The Two Serious Melodies, Op. 77, are concertante compositions for violin and orchestra written from 1914 to 1915 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. They are:
Cantique, Op. 77/1 (1914); subtitled "" ("Rejoice my soul"). Moderato assai Devotion, Op. 77/2 (1915); subtitled "" ("From my very heart"). Tempo molto moderato
Sibelius originally called No. 1 (Song of Praise). In 1915, he made transcriptions of each piece for violin and piano. In 1916, he arranged both pieces for cello and orchestra and transcribed them, too, for cello and piano.
Each piece is dedicated to the Finnish cellist .
Instrumentation Cantique is scored for the following instruments: Soloist: violin (or cello) Woodwinds: 2 flutes and 2 clarinets (in B) Brass: 2 horns (in F) Percussion: timpani (2 players) Strings: violins, violas, cellos, double basses, and harp
Devotion is scored for the following instruments: Soloist: violin (or cello) Woodwinds: 2 flutes, 2 clarinets (in A), and 2 bassoons Brass: 4 horns (in F) and 3 trombones Strings: violins, violas, cellos, and double basses
Recordings The sortable table below lists commercially available recordings of the Two Serious Melodies: ConductorOrchestraSoloistTimeRecording venueLabel1Philharmonia Orchestra (violin)19797:23Kingsway HallDecca2Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (violin)19809:31Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin Schwann, Koch3Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (violin)19808:24Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin Parnass4Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra (violin)19898:28Gothenburg Concert Hall BIS5Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (cello)Finlandia6Monte-Carlo Philharmonic OrchestraArion Music7Danish National Symphony Orchestra (violin)2002Danish Radio Concert Hall (old)Virgin Classics8Lahti Symphony Orchestra (cello)2004Sibelius Hall BIS9Turku Philharmonic Orchestra (violin)201410:17Turku Concert Hall Naxos10Orquestra Vigo 430 (violin)20149:15Martín Códax Auditorium, Vigo Conservatory of Music11Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra (violin)20238:03Grieg HallChandos
Notes, references, and sources