Symphony No. 5 (Sessions) Explained

The Symphony No. 5 of Roger Sessions was commissioned in 1960 and completed in 1964.^{[1] [2] [3]} It was commissioned by Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the first movement only was premiered by them in February 1964,^[3] the rest not being completed until that December.

It is in three connected movements, with a pause after the first.^[2]

It is scored for three flutes, three oboes, four clarinets, three bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, one tuba, timpani, percussion, piano, harp and strings.^[4]

Andrea Olmstead describes all of Sessions's symphonies as "serious" and "funereal", with No. 5 being one of four with "quiet reflective endings."^[5]

Discography

• Roger Sessions: Symphony No. 4, Symphony No. 5, Rhapsody for Orchestra. Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Christian Badea, cond. Recorded April 6, 1986, at the Ohio Theatre, Columbus Ohio. LP recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 12 in. New World NW 345-1; CD recording, 1 disc: digital, stereo, 4¾ in. New World NW 345-2. New York: Recorded Anthology of American Music, 1987.

Further reading

• Imbrie, Andrew (1972). "The Symphonies of Roger Sessions". Tempo (new series), no. 103 (December): 24–32.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Sessions Society Worklist. 7 June 2009. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20090416163433/http://www.uncwil.edu/music/sessionssociety/. 16 April 2009.
2. Web site: Dialogues and Extensions. https://web.archive.org/web/20110610070431/http://www.americansymphony.org/dialogue.php?id=407&season=1992-1993. dead. 10 June 2011. American Symphony Orchestra. March 1992. 7 June 2009.
3. Web site: Eugene Ormandy Information Site. 7 June 2009.
4. Web site: Presser Information for Sessions. 7 June 2009. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20030526200627/http://www.presser.com/Composers/info.cfm?Name=ROGERSESSIONS. 26 May 2003.
5. Olmstead, Andrea (2012). Roger Sessions: A Biography, p.356. Routledge. .