Symphony No. 1 (Honegger)

The Symphony No. 1 in H75 of the Swiss composer Arthur Honegger was 1929/1930 composed as a commission for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. They, like all symphonies Honegger three sets and is applied to the tonal pitch C.

Instrumentation and record labels

Piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon - 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba - bass drum, tam-tam - 1st and 2nd violins, violas, cellos and double basses.

Music

The first movement is permeated with contrapuntal motifs and is still in the massive style of his earlier orchestral works such as Pacific 231 Harte, ajar to mechanical sounds eighth rhythms are always permeated by the sheet with chromaticism and syncopation. The broad Adagio is dominated by a string melody, which returns to the opening bars by an interpretation in the orchestral tutti to the end of the sentence, distorted by Posaunenglissandi and scraps of melody in the woodwinds. The finish is designed with toccataartiger shape. You can also find an orchestral superposition principle, ie the addition of ever new instrument groups - one applied by Honegger frequently compositional technique. Unexpectedly, the Presto goes into an Andante tranquillo at the end. This epilogue is dominated by brass melodies and is highly adapted harmoniously to the rest of the composition.

Genesis and first performance

The conductor of the world premiere of Pacific 231, Serge Koussevitzky, Honegger, 1929 commissioned to compose an orchestral piece for the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. For this order out the first symphony, which was premiered by the contracting authorities on February 13, In 1931.