Denmark has Carl Nielsen, Finland has Jean Sibelius, Norway has
Edvard Grieg and Sweden has Franz
Berwald. A man who has been
called one of the most neglected composers in music history. So obscure
was he that in 1946 the Swedish postal service, given the choice
between putting Franz Berwald or the Swedish Agricultural Show on
a postage stamp, went with the farmers. Yet he is known as Sweden’s
best romantic composer and he wrote three chamber works with clarinet.
They are a septet, a quartet and a serenade.
How is it that a composer who is now finally beginning to collect some acclaim
was over looked for so long? Recognition of Franz Berwald is increasing with
notable recordings by conductors such as Esa Pekka Solonen and Herbert Blomstedt
as well as scholars devoting a full symposium to him in 1996 and, certainly,
he is not the only composer to be essentially lost in music history. However,
to be considered Sweden’s “best Romantic composer,” leads one
to question the factors that have contributed to his obscurity.
The Berwald family was a large musical family and quite active in 18th and 19th
century European orchestras in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Russia. The family
can be traced back to Franz Berwald’s great great grandfather Johan Daniel
Berwald, said to have held the monopoly of music for weddings and funerals in
the town of Königsberg in eastern part of Germany.1 Given the 18th century
practice of having a plethora of children the family grew quickly. Franz’s
father, a violinist, brought the Berwalds to Stockholm in 1773 when he joined
the newly formed Opera Orchestra of the Swedish monarch Gustav
III.
French educated Gustav III, king of Sweden from 1771 – 1792, was a generous
patron of the arts and is largely responsible for furthering the cultural atmosphere
in Stockholm. In fact, many consider him to be “the founder of Swedish
culture.…”2 He had grown up with love for the opera instilled in him
by his mother Lovisa Ulrika, sister of Frederick the Great. She had brought French
and Italian opera composers and singers to Sweden in the 1750’s. Gustav
III, in fact, was sitting at the Paris Opera when he received the news that he
had ascended the Swedish throne. 1771, the first year of his reign, saw the founding
of the Swedish Royal Academy of Music, later to become the Stockholm Conservatory,
and the Royal Opera was inaugurated in 1773.
1782 brought the opening of the Royal Opera House in
Stockholm, a state of the art theater that contained some of the most advanced
machinery in all of
Europe for that time. As well, Gustav III brought composers, many with Italian
and French influences, to Sweden. These included J.G. Naumann, J.M. Kraus and
Abbé Georg Joseph Vogler, who would teach Crusell and later become
Franz Berwald’s godfather. These musicians were paid handsomely for their
service and given much latitude for travel to the main continent.
Gustav III was assassinated in 1792, immortalized in Verdi’s opera Un ballo
in maschera, and though his successors were not nearly as enthusiastic funding
the arts, Stockholm would benefit from the cultural advances seen during his
reign for years to come.
Franz Berwald’s life (1796 – 1868) spanned the 19th century as he
was born a year before Schubert and died a year after Berlioz. His is quest for
individuality and independence as a composer embodied the “romantic artist.” As
well, he lived in a time of great social change in Europe. He saw the “French” style
court of Gustav III as gaudy3 and viewed the court musicians of the era before
him unfavorably.
Of Crusell, upon hearing of his death, Berwald, in 1839, wrote: “Had
he lived in another time and under different circumstances, he might have reached
further than the bottom stair to the muse at song’s temple. Courtesy… had
already in his youth lured him into social relationships that made any serious
pursuit of art impossible. The graceful wife had to be lulled to sleep, the young
lady needed some tender notes for her melancholy, the ensign in the guard needed
a trill by which to perform his pirouette, and finally the man of the house himself
demanded a score of variations – and the clarinet was to imbue all these
wonderworks with its own compositions…. There is no harm greater than the
harm done by having so much talent so poorly employed.”4 One can deduce
that Berwald felt the court musicians of the past were merely pawns of the royal
court and forfeited their individuality as composers and performers.
Berwald, himself, had little formal education. He briefly attended a private
school, which ended when he threw an unspecified object at the teacher. The rest
of his training came as music studies with his father, his godfather Abbé Vogler
as well as formal violin lessons Eduard Du Puy, conductor of the opera orchestra.
Franz’s father and uncle also had a music copying business, where Franz
was undoubtedly enlisted to assist.
He gave his debut violin recital at age 6 and by 16 was a member of the Opera
Orchestra. His earliest known composition was a set of variations for violin
and orchestra dated 1816 and his first premier concert came in 1818, which included
his Grand Septet for Winds and Strings. The review of this first concert would
be indicative of the criticism he would encounter often in his career, especially
in Sweden. This review and subsequent critiques can be viewed as a clash of musical
values: the “Classical” critic meets the “Romantic” artist.
Of Berwald the anonymous critic wrote: “…a young man of some promise… the
septet modulates often and sometimes in a manner that leaves one wishing that
this young and undoubtedly talented composer would acquaint himself more thoroughly
with the rules of harmony and composition…”5
Berwald would have another encounter with a much harsher critic in 1821 when
his Quartet for Piano and Winds was premiered. This time he did not take the
criticism lightly. What ensued was a four part literally argument that highlighted
the dichotomies of the “classical” and “romantic” perspectives
of art in the early 19th century. Those who looked back and saw music in the
traditions of the past and those who pushed forward and strove for their own
voice. Though a mere 25 years of age, Franz Berwald publicly exhibited a brash
confidence in his own abilities. This attitude would propel him through life,
but undoubtedly made it more difficult for him to enter the inner circles of
Stockholm’s music establishment and find support, both musically and financially.
These articles are a tremendous primary source on how artistic arguments fit
this time of change from the classical to the romantic periods. Specific quotes
have been pulled from these editorials and will be viewed in the context of Berwald’s
Quartet for Piano and Winds. The concert took place on March 3, 1821 and the
initial review was published in Argus on March 24, 1821.
The review begins with the following statement: “Franz Berwald, who with
his earlier appearances, first as violinist and later as composer, raised great
expectations among the public that through diligence and continued studies he
would become an excellent artist, seems inclined to counter this hope by getting
lost on detours.”
It is not disputed that Franz Berwald had an innovative musical style dictated
mainly in his use of modulation, melodic material, and orchestration. His work
also has a rhythmic vitality, which is, at times, more like the music of Brahms
than Crusell. Franz Berwald did have a clear understanding of was classical form,
however. In the Quartet, movements one and three are in sonata-allegro form and
movement two is in ternary form.
Using movement one as the example, the sonata form lays out as this:
Are the elements within the form less rigid? Yes, most definitely,
but this is not at all unusual for a Romantic composer.
A point of contention with the critic is Berwald’s melodic style. He writes: “It
appears that Mr. Berwald, in chasing after originality and striving to impress
with grand effects, has diligently exiled everything melodic from his compositions.”
As well, he writes: “…these most recent pieces seemed nothing more
than constant summersaults from one isolated thought to another….” This
is very true, Berwald’s music does have a fragmented melodic style. His
sonata form consists of thematic areas rather than three distinct themes.
The critic was likely perplexed by the beginning of the quartet, when the beautiful
bassoon melody is interrupted by seemingly unrelated thought. It comes too
soon to be the secondary theme. Though there is no question when the secondary
theme
does finally arrive as we will hear in this example. The aural examples for
this presentation are taken from a Hyperion CD and is performed by the Gaudier
Ensemble.
The clarinetist is Richard Hosford. [AURAL EX1] Sound clip courtesy of (Sound clip courtesy of Hyperion Records)Can't hear this sound clip? Click on the Free RealPlayer link on this page.
The critic’s “summersaults” can be heard in the closing section
of the first movement exposition. In all, movement one has 8 themes in movement
one and we find 6 of them in the closing section. [AURAL EX2] (Sound clip courtesy of Hyperion Records)
The critic also finds fault in Berwald’s treatment of the wind instruments: “Most
incomprehensible of all was the quartet, in which the wind instruments are utilized
completely contrary to their nature; instead of singing, they are forced to do
odd runs, and so on.” We have already heard some of the “odd runs” in
the clarinet part, which by the way, fall very naturally. Berwald tends to
divide the instruments into two groups: the piano versus the three wind instruments
who are often treated as one instrument with shared melodic material as heard
in this example from movement three: [AURAL EX3] (Sound clip courtesy of Hyperion Records)
Now, we come to Berwald’s response to the review. Needless to say, he was
not pleased and published a retort in Almänna Journalen. He writes: “I
was dumbfounded to read the review Argus has offered the public of my recent
compositions.” He goes one to acknowledge that he “anticipated that
these works, composed in my own unique style, would leave a less than favorable
impression.” He then goes on to defend himself with this statement: “…the
reviewer should keep in mind that all experiments based on an unusual system,
with innovative instrumentation and innovative use of instruments, will always
in the beginning run into widespread difficulty.” As a romantic artist
Berwald is declaring his independence and his realization that he has a unique
voice, which he refused to compromise.
What is most striking about this retort, however, is Berwald’s brusque
and often condescending tone with the critic. He writes: “He should at
least not try to impress us with inaccurate representations, and certainly not
presume to detail the special attributes of an art form that he clearly does
not understand.” As well, Berwald includes: “…if he has the
ability to read sheet music, which I seriously doubt….” Biographers
of Berwald often describe him as having a difficult personality. Felix Mendelsohn,
after spending Christmas with Berwald in 1829, found him arrogant. These social
difficulties most likely affected his stature in Stockholm and prevented him
from attaining respect and positions in the musical community. Case if point
was when the conductorship of the court orchestra was awarded to his “less-talented” cousin
with whom he, incidentally, had strained relations. This certainly made it
more difficult to have his new works performed by the best orchestra in town!
Following Berwald’s response, the anonymous critic takes offense to Berwald’s
tone. He writes: “It is not without some bewilderment that I have read
Herr Franz Berwald’s reply…. [I] find it hard to believe that the
aforementioned review would have engendered such a rigid tone.” The article
goes on to reiterate the reviewer’s concern with the lack of melody, harmony,
and general musical understanding. He also questions whether Berwald’s
newly conceived style is worthy of praise with: “However, what must and
indeed does engender bewilderment, is the explanation that his compositions are
rooted in a new system that he himself has invented…. The question is whether
this music is grounded in any system at all.” He also goes on to show his
general lack of acceptance of anything new with the statement: “It is
true that experimental systems are rarely met with great confidence, and even
more
rarely do they deserve it.”
Franz Berwald gets the last word with his final retort where he continues his
condescending manner. “If one had reason to believe from earlier comments
made by the reviewer, that he is passing judgment on an art form for which he
has little understanding, then one can be fully convinced of it by his later
reflections.” Berwald also challenges the reviewer’s notion that
he is attempting to invent a new system with “Does he really believe that
the difference between a system change, based simply on alterations to certain
finite parts (modulations and the relationship between resolution and harmony)
and a total paradigm shift is so trivial that the former might as well be called
the latter?” To Berwald, his innovations are a result of adapting the
musical practices of the past to invent his own style.
Berwald also makes a good point with how much credence an artist should give
those critical of their work. “Moreover, when the reviewer announces his
intention that, upon the receipt of the sheet music to the abovementioned works,
he would promise a comprehensive assessment of the music (which in his estimation
violates all established rules) then he begs the question whether art or artists
should submit to these frightening standards, where every innovation is condemned
and where all is subordinate to what has come before.” He is really questioning
the ability to set artistic standards for what is correct and what should be
accepted. Of music he writes: “Music is an art form whose boundaries exist
only in time. – To appoint oneself as exclusive judge of it is an absolute
absurdity.”
Undoubtedly, Franz Berwald did not make a friend of this critic and at 25 years
of age he might have gained more from showing a bit of restraint. Perhaps, he
would have benefited from the book How to Win Friends and Influence People. He,
certainly, was a composer not afraid to stand up for himself and his music has
stood the test of time.
Of Berwald, Carl Nielsen wrote in 1911: “neither the media, money nor
power can damage or benefit good Art. It will always find some simple, decent
artists
who forge ahead and produce and stand up for their works. In Sweden you have
the finest example of this: Berwald”6
Today, Franz
Berwald’s works can be heard on classical stations and
in concert halls thanks to conductors such as Paavo Jarvi, Esa Pekka Solonen,
Herbert Blomstedt and groups such as the Gaudier Ensemble. As clarinetists
we have three chamber works from an unrepresented period in our repertoire
and Bärenreiter
has just added the parts for the uniquely orchestrated Serenade to the Berwald
collected edition. Franz Berwald spent his life staunchly committed to his unique
musical talent and is now beginning to receive the praise and respect that comes
with being “Sweden’s Best Romantic Composer.” And yes, he
did finally make it on to a postage stamp.
1 Robert Layton, Franz Berwald, London: Anthony Blond Ltd., 1959, pp. ???.
2 Toyne, S.M., The Scandinavians in History, London” Edward Arnold & Co.,
1948, pp. 225.
3 Schegel letter 1839, aug. 21
4 ibid
5 Robert Layton, Franz Berwald, London: Anthony Blond Ltd., 1959, pp. 30.
6 Grove Dictionary, “Franz Berwald” Daniel M. Grimley vol. 3 pp.480
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