SYMPHONY No. 1
Lake Voices

Composed: 1997
Commission:  Akron Symphony Orchestra, Alan Balter, cond.; underwritten by John S. Knight Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and National Endowment for the Arts
Premiere:  Akron Symphony, Tania Leon, guest conductor, Akron, OH, October 25, 1997
Duration: 16 minutes
Instrumentation:  3 (picc) 2 E.H. 3(3rd dbl on bcl) 2(cbsn.); 4331; timp., 3 perc., hp, strings

PROGRAM NOTES

    Walking near the lake, there seem to be mysterious messages in the wind about the wonder of the water and its eternal necessity to sustain life, about the lake’s infinite, timeless energy, its sparkling beauty, its calmness, its uncontrollable wildness, its pleasure for people, with images of water and sun, boats, shores filled with sun-bathers, as well as an awareness of the trash along the shore, the pollution in the water and in the air above it.  This work is a reaction to these various voices from the lake.  Ringing bells are a continuous presence.  Perhaps they are ringing to praise the beauty of the lake, and perhaps to toll the alarm, to toll the warning, to call people to action.

    Symphony No. 1 is in the form of three connected movements.  In the first movement, rhapsodic melodies and sparkling sonorities conjure up images of the lake interspersed with fragments of the melody developed in the second movement.  The melody of the second movement is flavored by my own background growing up in the Dutch-American environment of the Great Lakes and the strange mix in the Dutch people of the almost mystical bond with the lake and a love of its beauty, juxtaposed against their somewhat reserved, practical, and sometimes rigid side.  The last movement is rhythmical and optimistic.  Symphony No. 1 was commissioned by the Akron Symphony Orchestra, Alan Balter, conductor, and underwritten by the John S. Knight and James L. Knight Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment For the Arts.

REVIEWS

“While some harmonic language is reminiscent of Debussy, the texture certainly is not: these are thick, vertical textures perhaps meant to show the power and impressive power of the water. Even in the “lighter” moments, there is a sharp, brilliant quality to the sonic profile which Brouwer seems to have intended. The ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra players do a fabulous job of capturing the almost overwhelming brightness of sound. The second movement is rooted in Brouwer’s cultural background as Dutch-American; the melodic fabric is based upon what she describes as a “Dutch hymn-like melody.” The modality of this melody serves as an open tonal backdrop to striking passages; One that will grab the listener’s attention is heard at 1’13”: the abrupt shift in instruments and color proves both surprising and refreshing. Suspense and mystery prove not too far behind, as what follows is a rather thick mix of upper-register dissonances. The final movement is delightful with its infectious percussion ostinato and playful dialogue between the winds and strings. But as with the other works, Brouwer is sure to include moments of aggressive intensity. ” - Azusa Ueno, The Classic Review

“Much of the orchestral sound world is extremely evocative, redolent of natural landscapes, and certainly with a basis in an emotional response to the world. For example, this was immediately apparent in….the opening movement of the Symphony No. 1 ‘Lake Voices.’ The language is undoubtedly modern and crosses a wide variety of styles from early 20th century impressionism to more challenging contemporary, traversing elements that remind me at times of John Adams amongst others. The orchestral richness is assured and compelling.” - Ian Orbell, Classical Music Sentinel

“‘Symphony No 1’ subtitled ‘Lake Voices’ was completed in 1997 is an impressive cogently expressed one movement work, with three sections, of about eighteen minutes. Dr Brouwer says she now sees it as a commentary on her own past, growing up in Dutch influenced society near the Great Lakes. It is a serious sounding work much like that other great one movement American symphony Samuel Barber’s first. The second section is rooted in Brouwer’s cultural background, with the melodic material based upon what she describes as a “Dutch hymn-like melody”. The whole work is rich in incident that builds in an inevitable way to the radiant finale, with brass writing reminiscent of Janacek’s Sinfonietta.” - Paul RW Jackson, Music Web International

“The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra clearly relished the chance to get to grips with these works under Marin Alsop and provide idiomatic accounts of each. The most substantial is the First Symphony, Lake Voices, cast in one large span which fuses three movements (fast-slow-faster) into one. No specific lake is revealed as inspiration but the composer concedes that something of the Great Lakes - in the vicinity of which she grew up - lies behind the central section of this unsparing portrait of the lake’s ‘timeless energy, its sparkling beauty, its calmness, its uncontrollable wildness’ and ‘the trash along the shore, the pollution in the water and in the air above it.’ The resulting music is emotionally acute, delicate, beautiful, dramatic and violent.” - Guy Rickards, Gramophone

“sports a Dutch hymn-like melody and confident, colourful orchestral writing.” - Barry Forshaw, Classical CD Choice