Saxophone Concerto (Glazunov)

The Concerto in E Flat Major for Alto Saxophone and String Orchestra was written by Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov in 1934.

About the Composer

Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 29, 1865. His mother played piano and his father played violin. It was his mother’s music teacher that saw his talent for composing and urged him to compose. [ Glazunov Biography http://www.balletmet.org/Notes/Glazunov.html] Glazunov left Russia in June 1928 when he was invited to judge a Schubert competition in Vienna, Austria. He remained in travel, touring through Europe until he eventually settled in Paris, France. Glazunov remained in Paris until his death on March 2, 1936. Thirty-six years after his death, on October 14, 1972, Russian authorities finally recognized him as an one of the Great Russian composers of the Soviet Period. Upon that acknowledgment, his ashes were returned to Russia. They were laid in their final resting place at the Necropolis for Masters of Art in Alexander Nevsky Larva, Leningrad. Thanks to Glazunov’s musical contributions and his interest in the saxophone, saxophone studies were offered for the first time in higher education. [ Letters From Glazunov; "The Saxophone Years" http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/glazounov.pdf ]

Brief History of the Piece

Having been invented in the early 1840s, the saxophone was still fairly new and unfamiliar in Glazunov’s time. It was not written for very often, as it was considered as an instrument of the middle class. However, Glazunov was enthralled by the sound of the saxophone; a new timbre in the musical world. Formerly, he had written mostly for string instruments. His interest in the unique sound of the saxophone contributed to the inspiration of this piece. [ Letters From Glazunov; "The Saxophone Years" http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/glazounov.pdf]

Glazunov started writing this piece in March 1934, and he announced its completion in June of the same year. According to Glazunov in a letter he wrote to a friend, it is a non-stop piece and should take no longer than eighteen minutes to play. It was premiered by Sigurd Rascher, a famous German saxophonist, in Sweden.

As mentioned above, Glazunov wrote those closest to him regularly; and fortunately, some of those letters survive. Never did he mention anything about collaboration during composition. However, in 1936, to much surprise, the publishing company made an addition to the piano reduction: they added A. Petiot as a second composer. [ Letters From Glazunov; "The Saxophone Years" http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/glazounov.pdf]

tructure of the Piece

This is the structural breakdown according to Glazunov himself, taken from a letter he wrote to Shteinberg:
* Exposition: Allegro Moderato, in 4/4, ending in g minor
* Development (brief)
* Transition: Andante (C major), in 3/4, leading into a small cadenza
* Conclusion: Fugato (c minor), in 12/8

Above forms occur again before leading to the coda (E flat major). [Letters From Gazunov; "The Saxophone Years" http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/glazounov.pdf]

Further Information

This piece is a standard in saxophone repertoire today. It is the only romantic piece written for saxophone. Some well-known saxophonists have made recordings of this piece, such as Kenneth Radnofsky, Eugene Rousseau, John Harle, and Theodor Kerkezos.

References