Post by erik on Jul 24, 2021 17:25:19 GMT -5
A very tonal symphony from the dissonance of the Depression-era world, France in particular, is in this week's Classical Works Spotlight.
Roussel: SYMPHONY NO. 4 IN A MAJOR, OP. 53
While he was consistently overshadowed by fellow French composers Gabriel Faure, Maurice Ravel, and Claude Debussy, Albert Roussel still was able to occupy a significant place in French classical music during the first third of the 20th century, before passing away in 1937 at the age of 68. Initially being heavily influenced by the “impressionistic” style of Debussy and Ravel, most notably in his ballet score “Bacchus And Ariane”, in later works Roussel almost exclusively dedicated himself to a more neo-Classical style to differentiate himself from his contemporaries. The style was most apparent in his four essays into the symphonic form, all of which were composed over a thirty-year period from 1904 to 1934. His Fourth Symphony illustrates this neo-Classical approach, not only in its brevity (it is only twenty minutes long, even though it is in the standard four-movement symphonic form), although it has larger orchestration than even Brahms had in his symphonies (cymbals, trombones, and tuba are used here). Although Roussel would die in 1937, just three years after the premiere of the Fourth Symphony, it remains among his most popular works, cleverly balancing past and present. In the case of this symphony, that would be the bleak Depression-era of 1930’s Europe, in which the skies were already beginning to darken, but where Roussel offered a glimmer of hope. His popularity would re-emerge in France after World War II, and would find champions among fellow Frenchmen like Charles Munch (in Boston) and Paul Paray (in Detroit) who found success in the United States.
Detroit Symphony Orchestra/NEEME JARVI (Chandos)
Included:
Debussy: LA MER
Roussel: SINFONIETTA
Milhaud: SUITE PROVENCALE
Roussel: SYMPHONY NO. 4 IN A MAJOR, OP. 53
While he was consistently overshadowed by fellow French composers Gabriel Faure, Maurice Ravel, and Claude Debussy, Albert Roussel still was able to occupy a significant place in French classical music during the first third of the 20th century, before passing away in 1937 at the age of 68. Initially being heavily influenced by the “impressionistic” style of Debussy and Ravel, most notably in his ballet score “Bacchus And Ariane”, in later works Roussel almost exclusively dedicated himself to a more neo-Classical style to differentiate himself from his contemporaries. The style was most apparent in his four essays into the symphonic form, all of which were composed over a thirty-year period from 1904 to 1934. His Fourth Symphony illustrates this neo-Classical approach, not only in its brevity (it is only twenty minutes long, even though it is in the standard four-movement symphonic form), although it has larger orchestration than even Brahms had in his symphonies (cymbals, trombones, and tuba are used here). Although Roussel would die in 1937, just three years after the premiere of the Fourth Symphony, it remains among his most popular works, cleverly balancing past and present. In the case of this symphony, that would be the bleak Depression-era of 1930’s Europe, in which the skies were already beginning to darken, but where Roussel offered a glimmer of hope. His popularity would re-emerge in France after World War II, and would find champions among fellow Frenchmen like Charles Munch (in Boston) and Paul Paray (in Detroit) who found success in the United States.
Detroit Symphony Orchestra/NEEME JARVI (Chandos)
Included:
Debussy: LA MER
Roussel: SINFONIETTA
Milhaud: SUITE PROVENCALE