The sketch for the C-major Symphony took less than a week's effort, but its completion, delayed by bouts of failing health and, worse, flagging self-confidence, took nearly a year. Above an endlessly self-reinventing and re-developing melody in the strings, we hear a simple and declamatory theme. CATALOGUE NO: 82876 57743 2. We feel as if weve joined music already in progress, with the trumpet motive (which enters alone on beat one) and the strings floating past each other as independent strands of sound. Felix Mendelssohn, Schumann's closest musical collaborator and conductor of the premiere of the 2nd Symphony. Wolfgang Sawallisch/Staatskapelle Dresden: one of the classics of the Gramophone, from Sawallisch's complete survey, which did more to put Schumann centre-stage in the repertoire than other recording. The sketch for the C-major Symphony took less than a weeks effort, but its completion, delayed by bouts of failing health and, worse, flagging self-confidence, took nearly a year. The motive is made up of notes that spell the name of B-A-C-H in the German notation (B-flat-A-C-B). Christian Thielemann/Staatskapelle Dresden: The Schumann Symphonies album art work. As the conductor Kenneth Woods says, there's a combination here of a Bachian choral prelude and a possible quotation from Haydn (that simple fanfare is a version of the music Haydn uses at the start of his last symphony, number 104; but if it's a conscious reference, Schumann replaces Haydn's assurance with shadows, ambiguities, and doubts). Calvin Dotsey. After the shortest of silences, the oboe introduces a new theme, breathtaking in its tenderness and simplicity. The third movement (Adagio espressivo) begins with what sounds like the most heart-wrenching and Schumann-esque of melodies. I find in the fourth movement a quite clear citation of Esurientes implevit bones, et divites dimisit inanes from Bachs Magnificat. This tune is yet another allusion, to Beethoven's song-cycle An die ferne Geliebte, music that originally set the words "Take them then, these songs". But it's the finale that's the most original shape. 4. 32 E. Washington St The race to the end is exuberant and its vivacity is completely characteristic of Schumann at the peak of his happinessboth in his artistry and his marriage. This one and the Dvorak 8th capture the mystery and spirituality of the music. "Clearly it is not the text, For this occasion, Schumann made substantial changes in the orchestration, including what turned out to be a magnificent inspi- ration: the addition of the trombones of the present edition. 1 in B major, Op. [3] Hence, this symphony can be seen as a direct product of his shift of compositional strategy and counterpoint study. Context. Review: Schumann - Symphonies Nos. Music, in fact, was not nearly so highly prized in Dresden as literature and the visual arts. Yet what you hear at the start of the symphony seems superficially serene: a quiet, long-breathed fanfare in the brass, an endlessly meandering string line, like a far-off vision of prayer at some mist-shrouded gothic cathedral. Listening Guide for the Second Movement. 1 in B-flat major, Opus 38, Spring", "Symphony No. 67 0 obj <>stream Along the way we find reference to one more song by Schumann himself Widmung (Dedication), presented to Clara on their wedding day. As bad luck would have it, their quarters there afforded a view of a nearby . 10/30/2012. The year of 1845 was important for Schumann because it signaled a shift in his compositional strategy. The strategic shift above can be ascribed to his intensive study of counterpoint in the same year with his wife, Clara Schumann. David Zinman/Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich: a recording that marries the lessons of the period instrument movement with the lyricism and warmth of the Tonhalle's native sound a winner. The Finale (Allegro molto vivace) was the movement in which Schumann said that for the first time since his illness started he began to feel like myself again. After the introversion and fragility of the slow movement, it is hard to imagine a stronger contrast. This should serve as a reminder to manually save your drafts if you wish to keep them. Intensely relieved after the First Symphony's triumphant premiere in 1876, Brahms set off the following summer for the lakeside resort of Prtschach in the Austrian Alps where, almost His book, Walls of Circumstance, examined the work of eleven little known . A long pedal point in the bass brings a return to the strong first theme and recapitulation. Daverio, John, and Eric Sams. Program Notes by Dr. William E. Runyan, 2022. 38, "Spring", John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, "Robert Schuman: Symphony No.1 in B flat major, Op. The opening concert of the season is this weekend - Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm at the Forum - with the Harrisburg Symphony and Stuart Malina opening the program with Richard Strauss' Don Juan and ending with Schumann's "Rhenish" Symphony. 61, although it was the third symphony he had completed, counting the B-flat major symphony published as No. This site uses cookies to offer you the best possible experience. On his doctor's advice, Schumann and his wife moved to Dresden, which was a quieter, more conservative city, and Robert recorded, "with a more benign climate," presumably referring to its less humid weather. After all, the symphony is an obvious and effective alternative to some pieces performed all too frequently. He already had significant symphonic experience: there was the miraculously sunny B flat major work he had written in just four days, the "Spring" Symphony; a D minor piece trying out an experimental structure that elided each movement into the next, a piece that would later become known as his 4th symphony; and there was another ambitious symphonic hybrid in his Overture, Scherzo, and Finale. His musical influence continues today and has inspired many other . He was a student of Anastasia Jempelis, one of the earliest champions of the Suzuki method in the United States. . Above an endlessly self-reinventing and re-developing melody in the strings, we hear a simple and declamatory theme. 1 Fifield, Christopher (The German Symphony between Beethoven and Brahms: The Fall and Rise of a Genre (Burlington: Ashgate, 2015), 267-8)Google Scholar notes the 'relative paucity' of symphonic composition in the 1850s. He found that listening to music caused him acute physical pain: I really have not been able to listen to music for quite some time, it cuts into my nerves as with knives. Although Schumann suffered from anxiety and melancholy during his illness, he sensed that his symptoms were physical in origin, and modern research has now confirmed that his condition during those months was very likely brought on by the syphilitic infection that would eventually kill him. The Symphony in C major by German composer Robert Schumann was published in 1847 as his Symphony No. Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 30 0 obj <> endobj It was actually Schumanns fourth work in the genre, preceded by the Spring, the first version of the D minor Symphony, later to become his Fourth, and his Sinfonietta, (the Overture, Scherzo and Finale.) If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on, Hello All, This is just a friendly reminder to read the Forum Charter where you wish to post before posting in it. SCHUMANN AND THE DRESDEN REVOLUTION I A story will serve as the point of entry into our subject. The master of cipher and quotation is, of course, JS Bach, and, as it turns out, Schumanns second 2 is one of the most Bach-ian symphonies ever written. In 1846, this symphony was premiered by Schumann's close friend Mendelssohn. Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress. When it first appears in the strings, it sings of calm serenity in the middle of the joyous sound and fury you've heard so far. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Learn how your comment data is processed. A sudden outburst from the violins provides the statement of the jagged, rugged first theme. Scherzo. Ive seen the Rattle- what a band! Harlem Renaissance master William Grant Still's colorful Second Symphony combines African spiritual themes with Western classical musicthe composer's way of showing hope for an integrated American society. . 4 in C minor. He also taught the instrument, rapidly . 87, "Rhenish" Return to Concert Page . Mendelssohn led the premiere at the LeipzigGewandhaus onNovember 5, 1846. Moreover, the many hours Schumann had spent in silence working on contrapuntal studies had forever changed his working methods. Interestingly, we also hear foreshadowings of the yet-to-be-written Brahms symphonies. The movement is constructed from three basic building blocks. As we move into the expositions first theme, notice the obsessive repetition of the double-dotted rhythmic motive. On his doctors advice, they moved to Dresden, quieter, more conservative in its artistic tastes and, Robert recorded, with a more benign climate, presumably refer- ring to its less humid weather. Press J to jump to the feed. Aided by the sumptuously rich playing of the Staatskapelle's strings, and its implacable brass, these are . Although Schumann would continue to note a variety of physical complaints throughout 1845, the completion of the Piano Concerto marked his return to full strength as a composer. 2. The delay in putting it in place was due to a bug/update issue. (I didn't read this one -- just posted the first I found). 61, although it was the third symphony he had completed, counting the B-flat major symphony published as No. His genius for thematic development and formal structure is nowhere more evident than in his second symphony. performances here in the immediate region, if my count is correct. Music, in fact, was not nearly so highly prized in Dresden as literature and the visual arts. Gramophone Collection: Schumann's Second Symphony Richard Whitehouse Wednesday, November 20, 2019 Nine decades of recordings reflect changing attitudes to Schumann's Second, finds Richard Whitehouse. In its joyful final moments, the Second Symphony achieves a remarkable and visceral sense of motion and majestic grandeur. Schumann's symphony is a gift of a new kind of symphonic song for the mid 19th century. This marvellous collection comprises Schumann's complete songs, presented for the first time in their chronological sequence of composition, with complete song texts, and a chronology of Schumann's life and songs by . Don't miss Schumann's Symphony No. The Symphony No. If others are having problems with the comment form please let me know! 1. The symphony is written in the traditional four-movement form, and as often in the nineteenth century the Scherzo precedes the Adagio. The second trio contains a fascinating musical cryptogram. The second trio begins with a beautifully crafted four-part chorale, the theme of which is then made the subject of a brief contrapuntal episode. Environmental Issues, Home Automation & Internet of All Rights Reserved. He commemorated the solemn splendor of the place in the fourth movement of the "Rhenish" Symphony. 60 for organ. WORKS: Symphony No. He mumbled something about it being worse than the Dresden premiere of Schumann's Second Symphony." . Subreddit for people who love the sitcom Frasier. 398", "Symphony No. Robert Schumann wrote these words to his friend, Felix Mendelssohn, in September, 1845. This view has been challenged, and the call of a Leipzig nightwatchman has been mentioned as an alternative source.[6]. 2, Op. Hi all, The AutoSave Draft feature is now disabled across the site. 2, "Resurrection." The Road to New York. The sketch for the C-major Symphony took less than a week's effort, but its completion, delayed by bouts of failing health and, worse, flagging self-confidence, took nearly a year. It was the first major orchestral work of its style to require three timpani. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where he earned the degrees Bachelor of Music and Master of Music, studying with world renowned Ukrainian-American violinist Oleh Krysa. A moment later, fugal counterpoint brings us back to the world of Bach. 4 was originally written nine years earlier in 1841, in the first flush of happiness after Schumann's marriage to Clara a marriage which had been opposed by Clara's father, to . 4 in D minor, Op. The four movement work is highly integrated with all movements sharing the key of C major, and also sharing motifs and themes. Marin Alsop, meet Robert Schumann. In this original study, Christopher Alan Reynolds examines the influence of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on two major nineteenth-century composers, Richard Wagner and Robert Schumann. The uplifting tone of the symphony is thus remarkable considering Schumann's health problems during the time of its compositionthe work can be seen as a Beethovenian triumph over fate/pessimism, as Beethoven himself described in the Heiligenstadt Testament. Steadily, the music moves forward to a confident mood. Sir John Eliot Gardiner is no stranger to the mid-19th century romantic symphony. Interaction, Climate Change, Sustainability & That probably puts us in the ballpark else I'm EXTREMELY wrong-but that's my best deduction. 1 and recommended the 2004 recording by the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, with David Zinman conducting, as the best available choice.[11]. But you havent heard the Sawallisch recording with the Dresdeners? PERFORMER: Zrich Tonhalle Orchestra/David Zinman. 21 . Clara Schumann, ne Wieck, was the daughter of Mariane [Marianne] and Friedrich Wieck. World Premiere: June 21, 1868, in Munich NJSO Premiere: . Dresden. His symphonies are considered masterpieces amongst German romantic symphonic works. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Middle School & High School Student Groups. For a case in point, look no further than Franz Schubert\'s Symphony No. Get tickets and more information at houstonsymphony.org. Schumanns demons had no geo- graphical locus. Eventually those trumpets and drums formed a striking motto, which pervades the entire work. Gradually, more voices join this new song and the musical temperature rises. 120 that Schumann worked on late in 1851 was actually a revision of the work he composed a decade earlier as his Second Symphony. Both trios are lovingly shaped, and the string playing in the coda (played at a whiplash . 2, Hans Gl- Symphony no. This concert season, there were four (!) For this occasion, Schumann made substantial changes in the orchestration, including what turned out to be a magnificent inspi- ration: the addition of the trombones of the present edition. Required fields are marked *. The remarkably cooperative (and appreciative) Mendelssohn agreed to a second performance two weeks later. All the more remarkable is that we can see that the B-A-C-H theme is almost identical to the main theme of the first movement, especially when it is transposed up a fourth later in the trio (Eb,D, F, E natural here, E, D, F, D in the first movement surely no accident, given Schumanns love of developing new themes by changing one note at a time). Many of his best-known piano pieces were written for his wife, the pianist Clara Schumann. Haitink's and Solti's join this one by Sinopoli in the second tier. Beethovens great hymn of thanksgiving was the Heiliger Dankesang from the op. Enter your email address to subscribe to The Listeners' Club and receive notifications of new posts by email. "With the Paramount+ Frasier reboot, you're getting the actor you know and love in his most famous role, but you're not getting much else," revealed an insider. I eagerly await every post. If you were writing a symphony in the 1830s or 1840s, you were faced with a pretty mighty challenge. Enter Frasier's dad and brother Niles into Frasier's apartment. The drums and trumpets referred to earlier serve as the motto-fanfare (in C) that opens the Symphony and reappears near the end of it, the composers grandest orchestral conception: a score begun in confidence with a heroic opening move- ment (Schumann, unaccountably, called it moody and refractory) and the whiplash scherzo, followed by the yearning, ecstatic adagio to more than a few ears the quint- essential Romantic slow movement and a triumphant finale, in which I am myself again, Schumann wrote, referring to the fact that he had suffered another nervous seizure and a period of creative inertia after completing the Adagio. Everything exhausts me. In another letter he continued, any sort of disturbance of the simple order of my life throws me off balance and into a nervous irritable state.Wherever there is fun and enjoyment I must keep out of the way. The trumpets and drumswhich played in Schumanns mind are set free. The third movement (Adagio espressivo) is filled with long, sensuously expansive phrases, strange harmonic turns, and haunting mystery. Schumann especially expanded the use of timpani in the symphony, using the unusual tuning of B, G, and F in the first movement, and D, A, and F in the third, at the suggestion of Schumann's cousin-in-law, Ernst Pfundt. With Mendelssohn's encour- agement, the task was finally completed and Mendelssohn led the premiere with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra on Novem- ber 5, 1846. 4. I TRIED TO POST BUT GOT A REPEATING ERROR MESSAGE. I believe so. Two decades elapsed before His high-school reunion is coming up and he's unemployed, unmarried and without a date. I should like the very first trumpet entrance to sound as if it came from on high, like a summons to awakening. US PREMIERE: March 26, 1859. Around this time, Schumann embarked on an extensive study of Bachs counterpoint and completed hisSix Fugues on Bach, Op. The score specifies a pause of at least five minutes after the first movement. With spirited,feisty energy, the winds state the main theme in the wrong key before being pulled forcefully into the correct key by the full orchestra. During a visit with Clara to Leipzig some months after the move, Robert wrote to Hiller, The life and people do cheer us up considerably. He didn't just reinvent his own compositional language, he created an alternative way of thinking about the symphony and produced one of the richest, most compelling pieces he would ever write. Symphony no. Even in its original form, the D-minor Symphony . Indianapolis, IN 46204, Mail: We know now that the musical voices playing in Schumanns mind were the first echoes of theSymphony No. (O, turn, O turn and change your course/In the valley, Spring blooms forth!"). Schumann said that he had started to feel better by the time he wrote the finale, but the whole of the second symphony bears witness to an astonishing creative vigour and strength that Schumann found at one of the most difficult times of his life. Notable artists and events will include the Orchestra of St. Luke's and pianist Lang Lang playing Saint-Sans' Piano Concerto No. This motive contains vague echoes of the sunny opening of Mendelssohns Italian Symphony. 4).It is dedicated to Oscar I, king of Sweden and Norway. By continuing to visit this site you are agreeing to the use of cookies. During a visit with Clara to Leipzig some months after the move, Robert wrote to Hiller, The life and people do cheer us up considerably. Just when we think were reaching a decisive cadence, listen to the way the music reaches higher, soaring passionately before falling back into the shadows. His comment then to Felix Mendelssohn, drums and trumpets have been sound- ing in my mind for some time now, might strike us as a wry reflection on his dis- turbed mental condition, replete with aural fantasies, of the year preceding. Nowhere is a hint of his forthcoming tragic days. He spent most of the next year orchestrating, beginning February 12, 1846. :). He had started to feel the first effects of the syphilitic infection that would eventually kill him; he wrote that his illness hearing problems, depression, dizziness, rheumatism is inscribed in the fabric of the piece. 1841 had been the year of Schumann's symphonic breakthrough, but he saw fit to revise much of the orchestral music from that year. [5] According to Clara's diary, the title "Spring Symphony" was bestowed upon it due to Adolf Bttger's poem Frhlingsgedicht. It is a brilliant, inventive movement with two very different trios; one spry and witty, and the other soulful and rarified. Work composed: 1799-1800 Most recent Oregon Symphony performance: September 29, 2014; Carlos Kalmar, conductor The drums and trumpets referred to earlier serve as the motto-fanfare (in C) that opens the Symphony and reappears near the end of it, the composers grandest orchestral conception: a score begun in confidence with a heroic opening move- ment (Schumann, unaccountably, called it moody and refractory) and the whiplash scherzo, followed by the yearning, ecstatic adagio to more than a few ears the quint- essential Romantic slow movement and a triumphant finale, in which I am myself again, Schumann wrote, referring to the fact that he had suffered another nervous seizure and a period of creative inertia after completing the Adagio. The Thomaskirche in Leipzig, the city where Mendelssohn conducted the premiere of Schumann's First Symphony in 1841 Before writing his symphonies, Schumann had focused on piano music, composing detailed, emotionally-charged portraits in miniature which he grouped into sets, such as Kinderszenen , Papillons and Carnaval . [7] Schumann made some revisions until the definitive full-score of the symphony was published in 1853.

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