| Pieces for brass septet | |
|---|---|
| byJean Sibelius | |
 The composer (c. 1891) | |
| Catalogue | JS 25, 45, 83, 146, 200 |
| Composed | 1889 (1889)–1891, 1899 |
| Scoring | torviseitsikko [fi] |
Early in his career from 1889 to 1899, the Finnish composerJean Sibelius wrote six pieces forbrassseptet,[a] chronologically as follows: theOverture inF minor,JS 146 (1889); theAllegro inG minor, JS 25 (1889); theAndantino andMenuetto, JS 45 (1890); thePreludium (in Swedish:Förspel), JS 83 (1891); andTiera, JS 200 (1899). Although Sibelius's pieces for brass septet have been recorded several times, they are relatively unknown.
All six pieces are scored fortorviseitsikko [fi] (in Swedish:hornseptett), a "specifically Finnish" kind of brass septet[1] that originated in 1870[b] when the Finnish composer, music arranger, and military band leaderAdolf Leander [fi] founded the firsttorviseitsikko within theGuards' Band,[c] the premiere ensemble of theFinnish Defense Forces (then in service to theRussian tsar,Alexander II).[3] The standard consists of the following instruments:[2][4]
At the time, it was typical to place the euphonium in the center, with the E♭ instruments grouped to one side and the B♭ instruments grouped to the other.[2] Atorviseitsikko can also include percussionad libitum.[2] Indeed, both theAllegro and the Preludium include parts fortriangle,[5] whileTiera calls forbass drum andcymbals.[6]
On 29 May 1889, Sibelius graduated from theHelsinki Music Institute, the star pupil of the institute's director,Martin Wegelius.[7] That summer, the Sibelius family vacationed for the second straight year at the seaside resort town ofLoviisa, staying in the home of his paternal grandmother and aunt. Breaking with his habit from the previous three summers, Sibelius at this point did not produce a newpiano trio;[d] rather, he wrote a flurry of new works, including his first composition fortorviseitsikko: the Overture in F minor.[1] This piece Sibelius probably composed for his friend, the German-bornhorn player and band leader Christian Haupt,[e] who in 1888 had become thekapellmeister in Loviisa.[8] In this role, his duties included conducting the septet attached to the local volunteer fire brigade.[1] No evidence, however, has been found indicating that the Overture was performed in Sibelius's lifetime.[9]
With arrival of fall, Sibelius set out in September 1889 for Berlin,[10] where he would continue his music studies (now as a post-graduate) under the German composerAlbert Becker. Nevertheless, Sibelius found time to compose more personal works on the side, one of which was his second piece fortorviseitsikko: theAllegro in G minor.[11] This piece Sibelius wrote for a competition held by theFinnish Society for Popular Education [fi] (in Finnish:Kansanvalistusseura), which in December 1888 had run an advertisement in the music magazineSäveleitä [fi][12] promoting a contest for newtorviseitsikko compositions; the primary requirement was that the entry be a "fantasy" (rather than anarrangement) of a Finnishfolk song. Sibelius'sAllegro, which he submitted under the pseudonymous initialism 'n–l–s' (forJea – N •Sibe – L – iu – S)[13] made use of two songs:Hevonen kuin koirasteeri andTuomi on virran reunalla. However, theAllegro failed to win the prize of 500 Finnish markka,[11] perhaps because the three judges—the organist, composer, and professorRichard Faltin [fi]; the conductorErnst Schnéevoigt; and Leander—concluded it was "far too difficult and therefore impractical for amateur bandsmen".[13]
_Competition_for_torviseitsikko_Ad_EDITED_with_breaks_(combines_top_of_pg._75_with_top_%2526_bottom_of_pg._78).png)
Sibelius wrote theAndantino and Menuetto, his third and fourth compositions fortorviseitsikko, while staying in Loviisa during the summer of 1890;[14] as with the Overture from the previous year, the new pieces were intended for Haupt's septet.[13] This was a period of transition for the young composer, as two momentous decisions soon followed: in September, he andAino Järnefelt secretly engaged;[15] moreover, he selected Vienna for his second year of post-graduate study (where he eventually apprenticed under the Hungarian composerKarl Goldmark and the Austrian composerRobert Fuchs).[14] At this time, Sibelius turned seriously to the task of orchestral composition,[f] and his production ofchamber music decreased dramatically. One of the few new chamber pieces to defy this general metamorphosis of artistic expression, however, was a fifth composition fortorviseitsikko, the Preludium, which he composed in Loviisa during the summer of 1891,[18] again for Haupt's band.[13]
Sibelius's final piece fortorviseitsikko is the "tone picture"Tiera, which arrived in eight years later in 1899. (A minor character in the Finland'snational epic, theKalevala, Tiera is a comrade of the amorous, swashbuckling heroLemminkäinen.) The Finnish musicologist Kari Kilpeläinen has speculated that Sibelius may originally may intendedTiera as part of theMusic for the Press Celebrations Days (JS 137, 1899), the occasional score from which the composer subsequently excerptedFinlandia and theScènes historiques I.[19]Tiera was the only of Sibelius brass septet pieces to be published in his lifetime,[a] which the Society for Popular Education printed in 1900 and paired with another piece fortorviseitsikko,Aamulla varhain (Early in the Morning, 1900) by Sibelius's brother-in-law, the Finnish composer and conductorArmas Järnefelt.[21][g]
Sibelius's remaining five pieces were relegated to "almost a century of obscurity", forgotten and unplayed, until their rediscovery in the 1980s: the Overture,Antantino, Menuetto, and Preludium were among the manuscripts that the Sibelius family donated in 1982 to theUniversity of Helsinki Library,[23] while the Finnish horn player and music educatorHolger Fransman [fi] in 1987 located theAllegro[21] within the archives of Haupt's Loviisa septet.[24] A year later, Fransman arranged the Preludium,Andantino, and Menuetto as the so-called "Petite Suite for Brass Septet", respectively, as movements Nos. 1–3; thisFazer Music [fi] (nowFennica Gehrman) published in 1988, along with the first edition of the Overture.[25] TheAllegro, however, remains in manuscript.[12]
The Overture inF minor, markedAllegro, is in4
4time and has a duration of about 11 minutes.[9]
TheAllegro inG minor is in3
4 time and has a duration of about five minutes.[12]
TheAndantino and Menuetto are each in3
4 time; together, they have a duration of about five minutes.[26]
The Preludium is in4
4 time and has a duration of about five minutes.[27]
TheTiera, markedNon troppo lento – Alla marcia, is in4
4 time and has a duration of about four minutes.[6]
| External audio | |
|---|---|
| Performed by the Finnish Brass Ensemble | |
 Overture in F minor, JS 146 | |
| Allegro, JS 25 | |
| Andantino, JS 45/1 | |
| Menuetto, JS 45/2 | |
| Preludium, JS 83 | |
| Tiera, JS 200 |
The Swedish conductor Lars-Gunnar Björklund and theSolna Brass [sv] made the world premiere studio recording of the Overture and the "Petite Suite" (using Fazer's the arrangements by Fransman), as well as of theAllegro (then in manuscript) in 1990 for Oompah Records.[28] Although the ensemble also recordedTiera, this was preceded by an earlier performance by the Estonian-American conductorNeeme Järvi and theGothenburg Symphony Orchestra in 1989 forBIS.[6] The sortable table below lists these and other commercially available recordings of Sibelius's works fortorviseitsikko:
| No. | Ensemble | Director | Runtimes[h] | Rec.[i] | Recording venue | Label | Ref. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra | Neeme Järvi | — | — | — | — | — | 4:55 | 1989 | Gothenburg Concert Hall | BIS | |
| 2 | Solna Brass [sv] | Lars-Gunnar Björklund | 8:36 | 5:05 | 4:12 | 1:25 | 4:43 | 3:55 | 1990 | Swedish Radio Studio 2, Stockholm | Oompah | |
| 3 | London Gabrieli Brass Ensemble | Christopher Larkin | 8:35 | 4:42 | 2:57 | 1:34 | 3:58 | — | 1990 | [Unknown] | Hyperion | |
| 4 | Finnish Brass Ensemble | Jukka-Pekka Saraste | 8:27 | 4:51 | 3:51 | 1:49 | 3:49 | 3:50 | 1993 | Kulttuuritalo | Alba [fi] | |
| 5 | Brass Partout | Hermann Bäumer [de] | 8:18 | 4:26 | 3:08 | 1:37 | 3:55 | 4:19 | 1999 | Furuby Church [sv] | BIS | |
| 6 | Wallace Collection | John Wallace | — | — | 2:14 | 1:36 | 3:23 | 3:26 | 2000 | St Paul's Church, Rusthall | Deux-Elles | |
| 7 | Brass Septet Imperial | — | 8:57 | 4:40 | 3:13 | 2:07 | 3:51 | 4:25 | 2015 | [Unknown] | Pilfink | |
In general, Sibelius'storviseitsikko works have been well received. In a review of BIS's 2000 recording, Jed Distler ofClassics Today wrote that the "six Sibelius selections are well-crafted occasional pieces, the only exception being theWeber-like Overture in F minor"; he further complimented Brass Partout for its "technical refinement and pinpointed nuance that will either inspire or depress rank and file brass players".[29]Ivan March forGramophone praised the Hyperion recording, describing the Sibelius tracks as "the real find" of the disc: "They are entirely uncharacteristic, but have genuine charm".[30] He continued by characterizing each individual piece: theAllegro as "fresh and somewhat folksy, yet quite expansive'; theAndantino as "simple hymn-like melody"; the Menuetto as "very jolly"; the " colourful and rhythmically catchy" Preludium as the "most winning piece" of the set; and, tepidly, the Overture as "less memorable, but agreeable enough".[30] In contrast to Distler and March, Gerald Fenech forMusicWeb International reviewed the Overture positively.[31]
