Symphony No. 1 ''O Imprevisto'' (''The Unforeseen'') is a composition by the Brazilian composer
Heitor Villa-Lobos
Heitor Villa-Lobos (March 5, 1887November 17, 1959) was a Brazilian composer, conductor, cellist, and classical guitarist described as "the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music". Villa-Lobos has become the ...
, written in 1916. A performance lasts about twenty-five minutes.
History
Villa-Lobos composed his First Symphony in 1916, to a philosophical argument written by himself under the pseudonym "Epaminondas Villalba Filho". It is the first in a cycle of five symphonies written in the style of
Vincent d'Indy
Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy (; 27 March 18512 December 1931) was a French composer and teacher. His influence as a teacher, in particular, was considerable. He was a co-founder of the Schola Cantorum de Paris and also taught at the Par ...
. It was given a partial performance (the second and third movements, according to some sources; the first and fourth movements according to another) on 20 September 1919 in the
Theatro Municipal Teatro Municipal, Theatro Municipal, Théâtre Municipal or Teatro Municipale (= Municipal theatre) may refer to:
* Théâtre municipal d'Albi
* Teatro Municipal de Caracas
* Teatro Municipal de Chacao
* Théâtre municipal de Grenoble
* Théâtre ...
in Rio de Janeiro by the Grande Companhia Italiana, conducted by
Gino Marinuzzi
Gino Marinuzzi (24 March 188217 August 1945) was an Italian conductor and composer, particularly associated with the operas of Wagner and the Italian repertory.
Biography
Marinuzzi was born and studied in Palermo, and began his career there a ...
. The complete symphony was first performed on 30 August 1920, again in the Theatro Municipal, by the Orquestra da Sociedade de Concertos Sinfônicos do Rio de Janeiro, conducted by the composer. At some later date, Villa-Lobos revised the score, adding tam-tam, glockenspiel, and side drum to the percussion section
Villa-Lobos had written the romantic-symbolic program text for this symphony already in 1907. It concerns the mystic relationship of the artist's soul with fate and the universe, but these philosophically effusive ideas are both difficult to understand and virtually imperceptible in the music. According to the text, the soul of the artist
Instrumentation
The symphony is scored for a large orchestra consisting of 2 piccolos, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, tam-tam, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, side drum, glockenspiel, celesta, 2 harps, and strings.
Analysis
The symphony has four movements:
# Allegro assai moderato
# Adagio
# Scherzo (Allegro vivace)
# Allegro con brio
References
Cited sources
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
Béhague, Gerard. 1994. ''Villa-Lobos: The Search for Brazil's Musical Soul''. Austin: Institute of Latin American Studies, University of Texas at Austin, 1994. .
* Peppercorn, Lisa M. 1980. "A Villa-Lobos Autograph Letter at the Bibliothèque Nationale (Paris)". ''Latin American Music Review'' / ''Revista de Música Latinoamericana'' 1, no. 2 (Autumn–Winter): 253–64.
* Salles, Paulo de Tarso. 2009. ''Villa-Lobos: processos composicionais''. Campinas, SP: Editora da Unicamp. .
{{portal bar, Classical music, Music
Symphonies by Heitor Villa-Lobos
1916 compositions