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by | Mar 16, 2018 | Hosta

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Saint-Saëns ca. 1880

The Romance in D♭ major, Op. 37, is a composition by Camille Saint-Saëns for flute, accompanied by piano or orchestra, written in March 1871.

History

The piece was composed shortly after the Franco-Prussian War. After the Armistice of Versailles was signed on 28 January 1871, the Paris Commune assumed power in Paris on 18 March. Fearing for his safety, Saint-Saëns fled to exile in London. Under these extreme conditions, he wrote the Romance, an enchanting piece that seems to be musically undisturbed by the circumstances of composition.[1]

The piece was dedicated to Amédée de Vroye [nl], a then well-known flautist. Because of political upheaval in France, the work was premiered by de Vroye and Saint-Saëns in mid-1871 in Baden-Baden, Germany.[1] The Paris premiere was given by Paul Taffanel and Saint-Saëns at a Société nationale de musique concert at the Salle Pleyel on 6 April 1872. Saint-Saëns was a close friend of Taffanel, even becoming godfather to his daughter. Taffanel would become the Romance's real champion, performing it numerous times over the years.[2][3]

Music

Saint-Saëns composed six chamber music works titled Romance – the instrumental romance in three-part song form had gained significance from the 1860s onwards as the transcription of the extremely popular vocal romance.[1]

The work is scored for flute and piano, with a version for flute and an orchestra consisting of 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in A, 2 bassoons, 4 horns (2 natural, 2 chromatic), 2 trumpets in D, timpani, and strings.[2] The orchestral version was presumably planned from the outset.[1] The work was also arranged for clarinet and piano by Alfred Piguet in 1907.[2]

The Romance is a short piece at around six minutes. Edward Blakeman writes: "The Romance is a slight piece, but bewitchingly atmospheric. It spins an expressive line with the direct, unsentimental appeal of a lyrical mélodie."[3] Today it is one of the more popular minor works by the composer and has established itself as part of the flute's core repertoire.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Jost, Peter, ed. (2019). Camille Saint-Saëns. Romance D flat major op. 37 for Flute and Piano. Munich: G. Henle Verlag. pp. III–IV. ISMN 979-0-2018-1354-7.
  2. ^ a b c Ratner, Sabina Teller (2002). Camille Saint-Saëns, 1835–1922: A Thematic Catalogue of his Complete Works, Volume 1: The Instrumental Works. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 360–362. ISBN 978-0-19-816320-6.
  3. ^ a b Blakeman, Edward (2005). Taffanel: Genius of the Flute. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 44, 99. ISBN 0-19-517098-9.

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