An Alpine Symphony

Alpine summit

An Alpine Symphony (Eine Alpensinfonie), Op. 64, is a tone poem written by German composer Richard Strauss in 1915. Though labelled as a symphony by the composer, this piece forgoes the conventions of the traditional multi-movement symphony and consists of twenty-two continuous sections of music.[1] The story of An Alpine Symphony depicts the experiences of eleven hours (from daybreak just before dawn to the following nightfall) spent climbing an Alpine mountain. An Alpine Symphony is one of Strauss's largest non-operatic works in terms of performing forces: the score calls for about 125 players in total.[2] A typical performance usually lasts around 50 minutes.

This piece was the last tone poem written by Strauss, a genre which gained the composer popularity in the late 1880s and 1890s with works such as Don Juan (1888), Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks (1895), Also Sprach Zarathustra (1896), Don Quixote (1897), and A Hero's Life (1897–98).[3] By the time of An Alpine Symphony's composition, however, Strauss had turned his attention away from the genre of tone poems and had become well-established as one of the period's greatest operatic composers.

Though one of Strauss's lesser-performed works (for a number of reasons, including the great number of musicians required),[4] the piece is popular enough that in 1981 a recording of An Alpine Symphony made with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic became one of the first compact discs to be pressed.[5]

History

Composition

Richard Strauss

Strauss's An Alpine Symphony was completed in 1915, eleven years after the completion of its immediate predecessor in the genre of the tone poem, Symphonia Domestica.[6] In 1911 Strauss wrote that he was "torturing [himself] with a symphony – a job that, when all's said and done, amuses me even less than chasing cockroaches".[7]

One point of influence comes from Strauss's love of nature. As a boy, Strauss experienced an Alpine adventure similar to the one described in his An Alpine Symphony: he and a group of climbers lost their way heading up a mountain and were caught in a storm and soaked on the way down.[8] Strauss loved the mountains so much that in 1908 he built a home in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria, that boasted stunning views of the Alps.[9] This interest in nature can also point to Strauss's followings of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.[10]

The original drafts of An Alpine Symphony began in 1899. It was to be written in memory of the Swiss painter, Karl Stauffer-Bern, and the work was originally titled Künstlertragödie (Tragedy of an Artist). This fell by the wayside, but Strauss began a new four-movement work called Die Alpen (The Alps) in which he used parts of the original 1899 draft. The first movement of Die Alpen evolved into the core of An Alpine Symphony. Sketches were made, but Strauss eventually left the work unfinished.[11]

Years later, upon the death of his good friend Gustav Mahler in 1911, Strauss decided to revisit the work. In his journal the day after he learned of Mahler's death, Strauss wrote:

The death of this aspiring, idealistic, energetic artist [is] a grave loss ... Mahler, the Jew, could achieve elevation in Christianity. As an old man the hero Wagner returned to it under the influence of Schopenhauer. It is clear to me that the German nation will achieve new creative energy only by liberating itself from Christianity ... I shall call my alpine symphony: Der Antichrist, since it represents: moral purification through one's own strength, liberation through work, worship of eternal, magnificent nature.[12]

The resulting draft of the work was to be a two-part work titled Der Antichrist: Eine Alpensinfonie; however, Strauss never finished the second part. Instead, he dropped the first half of the title (named after an essay by Nietzsche written in 1888) and called his single-movement work simply An Alpine Symphony.[13] After so many years of intermittent composition, once Strauss began work on the piece in earnest the progress was quick. Strauss even went so far as to remark that he composed An Alpine Symphony "just as a cow gives milk".[9] Orchestration for the work began on November 1, 1914 and was completed by the composer only three months later.[14] In reference to this, his final purely symphonic work, Strauss famously commented at the dress rehearsal for An Alpine Symphony's premiere that at last he had learned to orchestrate.[14] The entire work was finished on February 8, 1915.[13] The score was dedicated "in profound gratitude" to Count Nicolaus Seebach, director of the Royal Opera in Dresden, where four of the six operas Strauss had written by that time had been premiered.[15]

Premiere and reception

An Alpine Symphony was premiered on October 28, 1915, with Strauss conducting the orchestra of the Dresden Hofkapelle in Berlin.[16][17] The performance provoked mixed reactions. Some even called it "cinema music".[18] Strauss was happy with how this piece turned out, however, and wrote to a friend in 1915 that "you must hear the Alpine Symphony on December 5; it really is quite a good piece!"[19]

It is generally believed that the American premiere of An Alpine Symphony was performed by Ernst Kunwald leading the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra on 25 April 1916.[20] Kunwald and certain "influential Cincinnatians"[20] had taken great pains to get the piece from wartime Germany and to be the first orchestra to perform Strauss's new work in America. As a result, An Alpine Symphony had originally been scheduled to be premiered in Cincinnati on 4 May of that year. However, when Leopold Stokowski suddenly announced that he would premiere the work with the Philadelphia Orchestra on 28 April, Kunwald and the Cincinnati Orchestra immediately began preparation of the piece. On 25 April the orchestra was finally able to rehearse An Alpine Symphony all the way through at a rehearsal in Cincinnati and, two days later, sent word to local papers inviting patrons to a performance of the piece that very day at noon. Ultimately, two thousand people attended this unofficial American premiere of the work. This premiere took place a little over 24 hours before the Philadelphia performance.[20]

First recording

Oskar Fried recorded the work in 1925 with the Berlin Philharmonic. Strauss himself conducted the Munich Radio Symphony Orchestra in the work's next recording, in 1936. His more ambitious 1941 recording, with the Bavarian State Orchestra, utilized the full orchestral forces called for by the score (see below) and was later issued on LP and CD. Due to the wide dynamic range of the music, the symphony became very popular for high fidelity and stereophonic recordings, beginning with Karl Böhm's 1957 recording. The first test pressing of a compact disc was of An Alpine Symphony.[21]

Instrumentation

Strauss scored An Alpine Symphony for the large orchestra:

Strauss further suggested that the harps and some woodwind instruments should be doubled if possible, and indicated that the stated number of string players should be regarded as a minimum.

The use of "Samuel's Aerophon" is suggested in the instrumentation listing. (Strauss probably misunderstood the name – it was originally called the Aerophor.) This long-extinct device, invented by Dutch flautist Bernard Samuels in 1911 to assist wind players in sustaining long notes without interruption, was a foot-pump with an air-hose stretching to the player's mouth.[22] However, modern wind players make use of the technique of circular breathing, whereby it is possible to inhale through the nose while still sustaining the sound by matching the blowing pressure in the mouth. This technique is in fact centuries old and its ubiquity is probably the reason why the Aerophor never caught on – it really wasn't needed.

Program

The Aletsch Glacier in the Swiss Alps

Although performed as one continuous movement, An Alpine Symphony has a distinct program which describes each phase of the Alpine journey in chronological order. The score includes the following section titles (not numbered in the score):

  1. Nacht (Night)
  2. Sonnenaufgang (Sunrise)
  3. Der Anstieg (The Ascent)
  4. Eintritt in den Wald (Entry into the Forest)
  5. Wanderung neben dem Bache (Wandering by the Brook)
  6. Am Wasserfall (At the Waterfall)
  7. Erscheinung (Apparition)
  8. Auf blumigen Wiesen (On Flowering Meadows)
  9. Auf der Alm (On the Alpine Pasture)
  10. Durch Dickicht und Gestrüpp auf Irrwegen (Through Thickets and Undergrowth on the Wrong Path)
  11. Auf dem Gletscher (On the Glacier)
  12. Gefahrvolle Augenblicke (Dangerous Moments)
  13. Auf dem Gipfel (On the Summit)
  14. Vision (Vision)
  15. Nebel steigen auf (Mists Rise)
  16. Die Sonne verdüstert sich allmählich (The Sun Gradually Becomes Obscured)
  17. Elegie (Elegy)
  18. Stille vor dem Sturm (Calm Before the Storm)
  19. Gewitter und Sturm, Abstieg (Thunder and Tempest, Descent)
  20. Sonnenuntergang (Sunset)
  21. Ausklang (Quiet Settles)[23]
  22. Nacht (Night)

In terms of formal analysis, attempts have been made to group these sections together to form a "gigantic Lisztian symphonic form, with elements of an introduction, opening allegro, scherzo, slow movement, finale, and epilogue."[14] In general, however, it is believed that comparisons to any kind of traditional symphonic form are secondary to the strong sense of structure created by the piece's musical pictorialism and detailed narrative.[14]

Themes, form, and analysis

Strauss's An Alpine Symphony opens on a unison B-flat in the strings, horns, and lower woodwinds. From this note a dark B-flat minor scale slowly descends. Each new note is sustained until, eventually, every degree of the scale is heard simultaneously, creating an "opaque mass" of tone representing the deep, mysterious night on the mountain.[22] Trombones and tuba emerge from this wash of sound to solemnly declaim the mountain theme, a majestic motive which recurs often in later sections of the piece.

\new PianoStaff << \new Staff \relative c { \clef bass \key bes \minor \time 4/4 \tempo "Lento" <des bes>1-\pp^\markup { \italic "marcato" } \once \override Staff.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \time 33/32 % just to make the 16th note sound more consistent bes2~bes4.. <f' c>16*3/2 \once \override Staff.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \time 4/4 <bes ges des>1~q <d a f d>1-\p <bes, g d>2 <c a f ees> <des bes f des>1~q } \new Staff \relative c, { \clef bass \key bes \minor \time 4/4 <f bes,>1-\pp \once \override Staff.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \time 33/32 % just to make the 16th note sound more consistent <ges ees>2~q4.. <f aes,>16*3/2 \once \override Staff.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \time 4/4 <ges ges,>1~q \ottava #-1 <d d,>1-\p g,2 f <bes bes,>1~q } >>

This passage is a rare instance of Strauss's use of polytonality, as the shifting harmony in the middle part of the mountain theme (which includes a D minor triad) clashes intensely with the sustained notes of the B-flat minor scale.[22]

As night gives way to daylight in "Sunrise", the theme of the sun is heard—a glorious descending A major scale which is thematically related to the opening scale depicting night time.[9] A secondary theme characterized by a tied triplet figure and featured numerously in the first half of the piece appears immediately afterwards, and fully establishes itself 7 measures later in D-flat major (the relative major of B-flat minor).

\new Staff \relative c''' { \clef treble \time 4/4 \tempo "Festes Zeitmaß, mäßig langsam." 4=76 <a a'>2-\ff(<gis gis'>4. <fis fis'>8) q2(<e e'>) <fis fis'>2(<e e'>4. <d d'>8) q2(<cis cis'>) <d d'>2(<cis cis'>4. <b b'>8 <a a'>2 <gis gis'>) <a a'>4(<gis gis'>8 <fis fis'> <e e'>4. <d d'>8 <cis cis'>2) }

\new Staff \relative c { \clef treble \time 4/4 \key ees \major \tempo "" 4=76 des4~\times 2/3{des8 aes'(-\f^\markup {\italic "(weich)"} des} <f des aes>4~\times 2/3{q8 <ees ges,> <des f,>} <ges ees>4~\times 2/3{q8 <f des> <ees c>} <bes' ges>4~\times 2/3{q8 <aes f> <ges ees>} <f des>2) }

In terms of form, the section labelled "The Ascent" can be seen as the end of An Alpine Symphony's slow introduction and beginning of the work's allegro proper.[24] Harmonically, this passage moves away from the dark B-flat minor of the opening and firmly establishes the key of E-flat major. It is in "The Ascent" that Strauss presents two more main musical motives which will prominently return throughout the entire piece. The first is a marching theme full of dotted rhythms which is presented in the lower strings and harp, the shape of which actually suggests the physical act of climbing through the use of large upwards leaps.

\new Staff \relative c { \clef bass \time 4/4 \key ees \major \tempo "Sehr lebhaft und energish." 4=126 \partial 4 g-\ff->(ees'-> g-> bes,-> aes'8. f16 bes2.) c8.(d16 ees4 c8. d16 bes4 ees8. f16 g2.) }

The second theme is a pointed, triumphant fanfare played by the brass which comes to represent the more rugged, dangerous aspects of the climb.[9]

\new Staff \relative c { \clef bass \time 4/4 \key ees \major \tempo "" 4=126 \partial 4 ees16-\ff^\markup { \italic "marcatissimo" } bes8. ees16 bes8.~bes4 g'16 ees8.~ees8 c'8-> bes2.-> \clef treble ees16 bes8. g'16 ees8.~ees4 f16 bes,8.~bes8 bes'8-> g1 }

It is just after the appearance of this second climbing motive that we hear the distant sounds of a hunting party, deftly represented by Strauss through the use of an offstage band of twelve horns, two trumpets, and two trombones. As Norman Del Mar points out, "the fanfares are wholly non-motivic and neither the hunting horns nor their phrases are heard again throughout the work".[25] The use of unique musical motives and instrumentation in this passage reinforces the idea of distance created by the offstage placement—these sounds belong to a party of people on an entirely different journey.

Upon entering the wood there is an abrupt change of texture and mood—the "instrumental tones deepen as thick foliage obscures the sunlight".[26] A new meandering theme is presented by the horns and trombones followed by a more relaxed version of the marching theme. Birdcalls are heard in the upper woodwinds and a solo string quartet leads the transition into the next musical section.

\new Staff \relative c { \clef bass \time 4/4 \key c \minor \tempo "" 4=126 \partial 4 <c c'>4-\f^\markup{\italic "espr."} (<ees ees'>2. \times 2/3 {<d d'>8 <ees ees'> <d d'>} <c c'>4 \times 2/3 {<g g'>8 <aes aes'> <g g'>} <f f'>2~q4) <ees ees'>4 (<g' g'>4. <f f'>8 <d d'>4 <ees ees'> <b b'>2~q4 <c c'>4 <a a'>2~q2. \times 2/3 { <g g'>8 <a a'> <g g'> } <f f'>1 ) }

The following portion of the piece can be interpreted as a large development-like section which encompasses several different phases of the climb.[9] In "Wandering by the Brook" there is an increasing sense of energy—rushing passage-work gives way to cascading scale figures in the winds and strings and marks the beginning of the section which takes place "At the Waterfall".[9] The brilliant, glittering instrumental writing in this passage makes it one of the most "vividly specific" moments of tone painting within An Alpine Symphony.[9] The later section "On Flowering Meadows" also makes extensive use of orchestral pictorialism—the meadow is suggested by a gentle backdrop of high string chords, the marching theme is heard softly in the cellos, and isolated points of color (short notes in the winds, harp, and pizzicato in the violas, representing small Alpine flowers) dot the landscape.[9] In this section, a wavy motif in the strings appears and will feature more prominently at the summit as a majestic dotted rhythm.

\new Staff \relative c' { \clef bass \time 2/2 \key b \major \tempo "Immer lebhafter." 2=72 \partial 4 fis4-\f(dis) fis(cis) fis(b,2 fis4 e8. fis16 dis4 fis dis' cis8. b16 fis'2 eis) }

Cow on a high Alpine pasture ("Auf der Alm").

In the following section, which takes place "On the Alpine Pasture", the use of cowbells, bird calls, a yodeling motive first heard on the English horn, and even the bleating of sheep (depicted through flutter tonguing in the oboe and E-flat clarinet) creates both a strong visual and aural image. The first horn and top strings introduce another secondary figure similar to the secondary motif during "sunrise", a secondary rhythm to be featured at the summit.

\new Staff \relative c' { \clef treble \time 2/2 \key ees \major \tempo "Frisch vorwarts." 2=72 r4 bes-\f^\markup{\italic "(hervortretend)"}~(bes8 c d ees) ees4(d2) bes4(ees2~ees8 f g aes g4 f2) bes,4(~bes8 c d ees) ees(d ees f fis g aes a c[bes]) }

As the climbers move along the going gets a bit rougher, however, and in "Dangerous Moments" the idea of insecurity and peril is cleverly suggested by the fragmentary nature of the texture and the use of the pointed second climbing theme.

Suddenly we are "On the Summit" as four trombones present a theme known as "the peak motive", the shape of which (with its powerful upward leaps of fourths and fifths) is reminiscent of Strauss's famous opening to Also Sprach Zarathustra.[9] This passage is the centerpiece of the score, and after a solo oboe stammers out a hesitant melody the section gradually builds up using a succession of themes heard previously in the piece, finally culminating in what Del Mar calls the "long-awaited emotional climax of the symphony": a recapitulation of the sun theme, now gloriously proclaimed in C major.[27]

With a sudden switch of tonality to F-sharp major, however, the piece is propelled into the next section, entitled "Vision." This is a somewhat developmental passage which gradually incorporates several of the main musical subjects of the symphony together and which is composed of unstable, shifting harmonies. It is during this portion of the piece that the organ first enters, adding even more depth to Strauss's already enormous performing forces. With the declamation of the mountain motive in the original key of B-flat minor by the full brass section at the end of this passage, Del Mar believes "the sense of fulfilment is complete, the recapitulation has begun, and the structure of the symphony has, in Bruckner-like manner, found its logical climax."[28]

Just after this musical climax, however, there is an abrupt shift of mood and character as the section titled "Mists Rise" begins. This atmosphere of tension and anxiety continues to grow through the next two sections ("The Sun Gradually Becomes Obscured" and "Elegy"). By the time the piece reaches the "Calm Before the Storm". A combination of a motif heard during the Elegy and the stammering oboe motive heard previously at the peak is repeated ominously and quietly in a minor key.

\new Staff \relative c'' { \clef treble \time 4/4 \key c \major \tempo "" 4=66 r8 d-\p^\markup{\italic"espr."}\<(fis2\! d16 cis\> b8\!) r8 cis-.( r8 eis-. r8 fis-.\> r8 ais-.) cis2-\pp~(cis8. bis16) bis8.(cis16) cis8.(d16) d8.(cis16) cis8.(gis16) gis8.(a16 f!1~f2~f8) }

In this section, an ominous drum roll, stammering instruments, isolated raindrops (short notes in the upper woodwinds and pizzicato in the violins), flashes of lightning (in the piccolo), the use of a wind machine, and suggestions of darkness (through the use of a descending scale motive reminiscent of the opening "Night" theme) lead the piece into the full fury of the storm.

"Thunder and Tempest, Descent" marks the start of the last phase of the journey described in An Alpine Symphony. It is in this passage that Strauss calls for the largest instrumentation in the entire piece, including the use of a thunder machine (Donnermaschine) and heavy use of organ. In modern performances these storm sounds can be supplemented with synthesized sound effects to create an even more tremendous effect.[29] As the sodden climbers quickly retrace their steps down the mountain and pass through one familiar scene after another, many of the musical ideas introduced earlier in the piece are heard once again, though this time in reverse order, at a very quick pace, and in combination with the raging fury of the tempest.[30] Eventually, however, the musical storm begins to subside. The heavy, driving rain is replaced once again by isolated drops in the woodwinds and pizzicato strings, the mountain theme is proclaimed by the brass in the original key of B-flat minor, and the piece is gradually ushered into a beautiful "Sunset". It is here that some believe the symphony's "coda" begins—rather than present any new musical material, these last three sections are full of "wistful nostalgia" for the beautiful moments earlier in the piece.[31]

In "Sunset" the established sun theme is given a slow, spacious treatment, eventually reaching a radiant climax which dies away into "Ausklang (Quiet Settles)". This section, marked to be played "in gentle ecstasy", parallels the earlier "Vision" section, but with a much softer, more peaceful character. Eventually the harmony moves from the E-flat major established in "Ausklang" (a key which parallels that of "The Ascent", the start of An Alpine Symphony's "exposition") back to the darkness and mystery of B-flat minor. In these shadowy final moments of the piece the sustained descending scale from the opening "Night" is heard once more, reaching a depth of six full octaves. As the brass emerge from the sound to deeply proclaim the mountain theme one final time, it is almost as if "the giant outlines of the noble mass can just be discerned in the gloom".[15] In the final few measures the violins play a slow, haunting variation of the marching theme, ending with a final, dying glissando to the last note.

Selected discography

Conductor Orchestra Year Recorded Label Catalog Number[32]
Richard Strauss Bavarian State Orchestra 1941 Preiser Records 90205
Karl Böhm Staatskapelle Dresden 1957 Deutsche Grammophon 463190
Rudolf Kempe Staatskapelle Dresden 1971 EMI Classics 64350
Zubin Mehta Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra 1975 Decca 470954
Herbert von Karajan Berliner Philharmoniker 1980 Deutsche Grammophon 439017
Bernard Haitink Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 1985 Philips
Herbert Blomstedt San Francisco Symphony 1988 Decca 421815
André Previn Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra 1990 Telarc 80211
Christian Thielemann Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra 2006 Deutsche Grammophon 469519
Antoni Wit Staatskapelle Weimar 2006 Naxos 8.557811
Mariss Jansons Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 2007 RCO Live
Bernard Haitink London Symphony Orchestra 2009 LSO Live 689

Comprehensive discography

Conductor Orchestra Recorded
Richard Strauss Munich Radio Symphony Orchestra 1936
Karl Böhm Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra 1939
Richard Strauss Bavarian State Orchestra 1941
Richard Strauss Vienna Philharmonic 1944
Franz Konwitschny Orchestra of the Munich State Opera 1952
Karl Böhm Staatskapelle Dresden 1957
Yevgeny Mravinsky Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra 1964
Rudolf Kempe Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 1966
Zubin Mehta Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra 1975
Rudolf Kempe Staatskapelle Dresden 1971
Georg Solti Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra 1979
Herbert von Karajan Berliner Philharmoniker 1980
Andrew Davis London Philharmonic Orchestra 1981
André Previn Philadelphia Orchestra 1983
Pierre Bartholomée Orchestre philharmonique de Liège 1983
Kurt Masur Gewandhausorchester Leipzig 1983
Bernard Haitink Concertgebouw Orchestra, Amsterdam 1985
Neeme Järvi Royal Scottish National Orchestra 1986
Vladimir Ashkenazy Cleveland Orchestra 1988
Herbert Blomstedt San Francisco Symphony 1988
Horst Stein Bamberg Symphony Orchestra 1988
Edo de Waart Minnesota Orchestra 1989
André Previn Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra 1989
Zubin Mehta Berliner Philharmoniker 1989
Takashi Asahina NDR Symphony Orchestra 1990
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos London Symphony Orchestra 1990
Daniel Barenboim Chicago Symphony Orchestra 1992
Giuseppe Sinopoli Staatskapelle Dresden 1993
Zdenek Kosler Czech Philharmonic Orchestra 1994
Choo Hoey Singapore Symphony Orchestra 1994
Seiji Ozawa Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra 1996
Takashi Asahina Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra 1997
Andreas Delfs Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra 1998
Kazimierz Kord Warsaw Philharmonic 1998
Lorin Maazel Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra 1998
Vladimir Ashkenazy Czech Philharmonic Orchestra 1999
Hartmut Haenchen Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra 1999
Giuseppe Sinopoli Staatskapelle Dresden 1999
Christian Thielemann Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra 2000
David Zinman Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra 2002
Gerard Schwarz Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra 2003
Andrew Litton National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain 2004
Franz Welser-Möst Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester 2005
Antoni Wit Staatskapelle Weimar 2005
Mariss Jansons Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 2007
Fabio Luisi Staatskapelle Dresden 2007
Marin Alsop Baltimore Symphony Orchestra 2007
Marek Janowski Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra 2008
Bernard Haitink London Symphony Orchestra 2008
Philippe Jordan Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Paris 2009
Andris Nelsons City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra 2010
Kazimierz Kord Warsaw Philharmonic 2013
Daniel Harding Saito Kinen Orchestra 2014
Michael Seal City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Youth Orchestra 2015
Kent Nagano Gothenberg Symphony Orchestra 2016

Notes

  1. ↑ Gordon Kalton Williams, "Richard Strauss: 'An Alpine Symphony', Op. 64", Sydney Symphony Online; available from http://www.sydneysymphony.com/sysfiles/attachements/PROG17_080530_Jupiter-Alpine_SSO_REV.pdf; Internet, accessed 4 March 2009.
  2. ↑ Richard Strauss, Eine Alpensinfonie and Symphonia Domestica, Dover 0-486-27725-9 (New York: Dover Publications, 1993).
  3. ↑ Daniel Gregroy Mason, "A Study of Strauss", The Musical Quarterly 2, no. 2 (April 1916): 171.
  4. ↑ Norman Del Mar, Richard Strauss: A critical commentary on his life and works, Vol. 2 (Ithaca: Cornell, 1969), 123.
  5. ↑ "How the CD was developed", BBC News [database online], available from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6950933.stm; Internet, accessed 3 March 2009.
  6. ↑ Charles Youmans, "The Role of Nietzsche in Richard Strauss' Artistic Development", The Journal of Musicology 21, No. 3 (Summer 2004): 339.
  7. ↑ Marc Mandel, "Richard Strauss: 'An Alpine Symphony', Op. 64", Boston Symphony Orchestra; available from http://www.bso.org/images/program_notes/2008110.pdf; Internet; accessed 2 March 2009.
  8. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 105.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mandel, "Richard Strauss."
  10. ↑ Youmans, "The Role of Nietzsche in Richard Strauss' Artistic Development", 339.
  11. ↑ Mark-Daneiel Schmid, ed., The Richard Strauss Companion (Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2003), 112.
  12. ↑ Bryan Gilliam, "Strauss, Richard", Grove Music Online [database online]; available from http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/40117pg7?q=eine+alpensinfonie&search=quick&pos=3&_start=1#firsthit; Internet; accessed 21 February 2009.
  13. 1 2 Schmid, The Richard Strauss Companion, 112.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 106.
  15. 1 2 Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 121.
  16. ↑ Kennedy, Strauss Tone Poems, 55.
  17. ↑ Boyden, Richard Strauss, 233.
  18. ↑ Gilliam, "Strauss, Richard."
  19. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 123.
  20. 1 2 3 William Osborne, Music in Ohio (Kent: Kent State, 2004), 293.
  21. ↑ Kelly, Heather (September 29, 2012). "Rock on! The compact disc turns 30". CNN. Retrieved 2012-09-30. The first test CD was Richard Strauss's Eine Alpensinfonie, and the first CD actually pressed at a factory was ABBA's The Visitors, but that disc wasn't released commercially until later.
  22. 1 2 3 Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 107.
  23. ↑ There is no direct translation for the German word "Ausklang", but the meaning suggests finality.
  24. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 108.
  25. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 109.
  26. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 110.
  27. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 116.
  28. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 117.
  29. ↑ Marin Alsop, "Mountain Music: Alsop Leads the 'Alpine Symphony' ", NPR: National Public Radio; available from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyID=15937551; Internet; accessed 7 March 2009.
  30. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 119.
  31. ↑ Del Mar, Richard Strauss, 120.
  32. ↑ All discography information available from http://www.arkivmusic.com.

References

External links

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