Symphony No. 3 (Milhaud)

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The Symphony No. 3, Op. 271, sub-titled Te Deum, is a work for orchestra and chorus by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece originated in a 1946 request by Radio France for a Te Deum celebrating the allied victory in World War II. Instead of confining himself to a setting of the liturgical text, Milhaud delivered a four-movement symphony in which the orchestra plays two movements (I and III) alone. The chorus joins without words in Movement II; only in the finale is the Latin text of the Te Deum sung. [1] This symphony is not to be confused with Milhaud's Chamber Symphony No. 3 "Sérénade," op. 71 (1921).

Milhaud's Third Symphony has a total running time of about 27 minutes. The descriptive titles of the movements are as follows:

  1. Fièrement (approx. 5'45")
  2. Très recueilli (approx. 10')
  3. Pastorale (approx. 4')
  4. Hymnus Ambrosianus—Te Deum (approx. 7'15")

This symphony is published by Heugel & Cie. Recordings of this symphony include a 1997 all-digital recording by Alun Francis and the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Basel, part of a boxed set of Milhaud's Symphonies No. 1-12 on CPO.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Te Deum (Berlioz)</span>

The Te Deum by Hector Berlioz (1803–1869) was completed in 1849. Like the earlier and more famous Grande Messe des Morts, it is one of the works referred to by Berlioz in his Memoirs as "the enormous compositions which some critics have called architectural or monumental music." While the orchestral forces required for the Te Deum are not as titanic as those of the Requiem, the work calls for an organ that can compete on equal terms with the rest of the orchestra. It lasts approximately fifty minutes and derives its text from the traditional Latin Te Deum, although Berlioz changed the word order for dramatic purposes.

The Symphony No. 1, Op. 210, by Darius Milhaud is a work for orchestra composed in France in 1939, during a period of illness and anxiety following the outbreak of World War II. Nearly fifty years old at the time and already a very prolific and mature composer, Milhaud had never attempted a symphony before. In spite of his expressed antipathy toward the "German music" typified by the symphony, he accepted a commission for this work from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, then approaching its 50th anniversary. Milhaud went on to write twelve more numbered symphonies by 1963.

The Symphony No. 2, Op. 247, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. It was written in the U.S. in 1944 on a commission from the Koussevitzky Music Foundations in memory of Serge Koussevitzky's second wife Natalie, who had died in 1942. The premiere of the work was played by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1946, with the composer himself conducting.

The Symphony No. 4, Op. 281, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1947 in response to a request by the French minister of education for a composition celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Revolution of 1848. Milhaud wrote this symphony on board a steamship to France from the U.S., where he had lived since 1940. This symphony is not to be confused with Milhaud's Chamber Symphony No. 4, op. 74 (1921).

The Symphony No. 5, Op. 322, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1953 on a commission from Italian Radio. This work is not to be confused with Milhaud's Chamber Symphony No. 5 for Ten Wind Instruments, op. 75 (1922).

The Symphony No. 6, Op. 343, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1955 at the request of Charles Munch, for the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. This work is not to be confused with Milhaud's Chamber Symphony No. 6, op. 79 (1923).

The Symphony No. 7, Op. 344, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1955 for a Radio Belge concert in Venice.

The Symphony No. 8, Op. 362, subtitled Rhôdanienne, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1957 on a commission from the University of California. Its four programmatic movements paint a musical landscape of the course of the Rhone River.

The Symphony No. 9, Op. 380, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1959 for the Fort Lauderdale Symphony Orchestra and its conductor Mario di Bonaventura.

The Symphony No. 10, Op. 382, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1960 for the hundredth anniversary of the U.S. state of Oregon.

The Symphony No. 11, Op. 384, nicknamed Romantique, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1960 on a joint commission from the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and the Dallas Public Library, and received its premiere under conductor Paul Kletzki.

The Symphony No. 12, Op. 390, subtitled La Rurale, is a work for orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. The piece was written in 1961 for the dedication of the concert hall at the University of California, Davis, a campus historically focused on agricultural studies.

Pacem in terris, Op. 404 is a choral symphony for alto, baritone, chorus and orchestra by French composer Darius Milhaud. Though often identified only by its title and opus number, it is considered Milhaud's thirteenth and last symphony. The piece was written in 1963, incorporating text written by Pope John XXIII. At least a partial recording of this symphony is available on the Musique En Wallonie label, featuring the Brussels Belgian Radio and TV Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Franz André.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloria (Jenkins)</span> Sacred choral composition by Karl Jenkins

Gloria is a sacred choral composition by Karl Jenkins, completed in 2010. It is an extended setting of the Gloria part of the mass in Latin, on the text of the Gloria in three movements, interpolated with two movements on other texts, Psalm 150 in Hebrew and a song derived from biblical verses in English. Spoken passages from sacred text from four religious traditions are part of the composition. It was published by Boosey & Hawkes in 2010. Gloria is often performed together with the composer's Te Deum.

Little (Chamber) Symphony No.4:, Op.74, by Darius Milhaud is a work for 10 string instruments composed in Vienna in 1921. It is not to be confused with Symphony No.4. The music is polytonal and progresses through a variety of contrasting moods. The first two movements employ ostinatos to repeat basic musical ideas. The first movement is marked “Animé”. It is a lively dance in triple meter and stylistically refers back to the baroque period. The second movement is marked “Assez lent” and features multiple double bass solos. The final movement incorporates imitative polyphony in a fugal section.

The Little(Chamber) Symphony No.5, Op.75, also known as the Tentet, is a symphony for wind instruments written by French composer Darius Milhaud in 1922. It is his fifth chamber symphony, which are also referred to as the Petites Symphonies or Chamber Symphonies. The work was commissioned by Italian Radio and is dedicated to Marya Freúnd, a soprano singer and Milhaud's friend, who performed the premiere of Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire, conducted by Milhaud. The symphony was first performed at Champs-Elysées, Paris in 1923.

Little (Chamber) Symphony No. 3, Op. 71 by Darius Milhaud is a work for chamber orchestra that was composed in 1921. The work is also known by the title Sérénade. This work is not to be confused with Milhaud's Symphony No. 3, which is known as Te Deum.

Little (Chamber) Symphony No. 6, Op. 79, composed by Darius Milhaud in 1923, is a work for oboe, cello, and wordless chorus. It premiered at the Concert Wiener in Paris in 1924.

Little (Chamber) Symphony No. 1 “Le Printemps” Op. 43, as the first of a collection of six “Little Symphonies,” by Darius Milhaud is a symphony by name, due to its length of just over 3 minutes. This piece should not be confused with Milhaud's Symphony No. 1. The piece was composed in Rio de Janeiro in the year 1917. It first premiered in Rio de Janeiro in 1918, and was published by Universal in 1922. The influence of Brazilian culture, jazz, and polytonality is very clearly seen in this series of symphonies. According to Milhaud himself, he was quite attracted to the unusual quality of small groups of instruments, which is why he embarked on his series of Petites Symphonies. Due to the fact that he was living in Brazil, acting as assistant to the diplomat/poet Paul Claudel, at the time he wrote this first symphony some of the Brazilian influence can be viewed in his work. This first symphony was written for piccolo, flute, clarinet, oboe, harp, 2 violins, viola, and cello. Overall, this piece has a very simple melody, contains polytonal elements, and possesses a pastoral, folkish feeling throughout. The melodies and pitches evoke a light, airy feeling, such as that of the spring, thus alluding to the symphony's subtitle.

References

  1. Schulz, Reinhard. Darius Milhaud Symphonies 2 & 3 (Media notes). Translated by Susan Marie Praeder. CPO, 1998. pp. 9–10.