Audio Sample
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Performance by HK Gruber, Swedish Chamber Orchestra from the CD Pastoral symphony ; The Siduri dances ; Water music ; Carlo |
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CD
Pastoral symphony ; The Siduri dances ; Water music ; Carlo / Brett Dean
Library shelf no. CD 2031 [Available for loan]
Score
Pastoral symphony : for chamber orchestra / Brett Dean.
Library shelf no. Q 784.3184/DEA 1 [Available for loan]
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Work Overview
Beethoven's famous Pastoral Symphony from 1808 is just one of
countless works, both large and small, found throughout the
entire Western canon in which composers have celebrated the
beauty and drama of nature. One need only start a short list
(Schubert's Trout, Mendelssohn's Hebrides, Smetana's Moldau,
Strauss's Blue Danube, Saint-Sean's Carnival, to name but a few)
to realise the apparent abundance and diversity of classical
music's odes to nature. And in our own time, Olivier Messiaen has
done arguably more than any other composer to draw our attention
to the greatest songsters on the planet, namely birds.
Having recently moved back to Australia after over 15 years in
Germany, I'm acutely aware of the incredible source of joy and
beauty, not to mention the resource of invention, that is to be
found just by opening the windows and listening. Definitely no
surprises on my part to read of Messiaen's utter fascination with
the Antipodes and to find kookaburras and magpies popping up
plentifully in his scores.
But in wishing to celebrate this wonderful abundance of treasures
in the present day, I for one find it increasingly difficult to
separate my love of the sounds of the natural world from an
immense and growing sense of loss. Consider our relentless and
respectless rampaging through the world's forests and wilderness
areas, all in the name of more shopping, freeways, carparks and
convenience. These issues are sadly a part of daily life in
Australia. Sure, we all "love" nature, but what we love more are
all the trappings of modern living...certainly more than the
desire to stop and bask in the glory of a single butcherbird,
perhaps the most magical sound found on the whole Australian
continent. This piece, then, is about glorious birdsong, the
threat that it faces, the loss, and the soulless noise that we're
left with when they're all gone.
© Brett Dean, 2000
Work Details
Year: 2000
Instrumentation: Flute (doubling piccolo), oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, 2 trumpets, 2 horns, trombone, tuba, percussion (2 players), piano, strings (3.3.2.1), CD, sampler.
Duration: 17 min.
Difficulty: Advanced
Commission note: Commissioned for Ensemble Modern.. Commissioned by the City of Frankfurt am Main for the Ensemble Modern
First performance: by Stefan Asbury, Ensemble Modern — 9 Feb 01. Maison de Radio France, Paris
Analysis
Article: Concerto makes vivid addition to viola repertoire
by William Dart
Source: Source: The New Zealand Herald, 18 April 2007
Subjects
- Has as subject/About: Birdsong
- In the form/style of: Symphonies
Performances of this work
10 Jul 2011: at Aurora Orchestra (Jerwood Hall, LSO St Luke's).
2005: featuring Australian Chamber Orchestra.
19 May 01: Alte Oper, Frankfurt, Germany. Featuring Stefan Asbury, Ensemble Modern.
9 Feb 01: Maison de Radio France, Paris. Featuring Stefan Asbury, Ensemble Modern.
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