Claude debussy nationality
Rhapsodie for saxophone and orchestra
Not to be confused with Première rhapsodie.
| Rhapsodie | |
|---|---|
First edition cover page | |
| Native name | Rapsodie pour orchestre et saxophone |
| Other name | Rhapsodie mauresque, Rhapsodie orientale |
| Catalogue | L.
98 |
| Composed | , Orchestrated |
| Dedication | Elise Hall |
| Scoring |
|
| Date | 14&#;May&#;&#;() |
| Location | Paris, France |
| Conductor | André Caplet |
| Performers | Pierre Mayeur (alto saxophone) |
Rhapsodie for saxophone and orchestra, L, also known as Rhapsodie mauresque or Rhapsodie orientale, is a piece for alto saxophone and accompaniment by Claude Debussy.
Completed in solo and piano form in , the piece is most well known through its orchestration of the accompaniment by Jean Roger-Ducasse.
Rhapsodie de claude debussy biography Composed between December and January , it was dedicated to the French clarinet professor Prosper Mimart. One of Debussy's first duties was to supply two works for the next year's clarinet examinations. The Rhapsodie was first performed as part of the examinations on July 14, In , Debussy had been commissioned to write a work for alto saxophone and orchestra by Elise Hall , but never finished the draft during his lifetime. This article about a classical composition is a stub.History
Commissioning a number of composers such as André Caplet and Vincent d'Indy, in American saxophonist Elise Hall had requested Debussy to compose a piece for the saxophone.[1] During the process of composition, Debussy is noted to have not looked favorably upon the abilities of either Hall nor the saxophone, and did not work on the commission for months.
After a number of visits by Hall to Paris, Debussy had given her a score of Pelléas et Mélisande and continued working on Rhapsodie.[2] Debussy had finished the piece's sketches in , but had resumed and completed the saxophone and piano score in , eventually sending the score off to Hall.
After Debussy's death in , Jean Roger-Ducasse orchestrated the piano accompaniment for a full orchestra in Rhapsodie eventually premiered on May 14, , at the Salle Gaveau by the Société nationale de musique, conducted by André Caplet.
Rather than Elise Hall, who at the time of the premier had become entirely deaf, Pierre Mayeur had played the solo saxophone part during the first performance.[3]
Boston Symphony performances on February featured the orchestra's Louis Speyer playing the solo part on English horn.[4] The November performances by Sigurd Rascher with the New York Philharmonic were of a "revised version by [conductor] Ernest Ansermet," where "Ansermet in revising the score has allotted to the saxophone some passages given by Roger-Ducasse to other wind instruments."[5]
Instrumentation
Jean Roger-Ducasse's orchestration calls for:
- Solo alto saxophone
- 3 flutes (one doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons
- 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba
- Timpani, triangle, tambourine, cymbals
- Harp
- strings
The NY Philharmonic performance gives the same instrumentation for Ansermet's revised version.