Jean Sibelius (1865 - 1957)
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43
I. Allegretto
II. Andante
III. Vivacissimo; Lento
IV. Allegro moderato

Although he was profoundly inspired by nature and mythology, Sibelius never painted "pictures of nature" in his music - the natural world is somehow inferred from his methods of musical construction. His music is always classically based, but he has many original stylistic fingerprints, such as repetitive string tremolandos, long pedal notes, and a bare harmonic style. These are easier to play than explain! One of the most potent is the ability to have two different speeds in operation at once, the first busy and rapid, the other slow, underpinning the motion like a tolling bell. Although his later works are shorter and more concentrated than early ones (the last two symphonies are both about half the duration of the first two) these fingerprints persist throughout, and many appear for the first time in the second symphony. Written in 1901, while the 36 year old Sibelius was travelling in Italy and central Europe with his wife and young family, the second symphony was first performed in Helsinki in March 1902. Coming shortly after Finlandia, the public was receptive to the new symphony, and the concert was repeated four times, to packed houses. Some commentators detect the warmth of Italy in the score - I can't recognise it, but perhaps you might!

The first movement is the most advanced in style, being complex and subtle in construction. The tunes, of which there are several, are closely related, and seem to grow out of each other. The opening pulsing string figure is the source of the first dancing woodwind theme; a sustained tune on violins alone sounds very different, but is actually related. A third motif - a long held note followed by a turn and a falling fifth - becomes the first phrase of a rich glowing tune later in the movement. The interest with which this material is developed means that the end, with the same pulsing string figure as the beginning, comes almost abruptly.

The slow movement is looser and more rhapsodic in form, opening with a pizzicato 'walking bass' line, out of which emerges a mournful bassoon tune. Eventually the tempo accelerates, and a huge brass climax is built. Several other ideas offer consolation and energy, until the angry brass climax is rebuilt. Again consolation is attempted, more successfully this time, but the movement ends quite bleakly. The third movement is more concise. An energetic scherzo is followed by a trio section (marked Lento, suave) with a remarkable oboe tune, starting with nine repeated notes and a falling fifth.

The scherzo is repeated, and, unusually, the trio section again. But this time the trio grows into something else -tension grows, and the music heaves and surges its way directly into the finale.

The finale launches confidently, with a theme presented first in separate sections, before being joined up on its second presentation. This soon moves into a long section which gets 'stuck' for a while in F# minor, building up considerable tension before it breaks out into F# major. The major key brings relaxation, and a long crescendo through many keys works back to D major for a recapitulation of the main theme. This is again followed by the minor key section, in D minor this time, which gets stuck for even longer than before. The tension Sibelius works up as he tries to get the music out of D minor is colossal - more and more energy is pumped in without a result - until the major key suddenly blazes out like a dam bursting. The relief is palpable, and the triumphant coda - the brass parts really are marked sempre fff - is totally justifiable!