Stravinsky Symphonies
CBS Records recording of the Columbia and CBC Symphony Orchestras present three of Stravinsky’s works conducted by the composer.
Who needs to guess how Stravinsky would have conducted a particular passage when we can hear Stravinsky do it himself?
This CBS Records recording of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and the CBC Symphony Orchestra presents three of Stravinsky's works, all of which were conducted by the composer. The liner notes even include Stravinsky's thoughts regarding his pieces of music.
The Symphony in Three Movements was composed during the height of WWII (1942-45), and reflects the composer's impressions, mostly gained through cinematic representations, of the ongoing war and the injustices practiced by the Axis forces.
The first movement opens with a majestic Overture, set with sweeping strings and a horn part reminiscent of courtly occasions and later moves into the irregular but pulsating rhythms so characteristic of Stravinsky's style.
The second movement alternately resembles introspective musings in the plaintive, wandering fragments voiced by the winds and an optimistic dance in the string sections. If one follows the war interpretation, perhaps this movement resembles both the barren devastation of war and the resilience of humanity in the face of tragedy.
The final movement begins with a march inspired by films of goose-stepping soldiers. The march continues until the point of crisis: the introduction of the fugue. The movement builds in expectation until a surprise harmonic progression signals the triumph of the Allied forces.
The Symphony in C was composed after Stravinsky had been diagnosed with tuberculosis, a disease from which both his daughters suffered and in fact one would die during his work on the symphony. Three months later his wife also died, and three months after that, his mother died as well.
However, in trying to focus on formal concerns in the music (the structure or how the music is put together), Stravinsky tried to keep his personal feelings out of the symphony. The first two movements were composed in Europe and reflect more of a traditional style. The third and fourth movements were composed after Stravinsky moved to America and herald his growing experiments with rhythmic meter change.
The final composition on this CD, Symphony of Psalms, is based on various psalms from the Bible and consists of three parts. The score's inscription à la gloire de Dieu, "to the glory of God," reveals Stravinsky's purpose for the work. The text, in Latin, is based on Psalm 150, which exhorts worship through the music of several different instruments, and Psalm 40, a prayer of supplication.
