Symphony no. 1 (Henze)
Encyclopedia
Hans Werner Henze
's Symphony No. 1 was premiered in Darmstadt
in 1947. The premiere was hit by Henze’s accustomed bad luck. The orchestral parts, handwritten by the composer himself, had become illegible during photocopying in Schott’s offices and despite the young composer
’s best efforts to ink in the parts throughout the night, only the slow movement
was performed. The whole symphony
was eventually premiered a year later, although Henze himself conducted
the work only after comprehensive revision.
The revision of the First Symphony was part of Henze’s first great purge on his early work during 1963. The revised sheet music
contains a number of rhythm
ic, harmonic
and melodic
cells
from the original version, and the slow movement is largely unaltered. Otherwise everything is, in the composer’s own words, ‘different and better.’ A fourth, theme and variation movement has completely disappeared, and the work was re-scored for chamber orchestra. Further revision followed in 1991.
The first movement is in a contorted sonata form
, in which the few melodic and rhythmic cells upon which the work
is built gradually swell up to an unnerving climax high in the orchestra
’s range, followed by a brief recapitulation
. The only music to survive Henze’s revision, the second movement reveals the heavy influence of Hindemith on the composer, especially given the lyrical viola
solo
. The final movement develops the same material, now with an aggressive rhythm, the texture building to a true climax before fading around eerily repeating harp
harmonics.
In 2005, a fourth version of the work was prepared, as Kammerkonzert 05, an eightieth birthday commission from the Bavarian State Opera
. This version had its world premiere at Munich on July 6, 2006 and now has titles for the three movements:
Henze himself recorded the work (in the 1963 revision) for Deutsche Grammophon
as part of a survey of his five early symphonies. These were subsequently released on CD along with a later recording of his Sixth Symphony
.
Hans Werner Henze
Hans Werner Henze is a German composer of prodigious output best known for "his consistent cultivation of music for the theatre throughout his life"...
's Symphony No. 1 was premiered in Darmstadt
Darmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
in 1947. The premiere was hit by Henze’s accustomed bad luck. The orchestral parts, handwritten by the composer himself, had become illegible during photocopying in Schott’s offices and despite the young composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
’s best efforts to ink in the parts throughout the night, only the slow movement
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
was performed. The whole symphony
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
was eventually premiered a year later, although Henze himself conducted
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
the work only after comprehensive revision.
The revision of the First Symphony was part of Henze’s first great purge on his early work during 1963. The revised sheet music
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
contains a number of rhythm
Rhythm
Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
ic, harmonic
Harmony
In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
and melodic
Melody
A melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity...
cells
Cell (music)
The 1957 Encyclopédie Larousse defines a cell in music as a "small rhythmic and melodic design that can be isolated, or can make up one part of a thematic context." The cell may be distinguished from the figure or motif:...
from the original version, and the slow movement is largely unaltered. Otherwise everything is, in the composer’s own words, ‘different and better.’ A fourth, theme and variation movement has completely disappeared, and the work was re-scored for chamber orchestra. Further revision followed in 1991.
The first movement is in a contorted sonata form
Sonata form
Sonata form is a large-scale musical structure used widely since the middle of the 18th century . While it is typically used in the first movement of multi-movement pieces, it is sometimes used in subsequent movements as well—particularly the final movement...
, in which the few melodic and rhythmic cells upon which the work
Work of art
A work of art, artwork, art piece, or art object is an aesthetic item or artistic creation.The term "a work of art" can apply to:*an example of fine art, such as a painting or sculpture*a fine work of architecture or landscape design...
is built gradually swell up to an unnerving climax high in the orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
’s range, followed by a brief recapitulation
Recapitulation
Recapitulation may refer to:* Recapitulation , a section of musical sonata form where the exposition is repeated in an altered form and the development is concluded...
. The only music to survive Henze’s revision, the second movement reveals the heavy influence of Hindemith on the composer, especially given the lyrical viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
. The final movement develops the same material, now with an aggressive rhythm, the texture building to a true climax before fading around eerily repeating harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
harmonics.
In 2005, a fourth version of the work was prepared, as Kammerkonzert 05, an eightieth birthday commission from the Bavarian State Opera
Bavarian State Opera
The Bavarian State Opera is an opera company based in Munich, Germany.Its orchestra is the Bavarian State Orchestra.- History:The opera company which was founded under Princess Henriette Adelaide of Savoy has been in existence since 1653...
. This version had its world premiere at Munich on July 6, 2006 and now has titles for the three movements:
- Allegretto con grazia
- NotturnoNocturneA nocturne is usually a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night...
- Allegro con moto.
Henze himself recorded the work (in the 1963 revision) for Deutsche Grammophon
Deutsche Grammophon
Deutsche Grammophon is a German classical record label which was the foundation of the future corporation to be known as PolyGram. It is now part of Universal Music Group since its acquisition and absorption of PolyGram in 1999, and it is also UMG's oldest active label...
as part of a survey of his five early symphonies. These were subsequently released on CD along with a later recording of his Sixth Symphony
Symphony No. 6 (Henze)
Symphony No. 6 for two chamber orchestras by Hans Werner Henze was written in 1969.It was written whilst the composer was living in Cuba and marks a departure in the composer's symphonic output: whilst the previous five symphonies were more straightforwardly lyrical, the Sixth Symphony has a more...
.