Symphonic Rhapsody

Full score for Carl Nielsen's Symphonic Rhapsody (1888). Corresponding to The Carl Nielsen Edition Vol. 8. This allegro movement for symphony orchestra, composed in 1888, when Carl Nielsen was in his early twenties, was originally conceived as the first movement of a symphony, as is evident from the autograph title Symfoni on the first page of music of the ink fair copy. However, Carl Nielsen never composed the whole symphony. On 26th February 1893, when the piece was given its first performance, conducted by Victor Bendix, it was as an independent movement.

Two days before the first performance Carl Nielsen noted in his diary: “To a rehearsal of my symphonic movement for the People’s Concert. The piece has been given the title ‘Symphonic Rhapsody’. It sounds fine, and although it now seems naive to me, there is still so much of my own and such a good attitude in the piece that I think it is rather good all the same.” (Thomas Michelsen, editor)