# Pan and Syrinx

Pan and Syrinx (in Danish: Pan og Syrinx; subtitled "Pastoral Scene for Orchestra"; in Danish: "Naturscene for orkester"), Op. 49 (FS 87; CNW 38), is a symphonic poem for orchestra written from 1917 to 1918 by the Danish composer Carl Nielsen. The piece received its premiere at the Odd Fellows Mansion in Copenhagen on 11 February 1918, with Nielsen conducting Orchestra of the Music Society (Musikforeningen).

## Background

As late as 23 January 1918, in a letter to Swedish composer Wilhelm Stenhammar, Nielsen explained that although he had included Pan and Syrinx in his concert on 11 February, he had not yet written a single note. It appears, however, that he had been thinking about the piece for some time, ever since he and his wife Anne Marie had discussed Ovid's Metamorphoses the previous year, inspiring him to compose the music. He did however manage to complete the score by 6 February.
In addition to Pan and Syrinx, the concert which was devoted to works by Nielsen over almost 20 years, included the prelude to Act Two of Saul and David, Sleep and the Fourth Symphony, all conducted by Nielsen himself, as well as Chaconne for Piano played by Christian Christiansen.

## Reception

Pan and Syrinx was particularly well received. Writing in Politken, Charles Kjerulf first alluded to its "Gallic, quite Debussyesque" quality before praising its feeling of renewal, development and mastery. He ended even more gushingly: "For each note that was added it became more and more sublime. And when in the end the very highest and very lowest notes of the orchestra were sounded right up against each other in the violin harmonics and double-basses... then the rejoicing broke out quite spontaneously." The other reviews were also positive.
The work was frequently played in Scandinavia during Nielsen's lifetime. When the composer planned a concert programme, he often chose to perform Saga Dream and Pan and Syrinx on the same occasion.

## Instrumentation

Pan and Syrinx is scored for the following instruments, organized by family (woodwinds, brass, percussion, and strings):
* 2 flutes (one doubling piccolo), 2 oboes (one doubling cor anglais), 2 clarinets, and 2 bassoons
* 4 horns, 2 trumpets, and 2 trombones
* Timpani, bass drum, snare drum, cymbals, tambourine, triangle, raganella, glockenspiel, and xylophone
* Violins (I and II), violas, cellos, and double basses

## Music

The nine-minute symphonic poem is based on the ancient legend which tells how the amorous god Pan invented the pan flute when following the nymph Syrinx. Syrinx ran to the river's edge and asked for assistance from the river nymphs. In answer, she was transformed into hollow water reeds that made a haunting sound when the god's frustrated breath blew across them. Pan cut the reeds to fashion the first set of pan pipes, which were thenceforth known as syrinx.
As the piece features Syrinx it obviously has major parts for woodwind solos. The music was written at the height of Nielsen's powers as a composer, shortly after he finished the Fourth Symphony. It is a vigorous, pretty, and poetic work.

## Discography

The table below lists commercially available recordings of Pan and Syrinx:
| No. | Conductor | Ensemble | Rec. | Time | Recording venue | Label |
| 1 | Thomas Jensen (1) | Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (1) | 1956 | 7:19 | Danish Radio Concert Hall | Danacord |
| 2 | Thomas Jensen (2) | Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (2) | 1959 | 7:16 | Danish Radio Concert Hall | Danacord |
| 3 | Eugene Ormandy | Philadelphia Orchestra | 1967 | 8:14 | Town Hall, Philadelphia | Sony Classical |
| 4 | Herbert Blomstedt | Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (3) | 1975 | 8:36 | Danish Radio Concert Hall | EMI Classics |
| 5 | Sir Alexander Gibson | Scottish National Orchestra | 1979 | 8:43 | Glasgow City Hall | Chandos |
| 6 | Sir Simon Rattle | City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra | 1984 | 8:26 | Warwick Arts Centre | EMI Classics |
| 7 | Tamás Vetö | Odense Symphony Orchestra (1) | 1988 | 8:36 | Odense Concert Hall [da] | Regis |
| 8 | Esa-Pekka Salonen | Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra | 1989 | 8:30 | Berwald Hall | CBS Masterworks |
| 9 | Gennady Rozhdestvensky | Danish National Symphony Orchestra (4) | 1993 | 8:33 | Danish Radio Concert Hall | Chandos |
| 10 | Edward Serov [ru] | Odense Symphony Orchestra (2) | 1994 | 9:24 | [Unknown] | Kontrapunkt |
| 11 | Jan Caeyers [de] | Beethoven Academie [nl] | 1994 | 8:08 | deSingel | Harmonia Mundi |
| 12 | Neeme Järvi | Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra | 1995 | 8:59 | Gothenburg Concert Hall | Deutsche Grammophon |
| 13 | Niklas Willén | South Jutland Symphony Orchestra [da] | 2002 | 9:10 | Musikhuset, Sønderborg | Naxos |
| 14 | Lance Friedel | Aarhus Symphony Orchestra | 2004 | 8:46 | Frichsparker, Aarhus | MSR Classics |
| 15 | Douglas Bostock | Czech Chamber Philharmonic [fr] | 2005 | 7:28 | Philharmonie, Pardubice | Classico |
| 16 | Osmo Vänskä | Lahti Symphony Orchestra | 2006 | 7:49 | Sibelius Hall | BIS |
| 17 | Thomas Dausgaard | Danish National Symphony Orchestra (5) | 2006 | 8:43 | Danish Radio Concert Hall | Dacapo |
| 18 | Edward Gardner | Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra | 2023 | 8:29 | Grieg Hall | Chandos |