Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gerd Albrecht.
I - Tempo I: Sostenuto, ma ritmico (♪ = 168) - Tempo II (♪ = 138) - (♪ = 168) - (♪ = 138) - Sempre come un corale (𝅘𝅥 = 84) - Appasionato maestoso (𝅘𝅥 = 69) - Tempo II (♪ = 138) 0:00
Franssens's "Roaring Rotterdam" was composed on 1997, being commissioned by the [Netherlands] Radio Philharmonic Orchestra (Radio Filharmonisch Orkest), with financial support from the Fonds voor de Scheppende Toonkunst, a Dutch foundation funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science in order promote the creation of new compositions in the field of classical music and jazz. It was premiered on November 17 of 1997, as the opener of a concert series titled "Roaring Rotterdam", from which the title is derived. A version for 4 pianos was realized on 1997, being later revised on 2016.
After completing his musical studies with Louis Andriessen and Klaas de Vries, Franssens became inspired by Ligeti’s micropolyphony and the phase-shifting technique of Steve Reich. The relationship with Ligeti’s music becomes clear in works written in the eighties such as "Echo’s" and "Phasing". The influence of Reich can already be heard in "Between the Beats", an early piece for two pianos. During the nineties, Franssens’ sound became more open and more optimistic in tone. Because of the melodious, generous and emotional character of his music, he encountered growing resistance within the Dutch music scene. Contrarily he received growing acclaim by a wider audience. His first CD with "Echo’s", "Phasing" and "Sanctus" was a hit.
The work with a series of ostinato figures introduced by the string basses of the orchestra, clearly inspired by the opening chorus of Bach's St. John Passion. The music gradually grows in a long crescendo, reaching two powerful and expressive climaxes. Other influences of the piece are Smetana’s "The Moldau" and the opening of Wagner’s "Das Rheingold", the pop group Yes and more generally American minimalism. The meandering river of sound leads to a fortissimo chorale, coming to a halt on a lengthy bed of sound filled with octaves and fifths. The language seems at first glance clearly to belong to postmodernism, though in one way or another, the deeply serious tone of this piece is at odds with the "anything goes" attitude. What is more, it seems anything but fragmentary, given that all the discrete elements of the piece combine towards the end of the piece and culminate in an ineluctable granite-like chorale, a triumph of harmonic and rhythmic simplicity and unambiguousness.
Picture: Photograph of a lanscape in Rotterdam (2016) by David Broetz.
Musical analysis mostly written by myself. Sources: tinyurl.com/2brun3zn and tinyurl.com/26o828xn
To check the score: tinyurl.com/29w5wtcg
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gerd Albrecht.
I - Tempo I: Sostenuto, ma ritmico (♪ = 168) - Tempo II (♪ = 138) - (♪ = 168) - (♪ = 138) - Sempre come un corale (𝅘𝅥 = 84) - Appasionato maestoso (𝅘𝅥 = 69) - Tempo II (♪ = 138) 0:00
Franssens's "Roaring Rotterdam" was composed on 1997, being commissioned by the [Netherlands] Radio Philharmonic Orchestra (Radio Filharmonisch Orkest), with financial support from the Fonds voor de Scheppende Toonkunst, a Dutch foundation funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science in order promote the creation of new compositions in the field of classical music and jazz. It was premiered on November 17 of 1997, as the opener of a concert series titled "Roaring Rotterdam", from which the title is derived. A version for 4 pianos was realized on 1997, being later revised on 2016.
After completing his musical studies with Louis Andriessen and Klaas de Vries, Franssens became inspired by Ligeti’s micropolyphony and the phase-shifting technique of Steve Reich. The relationship with Ligeti’s music becomes clear in works written in the eighties such as "Echo’s" and "Phasing". The influence of Reich can already be heard in "Between the Beats", an early piece for two pianos. During the nineties, Franssens’ sound became more open and more optimistic in tone. Because of the melodious, generous and emotional character of his music, he encountered growing resistance within the Dutch music scene. Contrarily he received growing acclaim by a wider audience. His first CD with "Echo’s", "Phasing" and "Sanctus" was a hit.
The work with a series of ostinato figures introduced by the string basses of the orchestra, clearly inspired by the opening chorus of Bach's St. John Passion. The music gradually grows in a long crescendo, reaching two powerful and expressive climaxes. Other influences of the piece are Smetana’s "The Moldau" and the opening of Wagner’s "Das Rheingold", the pop group Yes and more generally American minimalism. The meandering river of sound leads to a fortissimo chorale, coming to a halt on a lengthy bed of sound filled with octaves and fifths. The language seems at first glance clearly to belong to postmodernism, though in one way or another, the deeply serious tone of this piece is at odds with the "anything goes" attitude. What is more, it seems anything but fragmentary, given that all the discrete elements of the piece combine towards the end of the piece and culminate in an ineluctable granite-like chorale, a triumph of harmonic and rhythmic simplicity and unambiguousness.
Picture: Photograph of a lanscape in Rotterdam (2016) by David Broetz.
Musical analysis mostly written by myself. Sources: tinyurl.com/2brun3zn and tinyurl.com/26o828xn
To check the score: tinyurl.com/29w5wtcg
