Musicon / Saint Saens / Saint Saens extending the formal boundaries of a symphony
Usually it is deference to the demands of a “programme” that influences composers in extending the formal boundaries of a symphony, and when this is done the result is frequently a work which can only be called a symphony by courtesy. Saint-Saens, however, attempted an original ::More
Musicon / Musical education / Inventing Bonds of Union in Symphonies
The desire of composers to have their symphonies accepted as unities instead of compages of unrelated pieces has led to the adoption of various devices designed to force the bond of union upon the attention of the hearer. Thus Beethoven in his symphony in C minor not only connects the third and ::More
Musicon / Beethoven / Musical education / Appearance of the Symphony
I have known a professional writer on musical subjects to express the opinion that a symphony was nothing else than four unrelated compositions for orchestra arranged in a certain sequence for the sake of an agreeable contrast of moods and tempos. It is scarcely necessary to say that the writer ::More
