Estancia – Four Dances
Alberto Ginastera (1916-83)
Los Trabajadores Agricolas (The Land Workers); Danza del Trigo (Wheat Dance); Los Peones de Hacienda (The Cattlemen); Danza Final (Malambo)
In 1941, the founder and proprietor of the American Ballet Caravan, Lincoln Kirstein, commissioned 25-year-old Alberto Ginastera to compose a ballet based on life in rural Argentina. Ginastera obliged readily, not least because he was engrossed in the folk music of his country at the time, its complex and exciting cross-rhythms being of particular interest. Estancia was the result but, alas, the dance company folded before the work had been completed in 1942, and Ginastera’s ballet had to wait ten more years for its première. Undaunted, he assembled four of the dances (about half of the total music) into a suite. Its immediate appeal, national flavour, electrifying energy and virtuosity ensured a bright future for the young composer. Although Ginastera enjoyed a distinguished career spanning continents, few if any of his other works attracted the fame and following of these Four Dances.
The story is basic. An Estancia is a ranch or landed estate where large herds of cattle are raised. Urban boy meets rustic (Estancia) girl; rustic girl isn’t interested in urban boy because urban boy lacks sufficient machismo as a horseman; urban boy, driven by desire for rustic girl, hones his equestrian skills energetically; rustic girl is impressed and aroused enough to ensure happiness for both. We can imagine the energy that might be injected into the ballet on stage, but we don’t have to; the music stands on its own. The relentless rhythmic drive in three of the dances almost sweeps us from our seats while the reflective second dance offers a touching and exquisite contrast. Apart from the gloriously swollen percussion department, the orchestra is modest in size – no trombones or tuba for example. This does not prevent Ginastera from conjuring magical orchestral colours in all four dances.
Alberto Ginastera was more than a mere musical colourist. While the surface of the music is indeed dazzling, the compositional technique is sophisticated. Without compromising his unique personal and nationalist musical voice, he absorbed many compositional innovations of his celebrated contemporaries, Igor Stravinsky, Béla Bartók and Aaron Copland in particular. Listeners familiar with Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ may detect that influence, especially in the third dance.
Alberto Ginastera (1916-83)
Los Trabajadores Agricolas (The Land Workers); Danza del Trigo (Wheat Dance); Los Peones de Hacienda (The Cattlemen); Danza Final (Malambo)
In 1941, the founder and proprietor of the American Ballet Caravan, Lincoln Kirstein, commissioned 25-year-old Alberto Ginastera to compose a ballet based on life in rural Argentina. Ginastera obliged readily, not least because he was engrossed in the folk music of his country at the time, its complex and exciting cross-rhythms being of particular interest. Estancia was the result but, alas, the dance company folded before the work had been completed in 1942, and Ginastera’s ballet had to wait ten more years for its première. Undaunted, he assembled four of the dances (about half of the total music) into a suite. Its immediate appeal, national flavour, electrifying energy and virtuosity ensured a bright future for the young composer. Although Ginastera enjoyed a distinguished career spanning continents, few if any of his other works attracted the fame and following of these Four Dances.
The story is basic. An Estancia is a ranch or landed estate where large herds of cattle are raised. Urban boy meets rustic (Estancia) girl; rustic girl isn’t interested in urban boy because urban boy lacks sufficient machismo as a horseman; urban boy, driven by desire for rustic girl, hones his equestrian skills energetically; rustic girl is impressed and aroused enough to ensure happiness for both. We can imagine the energy that might be injected into the ballet on stage, but we don’t have to; the music stands on its own. The relentless rhythmic drive in three of the dances almost sweeps us from our seats while the reflective second dance offers a touching and exquisite contrast. Apart from the gloriously swollen percussion department, the orchestra is modest in size – no trombones or tuba for example. This does not prevent Ginastera from conjuring magical orchestral colours in all four dances.
Alberto Ginastera was more than a mere musical colourist. While the surface of the music is indeed dazzling, the compositional technique is sophisticated. Without compromising his unique personal and nationalist musical voice, he absorbed many compositional innovations of his celebrated contemporaries, Igor Stravinsky, Béla Bartók and Aaron Copland in particular. Listeners familiar with Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ may detect that influence, especially in the third dance.