HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tomás Bretón y Hernández (29 December 1850 – 2 December 1923) was a Spanish conductor and composer.


Biography

Tomás Bretón was born in
Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...
. He completed his musical studies at the School of Fine Arts in his hometown, where he earned his living playing in small provincial orchestras, theaters and churches. At age 16, he moved to Madrid, where he played in orchestras in
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 ...
theatres. He also began his studies at the Royal Conservatory under Emilio Arrieta. In 1872, Bretón received the first prize for composition at the Conservatory, together with Ruperto Chapi. After having worked in small theaters for several years, in 1882 he received a grant from the Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando which enabled him to study in Rome, Milan, Vienna and Paris between 1881 and 1884. There, he found time to work on more ambitious works, such the oratorio ''El Apocalipsis'' and the opera ''Los amantes de Teruel''. The premiere of this last work at the
Teatro Real The Teatro Real () is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as "''El Real''" (The Royal One). it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts ...
de Madrid cemented his name as one of the major composers of Spanish opera. Briton was also very active as a conductor, first in the Unión Artistical Musical (1878–81), which he founded, and later in Madrid Concert Society, where he served as principal conductor between 1885 and 1891. In that capacity, he founded a series of concerts where both Spanish music and international novelties were played. In 1892, Francisco Tárrega dedicated his piece Capricho Árabe to him during his visit in Algiers, Algeria. In 1901, he became director of the Conservatory of Madrid, a position he held until his retirement in 1921, struggling to modernize teaching at the institution and broaden its international orientation. He died in
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 ...
by the age of the dead.


Work

Bretón gained renown as a result of the success of his
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 ...
'' La verbena de la Paloma'', although other were well-received works, included his operas '' Los amantes de Teruel'', based on the eponymous
legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...
, and '' La Dolores''. After his death, his extensive output was generally forgotten. His career spanned the majority of the musical areas of the period of the Restoration (1875–1923): Conservatorium Director, reputed orchestral conductor, composer of operas,
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, symphonic and chamber music.


Opera

He aimed to create a Spanish opera, which would form a basis for a national music. He not only expressed these ideas in his many writings, but also through a series of works he composed throughout his career, from '' Guzmán el bueno'' (1876) to '' Tabaré'' (1913). His series of nine operas, two of them in only one act, are an ambitious body of work for Spanish composers of his time. After a long polemic which delayed its première, ''Los amantes de Teruel'' (1889) amounted to its definitive consolidation, and was followed by proposals along very different lines, such as the Wagnerian in ''Garín'' (1892) for the Barcelona
Liceu The Gran Teatre del Liceu (; ; ), or simply Liceu, is a theater in Barcelona, Spain. Situated on La Rambla, it is the city's oldest theater building still in use for its original purpose. Founded in 1837 at another location, the Liceu ope ...
and the veristic in ''La Dolores'' (1894) for the Madrilenian Teatro de la Zarzuela. His last works, despite being tied to a strong nineteenth-century tradition, contain undeniable interest, such as '' Raquel'' (1900), based on the famous romantic drama, ''
Farinelli Farinelli (; 24 January 1705 – 16 September 1782) was the stage name of Carlo Maria Michelangelo Nicola Broschi (), a celebrated Italian castrato singer of the 18th century and one of the greatest singers in the history of opera. Farinelli ...
'' (1902), composed for the failed Teatro Lírico project, ''Tabaré'' (1913), set in America, and '' Don Gil de las calzas verdes'' (1914), based on a comedy by Tirso de Molina.


Zarzuela

At the same time, he approached the art zarzuela with unequal success. His output, while less than that of his contemporaries
Ruperto Chapí Ruperto Chapí y Lorente (27 March 1851 – 25 March 1909) was a Spanish composer, and co-founder of the Sociedad General de Autores y Editores, Spanish Society of Authors and Publishers. Biography Chapí was born at Villena, the son of a loc ...
, Gerónimo Giménez and Manuel Fernández Caballero, is of great quality, given the variety of genres which he tackled. He made several attempts at composing in the zarzuela grande genre, both in a more traditional line than previous generations in works such ''Cuatro sacristanes'' (1874), ''¡A los toros!'' (1876), ''¡Bonito país!'' (1877), ''El campanero de Begoña'' (1878) and ''Los amores de un príncipe'' (1881), and at the end of the century in the Circo de Parish, with ''El clavel rojo'' (1899) and ''Covadonga'' (1901), where he adopted more modern procedures, within the limitations of the genre. His greatest fame came from the género chico, especially ''La verbena de la Paloma'' (1894), one of the most famous zarzuelas of the Spanish repertoire, the most spectacular works view in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
, although he later composed many others which were not as successful.


Orchestral output

On the other hand, he wrote symphonic music with a singular insistence, at a time in which in Spain, orchestral ensembles barely existed. He composed and conducted numerous works for the Sociedad de Conciertos, of which he was chief conductor from 1885 to 1890. A result of this were his three symphonies (1872, 1883, 1905), revealing a strong assimilation of
Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...
's compositional techniques. His most successful works were those with a Spanish character, albeit in an Alhambristic vein –such as ''En la Alhambra (1887)''– or a more danceable one, as in ''Escenas andaluzas'' (1894). During his last years he composes various symphonic poems with a clear, nostalgic character, such as ''Los galeotes'' (1905) based on the famous Quixote episode, and ''Salamanca'' (1916) on popular themes from his native region. In the chamber-music genre he has left us various works, including three quartets (one of which is published), as well as a trio and quintet, composed from markedly classical standpoints, influenced by the French world of Saint-Saëns. His wide musical knowledge led him to tackle many other fields such as song, including a song-cycle based on
Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer Gustavo Adolfo Claudio Domínguez Bastida (17 February 1836 – 22 December 1870), better known as Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer (), was a Spanish Spanish Romance literature, Romantic poet and writer (mostly short stories), also a playwright, columni ...
's rhymes (1886), which was followed by ''Las golondrinas'', and the oratorio ''El Apocalipsis'' (1882) composed in Rome as one of the works written under the academy scholarship requirements. The prolific composer for the guitar Francisco Tárrega dedicated one of his greatest masterpieces, "Capricho Árabe", to Tomás Bretón.


Selected works

* Symphony No. 1 in F major (1873) * ''Guzmán el bueno'', opera (1876) * ''El campanero de Begoña'', zarzuela (1878) * ''Los amores de un príncipe'', zarzuela (1881) * ''El Apocalipsis'', oratorio (1882) * Symphony No. 2 in E flat Major (1883) * Piano Trio in E Minor (1887) * ''En la Alhambra'', symphonic serenade (1887) * ''Las golondrinas'', song cycle (1887) * ''Los amantes de Teruel'', opera (1889) * ''Garín'', opera (1892) * ''Escenas andaluzas'', orchestral suite (1894) * '' La Dolores'', opera (1894) * '' La verbena de la Paloma'', zarzuela (1894) * ''Raquel'', opera (1900) * ''El clavel rojo'', zarzuela (1899) * ''Covadonga'', zarzuela (1901) * Symphony No. 3 in G major (1905), arranged from a lost Piano quintet (1904) * ''Los galeotes'', symphonic poem after Cervantes (1905) * Violin Concerto in A minor, dedicated to the memory of
Pablo de Sarasate Pablo Martín Melitón de Sarasate y Navascués (; 10 March 1844 – 20 September 1908), commonly known as Pablo de Sarasate, was a Spanish violinist, composer and Conducting, conductor of the Romantic music, Romantic period. His best known work ...
(1909; orchestration lost; reconstructed by ) * ''Tabaré'', Opera (1913) * ''Don Gil de las calzas verdes'', opera (1914) * ''Salamanca'', symphonic poem (1916)


References


Bibliography

* Víctor Sánchez Sánchez: ''Tomás Bretón. Un músico de la Restauración'' (Madrid: Instituto Complutense de Ciencias Musicales, 2002). * Vincent J. Cincotta: ''Zarzuela. The Spanish Lyric Theatre: A complete Reference'', revised edition (Wollongong: University of Wollongong Press, 2011), , p. 766 (for specific references: pp. 57–60, 63, 78, 88–90, 134–137).


External links

*
Tomás Bretón String Quartet in D Major & Piano Trio in E Major
Soundbites and discussion of works * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Breton, Tomas 1850 births 1923 deaths 19th-century Spanish classical composers 19th-century Spanish conductors (music) 19th-century Spanish male musicians 20th-century Spanish classical composers 20th-century male composers 20th-century Spanish conductors (music) 20th-century Spanish male musicians Madrid Royal Conservatory alumni Spanish male conductors (music) Spanish male opera composers People from Salamanca Spanish opera composers Spanish Romantic composers