Unsung Orchestral Variations (with or without closing Fugue!)

[semloh]

These lists lend support to my earlier observation - casual as it was, and despite some obvious exceptions (Dvorak etc) - that purely orchestral variations are largely a 20thC form. I can only guess which ones are romantic in style.

[eschiss1]

Well, the Shostakovich (in B-flat) has been recorded- once. The Szell has been performed by the American Symphony Orchestra- maybe it can be heard over iTunes- also recorded by the Cleveland Institute back in 1992 (for a description, see program notes; the date seems to be 1913, I assume this is composition, not publication date- ah, I see, published in 1916. In A (minor? major?))

Graener's Russian folktune variations (his opus 55, published 1922) can be found on IMSLP here which may or may not help in answering that question...

(Hrm. Can't remember if I mentioned the 20th c., but early 20th c. (by-1912) Aleksandr Winkler "Variations sur un thème russe" - so - mentioning it... likewise Müller-Hartmann's 1909 variations and fugue in E major, Op.3 for large orchestra - again, 20th century but early in it.

[mahesi]

I haven't listened to most of the works in my list for quite a long time. I remember at least Coleridge-Taylor, Graener, Hurlstone and Röntgen to be romantic in style.

[theqbar]

Though somebody already mentioned Franz Schmidt, i think that the marvellous 2nd movement of his 2nd symphony has not been mentioned. Also, let's not forget the 3rd movement of Gliere's 2nd symphony.

[pcc]

I'm slightly surprised no-one's mentioned Haydn Wood's Variations on "If You Want to Know the Time, Ask a P'liceman".  Quite a witty and intricate piece, but I'm not sure it's had a recording since Alick Maclean did it with the NQHLO for HMV in 1920.  I have that disc and it was a joy to find and hear; now after reading this thread, I have to go through my acoustical orchestrals and find it again! Does anyone else here know it?

[semloh]

Yes, indeed. As a fan of 'light music' it's a familiar piece. It appears on the very entertaining Marco Polo disc of Haydn Wood's orchestral music, played by the SlovakRSO, cond. Ernest Tomlinson.

Perhaps it has not been mentioned because forays outside the remit of UC - i.e. the romantic genre as defined on our webpages - are generally avoided. Some threads lend themselves to a little more leeway than others, as I think this one does, but we do try to keep discussion as close to the romantic genre as much as reasonable.