Shadows (Sallinen)

Shadows
Orchestral prelude by Aulis Sallinen
Catalogue	Op. 52
Composed	1982 (1982)
Duration	Approx. 10 minutes
Movements	1
Premiere
Date	30 November 1982 (1982-11-30)
Location	Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C., United States
Conductor	Mstislav Rostropovich
Performers	National Symphony Orchestra

Shadows, Op. 52, is an orchestral prelude by the Finnish composer Aulis Sallinen, who wrote the piece in 1982 for a commission from the National Symphony Orchestra Association. The National Symphony Orchestra premiered the work on 30 November 1982 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., under the direction of its music director, Mstislav Rostropovich. The prelude's thematic material is closely related to Act III of Sallinen's third opera, The King Goes Forth to France, on which he also was at work in 1982, writing Shadows upon completion of Act II of the opera. Nevertheless, the composer has emphasized that Shadows is "an entirely independent orchestral work," albeit one whose "lyrical and dramatic ingredients reflect the philosophy of the opera".

Orchestration

• Woodwind: 3 flutes (1 doubling piccolo), 3 oboes, 3 clarinets in B♭ (1 doubling B♭ bass clarinet), 3 bassoons (1 doubling contrabassoon)
• Brass: 4 horns in F, 3 trumpets in B♭, 3 trombones
• Percussion: timpani, bass drum, snare drum, tenor drum, tam-tam, cymbals, suspended cymbal, triangle, glockenspiel, vibraphone, tubular bells
• Strings: violins, violas, cellos, double basses, harp, piano

Recordings

Conductor	Orchestra	Recorded	Duration	Available on
Okko Kamu	Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra	1984	9:57	Finlandia (346)
James DePreist	Malmö Symphony Orchestra	1993	9:48	BIS (607)
Ari Rasilainen	Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz	2004	8:48	CPO (999972-2)

Notes, references, and sources

Sources

Books

• Howell, Tim (2006). After Sibelius: Studies in Finnish Music. Routledge. ISBN 978-075-4651-77-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

• Korhonen, Kimmo (2007). Inventing Finnish Music: Contemporary Composers from Medieval to Modern. Finnish Music Information Center (FIMIC). ISBN 978-952-5076-61-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

CD liner notes

• Weitzman, Ronald (1993). Aulis Sallinen: Symphony No. 4, Op. 49; Shadows, Op. 52; Symphony No. 5, 'Washington Mosaics', Op. 57 (booklet). James DePreist & Malmö Symphony Orchestra. Hamburg, Germany: BIS. p. 5–8. BIS CD-607. {{cite AV media notes}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)