Nielsen, Carl

Nielsen, Carl (nēl`sən, Dan. nĭl`sən), 1865–1931, Danish composer. Nielsen was a pupil of Niels Gade at the Royal Conservatory in Copenhagen. Considered Denmark's foremost composer, he is known internationally, primarily for his six symphonies. Nielsen also composed one concerto apiece for flute, clarinet, and violin; two operas; a woodwind quintet; four string quartets; songs; incidental music; and many other chamber, choral, and piano pieces. His orchestral writing is extremely dense in texture. His music is frequently polyphonic. Although he never abandoned tonality, he built works from contrasting key centers, so that they give little sense of a tonic key. Nielsen's books include Living Music (1925, tr. 1953) and My Childhood (1927, tr. 1953).

Bibliography

See studies by R. Simpson (1952 and 1965).

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Nielsen, Carl (August)

(born June 9, 1865, Sortelung, near Norre Lyndelse, Den.—died Oct. 3, 1931, Copenhagen) Danish composer. He studied violin and trumpet as a child and began composing by imitating classical models. In 1890 he went to Germany to learn of newer developments and met Johannes Brahms, whose music came to influence his own. His individual style—still following classical forms but using intense chromaticism combined with a lyric, melodic strain—emerged after 1900. The last five of his six symphonies (1902–25) are the core of his work, but he also composed many short orchestra pieces, piano and chamber music, concertos for violin, flute, and clarinet, and a wind quintet.