Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Aarhus Symphony Orchestra conducted by Owain Arwel Hughes.
I - Allegro - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I: 0:00
II - Andante- Allegro energico: 6:16
Holmboe's Symphony No.1 was composed between June and September 1935, shortly after his return from Romania where he married Romanian pianist Meta May Graf. The Symphony was premiered in Aarhus on February 21 of 1938, performed by the Aarhus City Orchestra (nowadays the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra) conducted by Thomas Jensen. Written in two compact movements and somewhat neoclassical in tone, the piece is scored for chamber orchestra.
In Romania, Holmboe and Graf had visited remote villages and studied Transylvanian folk-song. The contours and lilt of the folk-song (not specifically Romanian) were to infuse his music in years to come, as they already d in this Symphony. In this context valid parallels with Vaughan Williams and Kodaly can be made although Holmboe' music is utterly individual. In the score the composer presents a very specific orchestral layout; woodwinds first, then brass and finally strings in the back. This gives the piece a particular texture and colour.
The first movement is structured in a very compact sonata form. It begins with two firm chords, followed by a rhythmic and lively main theme of folkish inflection supported by a snare drum ostinato. Trumpets also introduce a motive that becomes the basis of a second theme, very similar in nature as the main one. A slower transition leads us to the brief but vigorous development, based on the main material. The recapitulation brings back the main themes before the allegro ends with a determined and wilful coda.
The second movement is divided in two parts. The firs section is an andante in form of an arch. It opens with a folkish motive on bassoons, which is soon contrasted by the marching rhythms of snare drum and brass. These disparate elements construct this part and offers contrast, gradually fusing into a single entity in the central part (hardly a climax as the music is very low-key in dynamics and texture). The music then returns to the opening shape of the material, before a rhythmically marked transition leads to the second section.
The finale, also in sonata form, begins with a vigorously rhythmic theme, also folkloric in nature as in the music heard in the first movement. Brass introduces a more solemn second theme. The ensuing development begins with pizzicati strings and snare drum, growing in a crescendo with constantly shifting rhythms. The main themes are recapitulated, leading to an animated coda that ends the Symphony in the work's biggest climax.
Picture: "A Ballet Scene" (1921) by Danish painter Harald Giersing.
Musical analysis written by myself. Sources: tinyurl.com/26lcdeju and tinyurl.com/22gdekzx
To check the score: tinyurl.com/2yn2thpz
Aarhus Symphony Orchestra conducted by Owain Arwel Hughes.
I - Allegro - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I - Meno allegro - Tempo I: 0:00
II - Andante- Allegro energico: 6:16
Holmboe's Symphony No.1 was composed between June and September 1935, shortly after his return from Romania where he married Romanian pianist Meta May Graf. The Symphony was premiered in Aarhus on February 21 of 1938, performed by the Aarhus City Orchestra (nowadays the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra) conducted by Thomas Jensen. Written in two compact movements and somewhat neoclassical in tone, the piece is scored for chamber orchestra.
In Romania, Holmboe and Graf had visited remote villages and studied Transylvanian folk-song. The contours and lilt of the folk-song (not specifically Romanian) were to infuse his music in years to come, as they already d in this Symphony. In this context valid parallels with Vaughan Williams and Kodaly can be made although Holmboe' music is utterly individual. In the score the composer presents a very specific orchestral layout; woodwinds first, then brass and finally strings in the back. This gives the piece a particular texture and colour.
The first movement is structured in a very compact sonata form. It begins with two firm chords, followed by a rhythmic and lively main theme of folkish inflection supported by a snare drum ostinato. Trumpets also introduce a motive that becomes the basis of a second theme, very similar in nature as the main one. A slower transition leads us to the brief but vigorous development, based on the main material. The recapitulation brings back the main themes before the allegro ends with a determined and wilful coda.
The second movement is divided in two parts. The firs section is an andante in form of an arch. It opens with a folkish motive on bassoons, which is soon contrasted by the marching rhythms of snare drum and brass. These disparate elements construct this part and offers contrast, gradually fusing into a single entity in the central part (hardly a climax as the music is very low-key in dynamics and texture). The music then returns to the opening shape of the material, before a rhythmically marked transition leads to the second section.
The finale, also in sonata form, begins with a vigorously rhythmic theme, also folkloric in nature as in the music heard in the first movement. Brass introduces a more solemn second theme. The ensuing development begins with pizzicati strings and snare drum, growing in a crescendo with constantly shifting rhythms. The main themes are recapitulated, leading to an animated coda that ends the Symphony in the work's biggest climax.
Picture: "A Ballet Scene" (1921) by Danish painter Harald Giersing.
Musical analysis written by myself. Sources: tinyurl.com/26lcdeju and tinyurl.com/22gdekzx
To check the score: tinyurl.com/2yn2thpz
