Florence Price (1872 – 1958)
Price’s Symphony No. 1 became the first piece by a Black woman performed by a major American orchestra when the Chicago Symphony performed it in 1933. The symphony was written in 1931 and won first prize in the following year’s Rodman Wanamaker composition competition.
The core of the symphony is the pentatonic scale, a five-note scale consisting of Do, Re, Mi, Sol, and La. Those five notes sound harmonious regardless of how they are combined. This scale lacks the leading tone, Ti, leading to somewhat more mild resolutions. The pentatonic scale was common among Black spirituals and highlights Price’s ability to blend cultural influences with the classical school. Further evidence is the third movement, Juba Dance. The Juba dance was a style of slave song consisting of significant use of body percussion. Price uses orchestral percussion, including African drums, to emulate the style used by Black musicians 100 years earlier.
Listeners may note a familiar feeling from Price’s Symphony No. 1 as it has many similarities to Antonin Dvorak’s ninth symphony. Famously called From the New World, Dvorak wrote this work during his time in America and drew inspiration from the same spirituals and melodies as Price. The similarities do not end at the shared key of E minor:
– Both make use of the pentatonic scale.
– Price makes heavy use of a gesture that recalls the opening passage of Dvorak’s symphony, both reminiscent of the Dies Irae.
– Both use ostinato and tremolo in the strings to drive energy in the accompaniment.
The symphony opens with a bassoon solo, introducing the first melody of the symphony. A second melody is immediately laid counter to the first in the oboes and clarinets. Next is the quote from Dvorak’s symphony, repeated in the strings, winds, and strings again. These three ideas comprise the first theme. A transition consisting of sets of chromatic rising harmonies leads to the second theme, played by the horn. The transition itself again evokes Dvorak in several ways, including the chromatically rising harmony, the gratuitous diminished seventh chords, and the rising arpeggios in the brass. The horn theme, in the parallel key of G major, draws inspiration from spirituals. Unlike a traditional sonata form, the movement does not follow with a development and recapitulation but proceeds with a development that spans the remaining movement. The four themes are layered and combined until the movement reaches its triumphant conclusion.
The second movement consists of two distinct ideas: a chorale in the brass and a recitative-like response from the clarinets. The strings provide a short development on the recitative theme before more verses of the chorale. An abrupt tonal shift signals the beginning of the development. Unlike the first movement, there is a recapitulation, however this time we hear the introduction of virtuosic clarinet runs decorating the somber chorale and cathedral chimes in response.
The Juba Dance consists of several variations which fit into (mostly) 8-bar phrases. These themes are passed around the orchestra in multiple colors and moods. Similarly, the last movement, Finale, consists of several short themes. Unlike the Juba Dance, however, the movement has slightly more form, including a lyrical ‘B’ section. As this movement has returned to the primary key of E minor, we can view it as a merging of the classical symphonic writing in the first movement with the traditional music of the third, concluding the ultimate accomplishment of the symphony in bringing together two musical histories in one work. – Kevin Kauffman