Vincent d’Indy (1851-1931) wore many hats in his long career, including composer, conductor, teacher, and editor. A student of César Franck, d’Indy became an important pedagogue during his tenure at the Paris Conservatory; his pupils ranged from Roussel and Milhaud to Satie and Cole Porter. In addition, in 1894 he helped to found an institute – the Schola Cantorum – to study and revive early music as a counter-balance to the Conservatory’s excessive focus on opera. This interest in early music highlights a recurring conundrum in d’Indy’s music, which is at times refreshingly non-modern but at other times quite pale in comparison to the expressivity achieved by his contemporaries. He also found himself on the wrong side of several political topics. After France’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, d’Indy openly maintained his devotion to German composers, primarily Liszt and Wagner. The animosity he incurred from fellow French composers lasted for many years. Later he developed aggressive right-wing tendencies that spilled into anti-semitism during the divisive Dreyfus Affair.

Facing such issues, it is perhaps understandable that a part of d’Indy retreated to greener pastures in the music of the past. In 1886 he composed a Suite in Olden Style, comprising five movements and lasting about fifteen minutes in performance. To be sure, d’Indy was hardly alone in writing music based on older musical styles; Grieg’s Holberg Suite and Enescu’s Piano Suite in the Old Style are contemporaneous. Richly chromatic harmonies dominate the first phrases of the Prelude. Evidence from the following Entreé suggests that harmony is not the source of antique inspiration; rather, we hear the backward glances best in d’Indy’s light textures, simple and short motifs, and predictable phrase rhythm. A grave, neo-Baroque Sarabande and gracious Minuet & Trio reinforce the point by adding dance forms as markers of the “olden style.” D’Indy closes the Suite with a “French Rondo” which borders on mislabeling, as the movement presents a fugue and variations rather than classical Rondo. Moments before the glibly clipped ending, d’Indy recycles specific chord progressions from the very opening of the piece to reinforce the conclusion. It’s an effective piece, and one offers no disservice to d’indy in labeling the work’s overall impact to be charmant.

Speaking of “ancient music,” particularly polyphonic vocal music, a classic example included in nearly every music history anthology is the anonymous Sumer is icumen in for a capella voices. The work exists in a manuscript collection from the mid 13th century in England. The Middle English text for Sumer is icumen in announces the arrival of summer with a lilting effusion of good cheer, bolstered by a series of recurring “pedal tones” imitating the cuckoo. It is a paradigmatic case of canon or round, sometimes also called a rota: the leading voice performs a notated single line melody up to a designated place, at which point an answering voice joins in. The pattern continues for as many voices as are indicated or considered feasible. This technique produces polyphony as the number of entering voices increases, and rota exist with counterpoint in as many as six parts.

In 2014 the Orchestra of St. Luke’s commissioned a chamber work from Roberto Sierra as a companion to the Octet in F Major by Franz Schubert. Schubert’s work is noteworthy for the striking combination of timbres: clarinet, horn, bassoon, and strings. Sierra responded with an eclectic and captivating work for eight players, intentionally calling on the exact same instrumentation. Sierra notes:

The four movements of the Octet are based on a scale of nine notes, which provides much of the basis for the melodic and harmonic material, as well as the general formal structure. The pitch material, while not intended to be at the surface – conscious level – of the listening process, allows the work to have a sense of harmonic direction. During these last years, my thinking has been focused on rhythm and how we can create layers that move using different clocks. I have also continued to rethink and reuse my rich Afro-Caribbean heritage. Many transformations of the basic salsa clave can be heard, as well as melodic contours that allude to Puerto Rican music.

While the work was commissioned as a companion piece to Schubert’s Octet in F, I don’t use his material in the form of quotes. His approach to the ensemble was basically orchestral in nature, and mine is more chamber music-like; however, I do allude to Schubert’s Octet at the end of the second movement, where I inserted a gesture that reminds us of the beginning of his work. An essential aspect of Schubert’s Octet, also present in other chamber works, is his use of short rhythmic structures as autonomous entities not bound to specific pitch content, an idea I use in this work.

Born to a physician father and a mother who was an accomplished pianist and singer, Louis Spohr (1784-1859), christened Ludewig, would go on to have an illustrious career as an internationally renowned musician of the 19th century. Spending his formative years as a student of the violin and completing solo tours during that time, Spohr broadened his skillset to include conducting and composing by his late 20s. During a tour in Vienna between 1812-1813, the German virtuoso was offered the role of Kappellmeister at Theater an der Wien, where he remained for two years. It was during this time that he established a warm friendship with Beethoven, who catalyzed further compositional endeavors in the younger man. Spohr would not stay long within this Vienna appointment, however, and started to tour again before settling briefly in Frankfurt, then finally in Kassel in 1822, where he would die at the age of 75.

A composer of operas, symphonies, and numerous vocal works, Spohr was most prolific in his creation of chamber works, the majority of which he composed exclusively for strings. His innovative treatments of less traditional instrument combinations, such as string sextets and double quartets like the one featured today, distinguished him among many of his early 19th-century contemporaries. His Double Quartet No. 1, completed in the spring of 1823, relishes the full body of eight voices in its unison opening within the Allegro. Spohr quickly divides the forces of the two quartets through staggered continuations of the main theme that dance around each other briefly. The first quartet settles into its respective role as the dominant, more dynamic voice while the second principally provides accompaniment textures for the first. The Scherzo propels listeners ever forward with alternating staccato and legato lines, while the Larghetto provides a short yet refreshing lyrical respite before leading into the Finale. The last movement again shines a spotlight on the dynamic energy of the first quartet, with fast passagework entering through the cello, then passing to the first violin before becoming more evenly distributed among the inner voices in a blinding race toward the finish.

© 2024, Jason Stell and Emily Masincup