Symphony: ''Mathis der Maler'' (''Matthias the Painter'' is among the most famous orchestral works of German composer

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith ( ; ; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German and American composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advo ...

. Music from the

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

was incorporated into, or reworked for, Hindemith's opera ''

Mathis der Maler ''Mathis der Maler'' (''Matthias the Painter'' is an opera by Paul Hindemith. The work's protagonist, Matthias Grünewald, was a historical figure who flourished during the Reformation, and whose art, in particular the Isenheim Altarpiece, inspi ...

'', which concerns the painter

Matthias Grünewald Matthias Grünewald ( – 31 August 1528; also known as Mathis Gothart Nithart) was a German Renaissance painter of religious works who ignored Renaissance classicism to continue the style of late medieval Central European art into the 16th cent ...

(or Neithardt).

History

Hindemith composed the symphony in 1934, while plans for the opera were in their preliminary stages. The conductor

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , ; ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is regarded as one of the greatest Symphony, symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a majo ...

asked him at that time for a new work to perform on an upcoming

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic () is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. Throughout the 20th century, the orchestra was led by conductors Wilhelm Furtwängler (1922� ...

concert tour, and Hindemith decided to compose symphonic movements that could serve as instrumental interludes in the opera, or be drawn upon or elaborated into various scenes. Furtwängler and the Berlin Philharmonic gave the first performance on 12 March 1934. The first performance outside Germany was given by the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra in October 1934, conducted by Otto Klemperer. Other early performances include the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra in 1936, conducted by Daniel Sternberg. The symphony was well received at its first performances, but Furtwängler faced severe criticism from the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

government for performing the work, given that other Hindemith scores had been denounced by the party as "degenerate" and "Jewish connected." Moreover the opera's plot, which turned on an artist's duty to pursue his vision irrespective of political considerations, was anathema to Nazi ideology. Hindemith completed the full opera by 1935 but, because of the political climate it could not be staged in Germany, and only in 1938 was it at last premiered, in

Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

, Switzerland.

Structure

The symphony is in three

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 ...

: # Engelkonzert (Angelic Concert) # Grablegung (Entombment) # Versuchung des heiligen Antonius (The Temptation of Saint Anthony) which correspond to the opera as follows: *Overture *Orchestral interlude from the last act *Orchestral piece reworked and amplified into a visionary scene in Scene 6 of the Opera Each movement relates to a tableau painted by Grünewald for the

Isenheim Altarpiece The ''Isenheim Altarpiece'' is an altarpiece sculpted and painted by, respectively, the Germans Nikolaus Hagenauer, Nikolaus of Haguenau and Matthias Grünewald in 1512–1516. It is on display at the Unterlinden Museum at Colmar, Alsace, in Fra ...

, an elaborate construction of panels behind panels, which presents different views as its various levels are unfolded. The Concert of Angels is seen when the outer wings of the altarpiece are opened; the Entombment remains always visible at the base of the altarpiece below the wings; and the Bosch-like Temptation of St. Anthony is uncovered when the inner wings are opened. Grünewald juxtaposed religious serenity with depictions of suffering grounded in the tensions that wracked 16th century Germany during the peasant uprising prompted by the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. These contrasts are faithfully mirrored in Hindemith's score, which offers at once a portrait of a turbulent historical era and an urgent contemporary statement born amid political strife. Hindemith's principle of harmonic fluctuation is readily apparent in this work. For example, the second movement opens on a perfect fifth sonority and gradually introduces more dissonant pitches. The result is an implied tonal center, although in much of his harmony the functional tonality of tradition plays no governing role.

List of themes

I. Engelkonzert

Introduction: "Es sungen drei Engel" (folk song) m. 9–16 \relative c' Theme 1 m. 39–47 \relative c'' Theme 2 m. 98–106 \relative c' Theme 3 m. 135–142 \relative c'' Three chord motive m. 54

II. Grablegung

Theme 1 m. 1–4 Theme 2 m. 16–20 \relative c''

III. Versuchung des heiligen Antonius

Introduction m. 1–3 \relative c' Theme 1 m. 19–26 \relative c' Theme 2 m. 87–102 \relative c'' Descending motive m. 141–142 \relative c'' Slow section theme m. 195–199 \relative c' "Lauda Sion Salvatorem" (plain chant) m. 468–480 \relative c'' "Alleluia" m. 520–525

Scoring and duration

The symphony is scored for these instruments:

piccolo The piccolo ( ; ) is a smaller version of the western concert flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" or piccolo flute, the modern piccolo has the same type of fingerings as the ...

, 2

flutes 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 ...

, 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, 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, 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, 4 horns, 2

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

s, 3

trombone The trombone (, 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 lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...

tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...

, 3

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, strings. Duration: 25 minutes in three movements (with pauses).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathis Der Maler, Symphony Symphonies by Paul Hindemith Matthias Grünewald 1934 compositions