Page 388 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2017. Glasbene migracije: stičišče evropske glasbene raznolikosti - Musical Migrations: Crossroads of European Musical Diversity. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 1
P. 388
glasbene migracije: stičišče evropske glasbene raznolikosti
“What Pedrell considered to be his main purpose in life was the re-awaken-
ing of Spanish consciousness as a musical nation: and to this end he would
have us regard equally his work as a scholar and as a creative artist.”19 The
same could also be said of Gerhard.
It was in 1945 that Gerhard moved into one area held very dear by Pe-
drell, but not much noted by writers on this composer. Pedrell was very
keen to establish a school of Spanish opera that used Wagnerian princi-
ples,20 and Gerhard wanted to pay tribute to this ambition in his only op-
era, The Duenna, which was to occupy him in the years 1945–48. There was
a clear Spanish connection in the topic chosen for this opera, which was an
adaptation of Sheridan’s play of the same name. In order to create the Span-
ish atmosphere Gerhard used folk melodies from all over Spain,21 using fea-
tures that appeared in his music during the previous decade. Gerhard was
very attracted by the beauty of Sheridan’s English and not at all concerned
by the fact that most of the text was in prose.22
On the other hand Gerhard did begin to compose music that was
not specifically Spanish, although at this stage did not adopt Schoenberg’s
twelve-note methods, except in the loosest possible way. Probably the most
important work of this period that is not obviously related to Spanish mu-
sic is the Violin Concerto completed in 1945. It takes the first theme of the
Concertino of 1927–28 for its opening and continues in a traditional way,
with three separate movements (quick, slow, quick). While a distant Cat-
alan character has been noted in some of the melodic material, the mu-
sic has a full-blooded romantic sound and a strong and impressive vir-
tuosity. The finale quotes the Marseillaise, a fact which has invited much
comment from various writers. Homs, for example, wrote: “the last move-
ment, composed after the War, is completely free, beginning with a quota-
tion from the Marseillaise, symbolising freedom, followed by references to
19 This is the conclusion to a tribute to Pedrell that can be found in Roberto Gerhard,
“A note on Felipe Pedrell,” Gerhard on Music (Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2000), 39–40
20 See especially Pedrell’s Por nuestra música (Barcelona, n.d. [1891]), also in a French
translation Pour notre musique (Paris, n.d. [1893]) which spells out the ideas behind
his opera Les Pyrénées.
21 Julian White, “National Traditions in the Music of Roberto Gerhard,” Tempo, 184
(March 1993): 9–10, notes the interesting point that, although the action takes
place in Seville, Gerhard used melodies in the opera from all over Spain, including
Catalonia.
22 See his words from a BBC broadcast given in advance of the radio transmission of
the opera in 1949, “The Duenna,” Gerhard on Music, 81–83. His broadcast talk on the
revised version of two years later is given on pages 83–87.
386
“What Pedrell considered to be his main purpose in life was the re-awaken-
ing of Spanish consciousness as a musical nation: and to this end he would
have us regard equally his work as a scholar and as a creative artist.”19 The
same could also be said of Gerhard.
It was in 1945 that Gerhard moved into one area held very dear by Pe-
drell, but not much noted by writers on this composer. Pedrell was very
keen to establish a school of Spanish opera that used Wagnerian princi-
ples,20 and Gerhard wanted to pay tribute to this ambition in his only op-
era, The Duenna, which was to occupy him in the years 1945–48. There was
a clear Spanish connection in the topic chosen for this opera, which was an
adaptation of Sheridan’s play of the same name. In order to create the Span-
ish atmosphere Gerhard used folk melodies from all over Spain,21 using fea-
tures that appeared in his music during the previous decade. Gerhard was
very attracted by the beauty of Sheridan’s English and not at all concerned
by the fact that most of the text was in prose.22
On the other hand Gerhard did begin to compose music that was
not specifically Spanish, although at this stage did not adopt Schoenberg’s
twelve-note methods, except in the loosest possible way. Probably the most
important work of this period that is not obviously related to Spanish mu-
sic is the Violin Concerto completed in 1945. It takes the first theme of the
Concertino of 1927–28 for its opening and continues in a traditional way,
with three separate movements (quick, slow, quick). While a distant Cat-
alan character has been noted in some of the melodic material, the mu-
sic has a full-blooded romantic sound and a strong and impressive vir-
tuosity. The finale quotes the Marseillaise, a fact which has invited much
comment from various writers. Homs, for example, wrote: “the last move-
ment, composed after the War, is completely free, beginning with a quota-
tion from the Marseillaise, symbolising freedom, followed by references to
19 This is the conclusion to a tribute to Pedrell that can be found in Roberto Gerhard,
“A note on Felipe Pedrell,” Gerhard on Music (Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2000), 39–40
20 See especially Pedrell’s Por nuestra música (Barcelona, n.d. [1891]), also in a French
translation Pour notre musique (Paris, n.d. [1893]) which spells out the ideas behind
his opera Les Pyrénées.
21 Julian White, “National Traditions in the Music of Roberto Gerhard,” Tempo, 184
(March 1993): 9–10, notes the interesting point that, although the action takes
place in Seville, Gerhard used melodies in the opera from all over Spain, including
Catalonia.
22 See his words from a BBC broadcast given in advance of the radio transmission of
the opera in 1949, “The Duenna,” Gerhard on Music, 81–83. His broadcast talk on the
revised version of two years later is given on pages 83–87.
386
