Symphony No. 3

Hanson's Third Symphony was the result of a commission by CBS in 1936, and first performed in its entirety by the NBC Symphony Orchestra, back in the pre-television years. Hanson's inspiration was the 300th anniversary of the first settlement by Swedes in the New World, a people who later played an important role in opening up the West. The symphony is dedicated to Serge Koussevitzky.