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drplaceboIt's Forgotten Masterpiece Friday!
Since I'm both a musician and a soccer fan, one of the highlights of the World Cup for me is hearing the national anthems. Some are musically much more interesting than others, of course; one reason I'm enjoying Iceland's appearance is that the Icelandic national anthem is one of my favorites. But today I'm looking farther back, to the second international match I ever attended and the first for which I got into the stadium in time for the national anthems. Back in 2002, I was in the stadium when DaMarcus Beasley scored his first international goal, a late winner against South Korea in Pasadena, California. But before the match, I was intrigued by the South Korean national anthem "Aegukga," especially the rather Brahmsian use of shifting barlines in its opening phrase. Investigating further, I learned that South Korea's national anthem was once sung to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne" and had been adopted in that form by the Korean government in exile; the present music was composed in the 1930s by a Korean composer who believed "Auld Lang Syne" unfit for use as a national anthem, and adopted (with the same lyrics) by the newly formed South Korean government in 1948.
It turns out the story is even more fascinating than that: though intended from the start as a national anthem, "Aegukga" was first heard in public not as a stand-alone song but as a choral component in a larger symphonic poem. And it was first heard not in Korea or even in China (where the Korean government in exile was located), but in Dublin, Ireland. The composer, Ahn Eak-Tai (1906-1965), was one of the earliest notable Korean composers in the Western tradition, the first Asian principal player in a professional orchestra outside Asia, and the first Asian music director of a professional orchestra outside Asia.
Ahn Eak-Tai was born in Pyongyang several years before Japan took control of the Korean Peninsula. He was introduced to Western music while in elementary school, when his eldest brother, who had gone to Tokyo for higher education, brought back a violin and phonograph records from Japan. Ahn Eak-Tai began learning the violin then; in middle school he switched first to trumpet and then to cello, which would remain his primary instrument for the rest of his life. In 1919, he joined his brother in Tokyo, where in 1926 he was part of the first-ever entering class at the newly founded Tokyo Conservatory of Music. Upon graduation in 1930, he returned to Pyongyang briefly. But after the Japanese police forced him to cancel a scheduled recital because of his involvement in pro-independence protests, he realized it would be difficult to continue his career in Korea, and departed for advanced studies in the United states shortly afterward. He would not return to Korea for 25 years. Ahn's first stop in the United States was Cincinnati, where he studied composition at the Cincinnati College of Music. During his first year there, he auditioned for and won the principal cello seat in the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, becoming the first Asian to hold a principal player's seat in any orchestra outside Asia. In 1932 he transferred to the Curtis Institute of Music; as a student there he played in the Philadelphia Orchestra and got his first conducting job as choir director at a local church.
It was in Philadelphia that Ahn composed the first version of his Symphonic Fantasia Korea, which won a competition sponsored by the New York Philharmonic. Ahn conducted the New York Philharmonic in the premiere at Carnegie Hall. It was a dismal failure, as many of the musicians refused to follow his direction; angered by what he saw as deliberate sabotage, Ahn threw down his baton and left the stage in the middle of the piece. Somewhat surprisingly, there was no backlash against him, as fellow conductors saw his actions as justified and rose to his defense. Ahn received recommendations to continue his studies in Europe, and left in 1936 to study first in Vienna and then in Budapest under Zoltán Kodály. Kodály encouraged him to be unapologetic about incorporating Asian folk music and departing from Western harmonies in his compositions, and inspired him to begin revising the Symphonic Fantasia Korea.
By the time Ahn completed his studies, war was on the horizon. He remained in Axis nations throughout the Second World War. Having impressed when filling in for Richard Strauss on short notice to conduct a concert in Budapest, he became Strauss's cover conductor, and Strauss's recommendation earned him frequent guest conducting appearances with the Rome Philharmonic Orchestra and the Conservatoire Orchestra in Paris. After the war, he sought to return to the United States, but his association with Strauss, who had worked with the Nazi regime, frustrated his attempts to find a conducting job in America. (Ahn was only able to find conducting engagements in the United States after it became evident that Strauss had not shared the Nazis' ideology.) With no job prospects in the United States, and having married a Spanish woman, he settled on the island of Mallorca, where he founded the Orquesta Sinfónica de Palma de Mallorca. He remained in Palma de Mallorca, serving as music director of the orchestra there until his death in 1965. Eventually he made his return to Korean musical life as well, beginning in 1955 as a guest conductor with the Seoul Philharmonic and subsequently making frequent guest conducting appearances with South Korean orchestras. Late in his life, he regarded himself as a musical ambassador not only for Korea but also for his adopted home, drawing from the folk music of the Balearic Islands for several compositions including his recently-rediscovered symphonic poem Mallorca.
As for the Symphonic Fantasia Korea, Ahn's revisions lengthened the piece greatly, to nearly half an hour in length. The largest addition was a choral component; the last seven or eight minutes of the piece are a choral fantasy on the melody that Ahn composed for "Aegukga" -- he already intended for it to serve as a national anthem when he wrote the melody, but it would be heard first as part of this piece. Other changes included thinning out the orchestration in places where the lush Romantic harmonies of the original version detracted from folk themes. The Symphonic Fantasia Korea premiered in Dublin, Ireland in February 1938; the location was deliberately chosen because Ahn saw a kinship between the long English occupation of Ireland and the ongoing Japanese occupation in Korea. Interestingly, Ahn had intended to use an English translation of the lyrics for the Symphonic Fantasia; it was the Irish choir director who persuaded him to use the original Korean text. After its first performance, Ahn conducted the piece several more times, including in his 1955 return to Korea. Otherwise, even after the adoption of Ahn's theme as a national anthem, the larger piece that from which the anthem was taken saw only occasional performances in Spain and South Korea. Only recently, after the rediscovery of some of Ahn's other scores, has Symphonic Fantasia Korea has seen somewhat of a revival.
Since I'm both a musician and a soccer fan, one of the highlights of the World Cup for me is hearing the national anthems. Some are musically much more interesting than others, of course; one reason I'm enjoying Iceland's appearance is that the Icelandic national anthem is one of my favorites. But today I'm looking farther back, to the second international match I ever attended and the first for which I got into the stadium in time for the national anthems. Back in 2002, I was in the stadium when DaMarcus Beasley scored his first international goal, a late winner against South Korea in Pasadena, California. But before the match, I was intrigued by the South Korean national anthem "Aegukga," especially the rather Brahmsian use of shifting barlines in its opening phrase. Investigating further, I learned that South Korea's national anthem was once sung to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne" and had been adopted in that form by the Korean government in exile; the present music was composed in the 1930s by a Korean composer who believed "Auld Lang Syne" unfit for use as a national anthem, and adopted (with the same lyrics) by the newly formed South Korean government in 1948.
It turns out the story is even more fascinating than that: though intended from the start as a national anthem, "Aegukga" was first heard in public not as a stand-alone song but as a choral component in a larger symphonic poem. And it was first heard not in Korea or even in China (where the Korean government in exile was located), but in Dublin, Ireland. The composer, Ahn Eak-Tai (1906-1965), was one of the earliest notable Korean composers in the Western tradition, the first Asian principal player in a professional orchestra outside Asia, and the first Asian music director of a professional orchestra outside Asia.
Ahn Eak-Tai was born in Pyongyang several years before Japan took control of the Korean Peninsula. He was introduced to Western music while in elementary school, when his eldest brother, who had gone to Tokyo for higher education, brought back a violin and phonograph records from Japan. Ahn Eak-Tai began learning the violin then; in middle school he switched first to trumpet and then to cello, which would remain his primary instrument for the rest of his life. In 1919, he joined his brother in Tokyo, where in 1926 he was part of the first-ever entering class at the newly founded Tokyo Conservatory of Music. Upon graduation in 1930, he returned to Pyongyang briefly. But after the Japanese police forced him to cancel a scheduled recital because of his involvement in pro-independence protests, he realized it would be difficult to continue his career in Korea, and departed for advanced studies in the United states shortly afterward. He would not return to Korea for 25 years. Ahn's first stop in the United States was Cincinnati, where he studied composition at the Cincinnati College of Music. During his first year there, he auditioned for and won the principal cello seat in the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, becoming the first Asian to hold a principal player's seat in any orchestra outside Asia. In 1932 he transferred to the Curtis Institute of Music; as a student there he played in the Philadelphia Orchestra and got his first conducting job as choir director at a local church.
It was in Philadelphia that Ahn composed the first version of his Symphonic Fantasia Korea, which won a competition sponsored by the New York Philharmonic. Ahn conducted the New York Philharmonic in the premiere at Carnegie Hall. It was a dismal failure, as many of the musicians refused to follow his direction; angered by what he saw as deliberate sabotage, Ahn threw down his baton and left the stage in the middle of the piece. Somewhat surprisingly, there was no backlash against him, as fellow conductors saw his actions as justified and rose to his defense. Ahn received recommendations to continue his studies in Europe, and left in 1936 to study first in Vienna and then in Budapest under Zoltán Kodály. Kodály encouraged him to be unapologetic about incorporating Asian folk music and departing from Western harmonies in his compositions, and inspired him to begin revising the Symphonic Fantasia Korea.
By the time Ahn completed his studies, war was on the horizon. He remained in Axis nations throughout the Second World War. Having impressed when filling in for Richard Strauss on short notice to conduct a concert in Budapest, he became Strauss's cover conductor, and Strauss's recommendation earned him frequent guest conducting appearances with the Rome Philharmonic Orchestra and the Conservatoire Orchestra in Paris. After the war, he sought to return to the United States, but his association with Strauss, who had worked with the Nazi regime, frustrated his attempts to find a conducting job in America. (Ahn was only able to find conducting engagements in the United States after it became evident that Strauss had not shared the Nazis' ideology.) With no job prospects in the United States, and having married a Spanish woman, he settled on the island of Mallorca, where he founded the Orquesta Sinfónica de Palma de Mallorca. He remained in Palma de Mallorca, serving as music director of the orchestra there until his death in 1965. Eventually he made his return to Korean musical life as well, beginning in 1955 as a guest conductor with the Seoul Philharmonic and subsequently making frequent guest conducting appearances with South Korean orchestras. Late in his life, he regarded himself as a musical ambassador not only for Korea but also for his adopted home, drawing from the folk music of the Balearic Islands for several compositions including his recently-rediscovered symphonic poem Mallorca.
As for the Symphonic Fantasia Korea, Ahn's revisions lengthened the piece greatly, to nearly half an hour in length. The largest addition was a choral component; the last seven or eight minutes of the piece are a choral fantasy on the melody that Ahn composed for "Aegukga" -- he already intended for it to serve as a national anthem when he wrote the melody, but it would be heard first as part of this piece. Other changes included thinning out the orchestration in places where the lush Romantic harmonies of the original version detracted from folk themes. The Symphonic Fantasia Korea premiered in Dublin, Ireland in February 1938; the location was deliberately chosen because Ahn saw a kinship between the long English occupation of Ireland and the ongoing Japanese occupation in Korea. Interestingly, Ahn had intended to use an English translation of the lyrics for the Symphonic Fantasia; it was the Irish choir director who persuaded him to use the original Korean text. After its first performance, Ahn conducted the piece several more times, including in his 1955 return to Korea. Otherwise, even after the adoption of Ahn's theme as a national anthem, the larger piece that from which the anthem was taken saw only occasional performances in Spain and South Korea. Only recently, after the rediscovery of some of Ahn's other scores, has Symphonic Fantasia Korea has seen somewhat of a revival.