Arnold Bax

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Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax KCVO (born November 8, 1883 in Streatham in the south of London , † October 3, 1953 in Cork , Ireland) was an English composer .

Arnold Bax (around 1922)

Life

Bax came from a wealthy family and therefore never had to work to make a living. From 1900 he studied piano with Tobias Matthay and composition with Frederick Corder at the Royal Academy of Music . In 1902 he discovered the poetry of the Irishman William Butler Yeats and from then on became enthusiastic about Ireland and the Celtic culture. Under the Irish pseudonym Dermot O'Byrne , he also published some short stories that demonstrate his literary talent. In 1905 he finished his studies and wrote his first symphonic poem , Cathaleen-ni-Hoolihan ; but only In the Faery Hills (1909), part of the Eire trilogy , gained recognition.

In 1910 he toured Russia and Ukraine as a result of a love affair with Natalia Skarginska; these experiences are reflected in his first piano sonata . In 1911 he married Elsa Luisa Sobrino and moved with her to Rathgar near Dublin . In 1914 he returned to London, where he met the young pianist Harriet Cohen , for whom he later left his wife and two children. In 1916 he was shocked by the Easter Rising in Ireland, during which he lost several friends. These eventful years were among his most creative. The important works of his first creative phase were written, the symphonic poems The Garden of Fand (1913-16), November Woods (1917) and Tintagel (1917-19), the piano quintet (1915) and the second piano sonata (1919). These works are written in a flowing and harmoniously rich late romantic style that has various influences such as Richard Wagner , Franz Liszt , Claude Debussy and Edward Elgar .

Bax changed his compositional style with the two-choir motet Mater ora Filium (1921). Under the influence of the works of Jean Sibelius and Igor Stravinsky , clear melody lines, classical forms of music and a moderately modern polyphony of the voices came to the fore. With the first symphony (1922) he opened one of the most important English symphony cycles of the 20th century. Like the viola sonata from the same year, it was soon performed all over Europe; the second symphony (1926) reached the USA in 1929 in Boston under Serge Kussewitzki . His relationship with Mary Gleaves began in 1926 and lasted until the end of his life, but he preferred to compose in the solitude of nature. In 1929 he completed the Third Symphony in Morar on the west coast of Scotland , which Sir Henry Wood premiered a year later .

Bax was now a famous composer and has received numerous honors, he was in 1937 as a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order for beaten knight . But at the same time his inspiration dwindled, which has now been replaced in many works by a virtuoso composition and instrumentation technique. Nonetheless, he was still extremely productive, and by the Second World War he composed four more symphonies (1931–39), a Sinfonietta (1932), a cello concerto (1932), a violin concerto (1938) and a lot of chamber music , some in unusual formations , so a nonet (1930), an octet (1934) and a concerto for flute, oboe, harp and string quartet (1936).

1940 Bax moved to Storrington ( Sussex ) and wrote his autobiography Farewell, my Youth . In 1942 he was appointed Master of the King's Music , but he now almost completely stopped his composing activity. The few works in his final years include three film scores and two concertante works for Harriet Cohen: Morning Song (around 1946) and the Concertante for piano left hand and orchestra (1949) (composed after the pianist injured her right hand in an accident would have). The composer died in 1953 while on vacation in Ireland. Bax described himself as an “iron romantic” and rejected Schönberg's twelve-tone technique.

Works

  • Symphonies
    • Symphony No. 1 in E flat major (1922)
    • Symphony No. 2 in E minor / C major (1926)
    • Symphony No. 3 (1929)
    • Symphony No. 4 (1931)
    • Symphony No. 5 (1932)
    • Symphony No. 6 (1934)
    • Symphony No. 7 (1939)
  • Concerts
    • Symphonic Variations in E major for piano and orchestra (1918)
    • Phantasy (Concerto) in D minor for viola and orchestra (1920)
    • Winter Legends . Sinfonia concertante for piano and orchestra (1930)
    • Cello Concerto (1932)
    • Violin Concerto (1938)
    • Morning Song (Maytime in Sussex) for piano and orchestra (around 1946)
    • Concertante for cor anglais, clarinet, horn and orchestra (1948)
    • Variations on the name Gabriel Fauré for harp and strings (1949)
    • Concertante (Concerto) for piano left hand and orchestra (1949)
  • Symphonic poems
    • Cathaleen-ni-Hoolihan (1903-05)
    • A Song of Life and Love (1905)
    • A Song of War and Victory (1905)
    • Into the Twilight (1908; 1st part by Eire )
    • In the Faery Hills (1909; Part 2 by Eire )
    • Rosc-Catha (1910; 3rd part by Eire )
    • Christmas Eve on the Mountains (1911; edited around 1933)
    • Spring Fire . Symphony (1913)
    • Nympholept (1912-15)
    • The Garden of Fand (1913-16)
    • November Woods (1917)
    • Tintagel (1917-19)
    • The Happy Forest (1914-21)
    • The Tale the Pine-trees Knew (1931)
    • A Legend (1944)
  • further orchestral works
    • Variations (improvisations) (1904)
    • A Connemara Revel (1905)
    • To Irish Overture (1906)
    • Festival Overture (1911; edited 1918)
    • Prelude to Adonais (1912)
    • 4 (Irish) Pieces (4 Sketches) (1912–13; edited 1928)
    • Symphonic Scherzo (1917; edited 1933)
    • Russian Suite (1919)
    • Summer Music (1917-20; edited 1932)
    • Mediterranean (1922)
    • Cortège (1925)
    • Romantic Overture for chamber orchestra (1926)
    • Overture, Elegy and Rondo (1927)
    • Northern Ballad no.1 (1927-31)
    • 3 pieces (1928)
    • Overture to a Picaresque Comedy (1930)
    • Sinfonietta (1932)
    • Prelude for a Solemn Occasion (1927–33)
    • Northern Ballad no.2 (1934)
    • Rogue's Comedy Overture (1936)
    • Overture to Adventure (1936)
    • London Pageant . March and Trio (1937)
    • Paean (1938)
    • Work in progress . Overture (1943)
    • Coronation March (1952)
  • Ballets
    • King Kojata (Tamara) (piano version only) (1911)
    • Between Dusk and Dawn (1917)
    • The Frog Skin (1918)
  • Incidental music
    • The Truth about the Russian Dancers (1920; edited 1926)
    • Golden Eagle (1945)
  • Film music
    • Malta GC (1942)
    • Oliver Twist (1948)
    • Journey into History (1952)
  • Chamber music
    • String Quartet (1902)
    • String Quartet in E major (1903)
    • Concert piece for violin or viola and piano (1903)
    • Fantasy for violin or viola and piano (1904)
    • Piano Trio (1906)
    • String quintet in G major (1908)
    • Violin Sonata No. 1 (1910; 1915, 1920 and 1945 edited)
    • 4 pieces for violin and piano (1915)
    • Violin Sonata No. 2 (1915; edited 1921)
    • Ballad for violin and piano (1916)
    • Elegiac Trio for flute, viola and harp (1916)
    • In memoriam for cor anglais , harp and string quartet (1917)
    • String Quartet No. 1 (1918)
    • Folk Tale for violoncello and piano (1918)
    • Harp Quintet (1919)
    • Viola Sonata (1922)
    • Lyrical Interlude for string quintet (1922)
    • Oboe Quintet (1922)
    • Piano quartet (1922)
    • Cello Sonata in E flat major (1923)
    • String Quartet No. 2 (1925)
    • Violin Sonata No. 3 (1927)
    • Fantasy Sonata for viola and harp (1927)
    • Sonatina for flute and harp (1928)
    • Violin Sonata in F major (1928)
    • Legend for viola and piano (1929)
    • Nonet (1930)
    • String Quintet (1933)
    • Sonatina for violoncello and piano (1933)
    • Clarinet Sonata (1934)
    • Octet for horn, piano and string sextet (1934)
    • Concerto for flute, oboe, harp and string quartet (1936)
    • Threnody and Scherzo for bassoon, harp and string sextet (1936)
    • String Quartet No. 3 (1936)
    • Rhapsodic Ballad for violoncello (1939)
    • Legend-Sonata for violoncello and piano (1943)
    • Piano Trio in B flat major (1946)
  • Piano works
    • Fantasia in a minor for piano duo (1900)
    • Piano Sonata No. 1 (1910; 1921 arranged)
    • Concert Valse in E flat major (1910)
    • 2 Russian sound images ( May Night in the Ukraine ; Gopak ) (1912)
    • Toccata (1913)
    • The Princess's Rose Garden ; In a vodka shop ; The Maiden with the Daffodil ; Apple Blossom Time ; Sleepy head ; A Mountain Mood ; Winter Waters (1915)
    • Dream in Exile ; Nereid (1916)
    • Moy Mell (The Pleasant Plain) for piano duo (1917)
    • On a May Evening (1918)
    • Piano Sonata No. 2 (1919)
    • Whirligig ; The slave girl ; What the minstrel told us (1919)
    • Lullaby ; Burlesque ; Ceremonial dance ; Country tune ; A Hill Tune ; Serpent dance ; Water Music (1920)
    • Mediterranean (1920; orchestrated 1922)
    • Paean (1920; orchestrated 1938)
    • Piano Sonata No. 3 (1926)
    • Hardanger for piano duo (1927)
    • The Poisoned Fountain for piano duo (1928)
    • Sonata for piano duo (1929)
    • The Devil that Tempted St Anthony for piano duo (1929)
    • Red Autumn for piano duo (1931)
    • Piano Sonata No. 4 (1932)
    • O lady get up and bake your pies (1945)
    • 2 Lyrical Pieces (Oliver Twist) (1948)
    • 35 unpublished piano works, including 3 sonatas
  • Choral works
    • Fatherland for tenor, choir and orchestra (1907; edited 1934)
    • Enchanted Summer for 2 sopranos, choir and orchestra (1910)
    • Of a Rose I Sing a Song for choir, harp, cello and double bass (1920)
    • Now is the Time of Christymas for male choir, flute and piano (1921)
    • Mater ora Filium for choir (1921)
    • The Worldes Joie for choir (1922)
    • The Boar's Head for male choir (1923)
    • I sing of a Maiden that is Makeless for choir (1923)
    • St Patrick's Breastplate for choir and orchestra (1923)
    • To the Name above every Name for soprano, choir and orchestra (1923)
    • Walsinghame for tenor, choir and orchestra (1926)
    • The Morning Watch for choir and orchestra (1935)
    • 5 Fantasies on Polish Christmas Carols for boys' choir and strings (1942)
    • 5 Greek Folksongs for Choir (1944)
    • To Russia for baritone, choir and orchestra (1944)
    • Nunc Dimittis for choir and organ (1944)
    • Te Deum for choir and organ (1944)
    • Gloria for choir and organ (1945)
    • Epithalamium for choir and organ (1947)
    • Magnificat for choir and organ (1948)
    • What is it like to be young and fair for choir (1953)
  • Songs
    • A Celtic Song Cycle . 5 songs (1904)
    • Rune of Age for voice and orchestra (1905)
    • The Fairies ; Golden guendoles ; The Song in the Twilight (1905)
    • The White Peace (1906)
    • The Enchanted Fiddle ; The Flute (Ideala) ; A Milking Sean (1907)
    • Shieling Song ; A Lyke-wake (1908)
    • A Christmas Carol (1909)
    • Lullaby ; To Eire (1910)
    • Roundel (1914)
    • The Bard of the Dimbovitza for mezzo-soprano and orchestra (1914; arranged in 1946)
    • Parting (1916)
    • The Splendor Falls (1917)
    • Green grow the rashes O! ; I have house and land in Kent ; The Maid and the Miller ; O dear! what can the matter be ; When I was one and twenty ; Youth (1918)
    • Variations sur Cadet Rousselle (1918; with Frank Bridge , Eugène Goossens and John Ireland )
    • Le chant d'Isabeau (1920)
    • 5 Traditional Songs of France (1920)
    • 5 Irish Songs (1921)
    • 3 Irish Songs (1922)
    • The Market Girl (1922)
    • I heard a soldier ; Wild Almond (1924)
    • Carrey Clavel ; Eternity (1925)
    • In the Morning ; On the bridge ; Out and away (1926)
    • Watching the Needleboats (1932)
    • Dream Child (1957)
    • 75 unpublished songs

literature

  • Lewis Foreman: Bax: a composer and his times , Woodbridge, UK; Rochester, NY: Boydell Press, 2007, ISBN 978-1-8438-3209-6

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Bax, Arnold
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bax, Sir Arnold Edward Trevor (full name); O'Byrne, Dermot (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English composer
DATE OF BIRTH November 8, 1883
PLACE OF BIRTH Streatham in south London
DATE OF DEATH 3rd October 1953
Place of death Cork