Tomás Bretón · Romanticism
1888
Orchestra · Madrid
Tonality
No tonality indicated in the title.
From the atril
In the Alhambra1888 is one of Breton's most popular orchestral works. In those years he led the Madrid Society of Concerts, the most important orchestra in the country, and wanted to show that Spanish symphonic music could have its own seal. The Alhambra of Granada, with its aura of mystery and the Andalusian past, was the perfect symbol of Spanish exotism that fascinated all of Europe.
The work is an orchestral serenade of evocative character, with melodies of Moorish air, ornate and sinuous, and rhythms that remember the point of the guitar. Breton, a training violinist, writes for the rope with great nature and takes advantage of the colors of the winds to create a nocturnal and dreamy atmosphere. It is a direct and pleasant music, designed to like the public, and it did it: it was played a lot in its time and also entered the repertoire of the music bands, where it is still alive. Listen to it next to the Morisca fantasy de Chapí shows how the 19th century Spanish musicians imagined their Arab past.
What to hear
- The melodies of Moorish air.
- The rhythms that imitate the guitar.
- The night atmosphere of the orchestra.
