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In Reply to: RE: The Great American Symphony posted by TGR on March 21, 2015 at 12:10:29
Thank you for your very fine overview of American symphonies. Personally, I've never cared much for Ives, but I know others enjoy his music.
Any review article will be limited, so it is no surprise that Lehman selected just a few symphonies to recommend. But I was disappointed that some others could not be included in his survey.
David Diamond, who died in 2005, was IMO an excellent American composer. I think his 3rd symphony, premiered by Munch in Boston in 1945, is widely considered the best of his 11 symphonies, and I would not argue with that. The recording by Schwarz is very good.
Hovhaness got a bad rap for being so prolific, but his 2nd symphony "Mysterious Mountain" is surely one of the best symphonies composed by an American. Reiner's recording with the Chicago Symphony is a classic, although there are some recordings with much better audio available.
I'm not sure that William Grant Still's 2nd Symphony "Afro-American" is really one of the best ever by an American composer, but it is certainly an excellent work. And being written by one of America's few African-American composers, it deserves much broader recognition than it has received.
"Life without music is a mistake" (Nietzsche)
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I would add the Diamond 2nd. One of the great American symphonies written during the 2nd world war.
The Homophonic Thing, and the Trebly Fugue Thing.
. . . for his various instances of homophony! ;-)
BTW, if you listen to too many Scarlatti Sonatas, you start to think he did the same things over and over too! ;-)
If you are going to condemn music because you disagree with the political, social or religious beliefs of the composer, you will end up eliminating a huge amount of of excellent music from your life.
Music is basically amoral. It transcends its creator to take a life of its own. Point out a single line of music in Hovhaness and say "here, this melody is homophobic." Conversely, point out one line of music by Diamond or Copland or Poulenc and declare, "there, that is a homosexual melody."
"Life without music is a mistake" (Nietzsche)
You must be mistaken.
BTW - story I've heard [passing it on; can't verify that it's true]. Ormandy was rehearesing one of Scriabin's symphonies. Scriabin was, of course, absolutely a real man, zero-BS hetero. Somewhere in the middle of it all, he stopped and reportedly exclaimed [in full Hungarian accent]: "I don't like this homosexual music!!"
That's what I get for waking up early and posting at 5:20 AM.
"Life without music is a mistake" (Nietzsche)
....please! You brightened what has been a pretty lousy day for me. Thanks for you strong convictions!
dh
Wow!
And I agree that Hovhaness' large output worked against being respected in certain quarters, and "Mysterious Mountain" is a great American symphony in that same Roy Harris mold of self-confidence in the use of "American" hymnody and other source materials.
I recommended the Hovhaness Guitar Concerto in the October 2014 issue of Stereophile.
JM
Thanks! I don't dislike his music, just that it fits in a narrow range of style.
That other post about homophobic was priceless!
Of course I do have that Reiner recording you refer to - but I'm also partial to the Mount Saint Helens Symphony too. Folks can call it obvious if they want (and the almost innocent depictions and evocations of this music can bring a smile to one's face), but for me it's still mightily effective. The San Jose Symphony performed it just after it was written and Hovhaness was there to acknowledge the audience acclaim. It was kind of a thrill to be there.
Another Hovhaness Symphony I like is the Symphony No. 4 (for band) - in outstanding SQ on a Mercury Living Presence album with the A. Clyde Roller and the Eastman Wind Ensemble.
I'm not sure anyone has ever listened to all of his 67+ symphonies, perhaps not even Hovhaness himself, much less closely enough to actually write reviews of them.
"Life without music is a mistake" (Nietzsche)
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