Symphony No. 6 for two chamber orchestras by Hans Werner Henze

Hans Werner Henze

Hans Werner Henze is a German composer of prodigious output best known for "his consistent cultivation of music for the theatre throughout his life"...

 was written in 1969.

It was written whilst the composer was living in Cuba

Cuba

The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

 and marks a departure in the composer's symphonic output: whilst the previous five symphonies were more straightforwardly lyrical, the Sixth Symphony has a more overtly political theme, in common with other Henze works of this period. Henze himself said it was written using

experiences of a bourgeois who had been writing music to the ruling class for 20 years to compose against the bourgeoisie. Instead of nostalgia

Nostalgia

The term nostalgia describes a yearning for the past, often in idealized form.The word is a learned formation of a Greek compound, consisting of , meaning "returning home", a Homeric word, and , meaning "pain, ache"...

 and scepticism I wanted affirmation, direct avowal of revolution.

Henze included quotations from the song of the Vietnamese Liberation Front

National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam

The Vietcong , or National Liberation Front , was a political organization and army in South Vietnam and Cambodia that fought the United States and South Vietnamese governments during the Vietnam War . It had both guerrilla and regular army units, as well as a network of cadres who organized...

, 'Stars in the Night', first heard played on the banjo

Banjo

In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...

 and also from Mikis Theodorakis

Mikis Theodorakis

Mikis Theodorakis is one of the most renowned Greek songwriters and composers. Internationally, he is probably best known for his songs and for his scores for the films Zorba the Greek , Z , and Serpico .Politically, he identified with the left until the late 1980s; in 1989, he ran as an...

' 'Song of Freedom' on the guitar

Guitar

The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

. Henze later improvises on the Cuban dance rhythm 'Son' which he contrasts with the more traditional sound of the European orchestra. However Henze himself has described the work overall as "a Lutheran, Protestant symphony" but with "a Pagan body" and whose "pulse and blood are black"

It was first performed on 26 November 1969 by an orchestra assembled for the occasion at the University of Havana

University of Havana

The University of Havana or UH is a university located in the Vedado district of Havana, Cuba. Founded in 1728, the University of Havana is the oldest university in Cuba, and one of the first to be founded in the Americas...

, with the composer conducting. In 1972 the London Symphony Orchestra

London Symphony Orchestra

The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...

 recorded it, again under the baton of the composer. In 1994 Henze rewrote the improvised passages in full, and the revised symphony was premiered by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra

Munich Philharmonic Orchestra

The Münchner Philharmoniker is a German symphony orchestra located in the city of Munich. It is one of Munich's three principal orchestras, along with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Bavarian State Orchestra...

 under Ingo Metzmacher

Ingo Metzmacher

Ingo Metzmacher is a German conductor. He is the son of the cellist Rudolf Metzmacher. His musical education in piano, music theory and conducting was in Hanover, Salzburg and Cologne...

.

It is in three sections, although these run contiguously.

Movements

Part I

1. = 92
2. un poco meno mosso (Fig. D, p. 23)
3. meno mosso (p. 32)
4. Corona (p. 39)
5. meno mosso del tempo I (Fig. P, p. 51)

Part II

1. Lento (Fig. T, p. 63)
2. "Song to Freedom" (Fig. V, p. 69)
3. Largo (Fig. X, p. 77)
4. = 66 (p. 78)
5. = 66 (p. 83)
6. = 92 (p. 88)

Part III

1. piu mosso (p. 102)
2. meno mosso (Fig. MM, p. 110)
3. piu mosso, con fuoco (Fig. OO, p. 113)
4. = 100 (Fig. SS, p. 121)