GMG Classical Music Forum

This is the NEW poll on orchestral Theme and Variations works.

Thanks all for your suggestions. They helped make the number of entries balloon to an unseemly 39 works ???. The inclusion of some works may push the envelope a bit, so let me remind you of the nature of the poll.

- Works bearing the term Variations as a title or subtitle, or works where score subdivisions are clearly identified as « variation ».

- I have decided not to include variants such as chaconne (Schmidt, Escaich) or passacaglia (Webern, Martin, Schnittke) for practical and technical reasons. They are not based on the conventional notion of theme but rather, as per the wiki entry on the subject, are « a vehicle for variation on a repeated short harmonic progression ». Moot, I agree, but that's where practical considerations weigh in. Which is not to imply that they are not works of great value.

And now...vote !

Of the ones on this list, I voted for the following:

Elgar: Enigma Variations
Vaughan Williams: Five Variants on 'Dives and Lazarus'
Britten: Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge
Delius: Appalachia
Copland: Orchestral Variations

Simpson, Bax, Elgar, Tippett and Lutoslawski (more or less in that order!)

Too many of them I haven't heard, so I won't vote. But Brahms, Elgar, and Rachmaninov would certainly be included.

Quote from: JBS on January 21, 2019, 07:19:02 PM
Too many of them I haven't heard, so I won't vote. But Brahms, Elgar, and Rachmaninov would certainly be included.

I haven't heard the Holler, Braunfels, von Koch and Leifs. But some others I have heard but with minimal impression (which in itself is saying something, i guess)

Voted for the Brahms (not that I'm much of a Brahmin, but I do find much to admire and enjoy in the Haydn-Variations), the Walton (great fun), the Schoenberg (a stunning piece IMHO) and the Carter. My fifth choice, alas, is not in the list: Ginastera's Variaciones concertantes.

Great poll, André!  :) Much music to explore from that list....

Parry: yes,yes,yes. My favourite work by him which I play more than the Enigma
VW: Five Variants....
Walton
Respighi
Copland

Is the d'Indy "Variations symphoniques" Opus 42, also known as Istar?

Quote from: JBS on January 21, 2019, 07:19:02 PM
Too many of them I haven't heard, so I won't vote. But Brahms, Elgar, and Rachmaninov would certainly be included.

You can cast up to 5 votes, less if you want.

Quote from: ritter on January 22, 2019, 12:11:35 AM
Voted for the Brahms (not that I'm much of a Brahmin, but I do find much to admire and enjoy in the Haydn-Variations), the Walton (great fun), the Schoenberg (a stunning piece IMHO) and the Carter. My fifth choice, alas, is not in the list: Ginastera's Variaciones concertantes.

Great poll, André!  :) Much music to explore from that list....

Ginastera is now our 40th entry. If you haven't used your 5th vote, you can select it. :)

Quote from: Maestro267 on January 22, 2019, 03:04:44 AM
Is the d'Indy "Variations symphoniques" Opus 42, also known as Istar?

YES. Thanks for the question. I have amended the title to make sure there is no confusion.

I went for perennial favourites (Brahms, Elgar, Rachmaninov, Vaughan Williams) and a dark horse, the Don Juan Variations by Braunfels.

But it's a pity to leave out so much great music: Schönberg, d'Indy, Franck, Reger (the Hiller set), von Koch, Delius...

And so much yet to discover... ::)

I just realized that before I listened to it on youtube two hours ago I had never heard the Dvorak Symphonic Variations op.78 and only vaguely been aware of their existence...
If I am not mistaken I have heard 24 of the pieces listed although several of them maybe only once.

Quote from: André on January 22, 2019, 04:49:31 AM
Ginastera is now our 40th entry. If you haven't used your 5th vote, you can select it. :)

Thanks! I had only voted for four, but it seems I cannot amend my vote to include Ginastera... :(

Franck and Britten/Young Person's Guide. None of the others get me excited.

Rococo's and Dives and Lazarus are my absolute favorites, after them maybe Brahms, Rachmaninov and Britten's Bridge ones, also Schoenberg, Arensky is nice and Kodaly. I haven't heard quite a few of the others, I'll chase them up on spotify. Thanks for putting up the list, Andre. 8)   

Quote from: ritter on January 22, 2019, 05:16:26 AM
Thanks! I had only voted for four, but it seems I cannot amend my vote to include Ginastera... :(

Hmmm... I allowed up to 5 votes, but maybe you can only vote once  ::).

Anyhow, be it known that Ginastera has Ritter's vote !

Quote from: Draško on January 22, 2019, 01:53:01 PM
Rococo's and Dives and Lazarus are my absolute favorites, after them maybe Brahms, Rachmaninov and Britten's Bridge ones, also Schoenberg, Arensky is nice and Kodaly. I haven't heard quite a few of the others, I'll chase them up on spotify. Thanks for putting up the list, Andre. 8)   

So many works to discover, and many seem to have ardent advocates. I predict that my credit card will suffer as a consequence  ::).

I'd add Salieri's 26 Variations on 'La folia di Spagna' and Geminiani's concerto grosso arrangement of Correlli's Folia variations, the Violin Sonata in D minor, Op. 5 No. 12.

No replies in almost a month, time for a roundup:

Elgar, 9 votes
Brahms, Rachmaninoff: 8 votes

Followed by

Vaughan-Williams, Carter: 5 votes
Schönberg, Tippett: 4 votes

12 works were ignored, most of them rarely performed or recorded. Some piqued my curiosity and I will keep them in mind when looking for off-the-beaten path stuff.

Thanks for your participation !

Brahms: Variations on a Theme of Haydn
Dohnányi: Variations on a Nursery Song (piano and orch)
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Reger: Mozart Variations
Schönberg: Variations opus 21

Sarge

A bit surprised that I am the only person to put in a vote for Simpson.

I'm surprised there are only 2 votes for Kodály thus far.

Quote from: springrite on February 21, 2019, 08:09:43 AM
A bit surprised that I am the only person to put in a vote for Simpson.

Obviously none of us is.  :D
(To be honest: I like Simpson, but don't know this piece. Would love to cast to other votes on the Arnold. Tiopett and Leifs though).  :o

No room for d'Indy, but Istar is truly a masterwork that displays the composer's best traits. It is unique in that the theme appears at the end rather than at the beginning -- quite effective because it has you guessing what it might be the whole way through.

Narrowing the list to five choices:

Respighi: Metamorphoseon
Reger: Variations and Fugue on a theme by Hiller
Kodály: Peacock Variations
Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a theme by Paganini
Tveitt: Variations for two pianos and orchestra on a folk song

Both list and discussion are so completely without any mention of Stravinsky's Huxley Variations that I started to wonder whether I'd imagined them.  But no (it was Stravinsky who did that).  They're rather good.

And there's only one Schoenberg work, he being a lover of numerology, that could be his Op.21.  The Variations are 31.  They're rather good, too.

My top 15 (including some not featured in the above poll):

Braga Santos: Variacoes sobre um tema alentejano
Britten: Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge
Carreño, Inocente: Margariteña, Glosa Sinfónica
Cowell: Variations for Orchestra, HC 833
Dohnányi: Variations on a Nursery Song for piano and orchestra
Dvořák: Symphonic Variations
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Freitas Branco: Vathek, Symphonic Poem in the form of variations on an Oriental Theme
Frumerie(x2): Symphonic Variations; Variations and Fugue for piano and orchestra
Graener: Variationen uber Prinz Eugen
Kodály: Peacock Variations
Respighi: Metamorphoseon modi XII
Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a theme by Paganini for piano and orchestra
Tveitt: Variations on a Folk Song from Hardanger for two pianos and orchestra

I find orchestral theme and variations to be such a satisfying genre to listen to within the classical repertoire. So much wonderful music to be found here!