The Airborne Symphony
Encyclopedia
The Airborne Symphony is a work by American composer Marc Blitzstein
for narrator, vocal soloists, male chorus, and large orchestra. The symphony uses music that the United States Army Air Forces
, in which Blitzstein served during the World War II
, originally commissioned for use in film.
, England
, working as a composer, scriptwriter, and translator. He was chosen to score a film on the history of aviation through his promotion to corporal in January 1943. Blitzstein also began work on the orchestral poem Freedom Morning that summer for eventual performance in Royal Albert Hall
.
Work on the Airborne score continued into 1944, with Blitzstein providing other services to the U.S. Army. By mid-1944, he had been promoted to sergeant and became music director of the American Broadcasting Service. The original film project did not come to fruition and Blitzstein, who composed his score for a large orchestra and male chorus, did not have the needed manpower for a wartime concert.
Blitzstein returned to the United States in May 1945. His score of The Airborne had been lost en route from England, but he was able to play sections of the work on piano for conductor Leonard Bernstein
. Bernstein enthusiastically arranged its premiere for April 1946 and Blitzstein rewrote the score from memory. The original score was recovered, but Blitzstein preferred the newer version.
The symphony was first performed by the New York City Symphony Orchestra under Bernstein on April 1st, 1946. Renowned filmmaker Orson Welles
served as narrator; Charles Holland was tenor soloist and Walter Scheff was baritone soloist with men from the Robert Shaw Collegiate Chorale
.
. The symphony is divided into three parts, with each part divided into subtitled sections. The Airborne is a highly dramatic work that connects the birth of flight with the role of airplanes in modern warfare:
As expected, the narrator holds a primary role in advancing the symphony's plot. The soloists and chorus provide commentary on the action. The symphony is comparable to works by Dmitri Shostakovich
, American counterpart Samuel Barber
, and the earlier works of Igor Stravinsky
. Blitzstein, who subscribed to the artistic principles of socialist realism
, wrote in a conservative style that was understandable on first hearing.
Leonard Bernstein has been the symphony's best-known disciple, performing and recording the work on two different occasions (1946 and 1966).
Marc Blitzstein
Marcus Samuel Blitzstein, better known as Marc Blitzstein , was an American composer. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical The Cradle Will Rock, directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Works Progress Administration...
for narrator, vocal soloists, male chorus, and large orchestra. The symphony uses music that the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
, in which Blitzstein served during the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, originally commissioned for use in film.
History
Blitzstein began the war as a member of the U.S. Eighth Army Air Force's film division in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, working as a composer, scriptwriter, and translator. He was chosen to score a film on the history of aviation through his promotion to corporal in January 1943. Blitzstein also began work on the orchestral poem Freedom Morning that summer for eventual performance in Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
.
Work on the Airborne score continued into 1944, with Blitzstein providing other services to the U.S. Army. By mid-1944, he had been promoted to sergeant and became music director of the American Broadcasting Service. The original film project did not come to fruition and Blitzstein, who composed his score for a large orchestra and male chorus, did not have the needed manpower for a wartime concert.
Blitzstein returned to the United States in May 1945. His score of The Airborne had been lost en route from England, but he was able to play sections of the work on piano for conductor Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
. Bernstein enthusiastically arranged its premiere for April 1946 and Blitzstein rewrote the score from memory. The original score was recovered, but Blitzstein preferred the newer version.
The symphony was first performed by the New York City Symphony Orchestra under Bernstein on April 1st, 1946. Renowned filmmaker Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
served as narrator; Charles Holland was tenor soloist and Walter Scheff was baritone soloist with men from the Robert Shaw Collegiate Chorale
Robert Shaw (conductor)
Robert Shaw was an American conductor most famous for his work with his namesake Chorale, with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Shaw received 14 Grammy awards, four ASCAP awards for service to contemporary music, the first Guggenheim Fellowship...
.
Structure
The Airborne Symphony, while having symphonic elements, models itself largely after the choral cantataCantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
. The symphony is divided into three parts, with each part divided into subtitled sections. The Airborne is a highly dramatic work that connects the birth of flight with the role of airplanes in modern warfare:
- Part One
- The Theory of Flight
- Ballad of History and Mythology
- Kittyhawk
- The Airborne
- Part Two
- The Enemy
- Threat and Approach
- Ballad of the Cities
- Morning Poem
- Part Three
- Air Force: Ballad of Hurry-Up
- Night Music: Ballad of the Bombardier
- Recitative: Chorus of the Rendezvous
- The Open Sky (Finale)
As expected, the narrator holds a primary role in advancing the symphony's plot. The soloists and chorus provide commentary on the action. The symphony is comparable to works by Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich was a Soviet Russian composer and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century....
, American counterpart Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
, and the earlier works of Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
. Blitzstein, who subscribed to the artistic principles of socialist realism
Socialist realism
Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism...
, wrote in a conservative style that was understandable on first hearing.
Reception
The Airborne Symphony was fairly successful in its premiere, despite expressing wartime concerns that began subsiding after 1945. Since then, the work has been rarely performed, owing to its massive orchestral forces, topicality, and lack of standing with musicologists. The Airborne Symphony has passages of stunning musicality, but is also judged as a work of brazen propaganda with limited performing value in modern times.Leonard Bernstein has been the symphony's best-known disciple, performing and recording the work on two different occasions (1946 and 1966).