Jump to content

Capriccio Italien: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
style fixes
 
(43 intermediate revisions by 34 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Fantasy for orchestra by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky}}
{{multiple issues|
{{Italic title}}
{{Refimprove|date=May 2013}}
[[File:Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.jpg|thumb|[[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]], circa 1875; portrait by Charles Reutlinger]]
{{more footnotes|date=May 2013}}
'''''Capriccio italien''''', [[Opus number|Op.]] 45, is a 15-minute [[fantasy (music)|fantasy]] for [[orchestra]] by [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]. Composed between January and May 1880, it premiered on 18 December that year (New System) in [[Moscow]] with [[Nikolay Rubinstein]] conducting the [[Russian Musical Society|Orchestra of the Imperial Russian Musical Society]].<ref>[https://en.tchaikovsky-research.net/pages/Italian_Capriccio Italian Capriccio] Tchaikovsky Research</ref> The dedicatee was cellist [[Karl Davydov]].{{sfn|Holoman|1992|p=601}} The work's initial name was ''Italian Fantasia'', after [[Mikhail Glinka]]'s Spanish pieces.<ref name=Meltzer />
}}


==Background==
The '''''Capriccio Italien''''', Op. 45, is a [[fantasy (music)|fantasy]] for [[orchestra]] composed between January and May 1880 by [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]].
''Capriccio italien'' was inspired by a trip Tchaikovsky took to Rome with his brother [[Modest Ilyich Tchaikovsky|Modest]] as respite from the composer's disastrous marriage with [[Antonina Miliukova]]. It was there that the observant Tchaikovsky called [[Raphael]] a "[[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]] of painting."<ref name=Huscher>{{cite web|last1=Huscher|first1=Phillip|url=http://cso.org/uploadedfiles/1_tickets_and_events/program_notes/programnotes_cso_morton_tchaikovsky.pdf|title=Music by Piotr Tchaikovsky|website=Chicago Symphony Orchestra|access-date=11 January 2016|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185931/http://cso.org/uploadedfiles/1_tickets_and_events/program_notes/programnotes_cso_morton_tchaikovsky.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> And from Rome he wrote to his friend [[Nadezhda von Meck]]:
<blockquote>I have already completed the sketches for an Italian fantasia on folk tunes for which I believe a good fortune may be predicted. It will be effective, thanks to the delightful tunes which I have succeeded in assembling partly from anthologies, partly from my own ears in the streets.<ref name=Rabben>{{cite web |last1=Rabben|first1=Jon|url=http://ccsymphony.com/programnotes/120226programnotes.pdf |title=Program Notes – February 26, 2012 |website=Carson City Symphony|access-date=11 January 2016}}</ref></blockquote>
Conductor [[JoAnn Falletta]] says:
<blockquote>We are hearing foreigners' views of Italy. […] ''Capriccio Italien'' has great power even though it's practically a pops piece. Tchaikovsky knows what the instruments can do in a virtuoso way. He brings them to their limit in the most thrilling fashion. He has a gift for mixing families of instruments just right, like cantabile strings along with mighty brass. I hear the ballet element in everything Tchaikovsky writes, in his sense of rhythm. You can practically dance to [this score]!<ref name=Shulman>{{cite web|last1=Shulman|first1=Laurie|url=http://www.virginiasymphony.org/file/Caprccio%20Pro%20Notes.pdf|title=Program Notes|website=Virginia Symphony|access-date=11 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304124722/http://www.virginiasymphony.org/file/Caprccio%20Pro%20Notes.pdf|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref></blockquote>


==Structure==
The [[Capriccio (music)|Capriccio]] was inspired by a trip Tchaikovsky took to [[Rome]], during which he saw the Carnival in full swing, and is reminiscent of [[Italy|Italian]] folk music and street songs.<ref>For this and what follows, see {{cite web |url=http://www.istrianet.org/istria/music/history-folklore/tchaikovsky1.htm |title=The Origins of Capriccio Italien in A Major, op. 45 (1880) |accessdate=2007-05-21}}</ref>{{better source|date=May 2013}} As these elements are treated rather freely initially he intended this piece to be called Italian Fantasia.<ref>Brown (1986), p. 95</ref> Tchaikovsky even uses as the introduction a bugle call that he overheard from his hotel played by Italian cavalry regiment. Another source of inspiration for this piece are [[Mikhail Glinka]]'s Spanish Pieces.
⚫
''Capriccio italien'' is scored for: 3 [[flute]]s (3rd doubling on [[piccolo]]), 2 [[oboe]]s, [[English horn]], 2 [[clarinet]]s in A, 2 [[bassoon]]s, 4 [[French horn|horns]] in F, 2 [[cornet]]s in A, 2 [[trumpet]]s in E, 3 [[trombone]]s (2 tenor, 1 bass), [[tuba]], 3 [[timpani]], [[Triangle (musical instrument)|triangle]], [[tambourine]], [[cymbal]]s, [[bass drum]], [[glockenspiel]], [[harp]] and [[String instruments|strings]].


After a brief bugle call, inspired by a ''Il Silenzio d’Ordinanza'', a bugle call Tchaikovsky heard daily in his rooms at the Hotel Costanzi, next door to the barracks of the [[Corazzieri|Royal Italian Cuirasseurs]],<ref name=Downes>{{cite web|last1=Downes|first1=Edward|title=1992 Jul 08, 09 / Festival / Masur|url=http://archives.nyphil.org/index.php/artifact/922663c2-e610-48e4-af68-77d54ec2c00a/fullview#page/2/mode/2up|website=Leon Levy Digital Archives|publisher=New York Philharmonic|access-date=12 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170304064139/http://archives.nyphil.org/index.php/artifact/922663c2-e610-48e4-af68-77d54ec2c00a/fullview#page/2/mode/2up|archive-date=4 March 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> a stoic, heroic, unsmiling melody is played by the strings. Eventually, this gives way to music sounding as if it could be played by an Italian street band, beginning in the winds and ending with the whole orchestra.<ref name=Schrott>{{cite web|last1=Schrott|first1=Allan|title=''Capriccio Italien'', for orchestra (or piano, 4 hands), Op. 45|url=http://www.allmusic.com/composition/capriccio-italien-for-orchestra-or-piano-4-hands-op-45-mc0002369293|website=AllMusic|access-date=12 January 2016}}</ref> Next, a lively march ensues, followed by a lively [[tarantella]].<ref name=Meltzer>{{cite web|last1=Meltzer|first1=Ken|url=https://www.atlantasymphony.org/~/media/Sites/ASO2011/ProgramResources/11-7-13PN.ashx|title=Concerts of Thursday, November 7, and Friday, November 8, 2013, at 8:00p, and Saturday, November 9, 2013, at 7:30p.|website=Atlanta Symphony|format=PDF|access-date=11 January 2016|archive-date=September 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915232619/https://www.atlantasymphony.org/~/media/Sites/ASO2011/ProgramResources/11-7-13PN.ashx|url-status=dead}}.</ref> One of the main themes is another Italian folk song, precisely from Tuscany, ''Bella ragazza dalle trecce bionde''.
The [[premiere]] was held in [[Moscow]] on December 18 of the same year; the orchestra was led by [[Nikolai Rubinstein]]. Although Tchaikovsky wrote to his patroness [[Nadezhda von Meck]] that the work would be successful (the piece was praised by most critics){{Citation needed|date=April 2007}} by the time he came to orchestrate the work he expressed doubts about its musical substance.<ref>Brown (1986), p. 96</ref>


[[File:Orchesterwerke Romantik Themen.pdf|450px|page=962]]
Dedicated to [[Karl Davydov]], the ''Capriccio'' was later arranged by the composer for 4-hand [[piano]].{{citation needed|date=May 2013}} A typical performance lasts for around 15 minutes.{{citation needed|date=May 2013}}


The brothers were there during [[Carnival]], and, despite calling it "a folly," the composer was able to soak up Italian street music and folk songs which he then incorporated into his ''Capriccio''.<ref name="Classic FM">{{cite web|title=Tchaikovsky – ''Capriccio Italien''|url=http://www.classicfm.com/composers/tchaikovsky/music/capriccio-italien/|website=Classic FM|access-date=12 January 2016}}</ref> This enables some "bright primary colors and uncomplicated tunefulness."<ref name=Mangum>{{cite web|last1=Mangum|first1=John|title=''Capriccio Italien''|url=http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/philpedia/music/capriccio-italien-peter-ilyich-tchaikovsky|website=Hollywood Bowl|publisher=LA Phil|access-date=12 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126115155/https://www.hollywoodbowl.com/philpedia/music/capriccio-italien-peter-ilyich-tchaikovsky|archive-date=26 January 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>
The middle part was used by [[Freddy Breck]] for his [[Schlager music|schlager]] "Bianca".{{citation needed|date=May 2013}}


==Instrumentation==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
⚫
The Capriccio is scored for 3 [[flute]]s (3rd doubling on [[piccolo]]), 2 [[oboe]]s, [[English horn]], 2 [[clarinet]]s in A, 2 [[bassoon]]s, 4 [[Horn (instrument)|horns]] in F, 2 [[cornet]]s in A, 2 [[trumpet]]s in E, 3 [[trombone]]s (2 tenor, 1 bass), [[tuba]], 3 [[timpani]], [[Triangle (instrument)|triangle]], [[tambourine]], [[cymbal]]s, [[bass drum]], [[glockenspiel]], [[harp]] and [[String instruments|strings]].


==Notes==
==Sources==
⚫
*[[David Brown (musicologist)|Brown, David]]. ''Tchaikovsky: The Years of Wandering, 1878–85''. London: Gollancz, 1986
{{reflist}}
*{{cite book|last=Holoman|first=D. Kern|author-link=D. Kern Holoman|title=Evenings with the Orchestra: A Norton Companion for Concert Goers|location=New York|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|year=1992}}


==References==
==External links==
*{{IMSLP|work=Italian Capriccio, Op.45 (Tchaikovsky, Pyotr)|cname=''Capriccio Italien''}}
⚫
*Brown, David. ''Tchaikovsky: The Years of Wandering, 1878–85''. London: Gollancz, 1986
⚫
* [http://en.tchaikovsky-research.net/pages/Italian_Capriccio ''Italian Capriccio''], Tchaikovsky Research
*{{YouTube | id= Ce5qmAj9XX4 | title= ''Capriccio Italien''}}; [[Moscow City Symphony]] – Russian Philharmonic conducted by [[Michail Jurowski]]


==External links==
*{{IMSLP2|id=Capriccio_Italien%2C_Op.45_%28Tchaikovsky%2C_Pyotr_Ilyich%29|cname=Capriccio Italien}}
⚫
* [http://wiki.tchaikovsky-research.net/wiki/Italian_Capriccio Tchaikovsky Research]
{{Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky}}
{{Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky}}
{{Portal bar|Classical music}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Capriccioitalien}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Capriccio Italien}}
⚫
[[Category:Compositions by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]
⚫
[[Category:Compositions for symphony orchestra]]
[[Category:1880 compositions]]
[[Category:1880 compositions]]
⚫
[[Category:Orchestral compositions by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]
⚫
[[Category:Compositions in A major]]
[[Category:Capriccios (music)|Tchaikovsky]]
[[Category:Fantasias (music)|Tchaikovsky]]
[[Category:Fantasias (music)|Tchaikovsky]]
[[Category:Music with dedications]]

[[Category:Compositions using folk songs]]

{{classical-composition-stub}}

Latest revision as of 13:04, 29 June 2024

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, circa 1875; portrait by Charles Reutlinger

Capriccio italien, Op. 45, is a 15-minute fantasy for orchestra by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Composed between January and May 1880, it premiered on 18 December that year (New System) in Moscow with Nikolay Rubinstein conducting the Orchestra of the Imperial Russian Musical Society.[1] The dedicatee was cellist Karl Davydov.[2] The work's initial name was Italian Fantasia, after Mikhail Glinka's Spanish pieces.[3]

Background

[edit]

Capriccio italien was inspired by a trip Tchaikovsky took to Rome with his brother Modest as respite from the composer's disastrous marriage with Antonina Miliukova. It was there that the observant Tchaikovsky called Raphael a "Mozart of painting."[4] And from Rome he wrote to his friend Nadezhda von Meck:

I have already completed the sketches for an Italian fantasia on folk tunes for which I believe a good fortune may be predicted. It will be effective, thanks to the delightful tunes which I have succeeded in assembling partly from anthologies, partly from my own ears in the streets.[5]

Conductor JoAnn Falletta says:

We are hearing foreigners' views of Italy. […] Capriccio Italien has great power even though it's practically a pops piece. Tchaikovsky knows what the instruments can do in a virtuoso way. He brings them to their limit in the most thrilling fashion. He has a gift for mixing families of instruments just right, like cantabile strings along with mighty brass. I hear the ballet element in everything Tchaikovsky writes, in his sense of rhythm. You can practically dance to [this score]![6]

Structure

[edit]

Capriccio italien is scored for: 3 flutes (3rd doubling on piccolo), 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets in A, 2 bassoons, 4 horns in F, 2 cornets in A, 2 trumpets in E, 3 trombones (2 tenor, 1 bass), tuba, 3 timpani, triangle, tambourine, cymbals, bass drum, glockenspiel, harp and strings.

After a brief bugle call, inspired by a Il Silenzio d’Ordinanza, a bugle call Tchaikovsky heard daily in his rooms at the Hotel Costanzi, next door to the barracks of the Royal Italian Cuirasseurs,[7] a stoic, heroic, unsmiling melody is played by the strings. Eventually, this gives way to music sounding as if it could be played by an Italian street band, beginning in the winds and ending with the whole orchestra.[8] Next, a lively march ensues, followed by a lively tarantella.[3] One of the main themes is another Italian folk song, precisely from Tuscany, Bella ragazza dalle trecce bionde.

The brothers were there during Carnival, and, despite calling it "a folly," the composer was able to soak up Italian street music and folk songs which he then incorporated into his Capriccio.[9] This enables some "bright primary colors and uncomplicated tunefulness."[10]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Italian Capriccio Tchaikovsky Research
  2. ^ Holoman 1992, p. 601.
  3. ^ a b Meltzer, Ken. "Concerts of Thursday, November 7, and Friday, November 8, 2013, at 8:00p, and Saturday, November 9, 2013, at 7:30p". Atlanta Symphony. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 15, 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2016..
  4. ^ Huscher, Phillip. "Music by Piotr Tchaikovsky" (PDF). Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  5. ^ Rabben, Jon. "Program Notes – February 26, 2012" (PDF). Carson City Symphony. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  6. ^ Shulman, Laurie. "Program Notes" (PDF). Virginia Symphony. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  7. ^ Downes, Edward. "1992 Jul 08, 09 / Festival / Masur". Leon Levy Digital Archives. New York Philharmonic. Archived from the original on 4 March 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  8. ^ Schrott, Allan. "Capriccio Italien, for orchestra (or piano, 4 hands), Op. 45". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  9. ^ "Tchaikovsky – Capriccio Italien". Classic FM. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  10. ^ Mangum, John. "Capriccio Italien". Hollywood Bowl. LA Phil. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2016.

Sources

[edit]
  • Brown, David. Tchaikovsky: The Years of Wandering, 1878–85. London: Gollancz, 1986
  • Holoman, D. Kern (1992). Evenings with the Orchestra: A Norton Companion for Concert Goers. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Capriccio_Italien&oldid=1231646735"