The Symphony No. 2 by Robert Simpson was completed in 1956 and dedicated to

Anthony Bernard Anthony Bernard (25 January 18916 April 1963) was an English conductor, organist, pianist and composer. Early life Anthony Bernard's birth was registered as Alan Charles Butler in West Ham, then classified as Essex, in early 1891. His mother wa ...

, conductor of the

London Chamber Orchestra The London Chamber Orchestra (LCO) was a British chamber orchestra based in London. LCO performed at various concert halls across London and toured Asia, the UK, Europe and the United States. The orchestra gave its last performance in February 2 ...

, though the first performance was in fact given by the Hallé Orchestra conducted by Sir

John Barbirolli Sir John Barbirolli ( Giovanni Battista Barbirolli; 2 December 189929 July 1970) was a British conductor and cellist. He is remembered above all as conductor of the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, which he helped save from dissolution in 1943 ...

on 16 July 1957 at the

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Festival. This is one of Simpson's most accessible works. He used similar orchestration to that used by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

in his early symphonies, with the exception of high D trumpets being used instead of the standard B flat trumpets. The work is in three movements: * I ''Allegro grazioso'' * II ''Largo cantabile'' * III ''Non troppo allegro, ma con brio'' The first movement opens with mysterious muted string lines in simple triple time which gracefully develops in a similar way to classical form. The tonal conflict in this Symphony centers on B and the tonalities a major third above and below it (G and E-flat). The second movement is remarkable in that it is a palindrome (the same backwards as forwards) if one removes the last few bars. In all, there are thirteen variations on the viola theme which opens the movement, and many of the motives within the movement are palindromic to ensure formal cohesion. The finale makes an ironic end to the symphony, with its themes and brass/timpani interjections creating a sort of Beethovenian hilarity. Even so, this movement has its fair share of dissonance which is always a distinctive feature in Simpson's writing.

Discography

Currently, the only commercially available CD is a

Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is a British classical music record label. It was independent until February 2023, when it was acquired by the Universal Music Group. Under Universal, Hyperion is one of the three main classical record labels, alongside Decca a ...

release which also includes Symphony No. 4, both performed by the

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an English orchestra, founded in 1893 and originally based in Bournemouth. With a remit to serve the South and South West of England, the BSO is administratively based in the adjacent town of Poole, s ...

conducted by

Vernon Handley Vernon George "Tod" Handley (11 November 1930 – 10 September 2008) was a British conductor (music), conductor, known in particular for his support of British composers. Early life and education He was born of a Welsh father and an Irish mothe ...

References

{{Authority control 02 1956 compositions