Magnard: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2

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This second volume of a new and welcome complete recording of the symphonies of Albéric Magnard, this recording of his first two symphonic works gives us cause to bitterly regret the almost-total disappearance of his four great French symphonies from concert billings. They can, at least, still be heard in Germany: in Freiburg, where this complete recording was made, with Fabrice Bollon conducting, a happy partisan of this repertoire. The situation seems all the more paradoxical when we consider that Magnard was one of the first victims of the First World War, killed by the Germans as he defended his honour and his property. But this is just another example of the kind of pranks that History likes to play.
First performed at Angers in 1893, when Magnard was still studying with Vincent d'Indy, the First Symphony already shows a writer with a solid command of his craft. While he is still finding his feet formally, we have to admire his experiments with daring timbres, like his decision to involve three saxophones in the very fine slow movement, entitled Religioso. Written in the style of a chorale, it prefigures the real masterpiece which was the Third Symphony, recorded in the first volume, which has already been released.
Writing at a frenetic pace, Magnard would start writing his Second Symphony before the first had even been performed. As severe with himself as he was with others, the composer wrote to his friend Ropartz about his work: "This is the constipation of impotence. I'll play you this heap of ordure when I've copied it out and smeared ink all over my fingers." First performed under the baton of the trusty Guy Ropartz in Nancy in 1896, it was cut to shreds by audiences and critics alike, which inspired Magnard to revise it radically. But for now, it's our good fortune to be able to savour this "ordure" for ourselves. © François Hudry/Qobuz

The tragic death of Albéric Magnard, killed defending his home against German troops in 1914, brought a premature end to the composer’s life but not before he had completed four powerfully expressive symphonies. Symphony No. 1, with its strangely beautiful chorale, was first performed in 1893 but was then not heard again for a century. Symphony No. 2 caused a scandal at its premiere due to its length and complexity, but in its revised version offers radiant serenity and a dazzling confidence that reveals Magnard’s true compositional voice. © Naxos