What is a symphonic suite? "Scheherazade" and its fairy tales in the work of Rimsky-Korsakov

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

There are many different genres in classical music: concertos, symphonies, sonatas, plays. All of them differ from each other in the features of the structure, the way the material is deployed, as well as the type of artistic content. One of the most interesting genres is the suite, a combination of several diverse pieces united by one idea. Suites are instrumental (for one instrument) and symphonic (for the whole orchestra). What is a symphonic suite in music? In this article, we will talk about this using the example of one of the most beautiful works in this genre.

The history of the suite genre. Clavier suites

We owe the phenomenon of the appearance of the suite to French harpsichordists. It was in their work that this genre was most widespread. Initially, the suites were exclusively applied in nature - it was a set of dances, where fast alternated with slow. There was a certain sequence - alemand, chimes,sarabande, jig. Moreover, the tempo difference between them looked like this: calm / moving, slow / fast. After the chimes, one or more inserted dances could sometimes follow - a minuet, an aria.

J. S. Bach brought a somewhat different meaning to the interpretation of this genre. In his French and English suites, danceability remained only as a metrical basis. The content has become much deeper.

What is a symphonic suite?

Romantic composers, known for their love of reviving old genres, very often turned to suite forms. There was no longer a trace of danceiness in them, but the principle of contrast remained. Only now he concerned, rather, the content of the music, its emotional content. Answering the question, what is a symphonic suite in the works of romantics, it is important to emphasize that, first of all, it began to be based on programming. The unification of the parts by the main idea gave the symphonic suites integrity and made them close to the genre of the poem. This genre was especially widespread in the works of Russian composers.

What other symphonic suites are there?

Sometimes composers wrote symphonic suites as an independent work, for example, Tchaikovsky's suite "Romeo and Juliet". Very often they were composed from numbers of some major work, for example, S. S. Prokofiev's suite based on his own ballet Romeo and Juliet, again. There were cases when a symphonic suite was the result of an arrangement by onecomposer of an instrumental composition by another. This happened with M. P. Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" cycle, which M. Ravel subsequently orchestrated. Most often, the basis of the software of the suite was a literary work. This is how Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonic suite was written.

Arabic tales in orchestral performance

Russian composers had an insatiable love for oriental themes. In the work of almost every one of them you can find oriental motifs. N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov was no exception. The symphonic suite "Scheherazade" was written under the impression of the collection of fairy tales "A Thousand and One Nights". The composer chose several unrelated episodes: the story of Sinbad the sailor, the story of Prince Kalender, a holiday in Baghdad, and a fairy tale about the love of a prince and a princess. "Scheherazade" poured out from the composer's pen during one summer of 1888 in Nizhgovitsy. After the very first performance, this work became extremely popular with listeners, and is still one of the most performed and recognizable compositions.

Musical material "Scheherazade"

Leitmotif is a term coined by the Romantics. It denotes a bright, memorable theme attached to a certain character, idea or character. Recognizing it among the general musical flow, it is easier for the listener to navigate the literary outline of the work. Such a leitmotif in the Rimsky-Korsakov suite is the theme of theScheherazade. The enchanting sound of the solo violin draws the thin body of the wise sultana, bending in a graceful dance. This famous theme, which, by the way, is a very serious challenge to the skill of the violinist, serves as a unifying thread for the entire work. She appears before the first, second and fourth parts, and also in the middle of the third.

The theme of the sea is a very bright musical material. The composer was so successful in conveying the movements of the waves with the help of orchestral means that we simply visibly feel the breath of the ocean and the breath of the sea air.

Form and content: symphonic suite "Scheherazade"

Rimsky-Korsakov did not want the listener to have a certain image when listening to this work. Therefore, the parts do not have program names. However, knowing in advance what images can be found there, the listener will be able to enjoy this magnificent music much more.

What is the symphonic suite "Scheherazade" in terms of musical form? This is a four-part work linked by common themes and images. The first part paints a picture of the sea. The choice of key is not accidental - E-major. Rimsky-Korsakov, the owner of the so-called color hearing, saw this tonality in a sapphire color, reminiscent of the color of a sea wave. In the second part, the bassoon solo brings the proud and brave prince Kalender to the stage, telling about his military exploits. The third part is a love story between a prince and a princess. She is full of love delight and sweet bliss. In the fourth movement, Rimsky-Korsakov made full use of all the colors of the orchestra to conveyunbridled joy at a celebration in Baghdad.

So, what is the Scheherazade symphonic suite? This is a bright work with a noticeable oriental flavor, held together by one idea. Every evening, Scheherazade tells his formidable husband, who vowed to execute his wives after the very first night, another tale. Her gift for storytelling is so great that the enchanted sultan delays her execution. This continues for a thousand and one nights. Four of them and we can listen if we get acquainted with Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade.