The Octet for strings in

C major C major is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and its parallel min ...

, Op. 7, is an

octet Octet may refer to: Music * Octet (music), ensemble consisting of eight instruments or voices, or composition written for such an ensemble ** String octet, a piece of music written for eight string instruments *** Octet (Mendelssohn), 1825 compo ...

composition for

string instrument In musical instrument classification, string instruments, or chordophones, are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer strums, plucks, strikes or sounds the strings in varying manners. Musicians play some ...

s by the Romanian composer

George Enescu George Enescu (; – 4 May 1955), known in France as Georges Enesco, was a Romanians, Romanian composer, violinist, pianist, conductor, teacher and statesman. He is regarded as one of the greatest musicians in Romanian history. Biography En ...

, completed in 1900. Together with the Octet in F major, Op. 17 (1849) by

Niels Gade Niels Wilhelm Gade (22 February 1817 – 21 December 1890) was a Danish composer, conductor, violinist, organist and teacher. Together with Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann, he was the leading Danish musician of his day, in the period known as ...

, it is regarded as amongst the most notable successors to

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

's celebrated Octet, Op. 20.

History

Following the completion of his Second Violin Sonata in 1899, composition of the Octet occupied Enescu for a year and a half. The complexity of a structure spanning forty minutes in performance caused him considerable difficulty, though he found the challenge exciting. "I wore myself out trying to make work a piece of music divided into four segments of such length that each of them was likely at any moment to break. An engineer launching his first suspension bridge over a river, could not feel more anxiety than I felt when I set out to darken my paper". Once he had completed the Octet, Enescu offered it to

Édouard Colonne Édouard Juda Colonne (23 July 1838 – 28 March 1910) was a French conductor and violinist, and a champion of the music of Berlioz and other eminent 19th-century composers. Life and career Colonne was born in Bordeaux, the son and grandson ...

for performance in his

Concerts Colonne The Colonne Orchestra is a French symphony orchestra, founded in 1873 by the violinist and conductor Édouard Colonne. History While leader of the Opéra de Paris orchestra, Édouard Colonne was engaged by the publisher Georges Hartmann to lead ...

. However, after five rehearsals, the impresario removed it from the program on grounds that it was too risky, a decision that Enescu regarded bitterly. The belated premiere finally took place on 18 December 1909 in the Salle des Agriculteurs in Paris, as part of a festival concert of Enescu's chamber works in the Soirées d'Art concert series. The performers were the combined members of the Géloso and Chailley Quartets, conducted by the composer. Enescu's Piano Quartet No. 1 in D major, Op. 16, completed only a few days earlier, also received its premiere on this concert, which also included a performance of his ''Sept chansons de Clement Marot'', for tenor and piano, Op. 15, composed the previous year. The Octet is dedicated to

André Gedalge André Gedalge (27 December 1856 – 5 February 1926) was a French composer and teacher. Biography André Gedalge was born at 75 rue des Saints-Pères in Paris where he first worked as a bookseller and editor, specialising in ''livres de prix' ...

, one of Enescu's professors at the Conservatory, whose support in convincing the firm of Enoch & Cie to publish the score was deeply appreciated by the composer The conductor Karl Krueger reported that, when he asked the composer how he felt about having the work played by a larger body of string players, Enescu enthusiastically replied, "That's how it should be!". When Enoch reprinted the score in 1950, Enescu added a new preface in which he endorsed this option, but with some qualifications:

Analysis

Enescu's composition stands in contrast to Felix Mendelssohn's Octet, which sets a soloistic violin part against an accompaniment of the other stringed instruments. Enescu's work on the other hand is "a genuine octet that finds its most natural expression just in its hallucinatory convergent and divergent contrapuntal voices". Stylistically, the Octet stands outside the categories into which most of Enescu's works from before the end of the First World War fall, when he was still working his way through a wide range of styles and influences, including those of

César Franck César Auguste Jean Guillaume Hubert Franck (; 10 December 1822 – 8 November 1890) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher born in present-day Belgium. He was born in Liège (which at the time of h ...

Ernest Chausson Amédée-Ernest Chausson (; 20 January 1855 – 10 June 1899) was a French Romantic composer. Life Born in Paris into an affluent bourgeois family, Chausson was the sole surviving child of a building contractor who made his fortune assisting Ba ...

, Henri Duparc,

Claude Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

, and

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

. The form is described by the composer as cyclic, and divided into four

movements Movement may refer to: Generic uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Movement (sign language), a hand movement when signing * Motion, commonly referred to as movement * Movement (music), a division of a larger c ...

: # Très modéré () # Très fougueux (

E major E major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, F-flat maj ...

) # Lentement # Mouvement de valse bien rythmée A typical performance of the work takes around 40 minutes. However, these four sections are linked together to form a single large sonata-allegro form movement. The first movement functions as the

exposition Exposition (also the French for exhibition) may refer to: *Universal exposition or World's Fair *Expository writing *Exposition (narrative), background information in a story * Exposition (music) *Trade fair * ''Exposition'' (album), the debut alb ...

and the finale as recapitulation, while

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped * Photographic development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting * Development hell, when a proje ...

is pursued in the inner two movements. The idea of cyclically integrating all of the movements of a symphony into a single overarching form can be traced back to Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, and was developed further by

Hector Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

, and

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

. The most likely model for Enescu's organization of the Octet is the latter's Piano Concerto in E-flat major (1855) which, even more than Liszt's B-minor Sonata pursues the outline of a sonata form throughout its four movements. There are between nine and as many as twelve melodic themes used in the work, depending on the analysis The greatest number of them (six or seven) are presented in the exposition of the first part. The second part is a kind of demonic

scherzo A scherzo (, , ; plural scherzos or scherzi), in western classical music, is a short composition – sometimes a movement from a larger work such as a symphony or a sonata. The precise definition has varied over the years, but scherzo often r ...

, tumultuous and whirling, while the third is a lyrical, slow movement; in both of them new themes are added

Discography

* George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7 (version for string orchestra). American Arts Orchestra; Karl Krueger, cond. LP recording, 1 disc: analog, monaural, 12 in. New Records NELP 101 (on label: NRMG 101). .p. New Records, Inc.,

950 Year 950 ( CML) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Arab–Byzantine War: A Hamdanid army (30,000 men) led by Sayf al-Dawla raids into Byzantine theme Anatolia. He defea ...

* George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7. String octet of members of the Uniunea Compozitorilor din Republica Socialista România and the Filarmonica de Stat "Georges Enesco"; Constantin Silvestri, cond. LP recording 1 audio disc: analog, 33⅓ rpm, monaural, 12 in. Electrecord ECE 01. Bucharest: Casa de discuri Electrecord, 950s Artia ALP 119. rague Artia, .d. Reissued in a coupling with the Decet for Winds in D Major, Op. 14 (from Electrecord stereo LP STM-ECE 01046), as a "reconditioned recording". CD recording, 1 disc: digital, monaural & stereo, 12 cm. Olympia OCD 445. Electrecord ELCD 122. Bucharest: Casa de discuri Electrecord, 1992. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7. "Voces" String Quartet of Iasi; Iasi String Quartet. Ion Baciu, cond. LP recording 1 audio disc: analog, 33⅓ rpm, stereo, 12 in. Electrecord ST-ECE 01856. Bucharest: Electrecord, 1977. Reissued, coupled with the Decet for winds in D, Op. 14, performed by the Winds of the Iasi Moldova Philharmonic. LP recording 1 audio disc: analog, 33⅓ rpm, stereo, 12 in. Electrecord ST-ECE 61856. Bucharest: Electrecord, efore 1987 Reissued on CD, 1 audio disc: stereo, 12 cm. Marco Polo 8.223147. .p. Pacific Music, 1988. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7;

: Sextet from '' Capriccio'', Op. 85;

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

: Two Pieces for String Octet, Op. 11. Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Ensemble. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Chandos CHAN 9131. Colchester: Chandos Records Ltd, 1993. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7; Felix Mendelssohn: Octet in E-flat Major, Op. 20. Le Quatuor Alcan; Le Quatuor Québec. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. CBC Records MVCD 1063. Toronto: Société Radio-Canada / Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 1993. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7; Decet for Winds in D Major, Op. 14. René Ceistian Popescu, Liviu Morna, Nioara Moroianu, and Adriana Winkler, violins; Gabriel Bălă and Florin Matei, violas; Marin Cazacu and Dan Joiţoiu, cellos; Horia Andreescu, cond. Recorded by Electrecord in Tomis Studio, Bucharest, March 1995. Issued under licence. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Olympia OCD 445. Olympia Explorer Series. London: Olympia Compact Discs Ltd, 1995. * Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy: Octet in E-flat major, Op. 20; George Enescu: Octet in C major, Op. 7. Christian Bor, Ida Levin, Nicholas Kitchen, Lynn Chang, violins; Marcus Thompson, Hsin-Yun Huang, violas; Ronald Thomas, Yeesun Kim, cellos. Recorded at

Methuen Memorial Music Hall Methuen Memorial Music Hall, initially named Serlo Organ Hall, is a music hall built by Edward Francis Searles to house "The Great Organ", a very large pipe organ originally built for the Boston Music Hall. The hall was completed in 1909, and ...

, Methuen, MA, January, 1998. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Boston Chamber Music Society BCMR 05-CD. ass. Boston Chamber Music Society, 1998. * George Enescu: Octet in C major, Op. 7; Decet in D major, Op. 14. Ensembles of "George Enescu" Bucharest Philharmonic Orchestra; Cristian Mandeal, cond. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Arta Nova Classics 74321 63634 2. ermany Arte Nova Classics, 1999. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7; Decet for Winds in D Major, Op. 14. Viotta Ensemble; Micha Hamel, cond (Op. 14 only). Recorded at Maria Minor, Utrecht, 2 October 1999 (Octet) and 10 February 2001 (Decet). CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12-cm. Ottavo OTR C20179. The Hague: Ottavo Recordings, 2001. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7 (version for string orchestra); Quintet for Piano and Strings, Op.29.

Kremerata Baltica Kremerata Baltica is a chamber orchestra consisting of musicians from Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania). It was founded by Latvian violinist Gidon Kremer in 1997. Gidon Kremer is an artistic director of Kremerata Baltica. Descript ...

;

Gidon Kremer Gidon Kremer (; born 27 February 1947) is a Latvian classical violinist, artistic director, and founder of Kremerata Baltica. Life and career Gidon Kremer was born in Riga. His father was Jewish and had survived the Holocaust. His mother had ...

, cond. Octet recorded at Angelika-Kauffmann-Saal, Schwarzenberg, Austria, June 2000. Quintet recorded at Probesaal der Philharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, Luswigshafen, Germany, November 2001. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Nonesuch Records 79682-2. .p. Nonesuch Records, 2002. * George Enescu; Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy: Octets for Strings.

Christian Tetzlaff Christian Tetzlaff (born 29 April 1966) is a German violinist who has performed internationally, with a focus on chamber music. Biography Tetzlaff was born in Hamburg. His parents were amateur musicians and met in a church choir. He began playi ...

Isabelle Faust Isabelle Faust (born 19 March 1972) is a German violinist who has worked internationally as a soloist and chamber musician. She has received multiple awards. Life and career Faust was born in Esslingen am Neckar, Baden-Württemberg, on 12 Mar ...

Antje Weithaas Antje Weithaas (born 1966) is a German classical violinist. Apart from solo recitals and chamber music performances, she has played with leading orchestras in Europe, Asia and the United States. Career Born in Guben, Weithaas studied at the ...

Lisa Batiashvili Elisabeth Batiashvili ( ka, ელისაბედ ბათიაშვილი; born 7 March 1979), professionally known as Lisa Batiashvili, is a prominent Georgian violinist active across Europe and the United States. A former New York P ...

(Enescu), Katherine Gowers (Mendelssohn), violins; Rachel Roberts, Ori Kam (Enescu), Antoine Tamestit (Mendelssohn), violas; Quirine Viersen, Tanja Tetzlaff (Enescu),

Gustav Rivinius Gustav Rivinius (born in 1965 in Saarland) is a German cellist and professor for cello at the Hochschule für Musik Saar. Life Rivinius began his cello studies at the age of six with Hermann Dirr in Munich. Later he studied in Saarbrücken ...

(Mendelssohn), cellos. Recorded live at the Hydroelectric Power Station, Heimbach, Germany, during the Spannungen chamber music festival, 11 June (Enescu) and 12 June (Mendelssohn), 2008. CD recording, 1 audio disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Avi-Music 42 6008553163 9 (on container: 8553163). Cologne: Avi-Music, 2009. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7, arranged for orchestra by

Lawrence Foster Lawrence Foster (born October 23, 1941) is an American conductor of Romanian ancestry. Early life Foster was born in Los Angeles, California, to Romanian parents. His father died when Foster was three years old. He was later adopted by his step ...

. Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo; Lawrence Foster. With Enescu: Violin Sonata No. 3. Valeri Sokolow, violin; Swetlana Kosenko, piano. CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Virgin Classics 50999 519312 2 3. Classics 50999 519312 2 3. ngland Virgin Classics, 2009. * George Enescu: Octet for Strings in C major, Op. 7. Vilde Frang, Erik Schumann, Gabriel Le Magadure, Rosanne Philippens, violins;

Lawrence Power Lawrence Power is a British violist, born 1977, noted both for solo performances and for chamber music with the Nash Ensemble and Leopold String Trio. Career Power started out as a violist (rather than beginning studies on the violin and swi ...

, Lily Francis, violas; Nicolas Altstaedt, Jan-Erik Gustafsson, cellos. Recorded at Schloss Elmau, Germany, October 2017. With Bela Bartok: Violin Concerto No 1 Sz.. 36, BB 48a. Vilde Frang, violin;

Mikko Franck Mikko Franck (born 1 April 1979) is a Finnish conductor and violinist. Biography Franck was born in Helsinki. He began learning the violin at the age of 5 and started violin studies at the Sibelius Academy in 1992. The Academy let Franck conduct ...

, conductor; Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. Recorded at Auditorium de Radio France, Paris, September 2017. Warner Classics, 2018.

References

Cited sources

* * * * * * *

External links

*

/nowiki> Enescu: String Octet in C Major, Op. 7] * ,

Janine Jansen Janine Jansen (born ) is a Dutch violinist and violist. Early life and education Jansen was born in Soest in the Netherlands into a musical family. Her father plays organ, harpsichord and piano; from 1987 to mid-2011 he was the organist of ...

(violin), Boris Brovtsyn (violin), Julia-Maria Kretz (violin), Alexander Sitkovetsky (violin), Amihai Grosz (viola),

Julian Rachlin Julian Rachlin (born 8 December 1974) is a Lithuanian-born violinist, violist and conductor. Biography Born in Vilnius to a Jewish family, he emigrated in 1978 with his musician parents to Austria. In 1983, he entered the Konservatorium Wien an ...