The Symphony No. 6 ("Fantaisies symphoniques"), H. 343, by

Bohuslav Martinů Bohuslav Jan Martinů (; December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech composer of modern classical music. He wrote 6 symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. He bec ...

was begun in New York City in 1951, after a hiatus of four years since its predecessor, and was tentatively completed three years later on 23 April 1953. In Paris, in the months following its completion, Martinů undertook some revisions to the score. It is dedicated to Charles Munch, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

, who premiered the symphony on 7 January 1955. Martinů originally called the work ''Fantaisies symphoniques'', and this is sometimes regarded as its only correct title.

Instrumentation

The Sixth calls for the smallest orchestra of all of Martinů's symphonies, and notably lacks either piano or harp. It is scored for three flutes, piccolo, three oboes, three clarinets, three bassoons, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (cymbals, tam-tam, triangle, tambourine, bass drum, side drum), and strings.

Analysis

The symphony has three movements: #Lento—Allegro—Lento #Poco allegro (4/4) #Lento The symphony is quite unlike the previous five symphonies. In Paris in the autumn of 1955, Martinů described it to Miloš Šafránek as a work "without form. And yet something holds it together, I don't know what, but it has a single line, and I have really expressed something in it". The Sixth Symphony is distinguished from its predecessors by a

canzona The canzona is an Italian musical form derived from the Franco-Flemish and Parisian chansons, and during Giovanni Gabrieli's lifetime was frequently spelled canzona, though both earlier and later the singular was spelled either canzon or canzone ...

-like structure, with an exceptionally high level of invention. Motivic development is carried out in series of extended sections each with a distinct texture, steadily increasing in speed through to the end of the second movement. The reversion in the finale to the lento tempo of the opening movement is accomplished more rapidly, with the correspondence becoming exact only close to the end. The symphony opens with an hallucinatory, otherworldly texture that sounds like music only just in the process of being formed—music without rhythm, melody, or harmony. This is created using only nine instruments: three flutes, three trumpets, and three solo strings, in superimposed rhythmic layers that divide the slow beat into nine, ten, and twelve subdivisions simultaneously. The complexity produces what is in effect an

aleatory Aleatoricism or aleatorism, the noun associated with the adjectival aleatory and aleatoric, is a term popularised by the musical composer Pierre Boulez, but also Witold Lutosławski and Franco Evangelisti (composer), Franco Evangelisti, for compo ...

texture, "a gateway into the imprecise realm of fantasy".

Discography

Czech Philharmonic The Česká filharmonie (Czech Philharmonic) is a symphony orchestra based in Prague. The orchestra's principal concert venue is the Rudolfinum. History The name "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" appeared for the first time in 1894, as the title ...

Karel Ančerl Karel Ančerl (11 April 1908 – 3 July 1973) was a Czechoslovak conductor and composer, renowned especially for his performances of contemporary music and for his interpretations of music by Czech composers. Ančerl was born into a prosper ...

, cond. Recorded in Dvořák Hall, Prague, 23–24 February 1956. LP recording, monaural. Supraphon DV 5475. Prague: Artia, 1956. Reissued on Supraphon LP LPV 416, on Supraphon LP SUA 10327, Rediffusion LP HCN 8008. *

, Charles Munch, cond. recorded 23 April 1956. LP recording, monaural. RCA Victor LM 2083. amden, NJ RCA Victor, 1957. Reissued in stereo ("First Stereo Release") on LP, RCA Gold Seal AGL1-3794, 1980. Reissued on CD, RCA BVCC-38467, 88697-04828-2. New York: Sony BMG Music Entertainment, 2006. *

Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra The Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra (''Symfonický orchestr Českého rozhlasu'', Czech acronym SOČR, English acronym PRSO) is a Czech broadcast orchestra based in Prague, the Czech Republic. The SOČR performs concerts at the Dvořák Hall of th ...

, Charles Munch, cond. Live recording, Dvořák Hall, Prague, 27 March 1967. Panton 81 1122-2; published 1992. * New Philharmonia Orchestra,

Michael Bialoguski Michael Bialoguski (19 March 191729 July 1984) was a Polish-Australian medical practitioner, musician and intelligence agent, who played a significant part in the 1954 Petrov Affair. Biography Michael Bialoguski was born to Polish Jewish parent ...

. Unicorn Records RHS 309 LP, published 1971. * Czech Philharmonic,

Václav Neumann Václav Neumann (29 October 1920 – 2 September 1995) was a Czech conductor, violinist, violist, and opera director. Life and career Neumann was born in Prague, where he studied at the Prague Conservatory with Josef Micka (violin), and Pav ...

, cond. LP recording, SQ quadraphonic encoded. Recorded January 1976. Supraphon 1410 2096. * Czech Philharmonic, Václav Neumann, cond. Recorded 14–20 June 1984, House of Artists, Prague. CD recording, stereo. Supraphon 33C37-7760. Tokyo: Nippon Columbia Co., Ltd., 1985. * Russian State Symphony Orchestra,

Gennadi Rozhdestvensky Gennady Nikolayevich Rozhdestvensky, CBE (russian: Генна́дий Никола́евич Рожде́ственский; 4 May 1931 – 16 June 2018) was a Soviet and Russian conductor. Biography Gennady Rozhdestvensky was born in Moscow. H ...

. Revelation RV 10005 Recorded March 17 May 1985. *

Bamberg Symphony Orchestra The Bamberg Symphony (German: Bamberger Symphoniker – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie) is a German orchestra based in Bamberg. It is one of the most prestigious orchestras in Germany. The orchestra was formed in 1946 mainly from German musicians e ...

Neeme Järvi Neeme Järvi (; born 7 June 1937) is an Estonian American conductor. Early life Järvi was born in Tallinn. He initially studied music there, and later in Leningrad at the Leningrad Conservatory under Yevgeny Mravinsky, and Nikolai Rabinovich, ...

. Bis CD 0402. Recorded at Dominikanerbau, Bamberg, Germany March 1988. * Czech Philharmonic,

Jiří Bělohlávek Jiří Bělohlávek, (; 24 February 1946 – 31 May 2017) was a Czech conductor. He was a leading interpreter of Czech classical music, and became chief conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1990, a role he would serve on two occasio ...

. Chandos CHAN 8897. Recorded Prague Castle 1989. *

Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the Or ...

Bryden Thomson Bryden Thomson (16 July 1928 – 14 November 1991) was a Scottish conductor remembered especially for his championship of British and Scandinavian composers. His recordings include influential surveys of the orchestral music of Hamilton Harty a ...

. Chandos CHAN 8916 recorded 20 and 21 August 1990. * Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra, Arthur Fagen. Naxos 8.553348. Recorded at the Concert Hall, National Radio of Ukraine, Kiev, 24–26 June 1995. * Sinfonieorchester St. Gallen, Jiří Kout. Recorded at Tonhalle St. Gallen, Switzerland, 1–11 June 2003. CD recording, stereo. Arte Nova Classics ANO 577400. Germany: Arte Nova, 2005. *

Vladimír Válek Vladimír Válek (born 2 September 1935, in Nový Jičín) is a Czech conductor. He was conductor of the Prague Symphony for 10 years, in which he made his first tours of Europe and the United States He was the Principal Conductor of the Slovak P ...

, cond. Recorded Prague, Czech Radio, Studio A, 2006. 3-CD set. Supraphon SU 3940. Prague: Supraphon, 2008. * BBC Symphony Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek. Recorded live at the Barbican Hall, London, 8 May 2010. 3-CD set. Onyx 4061. ondon Onyx Classics, 2011.

References

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Instrumentation

Analysis

Discography

References

Further reading