Episode 2: 1944 - Howard Hanson, Symphony No. 4 (”Requiem”)

In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore the winner of the second Pulitzer Prize in Music, Howard Hanson and his Symphony No. 4 ("Requiem"). Hanson is known today for his impact on how we teach and train musicians in colleges and universities, but his music has fallen a bit out of favor. Join us as we see if his exclusion from concert halls is justified.

 

If you'd like to know more about Howard Hanson, we recommend:

1. Harmonic Materials of Modern Music, Howard Hanson's book on music theory freely available online.
2. Allen Cohen's Howard Hanson in Theory and Practice, from Praeger Publishers in 2004.
3. Emily Abrams Ansari, The Sound of a Superpower: Musical Americanism and the Cold War, from Oxford University Press, 2018. This book combines Schuman and Hanson into one chapter and includes chapters on upcoming Pulitzer winners Aaron Copland and Virgil Thomson, exploring how all shaped American musical culture midcentury.