ERIC HARRISON, HOST:
Good afternoon and thanks for tuning in to Little Rock Public Radio and Classical KLRE-FM, 90.5. I'm Eric Harrison, I write about arts and culture at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and I’ll be your host for the next two hours.
You're listening to “Major and Minor Masterpieces,” where we focus each week on a broad range of classical music, from chamber music to choral works to full symphonies and maybe even a touch or two of opera.
Today’s focus: “Dance like nobody’s looking,” a passel of classical dance works with a definite kick.
We’ll start with a pair of dances from operas with a biblical bent that are definitely, well, sinful.
When Camille Saint-Saens finally finished his opera “Samson and Delilah” in 1876, after a rough period of creation, no French company would stage it. But it has since found a place in the repertoire. And the “Bacchanale,” the orgiastic dance that precedes Samson's destruction of the Philistine temple in Act III, has remained a popular concert piece.
Richard Strauss’ 1904-05 opera “Salome” was a scandal from the start, not least because of “The Dance of the Seven Veils.” Teen siren Salome does a sinuous, seductive striptease for her lustful stepfather, King Herod, who has agreed in return to give her whatever she wants. What she wants, of course, is the head of John the Baptist, who has refused her advances.
Charles Dutoit conducts the Philharmonia Orchestra in the “Bacchanale” and Herbert von Karajan conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in “The Dance of the Seven Veils.”
(CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS’ “BACCHANALE” FROM “SAMSON AND DELILAH” AND RICHARD STRAUSS’ “THE DANCE OF THE SEVEN VEILS” FROM “SALOME” )
ERIC: You’ve heard Charles Dutoit conduct the Philhadelphia Orchestra in the “Bacchanale” from Camille Saint-Saens’ “Samson and Deliliah” and Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in “The Dance of the Seven Veils” from Richard Strauss’ “Salome.”
Let’s transition now from opera to ballet.
Ballet developed as an art form around 1500 in Italy (the term “ballet” and “ball” derive from the Italian word "ballare," which means "to dance”) and its terminology and vocabulary, still in use today, subsequently developed in France.
By 1850 Russia had become a leading creative center and a lot of great big ballets are by from Russian composers (that’s the best translation of Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet, by the way — “great big ballet.”)
We’ll start with the most vigorous “characteristic” dance from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” — the “Trepak,” or Russian dance (Vladimir Jurowski conducting the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia); follow with “The Dance of the Knights” from Sergei Prokofiev’s “Romeo & Juliet” (Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the San Francisco Symphony), and close with “The Infernal Dance of King Katschei” from “The Firebird” by Igor Stravinsky (Neeme Järvi conducting the London Symphony Orchestra).
(PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY’S “TREPAK” FROM “THE NUTCRACKER”; SERGEI PROKOFIEV’S “DANCE OF THE KNIGHTS” FROM “ROMEO AND JULIET”; AND IGOR STRAVINSKY’S “THE INFERNAL DANCE OF KING KATSCHEI” FROM “THE FIREBIRD” )
ERIC: Vladimir Jurowski conducted the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia in the “Trepak” from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker”’; Michael Tilson Thomas conducted the San Francisco Symphony in “The Dance of the Knights” from Sergei Prokofiev’s “Romeo & Juliet”; and Neeme Järvi conducted the London Symphony Orchestra in “The Infernal Dance of King Katschei” from “The Firebird” by Igor Stravinsky.
Back now to France for our next ballet excerpt: another “Bacchanale,” this one from Maurice Ravel’s "Daphnis et Chloé"; to Spain for the “Ritual Fire Dance” from “El Amor Brujo” by Manuel De Falla; and finally to Armenia for the “Sabre Dance” from “Gayane” by Aram Khachaturian.
(MAURICE RAVEL’S “BACCHANALE” FROM “DAPHNIS ET CHLOÉ”; MANUEL DE FALLA’S “RITUAL FIRE DANCE” FROM “EL AMOR BRUJO”; AND ARAM KHACHATURIAN’S “SABRE DANCE” FROM “GAYANE” )
ERIC: Paul Paray conducted the Detroit Symphony in the “Bacchanale” from Maurice Ravel’s ballet “Daphnis and Chloe”; Leonard Bernstein conducted the New York Philharmonic in the “Ritual Fire Dance” from Manuel De Falla’s “El Amor Brujo”; and Andris Nelsons conducted the Vienna Philharmonic in the “Sabre Dance” from “Gayane” by Aram Khatchaturian.
And now, two dances of death: Another work by Saint-Saens, his 1874 tone poem “Danse Macabre,” depicting Death playing his fiddle (tuned awry in a technique known as scordatura, lowering the instrument’s top E string to E-flat) on Halloween with the xylophone representing skeletons dancing on their graves. Its inspiration came from Franz Liszt’s 1853 “Totentanz” or “Dance of Death,” for piano and orchestra, inspired in turn by a series of woodcuts by Hans Holbein the Younger that depict Death coming for all, from the greatest of the great to the lowliest of the low.
(CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS’ “DANSE MACABRE” AND FRANZ LISZT’S “TOTENTANZ” )
ERIC: Charles Dutoit conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra in Saint-Saens' “Danse Macabre”; and pianist Alfred Brendel performed Franz Liszt’s “Totentanz” with the London Philharmonic and conductor Bernard Haitink on Major and Minor Masterpieces on Little Rock Public Radio and Classical KLRE-FM 90.5.
(SOUNDBITE OF WOJCIECH “BOITEG” CIESLINKSKI’S “FIRST VIOLIN”)
—PROGRAM BREAK—
[EDUCATIONAL SEGMENT]
SARAH BUFORD, PRODUCER:
Hey listeners, welcome back to Major and Minor Masterpieces. I’m your producer, Sarah Buford, and it's time for our show’s little educational session, in which we break down some of the terminology we use when describing classical music and its history.
Today let’s examine the ways string players — well, play. Can you explain the terms “arco” and “pizzicato”? And what other ways can string players make sounds with their instruments?
ERIC: Well, Sarah, as you noted, there are two principal ways string players create sound.
The first, “arco,” involves drawing the bow across the strings (“arco” is the Italian word for “bow,” both the violin bow and the bow used in archery). The player, draws the bow from the bottom, or frog, to the tip, which is known as “down bow,” or from the tip to the frog, which is “up bow.”
“Pizzicato” (Italian for plucked) usually involves the player using the index finger of the right hand to pluck the strings. (Legendary violinist Niccolo Paganini created a left-hand pizzicato, which he notably calls for in one of the variations of his 24th Caprice.) One of the best uses of pizzicato: the third movement of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4. And every orchestral string player has at one time or another performed American composer Leroy Anderson’s “Pizzicato Polka.”
There’s one more method of making sound on a string instrument: it’s called “col legno” (“with the stick” — “legno” is Italian for “wood”), which generally involves bouncing the wooden part of the bow, rather than the hair, on the strings. Among the places you’ll hear this effect: the “Dream of a Witches’ Sabbath,” the final movement of Hector Berlioz’s “Symphonie Fantastique.”
SARAH: Ooh, it’s probably been one of my favorites from all of our episodes. I think I probably need to listen to “Dream of a Witches’ Sabbath” again to become more familiar with the “col legno.” That’s so hard to pronounce! Col legno, col legno, col legno method. Alright, thank you so much, Eric. Now let’s get back to this week’s edition of “Major and Minor Masterpieces.”
[END OF EDUCATIONAL SEGMENT]
(SOUNDBITE OF WOJCIECH “BOITEG” CIESLINKSKI’S “FIRST VIOLIN”)
The second half of our show has a distinctly Latin accent sure to inspire you to put on your dancing shoes and kick up your heels.
Like his “El Salon Mexico,” Aaron Copland based his “Danzon Cubano” Latin American folk tunes, and particularly on the danzón, a stately Cuban dance. Leonard Bernstein conducts the New York Philharmonic.
(AARON COPLAND’S “DANZON CUBANO” )
ERIC: The New York Philharmonic and conductor Leonard Bernstein performed Aaron Copland’s “Danzon Cubano.”
Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla has been universally hailed as the king of the tango; the title of his “Tangazo” is, as are many of his pieces, a play on the word; it intertwines tango beats with lyrical episodes. Michael Tilson Thomas conducts the New World Symphony.
(ASTOR PIAZZOLLA’S “TANGAZO” )
ERIC: That was Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the New World Symphony in Astor Piazzolla’s “Tangazo.”
Mexican-American composer Arturo Marquez recalls the sensuality with a touch of nostalgia from the dance parlors of Mexico City in his “Danzon No. 2.” Alberto Ginastera was Piazzolla's first composition teacher; his ballet “Estancia” was one of his greatest successes. The lively “Malambo,” the ballet’s concluding section, has remained a popular concert piece. Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in both works.
(ARTURO MARQUEZ’S “DANZON NO. 2” AND ALBERTO GINASTERA’S “MALAMBO” FROM “ESTANCIA” )
ERIC: Gustavo Dudamel conducted the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in “Danzon No. 2” by Arturo Marquez and “Malambo” from “Estancia” by Alberto Ginastera.
And, finally: A piece that caused scandal at its 1928 premiere. And its use, in a truncated version, in the sex scene between Dudley Moore and Bo Derek in the movie “10” sent folks to record stores in droves.
(MAURICE RAVEL’S “BOLERO” )
ERIC: John Wilson conducted the Sinfonia of London in Maurice Ravel’s “Bolero” on today’s edition of Major and Minor Masterpieces.
(SOUNDBITE OF WOJCIECH “BOITEG” CIESLINKSKI’S “FIRST VIOLIN”)
Thanks for tuning in this week. I've been your host, Eric Harrison, of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Our producer is Sarah Buford with production assistance from Ryan Gregory and Jonathan Seaborn. And our transition and credit music is by our friend Wojciech Chiselinski. And thanks to various sources, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, for the program notes.
Tune in again next week for Major and Minor Masterpieces on Little Rock Public Radio and classical KLRE-FM, 90.5.
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Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky: “Trepak” from “The Nutrcracker,” State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia ''Evgeny Svetlanov”, Vladimir Jurowski, Pentatone 5186761
“Infernal Dance of King Katschei” from “The Firebird” by Igor Stranvisnky, London Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Järvi, Chandos 10989
“Dance of the Knights” from “Romeo and Juliet,” Act I, Scene 2, Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the San Francisco Symphony, RCA Red Seal, 09026-68288-2
Saint-Saëns: Bacchanale from “Samson et Dalila,” Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy Sony Classical G0100050896431
Strauss: ”Dance of the Seven Veils” from “Salome,” Berliner Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan, DG 4474412
Ravel: “Danse générale (Bacchanale)” from "Daphnis et Chloé," Detroit Symphony Orchestra & Paul Paray, Mercury Living Presence, SR9028
De Falla: “Ritual Fire Dance” from “El Amor Brujo,” New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein. Sony Classical G010003985480Y
Khachaturian: “Sabre Dance” from “Gayane,” Vienna Philharmonic, Andris Nelsons, Sony Classical 19802812529.
Saint-Saens: “Danse Macabre,” Philharmonia Orchestra, Charles Dutoit, Decca 4250212
Liszt: “Totentanz” (15:34), Alfred Brendel (piano), London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bernard Haitink, Philips 4767098
Copland: “Danzon Cubano” (6:46), New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein, Sony Classical G010003986200T
Piazzólla: “Tangazo” (14:26), New World Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas, Argo 4367372
Ginastera: “Malambo” from “Estancia,” and Marquez: “Danzon No. 2” (9:29) (3:25), Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, Gustavo Dudamel DG E4777457
Ravel: “Bolero” (14:43); John Wilson conducting the Sinfonia of London, Chandos CHSA 5280