RESPIGHI (1879-1936): Ancient Airs and Dances, Suite 2

(i) Laura Soave (ii) Danza Rustica (iii) Campanae Parisienses (iv) Bergamasca

The beginning of the twentieth century saw a revival of interest in sixteenth and seventeenth century music; in Italy, Ottorino Respighi was one of the first composers to incorporate the sounds of the Renaissance into his own music. A one-time pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov, he is perhaps most remembered as a brilliant orchestrator and arranger, although according to his wife and biographer ``nothing irked him more than to hear someone praise his orchestration''. His best-known (and justly famous) composition is The Fountains of Rome.

Respighi wrote three suites of Ancient Airs and Dances, of which the second is the biggest and dates from 1923. All the pieces are taken from collections of Renaissance lute music, although he has taken some liberties with their form and content. An interesting feature of the orchestration of this Suite is the inclusion of two harpsichord parts, both designed to be played on the same instrument. It would appear that the harpsichords which were being built in the 1920s and 1930s had the same range as a modern grand piano (we should prehaps remember that this was a period of rediscovery of early music, and our knowledge of early performance practice and instrument capabilities is rather more complete than was Respighi's) - on a small modern harpsichord, the piece presents logistical problems involving elbows, unless your harpsichord players are both very small!

The four movements of the Suite are as follows:
(i) Laura Soave - after Fabrizio Carosio.
Carosio was a sixteenth century scholar and lutenist. The piece is described as ``Ballet with Galliard, Saltarella and Canarie'', these all being types of dance.
(ii) Danza Rustica - after Jean-Baptiste Bésard.
Bésard (1567-1625) was something of a dilettante; he published books on medicine, history and philosophy as well as two volumes of lute music. This less than subtle ``Rustic Dance'' is from his 1617 collection.
(iii) Campanae Parisienses - Aria.
Respighi here uses two themes from the seventeenth century. The first is by that most prolific of composers, Autore Incerto (better known in the English-speaking world as Anon), and the second is by Mersenne Marin, whose only claim to faim seems to be that he is too obscure to be included in Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians ...
(iv) Bergamasca - after Bernardo Gianoncelli.
A Bergamasca is a peasant dance originating in Bergamo in Italy; the distinguishing characteristic is the bass line, here repeated ad nauseam. This piece can be found in a collection of lute music by Gianoncelli, published by his widow in 1650. Respighi's interpretation is somewhat free, and takes a more than cursory look at twentieth-century dance music in places.
  • To Richard's music page.