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The greatest symphonist of them all
Havergal Brian wrote over 30 of them
Havergal Brian
Every now and then, a truly underappreciated gem comes along. I have a friend who has bugged me about Havergal Brian’s Symphony No. 1: “Gothic”. I ended up listening to it about a dozen times in a row over the course of two or three weeks.
This thing is gigante. It’s at least 105 minutes long and requires a massive orchestra and chorus. I usually listened to it at the gym while on the stationary bike and while lifting weights. 105 minutes is the perfect length for a workout and I have to admit that it got me pumped up while exercising. There are sections with the choir that sound like they were picked up and dropped into The Lord of the Rings movies.
Havergal Brian was an English composer born on January 29, 1876, in Birmingham. Brian was the son of a carpenter, just like someone else I’ve heard a lot about, and was introduced to music at an early age. However, his formal education was cut short due to financial constraints, leading him to pursue various jobs, including a stint as a civil servant. It was not until he was in his thirties that Brian began to focus seriously on composition. He wrote his first symphony between 1919 and 1926. It wasn’t performed until 1961 and didn’t receive its first professional performance until 1966. Brian was 90 years old at that point.
Even though that 1966 performance was a smashing success, there’s only been a handful of performances since then. The odds of ever hearing this symphony live are slim to none.
There are also just a handful of recordings. I listened to The Slovak Philharmonia as conducted by Ondrej Lenard. I chose it because it was the first thing that showed up on Spotify.
Brian was influenced by Germanic composers such as Richard Wagner, Anton Bruckner, Gustav Mahler, and Richard Strauss. Brian dedicated his Gothic Symphony to Strauss. Edward Elgar also influenced Brian. Wagner, Bruckner, and Elgar are three of my favorite composers so it makes sense that I enjoyed this symphony.
There are some great first symphonies out there. Those by Johannes Brahms, Mahler, and Sergei Prokofiev are amongst the most popular. Ralph Vaughan Williams’s first symphony is his A Sea Symphony and for decades it was my favorite. I also considered it to be the greatest and grandest of first symphonies. I was wrong. Havergral Brian’s Gothic Symphony surpasses Vaughan Williams. I will say that the Vaughan Williams is more appealing upon first hearing it.
Havergal Brian went on to write over 30 symphonies. Does this make him the greatest symphonist of them all? He died on August 28, 1972.
Video:
Brian: Symphony No. 1
Here's something you might be interested in.
The greatest symphonist of them all
Havergal Brian wrote over 30 of them
The greatest symphonist of them all
Havergal Brian wrote over 30 of them
Havergal Brian
Every now and then, a truly underappreciated gem comes along. I have a friend who has bugged me about Havergal Brian’s Symphony No. 1: “Gothic”. I ended up listening to it about a dozen times in a row over the course of two or three weeks.
This thing is gigante. It’s at least 105 minutes long and requires a massive orchestra and chorus. I usually listened to it at the gym while on the stationary bike and while lifting weights. 105 minutes is the perfect length for a workout and I have to admit that it got me pumped up while exercising. There are sections with the choir that sound like they were picked up and dropped into The Lord of the Rings movies.
Havergal Brian was an English composer born on January 29, 1876, in Birmingham. Brian was the son of a carpenter, just like someone else I’ve heard a lot about, and was introduced to music at an early age. However, his formal education was cut short due to financial constraints, leading him to pursue various jobs, including a stint as a civil servant. It was not until he was in his thirties that Brian began to focus seriously on composition. He wrote his first symphony between 1919 and 1926. It wasn’t performed until 1961 and didn’t receive its first professional performance until 1966. Brian was 90 years old at that point.
Even though that 1966 performance was a smashing success, there’s only been a handful of performances since then. The odds of ever hearing this symphony live are slim to none.
There are also just a handful of recordings. I listened to The Slovak Philharmonia as conducted by Ondrej Lenard. I chose it because it was the first thing that showed up on Spotify.
Brian was influenced by Germanic composers such as Richard Wagner, Anton Bruckner, Gustav Mahler, and Richard Strauss. Brian dedicated his Gothic Symphony to Strauss. Edward Elgar also influenced Brian. Wagner, Bruckner, and Elgar are three of my favorite composers so it makes sense that I enjoyed this symphony.
There are some great first symphonies out there. Those by Johannes Brahms, Mahler, and Sergei Prokofiev are amongst the most popular. Ralph Vaughan Williams’s first symphony is his A Sea Symphony and for decades it was my favorite. I also considered it to be the greatest and grandest of first symphonies. I was wrong. Havergral Brian’s Gothic Symphony surpasses Vaughan Williams. I will say that the Vaughan Williams is more appealing upon first hearing it.
Havergal Brian went on to write over 30 symphonies. Does this make him the greatest symphonist of them all? He died on August 28, 1972.
Video:
Brian: Symphony No. 1