Symphony No.3

Louise Farrenc has authored 49 numbered works. Held in high esteem by her contemporaries, after the middle of the nineteenth century her music has sunk in oblivion. Her early music comprised works for piano, with some of them highly praised by critics, including Robert Schumann. In the 1830s she turned to larger musical forms for chamber ensemble and orchestra, and it was during the 1840s that much of her chamber music was written, such as: Sextet for Piano and Winds, Op. 40, which later appeared in an arrangement for piano, quintet, and two pianos; Trio, Op. 33 and 34, Nonnet for Winds and Strings, Op. 38; Trio for clarinet (or Violin), cello and piano, Op. 44; Trio for flute (or violin), cello and piano, Op. 45, and several instrumental sonatas. Farrenc authored also two overtures and three symphonies. She was also interested in opera as the most popular genre in France at the time, but failed to locate a suitable libretto and her project remained unrealized. The interest in the work of Louise Farrenc intensified in recent decades, when her chamber opuses were recorded by the Linos Ensemble (Germany) and her symphonic music by the North German Radio (NDR) Orchestra. The four-movement Symphony No. 3, op. 36, in G minor, is Louise Farrenc's last completed orchestral work. Its premiere took place at the Paris Conservatoire in 1849. In the first movement (Adagio – Allegro) the slow introduction, is followed by a cheerful Allegro. The two subjects of the sonata-allegro recall the gracefulness of Mozart's symphonism. The second movement is slow, with a song-like tune in the clarinet standing out against the background of the accompanying winds and strings, the third – a Scherzo – is cast in the spirit of early-romantic symphonies, while the fourth features themes from other movements. According to scholars, Louise Farrenc all of her life has adhered to the formal clarity of classicism, harbouring admiration for Schumann and Berlioz, and her third symphony is as impressive as the symphonies of Mendelssohn and Schumann. Research has emphasized this music’s similarity to Mozart's Symphony No. 40, as well as to Schumann's and even Chopin's music with respect to the nature of the melodic material, but point out that the work reflects unique expressiveness that merits recognition. The symphony has become a repertoire piece for a number of symphony orchestras and is being introduced to Bulgarian audiences for the first time.