Symphony No. 6 (Bax)
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The Symphony No.6 by Arnold Bax was completed on February 10, 1935. The symphony was dedicated to Sir Adrian Boult, who often conducted Arnold Bax's works but criticized them for being formally loose. Arnold Bax's main aim with this work was to maintain his style but revert to a more classical form. It is considered by many to be the greatest of his symphonies. It is scored for piccolo, 3 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 3 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, double bassoon, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba, timpani, bass drum, tenor drum, snare drum, cymbals, tambourine, triangle, gong, glockenspiel, celesta, harp, strings.
The symphony is in three movements:
- Moderato - Allegro con fuoco
- Lento molto espressivo
- Introduction (Lento moderato) - Scherzo & Trio (Allegro vivace - Andante semplice) - Epilogue (Lento)
The first movement opens with a moderato ostinato on bass trombone with the woodwinds on top playing grinding, dissonant chords. The following allegro con fuoco section gives the ostinato to the violas, this time in diminution. A more lyrical second subject follows, before the main motives return to recapitulate in Bax's shortest opening movement out of all his symphonies.
The idyllic middle movement is also Bax's shortest second movement, where the violins introduce the main melody near the beginning and it is eventually taken up by the other sections of the orchestra, with an almost jazzy trumpet solo in the middle. It ends peacefully as to set up the last movement.
Widely considered Bax's greatest symphonic movement, and indeed his longest finale, the last movement opens with an extended, mysterious clarinet solo which forms a basis for much of the material throughout the movement. Then the other woodwinds play the second main melodic idea for the movement, which forms a basis for the scherzo, trio and the climax towards the end of the symphony. The main melodic ideas are characteristically stated in full force of the orchestra just before the tranquil epilogue which closes the symphony. The main (and only) theme of Jean Sibelius's tone poem, Tapiola, is quoted in the middle of this movement.
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