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The music of Eduard Tubin

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« on: May 05, 2009, 11:05:52 am »

After listening yesterday to Tubin's 1946 Fifth Symphony my pleasure was so great that I looked him up in Grove's Dictionary to seek an explanation. And sure enough, I find that "Tubin's first three symphonies . . . are marked by a rhythmically propulsive and ecstatic orchestral style that reflects Tubin's interest in Skryabin." [sic - he was always spelled "Scryabine" in England in his lifetime] Anyway, that exactly describes what I heard in the Fifth too. They go on to say that "from the beginning he displayed an instinctive and impeccable grasp of polyphony and large-scale structures. . . . His harmonic language ranges from free chromaticism to mild polytonality: he professed a distaste for Schönbergian atonality [sic] and twelve-note techniques and an inclination towards the strict voice-leading rules of the 'Palestrina style.'"

There are eleven Tubin symphonies altogether, and one late String Quartet from 1979 (which I have not heard).

He uses a lot of ostinato, but unlike the banal efforts of some of his contemporaries - and of some of our contemporaries for that matter - his ostinato is always set in a suitably contrasting context - in other words it is meaningful.

Even some of Bach's pedal points can be regarded as early forms of ostinato really, I suppose. . . .
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guest377
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« Reply #1 on: August 23, 2013, 03:38:35 pm »

After listening yesterday to Tubin's 1946 Fifth Symphony my pleasure was so great that I looked him up in Grove's Dictionary to seek an explanation. And sure enough, I find that "Tubin's first three symphonies . . . are marked by a rhythmically propulsive and ecstatic orchestral style that reflects Tubin's interest in Skryabin." [sic - he was always spelled "Scryabine" in England in his lifetime] Anyway, that exactly describes what I heard in the Fifth too. They go on to say that "from the beginning he displayed an instinctive and impeccable grasp of polyphony and large-scale structures. . . . His harmonic language ranges from free chromaticism to mild polytonality: he professed a distaste for Schönbergian atonality [sic] and twelve-note techniques and an inclination towards the strict voice-leading rules of the 'Palestrina style.'"

There are eleven Tubin symphonies altogether, and one late String Quartet from 1979 (which I have not heard).

He uses a lot of ostinato, but unlike the banal efforts of some of his contemporaries - and of some of our contemporaries for that matter - his ostinato is always set in a suitably contrasting context - in other words it is meaningful.

Even some of Bach's pedal points can be regarded as early forms of ostinato really, I suppose. . . .




More information is at tubinsociety.org   
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guest377
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« Reply #2 on: August 23, 2013, 09:32:43 pm »

see also the Tubin folder here:
The Art-Music Forum > Forum > Little-known composers of all eras > Composer reference > Estonian Composers > Eduard Tubin (1905 – 1982)
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« Reply #3 on: August 24, 2013, 12:23:10 pm »

A magnificent composer! Wonderful symphonies, bracingly refreshing!

I also highly recommend his ballet,
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« Reply #4 on: August 26, 2013, 11:10:22 am »

Yes I totally agree, one of the most stylistically individual symphonists of the 20th century. He only completed 10 Symphonies, the 11th was left unfinished at his death, one movement survives and has been recorded. His 4th has long been in my top 10 symphonies of all time, but all of the others are excellent too. Both of his Violin Concertos are also very fine and he wrote IMO the best Double Bass Concerto of the 20th century.
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« Reply #5 on: August 26, 2013, 03:03:05 pm »

I am also a big Tubin fan, but the most memorable and invigorating symphony to me is No. 5 with all that huge percussion. Used to listen to it while I walked, which led to some quite vigorous exercise, especially when I started alternately waving my arms, i.e. "conducting" and playing "air percussion.
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« Reply #6 on: August 26, 2013, 09:12:22 pm »

Another big Tubin fan here, intrigued by everything BIS recorded from the early 1980s on. As for many, it all started with the live recording of the Fourth Symphony ('Lirica') that I heard soon after it appeared; Tubin himself was present at the concert/recording in Bergen, Norway, BTW. After the lirical Fourth came the rest.

I myself was lucky enough to hear professional live performances in Amsterdam (Concertgebouw) and Utrecht of the Fifth, Sixth and Elevent (one movement) Symphonies and of the Piano Concertino and the Double Bass Concerto, mostly under Neeme Järvi and Arvo Volmer, both Tubin specialists. (Indeed, I heard more Tubin symphonies live than Vaughan Williams symphonies, another favourite).

My personal choices would be the Fourth, Sixth, Seventh, Eight, perhaps, but I love them all as indeed I think I like everything he wrote. The only symphony I do not really warm to is the Fifth, and among the concertos I find the Piano concertino rather uncharacteristic; both pieces were accidentally written in the months immediately after he had fled to Sweden in 1944/45 and I always felt that it took some time before he found a 'new' voice of his own in his Swedes exile.

For me, a renewed Tubin appeared with the 1948 Double Bass Concerto and especially with the vehement Sixth (1953), his personal "Sacre" IMHO, a creative breakthrough that gave room to his later style. I once spoke with an old friend of him in Stockholm, who confirmed that for Tubin personally the Sixth had had that significance. Recommended.
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… music is not only an `entertainment’, nor a mere luxury, but a necessity of the spiritual if not of the physical life, an opening of those magic casements through which we can catch a glimpse of that country where ultimate reality will be found.  RVW, 1948
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« Reply #7 on: August 26, 2013, 09:40:43 pm »

Another admirer here. Personal favourites are 1,2 'Legendary', 3,4 and 5. I respond more to these than the later ones, good as those are. If you like Tubin you should also like his pupil Kaljo Raid's Symphony No 1 on Chandos, a great work. One friend said that Tubin's 4th Symphony reminded him of A Pastoral Symphony by Vaughan Williams.
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« Reply #8 on: August 26, 2013, 10:33:07 pm »

Personal favourites are 1,2 'Legendary', 3,4 and 5. I respond more to these than the later ones, good as those are.

Those are my favorites as well. I really love the lyricism, vigor and spirit of nos. 1-5 more than the sparer, gloomier world of the later ones. Kudos for mentioning the Raid symphony. Besides Tubin, I was also reminded of Bax and Moeran's Symphony in G minor in places.
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« Reply #9 on: August 26, 2013, 10:55:55 pm »

Another admirer here. Personal favourites are 1,2 'Legendary', 3,4 and 5. I respond more to these than the later ones, good as those are. If you like Tubin you should also like his pupil Kaljo Raid's Symphony No 1 on Chandos, a great work. One friend said that Tubin's 4th Symphony reminded him of A Pastoral Symphony by Vaughan Williams.
At last! :) Someone who likes the 'Legendary' as much as me! Every time I mention it at the GMG,or elsewhere,my post seems to be ignored in favour of one of the later ones! :(
I first heard & taped it off the radio around 1985. I don't have a cd of it;but the last time I listened to my off air  cassette,now around 28 years old,it still worked!
A wonderful symphony. The name 'Legendary' so apt. Very powerful. I must put the cd on my list (at long last). I have a tape of the Sixth,too. A more turbulent,brooding,but viscerally exciting work.
If I buy it I'll probably want the others though,won't I?!! :( ;D (Not that I mind;but I've got boring things like bills to pay! :()
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« Reply #10 on: August 27, 2013, 12:11:26 am »

I am also a big Tubin fan, but the most memorable and invigorating symphony to me is No. 5 with all that huge percussion. Used to listen to it while I walked, which led to some quite vigorous exercise, especially when I started alternately waving my arms, i.e. "conducting" and playing "air percussion.
And who wouldn't want to hear the fifth after reading this post?!! ??? :o ;D
I'll take a walk straight after listening! I can always listen to it on headphones on Ward Six! No worries about those bills! ;D
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« Reply #11 on: August 27, 2013, 12:21:07 am »

A slightly different view from Mark Morris in his "Dictionary of Twentieth Century Composers":

"His(Tubin's) current prominence...has been created by a number of critics who have turned to his conservative oeuvre with a certain amount of relief. The subsequent praise.....has been exaggerated. That said, Tubin's work often has moments of considerable interest, and is always well-wrought and sincere. His ten(sic) symphonies, the centrepiece of his ouput, have a number of features in common. The harmonic language is conventional, even the moments of polytonality more the result of orchestral blocks than harmonic experiment. The orchestral colours are usually sharp-edged and dark, emphasising the opposition of brass against strings. An almost continual rhythmic vigour is maintained by the prominence of percussion especially timpani, combined with the use of ostinati. The progress of quiet, building to climax, and back to quiet is a regular structural feature. The strength of these symphonies lies in a kind of Scandinavian inevitability, the earnestness of an exile, and in a generally dark-hued view of the world. Their failings are their unmemorable melodies and moments of banality(E.g. the quasi-jazz rhythms crosed with Khachaturian-like melodic line of the second movement of the sixth symphony); overall they add little to the body of symphonic language or structure."

Morris appears to be most impressed by the Second, Fourth and Sixth. The Fifth is, for him, marred by "the banality" of its opening. The suites and the Sinfonietta ae described as "trite, anachronistic, overblown and unmemorable". The Balalaika Concerto is "best avoided".

I quote, not because I agree with Morris-I don't-but because it is always edifying in a thread which, quite understandably, consists of praise from enthusiasts to be at least aware of the criticisms of the music.

I certainly don't want to see this forum go the way of another in attracting a number of apparently professional "knockers" who delight in posting about how much they dislike a composer's music but it is salutory from time to time to be reminded that there are sensible people out there who, though they can find elements in a composer's work to praise, can nevertheless find areas to criticise.

I profoundly disagree with Mark Morris in his assessment of the music of Robert Simpson and Sir Malcolm Arnold....but I do return to him repeatedly because he is, in general, a balanced writer.

The strengths he identifies in Tubin's music outweigh any perceived deficiencies for me. It is exactly that "Scandinavian inevitability" and "dark-hued view of the world" which so appeals to me and which I can equally identify in a considerable number of other Scandinavian composers.

If you like Tubin (and Shostakovich) you should try-if you have not already-the music of the Finnish composers Englund, Kokkonen and Sallinen.
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« Reply #12 on: August 27, 2013, 04:27:03 am »

Of the 3 composers mentioned, Englund is my favorite and the most accessable - I have not heard anything I did not enjoy.
Sallinen is also very good, his music (for the most part) is also quite accessable and memorable. His symphonies however, are somewhat
of a mixed bag.
I found Kokonnen to be the antithesis of Englund and Sallinen. Quite abstract and not an easy listen at all - and lord knows I tried, he does have a fairly strong group of advocates..
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« Reply #13 on: August 27, 2013, 10:18:16 am »

Another admirer here. Personal favourites are 1,2 'Legendary', 3,4 and 5. I respond more to these than the later ones, good as those are. If you like Tubin you should also like his pupil Kaljo Raid's Symphony No 1 on Chandos, a great work. One friend said that Tubin's 4th Symphony reminded him of A Pastoral Symphony by Vaughan Williams.
At last! :) Someone who likes the 'Legendary' as much as me! Every time I mention it at the GMG,or elsewhere,my post seems to be ignored in favour of one of the later ones! :(
I first heard & taped it off the radio around 1985. I don't have a cd of it;but the last time I listened to my off air  cassette,now around 28 years old,it still worked!
A wonderful symphony. The name 'Legendary' so apt. Very powerful. I must put the cd on my list (at long last). I have a tape of the Sixth,too. A more turbulent,brooding,but viscerally exciting work.
If I buy it I'll probably want the others though,won't I?!! :( ;D (Not that I mind;but I've got boring things like bills to pay! :()

The 'Legendary' by Tubin was my first ever CD purchase (I didn't even have a CD player at the time!) it is an epic work with many memorable and exciting climaxes, as well as haunting quieter sections. I really like this score together with the underrated Symphony 1.
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« Reply #14 on: August 27, 2013, 10:21:43 am »

A slightly different view from Mark Morris in his "Dictionary of Twentieth Century Composers":

"His(Tubin's) current prominence...has been created by a number of critics who have turned to his conservative oeuvre with a certain amount of relief. The subsequent praise.....has been exaggerated. That said, Tubin's work often has moments of considerable interest, and is always well-wrought and sincere. His ten(sic) symphonies, the centrepiece of his ouput, have a number of features in common. The harmonic language is conventional, even the moments of polytonality more the result of orchestral blocks than harmonic experiment. The orchestral colours are usually sharp-edged and dark, emphasising the opposition of brass against strings. An almost continual rhythmic vigour is maintained by the prominence of percussion especially timpani, combined with the use of ostinati. The progress of quiet, building to climax, and back to quiet is a regular structural feature. The strength of these symphonies lies in a kind of Scandinavian inevitability, the earnestness of an exile, and in a generally dark-hued view of the world. Their failings are their unmemorable melodies and moments of banality(E.g. the quasi-jazz rhythms crosed with Khachaturian-like melodic line of the second movement of the sixth symphony); overall they add little to the body of symphonic language or structure."

Morris appears to be most impressed by the Second, Fourth and Sixth. The Fifth is, for him, marred by "the banality" of its opening. The suites and the Sinfonietta ae described as "trite, anachronistic, overblown and unmemorable". The Balalaika Concerto is "best avoided".

I quote, not because I agree with Morris-I don't-but because it is always edifying in a thread which, quite understandably, consists of praise from enthusiasts to be at least aware of the criticisms of the music.

I certainly don't want to see this forum go the way of another in attracting a number of apparently professional "knockers" who delight in posting about how much they dislike a composer's music but it is salutory from time to time to be reminded that there are sensible people out there who, though they can find elements in a composer's work to praise, can nevertheless find areas to criticise.

I profoundly disagree with Mark Morris in his assessment of the music of Robert Simpson and Sir Malcolm Arnold....but I do return to him repeatedly because he is, in general, a balanced writer.

The strengths he identifies in Tubin's music outweigh any perceived deficiencies for me. It is exactly that "Scandinavian inevitability" and "dark-hued view of the world" which so appeals to me and which I can equally identify in a considerable number of other Scandinavian composers.

If you like Tubin (and Shostakovich) you should try-if you have not already-the music of the Finnish composers Englund, Kokkonen and Sallinen.

Interesting article Colin. I don't agree with it either but it is good to see an alternative view so that we get a balanced view (this sounds like a History lesson!)  ;). On that subject I am doing no preparation for returning to work tomorrow as a result of this forum! Shame on you all - especially Kyle who alerted me to its existence. :)
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