The Nonet in

E-flat major E-flat major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has three flats. Its relative minor is C minor, and its parallel minor is E minor, (or enharmonically D minor). The E-fla ...

, Op. 38, is an 1849 composition for chamber ensemble by French composer

Louise Farrenc Louise Farrenc (; 31 May 1804 – 15 September 1875) was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. Her compositions include three symphonies, a few choral works, numerous chamber music, chamber piec ...

. In line with the tradition established by

Louis Spohr Louis Spohr (, 5 April 178422 October 1859), baptized Ludewig Spohr, later often in the modern German form of the name Ludwig was a German composer, violinist and conductor. Highly regarded during his lifetime, Spohr composed ten symphonies, ...

, it is scored for a combined

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

and

wind quintet A wind quintet, also known as a woodwind quintet, is a group of five wind players (most commonly flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn and bassoon). Unlike the string quartet (of 4 string instruments) with its homogeneous blend of sound color, the i ...

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 ...

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, ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

. The double bass is sometimes replaced by a

contrabassoon The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences. Differences from the bassoon The Reed (mouthpie ...

. The manuscript, dated November 1849, is held at the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The (; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites, ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository of all that is published in France. Some of its extensive collections, including bo ...

. Farrenc also arranged the Nonet for

string quintet A string quintet is a musical composition for five string players. As an extension to the string quartet (two violins, a viola, and a cello), a string quintet includes a fifth string instrument, usually a second viola (a so-called "viola quintet ...

. The work was not printed in Farrenc's lifetime.

Composition and premiere

Farrenc, a piano performer, composed mainly for solo piano and chamber music for ensembles with piano; the Nonet was her only chamber composition without a piano. It was first played in a private performance in the

salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

of Sophie Pierson-Bodin (1819–1874) on 23 December 1849, and repeated there a few days later, with Auguste-Antoine Guerreau substituting for Théophile Tilmant (violin), Charles Lebouc (cello), (double bass),

Louis Dorus Louis Dorus (born Vincent Joseph van Steenkiste; 1 March 1812 – 9 June 1896) was a 19th-century French classical flautist. Vincent-Joseph van Steenkiste, his real name, was instrumental in the adoption of the modern concert flute. He is the y ...

(flute),

Stanislas Verroust Louis Stanislas Xavier Verroust (10 May 1814 – 9 or 11 April 1863) was a French composer and oboist. Biographical sketch Verroust was born in Hazebrouck. He received a second prize in Gustave Vogt's class in oboe in 1833,Hyacinthe Klosé Hyacinthe Eléonore Klosé (11 October 1808 – 29 August 1880) was a French clarinet player, professor at the Conservatoire de Paris, and composer. Life and music Klosé was born in Corfu (Greece). He was second clarinet at the Théâtre Itali ...

(clarinet), (horn), (bassoon). The public premiere of the Nonet took place on 19 March 1850 at the

Salle Érard Salle Érard The salle Érard () is a music venue located in Paris, 13 rue du Mail in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris. It is part of the hôtel particulier which belonged, from the 18th century, to the family of piano, harp and harpsichord manu ...

. with the 19-year-old

Joseph Joachim Joseph Joachim (28 June 1831 – 15 August 1907) was a Hungarian Violin, violinist, Conducting, conductor, composer and teacher who made an international career, based in Hanover and Berlin. A close collaborator of Johannes Brahms, he is widely ...

playing the violin and Adolphe Blanc (viola), Charles Lebouc (cello), Achille Gouffé (double bass), Louis Dorus (flute)), Stanislas Verroust (oboe), (clarinet), Joseph-François Rousselot (horn), Charles Verroust (bassoon). Its positive reception made Farrenc a near-celebrity and led the

Paris Conservatory The Conservatoire de Paris (), or the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (; CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue Jean Ja ...

to raise her salary in line with its male professors."Nonetto, Op.38"
furore-verlag.de

Structure

The Nonet consists of 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 ...

and takes about 30 minutes to perform: The slow opening in common time of the first movement establishes the tonality, E-flat major, similar to Beethoven's Septet (1799). The Allegro, in 3/4 time, The violin establishes the theme of the second movement, followed by four variations in different instrument combinations. The coda brings the ensemble together, followed by a brief bass interlude before a clourful close."Louise Farrenc: Nonet in E major"
by Alex Burns, 29 July 2022, classicalexburns.com The third movement is characterized by dotted eighth notes and

syncopation In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat (music), off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of ...

. The strings use

pizzicato Pizzicato (, ; translated as 'pinched', and sometimes roughly as 'plucked') is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of instrument: * On bowe ...

s and the music moves in chromatic passages."Six of the best works by Louise Farrenc"
by Nina Green, ''

BBC Music Magazine ''BBC Music Magazine'' is a British monthly magazine that focuses primarily on classical music. The first issue appeared in September 1992. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC, was the original owner and publisher together with ...

'', 3 June 2019 The fourth movement opens with block chords from the strings to which the winds and upper strings respond. A

cadenza In music, a cadenza, (from , meaning cadence; plural, ''cadenze'' ) is, generically, an improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist(s), usually in a "free" rhythmic style, and often allowing virtuosic display ...

by the oboe and a call by the horn close the opening Adagio. The theme of the Allegro, introduced by the vioin, is quickly passed around the other instruments. Unusual pairings of instruments create unexpected effects. Fast scale runs lead to ensemble block chords, before returning to the home key of E-flat major.

Recordings

* 2005: ''Louise Farrenc - Chamber Music'',

Naïve Records Naïve Records is a French independent record label based in Paris, specializing in electronic music, pop music, jazz and classical music. Founding and expansion It was founded in 1998 by Patrick Zelnik, former CEO of Virgin France, Gilles Paire ...

V5033 * 2010: ''Jeanne-Louise Farrenc: Nonet & Clarinet Trio'', Consortium Classicum, Divox CDX29205 * 2011: ''Farrenc: Nonet & Brahms: Serenade No. 1'', Minerva Chamber Ensemble, Centaur Records CRC3092 * 2022: ''Arc'', Intercontinental Ensemble, TTK 0080

References

External links

* * * , Consortium Classicum {{Authority control Compositions by Louise Farrenc Farrenc 1849 compositions Compositions in E-flat major

Composition and premiere

Structure

Recordings

References

Further reading

External links