Uploaded September 2024 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
0:05 I. Allegro moderato
8:37 II. Adagio
18:00 III. Allegretto
21:32 IV. Grave - Allegro assai
Performed by the Quatuor Danel: Marc Danel & Gilles Milet, violins; Tony Nys, viola; Guy Danel, cello
Ahmet Adnan Saygun (1907-1991) was a Turkish composer, the most famous of the "Turkish Five" who combined the Western classical tradition with Turkish folk music. During Saygun's lifetime, his work was widely performed across Turkey, Europe, and North America by leading ensembles like the NBC Symphony, Vienna Philharmonic, and Juilliard String Quartet. Read more about Saygun on my blog: unknowncomposers.org/2020/08/15/ahmet-adnan-saygun-a-pioneer-who-brought-together-romanticism-western-modernism-and-turkish-folk-song
Saygun's first string quartet was written in 1947 at the age of 40, when he had already brought together the key elements of his mature style: evocations of Turkish modes (makams) and traditional instruments, influences from modernism similar to those of the composer's good friend Béla Bartók, and a rather intuitive and improvisatory sense of form. An enchanting work throughout, the four-movement quartet - energized, tense and lyrical by turns - is an excellent example of Saygun's quite singular compositional voice.
If you would like to see score videos of Saygun's other two string quartets as well, @invertedninthchord has uploaded them: youtube.com/watch?v=65IOSQDzAY0 (2nd quartet) and youtube.com/watch?v=65IOSQDzAY0 (3rd quartet).
0:05 I. Allegro moderato
8:37 II. Adagio
18:00 III. Allegretto
21:32 IV. Grave - Allegro assai
Performed by the Quatuor Danel: Marc Danel & Gilles Milet, violins; Tony Nys, viola; Guy Danel, cello
Ahmet Adnan Saygun (1907-1991) was a Turkish composer, the most famous of the "Turkish Five" who combined the Western classical tradition with Turkish folk music. During Saygun's lifetime, his work was widely performed across Turkey, Europe, and North America by leading ensembles like the NBC Symphony, Vienna Philharmonic, and Juilliard String Quartet. Read more about Saygun on my blog: unknowncomposers.org/2020/08/15/ahmet-adnan-saygun-a-pioneer-who-brought-together-romanticism-western-modernism-and-turkish-folk-song
Saygun's first string quartet was written in 1947 at the age of 40, when he had already brought together the key elements of his mature style: evocations of Turkish modes (makams) and traditional instruments, influences from modernism similar to those of the composer's good friend Béla Bartók, and a rather intuitive and improvisatory sense of form. An enchanting work throughout, the four-movement quartet - energized, tense and lyrical by turns - is an excellent example of Saygun's quite singular compositional voice.
If you would like to see score videos of Saygun's other two string quartets as well, @invertedninthchord has uploaded them: youtube.com/watch?v=65IOSQDzAY0 (2nd quartet) and youtube.com/watch?v=65IOSQDzAY0 (3rd quartet).
![VASILY KALINNIKOV - Symphony No. 2 (Score Video) [N. Järvi]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/IFu1RxsVUhw/mqdefault.jpg "VASILY KALINNIKOV - Symphony No. 2 (Score Video) [N. Järvi]
Performed by the Scottish National Orchestra conducted by Neeme Järvi
00:00 I. Moderato - Allegro non troppo
10:18 II. Andante cantabile
18:25 III. Allegro scherzando
26:32 IV. Andante cantabile - Allegro vivo
Vasily Kalinnikov (1866-1901) was a Russian Romantic composer whose often colorful and energetic music drew from Russian folk melodies. For more on Kalinnikov, see my post about him on my blog: https://unknowncomposers.org/2019/03/25/special-feature-vasily-kalinnikov-the-forgotten-russian-romantic/
Written in 1897 and dedicated to the conductor Aleksandr Vinogradsky, Kalinnikovs second symphony is one of his most important works. Although I personally find the melodies of his first symphony most compelling, the second displays a mastery of form and development while retaining the exuberance and orchestral color so characteristic of his style.
Although they have begun to gain prominence in recent years, Kalinnikovs works remain rarely performed among major orchestras outside the former USSR - I hope this score video will be a small part of changing the status quo. You can find the score on Kalinnikovs IMSLP page (https://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Kalinnikov,_Vasily) under Symphony No. 2 in A Major.")
