Johannes Brahms: Symphony No.3 Context Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 3 was composed in the summer of 1883 in Wiesbaden, which was about 6-7 years after he had completed his Symphony No. 2. It was premiered on December 2nd, 1883 by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, directed by Hans Richter. At the time of the premiere, Read more…
Alan Hovhaness: Symphony No.2 Context Also known by its original title Mysterious Mountains, Alan Hovhaness’ Second Symphony remains his most-recorded work to date. The three-movement work was composed in 1955 and was premiered by Leopold Stokowski and the Houston Symphony Orchestra in the same year. The original title does not Read more…
Arthur Bliss: A Colour Symphony Context Although thoroughly represented on records from the 20th Century, Arthur Bliss’ works are seldom performed outside of the United Kingdom in the 21st Century. As a composer who took influence from composers such as Elgar, Stravinksy, Ravel, and Vaughan Williams, Bliss’ compositional style is quintessentially Read more…
Nikolai Myakovsky: Symphony No.10 Context The aptly named “Father of the Soviet Symphony”, Nikolai Myakovsky, composed 27 symphonies in total. The tenth, composed between 1926-27, Myakovsky was inspired by Alexander Pushkin’s poem The Bronze Horseman. The story tells of a man whose fiancé is drowned by the 1824 River Neva Read more…
Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2 Context Composed between 1906-1907, and premiered in 1908, the symphony was the Russian composer’s second attempt at writing for a full orchestra. Although now Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony is popular in concert halls, it was rather surprising that it was even composed. With how poorly the Read more…
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No.2 Context In 1901, Jean Sibelius left his home country and travelled to Italy and stayed in a mountain villa near Rapallo. Baron Axel Carpelan raised funds for Sibelius to take this trip, and it was in this villa that he started work on his Second Symphony. Read more…
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 87 Context Haydn composed his set of six ‘Paris’ symphonies between 1785 and 1786. A product of a prestigious foreign commission from the Comte d’Ogny (a French Nobleman), this set of symphonies are influential due to their rich musical language and obvious shift in Haydn’s compositional style. Read more…
Alberto Nepomuceno: Symphony in G minor Context Although not particularly known outside of his native country of Brazil, the music of Alberto Nepomuceno has recently been recorded and shown to the world. The son of a violinist and music educator, Nepomuceno was born in the Brazilian city of Fortaleza in Read more…
John Adams: Harmonielehre Context John Adams’ epic symphonic work Harmonielehre was composed in 1985. The title derives from the German for ‘Study of Harmony’, which is also a reference to Arnold Schoenberg’s 1911 theory book of the same name. Adam has commented that Harmonielehre was inspired by a dream that Read more…
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.1 Context Ludwig van Beethoven grew up hearing and learning about the symphonies of his predecessors such as Mozart and Haydn. When he was a boy, Mozart was penning his famous Salzburg symphonies, and when he was a teenager, Mozart was writing his perennial late symphonies. Read more…