The Bard (Sibelius)
| The Bard | |
|---|---|
| Tone poem by Jean Sibelius | |
The composer (c. 1911) | |
| Native name | Barden |
| Opus | 64 |
| Composed | 1913, rev. 1913 |
| Publisher | Breitkopf & Härtel (1914)[1] |
| Duration | 8 mins.[2] |
| Premiere | |
| Date | 27 March 1913[2] |
| Location | Helsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland |
| Conductor | Jean Sibelius |
| Performers | Helsinki Philharmonic Society |
The Bard (in Swedish: Barden), Op. 64, tone poem for orchestra written in 1913 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. It was first performed in Helsinki on 27 March 1913 by the Philharmonic Society Orchestra, conducted by the composer himself, but he revised it in 1914.[3] The new version was first performed in Helsinki on 9 January 1916, again under the baton of the composer.
In Britain, Adrian Boult and the BBC Symphony Orchestra recorded the tone poem in January 1936 for broadcast.[4] The first public performance in the UK was given by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1938.
The tone poem itself provides a profound, yet cryptic glimpse of an elegiac, poetic world: an initial, harp-led stillness and reflection are succeeded by elemental, eruptive surges and, finally, a sense of renunciation or maybe death.
Instrumentation
The Bard is scored for the following instruments,[2] organized by family (woodwinds, brass, percussion, and strings):
- 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets (in B♭), 1 bass clarinet (in B♭),[a] and 2 bassoons
- 4 horns (in F), 2 trumpets (in B♭), and 3 trombones
- Timpani, bass drum, and tam-tam
- Violins (I and II), violas, cellos, double basses, and harp
Discography
The sortable table below contains this and other commercially available recordings of The Bard:
Notes
- ^ Dahlström (2003) does not list bass clarinet among the instruments for The Bard.[2] This is clearly an omission, as the score indicates "Baßklarinette" on page one, in addition to the two clarinetists. Moreover, the part for bass clarinet is available on IMSLP.
- ^ Refers to the year in which the performers recorded the work; this may not be the same as the year in which the recording was first released to the general public.
- ^ T. Beecham–Naxos Historical (8.110867) 2003
- ^ Given the recording date, "Concert Hall" probably refers to the then-newly completed Finlandia Hall, which opened in 1971 and became the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra's main venue.
- ^ O. Kamu–Deutsche Grammophon (453 610–2) 1996
- ^ P. Berglund–EMI Classics (7243 5 69773 2 7) 1997
- ^ A. Gibson–Chandos (CHAN 8395/6) 1985
- ^ N. Järvi–BIS (CD–384) 1988
- ^ J. Saraste–RCA (19439704812) 2020
- ^ V. Sinaisky–Brilliant Classics (BC9212) 2010
- ^ N. Järvi–DG (477 6654) 2007
- ^ C. Davis–RCA Red Seal (82876–55706–2) 2003
- ^ P. Sakari–Naxos (8.555299) 2002
- ^ O. Vänskä–BIS (CD–1225) 2002
- ^ S. Oramo–Erato (2564 60294-2) 2003
- ^ J. Storgårds–Ondine (ODE 1147–2) 2010
- ^ O. Kamu–BIS (SACD–1945) 2011
References
- ^ Dahlström 2003, p. 292.
- ^ a b c d Dahlström 2003, p. 291.
- ^ Kennedy, Michael (2006), The Oxford Dictionary of Music, ISBN 0-19-861459-4
- ^ Walter Legge: Words and Music, p. 81, at Google Books
- ^ A. Boult–Omega Classics (OCD 1027) 1998
- ^ A. Gibson–EMI Classics (5 65182 2) 1994
- Dahlström, Fabian [in Swedish] (2003). Jean Sibelius: Thematisch-bibliographisches Verzeichnis seiner Werke [Jean Sibelius: A Thematic Bibliographic Index of His Works] (in German). Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel. ISBN 3-7651-0333-0.
External links