The Violin Concerto in
D minor
D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major.
The D natural minor scale is:
Changes needed for t ...
,
Op. 47 of
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest com ...
, originally composed in 1904 and revised in 1905, is the only
concerto
A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...
by Sibelius. It is symphonic in scope and included an extended
cadenza
In music, a cadenza (from it, cadenza, link=no , meaning cadence; plural, ''cadenze'' ) is, generically, an improvisation, improvised or written-out ornament (music), ornamental passage (music), passage played or sung by a solo (music), sol ...
for the soloist which takes on the role of the
development section
Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...
in the first movement.
History
Sibelius originally dedicated the concerto to the noted violinist
Willy Burmester, who promised to play the concerto in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. For financial reasons, however, Sibelius decided to premiere it in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
, and since Burmester was unavailable to travel to Finland, Sibelius engaged
Victor Nováček (1873–1914), a Hungarian violin pedagogue of Czech origin who was then teaching at the Helsinki Institute of Music (now the
Sibelius Academy
The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It al ...
).
The initial version of the concerto premiered on 8 February 1904, with Sibelius conducting. Sibelius had barely finished the work in time for the premiere, giving Nováček little time to prepare, and the piece was of such difficulty that it would have sorely tested even a player of much greater skill. Given these factors, it was unwise of Sibelius to choose Nováček, who was a teacher and not a recognised soloist, and it is not surprising that the premiere was a disaster.
However, Nováček was not the poor player he is sometimes painted as. He was the first violinist hired by
Martin Wegelius for the Helsinki Institute, and in 1910 he participated in the premiere of Sibelius's string quartet ''
Voces intimae'', which received favourable reviews.
Sibelius withheld this version from publication and made substantial revisions. He deleted much material he felt did not work. The new version premiered on 19 October 1905 with
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...
conducting the
Berlin Court Orchestra. Sibelius was not in attendance. Willy Burmester was again asked to be the soloist, but he was again unavailable, so the performance went ahead without him, the orchestra's leader
Karel Halíř
Karel Halíř (1 February 1859 – 21 December 1909) was a Czech violinist who lived mainly in Germany. "Karel" is also given as Karol, Karl or Carl; "Halíř" is also given as Halir or Haliř.
Life
Karel Halíř was born in Hohenelbe, Bohem ...
stepping into the soloist's shoes. Burmester was so offended that he refused ever to play the concerto, and Sibelius re-dedicated it to the Hungarian "wunderkind"
Ferenc von Vecsey, who was aged 12 at the time. Vecsey championed the work, first performing it when he was only 13,
although he could not adequately cope with the extraordinary technical demands of the work.
The initial version was noticeably more demanding on the advanced skills of the soloist. The revised version still requires a high level of technical facility on the part of the soloist. The original is somewhat longer than the revised, including
themes that did not survive the revision. Certain parts, like the very beginning, most of the third movement, and parts of the second, have not changed at all. The cadenza in the first movement is exactly the same for the violin part.
Recent history of the 1904 version
The Sibelius family has granted occasional permission for a small number of orchestras and soloists to perform the original 1904 version in public. The first such documented authorisation was for a September 1990 performance by Manfred Grasbeck, the
Lahti Symphony Orchestra The Lahti Symphony Orchestra (''Sinfonia Lahti'') is a Finnish orchestra, based in the city of Lahti. The orchestra is resident at the Sibelius Hall. The orchestra was founded in 1910, and placed under the control of the Lahti municipality in 194 ...
and
Osmo Vänskä
Osmo Antero Vänskä (born 28 February 1953) is a Finnish conductor, clarinetist, and composer.
Biography
Vänskä started his musical career as an orchestral clarinetist with the Turku Philharmonic (1971–76). He then became the principal cla ...
.
In January 1991, BIS made a commercial recording of the original 1904 version, with
Leonidas Kavakos, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra and Vänskä. Subsequent performances of the 1904 version have been as follows:
* 3 September 2015:
Elina Vähälä
Elina Vähälä (born 15 October 1975, Iowa City, Iowa) is a Finnish classical violinist.
Biography
Born in the United States in Iowa City, Iowa, Vähälä began violin studies at the age of three, following her family's return to Finland, at th ...
(soloist),
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (Finnish: ''Radion sinfoniaorkesteri'', Swedish: ''Radions symfoniorkester'') is a Finnish broadcast orchestra based in Helsinki, and the orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle). The orchestra prima ...
,
Hannu Lintu
Hannu Petteri Lintu (born 13 October 1967) is a Finnish conductor.
Biography
Lintu was born in Rauma. He studied piano and cello at the Turku Conservatory and at the Sibelius Academy. He also studied conducting with Atso Almila, and later with ...
(conductor)
* 28 November 2015:
Maxim Vengerov
Maxim Alexandrovich Vengerov (russian: Максим Александрович Венгеров, , mɐkˈsʲim ɐlʲɪkˈsandrəvʲɪtɕ vʲɪnˈɡʲerəf; he, מקסים ונגרוב; born 20 August 1974) is a Russian-born Israeli violinist, ...
(soloist),
Queensland Symphony Orchestra
Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra in the state of Queensland. The orchestra is based in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's building in South Bank. The Orchestra is funded by private corporations, t ...
,
Nicholas Carter (conductor)
[QSO & Maxim Vengerov]
Retrieved 5 May 2016
* 5 June 2016: Maxim Vengerov (soloist), Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Marios Papadopoulos (conductor) (The Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, UK)
* 6 June 2016: Maxim Vengerov(soloist), Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Marios Papadopoulos (conductor) (Barbican Centre, London)
* 5 and 6 October 2016: Maxim Vengerov (soloist),
Orchestre de Paris
The Orchestre de Paris () is a French orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra currently performs most of its concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris.
History
In 1967, following the dissolution of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du ...
,
Christoph Eschenbach
Christoph Eschenbach (; born 20 February 1940) is a German pianist and conductor.
Early life
Eschenbach was born in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland). His parents were Margarethe (née Jaross) and Heribert Ringmann. He was orphaned durin ...
(conductor).
* 7 and 8 January 2022: Elina Vähälä (soloist),
Minnesota Orchestra
The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall.
History
Em ...
, Osmo Vänskä (conductor)
In 2020, Robert Lienau Musikverlag produced the first published version of the original 1904 version of the Violin Concerto.
Music
This is the only
concerto
A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...
that Sibelius wrote, though he composed several other smaller-scale pieces for solo instrument and
orchestra
An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families.
There are typically four main sections of instruments:
* bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...
, including the six Humoresques for violin and orchestra.
One noteworthy feature of the work is the way in which an extended
cadenza
In music, a cadenza (from it, cadenza, link=no , meaning cadence; plural, ''cadenze'' ) is, generically, an improvisation, improvised or written-out ornament (music), ornamental passage (music), passage played or sung by a solo (music), sol ...
for the soloist takes on the role of the
development section
Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...
in the
sonata form
Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical form, musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle ...
first movement.
Donald Tovey
Sir Donald Francis Tovey (17 July 187510 July 1940) was a British musical analyst, musicologist, writer on music, composer, conductor and pianist. He had been best known for his '' Essays in Musical Analysis'' and his editions of works by Bach ...
described the final movement as a "
polonaise
The polonaise (, ; pl, polonez ) is a dance of Polish origin, one of the five Polish national dances in time. Its name is French for "Polish" adjective feminine/"Polish woman"/"girl". The original Polish name of the dance is Chodzony, meani ...
for
polar bear
The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
s".
[ Tovey, Donald Francis. '' Essays in Musical Analysis'', 1935–39] However, he was not intending to be derogatory, as he went on: "In the easier and looser concerto forms invented by
Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...
and
Schumann
Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...
I have not met a more original, a more masterly, and a more exhilarating work than the Sibelius violin concerto".
Much of the violin writing is purely virtuosic, but even the most showy passages alternate with the melodic. This concerto is generally symphonic in scope, departing completely from the often lighter, "rhythmic" accompaniments of many other concertos.
Scoring
The concerto is scored for solo
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
, 2
flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
s, 2
oboe
The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range.
A ...
s, 2
clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
s, 2
bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...
s, 4
horns Horns or The Horns may refer to:
* Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells
* The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain
* ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...
, 2
trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
s, 3
trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...
s,
timpani
Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...
and
strings
String or strings may refer to:
*String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...
.
Movements
Like most concertos, the work is in three
movements
Movement may refer to:
Common uses
* Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece
* Motion, commonly referred to as movement
Arts, entertainment, and media
Literature
* "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...
:
I. Allegro moderato
The first movement opens with a cushion of pianissimo strings pulsating gently. The soloist then enters with a first
theme
Theme or themes may refer to:
* Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work
* Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos
* Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...
featuring a G-A-D motif, which is briefly echoed by a clarinet solo.
After a passionate high F and an unexpected E-flat major chord, the soloist introduces a new, dark theme on the G string. The lower woodwinds and timpani accompany the violinist in several runs. Cadenza-like arpeggios,
double stop
In music, a double stop is the technique of playing two notes simultaneously on a stringed instrument such as a violin, a viola, a cello, or a double bass. On instruments such as the Hardanger fiddle it is common and often employed. In performin ...
s, and more runs from the soloist are accompanied by more woodwind restatements of the theme. The soloist then plays a relatively brief cadenza featuring rapid sixteenth notes and quick string crossings. After an ascending scale from the solo violin in broken octaves, the strings then enter in a symphonic manner, announcing the second half of the exposition material. The music is then carried on by the bassoons and clarinets before another entrance of the soloist.
The violin plays a gentle ascending motif, then a quick arpeggio which ascends into a heroic violin theme, culminating in ''affettuoso'' octaves. The soloist softly soars in a slow D♭ arpeggio which leads into a tender, winding broken-octave passage built upon the heroic theme. These octaves build to a trill on one string with the winding figure played articulately on another. Another forceful orchestral tutti leads to an extensive violin cadenza. The cadenza occupies the developmental portion of the movement and ends just before the
recapitulation, the heroic theme being played by the violin a semitone higher than before. A long trill from the soloist suddenly transitions into the virtuosic coda, requiring remarkable skill in octaves, rapid and wide shifts to
harmonics
A harmonic is a wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the '' fundamental frequency'', the frequency of the original periodic signal, such as a sinusoidal wave. The original signal is also called the ''1st harmonic'', ...
, and ricochet bowing. An upward cascade of double stops, a chord with a fingered harmonic, and a strong final D conclude the first movement.
II. Adagio di molto
The second movement is very lyrical. A short theme from the clarinets and oboes leads into the main theme, played by the solo violin over
pizzicato
Pizzicato (, ; translated as "pinched", and sometimes roughly as "plucked") is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of instrument :
* On bowed ...
strings.
Dissonant
In music, consonance and dissonance are categorizations of simultaneous or successive Sound, sounds. Within the Western tradition, some listeners associate consonance with sweetness, pleasantness, and acceptability, and dissonance with harshness ...
accompaniments by the brass dominate the first part of the song-like movement.
After, the orchestra enters boldly with the introductory theme in a tempestuous mood. Suddenly, the solo violin enters with plaintive, double-stopped, polyrhythmic phrases. The passage develops into continuous triplet-sixteenth notes, which lead into a building trill section. After a climactic high C and B-flat, the music relaxes, leading to graceful upward scales in broken octaves by the violinist. Soon after, the solo violin increases the tension once again and finally comes to the movement's main climax, which is essentially a variation of the first theme.
Then, the solo violin restates the first theme and, playing gently grace-noted figures, ends with a light float up to an all-serene harmonic D. Soft
B-flat major
B-flat major is a major scale based on B, with pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. Its key signature has two flats. Its relative minor is G minor and its parallel minor is B-flat minor.
The B-flat major scale is:
:
Many transposing ins ...
chords by the orchestra accompany this tranquil close to the movement.
III. Allegro, ma non tanto
The final movement opens with four bars of rhythmic percussion, with the lower strings playing 'eighth note – sixteenth note – sixteenth note' figures. The violin boldly enters with the first theme on the G string. This first section offers a complete and brilliant display of violin gymnastics with up-bow
staccato double-stop
In music, a double stop is the technique of playing two notes simultaneously on a stringed instrument such as a violin, a viola, a cello, or a double bass. On instruments such as the Hardanger fiddle it is common and often employed. In performin ...
s and a run with rapid string-crossing, then octaves, that leads into the first
tutti
''Tutti'' is an Italian word literally meaning ''all'' or ''together'' and is used as a musical term, for the whole orchestra as opposed to the soloist. It is applied similarly to choral music, where the whole section or choir is called to sing. ...
.
The second theme is taken up by the orchestra and is almost a
waltz
The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position.
History
There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...
; the violin takes up the same theme in
variations
Variation or Variations may refer to:
Science and mathematics
* Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon
* Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individua ...
, with
arpeggios and double-stops. Another short section concluding with a run of octaves makes a bridge into a recapitulation of the first theme.
Clarinet and low brass introduce the final section. A passage of
harmonics
A harmonic is a wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the '' fundamental frequency'', the frequency of the original periodic signal, such as a sinusoidal wave. The original signal is also called the ''1st harmonic'', ...
in the violin precedes a sardonic passage of chords and slurred double-stops. A passage of broken octaves leads to an incredibly heroic few lines of double-stops and leaping octaves. A brief orchestral
tutti
''Tutti'' is an Italian word literally meaning ''all'' or ''together'' and is used as a musical term, for the whole orchestra as opposed to the soloist. It is applied similarly to choral music, where the whole section or choir is called to sing. ...
comes before the violin leads things to the finish with a D major scale up, returning down in flatted
supertonic
In music, the supertonic is the second degree () of a diatonic scale, one whole step above the tonic. In the movable do solfège system, the supertonic note is sung as ''re''.
The triad built on the supertonic note is called the supertonic ch ...
(then repeated). A flourish of ascending slur-separate sixteenth notes, punctuated by a resolute D from the violin and orchestra concludes the concerto.
References
External links
*
"Jean Sibelius: The Music. Violin Concerto". Finnish Club of Helsinki article
{{Authority control
Concertos by Jean Sibelius
Sibelius Violin Concerto
1904 compositions
Compositions in D minor