Creston: Symphonies 1-3

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Paul Creston (1906-1985) was a younger participant in the "flowering" of American classical music in the 1930s and 1940s. But rather than aligning himself with the nostalgic, lyrical Romanticism of Aaron Copland, Roy Harris, and Howard Hanson, Creston aligned himself with the rugged, more dynamic aspects of Modernism found in the music of Walter Piston, Peter Mennin, and Samuel Barber. These three symphonies contain none of American Romanticism's melancholia or homesickness, for example, but they do remain mostly tonal and buoyant, soaring with their own energy and inventiveness, particularly Symphony No. 3 (Three Mysteries), written in 1950. Praise must also be given to the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and conductor Theodore Kuchar for their feel for Creston's music--altogether another achievement in Naxos's American Classics series. --Paul Cook

Tracks:

Sym No.1, Op.20: I. With Majesty
Sym No.1, Op.20: II. With Humour
Sym No.1, Op.20: III. With Serenity
Sym No.1, Op.20: IV. With Gaiety
Sym No.2, Op.35: I. Intro And Song (Slow, With Deep Emotion - Moderately Slow)
Sym No.2, Op.35: II. Interlude And Dance (Moderately Slow - Moderately Fast)
Sym No.3, Op.48 ('Three Mysteries'): I. The Nativity (Lento - Allegro Moderato)
Sym No.3, Op.48 ('Three Mysteries'): II. The Crucifixion (Adagio)
Sym No.3, Op.48 ('Three Mysteries'): III. The Resurrection (Lento Moderato - Allegro Ma Calmo)

Amazon.com

Paul Creston (1906-1985) was a younger participant in the "flowering" of American classical music in the 1930s and 1940s. But rather than aligning himself with the nostalgic, lyrical Romanticism of Aaron Copland, Roy Harris, and Howard Hanson, Creston aligned himself with the rugged, more dynamic aspects of Modernism found in the music of Walter Piston, Peter Mennin, and Samuel Barber. These three symphonies contain none of American Romanticism's melancholia or homesickness, for example, but they do remain mostly tonal and buoyant, soaring with their own energy and inventiveness, particularly Symphony No. 3 (Three Mysteries), written in 1950. Praise must also be given to the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and conductor Theodore Kuchar for their feel for Creston's music--altogether another achievement in Naxos's American Classics series. --Paul Cook

Customer Reviews:

All Creston Symphonies.......2006-01-23

Paul Creston is generally regarded as one of the 20th century's great American composers who came from virtually nothing, but through the help of other composers and conductors, achieved merit on his talent in composing. Although he wrote in many genres, this disk features his first three symphonies written between 1940 and 1950.

His first symphony, at 23 minutes, is in four movements, each with descriptions (majesty, humor, serenity, and gaiety). The opening majesty pits strings against brass with a stately theme. The humor has whimsical woodwinds and brass commentary, set in a clumsy-sort of dance. The lush middle section contrasts the whimsy with sweeping Romanticism before the opening returns. Serenity is portrayed by a gently lilting rhythmic feel, first by strings alone, brass, and woodwinds, and the entire ensemble has a gentle serenade, with pastoral elements of lyrical woodwind solos, and deep, lush string and brass sonorities rising and falling. The lightning quick final movement, the showcase of the work, shows Creston at his most energetic, with use of perpetual motion, jazzy syncopations, and catchy melodic writing. Highly dramatic, the work ends in a rousing conclusion.

The second symphony has only two movements (Introduction & Song, and Interlude & Dance). The scoring in the symphony, aside from a fair bit of percussion, also has a role for piano. The Introduction has some counterpoint for strings, gives way to the winds, and eventually unison full ensemble, before the song. The actual song portion is kind of cinematic; it builds in intensity with a charming and somewhat expansive theme. Undulating winds, brass fare, and sweeping strings builds to a climax before settling in a calm. The following interlude has a craggy and angular melody in unison which leads to the final dance. The final portion has such unbridled passion, it reminds me of Bernstein. A flashy showcase for the ensemble, it is jazzy, with an almost Spanish rhythmical feel; flourishes and cinematic string melodies give a grand conclusion.

Symphony No. 3, subtitled Three Mysteries, is an orchestral symphony with a religious theme, uncommon even today. The three movements are each titled (The Nativity, The Crucifixion, and the Resurrection). The opening Nativity, after some brief shimmering strings and harp glissandi, has such an innately innocent and joyous melody, put into such varied and imaginative orchestrations, the pure joy makes the listener smile. The buoyant rhythms and boundless energy contribute to the gaiety. A painfully throbbing bass line under plaintive melodies takes up most of the Crucifixion. Eventually, the great orchestra hits musically depict the scene, and it concludes somewhat peacefully with thick double-basses and violin harmonics; extraordinarily inventive colors. Although Gregorian chant is used in each of the movements, it is the third in which it is the most apparent. An ancient quality, with modal harmonies, permeates much of the beginning. The noble ending caps the symphony, not in your face virtuosity or bombasticity, but a stately affirmation of the Resurrection.

The three symphonies of Paul Creston each have their own taste and atmosphere, although Creston's love of rhythmic vitality, modest and enjoyable melodies, inventive colors and ideas, sometimes dissonant modernism included, are all positive qualities present in the works. Theodore Kuchar gives importance to melody and rhythm, along with a feeling of forward movement. You can't even find all of his symphonies on one disk, but even if you piece together various Schwarz performances on Delos, these by far surpass those performances. That being said, the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine is not perfect on this recording, occasional inconsistencies; but it is bristling with energy and enthusiasm, where this disk succeeds. Plus having all three symphonies on one disk at budget price can't be beat. Interesting American music, worth a try.

An American romantic with neoclassical sensibilities.......2005-04-24

Based on this very good recording, they know a lot in the Ukraine about being an American. American Theodore Kuchar and the National Symphony Orchestra of the Ukraine turn in very good work on three symphonies by 20th century American Paul Creston, a composer of romantic sensibilities whose influences include Grofe, Hanson and possibly Piston.

His Symphony No. 2, composed in two movements, is the most substantial work herein. In composition, style and sound it is a mate for Walter Piston's Symphony No. 2 and the Symphony No. 3 of William Schuman. The opus is just as original as the two more famous and accomplished symphonies, in part because it covers much of the same philosophically dramatic ground.

Creston's rambunctious Symphony No. 1 is a roller coaster ride of a symphony full of infectious rhythm, big catchy tunes, stops, starts and twists. At the risk of sounding disingenuous, it seems like it must have been a great deal of fun for the composer to write this work, especially that dipsy doodle first movement. The Ukraine brass players all get quite a workout in this wonderful music.

The final piece on the CD, Creston's Symphony No. 3, subtitled "Three Mysteries", is a Gregorian chant-inspired portrait of the birth, crucifixion and ressurection of Christ. The liner notes say Creston wrote the work to project his own beliefs and that Ormandy premiered the work in 1950.

In my view this is the weak sister of the three. As religious drama it pales when compared to the thousands of musical compositions written about Christ and the ressurection including everyone's Stabat Mater and passions. This opaque music doesn't do anything for me, a true believer that recently performed Bach's St. Matthew Passion.

But with one of Naxos's better recordings and the always reliable Kuchar and Ukraine symphony carrying the day, this CD will be a welcome respite to most fans of orchestral music, especially those that want to expand their understanding of American music.

Marvelous introduction to the works of Paul Creston.......2004-05-06

In many ways, the late Paul Creston epitomized the American Dream. Born to a poor Italian family in New York and lacking the resources or financial wherewithal for further study, Creston taught himself to become a composer. His accomplishments are truly stunning. His grasp of form is remarkable, especially in the Symphony No. 2.

In this repertoire, Theodore Kuchar shows himself to be the equal of Gerard Schwarz. Schwarz's recordings are valuable, and they contain works not on this CD. Schwarz was a composition student of Creston's, and this lends him a certain expertise with Creston's works. However, for someone seeking an introduction to Creston, this is the perfect CD. It is inexpensive and exceedingly well done.

Ho-Hum American Neo-Romanticism.......2001-04-22

Creston was the son of a poor Italian immigrant; his real name was Giuseppe Gustoveggio. As he grew to manhood he changed his name to Paul Creston, I suppose in order to pass muster as a WASP. A self-taught composer, his early compositions caught the attention of Virgil Thomson. Thomson helped to champion his cause by giving his First Symphony a favorable review. From then on, for some twenty years, Creston enjoyed relative acceptance among the exclusive old-boys' club of composers in the New York region.

His fortunes began to reverse during the 50's and 60's, however. The so-called "New Music" had begun to take over the New York scene. The neo-romanticism of composers such as Barber, Hanson, Creston, and Copland began to appear very outdated, and soon was ignored altogether. While some composers, such as Copland, tried to adapt to this new music style, others like Creston stubbornly clung to the old neo-romantic style, and reacted with bitterness toward the new music.

While the symphonies on this album are all very beautiful works, and are enjoyable to the ear, I myself found relatively little depth to this composer's music. Creston seems not to have evolved much as a composer over the course of his life. All three symphonies sound largely the same. Though I have not heard any of his later works, it would be interesting to compare the later symphonies with the earlier ones on this album. Still, I was not too impressed with this music.

Worthwhile hearing.......2001-02-06

This is approachable New Deal Era music from a serious self-taught New York composer, whose later career was in TV show music. The symphonies feature motif development in a modern cyclic and mildly dissonant idom, predating the post-WWII brutalist excursion. Remarkably, this is the first recording of prize-winning Symphony 1 (1940) (another victim of the war years and the post-war modernist European invasion?). The three short symphonies are highly varied in structure, primarily at a mezzoforte dynamic, more lyrical than not, while not particularly tuneful. Creston's music is US in its light and accessible feeling rather than by devices like folk tunes or jazz rhythms. Whatever his origins, Theodore Kuchar is an American-trained conductor working out of Colorado and leads a fine orchestra. The music is enjoyable, if not especially memorable to my ears.

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