Harlem Symphony — The Orchestral Music of James P. Johnson

Symphony “Harlem” (1932)

Duration: 21 minutes

Movements:

I. Introduction and Subway Journey c. 4’

II. Song of Harlem: c. 7’

III. The Nightclub: c. 3’30”

IV. Baptist Mission: c. 6’

Instrumentation:

3[1,2,P].2[1, 2].3.[1,2,3/BC].2[1,2] – 4.3.3.1 – T + 2 – guitar - strings

Percussion: Drum Set, Bass Drum, Wood block, Triangle, Snare Drum, Cymbals

Preview the score (full orchestration)

Reduced Orchestra Version:
2[1.2/pic].1.1.1 – 2.2.2.1 – T+1 – opt. guitar – strings

Percussion: Drum Set

Preview the score (reduced orchestration)

Johnson’s most extensive and fully formed extant work was completed in 1932. It was performed, in whole or in part, at least six times between 1937 and 1945. The piece is constructed as a programmatic travel log through Harlem in four short movements. The score, in Johnson’s hand, includes brief descriptions about the tour. The first movement, “A Subway Journey,” opens with a majestic introduction as the train pulls out of “Penn Station.” The train passes “110th Street-The Jewish Neighborhood,” through “116th Street-Spanish Neighborhood,” and “125th Street- Shopping District” finally arriving at “135th Street- Negro Neighborhood.” The train ambles back down “7th Avenue Promenade” and finally returns to “Penn Station” with a recapitulation of the opening theme. The second movement, “Song of Harlem,” highlights Johnson’s gift for romantic melody, supported by lush harmonies and orchestration. The third movement, “Night Club,” harkens back a few decades with rag-like dance figures. The first two themes are nearly identical to a piece he recorded only once as a piano roll in 1917, “Innovation.” The first theme reflects the influence of one of Johnson’s (and Gershwin’s) mentors, pianist Charles “Luckey” Roberts, borrowing melodic detail from Roberts’s tune “Junk Man Rag” published in 1913. The fourth movement, “Baptist Mission,” opens with a lamenting string melody, the theme for a set of seven variations that range from quiet reverence to roaring worship. Jazz writer Rudi Blesh, who heard Johnson play it during a visit to his home in the late 1940s, identifies the source material and describes it as a “syncopated passacaglia on the hymn “I Want Jesus To Walk With Me.” The first two movements were performed by the New York Negro Orchestra accompanying the American Negro Ballet in 1937. The first complete performance took place at the Brooklyn Museum, performed by the Brooklyn Civic Orchestra as part of their Schubert Festival. Its last known performance, before rediscovery in the early 1990s, was at Carnegie Hall in 1945 and included only the second and fourth movements.