Hymn (Ives)

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Hymn
Composition for strings by Charles Ives
CharlesEdwardIves1913 part.jpg
The composer in 1913
CatalogueS.84/1
ComposedAugust 1904 — Morristown, New Jersey
PerformedFebruary 8, 1965 (1965-02-08)
Syracuse, New York
(Probably before in 1935 or 1937)
Published1966 (1966)
ScoringString orchestra

Hymn: Largo cantabile, S. 84/1, sometimes also referred to as Largo cantabile: Hymn and often shortened as Hymn, is a composition by American composer Charles Ives written in 1904. Grouped in the suite , it is published and commonly performed as a standalone work.

Background[]

Hymn was first conceived as a movement in an early string quartet commonly referred to as the Pre-Second String Quartet. This piece was later extracted from bars 7 to 32 of the first movement of the quartet, which was later discarded.[1][2] According to Ives's inscriptions in early manuscripts, it was written in Morristown, New Jersey, in August 1904. It was performed privately and "for fun" as early as December 1904, but was not premiered formally at around the time of composition.[2]

Ives decided to include the Hymn in his suite A Set of Three Short Pieces, which was made from material he composed between 1903 and 1908. There is much speculation as to when the pieces were grouped together: sources vary from 1914 and 1935. The date of the first performance is also unknown. Correspondence between Ives and Arthur Cohn on July 27, 1935 indicates the three pieces were probably meant to be performed with Hallowe'en.[2] Another possible first performance of the Hymn was made by Bernard Hermann, when he wrote to Ives on October 26, 1937, that "in about two weeks, I think I will be able to do your Two Pieces for Strings, the Largo (Hymn) and Hallowe'en on a Friday program, but I will surely write you when I know definitely."[2]

The first documented performance of the piece as a movement in the set took place at the Crouse Auditorium, in Syracuse University, in Syracuse, New York, on February 8, 1965. The concert, sponsored by the Syracuse School of Music, was given by a student chamber ensemble.[2][3] A second performance also took place on December 1, 1966, at Carnegie Recital Hall in New York City. The piece was performed by the , a small ensemble consisting of violinists and , violist , cellist , double bassist Bertram Turetzky, and pianist . The program on that occasion announced that it was the "first performance of complete set anywhere."[2]

It was published more than half a century later, in 1966, by Peermusic. Out of all the pieces that make up the Set, this is the only piece that is available individually.

Structure[]

This compositions has an approximate duration of three minutes and 32 bars. It is scored for string orchestra, consisting of first and second violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. The string orchestra version also requires a solo cello.[4][5] When grouped in A Set of Three Short Pieces, it can also be played by a simple string quartet and double bass.[2] The piece features free counterpoint around two hymn melodies:[1] "More Love to Thee" and "Olivet".[6] It is marked Largo cantabile in the score, later progressing to Più animando in bar 19.[4]

Recordings[]

Hymn has sometimes been recorded as a work separately from the Set. Here is a list of recordings of the piece:[a]

  • The recorded the string orchestra version of the piece in October 1962 with conductor Harold Farberman. The recording took place at New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall and was released on LP in 1963 by .[5]
  • The , consisting of violinists Paul Zukofsky and , violist and cellist Robert Sylvester recorded the string quartet version of the piece with pianist Gilbert Kalish and double bassist . The recording was released in 1970 on LP by Columbia Masterworks.[7]
  • Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic recorded a live performance of the string orchestra version of this piece in November 1988. The recording was taken at the Avery Fisher Hall in New York City and was released by Deutsche Grammophon on CD Audio in 1990[8] and re-released in 2004,[9] 2013,[10] and 2018.[11]
  • Conductor James Sinclair recorded the world premiere recording of the Ives Society Critical Edition of the string orchestra version of the piece with the with solo cellist . It was recorded between February and May 1990 at the , in Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut. The recording was released in 1990[12] and again in 2000 on CD Audio by Koch International Classics.[13]
  • Violinists and , violist , cellist , double bassist , and pianist recorded the piece in 1992. The recording was released by Etcetera Records in the Netherlands on CD Audio in 1993.[14]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Whenever the recording contains the "string orchestra version", it means the piece was recorded as a standalone work and not with the rest of the Set of Three Short Pieces.

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "A Set of 3 Short Pieces, for… | Details". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Sinclair, James B. (1 January 1999). A Descriptive Catalogue of the Music of Charles Ives. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-07601-1. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  3. ^ "A Set of Three Short Pieces, Charles Ives". brahms.ircam.fr. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b Ives, Charles (1966). Hymn (Largo cantabile): for string orchestra. Peer International Corporation. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b Liner notes of Cambridge Records CRM 804 (Charles Ives - Pieces for Chamber Orchestra / Songs). Cambridge Records. 1963.
  6. ^ Henderson, Clayton W. (2008). The Charles Ives Tunebook. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-35090-9. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  7. ^ Liner notes of Columbia Masterworks M 30320 (Charles Ives Chamber Music). Columbia Masterworks. 1970.
  8. ^ "IVES Symphony No. 2 / Bernstein". www.deutschegrammophon.com. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
  9. ^ Liner notes of Deutsche Grammophon 474 940-2 (The Americans: Complete Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon). Deutsche Grammophon. 2004.
  10. ^ Simeone, Nigel (2013). Liner notes of Deutsche Grammophon 479-1512 (Charles Ives - Central Park in the Dark). Deutsche Grammophon.
  11. ^ Liner notes of Deutsche Grammophon 0289 479 8418 4 and Decca 0289 479 (Leonard Bernstein - Complete Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon & Decca). Deutsche Grammophon. 2018.
  12. ^ Lines notes of Koch International Classics 3-7025-2 (The Orchestral Music of Charles Ives). Koch International Classics. 1990.
  13. ^ Liner notes of Koch International Classics 3-7025-2 HI (The Orchestral Music of Charles Ives). Koch International Classics. 2000.
  14. ^ Liner notes of Etcetera KTC 1169 (Charles Ives - Music for String Quartet). Etcetera. 1993.


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