Liszt - Symphonic Poem 'Hamlet'

The symphonic poems of Franz Liszt have garnered their share of interpretation of meaning.  Of course they are all a type of music written with a specific person, place or event in mind, program music. This type of music lends itself more to interpretation of meaning (and downright conjecture) than absolute music.  Liszt's tenth symphonic poem Hamlet seems to have developed two main camps of interpretation of meaning. One takes it as tone painting of the actual events and people in the play, the other is more of a character sketch of Hamlet and his emotions during the action of Shakespeare's play.

As Liszt didn't leave a detailed program, the piece is certainly open to differing ideas as to its specific meaning.  The works original purpose was as an overture to a dramatic production of the play, so there is no doubt musical references to events and people in the drama with a few references in the score as evidence of that.  To paraphrase Liszt's thoughts on program music, he thoughts on it were explained by using the example of how a landscape could produce a mood within the viewer, and that music also could evoke a mood within the listener. As the landscape paints the mood, so can music paint the mood.  So while some composers may have had a specific non-musical meaning behind their music, to me it is enough to know in general terms what the story is without a highly detailed, bar by bar analysis of which notes and phrases represent what specifically.  As Liszt himself said in a letter to a friend:

"Without any reserve I completely subscribe to the rule of which you so kindly want to remind me, that those musical works which are in a general sense following a programme must take effect on imagination and emotion, independent of any programme. In other words: All beautiful music must be first rate and always satisfy the absolute rules of music which are not to be violated or prescribed"

Liszt did make some changes to the original overture and this final version was not heard for decades after his death.  The work begins with the tempo indication Sehr langsam und Düster which loosely translates to Very slowly and gloomily.  A horn makes the first entry with muted notes that sound unearthly.  The orchestra enters after these notes and keeps with the eeriness of the music by playing softly, and the horn once again utters the stopped notes, orchestra responds as before for a few measures and then the time signature changes and the tempo indication changes to Moving, but moving very slowly.  The indication Always gloomily appears occasionally throughout the first part. Tempo changes occur, Allegro appassionato, Allegro agitato, but the gloom never lifts off the orchestra completely. And as a reminder, Liszt repeats the opening tempo indications at the beginning of the ending, very slowly and gloomily with the added instruction Moderato-funebre , the death of Hamlet.

Someone once said that of all the major composers, Liszt was the one that threw his spear farthest into the future. That may be open to discussion, but Liszt did reveal the passions, terrors, loves and hatreds of humans in his music, perhaps to a degree as yet matched by any other composer.  The symphonic poem is a mysterious and gloomy piece. Whether it follows the mood of the play, its specific actions, or if it 'paints' the moods and frames of mind of Hamlet, I leave to the listener.

Saint-Saëns - Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso

Camille Saint-Saëns was a natural musician, one of those who was born to make and create music. As he said himself, "I produce music the way an apple tree produces apples."  He was a child prodigy, memorized all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas and offered the audience to choose one that he would play from memory as an encore at his debut recital in 1845 when he was ten years old.  Such a feat made him world famous, even in the United States.  He composed his first piano piece at 4 years of age, his first public appearance was as an accompanist for a Beethoven violin sonata when he was 5 years old. He wrote his first symphony at sixteen. But his genius was not limited to music. He knew how to read and write by three years old and had a partial command of Latin by the time he was seven.  His many interests throughout his life included geology, archaeology, botany, and the occult. He was an expert mathematician, wrote on a variety of subjects, and wrote a book of poetry.

Raw genius is perhaps not as rare as we think, but raw genius combined with a capacity to work and train that genius to its full potential perhaps is. Saint-Saëns seems to have had both. That he was a quick study is evident, but he developed his gifts to a remarkable degree through effort and diligence. That he was able to do this with what appeared to the ordinary person with not much effort probably caused him to have as many enemies as friends. Jealousy over someone else's precocity isn't that rare of a thing.  Perhaps that is one issue that has fueled some criticisms of his music over the years, that it is too 'slick', shallow, no depth of feeling, cold.  To be sure,  his music does not plumb the depths like a Bruckner symphony, but why would it? Saint-Saëns is not Bruckner, or Beethoven, or anyone else. His music is well written, has its moments of feeling and passion that is more refined, and even subdued. But a point can be made with understatement as well as (and sometimes better) than overstatement.  It pretty much boils down to what the listener likes and 'gets' out of the music.

Saint-Saëns wrote the Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso for Violin and Orchestra  for the virtuoso violinist Pablo de Sarasate in 1863.  The work is fitting for a virtuoso, and Saint-Saëns shows that he was not only a master of orchestration (the craft of using instruments in varying combinations) but also of instrumentation ( the craft of using a particular instruments tone, pitch and dynamic range, technical possibilities, correct notation for the instrument). In this piece as well as his others for violin and orchestra, as well as the first Cello Concerto he shows his complete command and knowledge of what is possible on strings. For someone who did not play the violin, his artistic and practical knowledge of the instrument was amazing.

The rhythm and thematic material of the Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso  shows that Saint-Saëns shared with his fellow french composers a fascination with Spanish music. The work is a lyrical showpiece for the violin, with some pyrotechnics thrown in for good measure, especially near the end when the violin plays the accompaniment to the theme heard in the oboe.  For Saint-Saëns,  virtuosity could be a virtue as much as the music, but it must always contribute to the musical whole.

Roussel - Symphony No. 3

Albert Roussel (1869 - 1937) was a French composer and somewhat of a rarity. His first love in his youth was not music, but mathematics. He joined the French navy, and finally turned to music after he spent seven years in the navy.  When he was 25, he enrolled for instruction in harmony in 1894 after he resigned from the navy and finished his education in Paris where he also taught.  During his time in the navy and also afterwards he traveled to many places which influenced his music, especially India.

Early in his composing career Claude Debussy was an influence, and while some of his early works are somewhat in the style of impressionism, it was not Roussel's true voice as a composer. He  had a highly classical turn to his compositional thought, which led him to more to the neo-classisist school of composition. He composed  4 symphonies and a few other works for orchestra,  one concerto each for cello and piano, many chamber pieces, opera, ballet, and a handful of choral pieces. While his output was not large, he was a very influential composer in France between the world wars.

His orchestral music is not what is thought of as typically 'French', as it can have a 'bite' to it and a lot of rhythmic drive.  His music sounds 'heavier', but not as heavy as some German orchestral music.  The 3rd symphony opens with a first movement theme that is heavily accented and rhythmically terse. The contrast between this theme and the second theme is considerable, as the tune floats over the orchestra in muted colors until the first theme elbows its way back to the forefront. This movement is short for a first movement, at about five minutes, but with the total difference with the two themes and how they 'bounce' against each other, the movement manages to say what it needs to say, albeit in highly concentrated form.

The second movement is more relaxed in mood and length.  At about 15 minutes, it is three times as long as the first movement and longer than the other three movements put together. But it does build to a loud climax and slowly returns to the relaxed mood that it began with.  The third movement is a scherzo-dance that some have thought shows a Spanish influence. The last movement begins quietly, has a calm middle section, then the orchestra builds to a  loud, crashing end.

Beethoven - Symphony No. 7

With his usual Romantic hyperbole, Richard Wagner called Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 the "apotheosis of the dance".  As Wagner's universe-sized ego seldom allowed him to praise a fellow composer, this remark may appear suspect. But Wagner did admire Beethoven's symphonies, even if he did resort to re-orchestrating them in places when he conducted them.  What Wagner is referring to is the emphasis put on rhythm in this symphony, and dancing is all about rhythm.

The rhythm of a piece of music is an integral part of it, but seldom is rhythm emphasized the same way as in this symphony.  But that's not the only unique aspect of this symphony.  Symphony No. 7 was completed in 1812 and premiered in 1813 at a benefit concert for wounded soldiers of the Battle Of Hanau. Beethoven conducted it himself and the work was a resounding success, especially the second movement Allegretto which had to be immediately replayed before the symphony could continue.

The work begins with a long introduction, and the movement proper begins after an ingenious transition where the orchestra passes the pitch of  E natural back and forth in different octaves and note lengths. The dance element is felt immediately when the first theme is heard in the flutes and oboes in a dotted rhythm:

This rhythm shows up throughout the movement in different guises and pitches. In the coda of the movement, Beethoven writes a gradual crescendo as this 2-bar motive appears in the violas, cellos and double basses:

This motive is played eleven times as the rest of the orchestra takes turns chattering snippets of melody over it until the crescendo is finally reached with the restatement of the dotted rhythm.  This is one of the most unique transitions in symphonic history, and some at the time did not understand it. Carl Maria von Weber, a composer that was Beethoven's contemporary, was one who did not understand it at all as he thought that it proved Beethoven was ripe for the mad house.

The second movement was originally marked Andante, but a printing error changed the tempo marking to Allegretto. Beethoven himself asked for a correction back to Andante but to no avail. The movement is not to be taken too fast, and it surely isn't 'light' in character as allegretto intimates. After a sustained chord in the woodwinds and horns, the violas, cellos and double basses begin one of Beethoven's most recognizable melodies:

 The theme is recognizable as much as for the rhythm as the pitches of the notes. This movement is one of Beethoven's most popular compositions. The tune and the rhythm wend their way through the short movement and are heard at various pitches and with interesting counter-melodies playing in the background.

The third movement is a scherzo that scampers and stomps its way until it turns into a calm trio for winds and horns playing over a gentle string accompaniment, until the horns blat out an invitation for the strings to loudly play the theme. The horns do this again, the strings loudly play the tune again, and then all fades into the orchestral scampering again.  But then Beethoven throws the listener another curve; he repeats the trio (not unique really, for he did it before in other compositions) and the scampering theme returns again.  But just when the trio begins for the third time, Beethoven cuts it short with a change of key and an abrupt ending.

The rhythmic vitality doesn't let up in the finale, as the orchestra dances away in sonata form, and once in awhile the dancing resembles peasant stomping at a village festival. A movement full of energy, it ends in a blaze of rhythmic good humor.

Alkan - Le festin d'Ésope (Aesop's Feast)

Charles Alkan's set of etudes in all the minor keys is a work of staggering proportions. The first etude is a flurry of 16th note triplets and is named 'Like The Wind. Etudes four, five, six and seven are arranged as a four-movement symphony for piano solo, and if that isn't enough, etudes eight, nine and ten are arranged as a three-movement concerto for solo piano where the first movement is 72 pages long and takes 30 minutes to perform.

The last etude in the group is a set of 25 variations on an original 8-bar theme. The title of the piece implies that the variations could represent various fables of Aesop and depict the animals in the fables. There is no program or clue outside of the title of the piece however. It is up to the imagination of the listener to provide a 'picture' of the proceedings.

This set of variations acts as a culmination to what has gone before with the other eleven etudes. As the previous etudes have been far from simple piano pieces, this final one is really complex for the pianist. But Alkan's imagination has created a most engaging set of variations that will provide the imagination of the careful listener a tour de force of pianistic music making at its highest level.

The emotional, passionate and at times witty aspects of Alkan's music need to be stressed. It is not just music that can be difficult to play (although some of it most assuredly is) but it is the passion and intensity behind it that makes it so attractive. This is the case as well with his piano music that is not as difficult. His larger, more challenging works usually get the most attention, but he wrote a great many smaller, shorter pieces for piano and was a talented miniaturist as well.      

Glazunov - Symphony No. 1

Alexander Glazunov has been called the Russian Brahms, which may or may not be a good comparison to either composer. He was one of the most remarkable child prodigies Russia ever produced. He was the son of a wealthy publisher and began piano lessons at age nine,  and began composing at age eleven.  Mily Balakirev recognized Glazunov's talent and brought him to the attention of Rimsky-Korsakov when he showed him a orchestral composition written by the young musician. Rimsky-Korsakov taught Glazunov as a private pupil beginning in 1879 and within two years Glazunov had progressed so rapidly (not day by day but by the hour) that Rimsky-Korsakov considered him a mature musician and a younger colleague.

The Symphony No. 1 was written when Glazunov was sixteen and premiered the following year in 1882. The first symphony is known as the Slavonic Symphony because of Gazunov's use of folk song like themes throughout it. The audience applauded the piece enthusiastically and when the composer went on stage to take a bow wearing his school uniform people could not believe the piece was written by one so young. In fact there were rumors started that the symphony had been written by professional composers hired by Glazunov's parents and been passed off as his own. But Rimsky-Korsakov refuted the rumors.  Glazunov and his symphony went to Europe and it was played for Liszt.  Tchaikovsky heard about the premiere and later purchased a copy of Glazunov's first string quartet and declared that the composers talent was undeniable.

Glazunov went on to become a virtuoso of the orchestra and a master of counterpoint.  He had one of the greatest musical memories ever known. He could hear a piece one time and play it perfectly, even years later. although Glazunov developed alcoholism later in life and couldn't teach without a bottle of alcohol in his desk, his phenomenal memory remained unimpaired. He went on to compose eight complete symphonies and part of a ninth. He gradually became more conservative and taught for many years at the St. Petersburg Conservatory.  He left soviet Russia in the 1920's and settled in Paris.

Dmitri Shostakovich was a student of Glazunov and relates many things that tell much about his character. He used his influence to help the conservatory as much as he could in the lean years after the Russian Revolution. He even refused a luxury apartment offered to him by the government in exchange for extra fire wood for the Conservatory so the students could be warm and learn better.

Glazunov's music suffered from neglect in the past, but is being played more in recent years. What was once considered old-fashioned can now be appreciated for its orchestral mastery and creativity.

Moscheles - Piano Concerto No. 7 ' Pathétique '

Ignaz Moscheles (1794 - 1870) was a Bohemian composer and pianist. He was born in Prague and showed a remarkable musical aptitude early on. Upon the death of his father he moved to Vienna in 1808 where he completed his studies and became a well-known pianist around town. He developed a long-lasting relationship with his idol Beethoven and was given the task of creating a piano reduction of Beethoven's opera Fidelio.  Moscheles remained lifetime friends with Beethoven and championed his music. He became friends (and rivals) with the other piano virtuosos in Vienna at the time. Moscheles also acted as an intermediary for the Royal Philharmonic Society and Beethoven. He got the society to send Beethoven some much-needed funds and to commission a symphony for them, but Beethoven died before he finished the commission.

He embarked on a European concert tour and especially enjoyed his stay in London in 1822.  He accepted an invitation from Abraham Mendelssohn Bartholdy in Berlin to give his two children, Felix and Fanny, music lessons. He was quite taken with the children, especially Felix and was instrumental in getting Felix his first exposure in London in 1829.  He said of Felix shortly after he began to teach him:

"This afternoon... I gave Felix Mendelssohn his first lesson, without losing sight for a moment of the fact that I was sitting next to a master, not a pupil."

He remained friends with Mendelssohn and taught at the Leipzig Conservatory Mendelssohn had founded. After Mendelssohn's death in 1847 he took over as leader of the Conservatory.  While Moscheles was not close to Wagner because of Wagner's attack on Mendelssohn in a pamphlet titled "Jewry in Music", (Moscheles was also Jewish) he was on friendly terms with Liszt and Berlioz, even though he had little understanding of their compositions. His own later compositions were looked upon as old-fashioned in their time, as was his method of piano playing. He was of the old school that used primarily finger work and very little body or arm weight to play, and he disliked the increased use of the pedals.

He composed 142 opus numbers, and had written pieces in most forms that were popular in  the early 19th century. He wrote eight piano concertos, with the seventh being subtitled 'Pathétique'.  It was premiered in 1835 in Leipzig. The first movement opens with an ominous bass. The piano and orchestra play off each other and key changes create a blurred kind of sonata form in which we're not sure what section we're in sometimes. The second movement is a combination scherzo-slow movement which leads to the final movement which is thematically related to the second.

Moscheles shows a mastery of orchestration and solo piano writing in this concerto that can once again be appreciated without being called old-fashioned. It is a product of its times to be sure, but there is no longer the  great divide in music as there was in the middle and late 19th century, where composers, critics and listeners were often part of a traditional conservative camp or a modern progressive camp. We can enjoy Moscheles' music for what it is; well-constructed, interesting and beautiful.

Moscheles - Piano Concerto No. 7 ' Pathétique '