The ''Festive Overture'', Op. 96 is an orchestral work composed by
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...
in 1954. Commissioned for the
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...
's celebration of the 37th anniversary of the
October Revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
, the score has since become one of the most enduring of Shostakovich's occasional scores.
Background
At the time the ''Festive Overture'' was composed, Shostakovich was engaged with the Bolshoi Theatre as a musical consultant. According to Lev Lebedinsky, the commission resulted from an impromptu visit to the composer's apartment by
Vassili Nebolsin Vassili Vassilyevich Nebolsin (russian: Василий Васильевич Небольсин; 11 June (30 May O.S.) 1898 – 29 October 1958) was a Russian conductor. He studied at the college of the Moscow Philharmonic and became conductor ...
, who came to express the Bolshoi's urgent need of a celebratory work on short notice.
With only three days to meet the deadline, Shostakovich agreed to provide an appropriate work and immediately began to compose the ''Festive Overture''.
Within an hour, Nebolsin began to send couriers to the composer's apartment to pick up the score page by completed page, who then took them to the Bolshoi's music copyists in order to prepare the parts for performance. The premiere of the score took place on November 6, 1954 at the Bolshoi, with the house orchestra conducted by
Alexander Melik-Pashayev
Alexander Shamil'evich Melik-Pashayev (russian: Александр Шамильевич Мелик-Пашаев; hy, Ալեքսանդր Մելիք-Փաշայան, Alek’sandr Melik’-P’ashayan; 23 October 1905, in Tbilisi – 18 June 1964), P ...
.
Instrumentation
Shostakovich scored the overture for one
piccolo
The piccolo ( ; Italian for 'small') is a half-size flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" the modern piccolo has similar fingerings as the standard transverse flute, but the so ...
, two
flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
s, three
oboe
The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range.
A ...
s, three
clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
s in A, two
bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...
s, one
contrabassoon
The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences.
Differences from the bassoon
The reed is consi ...
; four
horn
Horn most often refers to:
*Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound
** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments
*Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...
s in F, three
trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
s in B-flat, two
trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...
s, one
bass trombone
The bass trombone (german: Bassposaune, it, trombone basso) is the bass instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments. Modern instruments are pitched in the same B♭ as the tenor trombone but with a larger bore, bell and mouthpiece to ...
, one
tuba
The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
; a
percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
section with
timpani
Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...
,
triangle
A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC.
In Euclidean geometry, an ...
,
cymbal
A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs soun ...
s,
bass drum
The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...
, and
snare drum
The snare (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often used ...
; and
strings
String or strings may refer to:
*String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...
. Shostakovich also includes an extra complement of brass consisting of four horns in F, three trumpets in B-flat, two trombones, and one bass trombone.
Music
The ''Festive Overture'' begins with a brass fanfare which later reappears before the work's coda. It was recycled from the "Birthday" movement of the
Children's Notebook
''Children's Notebook'' (russian: Детская тетрадь, Detskaya tetrad), also known as ''A Child's Exercise Book'', Op. 69 is a suite for piano composed by Dmitri Shostakovich. Although precise dating is uncertain, it is believed t ...
, Op. 69.
Gerard McBurney has observed that the work's resemblance to
Mikhail Glinka's overture to his opera ''
Ruslan and Lyudmila Ruslan may refer to:
* ''Ruslan'' (film), a 2009 film starring Steven Segal
* Ruslan (given name), male name used mainly in Slavic countries, with list of people
* Antonov An-124 ''Ruslan'', large Soviet cargo aircraft, later built in Ukraine and ...
'' is evidence for its use as a model for Shostakovich. Altogether the ''Festive Overture'' lasts approximately 6 minutes.
Shostakovich himself described the ''Festive Overture'' as "just a short work, festive or celebrative in spirit."
Reception
Lebedinsky attended the dress rehearsals of the ''Festive Overture'' and later recalled his initial impressions of the work: "I heard this brilliant effervescent work, with its vivacious energy spilling over like uncorked champagne." Sofia Khentova wrote that in this score Shostakovich had "with his habitual sensitivity. . . grasped the timeliness and necessity of the overture as a mass, democratic genre," praising its "spectacular flash of expressiveness, festive sparkle,
ndbrilliance of orchestration." The work became very popular and was often performed during commemorative events on Soviet holidays.
The ''Festive Overture'', along with the
Cello Concerto No. 1, was one of only two works which Shostakovich ever conducted himself. That performance took place at a festival devoted to his music in
Gorky on November 12, 1962.
Five years after Shostakovich's death, the ''Festive Overture'' was chosen as the signature musical theme of the
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...
in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
.
References
{{Authority control
Compositions by Dmitri Shostakovich
Concert overtures
1954 compositions
Compositions in A major