Capriccio espagnol, Op.34

Alborada -

Variazioni -

Alborada -

Scena e canto gitano -

Fandango asturiano

It used to be said - before Falla wrote his Nights in the Gardens of Spain - that all the best Spanish music in the orchestral repertoire was by foreigners. Not surprisingly, considering that Spain and France are neighbouring countries with much in common, most of the composers of that allegedly superior Spanish music were French - Lalo, Bizet, Chabrier, Ravel… But there was also a Spanish tradition in Russia which, without leaving Europe, is about as far as from Spain as you can get. It was started by Glinka with his Spanish Overture in 1845 and continued by, among others, Rimsky-Korsakov with his Capriccio espagnol in 1887. Curiously, however, although Glinka actually lived in Spain for a couple of years and Rimsky-Korsakov never went anywhere near the place, the latter made the more convincing imitation. Rimsky’s source was a published collection of Spanish songs and dances called Ecos de Espana where, he said, he found “rich material for all kinds of orchestral effects.”

Abandoning his original idea of scoring the work as a kind of violin concerto – although traces of that idea remain in several prominent violin solos – Rimsky drew on two main sources of Spanish folk music for his material. The tunes in the brilliant opening Alborada (morning dance) and the languorous melody introduced by horns as the theme of the variations in the second movement come from Asturias. After a repeat of the Alborada in enterprisingly varied orchestral colours, the Scena e canto gitano (scene and gypsy song) moves to Andalusia for an atmospheric study in flamenco. The last movement returns to Asturias for its fandango material, sustaining the rhythmic excitement until, just near the end, the Alborada is recalled yet again to round the whole thing off. In order to preserve the continuity of the construction, the composer indicates that there should be no breaks between the movements.

Alborada -

Variazioni -

Alborada -

Scena e canto gitano -

Fandango asturiano

Strangely enough, considering that it as about as far from Spain as you can get without leaving Europe, Russia had a Spanish tradition too - not as rich as that of France but distinguished even so. It was started by Glinka with his Spanish Overture in 1845 and continued by, among others, Rimsky-Korsakov with his Capriccio espagnol in 1887. Although Glinka actually lived in Spain for a couple of years and Rimsky-Korsakov never went anywhere near the place, it was the latter who made the more convincing imitation. Rimsky’s source was a published collection of Spanish songs and dances called Ecos de España where, he said, he found “rich material for all kinds of orchestral effects.”

The composer insisted in his autobiography, however, that “the opinion that the Capriccio is a magnificently orchestrated piece is wrong. The Capriccio is a brilliant composition for orchestra. The variety in colour, the felicitous choice of melodic patterns and figurations, exactly suiting each kind of instrument, the brief virtuoso cadenzas for solo instruments, the rhythm of the percussion instruments and so on here constitute the very essence of the composition and not its clothing.”

Abandoning his original idea of scoring the work as a kind of violin concerto - although traces of that concept remain in several prominent violin solos - Rimsky drew on two main areas of Spanish for his material. The tunes in the brilliant opening Alborada (morning dance) and the languorous melody introduced by horns as the theme of the nostalgically coloured variations in the second movement come from Asturias. After a repeat of the Alborada in enterprisingly varied orchestral colours, the Scena e canto gitano (scene and gypsy song) moves to Andalusia for an atmospheric study in flamenco featuring cadenzas not only for solo violin but also for flute, clarinet and harp. The last movement returns to Asturias for its fandango material, sustaining the rhythmic excitement until, just near the end, the Alborada is recalled yet again to round the whole thing off.

Alborada -

Variazioni -

Alborada -

Scena e canto gitano -

Fandango asturiano

Strangely enough, considering that it as about as far from Spain as you can get without leaving Europe, Russia had a Spanish tradition too - not as rich as that of France but distinguished even so. It was started by Glinka with his Spanish Overture in 1845 and continued by, among others, Rimksy-Korsakov with his Capriccio espagnol in 1887. Although Glinka actually lived in Spain for a couple of years and Rimsky-Korsakov never went anywhere near the place, it was the latter made the more convincing imitation. Rimsky’s source was a published collection of Spanish songs and dances called Ecos de España where, he said, he found “rich material for all kinds of orchestral effects.”

The composer insisted in his autobiography, however, that “the opinion that the Capriccio is a magnificently orchestrated piece is wrong. The Capriccio is a brilliant composition for orchestra. The variety in colour, the felicitous choice of melodic patterns and figurations, exactly suiting each kind of instrument, the brief virtuoso cadenzas for solo instruments, the rhythm of the percussion instruments and so on here constitute the very essence of the composition and not its clothing.”

Abandoning his original idea of scoring the work as a kind of violin concerto - although traces of that concept remain in several prominent violin solos - Rimsky drew on two main source of Spanish folk music for his material. The tunes in the brilliant opening Alborada (morning dance) and the languorous melody introduced by horns as the theme of the nostalgically coloured variations in the second movement come from Asturias. After a repeat of the Alborada in enterprisingly varied orchestral colours, the Scena e canto gitano (scene and gypsy song) moves to Andalusia for an atmospheric study in flamenco featuring cadenzas not only for solo violin but also for flute, clarinet and harp. The last movement returns to Asturias for its fandango material, sustaining the rhythmic excitement until, just near the end, the Alborada is recalled yet again to round the whole thing off. In order to preserve the continuity of the construction, the composer indicates that there should be no breaks between the movements.