Ernest Chausson - Symphony in B-flat, Op. 20 (1890)

Amédée-Ernest Chausson (20 January 1855 – 10 June 1899) was a French Romantic composer who died just as his career was beginning to flourish.

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Symphony in B-flat major, Op. 20 (1890)
Dedication: Henri Lerolle

I. Lent - Allegro vivo (0:00)
II. Très lent (11:55)
III. Animé (21:24)

Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal conducted by Charles Dutoit

The Symphony was first performed on 18 April 1891 at a concert of the Société Nationale de Musique conducted by the composer. As with César Franck's Symphony in D minor, the critics were divided.

It was dedicated to the French painter and art collector Henry Lerolle.

The symphony follows the 3-movement form as established by Chausson's teacher and mentor César Franck, it also employs the cyclic form of recurring themes.
The first movement follows a personal adaptation of sonata-form, dividing the development section into several sections, with a highly dramatic slow introduction, introducing the solemn main theme of the symphony. It slowly builds to an anguished climax only to be followed by a very swift and light-hearted allegro vivo in the key of B-flat major. The second subject is more relaxed and harmonised in chromatic-impressionistic chords. After a sudden heightening tension the Allegro Vivo theme is restated and the movement closes triumphantly.

The second movement is an A-B-A' structure and brings in mind Chausson's songs. It begins darkly in the key of D minor. The second subject, in B flat, is more optimistic. This builds up in a double climax, the second being a rather bold restatement of the first subject. The movement ends in D major. The third movement is a rondo structure supplemented by an epilogue, not unlike the finale in Franck's Symphony in D minor. The beginning is rather tempestuous, expressed in swift 16th figures alternating inexorably between strings and woodwind. The second theme is a brass chorale, reminiscent of Franck. The conclusion of the symphony is undoubtedly the most moving of all with the theme of the first movement stealing in and fading away in the end.

The Symphony takes Franck's concept of three-movement pattern with cyclic form one step further, making the form more dramatic and compressing symphonic form, a task taken to its extremes by Jean Sibelius. Harmonically it takes Franck's chromaticism towards something more impressionistic.

Another curious parallel with the Franck Symphony is the key relationships between the movements.

[Dylonely]

A really good composer who deserves more recognition !

[OisirM]

Chausson is a composer I've yet to reconcile with for myself. My first introduction to him was through his piano works, which I found uninspiring though pleasant, but some years later I gave my ear to his choral works and found them excellent. I'm still not sold on all of his works, but this symphony is certainly a strong champion of his obvious skill and inspiration, even if composition came with some difficulty to him, in his own words. It is an unusual work in it's structure, one that fools the listener into thinking they're in for a heroic finale but instead going into a much more subdued and charming fugal feel.

[hectorbarrionuevo]

One aspect of this Symphony I love is the lush harmonic language; it seems some film composers would have found it highly attractive ! Bartje, another great post !

[syroyid]

high quality writing and compositional technique, great discovery!

[willcwhite]

I'm always looking for a good excuse to listen to the Chausson symphony again, and seeing it pop up in my subscription feed this morning is as good a reason as any! Love this piece!!

[DavidPerez-wdtx]

Todo un poema de sinfonía, grande Chausson.

[notaire]

Wunderschöne Interpretation dieser spätromantischen und fein komponierten Sinfonie mit gut phrasierten doch perfekt entsprechenden Tönen aller Instrumente. Der zweite Satz klingt echt schön und auch melodisch. Im Kontrast klingt der dritte Satz echt lebhaft und auch überzeugend. Der intelligente und geniale Dirigent leitet das ausgezeichnete Orchester im veränderlichen Tempo und mit künstlerisch kontrollierter Dynamik. Wahrlich hörenswert!

[roadblock]

thank you for introducing me to a new piece!

[JarrettsAnnouncements]

21:24 The opening of the finale is undefeated.

[syroyid]

Amédée-Ernest Chausson (1855 – 1899) was a French Romantic composer who died just as his career was beginning to flourish.

Born in Paris into an affluent bourgeois family, Ernest Chausson was the sole surviving child of a building contractor who had made his fortune assisting Baron Haussmann in the redevelopment of Paris in the 1850s. To please his father, Chausson studied law and was appointed a barrister for the Court of Appeals, but had little or no interest in the profession. He frequented the Paris salons, where he met celebrities such as Henri Fantin-Latour, Odilon Redon, and Vincent d'Indy. Before deciding on a musical career, he dabbled in writing and drawing. In 1879, at the age of 24, he began attending the composition classes of Jules Massenet at the Paris Conservatoire; Massenet came to regard him as "an exceptional person and a true artist". Chausson had already composed some piano pieces and songs. Nevertheless, the earliest manuscripts that have been preserved are those corrected by Massenet. At the Conservatoire, Chausson also studied with César Franck, with whom he formed a close friendship that lasted until Franck's death in 1890. Chausson interrupted his studies in 1881, after a failed attempt to win the Prix de Rome. During 1882 and 1883, Chausson, who enjoyed travel, visited Bayreuth to hear the operas of Richard Wagner. On the first of these journeys, Chausson went with d'Indy for the premiere of Wagner's Parsifal, and on the second trip he went with his new spouse Jeanne Escudier (1862–1936), with whom he was to have five children. From 1886 until his death in 1899, Chausson was secretary of the Société Nationale de Musique. In his own home (22 Boulevard de Courcelles, near Parc Monceau), he received a great many eminent artists, including the composers Henri Duparc, Gabriel Fauré, Claude Debussy, and Isaac Albéniz, the poet Stéphane Mallarmé, the Russian novelist Ivan Turgenev, and the Impressionist painter Claude Monet. Chausson also assembled an important collection of paintings. (Source Wikipedia)

[patrickwalt]

This orchestration starts out so beautiful.... wow!

[carlkulzer]

What orchestra is this.? Wonderful recording. 10:30
.