Pablo Sorozábal Mariezcurrena (18 September 1897 – 26 December 1988) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

composer of

zarzuelas () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name o ...

operas Opera is a form of Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a li ...

, symphonic works, and the popular ''romanza'', " No puede ser". He was born in

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, in a working-class family. Trained in San Sebastián,

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

and

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

; then in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where he preferred Friedrich Koch as composition teacher to

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian and American composer, music theorist, teacher and writer. He was among the first Modernism (music), modernists who transformed the practice of harmony in 20th-centu ...

, whose theories he disliked. It was in Germany that he made his conducting debut, and the rostrum remained at the centre of his working life. His Leipzig concert works include the choral ''Suite vasca'' (1923); ''Dos apuntes Vascos'' (1925) and ''Symphonic Variations on a Basque Theme'' (1927); of later works the funeral march ''Gernika'' for chorus and orchestra (1966) is outstanding. The ''Siete Lieder'', 1929 settings of

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; ; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was an outstanding poet, writer, and literary criticism, literary critic of 19th-century German Romanticism. He is best known outside Germany for his ...

for mezzo-soprano and orchestra, are perhaps the finest works he produced in Germany. Two short but powerful compositions for chorus and orchestra, ''Maite'' (‘Our Lady’, from the 1946 film ''Jai-Alai'') and ''¡Ay, tierra vasca!'' (1956) retain their place in the hearts of his Basque countrymen. ''Katiuska'' (1931) was his stage debut, and the twenty or so

zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name o ...

s which followed combine lyric fire and inimitable orchestration with an unfailing sense of theatre. Best-loved are his classic ''madrileño'' comedy ''La del manojo de rosas'' (1934) and the “nautical romance” set on the Atlantic Coast '' La tabernera del puerto'' of 1936. The latter includes the ''romanza'' "No puede ser", made internationally popular when sung in the '' Three Tenors'' concerts by

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

. His one-act

verismo In opera, , from , meaning 'true', was a post-Romantic operatic tradition associated with Italian composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Umberto Giordano, Francesco Cilea and Giacomo Puccini. ''Verismo'' as an operatic ge ...

opera ''Adiós a la bohemia'' (from a short story by

Pío Baroja Pío Baroja y Nessi (28 December 1872 – 30 October 1956) was a Spanish writer, one of the key novelists of the Generation of '98. He was a member of an illustrious family. His brother Ricardo was a painter, writer and engraver, and his ne ...

) also retains its popularity in Spain. Sorozábal's liberal sympathies left him somewhat isolated after the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, and many of his later zarzuelas were first seen outside the capital or in less prestigious Madrid theatres. They include the ambitious, allegorical romance ''Black, el payaso'' (1942) and the ski-sports musical ''Don Manolito'' (1943), both of which starred popular Basque soprano Pepita Embil. Sorozábal also wrote scores for non-musical films, notably the classic Spanish film '' Marcelino Pan y Vino'' (1955). His tenure as director of the Madrid Symphony Orchestra ended abruptly in 1952 when he was refused permission to conduct

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 thereafter was regarded ...

’s Leningrad Symphony; and though his musical comedy ''Las de Caín'' was premiered at the

Teatro de la Zarzuela The Teatro de la Zarzuela is a theatre in Madrid, Spain. The theatre is today mainly devoted to zarzuela (the Spanish traditional musical theatre genre), as well as operetta and recitals. History The theatre was designed by architect Jerónim ...

in 1958, the opera ''Juan José'' had to wait for its belated (and highly successful) concert premiere until February 2009, after a full production was suspended during rehearsals in Madrid during 1979. With his death in Madrid on 26 December 1988 the last chapter in the creative history of the romantic zarzuela came to an end. Sorozábal's theatrical vitality, musical wit and dramatic force are second to none in the history of

and rival the best of his German and Italian music theatre contemporaries, such as

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (; ; March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for hi ...

.The Zarzuela Companion, Christopher Webber (Scarecrow Press Maryland 2002) (p.232)

References

Sources

''extract from Christopher Webber's biography on '' zarzuela.net '' with permission''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sorozabal, Pablo 1897 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Spanish classical composers 20th-century male composers 20th-century Spanish conductors (music) 20th-century Spanish male musicians Basque classical composers Spanish male conductors (music) Spanish male opera composers People from San Sebastián Spanish opera composers