''Six Metamorphoses after Ovid'' (Op. 49) is a piece of
program music
Program music or programatic music is a type of instrumental art music that attempts to musically render an extramusical narrative. The narrative itself might be offered to the audience through the piece's title, or in the form of program note ...
for solo
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 ...
written by English composer
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...
in 1951.
History
The piece was inspired by
Ovid's ''
Metamorphoses
The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...
''. It is dedicated to oboist
Joy Boughton, daughter of
Benjamin Britten's friend and fellow composer
Rutland Boughton
Rutland Boughton (23 January 187825 January 1960) was an English composer who became well known in the early 20th century as a composer of opera and choral music. He was also an influential communist activist within the Communist Party of Gre ...
, who gave the first performance at the Aldeburgh Festival on 14 June 1951.
Structure
Each of the six sections is based on a character from
Roman mythology
Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representat ...
who is briefly described:
[
# Pan, "who played upon the reed pipe which was ]Syrinx
In classical Greek mythology, Syrinx (Greek Σύριγξ) was a nymph and a follower of Artemis, known for her chastity. Pursued by the amorous god Pan, she ran to a river's edge and asked for assistance from the river nymphs. In answer, sh ...
, his beloved."
# Phaeton, "who rode upon the chariot of the sun for one day and was hurled into the river Padus by a thunderbolt."
# Niobe
In Greek mythology, Niobe (; grc-gre, Νιόβη ) was a daughter of Tantalus and of either Dione, the most frequently cited, or of Eurythemista or Euryanassa, the wife of Amphion and the sister of Pelops and Broteas.
Her father was the ru ...
, "who, lamenting the death of her fourteen children, was turned into a mountain."
# Bacchus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
, "at whose feasts is heard the noise of gaggling women's tattling tongues and shouting out of boys."
# Narcissus, "who fell in love with his own image and became a flower."
# Arethusa, "who, flying from the love of Alpheus the river god, was turned into a fountain."
The piece is between 10 and 15 minutes in length.
Music
The music of the first metamorphosis echoes the "free-spirited" character of its titular figure: it is unmeasured and includes frequent pauses. This contrasts with the second metamorphosis, a quick and rhythmic representation of the chariot ride of Phaeton, marked ''vivace ritmico''. The third is slower and is marked ''piangendo'', or "crying". The four-part fourth metamorphosis reflects the atmosphere of a drunken feast or festival. The fifth, marked ''lento piacevole'', is meant to convey the act of staring at a reflection in a pool. The work concludes with a "pleasant and meandering" representation of beauty and flow.
See also
* List of characters in ''Metamorphoses''
References
External links
* "Benjamin Britten and his Metamorphosis" by George Caird, UCE Conservatoire, 2006 - Double Reed News, No 76
Youtube video: Benjamin Britten - Six Metamorphoses after Ovid / Xiaodi Liu / Festival Mozaic
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 ...
solo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Six Metamorphoses After Ovid
Compositions by Benjamin Britten
Solo oboe pieces
1951 compositions
Music based on Metamorphoses