Reger, Max / orch. Levin, Ira

Max Reger – Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Johann Sebastian Bach (1904/orch. 2015)

(b. Brand/Oberpfalz, 19 March 1873 – d. Leipsic, 11 May 1916)

orchestrated by Ira Levin (b. Chicago, 19 August 1958)

Andante (p. 1) – Variation I (p. 3) – Variation II (p. 7) – Variation III. Grave assai (p. 11) – Molto assai (p. 13) –
Grave assai (p. 15) – Variation IV (p. 16) – Variation V. Vivace (p. 28) – Variation VI. Vivace, molto agitato (p. 34) – Variation VIII. Presto (p. 47) – Variation IX. Vivace (p. 51) – Variation X. Con moto (p. 57) –
Un poco meno mosso (p. 60) – Con moto (p. 62) – Fugue (p. 64)

About the Orchestration of Reger’s
Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Bach

Reger’s opus 81 is perhaps the culmination of the monumental keyboard works in variation form leading from Bach’s Goldberg Variations to Beethoven’s “Eroica” and Diabelli sets and continuing, via masterpieces by Mendelssohn and Schumann, with Brahms’ Handel Variations. Reger’s is perhaps closest to the Eroica and Handel Variations in that it closes with a massive fugue which he continued with the same format in his later variations on themes by Beethoven, Hiller, Telemann and Mozart, which are among his most famous works to this day. However, in other ways opus 81 most resembles Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations in the high diversity of moods it presents and remains by far Reger’s wildest and most radical variation work. He was in fact heavily criticized at the time, as well by later musicologists, for his departures from normal variation procedures. After the first two variations, which stick very closely to Bach’s theme, we are confronted with such extremes as the improvisatory 3rd variation, which begins mysteriously, even mystically, and is then interrupted by a terrifying expressionistic explosion (which is that much more powerful in it’s orchestral garb) before disappearing back into solemnity. Then, the scherzo – like 5th, the absolutely wild C major ride of the 6th, the beautifully tranquil 7th, the fleeting 8th variation as well as the truly awesome ending of the fugue. This work is without doubt the summit of Reger’s profound and lifelong veneration of Bach, who was, with the possible exception of Brahms, the greatest single influence on his own composing style. Reger himself considered it his greatest work to date (1904), that is after most of his heavily Bach-inspired organ masterpieces were written, and the only contemporary work it can only be compared with is Busoni’s equally monumental “Fantasia Contrappuntistica” (1910), for which Walter Frisch has written an excellent study about the influence of Bach on both composers and Mahler, and how each of them responded to that influence.

Opus 81 is, however, very rarely heard in concert because of it’s sheer technical and interpretive difficulty (I heard it only once in decades of concert-going, with Rudolf Serkin in the 1970’s) as well as certain pre-conceived ideas about Reger in general, usually by people who do not know his music well (!). It is written about and recorded more often than performed. I hope to remedy that situation (as with my orchestration of the above-mentioned Busoni work) by presenting to conductors and larger concert public this incredibly creative and colorful work which I think is, because of the much greater clarity and color offered by the orchestra, a sure-fire success…

Read full preface > HERE