Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Manuel de Falla (1876-1946)
En el Generalife (In the Generalife); Danza lejana (A Distant Dance);
En los jardines de la Sierra de Córdoba (In the Gardens of the Sierra de Córdoba)
This haunting music prompts two unrelated questions. Does it create a ‘musical picture’ of three gardens? Is it a piano concerto in disguise? We are fortunate in that Manuel de Falla provided an answer to the first question. He described the work as ‘symphonic impressions’ and went on to explain that…
…the themes are based on the rhythms, modes, cadences and ornamental figures which distinguish the popular music of Andalusia. The music has no pretensions to being descriptive – it is merely expressive.
Regarding the question about its genre, even if listeners sense that this is indeed a piano concerto, it didn’t set out that way. In 1909, de Falla composed a series of Nocturnes for solo piano bearing the same title. He converted them into the work we hear this evening. Because that snippet of information doesn’t really answer the question about whether it’s a piano concerto in disguise, the response might depend upon a gut reaction: if it looks like a concerto and sounds like a concerto, then it is a concerto, though we should append Noel Goodwin’s elegantly phrased rider, ‘…a concerto of haunting poetry more than virtuosity.’ It was first performed in 1916.
The opening movement sets the ‘Spanish’ scene without resorting to cliché. It evokes the spirit of Spanish folk music, dance in particular, within the parameters of early 20th century art music. De Falla was a friend and admirer of Claude Debussy, whose influence might be discerned in all three movements. In contrast to the sedate and serious first movement, the second is a lively dance, almost exotic at times. Spain’s Moorish history and the influence of Islamic culture held a special fascination for de Falla who, nevertheless, chose not to identify which garden should be associated with the second dance. It leads without a break into the finale: a colourful display for both orchestra and soloist.
Notwithstanding his undoubted patriotism, de Falla was much distressed by the events of the Spanish Civil War and the threat of worse to come across Europe. He accepted an invitation to visit Argentina in 1939 and remained there until his death in 1946.
Manuel de Falla (1876-1946)
En el Generalife (In the Generalife); Danza lejana (A Distant Dance);
En los jardines de la Sierra de Córdoba (In the Gardens of the Sierra de Córdoba)
This haunting music prompts two unrelated questions. Does it create a ‘musical picture’ of three gardens? Is it a piano concerto in disguise? We are fortunate in that Manuel de Falla provided an answer to the first question. He described the work as ‘symphonic impressions’ and went on to explain that…
…the themes are based on the rhythms, modes, cadences and ornamental figures which distinguish the popular music of Andalusia. The music has no pretensions to being descriptive – it is merely expressive.
Regarding the question about its genre, even if listeners sense that this is indeed a piano concerto, it didn’t set out that way. In 1909, de Falla composed a series of Nocturnes for solo piano bearing the same title. He converted them into the work we hear this evening. Because that snippet of information doesn’t really answer the question about whether it’s a piano concerto in disguise, the response might depend upon a gut reaction: if it looks like a concerto and sounds like a concerto, then it is a concerto, though we should append Noel Goodwin’s elegantly phrased rider, ‘…a concerto of haunting poetry more than virtuosity.’ It was first performed in 1916.
The opening movement sets the ‘Spanish’ scene without resorting to cliché. It evokes the spirit of Spanish folk music, dance in particular, within the parameters of early 20th century art music. De Falla was a friend and admirer of Claude Debussy, whose influence might be discerned in all three movements. In contrast to the sedate and serious first movement, the second is a lively dance, almost exotic at times. Spain’s Moorish history and the influence of Islamic culture held a special fascination for de Falla who, nevertheless, chose not to identify which garden should be associated with the second dance. It leads without a break into the finale: a colourful display for both orchestra and soloist.
Notwithstanding his undoubted patriotism, de Falla was much distressed by the events of the Spanish Civil War and the threat of worse to come across Europe. He accepted an invitation to visit Argentina in 1939 and remained there until his death in 1946.