Hugo Kaun Symphony No.3 & "Im Urwald": two Symphonic Poems Op.43

[Alan Howe]

...now forthcoming from cpo:
Hugo Kaun (1863-1932): Symphony No.3 in E minor, Op.96 (1913) and "Im Urwald" - two Symphonic Poems: "Minnehaha", Op.43 No.1 and "Hiawatha", Op.43 No.2:
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/cpo/detail/-/art/hugo-kaun-orchesterwerke/hnum/11165015

On Kaun's symphonies:

<<By the time Hugo Kaun returned to his native Germany in 1902, he had established his credentials not as an émigré German composer, but as an American. Although there is no evidence that Kaun filed any paperwork for naturalization status, he was recognized as an American composer by audiences, performers, and critics of the day primarily because of his extended sojourn in Milwaukee from 1887 to the year of his departure, but had also established his professional music credentials as a conductor and composer not only in his adopted city but also in Chicago, where his music enjoyed the enthusiastic championship of Theodore Thomas, who performed several of his scores with the Chicago Orchestra, among them his Festival March on "The Star-Spangled Banner," the concert overtures Die Maler von Antwerpen and Am Rhein (On the Rhine), the symphonic poem Sir John Falstaff, the concert overture Am Rhein (On the Rhine), and his first two symphonies, the three-movement D minor symphony of 1897-98 subtitled "To My Fatherland," and the epic C minor symphony of 1902.
  In his first two symphonies, Kaun paid great tribute to the composers he greatly admired, namely Brahms, Bruckner, and Wagner. The first symphony's three-movement configuration was quite new in comparison to most works in this form, inviting comparison to Antonin Dvořák's third symphony in E-flat of 1872-73 (but not published until 1912), and Cesar Franck's 1888 symphony, which shares the same key as Kaun's but was not heard in Chicago until February of 1900 under Thomas' direction, a year after its first American performance in Boston. That Kaun happened to compose his first symphony as a three-movement work without knowledge of either Dvořák's or Franck's symphonies is pure coincidence.
  The second symphony, dedicated to the composer Peter Raabe, retains the customary four-movement structure, yet continues his quest to refine his compositional voice in light of his musical models, but also of the new and emerging composers in Europe. Upon settling in Berlin, Kaun realized that the composers he had to own up against were not those of the New England School of American composers (Chadwick, Parker, Foote, and, to a lesser extent, MacDowell – all trained in Germany), but the leading voices of the day in his homeland: Richard Strauss, Max Reger, and Max von Schillings, all of whom had taken the Wagnerian idiom to the next level, bordering on leaving the tonal center behind. Neighboring Austria yielded the declarations of Gustav Mahler, Franz Schreker, Franz Schmidt, Alexander von Zemlinsky, Arnold Schönberg, and the young Erich Wolfgang Korngold, these composers taking it upon themselves to not only expand the chromatic language fostered by Brahms, Liszt, and Wagner, but taking classical structure to an enlightened level where music's conventional boundaries were deconstructed and re-assembled to the point that the next zenith in music is to abandon traditions altogether.
  Together with other new and innovative voices from France and Russia, Kaun's approach to music seemed dated to those enthralled by the latest musical trends. Undaunted by the new music he was hearing, Kaun continued his approach to music as he was taught by Friederich Kiel and Bernard Ziehn. Thus he slowly began to choose which musical languages suited his needs to expand his compositional language. The third, and last, of his symphonies is the result of bringing a polystylistic language to sound as a unified composition that does not sacrifice his individual voice.
  Whereas the first two symphonies are dramatic, the third is serene and contemplative. Considered his most mature work in the medium, it shows Kaun employing his own brand of chromaticism, coupled with a neo-baroque-like feel. Even the key of E minor invites comparison with Brahms' final symphony and Dvořák's "New World," where the symphony's soul embodies a sense of peace within the vortex of tragedy and struggle. In the notes for the work's American premiere by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, it is surmised that the opening horn call (described as a theme of "earnest character") is a summoning of all heroic forces to come to the fore. This theme, which sows the seeds for such later works as his opera Sappho, is in direct contrast to the symphony's second subject, played this time by a solo horn over low pizzicato strings, alluding to the parallel key of E Major, ushered in by a countersubject to the principal theme.
  The development section is rich and rewarding as Kaun fractionalizes his thematic material and mixes it, the short triplet motif introduced in the winds in the exposition now becoming the dominant factor of this section, with the principal horn motif returning several times, alternating between gallant (trumpet fanfares entrenched into the orchestral fabric) and reflective (solo oboe and clarinet absorbing the second subject as a pastoral duet) moods, similar to the development section of the first movement of Brahms' second symphony, yet with its baroque-infused rhythms coming closer to the industrious exhilaration of the first movement of his Märkische Suite. Furthermore, Kaun's orchestration is quite transparent, allowing the material not being encumbered by the large forces he marshals. The flourishes that serve as a melodic nuance now become the ruling factor, shepherding in the recapitulation where the second melodic subject, now established in the parallel major, becomes the first theme, followed by the principal theme. The coda, which takes all the melodic material at hand, is a concentrated summation of the movement, leading to a peaceful end.
  Placing the scherzo as the second movement, Kaun continues to enforce and evocate his melodic material from the previous movement. Marked Lebhaft (Lively), the scherzo's light, jovial mood is highlighted not only by its transparent orchestration, but also favors the augmented fifth and throwing the established tonality (D Major) into a near-impressionistic veneer while its material undergoes a melodic advancement while remaining within its traditional boundary. The F Major trio (Etwas ruhiger) conjures a Schubertian lilt to the mind as Kaun introduces a new theme played by the clarinets, violins, and violoncellos, this waltz-like theme reinforced by short punctuations from the upper winds and harp, while the principal theme of the scherzo, introduced by the trumpet, is further developed.
  The heart of this symphony, a solo oboe over divisi strings, opens the third movement (Adagio, sehr ruhig), which is in C Major, though the tonality of the first two measures is chromatically compromised. The oboe theme is soon expanded in the violins (Mit tiefer Empfindung – with deep feeling), its pastoral origins transfigured into a nostalgic melody chromatically underpinned, threatening to disrupt the tonal base. This theme is repeated in the trombones against a countermelody in the strings before returning to the winds. A new section (Bewegter) is animated in contrast to the idyllic longings of the previous segment, with English Horn and clarinets playing a variation of the principal subject while a new theme is introduced by the violas, punctuated every other measure by the principal desk of the first violins and the celesta, introduced in this symphony for the first time. Initially embryonic, the viola theme develops further under Kaun's imaginative vision, expanding the subject between the various sections of the orchestra while continually employing his subtle use of chromatic harmony alluding to dropping the tonal center. After much development and variation, the main subject returns in the trumpets, oboes, clarinets, and horns against the countersubject in the violins, its peaceful nuances bringing the movement to a close.
  A muted horn emoting a tritone underpinned by a sequence of mysterious chords hovering between A minor and C Major opens the finale (Etwas bewegt, to be conducted in two), leading to an episode where a pedal-point on B in the lower strings and reinforced by a distinct pulsation in the timpani that is the transition into the first subject, an animated and heroic theme in 9/8 emoted in the violins (Lebhaft, energisch – Lively and energetic). The exposition also alludes to thematic material from the previous movements which are minutely used to enhance the principal subject. Where Kaun allowed the first three movements of his symphony to ease the listener's ear to an era of rustic nostalgia, the finale is the complete opposite – a tempestuous eruption of dramatic brilliance to keep the players attuned to the composer's voice, yet it is short- lived. A second subject, as mentioned in the Chicago Symphony's program notes, returns to the serenity of the previous movements, played by the clarinets and bassoons, which lead to yet another thematic episode in ¾ time involving the wind and string choirs of the orchestra. Kaun's employment of valiant fanfares, pulsating timpani, and seriate sixteenth notes bring back the heat of the movement, only to lead to another episode involving the brass, described in the program as "expressive and...more tranquil," accompanied by pizzicato cellos and basses. A contrapuntal episode employing a series of sixteenth notes, first played by the clarinets and violas, returns to the symphony's Baroque references in unification with its romantic language. An F-sharp pedal point in the timpani and basses underlining the finale's second subject played by muted brass and strings brings this material to a jubilant theme that is interrelated to the primary thematic material of the first and final movements, transfiguring the symphony's peaceful tone of E minor into an ebullient E Major, bringing the work to a exultant conclusion.
  By the time the work was premiered, the First World War brought an end to a world of romanticism on all levels. Kaun's symphony, his final in the medium, was a work of an old world master presented in a new and frightening time for all. The third symphony's first performance took place on 12 November 1914 in Kassel, conducted by Robert Laugs (to whom the symphony is dedicated), nearly five months after the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo that would initiate the actions for the world's first global conflict. Frederick Stock conducted the first American performance of the symphony in Milwaukee on 13 March 1916, and the first performance in Chicago on 17 March 1916. It should be noted that this symphony was the only one of Kaun's works to be conducted by Wilhelm Fürtwängler, which took place on 4 May 1920 with the Berlin Staaskapelle Orchestra, most likely under the supervision of the composer.
  The symphony is scored for three flutes (the third interchanging piccolo), two oboes, three clarinets in A and B-flat (the third interchanging with bass clarinet in B-flat), two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns in F, three trumpets in A and B-flat, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, harp, celesta, and strings.
https://repertoire-explorer.musikmph.de/wp-content/uploads/vorworte_prefaces/1554.html

N.B. Symphony No.3 is roughly 50 minutes in length.

[Alan Howe]

A rendering of the beginning of the first movement of Symphony No.3 can be heard here:
http://www.fraktur.biz/MusikFrakturbiz/KaunSy3-1Anf.mp3

[eschiss1]

I've been curious about symphony no.3 after seeing it mentioned in performance listings- maybe a half-dozen to a dozen or more times in concert listings in its first year (in NZM) (ok, that's probably not that unusual after all, but I probably didn't know that.)

(I don't know much German, but enough to skim and recognize repeated phrases like that )

[Alan Howe]

Our recording of the radio broadcast will be disappearing soon...

[Gareth Vaughan]

This is a must buy disk for me, and I hope they will follow up with symphonies 1 and 2. But what I would particularly like to hear are performances of his 2 piano concerti (scores and parts in Fleisher).

[Alan Howe]

I've ordered it from jpc - it's out in Germany on 28th of this month.

[jonah]

Judging by the piano writing in the Piano Quintet on MDG, his Piano Concertos should be well-worth exploring - Hyperion?

[eschiss1]

also judging by the synthesized performance of part of a reduction of the 2nd piano concerto on IMSLP (which is what it is as simulations go, but -still- suggests a fine work, iirc. Agreed!)

[Alan Howe]

My copy of Symphony No.3/etc. arrived this morning and I have two immediate reactions: first, gratitude that the recording features the excellent Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (RSB) in such unfamiliar repertoire; and second, that it quickly becomes obvious why the music hasn't found its place in the repertoire despite much exceedingly interesting writing. In a period when Kaun's contemporaries Strauss and Mahler were writing more striking stuff, Kaun was probably never going to compete with them in the orchestral field.

Having said which, for the listener like me who has had his fill (for the moment, anyway) of Mahler and Strauss whose music is played and recorded seemingly ad nauseam, it is wonderful to hear music by a different composer who was clearly a master of his craft - music, in other words, that is thoroughly worth getting to know. The idiom of the Symphony is rather more restrained than either Mahler or Strauss, but the writing (especially in the exquisite third movement) often has a diaphanous, trance-like quality that is almost reminiscent of Debussy or Ravel.

I really hope that this Symphony will gain traction with the public. It really is something rather special.

[Reverie]

it quickly becomes obvious why the music hasn't found its place in the repertoire despite much exceedingly interesting writing. In a period when Kaun's contemporaries Strauss and Mahler were writing more striking stuff,

His mastery of the orchestra is very accomplished but I think his weakness is, simply put, the lack of a memorable melody. There are moments where you think a melody will be developed only to be overcome by some contrapuntal device in another part which takes over. Having said that the music is harmonically adventurous and beautifully scored with attention to detail. It should definitely be given a wider airing.

[Alan Howe]

It'll just take longer to get to know properly...

[Ilja]

I have now listened to this disc (albeit on streaming) and while I really like the symphony, the highlight here is undoubtedly Im Urwald. The radio recording on the Downloads Board only contained its first section, but hearing the thing in its entirety also adds power to that more introspective part by contrasting it to the more boisterous (but ultimately tragic) second one, Hiawatha. People looking for any trace of an indigenous motif will come out disappointed, but that doesn't affect the charm of the music one bit for me. 

[Justin]

His mastery of the orchestra is very accomplished but I think his weakness is, simply put, the lack of a memorable melody.

I agree, and unfortunately the entire album failed to connect with me and I have listened to the 3rd Symphony three times now. The harmony has laid the foundation for great melodies to be spun but they never arrive. Perhaps I would find his earlier symphonies more appealing.

[Ilja]

I have to say that the main motif from Hiawatha has become something of an ear worm, though. 

Personally, I'm enjoying this disc tremendously. There is a somewhat insufficient (to the point of being barely listenable) MIDI rendering of the First Symphony (yet another "To my Fatherland" symphony) and I think the Third is much better. But it'd be great to make that judgment after a proper listening.

[Alan Howe]

...unfortunately the entire album failed to connect with me and I have listened to the 3rd Symphony three times now. The harmony has laid the foundation for great melodies to be spun but they never arrive.

I can see your point, but I think there's a temptation to think that some great melody might appear when that's not the composer's intention at all.