Wind Quintet, Op.43

Nielsen’s Wind Quintet was inspired by a chance hearing of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet rehearsing Mozart - not the Piano and Wind Quintet, apparently, but the Sinfonia Concertante for wind, K297b. He liked the sound of the ensemble and, as he acknowledged by his dedication of the score to the members of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet, he liked the musicians too. It is an essentially sociable work, written for friends, with nothing of the epic quality of the Fifth Symphony which he had completed a year earlier. In fact, it is just the opposite, a celebration of melody and instrumental colour largely for their own sake. The last movement is a series of eleven distinctly unsolemn variatios on his chorale, “My Jesus, make my heart to love Thee.”

Nielsen’s Wind Quintet was inspired by a chance hearing of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet rehearsing Mozart - not the Piano and Wind Quintet, apparently, but the Sinfonia Concertante for wind, K297b. He liked the sound of the ensemble and, as he acknowledged by his dedication of the score to the members of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet, he liked the musicians too. It is an essentially sociable work, written for friends, with nothing of the epic quality of the Fifth Symphony which he had completed a year earlier in 1921. In fact, it is just the opposite, a celebration of melody and instrumental colour largely for their own sake.

The almost casual nature of the theme introduced by the bassoon at the beginning of the first movement is a good indication of the character of the work as a whole. There are three more themes, the last of them a lovely horn melody accompanied by whimsical figuration on flute and clarinet, but the development, though entertaining, is scarcely exhaustive and is supplemented by some gentle contrapuntal activity towards the end of the movement. The Menuett is an unassuming rococo pastiche, with a not quite fugato trio section, and nothing serious happens until the sombre Adagio prelude to the last movement, where the oboe is exchanged for the cor anglais. It leads into a fairly solemn presentation of a chorale, “My Jesus, make my heart to love Thee,” composed or arranged by Nielsen for his collection of Hymns and Sacred Songs. The eleven variations that follow are not solemn - least of all the little argument between clarinet and bassoon in the fifth - although Nielsen does present opportunities for a plaintive oboe in the eighth and for an eloquent bassoon and a reflective horn in their solo spots in the seventh and ninth variations respectively. Having deconstructed his hymn in this way, Nielsen puts it together again at the end.