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*Pan and Syrinx*
Pan and Syrinx
Symphonic poem by Carl Nielsen
	The composer (1917)
Native name	Pan og Syrinx
Catalogue	FS 87; CNW 38
Opus	49
Composed	1917–1918
Publisher	Hansen (1926)
Duration	8–9 mins.
Premiere
Date	11 February 1918
Location	Copenhagen, Denmark
Conductor	Carl Nielsen
Performers	Orchestra of the Music Society

Pan and Syrinx (in Danish: Pan og Syrinx; subtitled "Pastoral Scene for Orchestra"; in Danish: "Naturscene for orkester"), Op. 49 (FS 87; CNW 38), is a symphonic poem for orchestra written from 1917 to 1918 by the Danish composer Carl Nielsen. The piece received its premiere at the Odd Fellows Mansion in Copenhagen on 11 February 1918, with Nielsen conducting Orchestra of the Music Society (Musikforeningen).

Background

As late as 23 January 1918, in a letter to Swedish composer Wilhelm Stenhammar, Nielsen explained that although he had included Pan and Syrinx in his concert on 11 February, he had not yet written a single note. It appears, however, that he had been thinking about the piece for some time, ever since he and his wife Anne Marie had discussed Ovid's Metamorphoses the previous year, inspiring him to compose the music. He did however manage to complete the score by 6 February.^[1]

In addition to Pan and Syrinx, the concert which was devoted to works by Nielsen over almost 20 years, included the prelude to Act Two of Saul and David, Sleep and the Fourth Symphony, all conducted by Nielsen himself, as well as Chaconne for Piano played by Christian Christiansen.^[1]

Reception

Pan and Syrinx was particularly well received. Writing in Politken, Charles Kjerulf first alluded to its "Gallic, quite Debussyesque" quality before praising its feeling of renewal, development and mastery. He ended even more gushingly: "For each note that was added it became more and more sublime. And when in the end the very highest and very lowest notes of the orchestra were sounded right up against each other in the violin harmonics and double-basses... then the rejoicing broke out quite spontaneously." The other reviews were also positive.^[1]

The work was frequently played in Scandinavia during Nielsen's lifetime. When the composer planned a concert programme, he often chose to perform Saga Dream and Pan and Syrinx on the same occasion.^[1]

Instrumentation

Pan and Syrinx is scored for the following instruments, organized by family (woodwinds, brass, percussion, and strings):

2 flutes (one doubling piccolo), 2 oboes (one doubling cor anglais), 2 clarinets, and 2 bassoons
4 horns, 2 trumpets, and 2 trombones
Timpani, bass drum, snare drum, cymbals, tambourine, triangle, raganella, glockenspiel, and xylophone
Violins (I and II), violas, cellos, and double basses

Music

The nine-minute symphonic poem is based on the ancient legend which tells how the amorous god Pan invented the pan flute when following the nymph Syrinx. Syrinx ran to the river's edge and asked for assistance from the river nymphs. In answer, she was transformed into hollow water reeds that made a haunting sound when the god's frustrated breath blew across them. Pan cut the reeds to fashion the first set of pan pipes, which were thenceforth known as syrinx.^[2]

As the piece features Syrinx it obviously has major parts for woodwind solos. The music was written at the height of Nielsen's powers as a composer, shortly after he finished the Fourth Symphony. It is a vigorous, pretty, and poetic work.^[3]

Discography

The table below lists commercially available recordings of Pan and Syrinx:

No.	Conductor	Ensemble	Rec.^[a]	Time	Recording venue	Label	Ref.
1	Thomas Jensen (1)	Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (1)	1956	7:19	Danish Radio Concert Hall	Danacord	^[4]
2	Thomas Jensen (2)	Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (2)	1959	7:16	Danish Radio Concert Hall	Danacord	^[5]
3	Eugene Ormandy	Philadelphia Orchestra	1967	8:14	Town Hall, Philadelphia	Sony Classical	^[6]
4	Herbert Blomstedt	Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (3)	1975	8:36	Danish Radio Concert Hall	EMI Classics	^[7]
5	Sir Alexander Gibson	Scottish National Orchestra	1979	8:43	Glasgow City Hall	Chandos	^[8]
6	Sir Simon Rattle	City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra	1984	8:26	Warwick Arts Centre	EMI Classics	^[9]
7	Tamás Vetö	Odense Symphony Orchestra (1)	1988	8:36	Odense Concert Hall [da]	Regis	^[10]
8	Esa-Pekka Salonen	Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra	1989	8:30	Berwald Hall	CBS Masterworks	^[11]
9	Gennady Rozhdestvensky	Danish National Symphony Orchestra (4)	1993	8:33	Danish Radio Concert Hall	Chandos	^[12]
10	Edward Serov [ru]	Odense Symphony Orchestra (2)	1994	9:24	[Unknown]^[b]	Kontrapunkt	^[13]
11	Jan Caeyers [de]	Beethoven Academie [nl]	1994	8:08	deSingel	Harmonia Mundi	^[14]
12	Neeme Järvi	Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra	1995	8:59	Gothenburg Concert Hall	Deutsche Grammophon	^[15]
13	Niklas Willén	South Jutland Symphony Orchestra [da]	2002	9:10	Musikhuset, Sønderborg	Naxos	^[16]
14	Lance Friedel	Aarhus Symphony Orchestra	2004	8:46	Frichsparker, Aarhus	MSR Classics	^[17]
15	Douglas Bostock	Czech Chamber Philharmonic [fr]	2005	7:28	Philharmonie, Pardubice	Classico	^[18]
16	Osmo Vänskä	Lahti Symphony Orchestra	2006	7:49	Sibelius Hall	BIS	^[19]
17	Thomas Dausgaard	Danish National Symphony Orchestra (5)	2006	8:43	Danish Radio Concert Hall	Dacapo	^[20]
18	Edward Gardner	Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra	2023	8:29	Grieg Hall	Chandos	^[21]

Notes

^ 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.
^ The liner notes to this release do not contain information on the venue(s) at which the work was recorded.