Recorded live at West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge, UK
28th November, 2017

Cambridge University Sinfonia
Toby Hession (conductor)

Mendelssohn – Symphony No. 5 in D, ‘The Reformation’, Op. 107

1.	Andante – Allegro con fuoco 
2.	Allegro vivace
3.	Andante 
4.	Andante con moto – Allegro vivace – Allegro maestoso

1830 would mark the tercentenary of the Augsburg Confession – a founding doctrine of Lutheranism, and one of the most significant documents of the Protestant Reformation. It was expected that lavish celebrations would take place across the Prussian Kingdom; yet even before the then King, Frederick William III, had announced them, the twenty-year-old Mendelssohn had decided his music would be featured. In December 1829, he began work on his ‘Reformation’ Symphony, with plans to have it finished by January 1830, leaving four months to tour before the festivities commenced in June. However, a bout of ill health (including measles contracted from his sister, Rebecka) meant that the symphony was not completed until May 1830 – too late to be included in the Augsburg Festival. Cynics have suggested that the real reasons for the young Mendelssohn’s exclusion from the festival were rooted in anti-Semitism, but fellow composer Eduard Grell had composed a more ‘conservative’ work for male chorus, which was felt to be more in line with the demands of the celebrations. 

Mendelssohn would, in fact, have to wait until 1832 to hear his work performed, it having been turned down my numerous orchestras in the interim, on the grounds of it being too ‘learned’ or, according to Larry Todd, “too protestant”. Ultimately, Mendelssohn regarded the work as a silly piece of “juvenilia”, and refused to have it re-performed. It was not until 1868 that it was heard again, some 20 years after the composer’s death. Hence, despite it being the second symphony that Mendelssohn composed, its posthumous publication is responsible for its numbering as ‘5’.

The outer movements of the work have been regarded as a commentary on the turmoil of Catholicism and the glory of Protestantism, respectively. A slow introduction, built around an ascending scale motif known as the ‘Dresden Amen’ (later employed by Richard Wagner in his 1882 opera, Parsifal), leads into a heavy, tumultuous Allegro section that gradually builds in heat and pace, reaching an almost Beethovenian climax on the verge of catastrophe. Similarly, the final movement also opens with a slow introduction, but this time we hear the Lutheran Chorale Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott – as the hymn-strains grow ever-stronger, the music bursts into a triumphant homage to Johann Sebastian Bach (the composer whose work Mendelssohn would go on to champion for much of his life). The entire symphony concludes with a striking, unison sounding of the chorale theme to finish. 

Between these two movements come a light, Ländler-type movement, showcasing the winds of the orchestra, and a slow, yearning Liede ohne Worte (‘Song without Words) – an example of Mendelssohn’s gift for writing long, spun-out melodies. This movement also incorporates the famous ‘Dresden Amen’, and makes reference to the themes of the first movement, both explicitly and subtly.

Mendelssohn - Symphony No. 5, Op. 107 - I

www.tobyhession.com

Toby Hession (b. 1997) is a British conductor, collaborative pianist and composer, currently on the Music Staff of Scottish Opera. He trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (Opera School 2019-21) and is a prize-winning graduate of Clare College, Cambridge (BA 2015-18 and MPhil 2018-19). He is a proud alumnus of the Georg Solti Accademia and Chetham's School of Music.

Toby's music is published by Edition Peters, and has been recorded and performed around the world by ensembles including The King's Singers, Voces8, The Aurora Orchestra, The Phoenix Chorale, Ensemble Perspectives, The National Youth Chamber Choir of Great Britain, Inner Voices, and the Choir of Clare College Cambridge. 

For enquiries, visit www.tobyhession.com

Mendelssohn - Symphony No. 5, Op. 107 - I

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