Fantasia for Strings (Henze)
Fantasia for Strings (German: Fantasia für Streicher) is a composition by German composer Hans Werner Henze. It was finished in 1966, as part of the soundtrack for Volker Schlöndorff's film adaptation of the autographical novel The Confusions of Young Törless by Robert Musil.[1] This composition has been published by Schott Music.
Composition
Fantasia for Strings is an abridged concert version of the full score for Der junge Törless, which has never been published and has only been performed for the film. Henze finished both the film score and the Fantasia in 1966, and he chose specifically Renaissance instruments for the film score recording, for it was purposely composed to resemble the baroque style. The Fantasia was eventually first performed in April 1, 1967, in Berlin, by the Berlin Philharmonic under the baton of Hans Zender.[1]
Structure
The structure of this composition is a controversial topic, for it is unclear in the score how many movements it consists of. In the published version, the index includes seven movements; however, in the score, only six movements are listed.[2] Some experts have stated that the work could be considered as a four-movement composition, because movements one, two, and three all resemble one another, creating thus a tripartite adagio and are used in the movie as the Törless's arrival at the school.[1] According to the score itself, the movement list should be as follows:[3][4]
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According to the score disposition:
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According to the index:
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The composition is scored for violins I, violins II, violas, cellos and double basses. However, Henze uses the divisi a number of times throughout the whole composition, to the point that some of the voices can be divided into more than four staves.[2]
In popular culture
Apart from its usage in Young Törless, this composition has also been featured in other movies:
- One of the movements was used in the closing credits of the 1973 American horror movie The Exorcist.[5]
Notable recordings
This compositions has been very rarely performed, even though it has been featured in other audiovisual products. The following is a list of recordings of Henze's Fantasia:
| Orchestra | Conductor | Record company | Year of recording | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collegium Musicum Zürich | Paul Sacher | Deutsche Grammophon | 1968 | CD[6] |
| Camerata Salzburg | Leonidas Kavakos | Orfeo | 2003 | CD[7] |
References
- ^ a b c Walsh, Stephen. Henze: Double Concerto · Sonata · Fantasia - Heinz Holliger/Ursula Holliger/Paul Sacher. Deutsche Grammophon GmbH.
- ^ a b Henze, Hans Werner (1967). Fantasia für Streicher. Schott Music.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) Please note that the index is in page 6. The score can be accessed through the link provided in the "External links" section. In page 7, the cello part is divided into 5 different staves. - ^ "Hans Werner Henze Fantasia for Strings from the film "Young Törless" by Volker Schlöndorff". Notafina.com. Schott Music. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|title=at position 18 (help) - ^ "Hans Werner Henze - Fantasia, for strings or string sextet (from film "Der junge Törless")". Allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation Ltd. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- ^ Allen-Bayes, Brett (9 January 2014). "Henze: Complete Deutsche Grammophon Recordings". Limelight. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- ^ "HANS WERNER HENZE - Fantasia für Streicher/for Strings - Sonata per Archi - Doppio concerto". Berlin: Deutsche Grammophon GmbH. 1996. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Leonidas Kavakos Performs Stamitz, Haydn, Henze, Mozart". Munich: Orfeo International Music GmbH. 2005. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
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