"Silence" Symphonic Poem in F minor - Nikolai Myaskovsky

State Academic Symphonic Orchestra of Russia conducted by Evgeny Svetlanov

I - Larghetto - Moderato - Andante, mesto - Pesante molto, alla breve - Andante - Allegro tempestoso - Con smania - Molto vivo - Moderato ma non troppo: 0:00

Myaskovsky' "Silence" was composed between 1909-10, being performed in May of the following year in Moscow, conducted by Konstantin Saradjew. It was his second orchestral piece after his first symphony (1908). The work is based on Poe's short fable "Silence", published in 1838, one of the most brief, and yet confusing, short stories of the writer.

The fable narrates how a demon, who sits and observes the actions of a solitary man in a desolate, terrifying land, attempts to provoke a reaction in the man, detailing his manipulations of the hellish, nightmarish landscape around the man. The tale takes place in "a dreary region in Libya, by the borders of the river Zaire. And there is no quiet there, nor silence." The landscape is the stuff of nightmares: waters are a "sickly hue," water lilies have "ghastly necks," and a "dark, horrible, lofty forest" forms the borderland.

The piece is very free in form, based on two alternating themes. It opens with a dark, desolate introduction from the strings. Establishing the nightmarish landscape that the demon narrates in the beginning of the fable. The flute introduces a chromatic motive, which forms the basis of a dissonant and restless main theme, full of a tragic spirit, possibly representing the demon of the fable. The music seems to rise in a climax, but falls without resolution. A more melodic second theme is presented by the clarinet as a contrast, taken and further developed by the strings. Maybe representing the melancholy of the loner man on the rock. Quickly, the music returns to the previous depressive state, followed by the melancholic lyrism of the second theme.

Tremolos of the strings take us of a deeply meditative section, followed by a fast part full of outbursts, maybe representing the curses with which the demon conjures the nature to torment the lonely man. The music is highly dissonant and chaotic, but is soon followed by the melodic second theme. Follows a terrifying section, full of tension and darkness. A powerful climax based on the main theme follows, along with a new chaotic section without a moment of rest. After a strong climax, the strings introduce a new tragic section without a clear resolution. Near to the end, the chromatic motive of the beginning can be heard again. The music fades away, before ending with three pizzicato chords from the strings.

A very depressive but enigmatic work, as like the fable it's based on. My personal interpretation is that while a man can avoid facing his own emptiness and desolation by getting distracted in the confuse and chaotic spectacle of life; in solitude and silence, his thoughts and fears cannot be hidden nor silenced, and the internal demons become visible. This is just my interpretation, you are free to have your own perspective of this piece.

To read the fable (in english) follow this link: https://bit.ly/399cZdx

Picture: "The Flood of Noah and his Companions" (1911) by the French painter Léon Comerre.

Introduction, literary and musical analysis written by myself.

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