Gustav Hoyer: Symphony No. 1
Gustav Hoyer composer
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Miran Vaupotić conductor
Emerging from Gustav Hoyer’s innate desire to push the boundaries of his personal musicality, SYMPHONY NO. 1 is the cumulation of a lifetime of affectionate study of orchestral craft. Mirroring Hoyer’s own musical passage from then to now, and commenting on the strange, uncertain state of our world following a pandemic, Symphony No. 1 dances a path of regaining hope in the face of anxiety and strife. Vast instrumentation conveys tense uncertainty and glorious resurrection in a shattering finale that ensures Hoyer’s first symphony will be regarded as a triumph for the composer and an unforgettable experience for listeners.
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Track Listing & Credits
| # | Title | Composer | Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Symphony No. 1: I. Agitato | Gustav Hoyer | Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Miran Vaupotić, conductor | 12:02 |
| 02 | Symphony No. 1: II. Stately | Gustav Hoyer | Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Miran Vaupotić, conductor | 10:10 |
| 03 | Symphony No. 1: III. Scherzo | Gustav Hoyer | Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Miran Vaupotić, conductor | 9:31 |
| 04 | Symphony No. 1: IV. Finale | Gustav Hoyer | Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Miran Vaupotić, conductor | 13:21 |
Recorded March 27-28, 2024 at Royal Glasgow Hall in Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Session Producer Brad Michel
Session Engineer Hedd Morfett-Jones
Editing, Mixing & Mastering Brad Michel
Executive Producer Bob Lord
VP of A&R Brandon MacNeil
A&R Ivana Hauser
VP of Production Jan Košulič
Audio Director Lucas Paquette
Production Manager Martina Watzková
Production Assistant Adam Lysák
VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming
Publicity Aidan Curran
Digital Marketing Manager Brett Iannucci
Artist Information
Gustav Hoyer
Gustav Hoyer was born in Denver CO in 1972. His musical pursuits began in high school following a life-changing encounter with the music of Beethoven and Mozart. He subsequently studied music theory, piano, and violin and pursued collegiate degrees in composition. He has written music for a wide variety of ensembles, media, and settings. His recorded music has been heard in film, on radio, and in performance around the world. He continues to create new orchestral music that draws on the tools of classical vocabulary while fully modern in their contemplations.
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Formed in 1891 as the Scottish Orchestra, the company became the Scottish National Orchestra in 1950, and was awarded Royal Patronage in 1977. Throughout its history, the Orchestra has played an integral part in Scotland’s musical life, including performing at the opening ceremony of the Scottish Parliament building in 2004. Many renowned conductors have contributed to its success, including George Szell, Sir John Barbirolli, Walter Susskind, Sir Alexander Gibson, Neeme Järvi, Walter Weller, Alexander Lazarev and Stéphane Denève.
Miran Vaupotić
Acclaimed as “dynamic and knowledgeable” by the Buenos Aires Herald, Croatian conductor Miran Vaupotić has worked with eminent orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Berliner Symphoniker, the Russian National Orchestra, the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Budapest Symphony Orchestra MÁV, Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, the Cairo Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional Argentina, and others, performing in major halls around the globe such as Carnegie Hall, Wiener Musikverein, Berliner Philharmonie, Rudolfinum, Smetana Hall, Victoria Hall, Forbidden City Concert Hall, Shanghai Oriental Art Center, Dubai Opera, Tchaikovsky Hall, International House of Music, CBC Glenn Gould Studio, and more.
Notes
This recording is an important artistic milestone for me. The creation of a Symphony is a crowning work for a composer. It is not just a long composition assembled of multiple movements, it is a grand narrative. Symphonies are large-scale musical experiences that draw upon a broad palette of orchestral color to create a world of sound held together by musical thinking. To create such a piece requires a strong sense of orchestration, form, harmonic motion, and theme. This work is the culmination of a lifetime of honing and shaping my musical craft. At the encouragement of a close friend, I set out to create a freer and more direct expression of my musical impulses than I have previously done. The result is this four-movement composition.
The musical arc is one that begins in anxiety and uncertainty, and travels a road through chaos to hope. It is a musical diary of the fear and uncertainty of a world gripped by a pandemic. Each movement is constructed with a different structural approach that counterposes thematic material in dramatic ways. The first movement hangs on the juxtaposition and permutation of five thematic areas, the second hangs gossamer melodic passages between grandiose columns of sound, the third uses scherzo and trio sections to resolve metrical tension between the outer sections and the center, and the fourth is driven by the consummation of a seemingly unresolved passage of simple melody stated in the harp through to a blazing finale in full orchestral splendor: an unshakeable proclamation of faith and optimism.
This work owes a special debt to my friend Stephen Ashley Blake, who challenged me to reach beyond my craft into a more intimate and authentic compositional voice; to composer Hamish Ander, whose excellent digital rendering proved invaluable for perfecting many details of balance; to the team at Parma Recordings: Ivana Hauser, Brad Michel, and Bob Lord, who helped make this recording a reality. Finally, I will be forever indebted to my wife, Nancy, and my family, who have patiently abided the many hours of isolation and concentration that not only created this work but over the decades nurtured the craft that made it possible.
— Gustav Hoyer
PARMA Recordings CEO Bob Lord, producer Brad Michel, and composer Gustav Hoyer
RSNO at session
Videos
Interview with Gustav Hoyer about the recording of Symphony
