3rd Symphony (Draeseke)

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The symphony No. 3 in C major op. 40 , which is nicknamed the Symphonia Tragica , is considered Felix Draeseke's most important orchestral work. After several years of work, the composer completed the symphony in December 1886. The first performance on February 13, 1888 took place under the direction of Ernst von Schuch in Draeseke's hometown of Dresden and was acclaimed. The taste of the audience at that time was shaped by Brahms and Bruckner.

Famous conductors who campaigned for the work included Jean Louis Nicodé , Arthur Nikisch and Hans Pfitzner .

Like many composers, Draeseke was forgotten after his death. The classic label cpo, which specializes in first recordings, made a significant contribution to its rediscovery : in 1998 it recorded its third symphony and the funeral march, its second symphony and the serenade op.49 and in 2002 the first and fourth symphonies and the Gudrun overture.

sentences

  • Andante - Allegro risoluto ( C major )
  • Grave: Adagio ma non troppo ( A minor )
  • Scherzo: Allegro molto vivace (C major)
  • Finale: Allegro con brio ( C minor )

Playing time: approx. 50 minutes

Draeseke's Symphonia tragica is composed in a cyclical form and is held together in terms of motif by the introduction of the first movement, initially indefinite in terms of key, which forms the basis for the thematic material of all four movements. In its dramaturgical conception, the work is designed entirely for the finale. While the first three movements were more or less in traditional forms, this movement (with 826 bars one of the most extensive symphonic finals of all) is freely composed in the manner of a symphonic poem .

The symphony is not a programmatic work, but its title suggests extra-musical inspiration . Draeseke put a tragedy into music, which initially tries to overcome the gloomy introduction with a powerful, optimistic sonata main movement and leads to the combative finale via a plaintive slow movement and a Scherzo that shows Draeseke's subtle humor, in which the introduction of the first movement is repeated at the end before the work in C major disappears.

From the effect of the work on his contemporaries, the composer gave Richard Wetz in 1898 a testimony: "This symphony is the counterpart to the fifth of Beethoven . In both an energetic struggle with dark forces, a rebellion against dark forces. With Beethoven victory - here downfall, futile struggle, the hottest longing, courageous pulling up, without victory. The effect of the symphony is really tragic. The tragic that is expressed in it is the tragedy of the person who wrestles with his fate, and in the end stands like at the beginning, wistful, painful, resigned, composed, but no longer made for joy. From the symphony it sounded to me as if someone was telling his failed life. The name Felix strikes me as ironic with Draeseke. Felix - and this symphony! "

Audio samples

Note: The above recording was made freely available on the Internet by the International Draeseke Society (IDG). This is a historical recording from 1942 with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (renamed 'Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Berlin' in 1956). The conductor of the recording, Heinz Drewes, shortened the central fugato in the finale (Tt. 357–379). Due to production errors, the opening bars were lost in the first and fourth movements.

literature

  • Krueck, Alan H .: The Symphonies of Felix Draeseke. A Study in Consideration of Developments in Symphonic Form in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century. Zurich, 1967
  • Loos, Helmut u. a. (Ed.): Series of publications by the International Draeseke Society. Gudrun Schröder Verlag, Bonn, 1987–1998 - Volume V: On the work of Felix Draeseke: Instrumental works and sacred music.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Symphony No. 3 at jpc.de