The Suite über 6 schweizerische Volkslieder für Orchester ( Suite on Six Swiss Folk Songs) is an orchestral piece by

Rolf Liebermann Rolf Liebermann (14 September 1910 – 2 January 1999), was a Swiss composer and music administrator. He served as the artistic director of the Hamburg State Opera from 1959 to 1973 and again from 1985 to 1988. He was also the artistic director ...

, composed in 1944 and published in 1947. It was performed for the first time on 16 October 1949 by

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British-born American conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra. H ...

with the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

at the

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

, New York. The suite was composed during the

second world war World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. At that time patriotism was a more common element in Swiss arts. Rolf Liebermann dedicated this composition to

Paul Burkhard Paul Burkhard (21 December 1911 – 6 September 1977) was a Swiss composer. He primarily wrote oratorios, musicals and operettas. The contemporaneous and similarly named Swiss composer Willy Burkhard was no relation to him. Probably his most fa ...

, a Swiss composer who pioneered in incorporating Swiss themes in classical music. The light style in which the Swiss songs were arranged, show the influence of

Ferruccio Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...

's " Young Classicism". The suite consists of six parts: # Es isch kei sölige Stamme (Fröhlich bestimmt, Allegro) here is no such tribe (joyously determined)# Im Aargäu sind zwie Liebi (Gemächlich, Andantino) n Aargau there are two lovers (unhurried)">Aargau.html" ;"title="n Aargau">n Aargau there are two lovers (unhurried)# Schönster Abestärn (Ruhig, nicht schleppen, Andante) [Most beautiful evening star (quiet, not too slow)] # Durs Oberland uf und durs Oberland ab (Lustig, Allegro moderato) [The highlands up, the highlands down (joyous)] # (Langsam, Lento) [There is someone on earth (I want to be with) (slow)] # Üsen Ätti (Sehr frisch, Allegro vivace) ur daddy (very fresh) It is orchestrated for w

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

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 type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, ...

s alternating with

English horn The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn (mainly North America), is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially ...

s, 2

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

s in B, 2

bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind 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 virtuosity ...

s, 2

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...

s in F,

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orchestras or ...

. A performance lasts about 11 minutes.

Recordings

*1956 –

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

30 113 EPL, RIAS Symphonie-Orchester Berlin conducted by

Ferenc Fricsay Ferenc Fricsay (; 9 August 1914 – 20 February 1963) was a Hungarian conductor. From 1960 until his death, he was an Austrian citizen. Biography Fricsay was born in Budapest in 1914 and studied music under Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály, Ern ...

*1998 – Musica Helvetica MH CD 103.2, Schweizer Kammerphilharmonie conducted by Patrice Ulrich

References

{{Authority control Orchestral suites 1947 compositions Music dedicated to ensembles or performers