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Incidental music by Jean Sibelius From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Swanwhite (Swedish: Svanevit), JS 189, is incidental music for orchestra by Jean Sibelius for a play of the same name by August Strindberg. It consists of a horn call and thirteen other movements. Sibelius completed it in 1908 and conducted the first performance at Helsinki's Swedish Theatre on 8 April 1908. In 1909, Sibelius drew from it a suite in seven movements, Op. 54.[1]
Swanwhite | |
---|---|
Incidental music by Jean Sibelius | |
Catalogue | JS 189 |
Opus | 54 |
Composed | 1908 |
Performed | 8 April 1908 |
Scoring | orchestra |
Swedish actress Harriet Bosse had been impressed by one of Sibelius' earlier works, incidental music for the play Pelléas and Mélisande, after having played the role of Mélisande in 1906. Thus, Bosse suggested to Strindberg for Sibelius to score music to his play, Swanwhite.[1]
The play Swanwhite was written in 1902. It follows the tale of a princess, Swanwhite (that lives with her father, the Duke, and her evil stepmother), who is set to be married to a neighbouring king, but instead falls in love with his messenger, a prince. Although their relationship is approved by their late mothers, represented by swans, Swanwhite's stepmother works to sabotage it.[2]
Fourteen movements accompany the play.
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
In the 1909 suite, adapted from the incidental music, Sibelius condensed and removed material into seven movements. Additionally, the suite was adapted to accommodate a larger wind section, as well as a harp, although the organ part in the original score was removed.[2]
The sortable table below lists all commercially available recordings of the complete incidental music to Swanwhite (JS 189):
Conductor | Orchestra | Rec. | Duration | Label |
---|---|---|---|---|
Osmo Vänskä | Lahti Symphony Orchestra | 1996 | 26:22 | BIS (BIS-CD-815) |
Leif Segerstam | Turku Philharmonic Orchestra | 2014 | 29:29 | Naxos (8.573341) |
The sortable table below lists commercially available recordings of the Swanwhite suite:
Conductor | Orchestra | Rec. | Duration | Label | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Thomas Beecham | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1955 | 21:22 | BBC Legends (BBCL 4041-2) | Live, Sibelius's 90th birthday concert at Royal Festival Hall |
Jussi Jalas | Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra | 1976 | 23:18 | London Records (CS 7005) | |
Neeme Järvi | Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra | 1987 | 25:03 | BIS (BIS-CD-359) | |
Yondani Butt | Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | 1989 | 24:38 | ASV (CD DCA 649) | |
fi:Petri Sakari | Iceland Symphony Orchestra | 1993 | 18:54 | Chandos (CHAN 9158) | Only movements 2, 3, 5-7 |
Jussi Jalas | Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra | 1996 | 24:06 | London Records (448 267-2) | |
Pekka Kuusisto | Tapiola Sinfonietta | 2006 | 23:09 | Ondine (ODE 1074-5) | |
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