The Fields

The Fields is an ode to the unique countryside of Westerwolde, a region in the Northeast of the Netherlands, where Jacob de Haan lives.  He went to capture images of the scenery around his home during different seasons with a camera man and used those images to compose music.

The introduction features a dreamy Wagnerian melody. It imagines panoramas of the scenery and the farms, at first in a slower tempo, then in a series of shorter phrases. Each phrase is based on a different perspective of the area. The movement closes with the opening melody, which is now built-up in a grander manner.

Movement two begins with musical reflections of the black soil. Tractors plough the land, after which the various crops in their early form are echoed. In the corresponding passage the musical suspense builds up: following a fluent, low movement, the bloom of the crops can be heard profusely. It is striking that Jacob de Haan immediately started improvising on the piano after the filming. “It felt great. I found the right thing directly through improvising”, Jacob de Haan said about the creation of this part.

The third movement mirrors the harvest, including the loading and unloading of the barley, potatoes, beets and corn. The rhythmic mechanical pulse corresponds with the musical rendering of the working combines and potato-lifting machines. In between, various romantic passages can be heard. After the magisterial closing theme, the composition ends with a spectacular closing theme that paints a beautiful and sparkling winter countryside.