Paul Hindemith - Viola Concerto "Der Schwanendreher"

Paul Hindemith

Paul Hindemith aged 28

(16 November 1895 – 28 December 1963) was a prolific German composer, violist, violinist, teacher and conductor. Notable compositions include his song cycle Das Marienleben (1923), Der Schwanendreher for viola and orchestra (1935), and opera Mathis der Maler (1938). Hindemith's most popular work, both on record and in the concert hall, is likely the Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber, written in 1943.

Viola Concerto "Der Schwanendreher"

[The Swan turner-백조 고기를 굽는 사나이]

00:00 - I. Zwischen Berg und tiefem Tal ["Between mountain and deep valley"]
08:16 - II. Nun laube, Lindlein laube... Der Gutzgauch auf dem Zaune sass (Fugato) ["Now grow leaves, little linden tree, grow leaves"... "The Cuckoo Sat on the Fence" (Fugato)]
17:29 - III. Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher (Variationen) ["Aren't you the swan turner?" (Variations)]

Hindemith, whose interest in the viola was intense and lifelong, wrote a number of concertante works for the instrument which he often publicly performed himself and which greatly enriched the instrument's rather slender repertoire. Among the best known of these is Der Schwanendreher, a concerto which takes a number of folk songs as its point of departure.

The work was written on the heels of the composer's monumental, medieval-themed opera Mathis der Maler (1934-1935); it is thought, in fact, that Hindemith's research for that work led him to the songs employed in Der Schwanendreher. The title of the work is shared with that of the tune that forms the basis of the finale; the "Schwanendreher" in question is a "swan-turner," a cook's assistant who turns the spit upon which a swan is roasted. (In his nearly contemporaneous Carmina Burana (1935-1936), Carl Orff likewise bases an entire movement on the theme of roasting swans -- in this case, from the animal's point of view!)

Hindemith -- no slouch as a violist -- casts the soloist in the role of "an itinerant fiddler who...presents everything he has brought with him from afar: songs grave and gay, and finally a dance-tune." The composer further indicates that the player might well embellish and alter the tunes according to his own fancy, which similarly describes the way he incorporates the original folk tunes into the musical fabric. Der Schwanendreher, an amiable and vigorous work, is a product of Hindemith's mature neo-Classical style, marked by clearer tonality and less dense polyphony than that in his music of the previous decade.
[allmusic.com]

Paul Hindemith's Der Schwanendreher (literally, "The Swan turner") is a concerto for viola and orchestra. Der Schwanendreher occupies a place at the core of the viola concerto repertoire, along with the concertos by Walton and Bartók. It was composed in 1935 and premiered by the composer himself at a performance in Amsterdam on 14 November 1935. Each movement is based on a separate medieval German folk song, thus, it is sometimes referred to as the "Concerto from Old Folk Songs". This composition draws its title from the final movement's folk song base, "Aren't you the swan turner?".

The orchestra calls for 2 flutes (one doubling on piccolo), oboe, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 3 horns, trumpet, trombone, timpani, harp, and a string section of 4 cellos and 3 double basses. This orchestration is uniquely interesting due to its lack of violins and violas which benefits the composition by making it easier for the solo viola to be heard.

The movements are:

1. "Zwischen Berg und tiefem Tal": Langsam – Mäßig bewegt, mit Kraft ("Between mountain and deep valley": Slow – Moderately moving, with strength)
2. "Nun laube, Lindlein laube": Sehr ruhig – Fugato: "Der Gutzgauch auf dem Zaune sass" ("Now grow leaves, little linden tree, grow leaves": very calm – Fugato: "The Cuckoo Sat on the Fence")
3. Variationen: "Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher": Mäßig schnell (Variations: "Aren't you the swan turner?": Moderately fast)

Meaning of title

The Concerto's title, translated as "The Swan turner", comes from the name of the last and fourth German folk song used (namely in the third movement), entitled "Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher" ("Aren't you the swan turner?"). The original context of "swan turner" in medieval times is that of a cook's assistant who would turn the handle of a spit on which swans were roasting. However, in the context of the concerto itself (and evidenced in the text of the folk song), the meaning programmatically seems to refer to a wandering medieval minstrel, or organ grinder, who plays on an instrument such as the hurdy-gurdy (and providing embellishments and rhapsodies on the folk tunes), which has a handle shaped as a swan's neck, thus the "swan turner" being the travelling musician himself, described by the composer in the preface notes to the work.^[1][2]

Planned British premiere

The British premiere was scheduled for 22 January 1936, with the composer as soloist in London. However, just before midnight on 20 January, King George V died. The following day, from 11 am to 5 pm, Hindemith wrote Trauermusik in homage to the late king. It was scored for viola and string orchestra, and was performed that evening, in a live broadcast from a BBC studio, with Adrian Boult conducting and the composer as soloist. The scheduled premiere of Der Schwanendreher was cancelled. Trauermusik contains quotations from Symphony: Mathis der Maler and Der Schwanendreher.^[3]

Paul Hindemith's Der Schwanendreher (literally, "The Swan turner") is a concerto for viola and orchestra. Der Schwanendreher occupies a place at the core of the viola concerto repertoire, along with the concertos by Walton and Bartók. It was composed in 1935 and premiered by the composer himself at a performance in Amsterdam on 14 November 1935. Each movement is based on a separate medieval German folk song, thus, it is sometimes referred to as the "Concerto from Old Folk Songs". This composition draws its title from the final movement's folk song base, "Aren't you the swan turner?".

The orchestra calls for 2 flutes (one doubling on piccolo), oboe, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 3 horns, trumpet, trombone, timpani, harp, and a string section of 4 cellos and 3 double basses. This orchestration is uniquely interesting due to its lack of violins and violas which benefits the composition by making it easier for the solo viola to be heard.

The movements are:

1. "Zwischen Berg und tiefem Tal": Langsam – Mäßig bewegt, mit Kraft ("Between mountain and deep valley": Slow – Moderately moving, with strength)
2. "Nun laube, Lindlein laube": Sehr ruhig – Fugato: "Der Gutzgauch auf dem Zaune sass" ("Now grow leaves, little linden tree, grow leaves": very calm – Fugato: "The Cuckoo Sat on the Fence")
3. Variationen: "Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher": Mäßig schnell (Variations: "Aren't you the swan turner?": Moderately fast)

Meaning of title[edit]

The Concerto's title, translated as "The Swan turner", comes from the name of the last and fourth German folk song used (namely in the third movement), entitled "Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher" ("Aren't you the swan turner?"). The original context of "swan turner" in medieval times is that of a cook's assistant who would turn the handle of a spit on which swans were roasting. However, in the context of the concerto itself (and evidenced in the text of the folk song), the meaning programmatically seems to refer to a wandering medieval minstrel, or organ grinder, who plays on an instrument such as the hurdy-gurdy (and providing embellishments and rhapsodies on the folk tunes), which has a handle shaped as a swan's neck, thus the "swan turner" being the travelling musician himself, described by the composer in the preface notes to the work.^[1][2]

Planned British premiere

The British premiere was scheduled for 22 January 1936, with the composer as soloist in London. However, just before midnight on 20 January, King George V died. The following day, from 11 am to 5 pm, Hindemith wrote Trauermusik in homage to the late king. It was scored for viola and string orchestra, and was performed that evening, in a live broadcast from a BBC studio, with Adrian Boult conducting and the composer as soloist. The scheduled premiere of Der Schwanendreher was cancelled. Trauermusik contains quotations from Symphony: Mathis der Maler and Der Schwanendreher.^[3]

힌데미트의 비올라 협주곡 ‘백조 고기를 굽는 사람’은 독주 악기로서 비올라의 가치를 새롭게 인정받는 데에 크게 이바지했던 그의 명곡이다. 이 곡은 독일의 옛 민요를 이용해 협주곡과 흡사한 형식으로 자유롭게 꾸며진 곡이다. 실내악 규모의 작은 편성의 오케스트라로 반주되는데, 오케스트라 악단에 바이올린과 비올라가 제외되어 독주 비올라가 더욱 돋보인다. 즐거운 모임에 음악가가 나타나 신기한 노래를 들려주며, 이어 춤곡을 연주하는 중세기적인 모습이 극적인 멋을 더해 주면서 환상적으로 펼쳐진다는 이야기이다. 이 비올라 협주곡 ‘백조 고기를 굽는 사람(Der Schwanendreher)’은 우리나라에서 매우 인기 높은 그의 비올라 소나타 F장조 ‘11-4’를 비롯하여 현대 3대 비올라 협주곡 중의 하나로 평가된다. 특히 힌데미트의 비올라곡은 입시시험용으로 많이 이용되고 있다고 한다. 이 협주곡은 독일 문학의 어떤 시집에 나오는 구절을 생각하며 작곡했다고 한다. 각 악장에서 인용한 구절은 다음과 같다.

 

   1. Zwischen Berg und tiefem Tal :

산과 깊은 계곡 사이에 산길이 흘러들어 간다.

이 길을 가려는 사나이들은 자기 애인을 그리워하는 자들이네.  

   2. Nun laube, Lindlein laube! :

보리수(나무)야, 잎을 벗겨라. 난 더 이상 참을 수 없소이다.

내 사랑을 잃었다고 해서 슬프게만 하루를 보낼 건가.

뻐꾸기가 울타리에 앉고 있어 내려오는 비에 맞아 버리고 말았네.  

   3. Variationen "Seid ihr nicht der Schwanendreher?" :

자네가 (풍금)풍각쟁이 아니오? 바로 그 사람이 맞다.

손잡이를 돌고 돌아주고 자네의 소질을 보여 주라.

만일 못 한다고 하면 우리 풍금쟁이 아니겠네.

그럼, 손잡이를 돌고 돌아주라!  

(* Schwanendreher : Schwan은 ‘백조’라는 말이다. 옛날에 독일의 풍금 악기를 돌리는 손잡이 장식의 경우에 백조의 머리와 목의 모습으로 꾸며진 경우가 있었다고 한다.)