Franz Berwald & Niels W. Gade.(Review)

Franz Berwald. Profane Vokalwerke, I. Hrsg. von Owen Ander, Karin Hallgren. (Samtliche Werke, 22.1.) (Monumenta musicae svecicae.) Kassel: Barenreiter, 1999. [Editorial note in Ger., Eng., p. vii-viii; pref., p. ix-xviii; facsims., p. ix-xiv; score, 258 p.; crit. commentary in Eng., p. 259-68 and 6 parts (for Serenade). Cloth. ISMN M-006-49528-3; BA 4922. DM 265.] Contains: Cantata upon the Occasion of the Celebration of 5 November 1821; Cantata Written on the Occasion of HRH the Crown Princess's Arrival in Sweden and Royal Marriage; and Serenade.

Niels W. Gade. Symphony No. 2, Op. 10. Edited by Niels Bo Foltmann. (Works, ser. I: Orchestral Works, vol. 2.) Copenhagen: Foundation for the Publication of the Works of Niels W. Gade; distribution: Engstrom & Sodring; Barenreiter, 1998. [Gen. introd. in Eng., Ger., p. vi-vii; vol. pref., p. viii-xi; facsims., p. xii-xv; score, p. I-195; crit. report, p. 197-202. Cloth. ISBN 87-90230-04-3; E&S 664; BA 7602. DM 220.]

In two recent issues of Notes (55 [December 1999]: 494-96; [June 2000]: 1036-39), I discussed the music of the Danish composer Niels W. Gade (1817-1890) and the Swedish composer Franz Berwald (1796-1868), providing a brief biography of each composer and a summary of how, through somewhat complicated, politically-motivated reception histories, both men came to be regarded by modern audiences as nationalist composers. In the present review, I will continue this discussion with an examination of the most recent additions to the complete works of both composers: the first volume of Berwald's secular vocal works and Gade's Symphony No. 2, op. 10.

At first glance, it might appear that these two editions have little to do with one another--but interesting parallels do exist. The compositions presented in these volumes represent defining stages in the careers of both Berwald and Gade; and a comparison of these compositions and their reception histories highlights two drastically different styles of musical patronage in nineteenth-century Scandinavia: through private support from a royal court as in the case of Berwald, and through public support from a concert society as in the case of Gade.

Berwald was in his mid-twenties when he composed the two cantatas and the Serenade presented in the first edition of his secular vocal works, and although young, he had already enjoyed a long career as a musician--from age nine he was touted as a child prodigy, and as a teenager, he secured a position as a violinist in the royal orchestra. Attracted to the intellectual side of music, Berwald founded the Musikalsk Journal at the age of twenty-four. But this venture proved unsuccessful, and he returned to his place in the orchestra, a job he reportedly disdained. Berwald dreamed of obtaining a more prestigious position in Sweden's musical culture, and in the early 1820s, he began to focus his energies on composition. The Kantat i anledning av hogtidligheterna den 5 November 1821 (Cantata upon the Occasion of the Celebration of 5 November 1821) and Kantat forfattad i anledning av HKH Kronprinsessans ankomst till Sverige och hoga formalning (Cantata Written on the Occasion of HRH the Crown Princess's Arrival in Sweden and Royal Marriage) represent some of Berwald's earliest attempts at large-scale works and serve as evidence of his pursuit of musical patronage from Sweden's royal family. As Owe Ander and Karin Hallgren explain in their informative preface to the volume, the celebrations alluded to in the cantatas' titles were the unveiling of Eric Gustaf Gothe's statue of Karl XIII in 1821 and the arrival of Crown Princess Josefina in Sweden on 13 June 1823. Neither cantata, however, was actually performed on these occasions. Sweden's royal family did not commission these works from Berwald. Rather, it appears that Berwald composed these cantatas in an effort to gain the attention, and eventually the financial patronage, of the royal family. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that the only known copy of the 1821 cantata, a manuscript written partially in Berwald's hand, was given to Karl XIV Johan on 27 February 1822 in conjunction with a traveling scholarship application submitted by Berwald "for self improve ment through studies abroad" (p. xii). Berwald was unsuccessful in his application, so in 1828 he tried again. This time he referred to both cantatas in his application letter, giving special attention to the 1823 cantata:

Most Powerful and Most Merciful King! ... During two separate periods I have published a music journal,--I am also the author of two major cantatas, one of which was written for Her Royal Highness, The Crown Princess' arrival in Sweden. (my trans.; original Swedish in Franz Berwald: Die Dokumente seines Lebens, ed. Erling Lomnas, Ingmar Bengtsson, and Nils Castegren, Samtliche Werke, suppl. [Kassel: Barenreiter, 1979], 108)

This second application was also refused. A third application in 1829, however, did eventually yield a modest stipend that allowed Berwald to travel to Berlin, where he remained for several years.