Pieces inspired by months and seasons

[karlhenning]

Not sure what you mean Karl, but we are discussing whether this piece was or was not inspired by the season of Spring.

Only that, not knowing any better, I had fallen into the habit of imagining that Copland's piece was related to a season.  I am pleased to learn better.

[hildegard]

From Wikipedia:

Originally, Copland did not have a title for the work, referring to it simply as Ballet for Martha. Shortly before the premiere, Graham suggested Appalachian Spring, a phrase from a Hart Crane poem, "The Bridge", even though it has no direct relation to the story of the ballet:

O Appalachian Spring! I gained the ledge;
Steep, inaccessible smile that eastward bends
And northward reaches in that violet wedge
Of Adirondacks!

Copland was often amused when people told him he captured the beauty of the Appalachians in his music, a fact he alluded to in an interview with NPR's Fred Caland. Furthermore, the word "spring", usually taken in the title to refer to a season of the year, denotes a source of water in the Crane poem.

You are right though... I was wrong in saying that the Appalaichian Spring is 'about' a water spring, but I merely meant to note that that was what the title was referring to.

Many thanks for your feedback, Guido. To bring this topic to a very quick close, evidence suggests that Graham did purposely name the ballet Appalachian Spring, that Copland did know why, and that the title embraces the metaphoric meaning of Spring as a season. For more, refer to The People Have Never Stopped Dancing by Jacqueline Shea Murphy.

  

[karlhenning]

I grovel in abject apology

Oh, don't grovel!  One thing I can't stand, it's people groveling.  And don't apologize.  Every time I try to talk to someone it's 'sorry this' and 'forgive me that' and 'I'm not worthy'.

[Dundonnell]

Edvin Kallstenius "A Summernight's Serenade"
Sir Arnold Bax Summer Music and "Enchanted Summer"
Viktor Bendix Symphony No.2 "Sounds of Summer from Southern Russia"
Frank Bridge Tone Poem "Summer"
Geoffrey Bush A Summer Serenade
Frederick Delius  Tone Poem "Summer Evening" and "In a Summer Garden"
Howard Hanson Summer Seascapes
Hans Huber "Summer Night's Serenade"
Zoltan Kodaly Tone Poem "Summer Evening"
Constant Lambert "Summer's Last Will and Testament"
William Mathias Symphony No.2 "Summer Music"
Erkki Melartin Symphony No. 4 "Summer Symphony"
Ludolf Nielsen Nocturne Lyrique "Summer Evening at Nymendigab"
Serge Prokofiev Suite "A Summer's Day" and Suite "Summer Night"
Josef Suk Symphonic Poem "A Summer's Tale"

Oh....and I withdraw my 'grovelling' I no longer apologise for what may or may not have been my original error in including the Copland work in my list

[karlhenning]

The BSO played the orchestral suite last night.  There is a quoted scenario set off, but the annotator does not indicate the source:

The bride-to-be and the young farmer-husband enact the emotions, joyful and apprehensive, their new domestic partnership invites.  An older neighbor suggests now and then the rocky confidence of experience.  A revivalist and his followers remind the new householders of the strange and terrible aspects of human fate.  At the end the couple are left quiet and strong in their new house.

Oh....and I withdraw my 'grovelling' I no longer apologise for what may or may not have been my original error in including the Copland work in my list

Hardly an original error, Colin 

. . . anyway, I think it must be connected with the season in popular consciousness, in all events.  Certainly, any 'new beginning' can readily be connected metaphorically with spring (the season), regardless of what Crane's poem meant by the word.

[hildegard]

The BSO played the orchestral suite last night.  There is a quoted scenario set off, but the annotator does not indicate the source:

The bride-to-be and the young farmer-husband enact the emotions, joyful and apprehensive, their new domestic partnership invites.  An older neighbor suggests now and then the rocky confidence of experience.  A revivalist and his followers remind the new householders of the strange and terrible aspects of human fate.  At the end the couple are left quiet and strong in their new house.

Hardly an original error, Colin 

. . . anyway, I think it must be connected with the season in popular consciousness, in all events.  Certainly, any 'new beginning' can readily be connected metaphorically with spring (the season), regardless of what Crane's poem meant by the word.

Crane's use of "Spring" was itself metaphoric. Attached are Copeland's own notes on the ballet. Note: "Opening -- a beginning -- inner excitement of a new life...."

[karlhenning]

Crane's use of "Spring" was itself metaphoric. Attached are Copeland's own notes on the ballet. Note: "Opening -- a beginning -- inner excitement of a new life...."

Right, and as just stated:

. . . any 'new beginning' can readily be connected metaphorically with spring (the season) . . . .

Do Copland's notes on the scenario indicate any time of year? 

[hildegard]

Right, and as just stated:

Do Copland's notes on the scenario indicate any time of year? 

Not that I have seen, but that is a good question.

It would be interesting to see Graham's notes.

[karlhenning]

The bride-to-be and the young farmer-husband enact the emotions, joyful and apprehensive, their new domestic partnership invites.  An older neighbor suggests now and then the rocky confidence of experience.  A revivalist and his followers remind the new householders of the strange and terrible aspects of human fate.  At the end the couple are left quiet and strong in their new house.

And, interestingly . . . in spite of the 'agrarian' setting of the story, this scenario makes no season-specific references.  Both scenario and score strike me as (above all, I might almost say) stylized.  There's no mud on these boots (not that there need be).

[hildegard]

Do Copland's notes on the scenario indicate any time of year? 

Here is an interesting tidbit:

"Graham's classic ballet Appalachian Spring premiered on Oct. 30, 1944, in the Library's Coolidge Auditorium [of the Library of Congress]....

"In the program notes for the first performance, the story for Martha Graham's work is described as follows: 'Spring was celebrated by a man and a woman building a house with joy and love and prayer; by a revivalist and his followers in their shouts of exaltation; by a pioneering woman with her dreams of the Promised Land.' "

[karlhenning]

There we go!

[knight66]

Josef Suk Symphonic Poem "A Summer's Tale"

I had forgotten this piece, a real winner, beautiful Romantic music. Although not formally a symphony, it is as long as one, five movements 50 minutes. The highlight is possibly the Intermezzo scored for two cors angles, harps and eventually strings. A beautiful elegiac movement. 

Well worth a listen or five.

Mike

[sul G]

There's an interesting Kremerate Baltica disc called The Russian Seasons with a couple of pieces - one carrying the album's title, by Leonid Desyatnikov, and 'The Seasons' Digest by Alexander Raskatov. The latter is a reinterpretation of Tchaikovsky's piano work, well worth a listen. Both pieces are colourful, thoughtful, imaginative and good fun.

May I also mention Luke Ottevanger's twenty piano pieces for children (five per season) Through the Year? Available for free download via his composer's thread (links in first post). They are pretty marvelous 

[pjme]

Michel Corette (Rouen le 10 avril 1707 et mort à Paris le 21 janvier 1795.
) composed a grand Psalm ( Psaume 148) using Vivaldi's "Spring" !



This is an older version by Paillard ( coupled with Mondonville), but a more recent one , I haven't heard. Should be good thouigh...



LE PARLEMENT DE MUSIQUE / MARTIN GESTER,  La  maîtrise de BRetagne
MICHEL CORRETTE & JACQUES ANTOINE DENOYE composers

Darius Milhaud composed several works associated with the seasons - Best known are the 4 concertinos ( violin, alto, trombone & 2 pianos, with small ensemble - all in Milhaud's most cerebral manner)

Belgian composer's Arthur Meulemans wrote a splendid "Maynight" ( available on Naxos)

P.

[karlhenning]

May I also mention Luke Ottevanger's twenty piano pieces for children (five per season) Through the Year? Available for free download via his composer's thread (links in first post). They are pretty marvelous 

A suggestion to seize upon, I trow!

[FideLeo]

[hildegard]

[donaldopato]

For an Asian perspective:

Gordon Chin "Formosa Seasons"  (Naxos 8570221)

Chen Yi "Si Ji" (Four Seasons),  a colorful, atmospheric work that has not been recorded as of yet.

[Christo]

Let me see...

Glazunov's delightful Ballet "The Seasons"(my favourite piece of Glazunov!)
Henry Hadley's Symphony No.2 "The Four Seasons"
Henri Sauguet's Symphony No.2 "The Seasons"

Frederic Austin Symphonic Rhapsody "Spring"
Sir Arnold Bax "Spring Fire"
Frank Bridge Rhapsody "Enter Spring"
Benjamin Britten Spring Symphony
Aaron Copland Ballet "Appalachian Spring"
Frederick Delius "Spring Morning"
Josef Bohuslav Foerster Symphonic Poem "Springtime"
Glazunov Musical Picture "Spring"
Ludvig Irgens Jensen 'Japanischer Fruhling"
Dmitri Kabalevsky Symphonic Poem "Spring"
Charles Koechlin Symphonic Poem "The Spring Running"
Laszlo Lajtha Symphony No.4 "Spring"
Rued Langgaard Symphony No.2 "Break of Spring"
Joseph Marx Spring Music
Anthony Milner Cantata "Roman Spring"
Carl Nielsen "Springtime in Funen"
Serge Rachmaninov Cantata "Spring"
Joachim Raff "Fruhlingsklange"
Ture Rangstrom Spring Hymn
Jean Sibelius "Spring Song"
Christian Sinding Symphony No.4 "Winter and Spring"
Igor Stravinsky Ballet "Rite of Spring"
Felix Weingartner Symphonic Poem "Fruhling"
Egon Wellesz Symphonic Poem "Vorfruhling"
Alexander Zemlinsky Cantata "Fruhlingsbegrabnis"

.....wonderful what a word search produces on one's cd list collection database  

Great collection - often reminding my of my own cd wall  BTW, did you also search for "primavera"? I would at least add some Respighi to this list:

Ottorino Respighi, La Primavera (1922) Lyric poem for soli, chorus and orchestra
Ottorino Respighi, La Primavera, from: Trittico botticelliano (1927)

The first (only one recording available, AFAIK) was recently re-issued by Naxos (formerly on Marco Polo):

                   

[Christo]

Another cd with the four seasons is one under that title, conducted by José Serebrier, with four pieces for violin and orchestra:

Darius Milhaud, Concertino de printemps ("printemps" would be another good search engine word BTW, producing anything from Debussy to Stravinsky  )
Joaquín Rodrigo, Concierto de Estio (`Summer Concerto')
Cécile Chaminade, Automne
José Serebrier, Winter Concerto