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Pre-20th century Irish symphonies?

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  • 22-11-2012 7:28pm
    #1
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    Site Banned Posts: 224 ✭✭


    Charles Stanford is the only Irish person I know of who composed full symphonies before 1900. Anyone else?


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    #2
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    Harty had one or two, IIRC. He was born in the 19th century but his compositions are dated in the 20th century. You're pretty much out of luck, though. Ireland has a poor history when it comes to outputting composers of the classical tradition.


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    #3
    Doshea3
    Registered Users Posts: 451 ✭✭Doshea3


    I think Sullivan (of G&S fame) also wrote 'Irish' symphonies (he was of Irish descent).

    I wonder did Charles Wood write any? Of course these were all Englishy composers who happened to be born in Ireland, as apart from occasionally inserting a diddlyeye tune (stripped of its Irishness and treated usually as a subject in the Brahmsian manner) there's nothing culturally Irish about the music. (Maybe that's controversial...I remember writing an interesting presentation on the topic in college.)


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    #4
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    Balfe is another Irish composer of a symphony - Sinfonia in 1829.


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    #5
    pconn062
    Registered Users Posts: 5,370 ✭✭✭pconn062


    Fluorescence wrote: »
    Harty had one or two, IIRC. He was born in the 19th century but his compositions are dated in the 20th century. You're pretty much out of luck, though. Ireland has a poor history when it comes to outputting composers of the classical tradition.

    Ireland's lack of an art music history is pretty understandable when you think of the cultural/historical situation even as recent as a hundred years ago, it doesn't have a long western art music history like Germany/Italy.

    Some great symphonic/orchestral music written since then though, check out www.cmc.ie


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    #6
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    pconn062 wrote: »
    Ireland's lack of an art music history is pretty understandable when you think of the cultural/historical situation even as recent as a hundred years ago, it doesn't have a long western art music history like Germany/Italy.

    Some great symphonic/orchestral music written since then though, check out www.cmc.ie

    No doubt - Irish composers have really come into their own in the 20th/21st centuries. However looking for a symphonic work here before 1900 is a tall order. We simply don't have that kind of legacy.


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    #7
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    Fluorescence wrote: »
    No doubt - Irish composers have really come into their own in the 20th/21st centuries.
    That would appy to most countries though. John Stevenson also wrote symphonies.


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