Carl Nielsen's wife, Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen, was a sculptress who encouraged him in his work, even by mail during their separate holidays.
Composition History
The main theme of the first movement of Symphony No. 3 is said to have come to Carl Nielsen during a tram ride, and he jotted it down on his shirt-cuff.
Critical Reception
Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 3, 'Sinfonia espansiva', was hailed by critics like Gustav Hetsch as 'one of the most important and interesting to be found in Danish music'.
Compositional Technique
Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 4, 'The Inextinguishable', features a conflict between minor and major keys from its very first bar, with a triplet figure in the woodwinds presented first in D minor and then D major.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 4, 'The Inextinguishable', was conceived to express 'the yearning for life, for life's essence' and 'That which is life' or 'That which wants life', rather than a specific program.
Composition History
Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 3, 'Sinfonia espansiva', was initially presented simply as 'Symphony (new)' before the composer added the subtitle.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Carl Nielsen described the second movement of his Symphony No. 3 as moving from 'strong tension' to 'an idyllic calm', with two human voices singing on the vowel 'a' to create a 'phlegmatic sort of paradise'.
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