Symphony No. 1 (Bax) Explained

The Symphony No. 1 by Arnold Bax was completed in 1922 and dedicated to John Ireland. Its outer movements were based on a Piano Sonata in E♭ that Bax subsequently orchestrated, while the central movement was newly composed for the symphony.

It is scored for 4 flutes (3rd doubling alto flute, 4th doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, 1 English horn, 1 heckelphone or bass oboe, 3 clarinets (3rd doubling E♭ clarinet), 1 bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 1 sarrusophone or contrabassoon, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba, timpani, bass drum, tenor drum, snare drum, tambourine, cymbals, gong, triangle, bells, xylophone, glockenspiel, celesta, 2 harps and strings.

It is in three movements:

1. Allegro moderato e feroce - Moderato expressivo - Tempo I
2. Lento solenne
3. Allegro maestoso - Allegro vivace ma non troppo

The work is in many ways autobiographical with some music critics suggesting they could find references within the work to the Great War.^[1]

Notes and References

1. News: Moss. Stephen. Building a classical music library: Arnold Bax. 18 January 2016. The Guardian. October 11, 2007. Contemporaries saw it as his response to the first world war, but Grove says the war had surprisingly little effect on Bax and that the turmoil in his beloved Ireland culminating in the Easter Rising of 1916 was a more likely inspiration..