Unsung Orchestral Variations (with or without closing Fugue!)

[chill319]

Berger. Berger. Berger. The right man at the right time for the job.

The fact that Reger, bless him, is better known, is part of the sheer mischief that occurred when the ideals of Western Culture collapsed post 1914. Reger was a powerful composer, but in my view Berger is the true master.

[Alan Howe]

Berger's music is certainly more easily digestible than Reger's, but I wouldn't be without the best of the latter. However, the relative neglect of the older master is nothing short of a scandal. Why the symphonies haven't been done is beyond me. As far as commercially unrecorded symphonies are concerned, these must be among the most deserving of preservation on CD. Along with the last three by Abert, that is.

[Pickler_MZ]

Delius Variations on an Old Slave Song - Appalachia.  That is a big and ambitious set of variations.

Poor old Delius must rank as unsung these days.  Though there is singing in Appalachia!

[semloh]

Delius Variations on an Old Slave Song - Appalachia.  That is a big and ambitious set of variations.

Poor old Delius must rank as unsung these days.  Though there is singing in Appalachia!

I'm not sure about live performance in Europe or N. America, although a quick scan of the web suggests Delius is not neglected. His music certainly gets played and discussed here in Australia as much as any other British composer, and the CD listings are pretty generous. That said, personally I would regard his music as being in the impressionistic rather than romantic style as per UC, although Appalachia does just scrape in as a 19thC example of purely orchestral variations - which still seem few and far between.

[bulleid_pacific]

No, Delius is definitely sung.  Quite why though is another matter - I've just resurrected a very old thread in which I nominate him as possibly the only composer I don't get at all.

[eschiss1]

Nicodé's set, and Koessler's 1901-published symphonic variations in C-sharp minor...
One can find sets at IMSLP from the Romantic era by Franz Kessel (published 1896), Richard Heuberger (Schubert-variations for small orchestra, pub.1880)...

[eschiss1]

Hrm. Few and far between- well, in comparison to the loads of concertante variations one finds published just in the years 1830-1833 in HMB, say, and I'm guessing in most years of the earlyish Romantic period, compared to those, published purely-orchestral variations... yes. (Ah, I forgot Wilhelm Taubert's variations Op.161, though they exist in piano-duet form too, I think, though I think orchestrated- or vice-vers'- by the composer. Still, if that leaves them out, then bye-bye Brahms Op.56 too (well, not just on grounds of not being unsung, I mean...))

If we're going to include movements of other works, there's also Heinrich Esser's suite no.2 in A minor (op.66) for orchestra (pub.1866) whose third movement is a theme and variations, and the first movement of Cui's Op.38... (and has anyone mentioned the penultimate movement of the Raff In Thuringia suite, at that...?)

Also: Octave Fouque (Fouqué?) : Variations symphoniques sur un Air béarnais p. Orch. (Introduction et Thème. Andantino, Pizzicato. Danse rustique. Adagio, Intermède et Marche. Andante finale.), pub. 1882. (Anyone mention d'Indy's Istar yet? ) Also Richard Wuerst's Op.50 variations for orchestra pub.1869...

Even from earlier on- by J.L. (Johann, I think) Böhner: Zephyr-Walzer mit Variationen über ein Original-Thema für ganzes Orchester. Op. 91  - published 1831. &c. There are more, not thick as mud but not exactly few and far between, I think.

But yes, there are, if this is what you meant, far far more concertante variations and chamber-work variations than variations (with/without fugue) for orchestra-alone (that I can find, anyway, published. I expect that RISM online may say similar things about manuscripts, though.)

[JollyRoger]

No, Delius is definitely sung.  Quite why though is another matter - I've just resurrected a very old thread in which I nominate him as possibly the only composer I don't get at all.

Delius must be like liver...either you can't stand the smell of it or you revel in it.
I despise liver(and hard rock), but Delius floats my boat..

[Alan Howe]

Mine too. Who can resist the opening of the Mass of Life, for example? Glorious, exultant stuff.

[Mark Thomas]

has anyone mentioned the penultimate movement of the Raff In Thuringia suite

The fourth movement of the preceding, Hungarian, suite is also a set of variations, as is the slow movement of his Fourth Symphony (although not explicitly described as such).

[JimL]

The slow movement of Raff's 4th Symphony is actually a conflation of passacaglia and sonata forms.  Remember on the old Raff forum how Avrohom and I got into quite a row over it? 

[Mark Thomas]

I well remember, and I'm not going to get into a row about it. As I say, "not explicitly described as such".

[eschiss1]

Yes, let's not serialize the row by repeating it.

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks, Eric.

[LateRomantic75]

I don't believe Eyvind Alnaes' Symphonic Variations or Jan van Gilse's Variations on a Saint Nicholas Song have been mentioned yet. Both are fine pieces that can be found on the magnificent YouTube channel of "Bom Cabedal".