Jury
Sten Broman
Rafael Kubelik
André Souris
Erik Tuxen
Hugo Weisgall
Concerts
Thursday, 29 May 1947 at 20:00 – Danish Radio Orchestra at the former DR Koncerthuset.
Vagn Holmboe (Denmark, b. 1909; d. 1996): Symphony No. 5, op. 34 (1944) [30′];
Jean Absil (Belgium [Wallonia], b. 1893; d. 1974): Variations Symphoniques, op. 50 (1942);
Hilding Rosenberg (Sweden, b. 1892; d. 1985): Concerto (No. 1) for String Orchestra (1946) [13′];
Vítězslav Novák (Czechoslovakia, b. 1870; d. 1949): De profundis, op. 67, for orchestra with organ (1941) [23′];
Harald Sæverud (Norway, b. 1897; d. 1982): Galdreslåtten, Op. 20 (Symphonic Dance and Passacaglia) (1947) [9′] conducted by the composer.
Saturday, 31 May 1947 at 16:00 – Chamber Music Concert at the Odd Fellow Palæet
Willy Burkhard (Switzerland, b. 1900; d. 1955): String Quartet No. 2, op. 68 (1943) [18′];
Anton Heiller (Austria, b. 1923; d. 1979): Toccata for two pianos (1943);
György Kósa (Hungary, b. 1897; d. 1984): Trio for two violins and viola (1946);
? Jan Kapr (Czechoslovakia, b. 1914; d. 1988): Piano Sonata No. 1 (1945) or 2 (1947)?;
Hermann D. Koppel (Denmark, b. 1908; d. 1988): Sextet for Piano and Winds, op. 36 (1942) [18′].
Sunday, 1 June 1947 at 16:00 at the Aula at Lund University, Lund (Sweden)
Karl-Birger Blomdahl (Sweden, b. 1916; d. 1968): String Trio (1945) [15′];
Aaron Copland (United States, b. 1900; d. 1990): Piano Sonata (1939-41) [25′] performed by Arne Skjold Rasmussen *;
Sergei Prokofiev (U.S.S.R., b. 1891; d. 1953): Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano, op. 94a (1942, arr for violin and piano 1943) [23′] performed by violinist Charles Senderovitz and pianist Brita Hjort Karström;
Niels Viggo Bentzon (Denmark, b. 1919; d. 2000): Partita for Piano, op. 38 (1945) [21′] performed by the composer;
Benjamin Frankel (United Kingdom [England], b. 1906; d. 1973): String Quartet No. 2, op. 15 (1944) [22′] performed by the Blech Quartet.
(* NOTE: The Copland Piano Sonata was supposed to have been played by Rosalyn Tureck, whom Haefeli cites as one of the performers on the festival, but according to the contemporaneous review by Humphrey Searle, it was “competently played by the Danish pianist Rasmussen, who learnt the work at short notice owing to the indisposition of Rosalyn Tureck.”)
Monday, 2 June 1947 at 20:00 – Chamber Orchestra Concert at the O.F.B.
David van de Woestijne (Belgium [Flanders], b. 1915 in Wales; d. 1979): Sérénades for piano, 12 winds, doublebass, and percussion (1946) featuring the composer as pianist;
Elizabeth Maconchy (United Kingdom [England], b. 1907; d. 1994): Concerto for Clarinet and String Orchestra (1945) [14′] featuring Frederick Thurston;
? Adone Zecchi (Italy, b. 1904; d. 1995): Duae fugae novem compositae sonis quattuor sine nomine vocibus for chamber orchestra (scored in four parts for variable instrumentation);
Fartein Valen (Norway, b. 1887; d. 1952): Sonetto di Michelangelo, op. 17 no. 1, for chamber orchestra (1932) [6′];
Michal Spisak (Poland, b. 1914; d. 1965 in France): Concerto for Bassoon and Chamber Orchestra (1944) [11′] featuring Carl Bloch;
Camille Schmit (Belgium [Wallonia], b. 1908; d. 1976): Préludes joyeux for wind orchestra (1945) [9′].
Tuesday, 3 June 1947 at 20:00 – Chamber Music Concert at the O.F.B.
Rudolf Escher (Netherlands, b. 1912; d. 1980): Arcana Musae Dona, suite for piano (1944) [22′];
Klement Slavický (Czechoslovakia, b. 1910; d. 1999): Trio for Oboe, Clarinet, and Bassoon (1937) [14′];
Ernest Bloch (United States, b. 1880 in Switzerland; d. 1959): String Quartet No. 2 (1945) [34′];
André Jolivet (France, b. 1905; d. 1974): Piano Sonata (No. 1) (1945) [20′];
Ildebrando Pizzetti (Italy, b. 1880; d. 1968): Tre composizioni corali for unaccompanied chorus (SATBB) (1943) [12′].
Wednesday, 4 June 1947 at 20:00 – Danish Radio Orchestra at the former DR Koncerthuset
Gösta Nystroem (Sweden, b. 1890; d. 1966): Sinfonia Breve (Symphony No. 1) (1929-31) [24′] conducted by Sixten Eckerberg;
Gino Negri (Italy, b. 1919; d. 1991): Antologia di Spoon River for Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra [text by Edgar Lee Masters] (1945) [29′] conducted by Erik Tuxen;
Frank Martin (Switzerland, b. 1890; d. 1974): Petite Symphonie Concertante for piano, harpsichord, harp and orchestra (1944-45) [23′] featuring Hermann D. Koppel (piano), Esther Vagning (harpsichord), and Minna Borre (harp);
Roberto Gerhard (United Kingdom [England], b. 1896 in Spain [Catalonia]; d. 1970): Don Quixote, ballet suite for Orchestra (1940-41, rev. 1947) [19′] conducted by André Souris.
The following work was also scheduled but was not performed:
Roger Sessions (United States, b. 1896; d. 1985): Symphony No. 2 (1944-46) [25′].
(It was however re-programmed and performed during the 1948 ISCM Festival in Amsterdam.)
Other events
? Concert of church music in Frederiksborg Castle performed by the Copenhagen Boys’ Choir conducted by Mogens Wöldike
? Lecture on Indian music with examples
? Performance in the Royal Danish Theatre
Carl Nielsen (Denmark, 1865-1931): Maskarade, Act I (opera) (1904-06) [];
Jørgen Bentzon (Denmark, b. 1897; d. 1951) (work yet to be identified);
Knudåge Riisager (Denmark, b. 1897 in Estonia; d. 1974): Qarrtsiluni, op. 36 (ballet) (1938) [12′].
DATE? Orchestral Concert at the Tivoli Gardens [Arranged by the Danish Section]
? Svend Erik Tarp (Denmark, b. 1908; d. 1994): L’Alternarsi delle Stagioni for orchestra;
Ebbe Hamerik (Denmark, b. 1898; d. 1951): Suite from the opera Marie Grubbe (1940)’
? Svend S. Schultz (Denmark, b. 1913; d. 1998): Piano Concerto No. 1 (1943) **;
Finn Høffding (Denmark, b. 1899; d. 1997): Symphonic Fantasy No. 2 ‘Det er ganske vist’ [‘There Is No Doubt About It’], op. 37 (1940) [10′].
(** Haefeli lists this as Piano Concerto No. 2 but that work was not composed until 1951)
According to Searle, there were also additional concerts presented by the British Council as well as the Norwegian and Dutch sections, the former featuring a performance by the Blech Quartet of the String Quartet No. 2 in A Minor (1945-46) [c. 28′] by William Walton (United Kingdom [England], b. 1902; d. 1983).
Other significant interpreters:
Pianists: Ebba Hansen, Bengt Johnsson, Vera Rebkovka, Jan Ode, Charles Lilamand.
Viola: Sten Broman.
Violoncello: Guido Vecchi.
Winds: Mitglieder des Prager-Bläserquintetts.
Ensembles: Bloch Quartet, Dänisches Bläserquintett von 1932, Koppel Quartet.
Chorus: Radio Madrigalchor, Radio Chor.
Conductors: Lavard Friisholm, Břetislav Bakala, Anthony Bernard, John Frandsen, Øivin Fjeldstad, Andrzej Panufnik.
Sources
Anton Haefeli, Die Internationale Gesellschaft für Neue Musik (IGNM), Ihre Geschichte von 1922 bis zur Gegenwart (Atlantis Musikbuch-Verlag, 1982), pp. 501-502 [in German].
Gunnar Heerup, “The I. S. C. M. in Copenhagen,” DMT Årgang 22 (1947) No. 2, pp. 58-60 (available online).
?? Ernst Isler et al., Prospectuses and programmes of festivals, and proceedings of congresses organised by the Society 1923-1948, Part 22 ‘The 21st Festival Copenhagen 1947.”
Hans Keller, “I.S.C.M. 1947,” Tempo, No. 3 (March 1947), p. 9 (unattributed but embedded in an article by Keller; available online via JSTOR).
Humphrey Searle, “The Copenhagen I. S. C. M. Festival,” The Musical Times, Vol. 88, No. 1254 (August 1947), pp. 267-268 (available online via JStor).
Nicolas Slonimsky, Music Since 1900, Sixth Edition edited by Laura Kuhn (Schirmer Reference, 2001), pp. 409-410.
Viktoria Zora, Sergei Prokofiev’s Violin Sonatas Op. 80 and 94bis: A historical and comparative study of manuscripts, early editions and interpretations by David Oistrakh and Joseph Szigeti, PhD Thesis, Department of Music, Goldsmiths, University of London, 2017.
(annotated by Frank J. Oteri, in progress)
