Commotio (Nielsen)

Music composition by Carl Nielsen

Carl Nielsen's Commotio or Commotio for Organ, Opus 58, was composed between June 1930 and February 1931. The composer's last major work, it was first performed privately on 24 April 1931 in the chapel at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen.

## Background

[edit]

Commotio was considered by Nielsen to be a particularly important work. In a letter to his son-in-law Emil Telmányi on 24 February 1931 he wrote: "None of my other works has demanded such great concentration as this: an attempt to reconstitute what is truly the only valid organ style, the polyphonic music that is especially suited to this instrument, which for a long time has been regarded as a kind of orchestra, which it absolutely is not." Nielsen also commented on the length of the piece: at 22 to 24 minutes, it was longer than any of Bach's organ works.[1]

There was great interest in the piece by Danish organists, resulting in several private performances. In addition to that at the Christiansborg Palace Chapel, there were two performances by Peter Thomsen, two by Finn Viderø on 14 June on the Marcussen organ in St Nikolai's Church, Copenhagen, one a week later by Emilius Bangert in Roskilde Cathedral and yet one more by Peter Thomsen in July.[1]

## Reception

[edit]

The first public performance was in Aarhus Cathedral on 14 August 1931 where the organist was Emilius Bangert. Despite poor health due to heart problems, Nielsen was present. There do not appear to be any reviews of this performance.[1]

After news of the new organ work reached Germany, Erwin Zillinger, an organist from Schleswig, asked Bangert and Nielsen whether Commotio could be played at the Nordic-German Organ Week to be held in Lübeck that October. Nielsen had hoped to be present but weakness resulting from poor health prevented him from travelling. Bangert, who had been selected as the organist, travelled alone to Lübeck where, a day or two later, he heard of Nielsen's death. The concert therefore suddenly became a valedictory performance.

The review by Svend-Ove Møller in Dansk Kirkemusiker-Tidende conveyed the emotional experience: “Mixed with the melancholy feelings that fill us on the death of Nielsen, is gratitude that it was granted him to complete this work, which we may designate without exaggeration as the most significant production in recent organ literature. Nielsen understood as few others did how to deploy the resources of his time such that they do not appear modern in the negative sense. His mode of expression, peculiar and distinctive as it may be, feels quite natural; not for an instant does one get the impression that he sought out new paths simply to get away from the well known roads; the affectation which so often characterizes modern music is not to be found in Carl Nielsen; his thoroughly wholesome musical idiom and his ability to create living music has produced here an organ work of enduring value. Emilius Bangert gave Nielsen’s work a masterly performance..."[1]

## Music

[edit]

In connection with the Lübeck performance, Nielsen was invited to provide programme notes. First explaining in a footnote that Commotio meant "Movement, also spiritual", he continued (translated from Nielsen's German): "The Latin word Commotio really applies to all music, but the word is used more specifically here as an expression of self-objectification. In a major work for the mighty instrument that is called the organ, whose sound is determined by the natural element we call air, the composer must attempt to suppress all personal, lyrical feelings. The expression becomes great and rigorous and demands a kind of dryness instead of the emotional, and must rather be gazed at with the ear than embraced by the heart. The work is borne up by two fugues, to which an introduction, intervening movements and coda cling like climbing plants to the tree-trunks of the forest; however, the composer thinks that further analysis is superfluous."[1]

## Discography

[edit]

The table below lists commercially available recordings of Commotio:

No. | Organist  | Time  | Rec.[a] | Recording venue  | Label  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|
|

1  | Finn Viderø | 21:12  | 1960  | Battell Chapel | Danacord |

[2]

2  | Elisabeth Westenholz | 21:00  | 1979  | Grundtvig's Church | BIS |

[3]

3  | Ulrik Spang-Hanssen [cs] | 22:42  | 1987  | Church of Our Lady, Assens | Paula  |

[4]

4  | Paul Trepte | ?  | 1992  | Ely Cathedral | Heritage  |

[5]

5  | Christopher Herrick | 20:47  | 1993  | Turku Cathedral | Hyperion |

[6]

6  | Kevin Bowyer | 21:07  | 1996  | Odense Cathedral | Nimbus |

[7]

7  | Knud Vad [da] | 25:13  | 1996  | Sorø Abbey Church | Danacord |

[8]

8  | Grethe Krogh | 23:50  | ?  | Holmens Kirke | Danacord |

[9]

9  | David Goode | 21:17  | 1998  | Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford | Herald |

[10]

10  | Friedhelm Flamme | 20:15  | 2008  | Stiftskirche, Bad Gandersheim [de] | cpo |

[11]

11  | Philip Schmidt-Madsen | 23:44  | 2012  | Christiansborg Slotskirke | Naxos |

[12]

12  | Keith John | 22:20?  | 2012  | Gloucester Cathedral | Willowhayne  |

[13]

13  | Anders Eidsten Dahl | 23:05  | ?  | Bragernes Church | LAWO  |

[14]

14  | Søren Johannsen | 21:44  | 2015  | Christian's Church, Copenhagen | Naxos |

[15]

15  | Bine Katrine Bryndorf [nl] | 23:27  | 2016  | Nikolaj Kunsthal | Dacapo |

[16]

16  | Inge Bønnerup | 22:53  | ?  | Vartov Church [da] | CDKlassisk  |

[17]

17  | Kevin Duggan | 25:13  | 2019  | Dunblane Cathedral | Odradek |

[18]

18  | Egor Kolesov | 21:00  | ?  | ?  | Base2 Music  |

[19]

19  | James Hicks | ?  | ?  | ?  | Pro Organo  |

[20]

20  | Marko Kupari | ?  | ?  | ?  | Pilfink [fi] |

[21]

## Orchestrations

[edit]

Two orchestral versions of Commotio were made in recent years, by Bo Holten, who conducted the Odense Symphony Orchestra himself in 2007,[22] as well as Hans Abrahamsen,[23] whose version was performed by conductor Fabio Luisi and the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2016.

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Refers to the year in which the performers recorded the work; this may not be the same as the year in which the recording was first released to the general public.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e Niels Bo Foltmann, "Carl Nielsen: Piano and Organ Works", Carl Nielsen Edition Archived April 9, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Royal Danish Library. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
2. ^ F. Viderø–Danacord (DACOCD 364) 1995
3. ^ E. Westenholz–BIS (CD–131) 1990
4. ^ U. Ulrik Spang-Hanssen–Paula (PACD 55) 1987
5. ^ P. Trepte–Heritage (HTGCD214) 2010
6. ^ (CDA66676) 1994
7. ^ K. Bowyer–Nimbus (NI 5468) 1996
8. ^ K. Vad–Danacord (DACOCD 444) 1996
9. ^ G. Krogh–Danacord (DACOCD 447) 1996
10. ^ D. Goode–Herald (HAVPCD 230) 1999
11. ^ F. Flamme–cpo (777 414–2) 2010
12. ^ P. Schmidt-Madsen–Naxos (8.573068) 2012
13. ^ K. John–Willowhayne (WHR032) 2013
14. ^ A. Dahl–LAWO (LWC 1050) 2014
15. ^ S. Johannsen–Naxos (9.70253) 2015
16. ^ B. Bryndorf–Dacapo (6.220635) 2017
17. ^ I. Bønnerup–CDKlassisk (CDK 1162) 2016
18. ^ K. Duggan–Odradek (ODRCD408) yyyy
19. ^ E. Kolesov–Base2 Music (08) 2020
20. ^ J. Hicks–Pro Organo (PO7292) 2020
21. ^ M. Kupari–Label (JJVCD–253) 2023
22. ^ Review in The Gramophone
23. ^ Ed. Vilhelm Hansen, 2012.

* v
* t
* e

Carl Nielsen

* List of compositions
* Discography of symphony cycles

Symphonies|

* Symphony No. 1 (1892)
* Symphony No. 2, The Four Temperaments (1902)
* Symphony No. 3, Sinfonia espansiva (1911)
* Symphony No. 4, The Inextinguishable (1916)
* Symphony No. 5 (1922)
* Symphony No. 6, Sinfonia semplice (1925)

Concertante|

* Violin Concerto (1911)
* Flute Concerto (1926)
* Clarinet Concerto (1928)

Opera|

* Saul and David (1902)
* Maskarade (1906)

Stage|

* Aladdin (1919)
* The Mother (1920)

Chorus & orchestra|

* Hymnus amoris (1896)
* The Sleep (1905)
* Springtime on Funen (1921)

Other orchestral|

* Little Suite for Strings (1888)
* Helios Overture (1903)
* Saga Dream (1908)
* At the Bier of a Young Artist (1910)
* Pan and Syrinx (1918)
* An Imaginary Trip to the Faroe Islands (1927)

Chamber|

* String Quartet No. 1 (1889)
* Fantasy Pieces for Oboe and Piano (1890)
* String Quartet No. 2 (1890)
* String Quartet No. 3 (1898)
* String Quartet No. 4 (1906)
* Serenata in vano (1914)
* Wind Quintet (1922)

Miscellaneous|

* Chaconne (1917)
* Three Piano Pieces (1928)
* Three Motets (1929)
* Commotio (1931)
* Songs (list)

Family & friends|

* Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen (wife)
* Anne Marie Telmányi (daughter)
* Emil Telmányi (son-in-law)
* Victor Bendix
* Ferruccio Busoni

Teachers|

* Niels Gade
* J. P. E. Hartmann
* Orla Rosenhoff
* Valdemar Tofte
* Royal Danish Academy of Music

Pupils|

* Thorvald Aagaard
* Harald Agersnap
* Emilius Bangert
* Jørgen Bentzon
* Nancy Dalberg
* Knud Jeppesen
* Herman Koppel
* Poul Schierbeck
* Rudolph Simonsen
* Mogens Wöldike

Select interpreters|

* Herbert Blomstedt
* Douglas Bostock
* Launy Grøndahl
* Thomas Jensen
* Tor Mann
* Gennady Rozhdestvensky
* Esa-Pekka Salonen
* Ole Schmidt
* Michael Schønwandt
* Edward Serov [ru]
* Bryden Thomson
* Erik Tuxen

Related articles|

* Carl, My Childhood Symphony
* Carl Nielsen International Music Competition
* Carl Nielsen Edition
* Carl Nielsen Monument
* Carl Nielsen Museum
* Danish National Symphony Orchestra
* David Fanning (biographer)
* My Childhood on Funen (autobiography)
* Robert Simpson (biographer)
* Royal Danish Orchestra

Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work

|

*[No.]: Chronological number
*[Rec.]: Year of recording
*[Ref.]: References
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template