Honegger's Symphonies

Synopsis

When asked to name some important musical works associated with World War II, music lovers are apt to think of the sonatas and symphonies Prokofiev and Shostakovich wrote during those years. But three symphonies by the Swiss composer Arthur Honegger form another very compelling war triptych.

Honegger spent the war years in occupied France, and his Symphony No. 2, which premiered in 1942, might be considered a symphony of the grim wartime resistance. It is scored for strings alone, but at the very end includes an optional trumpet solo, a dramatic gesture that seems an emotional call to action.

Honegger’s Symphony No. 3, which premiered on August 17, 1946, is entitled “A Liturgical Symphony,” with the titles of each of its movements taken from the Latin Mass for the Dead. Considering the great loss of life on all sides of the conflict just ended, this work, too, packs an emotional wallop.

And to round out the triptych, Honegger’s Symphony No. 4, from 1947, is subtitled “The Delights of Basel.” This music captures the elusive and bittersweet mood of a Europe tentatively groping its way back to normal life, closing with a decidedly wistful evocation of carnival time in the Swiss city of Basel.

Music Played in Today's Program

Arthur Honegger (1892 - 1955) Symphonies Nos. 2 and 3 Oslo Philharmonic; Mariss Jansons, cond. EMI 55122

Arthur Honegger (1892 - 1955) Symphony No. 4 (Deliciae basiliensis) Lausanne Chamber Orchestra; Jesus Lopez-Cobos, cond. Virgin 91486

On This Day

Births

• 1903 - American composer and pianist Abram Chasins, in New York City;

• 1928 - American composer T.J. (Thomas Jefferson) Anderson, in Coatesville, Pa.;

• 1943 - English composer Edward Cowie, in Birmingham;

Deaths

• 1786 - Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, flute player and amateur composer, age 74, in Potsdam;

• 1958 - French composer Florent Schmitt, age 87, in Neuilly-sur-Seine;

• 1961 - French-born American composer and harpist Carlos Salzedo, age 76, in Waterville, Maine;

• 1973 - French composer Jean Barraque, in Paris;

• 1981 - American composer Robert Russell Bennett, age 87, in New York City;

• 1983 - American lyricist Ira Gershwin, age 86, in Beverly Hills, Calif.;

Premieres

• 1876 - First complete performance of Richard Wagner's "Ring" cycle concludes at Bayreuth with a performance of "Götterdämmerung" (The Twilight of the Gods);

• 1937 - John Ireland: "A London Overture" at a Proms Concert conducted by Sir Henry Wood;

• 1946 - Honegger: "Symphonie Liturgique" (No. 3) in Zürich, conducted by Charles Munch, to whom the work is dedicated;

• 1953 - von Einem: opera "Der Prozess" (The Trial), at the Salzburg Festival in Austria; This opera is based on the novel by Franz Kafka;

• 1955 - Werner Egk: opera "Irische Legende" (Irish Legend), at the Salzburg Festival in Austria;

• 1974 - Penderecki: "Magnificat," for bass solo, chorus, and orchestra, in Salzburg, Austria;

Others

• 1928 - Swedish composer Kurt Atterberg wins $10,000 Schubert Centenary Prize offered by Columbia Phonograph Company of New York for his Symphony in C;

• 1957 - During lecture at the Tanglewood Festival, American composer Gunther Schuller coins the phrase "third stream" to describe a type of composition in which elements of jazz are organized within a classical musical structure.