before a typical Brian jagged march prepares for the work’s conclusion though the symphony has difficulty in deciding whether to end in the major or minor, finally opting for the former.

Brian’s 15th Symphony is among the composer’s more ‘brighter’ works and is in 3 sections lasting about 22 minutes. The symphony opens with a resilient neo-Handelian idea that occurs in various guises throughout the work. The central section is more restrained and the final section generally full of high spirits concluding the work in a mood of optimism.

Brian’s 16th Symphony is also in one movement lasting about 17 minutes and could be regarded as being multi-sectional. Personally I don’t find it to be the easiest of Brian’s symphonies to come to terms with, its moods and textures change with bewildering swiftness resulting in a lack of focus and inevitability.

Alan Bush’s 3rd Symphony is a large 4 movement work of about 55 minutes duration. The finale is a setting of an ‘Ode on the Death of Lord Byron’ by the Greek poet Dionysus Solomos. Much of the music is slow or moderately paced and the main drawback is the lack of real contrast and distinctive ideas in such a long work. The language is tonal and very approachable and some of the lyrical writing, especially in the finale is genuinely appealing and moving. One wonders whether the finale would have been better off as a separate work.

Henry Cowell’s 14th Symphony lasts about 23 minutes and is a somewhat unsatisfactory piece. It begins with string glissandi and fluttertonguing flutes and momentarily one thinks that Cowell has returned to the experimental manner of his earlier works before reverting to a distinctly tonal world. The 3rd movement comes rather close stylistically to the world of Virgil Thomson and the finale combines a diatonic manner with more exotic touches. Overall however the symphony doesn’t ‘gel’ and is rather disparate.

The 3rd Symphony of the Japanese composer Ikura Dan is composed in a traditional western manner and is a two movement work of about 25 minutes duration. The 1st movement is generally slow, with an underlying tension and uncertainty and is scored with great clarity. The 2nd movement is more propulsive with a distinct urban feel to it. The scoring has a Gallic clarity and overall the harmony occasionally has a Ravelian quality. The symphony is approachable and worth a listen.

David Diamond’s 8th Symphony was written in honour of Copland’s 60th birthday. It is in two movements and lasts about 30 minutes. The symphony opens with two contrasting ideas that are integral to the work. The first half of the movement is generally slow, the 2nd half lively and athletic. The 2nd movement is a theme and variations and the symphony concludes with an energetic and brash double fugue. Diamond’s language in this work is not as harsh as in the 6th & 7th symphony but is still chromatic adding a bite to the long lines and polyphonic textures. Occasionally Diamond’s textures become too dense, but overall this is very well written Symphony by a fine symphonist.

The 3rd Symphony of Ross Lee Finney is a short three movement work of a little under 20 minutes duration. This is a tough and cryptic work, though ultimately a rewarding one. This is one work in which the developments of his teacher Sessions can be felt, especially in the free flowing chromatic lines. An underlying tonality can still be felt not least in the work’s rather melancholic and moving coda. The writing in the other movements is crisp and precise and there is a certain inevitability which makes this a work of more than passing interest.

Peter Racine Fricker’s 3rd Symphony is an imposing and powerful work in 4 movements and about 32 minutes duration. The symphony imposes itself from the outset in dramatic fashion and unfolds with the inevitability of a natural symphonist in a tense atmosphere. The 2nd movement is slow and rather sad but with a sense of contained frustration and isolation and makes an effective contrast to the 1st movement. The scherzo is full of driving and exhilarating energy and takes the listener on a roller coaster of a ride. The finale contrasts a broad expansiveness and quicker aggressive outbursts and finally concludes in a quiet but uneasy coda. This is a very fine work that should certainly be heard more often.

Roberto Gerhard’s 3rd Symphony is scored for orchestra and tape and plays continually for about 20 minutes. Gerhard’s music is very demanding using his own derivative of serialism to create a distinctly imaginative score. Gerhard’s Spanish heritage can occasionally be glimpsed in the textures. Though some may disagree I’m afraid I feel that the sounds on the tape fail to enhance the work and even intrude. The symphony is a work of eerie beauty and doesn’t need this extra dimension.

Gene Gutche (1907-2000) was a German born composer who emigrated to the US in 1925. His 4th Symphony is a one movement work of about 15 minutes duration. The language is fairly approachable but rather acerbic at times. There is an element of humour in a mock waltz section, but overall the Symphony is rather anonymous.

Alan Hovhaness 14th Symphony is scored for wind instruments and percussion and is a short 3 movement work lasting under 15 minutes. Hovhaness uses both modes and ragas in this work, which is often quite sparse and the harmony is also quite acerbic at times with discords and clusters alongside simple modal writing. The overall effect is of an exotic, occasionally raucous and rather invigorating little work.

Janis Ivanov’s 9th Symphony is 4 movement work of a little over 30 minutes duration. The 1st movement begins mysteriously, before a sudden tempo change launches a rather striving and restless movement. The scherzo is 2nd and is nervously energetic, the 3rd movement is expansive creating a sense of isolation in a vast landscape and is very effective. The finale is emphatic for most of its course before loosing momentum and surprisingly fading away. The language is tonal and approachable but the harmony has a bit more bite than is normal for this mainly romantic composer.

The 1st Symphony of Joonas Kokkonen is a four movement work of around 22 minutes duration. It is an impressive symphonic debut. The 1st movement is broadly paced with a searching expansiveness that unfolds naturally. The 2nd movement an Allegretto is rather sly with a nagging little figure that one feels is about to get up to no good, this leads to a dramatic Allegro with propulsive momentum which is pitched against arching string lines. The Allegro leads without a break in to the slow finale which begins with sonorous string writing and seems to be heading for a sonorous conclusion but subsides in quiet disconsolation. Thoroughly recommendable.


Continued in the posting below.....

[Suffolkcoastal]

1960 continued from the above posting.....

Milhaud completed two symphonies in 1960, the 10th is a four movement work of about 25 minutes duration. The 1st movement is typical Milhaud with its slightly acidic polyphonic lines creating a relaxed atmosphere. The slow movement has a gentle austerity and textures that occasionally recall the gentler side of Ives. The scherzo begins with interesting rhythmic interplay between a rhythmic idea on piccolo and bassoons and an athletic string line, creating a rather playful movement. The finale has the flowing lines of the 1st movement but displayed with more confidence and emphasis creating a sturdy finale.

With the 11th Symphony Milhaud returns to a 3 movement structure of about 20 minutes duration. This is a rather typical Milhaud work, the outer movements being dominated by Milhaud’s familiar acerbic polyphony. The central movement accounts for half the work’s duration and is a rather withdrawn, reticent movement of a meditative character and quite appealing.

Walter Piston’s 7th Symphony, along with his 2nd Violin Concert, mark the transition to the more austere works of Piston’s final years. The symphony is in three movements and is a little over 20 minutes in duration. The 1st movement is the only swift moving opening movement among Piston’s symphonies and momentum is maintained by the 3/4 time and upward movement of the main ideas. The central slow movement opens on gently rocking strings before a gently sad melody appears on solo oboe. The movement gradually builds in texture to reach a brief rather dissonant climax, the solo Cor Anglais takes the oboe them in a haunting brief duet with the oboe before a solo flute closes this moving movement. The finale is a typical buoyant Piston finale with a rather a curious central episode for Cor Anglais and unturned percussion. This symphony one that year’s Pulitzer Prize for music and is a fine example of Piston’s still underappreciated art.

Rautavaara’s 3rd Symphony is a four movement work of about 32 minutes duration. The symphony can be regarded as a personal reaction to the symphonies of Bruckner. The opening is indeed very Brucknerian and distinct Bruckner like motifs appear throughout the symphony. The overall soundworld however is distinctly Rautavaara’s own. The 1st movement is wonderfully expansive with spine tingling changes of harmony that totally absorb the listener. It might surprise some listeners to realise that the work uses elements of serialism, but this it is absorbed in the overall strong tonal pull inherent in the main ideas. Occasionally one also hears something of the expansiveness of American composers such as Harris (Rautavaara was a pupil of Copland) and the symphony holds the listeners attention throughout.

Schuman composed his 7th Symphony after a 12 year gap in symphonic composition. The 7th plays continuously but is in four distinct movements and lasts a little under 30 minutes. Schuman uses serial elements in the symphony but they are fully integrated into Schuman’s highly individual style. The dogged 1st movement is dominated by a dragging dotted rhythm which despite the bass clarinet’s best efforts, pins the music down, the movement ends in frustrated duet between clarinet and bass clarinet, before the short fanfare like 2nd movement erupts in frustration. The 3rd movement is intense and scored for strings alone. The finale counters the earlier gloom in a mood of defiant masculine optimism. The material from the 3rd and 4th movements are taken from his slightly earlier Moods for solo piano.

The 3rd Symphony of Humphrey Searle is a three movement work of about 17 minutes duration. A trip to Greece and Italy seems to have provided the inspiration, with ancient battles and Venetian gondolas in the mix. The first two movements are dominated by terse chromatic writing, powerful crunching discords and a sense of aggression and anger. The central movement is quite astonishing and even frightening, with its conflict between dissonant fanfare like writing and a rather frenetic tarantella. The finale is a nocturne of a certain eerie beauty which just about manages to calm the tensions of the first two movements before a rather hesitant coda.

Tansman’s Sinfonie de Chambre is a three movement work of about 15 minutes duration and is an entertaining little work. The 1st movement is typical of the composer with its jazzy neo-classicism. The central movement ‘elegie’ is rather baroque in its grave manner. The finale is a fugue and concludes with a humourous jazzy coda.

Vainberg/Weinberg’s Sinfonietta No 2 is scored for string orchestra and is about 17 minutes in duration. The 1st movement is full of hard driven, Bartok like energy, which is followed by a gently lyrical allegretto. The 3rd and 4th movements play without a break, the 3rd has a feeling of sad isolation and the finale is gently wistful and melancholic.

Finally Walton’s 2nd Symphony. This is still a rather underestimated work, but a work I find to be thoroughly inventive and imaginative and superbly orchestrated. The swift moving 1st movement is basically in sonata form and is full of typical Waltonian nervous energy, but the harmony has a certain gruff bite to it creating a certain anxiety. The central movement is richly lyrical with the rather Italianate cantilena manner of melody that Walton made distinctly his own, there is also a simmering passion underlying the movement that never allows it to fully relax. The finale, a passacaglia (on a 12 note theme) with 10 variations, fugue and scherzando coda is a movement full of witty invention that successfully concludes this fine work.

[Suffolkcoastal]

More from the journey through my symphonic collection:

1961

Arnold: Symphony No 5
Badings: Symphony No 10
Blackwood: Symphony No 2
Brian: Symphony No 17
Brian: Symphony No 18
Brian: No 19 in E minor
R Bunin: Symphony No 5
Chavez: Symphony No 6
Cowell: Symphony No 15 ‘Thesis’
Eller: Symphony No 3
Gubarenko: Symphony No 1
Hovhaness: Symphony No 11 ‘All men are brothers’(revised 1969 vers)
Jolivet: Symphony for Strings
Kodaly: Symphony in C
Kokkonen: Symphony No 2
Koppel: Symphony No 7
Lilburn: Symphony No 3
Ray Luke: Symphony No 2
Milhaud: Symphony No 12 ‘Rurale’
Shostakovich: Symphony No 12 in D minor ‘The year 1917’
Tischenko: Symphony No 1
Yardumian: Symphony No 1

In his 5th Symphony Arnold continues the striking contrasts of his 4th in another fascinating score. The 1st movement ‘tempestuoso’ is on the surface not as tempestuous as one would have imagined, (the tempest is below the surface in the mind) but the contrasts of ideas and texture never let the music settle, finally jagged dissonances seem to say ‘enough’ and the movement ends quietly. The slow movement is well known for its frankly commercially romantic main idea, Arnold talks about speaking in clichés in this work, and the manner of theme seems to be deliberately such, the movement has a more jagged and tense heart however. The scherzo is wittily entertaining full of irony. The main idea of the finale is a jaunty military style theme on piccolos which is interrupted by aggressive and cryptic ideas that take on Shostakovich at his most ironic. The movement climaxes in Hollywood style with the main idea of the slow movement seeming to triumph but which is suddenly thrown off key and the symphony ends quietly and deflated.

Henk Badings 10th Symphony is a four movement work of about 18 minutes duration. The first movement is strident and emphatic bringing Bartok to mind. The 2nd movement is short and dance like with a slightly Scandinavian (Holmboe) feel to it. The slow movement is particularly fine beginning and ending with a slow limping funeral like march with more impassioned central section with searching string writing. The finale has a touch of the processional about with some slightly oriental touches and makes an effective conclusion to an interesting work.

The 2nd Symphony of the American composer Easley Blackwood lasts about 25 minutes and is a largely sombre and fairly uncompromising work. Lines are often jagged or chromatically twisting and genuine tension is generated as the music fails to escape from the underlying gloom. Some moments, especially the more relaxed ones, show Stravinsky’s influence, otherwise Blackwood is very much is own man.

Another three Brian symphonies date from 1961. The 17th is a very short and in one movement and lasts just a little over 13 minutes. It is an effective work and structually is in the manner of a Fantasia. The familiar jagged marches are present, but also a more romantic, almost Celtic element too. The symphony actually comes off quite well.

With the 18th Brian returns to a 3 movement format, and this symphony is again, short, lasting only a little longer than the 17th. A slightly smaller and more conventional sized orchestra (still with a large percussion section) is used, allowing greater clarity in scoring. The 1st movement is a broadly paced march, the 2nd a slower more funereal one, but with much expression, the finale begins in more lively fashion but ultimately reverts to another march ending the work in optimism.

With the 19th Symphony Brian continues with the 3 movement form and this work lasts about 20 minutes. The familiar Brian is present as well as a more lyrical side. The dotted rhythm finale is a little heavy going, but this is a reasonably successful work.
The 5th Symphony of Revol Bunin, is a four movement work of about 20 minutes duration. The first movement is short and full of aggressive energy and momentum. The 2nd movement is slow and has a limping melancholic quality typical of Soviet symphonies. The 3rd movement is similar to the 1st in its forward drive, before the finale, which hints at a slow simple processional , concludes this approachable but rather anonymous work.

Chavez’s 6th Symphony is his final work in the genre and also his longest. Its 3 imposing movement last a total of around 35 minutes. The 1st movement is dominated by sonorous, expressive string writing and the movement has real breadth and a certain nobility. The central movement is fairly short and is quite sombre and intense, the first half being dominated by polyphonic brass writing. The finale is a long and striking Passacaglia full breadth and inevitability and for me is the finest symphonic movement that Chavez composed. A very impressive and thoughtful work.

Cowell’s 15th Symphony is a 20 minute long work in a slightly unusual form. 5 tiny movements constitute the first section, the 2nd section is a recapitulation with a separate movement forming the third part. There are some more modernist touches bringing memories of the pioneering early Cowell, but for the most part this is a tonal, approachable work, though rather unmemorable.

The 3rd Symphony of the Estonian composer Heino Eller is a somewhat romantic of about 30 minutes duration. The ideas have a certain openness and freshness at times which makes them quite attractive, and the soundworld of his most notable pupil Tubin, can be heard too. Though romantic in tone Eller’s 3rd Symphony is nicely crafted and has some individuality.

The 1st Symphony of the Ukrainian Vitaly Gubarenko was composed when the composer was in his 27th year. It is a pleasant tonal work, fairly straightforward in utterance conforming to standard Soviet symphonic writing of the period, but has some pleasing touches. The symphony is in 4 movements and lasts about 30 minutes in duration. The 1st movement contrasts an assertive idea with a more plaintive one. The 2nd movement is a rather witty little waltz. The 3rd movement has the typical melancholic quality of many Soviet works of the period, but rather lacks memorability. The optimistic finale is of a fairly standard Social-Realist manner, which slows for a more lyrical central section.

Hovhaness’s 11th Symphony was composed in 1961 but reworked in 1969. The symphony is in 3 movements and is of about 30 minutes duration. This is a much more expansive score than a number of his more recent symphonies. The 1st movement is built around one broad rich theme. The central movement is full of dancing energy with the composer’s familiar Eastern touches and also contains a fugue. The finale returns to the expansive world of the 1st movement and also contains a fugue, the symphony ends in mood of rich splendour and optimism and the symphony is among Hovhaness’s most appealing.

Jolivet’s Symphony for Strings is a three movement work of about 22 minutes duration and is a tough little work. The outer movements are full of driving, pugnacious energy with some dense textures and very demanding and athletic string writing, in the more relaxed moments Stravinsky ‘s influence can be heard. The central movement is elegiac and intense and is the most immediately appealing and memorable movement.

The Symphony in C was Kodaly’s final purely orchestral work and is a three movement work of about 25 minutes duration. This is a slight but attractive work with ideas that are characteristic of the composer shot through with a rather youthful exuberance that belies the composer’s 79 years. The language is very approachable and the finale is particularly engaging.

Though composed only a year after his 1st Symphony, Kokkonen’s 2nd Symphony is a tougher more enigmatic work than its predecessor. The symphony is in 4 movements and lasts about 20 minutes. The symphony of a certain barely suppressed anxiety and the whole work is scored with extreme clarity allowing the work to be clearly followed. There is a sense of shifting patterns of light in this symphony that occasionally light up a rather sombre landscape. Overall the work is strangely haunting and has real inevitability.

Though he was to live for a further 37 years, Koppel’s 7th Symphony was to be his last. It is a fine three movement works that lasts about 32 minutes. The broadly expansive first movement is very expressive, almost romantic in feeling and has real sweep and memorability right through to the exceptionally beautiful coda. The 2nd movement is a moderately paced scherzo, which has a certain sarcastic wit and shifting emphasis. The finale begins with a certain trepidation before gaining in confidence almost to the point of brashness before the symphony’s opening returns and the symphony ends peacefully. Koppel’s language is tonally based and his very personal style achieves an even greater degree of refinement making this IMO the finest of his symphonies.

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[Suffolkcoastal]

1961

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The 3rd Symphony of Douglas Lilburn is a compact one movement work of about 15 minutes duration. This is a much tougher preposition than his two earlier atmospheric and romantic symphonies. The symphony is rhythmically and structurally very fluid packing a considerable amount in to its 15 minute span. Despite the tougher more angular language, this is still recognisably the work of the same composer of the earlier romantic scores. The symphony offered the prospect of a further rich development of the manner arrived in this work, very sadly and regrettably Lilburn largely turned to electronic composition after this symphony.

Ray Luke (1928-2010) was an American composer from Texas. His 2nd Symphony is a three movement work of about 17 minutes duration. The 1st movement is energetic with a touch of Piston like neo-classicism at times. The central movement is quite atmospheric, almost cinematic with gently shifting textures. The finale has catchy dance like outer section that surround a more chromatic disturbed centre. This is a slight but quite likeable work.

Milhaud’s 12th Symphony is a short four movement work of a little over 15 minutes duration. The first movement is regulation Milhaud in easy going pastoral mode. The 2nd movement has the character of a rather boisterous rustic dance. The 3rd movement is slow and rather atmospheric with a distinctly open air American feel to it (the 12th like the previous two symphonies had an American commission and Milhaud continued to teach in California for part of the year). The finale is again dance like but rather heavy footed.

By general consent Shostakovich’s 12th Symphony is the weakest of the composer’s symphonic canon. The first movement presents the two ideas that are to dominate the symphony which are rather conventional but do stick in the memory. For the most part the 1st movement successfully maintains a momentum and just about manages to convince. The 2nd movement has plenty of brooding atmosphere but is arguably rather too static. The brief 3rd movement ‘Aurora’ is very cinematic though effective enough. The finale though is very weak and in the coda sinks to mere empty rhetoric and banality. Clearly Shostakovich’s heart was elsewhere when composing this work.

The 1st Symphony of Boris Tischenko is a remarkable work for a composer in his early 20’s. It is in 5 movements and of about 40 minutes duration. The very opening defies Soviet symphonic convention but using a synthesizer to clever effect with the woodwind. The movement also shows a certain independence of thinking by which the main idea is ultimately broken up and the gradually reassembled. The 2nd movement is slow, haunting and intense in expression with a lyricism that is continually undermined. The 3rd movement ‘Presto’ is hard driven with jazzy break for drum kit at its heart. A rather whimsical Allegretto follows before a somewhat more conventional finale closes this fascinating work.

Finally the 1st Symphony of Richard Yardumian. Like Hovhaness, Yardumian was American born of Armenian extraction and there are some similarities between the Yardumian symphony and some of Hovhaness’s works. Though generally Yardumian is rather less ‘exotic’ than Hovhaness. The Biblical story of Noah was the general inspiration behind the symphony. The opening horn call contains most of the work’s subsequent material. The symphony is pleasant enough though unremarkable, though the 2nd of the work’s three movements is lyrical and rather attractive.