Four Centuries of Great Music November 2, 2024 Celebration of the Sesquicentennial of the Birth of Gustav Holst

FCGM  10-27-24

Today on Four Centuries of Great Music I am celebrating the sesquicentennial of the birth of the composer Gustav Holst.  Born on September 21, 1874 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England to a family of at least three generations of musicians.  His great-grandfather was a harpist and teacher in the royal court of Russia, his grandfather moved to England and was a harpist and composer and his father was an organist and choirmaster at All Saints’ Church, Cheltenham.  Early on Gustav studied piano and violin and was encouraged to play the trombone to help his asthma.  After developing neuritis in his arm, he made the trombone his principal instrument and played it professionally.  He began composing at the age of 12 while still in primary school and began his studies at the Royal College of Music at 19 after initial instruction in counterpoint at Oxford.  In addition to playing trombone at seaside resorts in the summer and in London theaters in the winter and composing, he spent much of his life teaching.  He taught at Morley College from 1907 to 1924 and was director of music at St Paul’s Girls’ School, Hammersmith, London from 1905 until his death in 1934.  

Although he is best known for the 7 movement work The Planets he composed music for operas, ballets, incidental music for plays, chamber music and of course orchestral music.  His music was initially influenced by Wagner and Richard Strauss but the folk song revival in Great Britain and younger composers like Ravel also has an influence on his music.

This first hour we are dedicating to his most famous orchestral work – the Planets.  Written between 1914 and 1917 received it public premiere in London and it’s American premiere by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1920.  It was more influenced by astrology than astronomy. The work had its origins in March and April 1913, when Gustav Holst and his friend and benefactor Balfour Gardiner holidayed in Spain with the composer Arnold Bax and his brother, the author Clifford Bax. A discussion about astrology piqued Holst’s interest in the subject. Clifford Bax later commented that Holst became “a remarkably skilled interpreter of horoscopes”

As previously mentioned the work is in 7 movements:
1. Mars, the Bringer of War
2. Venus, the Bringer of Peace
3. Mercury, the Winged Messenger
4. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity
5. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
6. Uranus, the Magician
7. Neptune, the Mystic

And if you are wondering why he left off Pluto – that is because it was not discovered until 1930.

Mars, the Bringer of War is marked allegro and is in a relentless 5/4 ostinato for most of its duration. It opens quietly, the first two bars played by percussion, harp and col legno strings.  The music builds to a quadruple-forte, dissonant climax.  Although Mars is often thought to portray the horrors of mechanised warfare, it was completed before the beginning of the First World War.

Venus, the Bringer of Peace,  begins in 4/4 time, marked adagio.  The movement opens with a solo horn theme answered quietly by the flutes and oboes. A second theme is given to solo violin. The music proceeds tranquilly with oscillating chords from flutes and harps, with decoration from the celesta.  Between the opening adagio and the central largo there is a flowing andante section in 3/4 with a violin melody (solo then tutti) accompanied by gentle syncopation in the woodwind. The oboe solo in the central largo is one of the most romantic melodies Holst ever wrote.

Mercury, the Winged Messenger, is in 6/8 time and is marked vivace throughout.  This movement, the last of the seven to be written, contains Holst’s first experiments with bitonality.  He juxtaposes melodic fragments in B♭ major and E major, in a fast-moving scherzo. Solo violin, high-pitched harp, flute and glockenspiel are prominently featured.

Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity, opens in 2/4 time, marked allegro giocoso.  The second theme, at the same tempo in 3/4 time, is the broad melody of the middle section, marked andante maestoso, which Holst marks to be taken at half the speed of the opening section.  The opening section returns and after a reappearance of the maestoso tune – its expected final cadence unresolved, as in its first appearance – the movement ends with a triple forte quaver chord for the full orchestra.
 
Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age, opens as a quiet adagio in 4/4 time with short bursts of animato and a switch to andante in 3/2 time in the later section.  Apart from the timpani no percussion is used in this movement except for tubular bells at climactic points.  At the beginning, flutes, bassoons and harps play a theme suggesting a ticking clock.  A solemn melody is introduced by the trombones and taken up by the full orchestra.  A development of the ticking theme leads to a clangorous triple forte climax, after which the music dies away and ends quietly.

Uranus, the Magician, begins with “a tremendous four-note brass motif” in 6/4 time and is marked allegro. The music proceeds in “a series of merry pranks” with occasional interjections in 9/4 time building to a quadruple forte climax with a prominent organ glissando,   after which the music suddenly drops to a pianissimo  marked lento before alternating quick and slow sections bring the movement to its pianissimo conclusion

Neptune, the Mystic, is quiet throughout, in a swaying, irregular meter, opening with flutes joined by piccolo and oboes, with harps and celesta prominent later. Holst makes much use of dissonance in this movement.  As the movement develops, the orchestra is joined by an offstage female chorus singing a soft wordless line. The orchestra falls silent and the unaccompanied voices bring the work to a pianissimo conclusion in an uncertain tonality.

Here is performance of Gustav Holst’s The Planets Op. 32 by Sir Malcolm Sargent conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra from the album #nowspinning Holst Warner Music Group

You have been listening to performance of Gustav Holst’s The Planets Op. 32 by Sir Malcolm Sargent conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra from the album #nowspinning Holst

Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Mars, the Bringer of War
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Venus, the Bringer of Peace
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Mercury, the Winged Messenger
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Uranus, the Magician
Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 – Neptune, the Mystic

Today on Four Centuries of Great Music I am celebrating the sesquicentennial of the birth of the composer Gustav Holst.

I am opening this second hour  with St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2), originally titled simply Suite in C.  It was finished in 1913, but not published until 1922 due to revisions.   It takes its name from St Paul’s Girls’ School in Hammersmith, London. Holst served as the school’s “music master” from 1905 to 1934 and was grateful to the school for building a soundproof studio for him. The suite is one of many pieces he wrote for the school’s students.

The suite consists of four movements.  The first movement Jig marked vivace is in 6/8 and 9/8 time. A contrasting theme is then introduced, which is later blended with the original jig.  The second movement Ostinato is marked Presto and opens with an ostinato played by the second violins. The principal theme is then introduced by the solo violin, while the second violins keep playing the ostinato.  The third movement Intermezzo (originally named Dance in the original score) is marked Andante con moto and has a principal theme introduced by the solo violin to a setting of pizzicato chords. The solo viola then joins the violin in a duet. Finally, the melody is played in a quartet of soloists. And the final movement Finale (The Dargason), marked Allegro, was arranged from the “Fantasia on the Dargason” from Holst’s Second Suite in F for Military Band. The titular folk song “Dargason” is heard in the soft introduction. “Dargason” is then followed by “Greensleeves” played in the cellos. The two folk songs are then played together until the end of the movement.

Here is a performance of Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) by the Ontario Pops Orchestra conducted by Charles Bastidas from the album Breaking Barriers OPO Records

You have been listening to a performance of the Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) by the Ontario Pops Orchestra conducted by Charles Bastidas from the album Breaking Barriers

Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) – Jig
Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) – Ostinato
Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) – Intermezzo
Gustav Holst’s St Paul’s Suite in C major (Op. 29, No. 2) – Finale (The Dargason)

Next on this episode of Four Centuries of Great Music celebrating the sesquicentennial of the birth of the composer Gustav Holst is his First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1.  

This work is also the centerpiece of the Savannah Wind Symphony concert entitled “Masterworks for Band”which is scheduled for Sunday, November 3 at 3:00 PM in the Fine Arts Auditorium on the Armstrong Campus of Georgia Southern University.

The work was premiered in 1920 at the Royal Military School of Music and has three movements, each with its own character and form. It is not apparent from the score, but Holst let it be known that the three movements should follow each other without a break. The complete composition is based upon an eight-bar melody reminiscent of English folk song; however, the tune is original to Holst.  The First Suite was a catalysing force that convinced many other prominent composers that serious music could be written specifically for the combination of woodwinds, percussion and brass.

The theme statement that initiates the first movement is developed throughout each movement.

The first movement, “Chaconne” is in 3/4 time, is based upon the eight-bar melody used throughout the entire work initiated by the low brass which repeats sixteen times throughout the movement. The rhythm of the theme is believed to be based upon a medieval English carol; the “Agincourt Song”.  Holst uses many colorful effects to vary the chaconne theme. These include “band hits” in the brass and percussion outlining the notes of the theme while the woodwinds play virtuosic semiquaver runs. The whole passage is marked brilliante or “brilliantly”. Immediately following this is a famous low brass excerpt where they play a quaver line based again on the notes of the theme. This section is marked pesante or “heavily” which sharply contrasts with the material directly before.

Following this are more variations using mostly combinations of solo instruments including a solo horn, duet between flute and oboe, and solo alto saxophone. This section eventually develops into a minor key.

Two of the repetitions, the tenth and eleventh, are an inversion of the theme.  Here the mood changes drastically with a funeral march like feel with the dynamics exceptionally soft. The bass drum and tuba emphasise a hemiola rhythm while a solo euphonium plays the inversion in a minor key.

The twelfth repetition,  a trombone solo, the theme is played a third higher. Then a crescendo poco a poco extends over two more repetitions of the theme. At the height of the crescendo, more hemiola in the brass and saxophones is used to heighten the harmonic interest.

The climax is at the top of the crescendo with the theme being stated in almost all of the low instruments. The higher instruments play soaring counterpoint lines, all of which is marked fortissimo. The final repetition, stated in the trombones and low trumpets/cornets (an unusual combination for its day) is transposed up a fifth, chromatically altered, and extended. The movement ends with the trombones and trumpets/cornets playing against the rest of the band playing on beats one and two while the rest of the band is striking sustained chords on the third beat of the bar. Holst, in the final chord, drops out all of the bass voices from the band leaving a very brilliant sounding chord with high concert B♭s in the flutes, piccolos, and trumpets/cornets. This powerful coda is difficult to play well, but has very high emotional impact when it is.

The second movement, “Intermezzo”, is devoted to a rhythmic and well-articulated oboe, clarinet and cornet solo. The exploitation of wind band tone color combinations flavor this movement. While the movement is predominantly light in character, the clarinet has a stirring solo, which is later repeated by other voices.  Then, the euphonium (or alto clarinet) takes us back to the first theme. Finally the second theme is played in a major key while the upper woodwinds play their virtuosic semiquavers, and diminishes to the lowest possible volume.

The final movement, “March”, is usually played at a march tempo, although many recordings use a faster tempo. It opens with a famous bass drum solo, one of the few in the band literature. It features two primary melodies both very contrasting in style.

The first melody is featured exclusively in the brass section in a very marcato manner. The second melody in the mid and low woodwinds, and later the euphonium, baritone saxophone, and bassoon, resembles the melodies of the first two movements and is played in a very legato and lyrical style. Following the completion of the second melody, strains of the first melody and the first four bars can be heard as the movement builds up to the finale.   The finale features both melodies layered on top of one another in a musical technique called “simultaneous recapitulation”. Nearly all the brass playing the second melody in a majestic march style, with the woodwinds playing the first melody and variations of it. The last few bars are very powerful fortississimo (marked ffff) and have one of the most famous trombone solos in the band repertoire.

Here is a performance of Gustav Holst’s First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1 by the Band of the Royal Air Force Germany conducted by Eric Banks from the album #nowspinning Holst Warner Music Group

You have been listening to a performance of Gustav Holst’s First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1 by the Band of the Royal Air Force Germany conducted by Eric Banks from the album #nowspinning Holst Warner Music Group

Gustav Holst:  First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1 – Chaconne
Gustav Holst:  First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1 – Intermezzo
Gustav Holst:  First Suite for Military Band in E-flat major Op.28 No. 1 – March

Gustav Holst: Quintet for Winds in A-Flat Major, Op. 14  I. Allegro moderato
Gustav Holst: Quintet for Winds in A-Flat Major, Op. 14  II. Adagio
Gustav Holst: Quintet for Winds in A-Flat Major, Op. 14  III. Minuet
Gustav Holst: Quintet for Winds in A-Flat Major, Op. 14  IV. Air and Variations

This piece was written in 1905 and is scored for the classic wind quintet of flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon

The Galliard Ensemble    Music For Wind Quintet    Meridian Records

Gustav Holst: 2 Eastern Pictures   No. 1. Spring
Gustav Holst: 2 Eastern Pictures   No. 2. Summer
Etherea Vocal Ensemble
Hymn to the Dawn    Delos Records

This work was written in 1911 and is scored for harp and female choral ensemble