Symphony No. 5, Op. 50, FS 97

Almost at the same time as the pantomime The Miraculous Mandarin was written, prompted by certain social factors, CARL NIELSEN's Symphony No. 5 was born. The period of composition was between 1920 and 1922. Nielsen is considered a musical figure in Denmark especially for his works on patriotic and civic occasions. He himself early identified with national sound images - in his memoirs he recounts how his mother sang folk songs, and how he accompanied his father at weddings and gatherings, playing the violin. In his compositional work, however, Nielsen asserts himself as a composer with a contemporary style based on European symphonism. At a festival in his honour in Copenhagen in 1953, more than two decades after his death, his Finnish colleague Jean Sibelius summarised: 'Carl Nielsen, the great son of Denmark, was a natural-born composer of symphonies, although his work encompassed all forms of music. Through his great intelligence he developed his genius in order to achieve the goals which, as I see it, were clear to him from the beginning. Through his strong personality he founded a school and greatly influenced composers in many countries. We speak of head and heart, Carl Nielsen had both in the highest degree." Nielsen has considered his works at length. This is particularly true of his Fifth Symphony, during the composition of which he was in the situation of overcoming severe emotional problems. After prolonged efforts to preserve his marriage to the Danish sculptor Anne Marie Brodersen, he eventually received a note from her: 'Dear Carl, ... I have only one request, let us finish as quickly as possible. I want my freedom back." Thus in 1921 Nielsen continued to experience the protracted separation. He committed himself to more work - conducting and teaching - which led him to a creative crisis. It conditioned the atmosphere during his Fifth Symphony. He reported on the subject of the latter, "It is the most difficult task I have ever set myself, and so I am progressing very slowly indeed. It has been reported to all my friends and acquaintances that I no longer visit anyone, I need peace and quiet for my symphony. And when I'm not conducting, my evening time is completely free." Nielsen managed to complete the symphony just nine days before the premiere, which he personally conducted in Copenhagen on January 24^th , 1922. As for the content, the composer clarified: 'The only thing that music can express when all is said and done is: the separation of the forces of rest from the forces of action. If I were to title my Fifth Symphony, it would express something similar, the idea of the drama of energy and its release. The rock is already in place, the forces are blocked until I kick the rock, when those same forces kick in and the rock rolls down. I accomplished that with this symphony by writing only two movements instead of four." Formally there are two movements, but the processes within them are fragmented and form a larger cycle, unevenly divided into two stages. The first movement is sometimes described as having a rocky profile because of its frequent climaxes and its haunting and incremental music. The second movement is remarkable for its sweep, energy and final triumph, building through both successive compelling fugues. Nielsen dedicates the symphony to his friends Vera and Carl Johan Michaelsen.